Hasta La Gadget!

How do we know that Philips will unveil a 65-inch 4K television at IFA on September 5th? Because that same, unannounced device has just won the European Ultra HD TV of 2013-14 award. The self-congratulatory press release mentions that the Ambilight XL-packing hardware will be offered at a “significantly lower” price point than current UHD sets, which generally retail for upwards of $7,000 for this sort of screen size. There’s no word on how much cheaper this new unit will be, but we’re hoping that Philips has updated its (slightly clunky) smart TV interface to complement the eye-watering resolution.

Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD

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Via: Pocket-lint

Alright, we admittedly don’t know a great deal about the provenance of the slide above. It was first picked up on Chinese social networking site Weibo, but the original post seems to have been deleted. What we do know, however, is that Sony’s forthcoming flagship phone, codenamed Honami, has already been rumored to possess a 4K-ready processor (the Snapdragon 800), and that Sony is wildly enthusiastic about 4K as something that can unite its expanding hardware ecosystem. The slide’s title therefore has a ring of truth to it, because it’s accompanied by Bravia branding and sounds like realistic marketing babble from a TV-focused presentation:

“How do you get 4K content? By shooting videos with a 4K cellphone.”

The slide also details a 20-megapixel Exmor R rear camera sensor for Honami, which tallies with earlier reports, as well as a meaty 2.2-megapixel front-facing camera. The only issue we have is with the quoted 4K video resolution of 4,000 x 2,000 — it’s unusual and doesn’t match the Ultra HD resolution Sony has settled on for its 4K TVs (3,840 x 2,160). In any case, resolution is only half the story. This is all speculative, of course, but if other bottlenecks in this phone forced Sony to compress the heck out of captured 4K video, there’s every chance it’d end up looking worse than 1080p.

Filed under: Cellphones, Home Entertainment, HD, Mobile, Sony

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Source: Vgooo

We got our first taste of NFL Sunday Ticket on the PS3 back in 2011, but now Sony has confirmed it’s not available for the 2013 – 2014 season. IGN asked PlayStation reps why the app would not be active this season and they wouldn’t confirm any specific reasons. For its part, DirecTV told us it’s working on enhancing the experience for new and existing satellite customers, although those who can’t get satellite TV can still sign up for the mobile / web streaming package. That league commissioner Roger Goodell recently made a cameo in Microsoft’s Xbox One launch event probably isn’t a total coincidence, but the package won’t be available there either, at least not for this season.

Filed under: Gaming, Home Entertainment, HD

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Via: Kotaku, Joystiq

Source: IGN, DirecTV

Bang & Olufsen is all about elegant design, and it’s not about to let a home theater receiver spoil those clean looks — see its newly unveiled BeoVision 12-65 New Generation TV as an example. This refresh of last year’s BeoVision 12-65 includes its own 7.1-channel audio module, letting viewers plug surround speakers into the 65-inch plasma without a go-between box. The upgrade also brings TrueImage, which mixes the sound to fit all available speakers, and lets owners customize audio presets. Bang & Olufsen hasn’t disclosed pricing for the New Generation, but the set should reach company stores in early September.

Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD

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Source: Bang & Olufsen

Drive-in theaters outlasted VHS tapes, but they may not survive the transition to digital-only movies — many drive-ins can’t afford the professional digital projectors they need to stay in business. Honda wants to give those outdoor venues a second chance through its new Project Drive-In rescue effort. At a minimum, the endeavor will donate digital projectors to five theaters based on web voting; further donations will depend on the results of an Indiegogo fundraising campaign. While there’s no guarantee that Honda can save a drive-in near you, it may be worth chipping in to preserve some classic Americana through modern technology.

Filed under: Home Entertainment, Alt

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Via: Autoblog

Source: Project Drive-In, Indiegogo