Google, Sony and Tivo Develop Smart Televisions

Amplify’d from techland.time.com

    Google, Sony, Tivo Form Crusading Supergroup For Smart Televisions

    By Graeme McMillan on February 18, 2011

    Google, Sony, Tivo Form Crusading Supergroup For Smart Televisions

    It's like the Justice League of Technology: Google, Sony, TiVo, Mitsubishi, Best Buy and two lesser-known companies (NagraVision and SageTV - Think of them as the Martian Manhunter and Aquaman of the team) have joined together to support the Federal Communication Commission's AllVid proposal, calling themselves the AllVid Tech Company Alliance.

    AllVid is a proposed device that would act as a "gateway" adapter allowing all types of pay TV content - whether it's cable or satellite TV, internet TV or IPTV - to be viewable on the same device, without new technology forcing consumers to have to upgrade their equipment. Initially proposed almost a year ago, the subject was greeted with less than enthusiasm from cable companies and content creators, with the Motion Picture Association of America criticizing it as potential promoter of pirated material.

    Will the FCC rise to the occasion? Will content creation companies cry foul, and point out this is another front in the ongoing war over platform consolidation? And most importantly, will the AllVid Tech Company Alliance really turn out to be a Justice League, or a Legion of Doom for consumers?

    Read more at techland.time.com

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Panasonic's first LED LCD 3D Television

Panasonic introduces its first LED LCD 3D TV

Comprising of 37 and 32 inch panels, the DT30 is the flagship 3D LED LCD range and includes the new IPS Alpha panel. Advantages of this panel include a fast response time and wide viewing angles, while 400 HZ backlight scanning for improved motion in 3D and 3D. This set includes an industry fastest scanning range of 2ms, reduced crosstalk and improved black reproduction.

Posted by Hannah Bouckley on Tue 15 Feb 2011

Panasonic also showed its flagship plasma range the VT30, first introduced at CES this 3D set is billed by a Panasonic spokesman as ‘the best TV we’ve ever built.’ Panasonic televisions have arguably never been as stylish and LG or Samsung rivals, but the company looks to change this with its High Line Design, her construction from a single piece of glass enables a wafer thin design.

There's no news on pricing yet, but the DT30 and VT30 are out in May/June, find out more from

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Rave Review of Panasonic's new DMR-EX78 DVD

You cannot go wrong with this new Panasonic's DMR-EX78 DVD according to review on whathifi.com.

EXCLUSIVE REVIEW: Panasonic's new DMR-EX78 DVD and 250GB hard-disk recorder tested Verdict You can get slightly cheaper DVD recorders, and you can get some with even larger hard disks, but this Panasonic offers a near-perfect blend of flexibility and value What with all the fuss surrounding hard-disk PVRs and Blu-ray disc players, a new DVD recorder might not seem the most exciting newcomer of 2008 - but in many ways, Panasonic's DMR-EX78 is actually one of the best buys we've come across so far this year. 1080p video upscaling Once installed – the work of moments – the DMR-EX78's image quality quickly astounds. It's equipped with an HDMI video output, as you'd hope, coupled to 1080p video upscaling if needed, and that, plus its excellent TV tuner, means broadcast pictures are simply terrific. The Panasonic gives you 250GB of inbuilt storage space, enough to offer 55 hours of recording in best-quality XP mode, 110 hours in SP mode, 221 hours in LP mode and 441 hours in EP mode.

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Are You Making the Switch to HD TV?

HD TV is about a 3 times improvement on DVD picture quality!

Is it worth switching to HDTV? By Colin Clements TO HD or not to HD. That is the question that’s been facing Australian consumers since the Seven Network stole a march on its competitors by launching Australia’s first high-definition (HD) multi-channel in October last year. But while that may be the case, the majority of Australians won’t experience it, with recent figures suggesting just over 30 per cent of Australian homes have a HDTV set. What you're missing HD works by using more pixels to deliver a higher quality picture than standard-definition (SD) television. It means sharper images, finer details and more colours. But to enjoy the full visual benefits of HD (around three times better picture quality than DVD), you’ll need an LCD or plasma television with a native resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels.

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Panasonic's Quality No Frills DMR-EX768 Recorder

Great review of Panasonic's DMR-EX768 DVD/HDD Recorder, although lacking the frills of their top end offering this is an excellent easy to use machine. Please click through to read the ful review.

Panasonic DMR-EX768 DVD/HDD Recorder The DMR-EX768 is another model from Panasonic's latest line-up of digital recorders, which in our opinion is the company's strongest ever. We recently tested the DMR-EX78 and were hit for six by its combination of convenient features, magnificent picture quality and ease of use, and the DMR-EX768 seemingly offers more of the same but at a lower price. Of greatest interest is the deck's extensive digital TV functionality. The built-in digital tuner offers the full Freeview channel line-up, which can be recorded directly onto the hard-disk or DVD. You can browse the TV schedules up to seven days in advance using the Guide Plus EPG, which lets you set timer recordings at the touch of a button. But the best thing about Panasonic's latest recorders is that they're all Freeview Playback compatible and therefore support series recording and split recording.

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Review of Panasonic's TH42PX80 42 Inch Plasma

Good review of Panasonics excellent value Plasma, well worth a look at if you cannot afford their full HD models.

clipped from www.hdtvorg.co.uk Panasonic TH42PX80 Review With the PX80 Panasonic have managed to retain a conservatism that most consumers will be happy with while introducing some simple but effective stylistic changes. A subtle upward curve at the base of the screen is a nice touch along with a wedge shaped pedestal which really does make this panel stand out from the crowd. The PX80 features 3 HDMI inputs (one more than the PX70) a PC/vga input along with 2 Scarts and the usual Composite, Component and S-Video inputs. Unlike the PX70 it also features 100Hz processing. Contrast ratio is up from a quoted 10,000:1 to 15:000:1 resolution. There is also an SD card slot. With the TH42PX80 Panasonic have maintained and enhanced their reputation for producing plasmas with excellent black levels. Improving on an already excellent black level performance over its predecessor the PX70, the PX80 while not quite reaching the standards set by Pioneer's Kuro range has done enough to cause some worried backward glances.

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