HomeCinemaBanter - High definition TV

Documentary subtitling bugs me

Anthony Buckland[_2_] — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 00:02:39 GMT

I have a problem with subtitles in documentary programs
of late. (1) I often have these programs on while doing the
dishes, and am as much listening as watching -- I
certainly don't have the time to go sit enraptured to the
exclusion of all distractions, within viewing distance.
(2) I have only a 32-inch LCD, which was cutting edge
when I bought it; yet often the subtitling seems to be
done anticipating that the least financially endowed
viewer has at least a 60-inch screen so that the on-screen
Czech survivor of WWII's comments on the climactic
tank battle can be resolved by someone with mere
20-20 vision. What the poor remaining CRT owners do
with the vague white smear across the bottom of their
screens, I do not know.

The Factors Affecting Blu-Ray Adoption

whosbest54[_2_] — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 16:59:46 GMT

Since I started the Blu-Ray copy protection and updates thread that has become pretty bloated,
I decided it was time to start a new thread about Blu-Ray adoption in general.

Just from my general observations over time, I knew that the issue of updates, copy protection
and what consumers expect a player to be - an "appliance" type unit that can normally be
depended on to work all the time - or something that needs more tech savvy support for
updates, isn't the only issue affecting Blu-Ray adoption.

A quick web search easily found a decent and fairly recent article about most of the factors
affecting Blu-Ray adoption:

For me, the bottom line is I don't invest in technology until it has fairly decent mass
consumer acceptance and the entry prices are reasonable for my pocketbook, and Blu-Ray isn't
there yet. I expect at some point in the near future it will be. Obviously, for others, they
feel it is there, and I respect that and hope they enjoy their players and discs.

whosbest54
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Sony TVs

Tim — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 20:08:44 GMT

So I got my dad a 40" Sony TV.
They make an annyo

web tv & hdtv

Charlie Allen — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 01:12:38 GMT

can anyone please tell me how to connect my web tv to my new hdtv? thank
you kindlly. charlie

Copy Protection Makes Dozens of Blu-Ray Titles Unplayable

whosbest54[_2_] — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 22:26:58 GMT

Another reason to hold off on adopting blu-ray. I'm still holding off.

<http://www.nytimes.com/external/giga...m-copy-protect
ion-makes-dozens-of-blu-ray-titles-un-41787.html?ref=technology>

or

http://tinyurl.com/3x2u39n

whosbest54
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Proscan 40LD45Q 40" HDTV review

Les Cargill[_2_] — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 01:36:02 GMT

Our old Zenith 36" glass tube model failed spectacularly about a month
ago - sounded ( and smelled ) like a short in the flyback. It's
kinda sad, but you just don't fix 'em any more, and at the weight of
that thing, you don't haul it in to get it fixed, either.

I began to realize that there were probably reasons to buy something
more expensive, but I couldn't figure out what those reasons were.
I like to buy last years' tech because it's cheap.

So WalMart offers the Proscan 40LD45Q for $399. I got one. Did
the Ship-To-Store thing. It's back to the Sears business
model - you can buy one form the floor for half again, or
order it through the catalog for the real price.

I just can't complain. It's CCFL and
when the screen is pure black, it's not very black
and there are bright spots, but this is only perceptible when
it's *all* black, which I'll live with. Looks
a little like a photographer's backdrop.

When we ran a Vista machine into the VGA port, and
viewed some high-res graphics from online, it's just
breathtaking.

It's 60 Hz, so I made a point of watching a couple hours'
football in HD to make sure the refresh rate wasn't
a problem. It isn't - I've watched TV using a USB dongle
for a couple years' now on a 60 Hz LED monitor, so I wasn't
concerned.

For audio routed through the unit, there is also
about a 100 msec delay. If this bothers me, I can
simply route around it. It does at this writing, but
I haven't executed the route-around. The onboard
audio is worthless ( one thing I miss about the Zenith )
but I have a nice set of small stereo speakers available.

I don't know if these are back stock from 2008/2009, or
what the deal is, but it *is* a deal. I'm sure you can
spend more and get more, but I'd be lying if I said
I knew what that was. The 100 msec delay and bright
spots on black are the only niggles, and neither is
significant.

--
Les Cargill

Vizio Warranty?

(PeteCresswell) — Sun, 22 Aug 2010 15:48:07 GMT

I pulled the trigger on a Vizio Razor series 32" (XVT 32 3SV) at
Sam's club - mainly bc we already have a smaller Vizio that has
been OK and the Razor had the PIP feature that I wanted for this
one.

Then I started reading Vizio reviews.... yeah, stupid - I know...
putting the cart before the horse.

Now I know from Tier-1, Tier-2, Tier-3... and so-forth. Oh
well....

I've seen enough negative Vizio reviews (both on support and
product) to give me second thoughts.

But Sam's online ordering has a little "gotcha": when the "Cancel
this order" button is clicked, it throws "Cannot process... at
this time.... please contact Customer Service.".

The gotcha being that Customer Service seems tb open only during
certain hours - probably something like "regular business hours"
wherever their home office is.

I am guessing that the order is going tb too far down the
processing chain by the time Monday rolls around and I'm gonna be
stuck with it.

So... not the end of the world, but it seems like time to start
thinking about purchasing an additional warranty - beyond the
mfr's 12-months.

Mostly, my approach has been that if something electronic is
going to fail it will probably fail within the first year and
additional warranty dollars are a waste. But I've seen sooooo
many *really* irate rants about Vizio products failing after more
than 12 months that I have to reconsider that view.

Reading more on the subject, it seems like there are Vizio
warranties and Sam's Club warranties... and maybe other types.

On-Premise = Good. I don't want to have to store this thing's
packing for the rest of my life against a warranty return.

Anybody got some insights into the warranty vendor that would be
least likely to be a hassle if/when this thing emits that little
puff of smoke?
--
PeteCresswell

Toshiba

Tim — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 22:59:15 GMT

What are the general impressions with Toshiba? How about this model?

40G300U

Vizio adds new features and functionality to their top-line LED backlitlocal dimming models

UCLAN[_2_] — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 18:35:43 GMT

Some TV makers have stopped offering LED-backlit LCD HDTVs with local dimming
in order to focus on edgelit versions instead, but the value-minded brand
Vizio continues its support of this important, performance-oriented product
category with three updated top-tier models.

http://www.avguide.com/review/vizio-...3?src=Playback

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Sharp Attempts To Re-Define What A Primary Color Is

UCLAN[_2_] — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 18:33:02 GMT

While the market release of the Sharp Quattron series flat panel HDTVs, which
feature four sub-pixel colors as apposed to the usual three, the firm has
embarked on an aggressive marketing campaign that includes snazzy TV spots
featuring George Takei (of Mr. Sulu fame), all touting the advantages of
watching HDTV with four �primary colors.� Indeed, the carton box the sets come
in features a huge graphic with the four primary colors theme as the prominent
message.

http://www.avguide.com/blog/sharp-at...r?src=Playback

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Sharp�s Quattron LCD flat panel comes with four pixel colors instead of the usual three

UCLAN[_2_] — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 18:29:04 GMT

Back in January in Las Vegas at the annual Consumer Electronics Show, while
some other TV brands were debuting 3D HDTVs, Sharp instead cause a stir by
bowing a series of HDTV flat panels branded Quattron that were equipped with
four pixel colors instead of the usual three, adding yellow pixels to go along
with the usual red, green and blue elements.

http://www.avguide.com/review/sharp-...3?src=Playback

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Two Good Cable Articles on the Same Day

whosbest54[_2_] — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 18:26:37 GMT

Wire is wire is wire (which I've been saying in my RAO guide for years):

http://www.zdnet.com/blog/hardware/d...hyperbole/9380

and HDMI cables don't have to be expensive and don't be mislead by meaningless
refresh rate specs for them:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/38731070...h_and_gadgets/

whosbest54
--
The flamewars are over...if you want it.

Unofficial rec.audio.opinion Usenet Group Brief User Guide:
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Glenn Uhlenbeek aNneke zweers Surinamese guitarist

glennuhlenbeekannekezweers — Tue, 17 Aug 2010 15:01:06 GMT

Dear SIRS NEWS FLASH

Glenn Uhlenbeek aNneke zweers Surinamese guitarist

>Environment:

FreeBSD leeuw.rock.bsd 6.2-RELEASE-p7 FreeBSD 6.2-RELEASE-p7 #2: Sun
Aug 5 16:06:53 AST 2007 :/usr/obj/usr/src/sys/
LEEUW i386

>Description:

Kino cant read mov files.
Quicktime support dont work even if you choose to enable it.
kino version 1.1.0 and 1.1.1
>How-To-Repeat:

Compile kino with WITH_QUICKTIME=yes
Start kino and go to export dv file.
You cant select quicktime.
>Fix:

Change in Makefile --with-quicktime to --enable-quicktime

Patch attached with submission follows:

--- ori.kino/Makefile Sat Aug 11 11:33:56 2007
+++ kino/Makefile Thu Aug 16 11:17:15 2007
@@ -50,7 +50,7 @@

.if defined(WITH_QUICKTIME)

holland, germany, france, Deutschland, Spain,

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Troll 2

Jim[_17_] — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 06:27:18 GMT

http://www.amazon.com/Troll-2-Blu-ra...1653553&sr=1-9
Glad to see bankrupt MGM not releasing crap like Bond and giving us classics
like this.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HyophYBP_w4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VqRccOQjmVQ

Vizio

wgd.roaming@verizon.net — Thu, 12 Aug 2010 13:48:54 GMT

Who might want to share their experiences with Vizio TVs?

Reliability?

Support?

Thank You!
Wayne