Hasta La Gadget!

At CES 2013, it is apparently a must for mainstream HDTV manufacturers to bring a 4K television and as a market leader, Samsung is no different. So what does the mighty S9 UHD TV bring to the table? At 85-inches, it claims a size that’s one inch beyond the competition, and features a crazy “Timeless Gallery” frame design that Samsung says “showcases the juxtaposition of a minimalist concept with such a large display.” Even after getting a firsthand look at it we’re still not sure how to interpret its odd stance, but after promising an “unprecedented new shape” we guess this… had to be it?

No matter how it’s propped up, it’s still high end all the way, with “Precision Black Pro” display tech for an extremely high contrast ratio, 2.2 channel audio and integrated scaler to make your 1080p videos viewable at the higher res. Naturally, you can also count on all of Samsung’s 2013 smart TV features with quad-core processor, voice and gesture control and apps making an appearance. There’s no word on pricing or ship date, but Samsung is promising 95- and even 110-inch sizes before the year is out — check below for more pics in the gallery and details from the press release.

Continue reading Samsung unveils 85-inch S9 UHD TV, 110-inch model to follow later this year

Filed under: Displays, Home Entertainment, HD

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Despite big splashes at CES last year, we never saw any OLED HDTVs hit store shelves from Samsung or its competitor LG, but both are fixated on changing that in 2013. Although availability and pricing are still TBD, the KNF559500 is rocking a model number and loads of specs. While most of them are on par with Samsung’s other top of the line HDTVs this year (quad core CPU, five panel Smart Hub and apps, recommendations, gesture control etc.), it’s differentiating itself with a display based on self-emitting RGB sub-pixels which it claims makes for absolute blacks, pure whites and prevents colors from being washed out or distorted.

Also unique to this HDTV from all others is support for Multi-View, which, with the addition of appropriate 3D glasses (each with their own built-in headphones) lets two people watch two entirely different things on the same screen at once. We’ll have to spend some time with it to know if the performance matches up to what will probably be a pretty hefty price tag, but if you’ve been looking for new display tech (and not just a jump in resolution) then this should be your year.

Continue reading Samsung unveils 55-inch OLED HDTV, really is planning to release it this year

Filed under: Cellphones, Home Entertainment, HD, Samsung

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We’re a little tied up this week (there’s a… rather minor electronics event going on) but we’re still bringing you our usual list of what to check for in HD. Our favorite show, Justified, kicks off its latest season this week, while many others return from winter break. Of course, there’s also the National Championship game tonight, and NFL playoffs action this weekend and, some day soon — NHL hockey. Look below for the highlights this week, followed after the break by our weekly listing of what to look out for in TV, Blu-ray and videogames.

Continue reading Must See HDTV (January 7th – 13th)

Filed under: HD

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Phillips isn’t showing off anything too groundbreaking at CES in the in the audio department, but it looks to be a solid offering all-around nonetheless. Whether you’re eyeing the likes of a new soundbar for your home theater system or portable wireless speaker, the company should have you covered — and of course that’s not all. We’ve got a quick breakdown of all the goods being shown off after the break, along with an eyes-on galleries so you can get up-close look for yourself. As always, you’ll find the full press releases below it all for more info.

Continue reading Philips showcases its 2013 Fiedelio audio lineup at CES lineup: we go eyes-on

Filed under: Home Entertainment, Portable Audio/Video, HD

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Vizio officially announced its 2013 HDTV lineup this morning and now we’ve gotten to see the new sets in person. At the top of the list are the company’s XVT Ultra models at 55-, 65- and 70-inches, which will bring 4K video to living rooms on an unknown date later this year. The company had the 70-inch set on hand showing some native 4K footage, and as you’d expect, it looked good. Viewing angles approach 180 degrees, and the new design’s 10mm bezel is barely noticeable. Speaking of which, the industrial design on the XVT line is understated and premium, with an anodized silver metal band surrounding the edge of the set and minimal branding.

In addition to the 70-inch set, Vizio also had a prototype 55-inch 3D XVT model that was most impressive. Its viewing angles were just as good as the 70-inch set, but the highlight is its glasses-free 3D. Vizio’s implementation of the technology takes full advantage of the 4K resolution to provide a high quality 3D picture, and its software maintains a focused picture from all angles. Of course, there are sweet spots for viewing the full 3D depth affect, but outside of those zones, 2D picture quality was maintained. Unfortunately, Vizio hasn’t committed to a 2013 release date for glasses-free 3D, but the rest of the lineup, set to debut later this year, will still have the firm’s glasses-dependent passive 3D technology. Interested? There’s plenty of pics of the new sets in our gallery below.

Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD

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