Hasta La Gadget!

Now this is more like it. Instead of chewing on another underwhelming 3D display, the Tech Radar crew have pulled in one of Sharp’s hot new Quattron sets — distinguishable, if you look really really closely, by the addition of yellow to the standard RGB colors in each pixel — and their experience has certainly been something to write about. Describing the LE821E’s color response as “utterly spectacular,” they go on to praise the LCD’s improved brightness thanks to the yellow sub-pixel’s higher transparency, confident upscaling of standard def pictures to Full HD resolution, and “inspired onscreen menus.” Counteracting the good stuff were mildly disappointing black levels and a £2,000 ($3,053) price for the 46-inch model. Sure it’s steep, but with Freeview HD and an 8GB HDD built into the box, we can think of a few ways to justify the expense. As ever, the source link will give you the unabridged verdict, so read on.

[Thanks, David]

Sharp’s 46-inch Quattron LE821E HDTV and its integrated Freeview HD DVR make reviewers gush originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 20 Apr 2010 05:14:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  Tech Radar  | Email this | Comments

Alright, so we all know (or should know) that a manufacturer’s stated contrast ratio isn’t the best way to judge the quality of an LCD, but we’ve got to hand it to BenQ with its new GL series of monitors, which boast a ridiculous 12,000,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio. That, as you might have guessed, is apparently the industry’s highest and, according to BenQ, helps to add “color depth and definition to darkened and complex visuals.” Otherwise, the 18.5-inch GL930, 19-inch GL931, 20-inch GL2030, 21.5-inch GL2230 and 22-inch GL2231 models each look to pack some decidedly more standard specs, including a 5ms response time, LED backlighting, varying amounts of ports depending on the model, and a 1,600 x 900 resolution on the 20-incher (complete specs on all the models aren’t available yet). That 20-inch GL2030 model is also the first of the lot to roll out (sometime this month), while the rest will be available in July.

BenQ debuts GL series of LCDs with 12,000,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 16 Apr 2010 05:11:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Electronista  |  BenQ  | Email this | Comments

As the GMT turns, Sony’s divisions are revealing their 3D plans for the rest of the year and the latest is its UK branch. The HX803 3D-ready model is first out the door in June, with LX903 and HX903 models arriving shortly afterward packing specs identical to their US cousins, with the addition of Freeview HD tuners and PAL-friendly refresh rates. Since the HX803 doesn’t come with any of those 100-hour battery rated glasses , viewers getting ready for the 2010 World Cup will likely opt for one of the 3D accessory packs with two pairs included plus the necessary IR emitter. No word on prices for any of these yet, but PS3 owners who buy a new TV within the launch “limited period” can expect to vouchers with download codes for 3D-upgraded versions of four PSN games: PAIN (3 episodes), WipEout HD (full game), Motorstorm Pacific Rift (single level demo) and Super Stardust HD (full game). Movie heads get Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs and Deep Sea Blu-ray 3D discs bundled with unspecified “selected products,” with the former going on sale by itself June 14. Check out all the details in the press release below or just refresh the Sony UK store until that preorder button shows up and we find out just how many pounds are needed to bring one home.

Continue reading Sony UK’s 3DTV launch includes a few free games to get early adopters started

Sony UK’s 3DTV launch includes a few free games to get early adopters started originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 14 Apr 2010 20:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments

Ahh, the sweet feeling of success — of completing a project that’s been lingering on for many moons. That is the feeling felt by the creator of the Dremel Junkie blog, who has for months been working on a project to take a 17-inch iMac G4 and turn it into a touchscreen monitor. It is, indeed, just a monitor, having been gutted to serve its purpose and is now displaying a signal from a Windows machine, of all things. But, the modder in question promises to rectify this situation shortly with a Mac Mini companion piece, which will surely make this mod feel a little more right. Video exploration after the break, and all the sordid details of its construction are included at the source link.

Continue reading G4 iMac turned into touchscreen monitor, relegated to Windows servitude (video)

G4 iMac turned into touchscreen monitor, relegated to Windows servitude (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 12 Apr 2010 10:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  Dremel Junkie  | Email this | Comments

No two ways about it, 2009 was a bad year for plasma. How else could you describe a year where the so called king of plasmas — and to many, HDTVs — exits the market? It was a hard enough hit when Kuro lovers learned that Panasonic would be manufacturing ’em instead of Pioneer, but when at the last minute Pioneer canceled the plan before the first Panasonic-branded-Kuro ever shipped, plasma lovers everywhere died a little inside. But all was not lost and Panasonic, Samsung and LG proudly continued on and didn’t miss a beat when Vizio joined the quitters of 2008 — Panasonic even opened the biggest plasma plant yet in 2009. Panasonic did step up, and by some accounts filled the void left by the Kuro by managing to win most of the best of awards of 2009; only to be tarnished by reports that the black levels were depreciated faster than expected.

But the year wasn’t all bad, as plasma prices dropped and in the second quarter of last year it actually did pretty well. Then at CES 2010 Panasonic’s 3D plasma demo stole the 3D show, and early reports showed that the new line offered even better blacks and a better 3D effect than LCD TVs. So while there are no signs that plasma will ever be the king of flat screen TVs, it has proven for yet another year that although LCDs garner the lion’s share of HDTV sales, plasma still owns a piece of the market and offers some advantages over the competition. So while the LCD vs plasma debate has never been as fun or as meaningful as a format war — after all it isn’t like choosing one excludes you from viewing content — it is an interesting battle to follow. In the coming years we expect LCD to continue to push plasma up in size and plasma to push LCD blacker and faster. So the great news is that in the end it is the consumer that is getting better HD viewing options.

LCD vs Plasma in 2010 originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 09 Apr 2010 16:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments