Hasta La Gadget!

Despite middling reviews and first-generation technology, people can’t get enough of 3D TVs. In March, Panasonic released it first 3D set as a Best Buy exclusive. Next month, the company will expand its line and will roll them out to more stores. In early May, you’ll be able to pick up 50- and 54-inch models, with 58- and 65-inch sets following in June.

Perhaps Panasonic is putting out the pricing information early so you have time to save your pennies. The 50-inch TC-P50VT25 will list for $2,599.95, the 54-inch TC-P54VT25 for $2,999.95, the 58-inch TC-P58VT25 for $3,399.95, and the 65-inch TC-P65VT25 for $4,299.95.

All four models in the line will offer a full 1080p 3D image. They require the viewer to wear Active Shutter Eyewear to create the three-dimensional effect. Only one pair is included with each set, which seems pretty chintzy considering the price.

ViewSonic just announced its $99 (street) PGD-150 Active Stereographic 3D shutter glasses for its projectors, which helps to answer the question: Now that you can go out and buy 3D-ready projectors, what are you going to do with them?

That’s a question I’ve been asking as I’ve been working on ways to test the new generation of projectors, but you may have been asking the same thing about using them. There’s been lots of talk about 3D games and movies; however, when I first asked ViewSonic how to test 3D on their 3D-ready projectors, they told me I’d need stereographic glasses. And they weren’t for sale yet except as part of the Nvidia 3D Vision kit, which also required running games or movies strictly on a PC and worked only with systems using specific Nvidia video cards. Oh.

That’s just changed–at least for the particular 3D scheme that ViewSonic is using.

Sick of your cable company? Well, thankfully, much of that content is available now through other channels (forgive the pun), such as Hulu and Netflix. And according to a new report, number of consumers in the U.S. have opted to “cut the cord” of their cable providers, in favor of Web-based content providers.

The report puts the number at around 800,000. it doesn’t seem all that large when compared to the roughly 100 million homes in the US who are sticking with cable for the time being. But the number seems to be growing–rapidly. According to the Convergence Consulting Group, the which released the the report, the number of people abandoning cable will double to 1.6 million by the end of next year.

Still wondering why you may need a NAS device
like Iomega’s iConnect
Wireless Data Station? Take some inspiration from mixed-martial-arts
fighter Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal.

King Mo is prepping for a title fight against STRIKEFORCE World Light
Heavyweight Champion Gegard Mousasi on April 17th. According to this April
13th Iomega press release, he is using the Iomega
ScreenPlay Director HD Media Player to critique his recorded
training sessions. King Mo is also using the iConnect Wireless Data
Station and the 500GB Iomega eGo BlackBelt Portable Hard Drive.

So why is King Mo employing technology in his preparation for the
upcoming fight? “The title fight this Saturday in Nashville will be one
of the biggest nights of my life,” said King Mo. “I’ve been training
extremely hard during the day and studying film at night, which is why
the Iomega products have been such a plus for me. It’s great to be able
to fine tune my form and technique by studying my training sessions and
other content on my big screen TV in the living room, as well as having
access to all my digital data whether I am at home or on the road. The
versatility and dependability of the Iomega products is perfect for my
personal life and the aggressive professional goals I’ve set for
myself.”

No word yet if King Mo will have “Iomega” emblazoned across his
trunks on the night of the fight.

I was excited when I originally wrote about the XStreamHD movie box, with an integrated satellite receiver that could cache HD movies on a local server. But unfortunately, that was in 2007.

Now, more than two years later, XStreamHD is preparing to launch its hardware on April 30, according to a press release that came out in January. (I also received an additional reminder to preorder the service on Friday, which implies that they’re holding to the schedule.)

Unfortunately, a movie-only service in 2010 looks considerably dated.

XStreamHD is launching two hardware bundles: a FAST Start package is priced at $399, while the Pro Start package will be offered for $499.  They’re essentially identical, with a 1-terabyte media server, an HD media receiver, HDMI and Ethernet cables. The Pro Start, however, offers what the company calls audiophile-quality audio output. TWICE reported last year that the service will carry a $10 monthly fee, plus the fees for the rental
or purchase of movies, videos and music.