CEDIA 2008 is still over a month away, but the pre-expo news is already starting to trickle out. SunBriteTV, the firm responsible for last year's 46-inch 4600HD all-weather outdoor LCD, has just announced that it will be bringing two new ones to Denver this year, though there's no word on whether a dunk tank will also be in tow. The 32-inch 3220HD (1,366 x 768 resolution; 1,500:1 contrast ratio) and 46-inch 4610HD (19,20 x 1,080 resolution; 2,000:1 contrast ratio) both feature "corrosion-resistant, powder-coated aluminum exterior that protects the internal components from extreme weather and temperatures ranges," not to mention an interior heater to keep things toasty when it's snowing outside. The two sets are actually becoming available as we speak for $3,295 (3220HD) / $5,495 (4610HD), while a third unit -- the 23-inch HD-ready 2310HD -- can also be acquired now for "just" $1,995.

As with quite a few things unveiled at CEDIA Expos, the Ovei is also aimed squarely at folks with wallets so fat they can hardly contain themselves. This home cinema pod made its most recent debut at the CEDIA UK show, where the creators explained that users could slip into the air-conditioned capsule and control their home theater and / or gaming experience via the built-in touchscreen. We are told that it was designed by Lee McCormack and engineered by McLaren Applied Technologies, but aside from that, pretty much everything else remains a mystery. The Ovei can be ordered up now for around £50,000 (that's 100,000 of those depreciating greenbacks), but if you get 'em to toss in some foot pedals and a steering wheel (or whatever else you dream up), count on that figure heading north in a hurry.

[Via KanYeWest Blog]

Read - Ovei pod details
Read - Ovei pod live shots, video

Netstreams has announced an IP streaming home theater system called the CinemaLinX, which does exactly as it says on the tin: it streams audio to IP speakers dotted around your house. Demoing the home theater box for the first time at CEDIA, the CinemaLinX accepts Dolby or DTS signals, but not higher quality standards like Dolby TrueHD or DTS MA. The benefit for IP speakers over regular dumb speakers is that it provides more parameters -- just what the audiophile market craves -- like auto calibrated equalizers and far simpler multi-room support: Netstreams's solution has thankfully tackled the usual latency issues with IP speaker setups by building the CinemaLinX with lags of around 1ms. No word on ship dates or prices yet, but we'll let you know as soon as there is.

If the speakers in your HT rig are summed up by "sound great, look terrible" and you want need to move into "sound great, look great" territory, then KEF's new XQ Series speakers are worth checking out. The updated XQ Series made its debut at CEDIA and enjoys some technology "trickle-down" from KEF's Reference Series; notably the new Uni-Q driver that covers midrange, tweeter and hypertweeter duties in one tidy package. The speakers also inherit a little bit from KEF's over-the-top Muon in the form of milled aluminum front baffle. In the looks department, the cabinetry is available in a choice of three high-gloss, "furniture grade," natural wood veneers: birds-eye maple, khaya mahogany, and piano black. With five models in the range (XQ 10 pictured), you can make sure every single channel in your "wall of sound" matches. Prices range from $1400/pair for the XQ 10 bookshelf up to $3400/pair for the floorstanding XQ 40. Available September 2007.

CEDIA 2007 was bigger, louder and more pixelated than ever, and as always, we were live from the Mile High city to bring you (just about) everything the show had to offer. In case you blinked along the way, here's a rundown of our coverage, and don't forget to check out the rest after the break:

• CEDIA 2007: the pre-game show

Hands-ons

• Hands-on with LG's BH200 HD DVD / Blu-ray combo player
• Hands-on with Sharp's AQUOS BD-HP20U Blu-ray player
• Hands-on with Toshiba's third-generation HD DVD player lineup
• Hands-on with Toshiba's REGZA Super Narrow Bezel (SNB) LCD lineup
• Hands-on with Philips' TSU line of remote controls
• Hands-on with Integra's DHS-8.8 HD DVD player
• Hands-on with Epson's MovieMate 50 / MovieMate 72 projectors
• Hands-off with Panasonic's PT-AE2000U 1080p projector
• Hands-on with EI's four-CableCARD 754 LifeMedia Server
• Hands-on with Alienware's Hangar18:HD media server
• Hands-on with Pioneer's BDP-95FD Blu-ray player
• Hands-on with VUDU's movies-on-demand STB
• Hands-on with Denon's pricey DVD-3800BDCI Blu-ray player
• Hands-on with Sharp's ultrathin AQUOS D64U LCD series
• Hands-on with Moneual's tubular I*magine HTPC
• Hands-on with Savant's $35000 ROSIE Coffee Table
• Hands-on with Niveus' Media Center Extender

Somewhere between the budget-minded 301 and the decidedly unaffordable Jewelry PC, Moneual has decided to cater to the mid-range market with an unusually shaped media PC. Showed at CEDIA, the tubular I*magine touted a sweet aluminum chassis, seven-inch touchscreen, 2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300 processor, a 256MB ATI 2400 PRO GPU, 2GB of DDR2 RAM, a 750GB SATA drive, an integrated mic for voice recognition (huzzah!), and a top-loading combo drive to boot. Furthermore, it was packin' a multicard reader, Bluetooth 2.0, gigabit Ethernet, WiFi, HDMI, optical / 5.1 analog audio outputs, three USB 2.0 ports, a line-in jack, and a speaker on each end. Additionally, this sucka can actually be mounted upright on a stand (HTPC on a stick, anyone?), and according to Moneual, it should begin shipping to customers in the US "around Thanksgiving" for about two grand.

Sure, we've already seen Toshiba and Mitsubishi boast about their uber-thin bezels, but Sharp was touting its slimness in another area. Dubbed the "slimmest, lightest AQUOS LCD TVs ever," the D64U lineup had an entire wall reserved to show off, and we figured we'd take a (real) close look at exactly how thin these things really are. As the unscientific finger-gap test shows below, a 1.5-inch frame is pretty flippin' narrow, and it seemed especially so on the 65-inch behemoth. 'Course, if given the option, we'd still chose the 108-inch LCD that was just on the other side of this display, depth be darned.

We've certainly seen no shortage of Blu-ray players at CEDIA, but it just wouldn't feel right to neglect the uber-expensive, ultra-desirable DVD-3800BDCI. This player was found in numerous locales within Denon's fanciful booth, and while the setup may not have been ideal, the image quality of Speed was noticeably lacking. Nevertheless, we stooped down to snag a few images for those still wondering what a $2,000 Blu-ray player really looks like, so go ahead and quell that curiosity, won't ya?

Crestron's booth was rivaled in size only by the likes of Sony and AMX, and while the bulk of the exhibit dealt with highly technical home automation, it was the programmable remotes, HD media distribution systems, digital video processors, and media server integration that tickled our fancy. Granted, a good deal of Crestron's booth wasn't exactly aimed at the consumer market, but if you categorize yourself as high-end, chances are you'd find a good bit of this stuff useful. You know the deal, click on into the gallery.

Harman Consumer Group, which holds H/K, Infinity, JBL, and Audioaccess under its umbrella, erected an expansive booth at this year's CEDIA. Unsurprisingly, home theater and in-wall speakers dominated the space, but quite a few amplifiers, receivers, and home control units were seen posing, too. Most notable among the noise was Infinity's PS212W (its first wireless subwoofer), Audioaccess' revamped W.H.E.N. (Whole-House Entertainment Network), an absolutely gigantic JBL loudspeaker, and a demo station that highlighted the H/K DMC 1000 media PC's ability to control content in four separate zones. Enough chatter, why not take a peek for yourself?

Considering that Runco and Planar are like family these days, it wasn't exactly shocking to find the two booths located side-by-side. Interestingly, Runco and Planar chose to erect a golf-themed exhibit, complete with a putting green, Player's Club, and an HT clubhouse. Aside from the decorations, we found a variety of LCDs (like the 1080p PD470) on display, as well as a number of new home cinema projectors including the 1080p DLP trio more commonly referred to as the PD8150, PD8130, and PD8120. Go on, check out the gallery below -- greens fees are on us!

Just days ago we learned that VUDU would be cranking out a $399 set-top-box that enabled customers to rent or buy downloadable movies via the internet, and while we're still not entirely convinced that folks are going to buy into this, we couldn't help but stop by at CEDIA and check it out. The box itself looks quite good, but the oddball size could cause stacking problems within an AV cabinet. As for ports, you'll find component / S-video / composite outputs, HDMI, stereo and coaxial / optical digital audio ports, Ethernet, IR out, and a slot in the front that accepts a thin card to uniquely identify each box.

Upon speaking with a VUDU representative, we learned that the unit will begin shipping on October 1st, will have access to 5,000 SD movies from the start, and thanks to the 250GB hard drive built-in, it'll hold "around 100 hours of SD movie purchases." Additionally, VUDU hopes to begin offering up an undisclosed amount of HD films "before Christmas," and if you're worried about how quickly you'll go through a quarter-terabyte of space, you needn't fret. Turns out, VUDU should be releasing a software update alongside its HD download launch that will enable users to connect their own USB hard drive to the box (sound familiar?) for even more storage, but alas, any content stored externally must still be played back through the VUDU STB. Hit the gallery below for a few glamor shots along with photos of the VUDU in action.

As if Pioneer's booth wasn't sensational enough already, the inclusion of the brand new BDP-95FD Blu-ray player made it even sweeter. Make no mistake, Pioneer is awfully proud of this creation, as an on-site rep was claiming that it was "the best Blu-ray player on the market" while bragging to onlookers. 'Course, this Elite device does tout some of the nicest specs we've seen, and yes, it pained us to leave the booth without being able to bring one home. Bottom line: this "reference quality" BD player looked incredibly good in person, and judging by how well Pioneer's other Elite merchandise has been received, we've got high hopes for this one.

Sony had size, Sharp had a ginormous LCD, and Panasonic had a virtual fireplace, but Pioneer's booth took the award for sexiest -- if that's even possible. Pioneer's exhibit was doused in glossy black accents and showcased quite a few beautiful devices, including a couple Elite KURO plasmas, HTS-LX70 flat-panel based theater system, the SC-09TX 1,400-watt AV receiver, and a X-Z9 integrated SACD / Network Media audio system for those still clinging to the format. And yes, the stunning BDP-95FD was on hand too, but we'll be giving it some special attention.

For all things HD DVD, there were two places to go: Toshiba's booth, and the HD DVD big rig parked right across the street. This interesting exhibit didn't present anything new per se, but there were a number of banners for current and upcoming releases, an HD DVD wall of films, and a few demo stations including one using the Xbox 360's HD DVD player. Again, nothing too enthralling here, but feel free to take a walkthrough below. Oh, and before you start wondering, Blu-ray didn't seem to have a booth of its own at the show, but there was plenty of BD support scattered throughout.