Hotels everywhere are jumping on the HD bandwagon, bringing high-def programming and giant flatscreens in-house to spice up the visitor experience. In fact, research firm iSuppli expects hotel TV sales to increase by a factor of 11 in the 5 year period between 2007 and 2012 as more people travel for both business and pleasure. 9.7 million units are expected to ship in 2012, up from less than 900, 000 in 2007 as an industry that once brought big money to CRT TV makers upgrade to the likes of LCD and plasma sets.
Toshiba Debuts 880-Inch LED HDTV...285 Feet Above Times Square
If you thought Sharp's LB-1085 108-inch LCD HDTV was a monster, you'll be absolutely stunned by Toshiba's new 880-inch LED HDTV dubbed Toshiba Vision Times Square. Okay, so you won't be seeing this in any living room in the near future-it looks over New York City's Times Square from 285 feet above the ground-but with high-def resolution and support for over one billion colors it's definitely worth mentioning. The 51.2 x 52.5 foot LED display integrates 1280 x 1248 LED's outputting a HD image using Toshiba's TECHNOVIRTUAL technology, pixel-sharing technology that uses adjacent pixels to create virtual pixels with a 12.5 mm pitch. The Godzilla of high-def outdoor displays is environmentally friendly thanks to its use of LED's and will be used to market Toshiba products to New York's giant population of gadget geeks.
Syntax-Brillian, Maker Of Olevia HDTV's, Going Bankrupt
Syntax-Brillian, the Tempe, Arizona-based maker of Olevia HDTV's, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection after struggling in the past year with weak sales and a failed restructuring attempt. Like nearly every major flat panel maker in the world, Syntax-Brillian has struggled with narrow profit margins thanks to plummeting flat panel prices, but being a second-tier TV maker hasn't fared well with its partnership attempts and executive changes.
The only company under Syntax-Brillian that wasn't under the Chapter 11 filing was their digital camera arm, Vivitar, which will be sold. But a newly formed company called Olevia International Group LLC will take on $60 million of the company's secured debt by purchasing certain assets. Which in the end makes us wonder--is the Olevia TV really dead?
As a wearer of contact lenses and a person that has a wild imagination I've often wondered what it would be like to have some type of display in the lens sitting on my eye. Sitting on the bus home from work, I could just sit there, tune out, and watch a movie and no one would know the difference. An engineering professor at the University of Washington named Babak Parviz is doing just that, embedding electrical circuits on a contact lens and now working on adding LEDs. If he's successful in adding the LEDs, he'll have created the tiniest "personal display" in history.
There are some tough problems to overcome though. First off, the tiny display has to be powered some way. Second off, your eye can't actually focus on something that close so light rays have to be manipulated by the lens itself to enable you to see a clear picture. Plus Parviz has to make sure that the electronics making up his invention don't do any harm to the eye. The engineer behind this feat has his detractors too, but in the future we'll keep our eye on Parviz because who wouldn't want a little TV basically embedded in their eyeball.
Sony's Going With FED TV's In 2009, Debuting A 60-Inch Super-Thin CRT-Like TV
While most of us think OLED and "networked" home theater products when looking at the future of Sony, they have yet another television technology up their sleeve. The company recently took over an old Pioneer plant where they plan to start mass producing FED panels in 2009. What is FED? Short for field emission display, FED is a next-gen display technology that takes all of the benefits of cathode ray tube TV's and crunches them into a super-thin display. Think about the deep blacks and total lack of motion blur in old CRT TV's and you have a worthy competitor to LCD and plasma, and OLED since FED panels are much easier to make.
Sony plans to peddle the so-called "dream panels" to big broadcasters and the medical industry first and then slowly work their way into the mainstream consumer market with a 60-inch FED TV debut.
2008 is just flying by, half done already. It's only going to get more exciting from here, so here's a quick month-in-review to get you geared up for the second half of 2008...
Mitsubishi has roadmapped the release schedule for the 65- and 73-inch LaserVue laser TV's, something we've been anticipating since they unveiled the new models at CES 2008 back in January. The 65-inch LaserVue will be the first to ship sometime in the 3rd quarter, followed soon after by the 73-inch set. What's so great about Mitsubishi's LaserVue TV's? Well, the big advantage of laser technology is that it can deliver roughly twice the color of major brand LCD and plasma sets at only half the energy cost, running at 200 Watts. They're fairly bright too, with a brightness measurement of 500 nits and also feature 120Hz refresh and x.v. Color technology. The big downside with the new LaserVue sets is that they're 10-inches thick, fat as all hell in an industry where thin is in, but not entirely surprising given Mitsubishi's DLP-based TV background. As for price, there hasn't been official word yet, but expect them to be similar to those of comparably sized LCD and plasma sets.
LG Electronics And Control4 Team Up To Bring Hotel Rooms' Full Automation Via HDTV
LG Electronics, the biggest provider of HDTV's to hotels in the world, is collaborating with Control4 Corporation to co-develop an integrated automation system that'll allow hotel guests to control pretty much everything in their hotel room right from the TV screen. Everything includes lighting, draperies, heating and air conditioning, and other home theater components. The two companies feel this solution is better than going the ol' set top box route, not only eliminating the box, but enabling the system to have more handy features. The system will be nothing more than a card that will be placed in an integrated interface port of LG's HDTV's. There hasn't been any mention of a "release" date, but we're guessing you'll be able to see the system in action on hotel room TV's everywhere in the next year or so.
Energy conservation is a big topic these days, with global warming being on the world's mind, but blaming big TV's for a country's energy usage woes? Wow. We all know that flat panel TV's can suck up energy like the world's strongest vacuum, especially if we go the plasma route, but when Irish national broadcaster NTEreported the Irish national energy use rose 62% between 1990 and 2006, we never thought that large-sized TV's would take such a big share of the blame. But a report by Sustainable Energy Ireland, to be released sometime today, pins a lot of the responsibility on big TV's. RTE says the report states that the Irish have "bigger TVs and more of them, and that Irish people are watching TV more often, leading to a massive rise in energy consumption". The end result? More pollution and a little bit of a contribution to the global warming trend. So watching too much TV on our big flatscreens really is killing us!
Staying In A Hotel Soon? Now You'll Get HD Programming The World Over
Swisscom Hospitality Service, the hospitality industry's provider of broadband internet-based services, and Tangerine Global, an HDTV programming provider to the hospitality marketplace, have teamed up to deliver HD programming to hotels in North America, Europe, and the Middle East. Swisscom Hospitality is providing an HD over IPTV platform over which Tangerine Global will be able to deliver popular HD content in hotel chains including Hyatt, Hilton, Holiday Inn, Intercontinental and Marriott. Hotel guests will also be able to use the URL-based system to access the web on their room's TV screen, as well as their email, news and local information, manage their hotel account, and even manage features such as the ambient lighting in their room.
80% Of The American Cable Market Committed To Tru2way
Looks like tru2way has gotten quite the backing with Comcast, Time Warner, Cox, Cablevision, Charter and Bright House Networks, which together serve over 80% of the American cable market, all verbalizing their commitment to rolling out tru2way in their systems.
Panasonic Hails Cable's Tru2Way Agreement with Major CE and IT Companies
Holds D.C. Demo of HDTV, Enabling Consumers to Receive High Definition Interactive Digital Cable Service Without Using Cable Set-Top Box
WASHINGTON, D.C., June 9, 2008 -- Panasonic, a leader in the development and application of the next-generation cable TV technology known as tru2way™, hailed the agreement between the nation's top six cable providers and leading Consumer Electronics (CE) and Information Technology (IT) companies regarding the roll-out of tru2way™ in their systems. The cable system operators involved are Comcast, Time Warner, Cox, Cablevision, Charter and Bright House Networks, which together serve more than 80% of all cable subscribers.
Panasonic also reaffirmed its own longtime commitment to tru2way technology leadership through the agreement, and by demonstrating a Panasonic VIERA Plasma HDTV that can receive HD interactive, digital cable service without using a separate cable set-top box. The tru2way demonstration, to be held in the National Press Club, is part of a presentation by National Cable & Telecommunications Association (NCTA) President & CEO Kyle McSlarrow, themed "Cable's Broadband Platform: Innovation for the Consumer."
"Together, with this landmark agreement, multiple innovative industries are expanding choice, convenience and confidence for cable consumers," said Robert Perry, Senior Vice President, Panasonic Consumer Electronics Company. "At January's International Consumer Electronics Show," he continued, "Panasonic was the only company to announce plans to launch tru2way products in 2008, including two models of HDTV with tru2way digital cable capability built in--42- and 50-inch class flat panel Plasma HDTVs--which we expect will be available through multiple retailers this coming holiday season."
In addition to tru2way HDTVs, Panasonic has developed and will be able to supply next-generation all-digital cable set-top boxes to all cable MSOs (Multiple System Operators) whose networks support tru2way specifications. Panasonic has also developed a tru2way-based Portable DVR (P-DVR) model which will let cable customers record programming at home and take it with them wherever they go. It incorporates full digital HDD video recording functionality into a Panasonic portable DVD player platform and allows playback of cable programming anytime anywhere. Both interactive digital cable devices will be supplied to Comcast for their subscribers.
For more than two years Panasonic has been working closely with cable operators and the cable industry's research and development consortium, Cable Television Laboratories (CableLabs®), to complete the technical specifications and help test the operation of tru2way technology. "Our OpenCable™ development activities have gained from the beginning with the active participation and input of many contributors, and tru2way development owes a great deal to their ingenuity and assistance," said Dr. Richard R. Green, President & CEO of CableLabs. "We have been especially glad to have Panasonic's help in designing test and verification suites for tru2way technology; and we look forward to continuing to work together with them, and other companies, to advance these systems."
"The announcements by both CE and IT companies of their support of tru2way indicates that the industry finally recognizes that tru2way provides the wide range of options that consumers desire for next-generation interactive, digital cable entertainment," said Dr. Paul F. Liao, Chief Technology Officer of Panasonic Corporation of North America.
"Panasonic is proud to have played a key role in what we expect will be a rapid rollout of tru2way in cable systems throughout the country."
Sapphire's 56-Inch 4K Display Makes 1080p Resolution Look Like Fuzz
If you've got some seriously deep pockets and are looking for picture resolution well beyond 1080p, the Sapphire 4K may be of interest to you. Another member of the so-called quad HDTV family, the Sapphire 4K is a 56-inch 2160p display, translating into a pixel count of 3840 x 2160, four times that of a 1080p display. Unveiled at Computex in Taiwan last week, the Sapphire is short on specs at the moment but rumor has it that it'll cost you at least $60, 000. Better start working overtime.
TV Armor Protects Your LCD Or Plasma TV Screen From Hurled Objects
Sometimes innovation results from one's misfortune. In this case, the innovative idea was a direct result of the crack made in a 47-inch LCD TV the moment a flying toy firetruck made contact. TV Armor, a cool new product developed by Michael Cunningham, is designed to make sure your brand new HDTV doesn't end up on the curb because it was nailed by a flying object. Made of optical grade acrylic plastic, cut precisely using a computer, TV Armor fits around the frame of your TV shielding the screen from contact with anything that might do it damage. Felt spacers are placed in between the protective screen and the TV, not only to protect your set from scratches, but also to allow TV Armor room to flex and absorb any impact from a flying remote, beer bottle, etc.
If TV Armor sounds like it might belong in your household, it's currently available in five sizes and suited for both plasma and LCD models. Just head over to the website to order.
30-32 inches-$129
36-37 inches-$139
40-42 inches-$149
46-47 inches-$159
50-52 inches-$169
Have a larger set? TV Armor is also custom manufactured for larger screen sizes.
The Weather Channel Goes HD, Take A Virtual Tour Of The $60 Million Studio
We usually just focus on TV products here at TVSnob, but in a high-def world sometimes we have to move outside the boundaries and show you something a little different. The Weather Channel is in the midst of putting up a $60 million state-of-the art HD studio for their weather broadcasting which will totally change the way you look at weather. They've been working with Cisco over the past year to build an infrastructure capable of supporting a 24/7 HD broadcast, utilizing the company's Catalyst 6500 switches which play a big part in the backbone of the new network and security systems for keeping out would-be intruders. Not only will those with televisions supporting HD content see a big difference as of June 2, but so will those with standard definition sets. The Weather Channel and Cisco have put together a virtual tour of the new HD studio at Weather.com where you can visit 21 "points of interest" where you can find out more info including Cisco's tech role in putting the whole project together.
Hotels Love HDTVs Says iSuppli
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