Recent Comments:
Ask Engadget HD: How can I get my home theater ready for 3D, right now? {Engadget HD}
Jul 2nd 2009 12:40PM Seems like a fools choice as we don't really have a single 3D standard. There seem to be 3 different versions w/glasses (red/blue, polarized, and something Intel has done) AND who knows what non glasses tech is bubbling around.
LCD sales expectations raised for the rest of '09 {Engadget HD}
Jun 19th 2009 4:37PM Now that it appears one of the biggest differences between LCD and Plasma is no more (both now sport high gloss, highly reflective screens) my next set will be a plasma.
Battlestar Galactica Complete Series box pictures jump in {Engadget HD}
Jun 13th 2009 4:44PM While I'm a huge fan of the series, I'm not so sure there going to be that much PQ difference to justify the price. It's shot very dark and grainy, not to spotlight the major advantages of all the additional resolution.
Don't get me wrong, there will be a difference, just saying it will not be as much as many may expect.
Motorola debuts world's first retail DOCSIS 3.0 cable modems {Engadget HD}
Jun 3rd 2009 2:12PM AFAIK, the cable modems MAC address has to be authorized by the MSO ore it won't function. And I seriously doubt ay would allow it at this point.
Not to mention those with triple play packages, I think mostly you need a modem that can also connect the phone side.
BBC America HD launch July 20 brings plenty of science fiction starting with Torchwood & Dr. Who {Engadget HD}
Jun 2nd 2009 1:52PM While this is great news, we see a lot of MSO's take forever to execute carriage agreements. Not only that, but some may put this channel on an extra cost tier, which would be a shame.
Samsung slaps "production-ready" label on 14.1- and 31-inch OLED TVs {Engadget HD}
Jun 2nd 2009 1:48PM It's looking more and more like the LCD guys are going to kill it with this "only highly reflective glossy screen" stuff, so I wonder about OLED... are they going to plague those with glossy screens?
Sony & Samsung begin LCD production at a second 8G facility {Engadget HD}
Jun 2nd 2009 1:41PM Are they ONLY pumping out highly reflective, glossy screens?
I find glossy screens totally kill one of the major advantages of LCDs... no reflections.
I wouldn't mind if I had a separate room for viewing... one that completely lacked any windows. I live in a wonderful apartment that has windows all over the pace, it's great. BUT a glossy screen just doesn't even vaguely cut it.
Time Warner Cable loses HDNet at the end of the month, says "being in HD is not enough" {Engadget HD}
May 18th 2009 5:54PM Let's not forget the spectacular NASA HD coverage HDNet does! Or HD versions of interesting shows (like the BBC's Torchwood, classic shows like JAG and Arrested Development). Not to mention absolutely fabulous movies (West Side Story, Breakfast at Tiffanys, etc.) that seem to be lovingly transferred/restored.
VOTE WITH YOUR WALLETS
Cancel the tier w/HDNet on it. In my market, the ONLY other vaguely worthwhile channel is MGM HD. PLUS, this gives me an opportunity to drop some other stuff (like Starz) and save enough money to get a NetFlix sub.
Oh, far as I know, HDNet remains on FIOS. Which is exactly where I am going when the fiber comes to my street/building (s/b 3rd quarter this year, AND I've already prepped my building so everyone is anxious to have a shot at it).
Poll: Best LCD backlighting choice? {Engadget HD}
May 18th 2009 11:33AM While I generally would always go LCD, I have a far more serious issue... it seems all the latest LCD sets use high gloss screens. For many, that WAS a big factor in going LCD as opposed to plasma. For me, such a highly reflective screen just can't be used... I have a LOT of windows on all sides of the room and at times need something like a table lamp by my side.
Soooo, that actually will make me postpone any upgrades... and possibly lead me to an OLED!
Poll: Is Star Trek better at an IMAX or a DLP theater? {Engadget HD}
May 10th 2009 4:19PM Letterbox refers to showing a picture that has a different aspect ratio than the screen, usually resulting in black bars top and bottom. Most commercial theaters have 1: 2.35 AR screens, this pretty much matches what most films today deliver. RARELY will any feature be letterboxed on a theater screen... and if they need it, most theaters can mask any black bars with fabric.
Still, "bigger letterbox" means what? IF a commercial theater MAY need to letterbox, the amount of screen real estate in black in very small. However, a academy AR film will show a LOT of black top and bottom in an IMAX screen, because said screen is far closer to square. The letterboxed feature I saw on an IMAX screen occupied about 60% of the overall screen, so there was a LOT of blank screen.
As for Dark Knight, I'm surprised you saw it the way you did... like I said, it was not letterboxed at all when I saw it (i.e. just like pan and scan is used to display a widescreen feature on a standard TV AR of 4:3). If it had been swapping like you said, I'd be VERY annoyed.
As for the audio, I'm a ways away from saying "better." My experience is that it's a lot louder, but very difficult to say that it has more "quality" than a standard theater. What distinguishes theater audio is multi-channel sound (and very much dependent on the talent of the film's sound designer, there is some real art involved in really good multi-channel audio). AND one could say that good multi-channel audio CAN be "better" in a regular theater due to the fact that an IMAX theater (here I am making an assumption... I've been many times but only to one specific IMAX theater, the one near Lincoln Center in NYC) has a depth that seems to be almost smaller than it's width. Thus, the rear and side speakers are very close to each other, whereas they can be spread farther apart in a "standard" theater.
