If You Have To Ask, Then You Don't Know (Tech Subjects from HDTV to PC to MP3)

iPhone Neglects Voice! Can T-Mobile Garner Attention With Seamless Wi-Fi Transition?

noreply@blogger.com (Cale) — Fri, 13 Jul 2007 04:05:00 +0000

While the iPhone has received more press coverage in the past few weeks than the Iraq war has in the last five years, the superior hardware has been somewhat overshadowed by an inferior network. Since the iPhone has seemed to neglect the "phone" part of the device, the announcement of T-Mobile's HotSpot@Home and proficient use of Wi-Fi just two days prior to the iPhone introduction is very interesting. A seamless voice transition from wireless network to Wi-Fi hotspot helps the HotSpot@Home service provide a very real benefit. While at home, customers can enjoy a strong signal and unlimited domestic calling over Wi-Fi. While on the go, customers can use the T-Mobile cellular network or get the same benefits of home at the thousands of T-Mobile HotSpots. The fact is that you may see many folks use the iPhone for its media interface and keep a T-Mobile phone for its HotSpot@Home benefits. Don't be surprised.

iPhone Shortcoming
The iPhone indeed has been touted as a technologically advanced three-in-one device, combining a cell phone, cutting edge internet surfing device, and an iPod. As it turns out, the internet surfing is excrutiatingly slow over AT&T's EDGE network, requiring the owner to use the Wi-Fi connection option to obtain more reasonable response times. But once in a Wi-Fi hotspot, there is currently no provision for making voice calls over Wi-Fi, which could have reduced cellular minute usage. Those who intend to isolate their iPhone web browsing to Wi-Fi hotspots are disappointed to find out that they are still required to pay for the near-useless data package from AT&T. The user just can't seem to catch a break to save a buck. Not surprisingly, the iPod part of the iPhone works wonderfully. The other shortcomings, however, show the "chink" in the iPhone's armor.

Before detailing the new T-Mobile program, I have one question for the Apple folks. Why call it an iPhone when this seems to be the most neglected aspect of the device? Maybe it should be the iCoolWebBrowser or the iPodandInternetandPhone. That's a little hard to say, but at least gives the device credit for doing so many things - and it puts the "phone" last, which appears to be where Apple and AT&T put it. Just some thoughts.

T-Mobile's HotSpot@Home
For a device of such technological wonder, it seems as though Apple and AT&T could have taken some network lessons from T-Mobile. This wireless provider, presumable named after the letter that looks most like a cell tower, has rolled out its regional HotSpot@Home service to the entire nation. The HotSpot@Home feature allows a user to place a call within a T-Mobile HotSpot and not use up any minutes for the extent of the conversation. But if the caller wanders out of the Wi-Fi area, the signal seamlessly switches to T-Mobile's GSM/GPRS/EDGE wireless network. Once originated in the Wi-Fi area, the entire call doesn't use up minutes, regardless of where the call is completed. Additionally, as the name implies, a home network with a wireless router can provide a local HotSpot for the caller. Currently, there is special pricing that provides this service for an additional $9.99 per month for a single line and $19.99 for a family plan.

This combination of attributes provides a cell phone service with five distinct advantages - all cleverly outlined by T-Mobile (see icons below). Using the home network with a wireless router, the user can enjoy unlimited U.S. calls with no deduction in calling plan minutes. Since the calls from home are done with a local wireless router, the signal strength is typically much greater than the traditional wireless network. Taking advantage of HotSpot locations means the calls from any of the 8,500 T-Mobile HotSpots can be made without using up precious minutes. The iPhone can't say that. With seamless mobility, the caller does not have to be tied to a Wi-Fi location, which is the typical pitfall of VoIP phones. This comination of features translates into an unprecedented opportunity to scrap the landline and go to a single cellular phone.

While there is a growing trend of people using their mobile phone as their only phone, many have not made the leap due to their cellular reception at home and the fear of running up minute usage at home. The T-Mobile HotSpot@Home service tackles these issues by providing unlimited U.S. calls from home and ensuring great coverage through the use of a local wireless router. Its kind of like have a cell phone tower in your house to which you have unlimited access. Tradional cell phones (including the iPhone), VoIP phones, and traditional landline phones are all being tackled by the new T-Mobile service.

Other Terms
While T-Mobile has come up with a great term for their service, HotSpot@Home, it is important to understand that there are other names to describe the technology surrounding this feature. A service as beneficial as this one will surely be implemented by others, so knowing the common terminology will help identify them. Maybe even AT&T will eventually adopt the idea for use with the iPhone. The iPhone does, after all, have Wi-Fi capability.

Fixed/Mobile Convergence (FMC) is an overall term used to describe the way to connect the mobile phone to the fixed line infrastructure (i.e. landline phone). A Dual-Mode Handset (DMH) is a phone that can support both cellular and Wi-Fi connections. Unlicensed Mobile Access (UMA) is the name given to the main technology that allows the switching between the cellular and Wi-Fi connections. For example, a phone available from T-Mobile to use with their HotSpot@Home program may be described as a UMA-enabled DMH that promotes FMC.

Indie 500 (x2)! Microsoft & Amazon Show High-Def Support with Free HD DVD Setup for 1,000 Indies

noreply@blogger.com (Cale) — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 14:37:00 +0000

In an effort to help allow independent film makers (indies) to delve into the world of high definition DVDs, Amazon.com and Microsoft announced that they have teamed up to introduce the "1,000 HD DVD Indies Project." This project is intended to break down barriers to entry for smaller indie filmmakers to produce and distribute movies in the HD DVD format. The method will involve a new manufacturing-on-demand technology supported by CustomFlix, an Amazon company. As an example, Sundance Channel's original series, “Big Ideas for a Small Planet,” is to be one of the first HD television offerings on Amazon.com.

The "1,000 HD DVD Indies Project" will assist high-definition filmmakers by proving free authoring and setup services for up to 1,000 selected indie titles. Microsoft's technology will be used to make the content and then it will be made available to Amazon's customer base by selling through the CustomFlix Disc On-Demand service. This method produces discs as customers orders are taken, so there is never any inventory to keep. Filmmakers are able to set their own price and earn royalties on all sales. These indies, however, are not limited to this method of distribution and are free to pursue other methods at the same time.

Microsoft and Amazon provide huge brand names to launch the effort. “Amazon’s participation in this project will be a major benefit to independent filmmakers wanting to break into the high-definition market segment,” said Amir Majidimehr, corporate vice president for the Consumer Media Technology Group at Microsoft. “The use of Microsoft® technology and authoring expertise will ensure that all the HD DVD titles offered by Amazon have impeccable quality, thanks to the VC-1 codec and innovative interactive scenarios with HDi™.”

If you are an independent filmmaker looking for a much-needed break, then get that high definition movie put together! To submit existing work, visit the CustomFlix.com website. There is a simple form to fill out - and it does not require immediate submission of the work itself. If the production is chosen from among the entries, the filmmaker will be contacted via email or phone and have up to 30 days to send a copy of the HD tape (film not accepted). A free proof copy will be made available for approval before any sale of the disc. So pick up that camera and get ready to chant, "lights...camera...action!"

Disney Reaches Xbox 360 Owners Via Movie Downloads on Xbox Live! Blu-ray and HD DVD Dissed?

noreply@blogger.com (Cale) — Wed, 11 Jul 2007 23:07:00 +0000

At the Electronic Entertainment Expo (commonly known as E3) that is currently underway, Microsoft and Disney announced that Xbox Live will be offering film rentals from The Walt Disney Studios. Xbox Live is the online gaming and entertainment network that has become a platform for standard definition movie downloads and the premier method of high definition movie downloads. Disney has been a leading distributor of movies in the video-on-demand arena and this move may put them at the forefront of HD content distribution.

There are already 6 million members on Xbox Live. In less than 8 months since the movie download service launch, there have been nearly 10 million downloads of entertainment content. The movies are available as new releases or classic films and in standard definition or high definition. The prices tag to rent a movie ranges from $3 to $6 depending on the resolution and release timing. Currently Xbox Live is offering more than 2,350 hours of premium entertainment content from 28 networks and studios. Nearly 500 hours of this is HD content. This places the U.S. on-demand, high-definition library for Xbox 360 at more than twice the size of the nearest cable provider.

The deal made between Microsoft and Disney will include new and classic movies from The Walt Disney Studios, which includes titles from Walt Disney Pictures, Touchstone Pictures, Hollywood Pictures and Miramax Films. There will be a variety of titles from these studios available in standard definition and high definition by the end of this month. Additionally, Xbox 360 owners will be able to rent other popular Disney films as they become available. This includes hits such as Bridge to Terabithia, The Queen, and Déjà Vu. Currently, the top HD movies being rented on Xbox Live are The Fountain, Undead, and Blood Diamond.

There are some interesting dynamics at play here. At the outset of the format war, Disney had opted to offer its HD movie selection exclusively on Blu-ray discs, shunning the HD DVD format. This allowed Disney high-def discs to be played on the Sony Playstation 3’s built-in Blu-ray player. The exclusivity deal, however, prevented Microsoft Xbox 360 owners from playing any Disney flicks on the Xbox’s optional HD DVD device. Placing HD disc formats aside, Microsoft has now managed to woo The Disney Studios into providing downloadable rental content through Xbox Live. This provides an opportunity to bring Disney content to Xbox 360 owners. Not surprisingly, all of this comes on the heels of a $100 price drop for the Playstation 3.

Format war? What format war? Blu-ray vs. HD DVD? Who cares? Especially if you already have an Xbox. Try this on for size: for the price of a good high definition disc player and cabling, you can rent a HD movie on Xbox Live once a week for two years. You can ditch the disc player and move to downloading (see post on Trash the Disc). The breadth of content has been an issue, but these walls are slowing coming down. Even if you are not an XBox 360 owner, the move toward using this gaming system as a part of the home entertainment network is intriguing. A $100 price drop on a Playstation 3 may no longer sound very appealing to a HDTV enthusiast (see Price Drop post). The plot thickens.

You can see the orignal press release from this week's E3 by clicking here.

Anamorphic Widescreen: Which Standard DVDs Get the Best Picture on My HDTV?

noreply@blogger.com (Cale) — Wed, 11 Jul 2007 15:08:00 +0000

Despite a growing number of high definition televisions (HDTVs) penetrating consumer's homes, standard definition DVDs are still being sold and rented in record numbers. A growing quantity of these DVDs is showing movies and television episodes in the modern widescreen formats. While DVDs are expected to still work on older boxy-screen TVs, they are also expected to look their best on the new widescreen HDTVs. Although many earlier DVDs struggled with this, an "anamorphic widescreen" technique optimizes the data on the DVD for best viewing on an HDTV. Here, I will help explain how this works and why it is important to look for an "anormorphic widescreen" or "enhanced for 16:9 televisions" notation on the back of DVDs.

Despite the advancement in new forms of entertainment media, including high-definition disc players, the traditional DVD saw another record year in 2006. This continued its upward sales trend since the late 1990s. In 2006, consumers spent over $24 billion in DVD sales and rentals (Digital Entertainment Group), a 6% increase over the prior year (sales outpaced rentals 2 to 1). Folks are continuing to accumulate DVDs, despite having a widescreen high definition televisions at home (see 10 Things I Should Know About HDTV). It is important to understand that the anamorphic widescreen DVDs are those optimized for the widescreen televisions. Because high-definition discs such as HD DVDs and Blu-ray disc are already optimized for HDTVs, the use of an anamorphic methods are much less relevant.

The issue at hand arises with the playing of DVD content on 4:3 traditional aspect ratio televisions as well as 16:9 widescreen televisions (see Pain in the Aspect Ratio for a description of aspect ratios and associated black bars). All content burned on the DVD is originally stored in a 4:3 aspect ratio before it is decoded by the DVD player and displayed on the TV. When a program is stored on a DVD in a widescreen format, we have a mismatch between the 4:3 image stored on the DVD and the widescreen image of the program. We'll use a television program shown in 16:9 widescreen for an example. We'll look at how two different types of DVDs handle the delivery of the image: the Letterbox Widescreen DVD vs. Anamorphic Widescreen DVD.

Letterbox Widescreen DVD
The non-anamorphic letterbox DVDs that have a widescreen video will store the image on the DVD with the black bars at the top and bottom - as shown below. The black pixels at the top and bottom are part of the image and take up stored memory on the DVD.
When this image is projected on a traditional 4:3 aspect ratio television, the presentation looks identical to the way it was stored on the DVD. The black bars are part of the image.

When this letterbox image on the DVD is placed on a widescreen TV with the 16:9 aspect ratio, something bad happens. Since the black bars are part of the image, the total height is interpreted to include the black bars at the top and bottom - and this image is placed in the middle of the screen. To maintain an undistorted image, black bars are not added to the left and right - as shown below. Yuck. To make things look a little better, this image may be zoomed to fit the screen. Once this is done, however, the zoomed image is of lesser quality. A lower resolution image is actually blown up to fit the screen. This is not desirable.

Anamorphic Widescreen DVD
With the introduction of anamorphic DVDs, widescreen videos can look better on widescreen televisions. This is not new technology. For years, DVD players have been able to interpret videos using the anamorphic widescreen technology. Here is how it works.

The image stored on the Anamorphic DVD is still in the 4:3 ratio (it has to be - all DVDs are just made that way), but the widescreen image is stretched to the top and bottom. This is what it looks like.

When this image is sent to a television with the 4:3 aspect ratio, the anamorphic status is interpreted and the image height is shrunk to create black bars at the top and bottom. These black bars are not part of the image, but are more like "voids" on the TV. This maintains an undistorted image. Not surprisingly, it looks like this:

The real magic comes in when this video is played on a widescreen television with 16:9 aspect ratio. There is no loss of resolution in the height and the television takes all of the information on the DVD and just stretches it to fit the screen. This maintains the highest quality possible on a DVD. Here is what it looks like:

Conclusion
While the Anamorphic Widescreen DVD is the way to go if you have a widescreen TV, you may not be getting rid of all black bars. The aspect ratio mismatch between the 16:9 screen and the wider theatrical aspect ratios (such as the popular 1.85:1 and 2.35:1) still exists. Without zooming or distorting the image, the HDTV will have to live with black bars (although the black bars will not be as big as on a 4:3 TV). The anamorphic methodology will make sure that you maintain the highest resolution for images you see on your widescreen television. So before you buy your next DVD, take a look at the back of the DVD and watch for the "anamorphic" or "enhanced for 16x9 televisions" label. After all, you don't want the capabilities of your HDTV to go to waste. Give the DVD the best chance of looking good on your widescreen TV.

Playstation 3 $100 Price Drop Bonus: Will This Re-Energize PS3 Sales?

noreply@blogger.com (Cale) — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 17:22:00 +0000

[SPECIAL BONUS: Click on PS3 image below for Amazon's limited time Free Blu-ray movie & remote offer]

While news of Sony's struggle with Playstation 3 (PS3) sales is not news, the video game system is not going down without a fight. With a $100 price drop, the next-generation gaming platform provides a great value since it also provides many other home entertainment features including a Blu-ray disc player. Despite the Xbox 360 edging it out in sales and Nintendo Wii kicking its butt in home placements, the Playstation 3 now asserts itself as one the best price-per-feature values in the market.

NOTE: To get your free remote and Blu-ray movie, click on the image above and follow the instructions for the "PS3 Price Drop Bonus".

What was once thought as the deciding factor in the high-def disc battle, the Playstation 3's Blu-ray player appears to be a non-issue in the format war. With continued industry support and more movie studio releases, however, Blu-ray does appear to be a formittable force - and a growing trend in HD movie viewing. At $499, the 60GB Playstation 3 appears to be the best value for entry into the high-def disc player arena. Sony's new lower priced dedicated Blu-ray player (the BDP-S300) has a similar price tag, but lacks the gaming and other on-line interfacing that the PS3 provides. The PS3 provides opportunities for video chat, internet access, digital photo viewing, and digital audio and video. For those high-def enthusiasts, the PS3 provides true HD content as high as 1080p. You can't say that about Nintendo's Wii.

So why has the Playstation 3 not captured the market share it was hoping? Microsoft's Xbox 360 hit the market a year before the PS3 did, giving it a head start. Additionally, the online media content available for the PS3 has been criticized as being inferior compared to Xbox Live, the online content source for the XBox 360. Finally, even though the PS3's next generation games are available in stunning high definition, the unique motion sensing controller of Nintendo's Wii has seem to really capture people's hearts. The lack of HD content with Nintendo's system has not seemed to be an issue with many consumers.

Despite shortcomings, the price drop may generate the attention and excitement that Sony needs to re-energize Playstation 3 sales. Early indicators are that this effort is indeed successful. As you can see by the illustration at the right, the PS3 has lept above the Wii in Amazon.com's sales rank in the Video Games area. So, if you've been in the market for a video game system, but have been waiting for the right opportunity, now may be the time.

TotalVid from Verizon: Can This Video Download Site Attract a Specialty Viewer?

noreply@blogger.com (Cale) — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 14:12:00 +0000

Verizon Online presents TotalVid, a video downloading service that offers enthusiast, education and instructional videos. TheTotalVid service offers non-Hollywood productions that can't be found at the local rental store. The topics range from comedy to home improvement. A look at TotalVid's online list of the top 100 videos shows that "Love and Intimacy" and "Action Sports" make up many of the most popular videos. Segments from The Weather Channel's "Storm Stories" are also viewed often. This unique make-up of video selection is one of the appealing features that makes TotalVid unique. But will it be enough to attract a worthwhile audience?

Verizon describes TotalVid's thousands of videos as being full length and of high quality. When downloading some videos to a PC, there are two versions available, one quick-downloading lower quality verion (300 kbps) and a larger-sized high quality version (700 kbps). It was noted on the TotalVid.com website that many of the newer videos will only be available in a very high quality version (1500 kbps). For those with high-speed connections, a 45-minute video may take anywhere from 10 to 45 minutes, depending on video quality.

While individual items in the library can be "rented" for as low as $1.99 (unlimited views for 7 days), the unlimited download plan gives full access to any of the videos for $8.95 per month. In addition to renting and subscribing, many videos have options to purchase the download (for unlimited use) and even an option to purchase the physical DVD, which would come to the user in the mail.

The service is definitely not a copy-cat site that gives the same selection of new releases and favorites ("favorites" is another term for "older movies"). These videos have somewhat unique appeal. Many of the physical DVDs ranges in price from $17.95 to $34.95, so these are videos of significant value. The issue is that the value may be held by a smaller subset of individuals. These are not mass-distributed Hollywood movies that have broad appeal, but each has a specialty appeal that may not be satisfied elsewhere. This appears to be analogous to the wide selection of specialty programming that cable and satellite television has brought us (i.e. Golf Channel, History Channel, Sci-Fi Channel, and Lifetime for women). For example, a lookup of "golf" in the TotalVid library pulled up 75 videos on the game. This category was lead by "Taking It To The Next Level In Golf with Roger Gunn - Beginner - Full Swing," and even included a video clip to see if this is the video for you. Not bad.

So, if you're looking for a more creative outlet than watching traditional movies, TotalVid may have something for you. This program's unique blend of specialty and instructional videos provides a service that may be currently untapped. If the DIY (Do It Yourself) network and Style channel can create appeal by focussing on a target audience, then this download service can hit those niche audiences, too. Take a look at TotalVid.com and see if there is something for you. You can even give it a free test drive for 7 days.

The DaVinci Control! Can a Universal Remote Decipher an Encrypted Television?

noreply@blogger.com (Cale) — Mon, 09 Jul 2007 14:07:00 +0000

The use of a universal remote is the single biggest user-interface decision to be made in a home entertainment setup. The impact a universal remote can make is huge - ranking in high importance along with health insurance, retirement plans, and iTunes library organization. Am I overstating the impact of a universal remote? Is the multiple remote clutter that frequents most homes today not of grave concern? I think not! (This is a poorly structured double-negative, meaning that it is of grave concern.) Consider all of this when reading the story below - or viewing the associated video, "The DaVinci Control."

The DaVinci Control
I entered the long hallway, humbled by the children's artwork on the darkened walls. I heard mutters of frustration at the far end, around the corner. My walk turned into a jog as my heart pounded more profoundly. As I maneuvered the corner, I saw it. Stretched out on the wall was a lifeless widescreen plasma. Were there any hints of the events leading up to this gruesome state? There were, indeed, signs of a struggle. Clues were scattered throughout the room, but each one was hidden within a puzzle. Six different infrared controlling keystones were sprawled out, each emblazoned with more than 30 buttons. I picked up the first device and stared at the face of it. They were labeled with encrypted words such as "TV/Video", "MTS", "PIP", and "Info". But wait!

"It must be a TV anagram that deciphers the remote cryptex," I thought. I figured that pressing a sequence of buttons among the different keystones might do the trick. I started pressing keys: "On Receiver", "Input", "Surround Sound", "On DVD", "On TV", "TV/Video", and "Play." My heart raced and I was short of breath. A humming sound was followed by a whir. The secret was unlocked! The DVD player was finally playing the movie with the surround sound system functioning. My years of work as a professor of symbology had proven to do more than just decipher the @#&?$!% words from comic strips.

"Dad, get out of the way, now" my son muttered in thanks.

"My work is done here," I concluded. Despite my heroics, I still thought that there had to be a better way to manage the remotes. I would hate to think that I was the last in the sacred bloodline to carry on the tradition of operating the TV. In order to address my suspicions of easier remote management, I will investigate a variety of remote topics. If I'm lucky, we'll wrap up before the albino catches up with me.

Universal Remote
Some consider this the holy grail of home entertainment equipment. If utilized properly, the univeral remote solves one of the biggest day-to-day issues with a family's television interface: dealing with all of those remotes. The universal remote can accept multiple codes or commands that tell it which devices to operate. They typically have a set number of devices that they can operate. A six-device universal remote, for example, can accept up to six codes to operate components such as your TV, audio receiver, DVD player, VCR, cable box, and CD player. For basic models, a list of manufacturer codes are provided online or within a manual, but each potential code must be tested to validate for a particular model. These basic remotes can be inexpensive, but more sophisticated devices with improved component determination will have higher price tags. There are also a variety of other features that can drive the cost, too.

LCD Touch Screen
In addition to fixed buttons, some remotes may also have an LCD display that uses a graphical user interface. A touch sensitive screen allows the user to pick options directly on the surface. Although typically backlit for poor lighting situations, these remotes do not allow fingers to feel their way across the remote’s surface. For those who are more comfortable holding their television remote than their spouse's hand, the feel of raised buttons may be missed. Of course, the LCD touch screen favors a more visual, intuitive interface.

Device-Based vs. Activity-Based
Most basic remotes have a button that toggles control between different devices. You switch the toggle to TV and all of the buttons control some aspect of the television. This is called device-based. Other more sophisticated remotes use activity-based controlling. For example, playing a DVD would require functions on the TV, audio receiver, and DVD player. This multi-step process is completed by the creation of a macro. The macro defines the keys and order of the keystrokes to be able to accomplish a certain task. For example, playing the DVD may require: turning on the TV, switching TV input to the DVD player, turning on the receiver, switching receiver input to the DVD player, turning on the DVD player, and finally pressing play on the DVD player. Combining all of the steps into a single button is what makes this type of device an activity-based remote control.

PC Programmable Remotes
Instead of entering codes into a remote, some controls are capable of PC hookup via USB cable or wireless access. This may provide a much more user-friendly and intuitive interface with which to setup the remote. Instead of trying to decipher cryptex codes from a manufacturer's list, the particular model number of the device may be found online and the information about that model may be downloaded to the remote. Additionally, if a website is used to hold the component list, the list could be readily updated to include new models as they are released. This would ensure that the latest list of devices are included in any product search.

IR vs. RF
As discussed in a previous post entitled, Clicker Debate: Infrared (IR) vs. Radio Frequency (RF), the infrared signal that operates most components requires line-of-sight and is not advantangeous for many hidden component applications. Using an RF signal can enable a universal remote to operate a number of components that may be out of sight, possibly behind wood doors or in a media closet. This creates much more flexibility in room design and component location. Several high-end universal remotes use this RF method to send the signal, which is eventually converted back to the IR signal accepted by the components.

Conclusion While I would like to delve into a comparison of universal remotes, I will save this for a later post. Products from manufacturers such as Logitech and URC (Universal Remote Control) provide great examples of how to streamline the universal remote efforts. My purpose here, however, is to educate regarding the terminology and options available. As any owner of a television and few components will attest, solving this mulitiple remote control issue is of utmost concern. The reality is that most folks still depend on a variety of remotes to control the increasingly large variety of television inputs. The number of ways we watch content on our television has increased immensely over the last 10 years. And with the HDTV resolutions to support PC interfacing and improved gaming with more online support, we're only going to see more options. Looking at applying a universal remote can involve some setup time, but unlike some benefits that get occassional use, the benefits of a universal remote may be realized daily. Analogously, a four wheel drive vehicle may provide off-road capabilities for those rear instances when it is necessary, but the leather seats will provide pleasure with each instance butt cheeks are pressed against it. Don't underestimate the importance of tackling this subject. Maybe eventually you can escape the constant anagram/crytex/sudoku de-coding that is usually necessary with the cursed traditional multi-remote arrangement.

Pain in the Aspect Ratio! Why Do I Still Have Black Bars On My HDTV?

noreply@blogger.com (Cale) — Fri, 06 Jul 2007 15:30:00 +0000

The consumer electronics manufacturers and motion picture industry have teamed up to bring you a point of confusion regarding aspect ratios and the simple task of watching TV. Black bars and stretched images due to mismatched aspect ratios give unexpected results for new TV buyers. Laced with many new benefits, the High Definition Television (HDTV) standards brought us three new features: (1) higher resolution pictures that provide greater detail, (2) surround sound output that can be directed to multiple speakers, and (3) a new aspect ratio for the screen. It is the "strange but true" topic of the aspect ratio that has brought confusion and is addressed here.

First of all, the aspect ratio is not the size of one’s buttocks in relation to one’s overall height (in the sense that Jennifer Lopez would have a higher aspect ratio than Paris Hilton), but rather the relationship of your TV’s width to its height. The standard aspect ratio that has been used on TVs since their inception has now changed with the new HDTV standards. Original TVs had a 4:3 aspect ratio, which means for every 4 inches wide, they are 3 inches tall. This gives the appearance of a rectangle that is almost as tall as it is wide – close to a square. This ratio may also be written with reference to a single unit of height, or 1.33:1 (4 divided by 3 = 1.33). In contrast, the new HDTV standard uses a 16:9 aspect ratio or 16 inches of width for every 9 inches of height. This ratio, also known as 1.78:1, is much broader and is referenced as a widescreen format.

The reason for the move to the wider screen is to provide a much more theater-like experience. Back in the 1950s, the motion picture studios were fearful of television’s ability to erode the attendance at movie theaters (Sound familiar? Now HDTVs are further eroding theater attendence). In response, the studios changed the aspect ratio on movies from 4:3 to a much wider stance. This allowed movie-goers to feel much more immersed. It is not until recently that a wider aspect ratio has been brought to the home. Now, thanks to HDTV, we have the widescreen 16:9 format. Peculiar enough, however, is the fact that the 16:9 ratio is unlike anything produced by movie studios. Hmmm. Will this cause problems?

According to a Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) study released in April 2007, about 28% of U.S. households have HDTVs (see TVweek.com). Despite this growing number, only a small percentage of channels available on cable and satellite provide HD programs. A clear majority of the programming is still in standard definition with the original 4:3 aspect ratio. Most television content providers are showing less than 20 HD channels, often amounting to less than 10% of its programming. So if we must live with it, how do we display a 4:3 program on a 16:9 television? There are three basic ways to do this. The first method is to zoom the picture and crop the top and bottom. Be careful, though, because close ups can give Clint Eastwood a flattop. The second method is to s-t-r-e-t-c-h the picture to fill the screen. This is what makes Brad Pitt look like Jack Black (see post on non-HD content on HDTVs). Lastly, you can maintain the full image and 4:3 aspect ratio by showing black bars at the side. This is called a pillarbox effect. For those concerned about preserving the original image without distortion, pillarboxing is the best alternative.

So it would appear that we have this aspect ratio thing understood. Now I can go out and spend $5,000 on a 50-inch HDTV for my bathroom. Since I usually watch movies from my bathtub (I call it my “pruning” time), I’ll also plan to hook up a DVD player to it. This will allow me to show widescreen movies on my widescreen TV: a perfect match. I will purchase G.I. Jane, featuring the best bald-headed chick since Ripley in Aliens 3, and pop it into the player. To my surprise, I will not have escaped the annoying black bars. The bars have merely rotated ninety degrees and pushed themselves to the top and bottom. What the…? Does this TV need to go back to the manufacturer? Not so fast.

The movie G.I. Jane is presented in a 2.35:1 theatrical aspect ratio. The motion picture industry now has a few different standards, many of which are even wider than 16:9. The 1.85:1 ratio is another popular ratio for movies, but much closer to our TV’s 16:9 ratio. When you display a video with an aspect ratio wider than 16:9, you get black bars at the top and bottom, giving a letterbox display. So let's review. We have a 1.33:1 standard aspect ratio (aka 4:3), a 1.78:1 HDTV widescreen ratio (aka 16:9) and several theatrical aspect ratios such as 1.85:1 and 2.35:1. Whew!

Now here’s the bad news. When you have a 16:9 widescreen TV and display a standard definition program in 4:3, the black bars on the side mean that 25% of the screen you recently purchased goes unused. When you watch a movie filmed in the 2.35:1 ratio, the black bars are at the top and bottom, but again 25% of the screen is always black. The 1.85:1 ratio is the closest to 16:9 and translates into a mere 4% loss. Those other numbers are pretty big, though. This is like buying a car that can only use three tires on most roads? It’s the price we all pay for the variety of aspect ratios out there. Now you know why I consider this topic a “pain in the aspect ratio!”

Despite all of this complexity surrounding aspect ratios, the HDTV standards do bring many benefits to those who upgrade their equipment. In the near future, high definition 16:9 programs will be prevalent among the viewing options. We will eventually be much happier as we use 100% of our television screen and Brad Pitt will look like…well…Brad Pitt. Then the only worry we have left is watching our dessert consumption so we don’t increase our own body’s aspect ratio. The last thing we want is to develop a personal widescreen format. A pillarbox shirt is not slimming.

[Note: This is a revised version of the original post, 5/3/07]

Hubba Hubba! Does the "Verizon Hub" Reinvent the Home Phone?

noreply@blogger.com (Cale) — Wed, 04 Jul 2007 01:06:00 +0000

SPECIAL SEGMENT: LOOK TO THE FUTURE

Verizon announced the coming of a home phone on steriods, dubbed the Verizon Hub™. It is coming to Verizon Broadband Customers, but the network giant did not disclose why it would not work for other broadband users. This broadband phone utilizes the home phone as a central place of family interaction. Although the wireless phone industry may be deteriorating this concept, for those homes that still have a land-based phone, the Verizon Hub™ may be just the thing. It brings many practical functions to a device that sits away from the family computer.

This phone has a moderately sized touch screen that allows a user-friendly interface to get news, weather, directory information, and maps. Of course, they also mentioned that it can operate as a phone, too. It may be customized with wallpaper, ringtones, and even colored faceplates. And it can be integrated into your family's lifestyle by utilizing a calendar, address book, and interactive memo pad.

There is no mention as to the availability or future price of this product, but its release appears to be innevitable. Verizon disclosed future plans for the interactive touch-screen phone to eventually include emailing, text messaging, and a telephone handset that doubles as a television remote. For those who find this device "sexy," they may find themselves chanting, "hubba, hubba." Here comes the Verizon Hub™. Visit Verizon's website for more information.

Clicker Debate: Infrared (IR) vs. Radio Frequency (RF) Remote Controls! And How Can I Hide Those Ugly Components?

noreply@blogger.com (Cale) — Tue, 03 Jul 2007 16:56:00 +0000

So, what is the difference between infrared (IR) and radio frequency (RF) remotes? Televisions, receivers, cable boxes, digital video recorders, gaming systems, DVD players, and personal computers are all becoming a part of the home entertainment network. Placing all of these components in an area that is readily seen has long been the requirement to allow the operation of traditional infrared remotes. There are a variety of products, however, that break us free from this limitation. These include IR repeaters, IR extenders, and the integration of radio frequency remotes. It is important to understand the difference between the infrared and radio frequency signal and know what is the proper environment for each. The IR vs. RF debate is not one in the same light as Blu-ray vs. HD DVD, but rather one of co-existence that benefits from an understanding of each signal's capabilities. This discussion of infrared and radio frequency remotes should arm you with the knowledge to make informed decisions about the type of remote to use as well as the placement of unsightly components.

Infrared Remotes
Infrared remotes are devices that use a beam of light to communicate user instructions to an audio/visual component. Because it uses a light source, this type of remote requires line-of-sight. This means that the beam may be interrupted by anything through which light cannot travel. For example, an IR remote may work through glass but not through a wood door. It is also the reason why a remote may not work temporarily when a person walks in front of it.

Infrared remotes are advantageous because they are inexpensive, robust when unobstructed, and readily teachable. By teachable, it is meant that there are inexpensive IR learning remotes that are able to be taught commands from any other IR remote. Once the learning remote is placed in its learning mode, the remotes are simply pointed at each other and the commands are sent (i.e. buttons pressed). The infrared method of remote control has become the de facto standard in the industry of consumer electronics.

Because of the line of site requirement, however, components that are controlled by IR remotes are typically not able to be hidden away. While most folks just accept this shortcoming, there are several alternatives that allow components to be stored out of site in more creative places. These are described below.

Infrared Repeater
When components are located behind a door or in a nearby place that cannot be reached by an IR signal, an infrared repeater may be used. This repeater usually has an "eye" that is connected to the repeater unit. The eye is located in a place that is visible to the IR remote. For example, if the components are behind a wooden door in a piece of furniture, a hole may be bored above the doors that allows the eye to be visible to the remote control. The infrared signal is received by the eye and carried through a wire to the repeater unit. The repeater unit is powered and is able to take the input signal and send it to one or more components. One way this this is done is by using individual wires that have light emitting tips that stick to each of the component's IR receptors. Another method sends the output through a single IR blaster that scatters the signal in an attempt to reach multiple components. If the direct shot of an individual wire is thought to be analogous to a rifle, then the IR blaster is the equivalent of a shot gun.

Infrared Extender
An infrared extender may be used to help signals find hard-to-reach components behind doors or walls. It accomplishes the same task as an IR repeater, except that the components do not need to be in close proximity to a visible eye. The original IR signal is sent to a visible receiver unit that converts the signal to a radio frequency (RF) signal that may pass through walls, floor, and furniture. This RF signal is picked up by a mating IR extender base that then converts the signal back to infrared. This transported infrared signal is then sent back out by the base unit to the component(s). This method requires the receiver to be visible by the remote and the base unit needs to sit in front of the components - with line-of-site available to the component's IR receptor. The receiver and base, however, can be located much further apart.

Radio Frequency Remotes
While almost all components use infrared signals to control them, a radio frequency (RF) signal (like the one used by remote extenders) provides another way to send signals from a remote. An RF remotes is meant to replace traditional IR remote by using a radio frequency signal that is not visual in nature. This allows the signal to go through walls, ceilings, floors, and furniture. Since the components are still expecting an IR signal, however, the RF remote must communicate to a base unit that accepts the RF signal and converts it back it to an IR signal. Much like an extender, the RF remote is advantagous over an IR repeater because no line of site is required between the remote and the components. The components may be stored much further away, such as in a media closet. Additionally, the RF remote is an improvement over the IR extender because the source signal is RF and no IR receiver unit needs to be in sight.

The fact that an RF remote does not require line-of-sight is only a side benefit to what this device can ultimately do. A radio frequency remote can be a much more significant part of a home entertainment system. The repeater and extender discussed previously, can help take the IR signal from each remote to its corresponding hidden component, but a single RF remote can be the means of controlling all of the hidden components. This all-in-one remote is called a universal remote, and the premium universal remotes use the RF method to reach the components. These universal remotes may replace all of the individual remotes that are typically found scattered throughout a home entertainment room. For an in-depth discussion of universal remotes, however, you'll have to wait for the follow-up post. In the meantime, know your IR limitations and RF capabilities - and that you are not trapped in a world where you have to look at those ugly components all of the time.

We Want Surround Sound, Not Unwieldy Wires! How Can I Easily Integrate Rear Channel Speakers?

noreply@blogger.com (Cale) — Fri, 29 Jun 2007 05:41:00 +0000

One of the benefits of moving toward a home entertainment setup with HDTV is the delivery of surround sound from HD sources. The experience of a movie from a Blu-ray or HD DVD player can be greatly enhanced by audio cues that literally surround you and immerse you in the picture. To take advantage of this, however, you need to have multiple speakers scattered throughout the room with wires going through walls, under rugs, or over ceilings. Or that's what one would think. There are actually some options out there to help achieve home theater surround sound without all of the wired speaker trouble.

One of the most popular methods of obtaining surround sound involves a setup of six speakers, called "5.1 surround sound". This translates into a left, center, and right channel speakers as well as two rear speakers. The "dot one" after the five refers to the sub-woofer that delivers the deep bass rumbles. Since components such as the TV, receiver, and DVD player typically sit at the front of the room, integrating the left, center, and right channel speakers is usually not a problem. There are some "three in one" speakers that combine these, but the help is really needed in finding how to hook up those rear channel speakers. This is the achilles heel of surround sound setup. For many, the idea of running wires through the room ranges from unpleasant to infeasible. There are two main alternatives to traditional rear speaker wiring: wireless speakers and sound projectors.

Wirless Rear Speakers
The idea of running all of the surround sound speakers wirelessly is not a new concept. But the idea has been plagued by issues of throughput capabilities, range, and interference. Though the use of radio frequency signals that focus on just two speakers (our rear channels), the concept of wireless becomes more practical. There are two ways to accomplish this. The first is done by using a wireless speaker module (like the one shown from Kenwood), that may utilize the speakers you already have. The second method includes a set of speakers, such as the ones shown by Acoustic Research. Both use a base unit that attaches directly to the audio source and generally have ranges over 100 feet. Because they use radio frequency, the signal is not interrupted by walls or furniture. The thing to keep in mind with a wireless speaker system is that power needs to be delivered to those rear channel units. Although some wireless speakers may be run with batteries, it is recommended that they be plugged into a nearby outlet. In most homes, however, a power outlet is easier to find than a good place to run those wires.

Sound Projectors
A second alternative for those wishing to escape the mess of speaker wires utilizes a method of sound projection and reflection. A single sound source uses a large number of speakers to bounce sound off available walls and reflect back to the listener. This provides the audible illusion of speakers scattered throughout the room. Yamaha makes some of the most popular devices of this type. They claim that they can deliver multi-channel sound to the listener in the same way that sound from front, center and rear speakers does. The sound projector precisely controls the orientation of sound by focusing it into beams. The center channel sound is heard directly, while the sounds from other channels are heard after reflecting off the walls surrounding the listener. Depending on the room configuration, this is done through a variety of beam modes. An example of these beam modes is shown in the illustration provided.

Although some woofers are included in the package, to deliver deep bass sounds, the manufacturer recommends the use of this product along with a sub-woofer. The sub-woofer may be the only other audio component needed. Due to the unique way it refects audio, the sound projector replaces all of the other speakers, including the rear channels. And because the device decodes Dolby Digital, DTS, Pro Logic, and Pro Logic II, it effectively replaces what a receiver does. It includes a variety of audio inputs, including digital and analog, allowing multiple devices to be attached directly to the speaker device and bypassing any receiver.

So, how good is the audio experience from a sound projector? Well, it depends. The verdict is that the audio quality is much more dependent on the room configuration than a standard speaker setup. If there are good walls that can reflect sound, however, then sitting in the "sweet spot" can have breathtaking results. If the room configuration does not allow proper beam bouncing, the quality of the experience may deteriorate. For many cases, however, it does a good job of providing surround sound experience without a big hassle. For those audio enthusiasts, it will likely not replace actually having multiple speakers in the room. But for those who value convenience over perfection, it is a great alternative. Additionally, it is nice way to get surround sound in secondary rooms such as a bedroom.

Conclusion
For those avoiding the leap to a surround sound system because of the difficulty in integrating rear channel speakers, help is available. Solutions involving wireless speakers or sound projectors can facilitate the installation and avoid the hassle of rear speaker wires. So come and join the fun - and immerse yourself in the surround sound experience!

Full HD May Be Full of It! Is the High Resolution 1080p HDTV Worth The Premium Price?

noreply@blogger.com (Cale) — Wed, 27 Jun 2007 18:24:00 +0000

With the emergence of high definition televisions that have a greater resolution than standard HDTVs, some interesting questions are popping up. Is this new technology, dubbed "Full HD" or "1080p", worth the price?

Question:
What? Now that 1080p Full HD televisions are being sold, my 720p HDTV must be only "partially" high definition! Is that something like being partially pregnant? I thought a television was either high definition or it wasn't. What is all the fuss about?

Answer:
While the minimum requirement for high defintion is indeed 720 lines of resolution, the HD television manufacturers have been pushing these new "Full HD" televisions. These sets tout incredible clarity through the use of 1080 lines of progressive scan resolution - otherwise known as '1080p'. Progressive scan means that every line is refreshed during each cycle, as opposed to the inferior interlaced scan (1080i) that refreshes every other line at a time. With 1920 columns for each of those 1080 lines, the Full HD package delivers over 2 million pixels (pixels are those miniscule dots that make up the picture). That is over twice as many pixels as the typical 720p high definition television that emerged first into the HDTV market. Three circles in the illustration above show how the shape becomes smoother when more dots (pixels) are used to create the object. The three circles represent pixel counts to similate 480p (DVD quality), 720p (standard HD), and 1080p (full HD). An example of how a photographic image becomes sharper with greater pixel count is shown, too. For best results, click on the image to get the larger version. The 1080p resolution sounds impressive. So why is there any question that this technology is the way to go? Two reasons: visual acuity and content availability.

Visual Acuity
Let us first address the issue of visual acuity. I initially discussed this topic in a post entitled, Size Matters. Back then, I explained that visual acuity refers to the capability of the human eye. A person with 20/20 vision is able to distinguish lines on a screen that are separated by 1/60th of a degree. The reason this figure is described as degrees of an arc is because you can see a smaller line when up close, but when further away the line must be larger to be visible. This creates an angle - an angle of approximately 1/60th of a degree.

How much detail a person can see on a television depends two things: (1) the line thickness determined by the screen resolution and (2) the viewing distance. The greater the resolution, the more lines on the screen and the more difficult it is to distinguish the individual lines. If you are able to actually see the individual lines on a TV screen, you may need to sit farther away, get a higher resolution screen, or both. It is my belief that you don’t want to be able to distinguish individual lines. This will ensure top picture quality perception.

Based on visual acuity, the chart at the left was created to show at what resolution screen lines become indistinguishable. For example, watching a 46-inch television at a 10-foot distance, the 720p resolution has a line thickness that is virtually indistinguishable by the human eye. There is likely no benefit to using a 1080p screen in this situation. At that same 10-foot distance, however, a 60-inch television could benefit from 1080p. Or the 46-inch screen viewed at a shorter 8-foot distance could also benefit from Full HD. The recommended resolution depends on the combination of screen size and viewing distance. This chart is useful in finding those instances when 1080p may be justified.

This chart also provides information about recommended screen sizes for different home applications. The black areas show situations that adhere to professional cinema guidelines for immersive (hard core) home theater viewing. The grey areas adhere to specifications and recommendations for more typical (practical) home entertainment applications. Again, please see the earlier post, Size Matters, for more details. Again, you may click on the chart to get a larger image.

Content Availability
There is another concern about the effectiveness of Full HD. Despite the capabilities of a 1080p television, there is very little content available to take advantage of this ultra high screen resolution. Currently there is no satellite, cable, or over-the-air programming presented in 1080p. All of the available HD content from these sources is in either 720p or 1080i.

There are, however, two proven methods to get 1080p content to a Full HD television. First, a qualified HD disc player such as a Blu-ray or HD DVD may be capable of this type of high resolution output. While all Blu-ray players are capable of 1080p, it is necessary to bypass the introductory HD DVD players and make sure the upgraded 1080p player is used. The second source for 1080p content comes from either the Xbox 360 or Playstation 3 gaming system. These have games capable of Full HD output as well as disc players that can provide top notch resolution. That just about sums up the current availability of HD content in crystal clear 1080p.

Despite the lack of 1080p content today, the emphasis of this high quality resolution in the television marketplace will eventually trickle down to the content providers. As more folks invest in this technology, they will look (and pay) for content to take advantage of it. Technology will continue to move forward and 1080p televisions will become the standard. And when homes are filled with 1080p televisions, you will see content providers begin to offer the improved content. It will take time, but it will happen. If you're investing in a TV that you plan on keeping beyond the end of 2008, it is reasonable to expect that you will have more content available in the 1080p resolution. The investment in Full HD should be considered a longer term commitment.

Conclusion
The technological advancement of 1080p is undisputed. It is hard to argue with twice the pixel count. The issue comes from whether this improved performance is worth the 20 - 25% price premium a Full HD television can carry. If the television size and viewing distance at least gives the opportunity to enjoy the enhanced image, then 1080p should be considered. If considered, the decision should be made based on the range of content available now and in the near future. For many, movies on HD discs are the primary reason they would want improved clarity anyway. So these folks, Full HD will bring the ultimate in picture clarity and an incredible viewing experience. For others, their circumstances just don't justify the higher resolution. So look at your individual circumstances and determine for yourself whether 1080p is worth it - or whether the extra expense for Full HD is just "full of hi-def dung".

12 Hottest HD DVD Movies! What Are The Most Visually Entertaining Movies for My HD DVD Player?

noreply@blogger.com (Cale) — Tue, 26 Jun 2007 20:28:00 +0000

One of the first questions that people have after they hook up their HD DVD player is, "what are the best movies to watch in HDTV?" The issue at hand is that the HD DVD format is still relatively new and not all of your favorites will be available. Despite being offered through movie distributors that support HD DVD, movies like Twister are still not available in the higher resolution format. Also among the ranks of those movies not yet introduced in HD DVD are the Jurassic Park trilogy, Shrek/Shrek 2, and The Lord of the Rings series. These flicks represent some of the eye candy and action blockbusters that are expected to "wow" you on your new HD DVD player. Alas, they are not available yet. So, this situation begs the question: what are the best movies I can get for my HD DVD?

The following is a list of a dozen of the top eye-popping movies currently available (or soon to be) under the HD DVD format. The release date, domestic box office revenue and displayed aspect ratio are listed. Additionally, you can mouse-over the images for ordering information.

King Kong
Universal, released 11/16/06; U.S. Box Office est. $218,000,000; Aspect Ratio 2.35:1

300
Warner, estimated release 07/31/07; U.S. Box Office est. $210,000,000; Aspect Ratio 2.35:1

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Warner, released 10/10/06; U.S. Box Office est. $206,500,000; Aspect Ratio 1.85:1

Batman Begins
Warner, released 10/10/06; U.S. Box Office est. $205,300,000; Aspect Ratio 2.40:1

The Mummy Returns
Universal, released 01/16/07; U.S. Box Office est. $202,000,000; Aspect Ratio 2.35:1

Superman Returns
Warner, released 11/28/06; U.S. Box Office est. $200,000,000; Aspect Ratio 2.35:1

The Fugitive
Warner, released 05/23/06; U.S. Box Office est. $183,900,000; Aspect Ratio 1.85:1

The Perfect Storm
Warner, released 06/06/06; U.S. Box Office est. $182,600,000; Aspect Ratio 2.40:1

Mission: Impossible
Paramount, released 05/22/07; U.S. Box Office est. $181,000,000; Aspect Ratio 2.35:1

Happy Feet
Warner, released 03/27/07; U.S. Box Office est. $198,000,000; Aspect Ratio 2.40:1

The Bourne Supremacy
Universal, released 05-23-06; U.S. Box Office est. $176,000,000; Aspect Ratio 2.35:1

The Polar Express
Warner, released 10-10-06; U.S. Box Office est. $176,600,000; Aspect Ratio 2.40:1

For a list of the top Blu-ray movies, visit my post highlighting the alternate format.

12 Best Blu-Ray Movies! What are the Most Visually Stunning HDTV Movies Available to Watch on My Blu-ray Player?

noreply@blogger.com (Cale) — Tue, 26 Jun 2007 05:52:00 +0000

One of the first questions that people have after they hook up their new Blu-ray player is, "what are the best movies available?" The issue at hand is that the Blu-ray format is still relatively new and not all of your favorites will be available. Despite being offered through movie distributors that support the Blu-ray format, movies like Titanic (Fox), Finding Nemo, and The Incredibles (Buena Vista) are still not available in crystal clear 1080p Blu-ray discs. Other cinema series such as Star Wars and Spider-Man are still awaiting release, too. These types of flicks represent some of the action blockbusters that should "wow" you when played on your new HD Blu-ray player. Alas, they are not available yet. So, this situation begs the question: what are the best movies I can get for my Blu-ray?

The following is a list of a dozen of the top eye-popping movies currently available (or soon to be) under the Blu-ray format. The release date, domestic box office revenue, and aspect ratios are displayed. Additionally, you may mouse over the disc cover graphics for ordering information.

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest
Buena Vista, released 05/22/07, U.S. Box office est. $423,000,000, Aspect Ratio 2.35:1

Night at the Museum
Fox, released 04/24/07, U.S. Box office est. $251,000,000, Aspect Ratio 2.35:1

300
Warner, to be released 07/31/07, U.S. Box office est. $210,000,000, Aspect Ratio 2.35:1

Pearl Harbor
Buena Vista, released 12/19/06, U.S. Box office est. $198,500,000, Aspect Ratio 2.20:1

X-Men: The Last Stand
Fox, released 11/14/06, U.S. Box office est. $234,000,000, Aspect Ratio 2.40:1

Superman Returns
Warner, released 11/28/06, U.S. Box office est. $200,000,000 Aspect Ratio 2.35:1

The Fugitive
Warner, released 09/26/06, U.S. Box office est. $183,900,000, Aspect Ratio 1.85:1

Mission: Impossible
Paramount, released 05/22/07, U.S. Box office est. $181,000,000, Aspect Ratio 2.35:1

Terminator 2: Judgment Day
Lionsgate, released 06/27/06, U.S. Box office est. $204,800,000, Aspect Ratio 2.35:1

Monster House
Columbia, released 10/24/06, U.S. Box office est. $74,000,000, Aspect Ratio 2.35:1

Planet of the Apes
Fox, released 02/13/07, U.S. Box office est. $180,000,000, Aspect Ratio 2.35:1

Happy Feet
Warner, released 03/27/07 , U.S. Box office est. $198,000,000, Aspect Ratio 2.40:1

For a list of the top HD DVD movies, visit my post highlighting the alternate format.

The Contrast Ratio Lie! Can I Trust Manufacturer Specifications?

noreply@blogger.com (Cale) — Sat, 23 Jun 2007 17:36:00 +0000

Looking at televisions side-by-side, you can often see some that have deep blacks and others that have bright whites. This can have a profound effect on the perceived picture quality and viewing experience. The contrast ratio is a measure of the difference between these white and black parts in an image. A higher contrast ratio means that there is a larger diffence between the darkest blacks and the brightest whites. A contrast ratio of 500:1 would mean that the brightest point is 500 times brighter than the darkest point. This seems like an important aspect of a televisions performance, so how much emphasis should we place on manufacturer's specifications on the subject? In short, not much.

Since the contrast ratio is a difference, increasing the contrast ratio can be done by having darker blacks or whiter whites. Plasma televisions have traditionally been more capable of delivering deeper blacks, while LCDs have had much brighter displays of white (see TV type comparison). So the same contrast ratio may actually deliver different picture images. But the confusion does not stop there.

There are also a variety of testing methods to determine a contrast ratio - and no standards. One method may benefit DLPs, while another testing method may benefit LCDs. Manufacturers understand that the numbers they publish influence purchasing decisions and they want to show how their product is better. In doing this, however, a consumer can be misled. This is further illustrated by comparing static and dynamic contrast ratios. A static contrast ratio takes a snapshot of an image and compares the lightest and darkest point. The dynamic contrast ratio, however, looks at the brightest vs. darkest points over time. Although manufacturers may not explicitly state which ratio is being referenced, very high dynamic contrast ratios are easier to achieve than static ones. An outstanding static contrast ratio may be 1,500:1, while it is not unusual to see a dynamic contrast ratio over 10,000:1.

Static and dynamic contrast ratios may be illustrated by looking at three televisions. The manufacturer specifications for the Samsung 46" DLP HDTV HL-T4675S lists its contrast ratio at 2500:1. The LG 42" Flat-Panel Plasma HDTV 42PC5D, on the other hand, has a manufacturer specified contrast ratio of 15,000:1 . What a difference! In each case, the type of contrast ratio and testing method is not disclosed. In reality, both television technologies are capable of deep blacks and superior contrast ratios. Likely, the larger contrast ratio is a dynamic measure and the smaller contrast ratio is static. Our last example is the Philips Ambilight 2 42" 1080p Flat-Panel LCD HDTV 42PFL7432D. This manufacturer has opted to list both types of contrast ratios in its specifications, giving a 1,100:1 static and 8,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio. While it is refreshing to have a little more disclosure, testing methods are rarely discussed by anyone.

Additionally, there is another important thing to remember no matter which TV you buy. There are many controls on the television to adjust different aspects of the picture (i.e. brightness, color, contrast). Simply accepting the out-of-the-box settings on your new television is unlikely the best strategy. A proper calibration or picture adjustment can be more influential in obtaining a great picture than buying the television with best contrast ratio. After purchase, follow any manufacturer recommendations to optimize the picture quality. Keep in mind that individual situations and personal prefences play a role here, too. You may need to have an increased brightness level to compensate for a well-lit room, for example.

The confusion and ambiguity within contrast ratios makes it difficult to use this information effectively. I believe that is important to gather as much information you can about your television options, but some data you have to take with a grain of salt. In fact, other sources such as Gizmodo and Home Theater believe the contrast ratios provided by manufacturers are basically useless. I wouldn't be surprised to see manufacturers justify using a contrast ratio of 25,000:25 (which is really the same as 1,000:1). Oh, and be prepared for the next technology in HDTVs called OLED that boast a contrast ratio of 1,000,000:1. I think the blacks are so deep that they start to come out the back of the television.

Trash the Disc, Learn from Porn! Can HD Movie Downloads Deliver the Convenience and Flexibility Consumers Demand?

noreply@blogger.com (Cale) — Thu, 21 Jun 2007 20:02:00 +0000

SPECIAL SEGMENT: LOOK TO THE FUTURE

It has been my goal to present blog posts that provide practical, decision-aiding information on technology for the home. I have been concerned about being too futuristic with glimpses into the crystal ball. For the topic of the delivery of HD movie content, however, I believe it is important to understand the future direction in order to make a decision today. For this reason, I will be making forward-looking predictions beyond my typical articles. In other words, my blindfold is on and I’m aiming my dart at the board. Want to put an apple on your head?

Just a few days ago, in response to growing demand for high-definition DVDs, Blockbuster announced that it will be rolling out Blu-ray discs to 1,700 corporate-owned stores within the next month. This may appear to be a blow to the HD DVD format, but one should be careful about reading too much into this move. In a Blockbuster corporate press release, Matthew Smith, SVP Merchandising, acknowledged that, "it is still too early to say which high-definition format will become the industry standard." The decision to place Blu-rays in stores is of limited consequence, as both formats will continue to be offered online with their Total Access plans. In test markets, Blu-ray out-rented HD DVD 2-to-1 and Blockbuster is using this initial customer response to limit the cost of rolling out HD discs to stores. If ultimately both formats hang around for awhile, the online and in-store video rental giant will surely offer both in their stores.

While the near future will be greatly impacted by the Blu-ray and HD DVD format war, you have to wonder if the future lies with a disc format at all. Although the pornography industry played a major role in determining the outcome of the VHS vs. Betamax battle, most believe this industry will not influence the determination of the HD format winner. During the epic VHS/Betamax struggle, cassette tapes were the primary method of delivering porn. Today, the industry has embraced a greater variety of methods to deliver its goods, including the popular video downloads via the web. I like to call this porn-ography-over-IP – or PooP for short. With the weight of a multi-billion dollar industry, I think it is safe to say that these folks have thought “long and hard” about the best ways to deliver their product to its consumers. They no longer depend on tapes or discs for distribution. If this industry can give “arise” to video downloads, should it be adopted for mainstream video? Let us first look at the current state of (non-disc) HD movie distribution.

Video-on-Demand
Cable and satellite content providers that offer pay-per-view or video-on-demand actually have the needs and desires of consumers close at hand. Most are available in a HD format and only fall short in overall selection. The subset of movies made available through this method is missing the mark. There are relatively few older, classic movies made available and the newest movies were new releases for purchase or rent several months ago. If the selection improves, this method can provide a real alternative for movie fans, especially when combined with a High Defintion TiVo or HD DVR. I’m not sure if movie studios would stretch the distribution rights to allow this to happen.

Current Video Downloads
Although there are almost 300 titles available (or soon to be available) in a high definition disc format, the availability of HD movies for download is sparse. Blockbuster and Best Buy have only been rumored to be developing movie download stores. Sites that are currently delivering downloadable movies for rent or purchase include iTunes, Amazon (via Amazon unbox), WalMart, Movielink, CinemaNow (which includes a download and burn to DVD option), and Vongo (which downloads available Starz movies). The problem is that the best quality any of these sites offer is DVD-type resolutions. From these sites, there is no HD content despite the future pointing toward this high resolution form.

A company called MovieBeam, however, has introduced an innovative method of delivering movies to your home, including some in HD. They sell a MovieBeam Player for $199.99 ($149.99 fobr a limited time) that automatically keeps 40 of the latest movies available for you to rent. Appeasing early adopting geeks and nerds, the player receives the movies through a transporter similar to the one used on Star Trek (beam my movie, Scottie!). Actually, the movies are received wirelessly into the home using an indoor antenna and MovieBeam’s patented digital signal. The signal is available in 33 metropolitan areas across the U.S., including smaller markets such as Austin, Tacoma, and Nashville. Movies are available for rent from $1.99 to $3.99 with a one dollar premium for HD movies. There is no monthly subscription fee. The selection appears to be similar to a movies-on-demand source. Since movies are downloaded to the device prior to selection for renting, your rental choice may immediately be followed by the viewing of the movie. There is no waiting for the download. Once started, you have 24 hours to view the movie. Standard pause, fast-forward, and rewind functionality exists. MovieBeam claims to have access to movies from virtually every major Hollywood studio, but our search for HD movies only turned up seven possibilities.

Xbox LIVE, self-dubbed “the only online social network in the living room,” is a community of more than five million members that has access to downloadable high-definition games, television, and, of course, movies. This compares to Netflix and Blockbuster Total Access that combine for just under 10 million subscribers. Xbox LIVE is the largest online distributor of high-definition content by volume. On its website, the Xbox people boast that the vast majority of subscribers choose the high-definition version of media when given a choice between a standard- or high-definition download on the network. The claim is that Xbox 360™ is the first and only gaming console to provide HD and standard-definition TV shows and movies straight to a hard drive. Xbox LIVE® Marketplace is where you can download your favorite movies and television shows. Each title is available for rent for $4 to $6, but currently not for purchase. On their website, they have 26 HD titles shown as available.

The Future of HD Movie Downloads
For HD movie downloads to become prominent, however, eight issues need to be addressed. Once these topics are fully developed, the flood gates will likely open for movie downloads, enabling this content distribution method to pass DVD sales. Here are the eight topics:

Quality Must Be High Def. As discussed, almost all downloadable movie content today is DVD quality or lower. Only MovieBeam and the Xbox Live Marketplace have experienced any success in HD movie downloads. There is little doubt in my mind, however, that as these eight issues become resolved, the big boys from iTunes to Amazon to Walmart will begin offering HD content. The time is not right today, but once you read further into these points, I think you will agree that digital distribution is coming. Considering the progress of technology, I would expect to see some big boys joining the HD movie download scene by year-end, with others following in 2008.

More Advanced Compression. The “old” DVD format uses an MPEG-2 compression technique (also called a “codec”) that enables 3.8 hours of standard definition video to fit on a 8.5GB standard DVD. An hour of a high definition movie, however, would take almost 10 GB in this MPEG-2 video codec. A newer compression model, called H.264 or MPEG-4 AVC (Advanced Video Codec), allows an hour of HD video to be stored in less than 6 GB with negligible loss of quality. Another codec, called VC-1, is similar in compressed size and is used by Microsoft’s Windows Media Player. These compression techniques are helping HD DVD and Blu-ray store more HD content on their discs, too. Finally, another video codec, called DivX, has slight video quality loss but cuts the space required for HD video in half. I am ignoring an important quality-influencer called bit rate, but am trying to simplify things by assuming that all codecs are using the same high quality bit rate. The bottom line is that more advanced compression techniques can greatly reduce file size with very small losses in video quality. Of the issues mentioned here, this may be one of the most mature as the codecs mentioned are available for use today.

Cost Justification Must Exist. For the music industry, buying a 12-song CD for $16 was replaced with individual song downloads for $1 or an entire album for about $10. This flexibility gave great credibility and cost justification for downloading music. I don’t think the movie download methodology can be sustained unless the cost of downloading a song for purchase has a significant price advantage over buying the HD DVD or Blu-ray. Rentals, on the other hand, may justify pricing similar or slightly higher than in store or mail rentals due to the convenience downloading delivers. The price must be within striking distance, though. What Xbox LIVE and MovieBeam offer today is within striking distance, but better offers could sweeten the pot within a year.

The Entertainment PC Needs a Boost. Although folks like Microsoft have been trying to get the PC in the main entertainment room for years, sales and full use of Windows Media Center PCs have been lackluster. Convergence has long been on the lips of Bill Gates, describing a technological utopia where all consumer electronic devices work together and create an interconnected network to serve the user. The average consumer has not embraced this vision and a shift in mentality needs to occur. As Media Center PCs, TV tuner cards, DVR applications, and networked media players mature, the vision of a home entertainment network will crystallize. With devices like the Xbox 360 acting as media players, consumers will see that the PC does not need to sit under the TV. Networks will bridge the gaps. HDTV will continue to penetrate the home and more folks will see the benefit of displaying PC output on the living room television. Progress will continue this year but 2008 will be the year that the HDTV and PC connectivity will become second nature.

Improved Movie Studio Support. The movie studios will need to address how their movies become available and are distributed. Walmart has been successful in getting the major movie studios to allow their content to be downloadable. It takes a powerful name such as this to get the movie studios to move in the proper direction. If Amazon, iTunes, Blockbuster, and Best Buy enter the HD download market in 2008, then there will be enough power there to get movie studios to allow their content to be distributed digitally. A name like MovieBeam just doesn’t seem to have the pull to get a huge variety of movies available.

Better Digital Rights for Consumers. Movie studios will be in control of how the digital rights are managed. Check out my post on digital rights management for an illustration on how DRM has worked with music content. If you download a movie, a law-abiding user needs to feel that they can freely use the video within their personal realm. The folks behind the copy-protection system within HD DVD and Blu-ray are working on a "managed copy" scheme that would allow users to make legal copies of movies to media centers, portable media players, or PCs. The hope is to have this ready by the end of 2007. If HD DVD and Blu-ray can come up with a solution, surely a pure download strategy can have a workable solution by 2008.

To expand on user flexibility, subscription services (as opposed to pay-per-view) must also be made available, too. This appears to be reserved by a trio of pay-TV neworks: HBO, Showtime, and Starz. So far, Starz has been the only one to experiment with the digital distribution through its Vongo service, which has yet to offer HD content. The movies are typically one or two months behind the earliest release of movies on DVD, but the content would be available with few time constraints or volume limitations. Similar to subscribing to HBO from cable provider, you would be able to watch as much as you want, as often as you want. The difference is that an online subscription would allow you to access to a greater on-demand variety than a cable pay channel.

Cheaper Storage Costs. Although hard drive storage space has dropped under $0.30 per GB, the continued decline in storage costs is needed. Currently, a typical HD movie may require as much as 10 GB of storage or $3 worth. For those looking to permanently store a movie, this cost in addition to the movie download costs. As these prices continue to plummet, I believe it will be reasonable to store a move for under a buck by the end of 2008. Another way to address storage costs is to let the service do the storage. If Amazon Unbox moves to HD, then you could maintain rights to watch the movie without keeping it on your own hard drive, except when you want to view it. Obviously, additional downloads would be required. This leads us to our next issue about download capacity.

Increased Bandwidth. The 10 GB HD movie described earlier would take about 30 minutes to download at 5.0 Mbps, a pretty aggressive download speed. For those with a measly 1.5 Mbps download package, that jumps to about 2 hours. Verizon is continuing to grow its fiber-optic service that is dubbed “FiOS.” This program touts download speeds that start at 5.0 Mbps and run up to 50 Mbps. Their internet service is currently available in more than 1,700 communities in 16 states. This same fiber-optic technology is also available as FiOS TV to bring HD programming and video-on-demand content to homes as well. The cable companies are not sitting still. The National Cable & Telecommunications Association is moving the industry toward a new standard, called DOCSIS 3.0, that has the potential to obtain download speeds up to 160 Mbps. While Verizon’s solution is available today and expanding, the DOCSIS 3.0 standard may be years away from full implementation. The average consumer may not be engaged in this leap forward in bandwidth until 2009 or 2010. Until then, patience in download times may be the key.

The point of all of this is that we are not decades away from seeing movie downloads become mainstream. John Q. Consumer will likely not jump ship from his DVD purchases overnight, but within a few years the benefit of a huge movie selection at his fingertips will be realized. As this happens, the battle of HD DVD vs. Blu-ray will become less of an issue. Trash the disc, learn from porn!

HD DVD + Blu-ray = The HD Blues! Want To Know Which High Def Disc Player to Buy?

noreply@blogger.com (Cale) — Fri, 15 Jun 2007 05:28:00 +0000

Most consumers are aware of the Blu-ray vs. HD DVD battle. These are the two competing formats for the latest high definition discs to replace current DVDs. For those who love movies, this appears to be the best way to take full advantage of your new high definition television, especially if you have splurged for the incredible 1080p high resolution screen (see my blog post on 10 things to know about HDTV). So, which of the two is a better option for those who want to take plunge and buy a high def player right now? Which has more movies? Which has more movies that I like? Which has a better price? Which is likely to win the format war? Will there be a winner? I will attempt to address some of these inquiries right here.

Technological Differences
The reason for the change in technology was to have a disc that could accommodate the extra space needed for high definition movies. The standard DVDs that have been flying off the shelves for years can store 3.8 hours of enhanced definition viewing (480 line of resolution) or less than an hour worth of high definition video (1080 lines). Two competing formats emerged. Both use new hardware methods to read more information on a disc, as well as more sophisticated video and audio compression techniques (called codecs) to pack more data with almost negligible loss.

The Blu-ray Disc (BD) was created by a large group of the world’s leading consumer electronics companies, including Apple, Dell, Hitachi, HP, JVC, LG, Mitsubishi, Panasonic, Pioneer, Philips, Samsung, Sharp, and Sony. Instead of the standard red laser used by standard DVD players, it uses a more precise blue-violet laser to read more information on the same sized disc, thus the name Blu-Ray. It can store 50GB of information on a double-layer disc, almost six times the amount of a standard DVD. This translates into 8.5 hours of high definition video and audio. The leap in technology, however, requires significant manufacturing re-tooling. Despite this, it is has been supported by more manufacturers and movie studios. It has also become the standard player on all next-generation Playstation 3 gaming systems produced by Sony.

The HD DVD format took a different but similar road. They also used the blue-violet laser, but with a technology closer to current DVDs. This allowed the re-tooling costs to be less significant to manufacturers. The downside is that the double layer HD DVD only holds 30GB of information or 5.1 hours of high def video and audio. This is 3.5x better than standard DVDs, but not as much as the Blu-ray format. The HD DVD format reached the market first and began penetration while the Blu-ray stumbled out of the gates. The Microsoft Xbox 360 has an add-on HD DVD player, ensuring that the format penetrates the gaming market. Although not widely used, the HD DVD format has also developed a triple layer disc that holds 51GB of information, allowing it to exceed the 50GB that Blu-ray boasts. This further clouds the issue of which format is superior. Industry backers include Toshiba, NEC, Sanyo, Microsoft, RCA, Kenwood, Intel, Hitachi, LG, and Samsung. Below shows a table that makes the comparison between the current standard DVDs and the new high definition formats.

	Std DVD	HD DVD	Blu-ray
Single layer	4.7 GB	15 GB	25 GB
Double layer	8.5 GB	30 GB	50 GB
Gaming	old systems	Xbox 360	Playstation 3
SD storage	3.8 hr	13.3 hr	22.2 hr
HD storage	n/a	5.1 hr	8.5 hr

Movie Release Comparison
According to sources that track high-def movie releases (such as highdefdigest.com), there are almost 500 movies released or soon to be released on a high definition disc. Of those movies, 65% are available in the Blu-ray format and 61% are available in the HD DVD format. Interestingly, there are 29% of the movies that are available in both formats. While the overall DVD selection shows a tight race, I thought that we could use the “top” movies to help us narrow down a leader. I cross-referenced our high-def movie list with the 250 top grossing movies of all-time in the U.S. Of the “top” movies available in a high definition format, 66% were in Blu-ray and 65% were in HD DVD. About 31% of these top grossing HD movies were available in either format. So, when you consider the top grossing movies, the results are even closer. To me, there is no clear winner here.

If you want to get a little more specific, maybe the particular movie studio or movies can help you determine if there is a better camp for you. Here is an example of the movie studios that have supported each of the formats, as well as a sampling of the movies available.

Available in Blu-ray Only
Buena Vista: Dinosaur, Chicken Little, Pearl Harbor, Chicago, Pirates of the Caribbean
Fox: Fantastic Four, X-men, Ice Age, The Devil Wears Prada, Night at the Museum
Lionsgate: Crash, Saw, The Descent
Sony: Hitch, Click, Talladega Nights, Casino Royale, The Pursuit of Happyness

Available in HD DVD only:
Universal: King Kong, Apollo 13, The Bourne Identity, Seabiscuit, Traffic, Meet the Parents, The Mummy, Hulk, Bruce Almighty, Erin Brockovich
Weinstein: The Matador, Lucky Number Slevin,

Available in Blu-Ray and HD DVD
Magnolia: The Architect, World’s Fastest Indian
Paramount: Lara Croft: Tomb Raider, Mission: Impossible, Coming to America, An Officer and a Gentleman, Top Gun
Warner: Scooby-Doo, The Fugitive, The Perfect Storm, Batman, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, The Polar Express, The Departed, 300

So why doesn’t every movie studio make both versions available? We may apply an answer used for most questions of this kind: time and money. It is more expensive to invest in the formatting and production of movies in two formats. When selling stock, the adage of the man with two watches comes to mind. A man with one watch knows what time it is, but a man with two watches is never sure. If you have one format, you can sell what you have. If you have two formats, you’ll sell more of the format that you don’t have. Besides, many of the manufactures know that they can protect margin dollars better if there was a single format. They want one of the formats to die, therefore they will not produce high-def DVDs for the competing format. For example, Sony has their own Blu-ray player, their own studios, and their own Playstation 3 gaming system with Blu-ray. They are not going to offer their movies in the HD DVD format.

Players & Disc Pricing
Since movie selection may not have been conclusive, lets take a look at the hardware available, especially at the entry-level. The Toshiba HD-A2 has been the entry model for the HD DVD format, limiting its playback to the 720p or 1080i resolution that meets the minimum requirements for high definition. Since all Blu-Ray players have the superior 1080p output, however, the Toshiba HD-A20 that is capable of the same output provides a better apples-to-apples comparison. The 1080p Toshiba player has been running $499 with several retailers offering $100 via rebates and other discounts. But now, we have Sony’s new lower priced Blu-ray player (the BDP-S300) due out by mid June. With a retail price of $499, the gap in the hardware pricing is becoming minimal. Periodic sale prices or discounts may bridge the gap.

What about the DVDs themselves? Do we see an on-going price discrepancy there? At Amazon.com, the movie The Departed on Standard DVD was $19.99. On Blu-ray, it was $23.95. Finally, a combo HD DVD and Standard DVD was $27.95. Could there be a price difference, or was it due to a dual-format? For Mission: Impossible III, the two-disc Standard DVD version was $23.99. The two-disc Blu-ray and HD DVD were both priced at $27.95. Boy, this is getting harder than I thought.

And the Winner Is…
Heck if I know! As the determination of a winner gets cloudier, the consumers are holding out. This is not good for either side. Since HD DVD was launched first, it saw more significant sales in 2006. In 2007, however, Blu-ray has seen greater sales and continues to see more industry support. The trend in sales appears to be pointing toward Blu-ray, with each side often declaring victories for their camp. The pornography industry played a major role in determining the outcome of the VHS vs. Betamax battle, but most believe the industry will not have the influence with HD discs. During the epic VHS/Betamax battle, these tapes were the primary method of delivery, while today there are many alternatives to how porn is received. My gut tells me that Blu-ray will eventually be victorious, but it also tells me that no one will be conceding anytime soon. So, should we all wait?

No. Sitting and waiting is not my recommendation. Here is what I suggest: Look for the studios that you like best and look for a good deal on a player. My top 12 list for each format may give you an idea: HD DVD or Blu-ray. Make the leap and purchase a player, but do not start buying high def DVDs to add to your collection. Upgrading hardware will likely occur in a few years anyway, but you expect your movie collection to last longer than that. Instead, keep on the rental side. Between HD Tivo, HD on-demand, Blockbuster Total Access, and Netflix, you have many options. Both Blockbuster and Netflix will allow you to add HD formats to your queue, when available. Don’t deprive yourself of great HD movies while this format war plays out. But don’t over commit by buying a library of movies that end up sitting with your old Betamax flix (which is still next to your Rubik’s cube and pet rock).

NOTE: If, however, you feel that you must buy HD movies, check out my list of the best available awe-inspiring movies on HD DVD and Blu-ray.

There is one more side to this story. The longer this war plays out, the more opportunity there is for another alternative to arise. At the risk of sounding like a blatent teaser, you will need to stay tuned for my next blog posting. I’ll be discussing the ins and outs of downloading movies that may be played on your HD television. Music is no longer confined to CDs, so why should we expect movies to be confined to DVDs? I will discuss the current state of this technology and where it may be heading. I hope you stay tuned. Joining the feeds or email alerts are great ways to do that.

[update 6/22/07 follow-up post on HD downloading entitled, Trash the Disc, Learn from Porn!]

HD Ignorance Is Not Bliss! What Are Ten Things I Should Know About HDTV?

noreply@blogger.com (Cale) — Tue, 05 Jun 2007 05:50:00 +0000

I have written many HDTV posts but have failed to provide an overview of oft misunderstood terms and high-definition subjects. In order to help shed light on these concepts, here are ten things that everyone should know about HDTV:

There are three major benefits that the HDTV format brings. Besides a lighter wallet and a slight headache, your HDTV setup should give you these main features: First, you’ll experience high resolution that provides great picture detail. The screen and content will have at least 720 lines of resolution. This is superior to standard or enhanced definition (DVD quality), which only has 480 lines of resolution. Second, you’ll have a widescreen format similar to a theater experience. HDTV content is presented in a 16:9 aspect ratio. This is wider than your older, boxier televisions. Lastly, HDTV uses 5.1 surround sound output. The sound content will be divided among five speakers plus a sub-woofer. These speakers include the left, center, and right channel as well as two addtional speakers at the back of the room.
Not all flat panels are HDTVs and not all HDTVs are flat panels. If you're a little confused by that statement, keep in mind that two wrongs don't make a right, but three lefts do. Flat panel televisions are those ultra-thin televisions that are typically no thicker than four inches. The plasma and LCD technologies currently dominate the flat panel market. While most flat panels are high definition, there are still some available as an inferior enhanced definition television (EDTV). Additionally, there are many HDTVs that are not flat panels. Microdisplays are not as thin as flat panels but at 10” to 18” in depth, they are much shallower than the old picture tubes. These microdisplays include DLPs, LCD Projections, and LCoS televisions. For more information on these HDTV types, read High Def Alphabet Soup.
Not all features are created equal, so be careful when comparing. Michael Jordan and I both have vertical leaps of 42 (inches for Jordan and centimenters for me). That comparison is similar to ones made on HDTVs. First, not all HD is the same. There are three popular high definition resolutions, all improvements over the 480-line enhanced definition resolution that DVDs provide. The 720p resolution is a progressive scan that renews all of its 720 lines each refresh. The 1080i resolution, similar in quality to 720p, uses an older interlaced scan that refreshes only half of its 1080 lines at a time. The 1080p resolution (also called Full HD) has a superior 1080-line progressive scan resolution that delivers more than twice the number of pixels as 720p. Due to its enhanced resolution, 1080p Full HD commands a premium price tag in the retail marketplace. Additionally, be careful when reading manufacturer specifications on contrast ratios. A dynamic contrast ratio looks at the brightest vs. darkest points over time, but the static contrast ratio evaluates this difference at a snapshot in time. Although manufacturers may not explicitly state which ratio is being referenced, very high dynamic contrast ratios are easier to achieve than static ones. An outstanding static contrast ratio is 1,500:1, while it is not unusual to see a dynamic contrast ratio over 10,000:1. This may help you decipher misleading figures and help compare apples to apples (or PCs to PCs, for those who prefer virus infested equipment).
When selecting a type of HDTV, don’t rely on old reputations. Did accusations of fuel tank explosions unfairly ruin the reputation of the Ford Pinto? Okay, so maybe that's a bad example. A better example of old reputations, however, has plagued the plasma television. Plasma was the first flat panel to hit the market and originally had issues with burn-in and longevity. Today, most high quality plasmas use techniques to avoid burn-in and have life expectancies similar to LCDs. Additionally, projection DLP televisions have had problems with “rainbows” appearing during quick movements. This problem has been addressed on newer models through the use of higher speed color wheels. Yesterday’s information can become today’s myth. Recent research is your best bet. Again, for more information on the various HDTV types and their respective advantages, refer to High Def Alphabet Soup.
The pricey Full HD 1080p resolution isn’t always the best bet. When I gave a friend a coat hanger to help retrieve keys from a locked car, I cautioned him not to break a window. He told me that wouldn't be an issue because all of the windows were rolled down. Lesson: although we try to help, it sometimes just doesn't matter. A person with 20/20 vision that views a 50” television at 10 feet away will likely be unable to see a difference between 720p and 1080p. Viewing a 60” television, however, increases the size enough that a 1080p resolution will likely be distinguishable. Viewing distance and television size play an important role in determining if there is any benefit to a Full HD 1080p screen. Keep in mind that an investment in Full HD is an investment in the future. Currently there are no HD television broadcasts in 1080p so the only way to benefit from this higher resolution is through specially marked HD-DVD players, Blu-Ray players or games for the Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3. For a more detailed explanation of screen sizing considerations, as well as a lookup table for viewing distances and recommended screen resolutions, take a look at Size Matters.
The type of cable connection used is important, but it doesn’t have to be costly. When I bought my car, I paid an extra $500 for helium-filled tires. Lighter weight and better fuel economy sounded like a good idea but my spare tire flew away when I let go of the string. Lesson: don't fall for helium tires - and don't fall for expensive cables. There are three good choices for HD video signals. The three-wire component video cable transfers an analog signal, while HDMI and DVI cables transfer digital signals. The only difference between the two digital cables is that HDMI also carries 6-speaker sound signals in the same single cable. While individual circumstances determine whether component or HDMI/DVI provides better picture quality (you should give each a try), HDMI/DVI are the only cables to support Full HD 1080p resolution. Additionally, the analog component cabling is susceptible to signal quality deterioration due to quality of the cable, length of the run, or splitting. For the digital cables, however, The TV either receives the signal or it does not. Any qualified HDMI/DVI cable will provide optimal, lossless picture quality, regardless of price. There is no need spend a lot here, especially if you have moderate runs of cable.
Placing an HDTV in your home does not mean that everything you watch will have crystal clear detail. HDTV has tremendous capabilities, but it can't provide a quality picture from a poor source any more than a Porsche can perform with water in its fuel tank. Due to the increased size and pixel count of most HDTVs, a standard definition signal will look poor and all imperfections will become very visible. To get an HD signal from your satellite or cable provider you need to subscribe to their HD service. Keep in mind that not all channels will be in HD and those HD channels may not play HD programs all of the time. Depending on your location, you can also get local channels in HD over-the-air (i.e. from an antenna). Although standard DVDs are not in HD, they can look pretty darn good using an upconverting DVD player that translates the image to near-HD. The HD-DVD and Blu-Ray players, however, are your best bet for true HD movies on disc. For gaming, the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 have HD output, but Nintendo’s Wii does not. Remember that component, HDMI, or DVI cables are needed to carry that HD signal (you won’t get it from a composite or s-video cable) and HDMI and DVI are required for 1080p. Without an HD source or HD cabling, you're just putting water in the fuel tank. For more, read Hi Def Jam.
A widescreen television will not eliminate all black bars. Although this is what I have termed a "pain in the aspect," it's important to understand why black bars appear. The aspect ratio of HDTV is 16:9, which means that for every 16 units wide, the screen is 9 units high. If you have an HD programming source (i.e. satellite, cable, or over-the-air), the HD programs will fit perfectly on your new HDTV display. Most television programming, however, is still in standard definition and the boxier 4:3 aspect ratio. This will give black bars at the side. Additionally, movies are typically shot using wider 1.85:1 or 2.35:1 theatrical aspect ratios. These movies will have black bars at the top and bottom of an HDTV. Zooming or stretching the image can eliminate the black bars, but you should be aware of the mismatch in aspect ratios and distorted images. Visit my earlier post, Pain in the Aspect, for more detail on the subject.
Surround sound is part of the HDTV package. Most ladies won't purchase a new dress without new pumps to complete the package. The same accessorizing should be done when creating your high definition home entertainment system. Don’t forget to include an audio receiver capable of 5.1 surround sound output that comes with HDTV. Most HDTV sources will send sound output to five speakers plus a sub-woofer (for deep base sounds). The HDMI cable connectivity not only passes an HD video signal, but a 5.1 surround sound signal, too. All of this is contained in the single cable, making it the connection method of choice. Using an HDMI cable to connect an HD cable/satellite box to an audio receiver and then to your HDTV will likely bring superior video and sound to your television viewing experience. It also allows the receiver to facilitate video switching between many sources (cable, satellite, video games, over-the-air, DVD, PC, etc.) for those TVs with limited inputs. The receiver can really be those purple pumps that complete the appearance. Look for a future post from me regarding receivers with this capability.
You should place the TV as close to eye-level as possible. Ergonomically speaking, you don’t want SPS (short person syndrome), a phenomenon resulting from having to look up for extended periods of time. This means that mounting your plasma above the fireplace will likely have results similar to exhaustively comparing HDTVs: a royal pain in the neck. For most situations, the middle of your television screen should be around four feet off the floor. If you have a large viewing distance, you can get a little higher. Additionally, a projection television such as a DLP, LCD Projection, or LCoS gives its best picture when viewed from eye-level. While these projection televisions have a broad side-to-side viewing angle, their picture deteriorates quickly when viewed vertically off-center. More viewing angle information is provided in High Def Alphabet Soup.

DRM-Free Tunage! Will Apple's "iTunes Plus" Bring DRM-Free Music Downloads into the Mainstream?

noreply@blogger.com (Cale) — Thu, 31 May 2007 15:07:00 +0000

For those of you not familiar with the term "tunage," it is a slang word used to describe music content. The word is used much like "flickage" as it describes movie content. Similarly, references to movies with British Secret Agent 007 are called "bondage." You get the idea. Now for an update on "tunage" without DRM: As you may (or may not) recall, DRM is the coding imbedded in most downloaded songs that restricts how the buyer can use the music. This concept was illustrated in my earlier post. Yesterday, as promised a few months ago, Apple® has opened iTunes® Plus, an area for downloading higher-quality, DRM-free music. For a $0.30 per song premium ($1.29 instead of the standard $0.99), the iTunes community can download some songs at a higher quality 256 kbps bit rate, but using AAC encoding without the DRM restrictions. Currently, the major record label supporting this endeavor is EMI, releasing thier entire digital catalog in this manner. This includes singles and albums from Coldplay, The Rolling Stones, Norah Jones, Frank Sinatra, Joss Stone, Pink Floyd, and John Coltrane.

The original versions of the songs will still be available for the standard $0.99. For those songs already in one's collection, it is possible to upgrade previously purchased protected EMI songs for an additional 30 cents. Most albums cost $3.00 to upgrade. Since Apple is always about making things simple, you can see from the image at the left how they are trying to make is easy to upgrade.

While this is a great first-step, it is still yet to be seen whether other major record labels will jump on board. It will not be for a lack of effort as Steve Jobs, Apples' CEO, is doing his best to lure record labels in this direction. Jobs stated that, “we expect more than half of the songs on iTunes will be offered in iTunes Plus versions by the end of this year.” This indicates a clear expected trend toward purchasing music content without usage restrictions. Additionally, the fact that Amazon.com has announced their entry into this arena obviously brings some validity to the concept. Before the end of the year, Amazon is expected to launch their music download store with all music available in the DRM-free form. With this kind of horsepower behind the effort, I would tend to believe that you will see record labels making the switch and permitting the sale of this new, more flexible content.

The question for Apple and Amazon is whether this concept will keep folks away from the monthly fee packages offered by competitors such as Yahoo and Napster? These monthly fees give practically unlimited access to music, only limited by the size of the on-board memory of the individuals player. Only time will tell if the unrestricted music will be more valuable to the consumer. For the original press release, click here.

High-Def Alphabet Soup: PDP LCD DLP LCoS! What is the Best Type of HDTV for Me?

noreply@blogger.com (Cale) — Thu, 24 May 2007 20:02:00 +0000

So, you want to buy an HDTV? I sometimes think it is easier to buy a car than a new television. All cars use the same type of internal combustion engine and adhere to measurement standards that allow for comparison (i.e. horsepower and gas mileage ratings). In the HDTV arena, things seem to be mushier. Some manufacturers will decide to publish viewing angles and brightness measures…and others will not. Attributes like picture quality and color vividness are just plain difficult to measure and communicate. Additionally, a manufacturer may list a contrast ratio, but fail to mention whether it is a dynamic or static. I can’t decide if comparing televisions is more like herding cats or nailing Jell-o to a tree. But that is not going to stop me from trying to establish some basic guidelines to compare types of HDTVs. Just keep in mind that there is no replacement for your own first-hand evaluation of any television's picture.

The one part that I will spare you is all of the behind-the-scenes, didn’t-need-to-know, I-couldn’t-care-less detail of how each technology works. I’ll skip over the details of how electricity between plates of glass will excite gases to a state of flatulence, emitting a spectrum that is tantalizing to the senses. Most folks don’t need to know that millions of mirrors the size of flea dandruff turn on hinges that are thinner than a pubic hair and reflect light in a bazillion colors ranging from back-of-the-throat mucus green to falling-off-a-cliff-to-my-death pale yellow. I will spare you the detail. You will thank me.

Another thing to understand is that evaluating TV types is like playing pin-the-tail-on-the-donkey with the donkey on a racing car. The moving target requires constant re-evaluation. Each of the five HDTV types discussed here have distinct advantages and disadvantages, but manufacturers work to address these issues and improve upon prior models. The plasmas have addressed their prior burn-in issues. Newer LCDs will start having new features to improve motion clarity. DLPs have worked to eliminate its rainbow effect. Yesterday’s rules of thumb can quickly turn into today’s myths.

Flat Panel: PDP & LCD
Let us start our discussion with the cream of the crop, the flat panel televisions. If you want a wall-mountable television (or just something really thin), then Plasma or LCD (liquid crystal display) will do the trick at about 4 inches of thickness. Both continue to improve upon their deficiencies, making the differences noted here smaller than ever. Plasma Display Panels (PDP) generally have deeper blacks and better color, but LCD TVs are brighter, making them better choices for well lit rooms. LCD televisions display static images better and continue to be the choice for PC connectivity. Quick motion display, on the other hand, is typically better on the plasma. At the last Consumer Electronics Show, however, many manufacturers showed interpolation methods to improve motion clarity on LCDs. In the near future, look for features like Clear Motion (JVC), Natural Motion (Philips), and – the award for the longest name – Motion Compensation Frame Interpolation (Samsung and Sharp). While LCDs are more prevalent for TVs 37" and under, Plasmas are still more popular in the over-60" range. The sweet spot of the market, displays of the 42" to 50" size, is where the greatest competition exists between the two technologies.

Rear Projection: DLP, LCD Projection, LCoS
If keeping your wallet fat is more important than making your television ultra-thin, then rear projection televisions may be the best option for you. These may be deeper than flat panels, but at 11" to 18" in depth, they are much shallower than your father's rear projection. Three main technologies dominate: DLP, LCD projection, and LCoS. While each has advantages and disadvantages, the DLP (digital light processing) appears to have the slight edge with deeper blacks, a good display of motion, and great capability of displaying still images from a PC. This technology from Texas Instruments, is the one touting millions of tiny little mirrors. Additionally, DLPs continue to dominate the very large 60”+ market. In the past, DLPs have been plagued by "rainbows", infrequent color streaks seen by some viewers. Newer DLP models with high speed color wheels have addressed this problem. LCD projection televisions have grown in popularity and are very price competitive near the sweet spot. The LCD's "screen door effect", a phenomenon where you can see the space between the image pixels, is only seen up close and will diminish with 1080p output. The LCoS (liquid crystal on silicon) technology has been sporadically used among manufacturers, and now has been rebranded as SXRD (Sony) and HD-ILA (JVC). With only these two major manufacturers left, LCoS has been kept out of the limelight. It is hard to go wrong with a good quality set using any of these technologies. They have all come a long way and provide outstanding pictures.

Viewing Angle
Besides console depth, one of the biggest differences between flat panels and rear projection TVs is the viewing angle. This term describes how far off-center you can view the television before you start to see deterioration of the image color and brightness. Plasmas and LCDs have horizontal viewing angles around 178° (note: be suspicious of any figures greater than 180° - this means that you see a good image when you sit behind the screen). The rear projection models suffer in this area, with horizontal viewing angles in the range of 130° to 160°. This, I argue, may be good enough for just about anyone. Any viewing position beyond this range just sucks anyway. If you are sitting at the outskirts of a 120° view, your image is significantly distorted, appearing to be half the width of an image viewed from the front (see graphical illustration). Any horizontal viewing position beyond the capability of TVs described here is just a poor place to watch HDTV.

The viewing angle of greater concern is the vertical viewing angle. For plasmas and LCDs, this continues to hover around 176°. This means you can practically have the TV hanging from the ceiling directly above you and you will see a colorful, bright picture (albeit scrunchy from the angle at which you are viewing). The rear projections, however, start to have significant deterioration 20°-30° above horizontal (i.e. a 40°-60° total viewing angle). At a viewing distance of 8 feet, that can be as little as 3 feet above eye level. Ideally, for ergonomic reasons, you want the TV to be as close to eye level, anyway. In making your decision, however, you need to keep in mind that rear project televisions have limitations on how high the TV can sit.

The Chart
Below is a chart that summarizes the main features of HDTVs and their relative ranking among the television types. Black level and brightness help make up the contrast ratios. Be careful when reading manufacturer specs on contrast ratios. A dynamic contrast ratio looks at the brightest vs. darkest points over time, where the static contrast ratio evaluates this for a snapshot in time. Very high dynamic contrast ratios are easier to achieve than static ones. An outstanding static contrast ratio may be 1,500:1, while it is not unusual to see a dynamic contrast ratio over 10,000:1. The criteria "XL Sizes" refers to the ability of the technology to delivery very large (60"+) televisions. Lastly, the "Price/Size" attribute describes how large of a screen you can buy with your dollar, regardless of other features. An overall rating is provided with all criteria given equal weighting.
Conclusion
While the bottom line of the chart shows the plasma technology on top, this is obviously using my choice of criteria and scaling of attribute differences. [Added 07/11/07: My opinion is not isolated, however, as CNETs Best HDTVs Overall had Plasmas in 6 of the top 10 spots.] It is often more useful, however, to consider your particular application and determine which criteria are important for your environment. For example, something as simple as wall mounting would eliminate the DLP technology from consideration. So with your own criteria and the knowledge gathered here, maybe you can make a little more sense of the high-def alphabet soup and create an informed buying decision.

Holy Crop! Do You Have To Like Doilies to Make Digital Scrapbooks?

noreply@blogger.com (Cale) — Tue, 22 May 2007 04:57:00 +0000

Are you looking for inspiration on that new scrapbook? Or are you more inspired by reading books about craps? Are you really far behind on your scrapping and have shoeboxes full of pictures and keepsakes? Or do you often wonder what a keepsake is? In either case, if you’re life is filled with memories that are worth preserving, you should read on. If you’re life has nothing worth remembering, well, I guess you don't really need to worry about digital scrapbooking.

Scrapbooks typically take the form of an elaborate album that documents memories through photographs, clippings, memorabilia, and other printed materials. They may have written narration through a technique called journaling. This multi-billion dollar industry has sold albums, inserts, pages, and huge variety of ways to dress up the pages. The people who engage in theses activities are called scrappers. Though traditional scrapbooking has seen significant growth in popularity, the trend is being influenced by technology. Techies have another excuse to use their gadgets and non-techies have opportunities to enhance their endeavors. Everyone wins!

Why Digital?
Scrappers have recently come under fire for their use of vulgar words and promotion of violent actions in their hip-hop music lyrics. Oh, wait...I’m thinking of rappers. Scrappers have been scrutinized for their overuse of sharp scissors, mounting glues, and rubber stamps. The off-fall from cropped photos has become a nationwide epidemic, increasingly contributing to the overflow of trash in our landfills. Albeit they may not have particularly strong odors, but mounting glues have been suspiciously present at many rambunctious “crops” (i.e. gatherings of radical scrapbookers at homes, stores, or convention centers). Some believe that the glue fumes cause scrappers to leave crops in a disoriented state, driving around and ending up back at an event’s entrance. This forms what are sometimes called “crop circles.” There was even an unconfirmed incident of a scrapper being hospitalized with rubber stamp wounds on her hand and forehead. While the tradition of preserving memories may have some merit, something needs to be done to address these issues. The solution is at hand: digital scrapbooking.

In a type of Martha Stewart meets Bill Gates methodology, we have a sliding scale of efforts to overcome the issues with traditional scrapbooking. On one side of the scale, we see scrappers using digital images and online resources to enhance their current methods. On the other end of the scale, we have a totally digital experience from construction through presentation in DVD form. Somewhere in the middle is a blend of these techniques that creates an easily duplicated physical book from all-digital media. So whether you’re a veteran or a newbie, with a few prunes and some guidance, we’ll have you sitting down and scrapping out piles of good fun.

Digitally Enhanced Traditional Scrapbooks
For the traditional scrapbooker that enjoys working with their hands and putting together pages with texture, the digital realm is still able to complement their current work. Page layouts may be created and printed multiple times. Labels and names may be printed and added with much greater ease than individual letters. There are a variety of online resources for free and pay themed scrapbook kits that provide matching page borders, overlays, photo frames, trims, and embellishments. For scrappers, these terms are surely familiar. You can visit ComputerScrapbook.com or DigitalScrapbookPlace.com for ideas. Of course, Google can give you a plethora of more options.

Photo/Memory Books
It is possible to use Photoshop-type programs to create entire pages digitally. There are also online resources to help you create these pages if you have the digital photos. Simple tools allow you to upload images and arrange them in various patterns. A variety of backgrounds and journaling opportunities can help spruce things up. These online resources can print and bind the entire hardcover book for you, too. These are usually called photo books or memory books. While 12” x 12” is a more traditional scrapbook size, they can run as much as $70 for a 20 page book. The 11” x 8.5” books tend to be much more cost effective, typically costing $30 for the basic 20 page book. Some publishers to check out include: Shutterfly, Kodak, PhotoWorks, MyPublisher, Picaboo, and Snapfish.

Photo/Video Memory DVDs
You have to take the scrapbook a few steps further to have output that is entirely digital. Although there is some benefit to using digital technology to create printed, bound books, the real leap forward in presentation happens when you can imbed video and music into the journey down memory lane. When you put together a DVD scrapbook of vacationing at Williamsburg, VA, you can use video of the carriage ride and roller coaster at Busch Gardens. Laying on top of the video and slideshow images is a piece of music relavent to the time period. Imagine how much more impact a slideshow of 1980s High School could have when you also hear U2 playing that song your friends used to blast on the car radio.

To create a memory DVD, capturing and editing video comes into play. Almost all new digital cameras are able to capture simple video of lower quality, but better quality will require a digital camcorder. Once the video is captured and moved to a PC, then video editing software will help prepare it for the DVD. The software can help create polished videos that utilize your camcorder video, digital pictures, and music. This is where the creativity can really kick in. The songs can not only bring you back to a time period, but contain lyrics with relevance to stir up emotion. Here is an example of some songs pertinent to big life events:

Birth of a Child
“Send Me Your Money” by Suicidal Tendencies 1990
“Haven't Slept In Years” by Matthew Good 1996
“Cry No More” by Shareefa 2006

Wedding
“Ball and Chain” by Poison 1990
“Why Don't We Get Drunk” by Jimmy Buffett 1976
“Wedding Bells Are Breaking Up That Old Gang Of Mine” by Sammy Fain 1929

Graduation
“Get A Job” by The Silhouettes 1957
“Money for Nothing” by Dire Straits 1985
“Unemployable” by Pearl Jam 2006

So, do you have to like frilly things and doilies to engage in scrapbooking activities? Emphatically, no. Whether you're enhancing a traditional scrapbook or going completely digital with a memory DVD, you can involve the fru fru as much or as little as you like. It might be scrapbooking blaspheme, but you can go through the entire process and never touch a ribbon, bow, corner punch, or dauber. And, thankfully, you will never have to inhale scrapbook adhesives. After all, the last thing you want is to be pulled over by the police for making crop circles.

For further examples of particular hardware and software items described above, you can visit my guide on Amazon.com that provides particular product links.

DRM: Digital Wrongs! How Is Amazon Fighting For My Music Rights?

noreply@blogger.com (Cale) — Sat, 19 May 2007 12:51:00 +0000

I showed up wearing party attire that made the snappiest dresser jealous. This, of course, included my new button-down shirt with green florals. As I strolled through the room, I pointed to the far corner, used my thumb as a trigger, and gave a wink.

"Nice Shirt," a friend said as he walked up to me.

"Thanks. It's called an iShirt," I declared proudly. "I just got it online."

"Nice. What's that black plastic box hanging off the side of it?" he inquired.

"Oh, that's the SRM mechanism," I replied. "All of these new shirts come with it."

"SRM? What is that?"

"Shirt Rights Management. It restricts me so that I only wear this shirt with jeans," I explained. "If I try to put on some other type of pants, then the SRM device will explode, covering the shirt in permanent ink. But I can wear it with any jeans I want, as many times as I want. Not a big deal because I love jeans."

"Hmmm. That doesn't bother you?" my friend asked. "What about khakis? What if it gets really warm and you want to wear shorts?"

"Oh, SRM has thought of that," I stated proudly. "I can wear my shirt with 5 different shorts, as long as I register the shorts with the iShirt people first. The problem is that I already tried on my shirt with 2 different shorts when I was deciding what to wear tonight. I only have 3 more times that I can wear shorts. According to the SRM, those 3 times have to last for the life of the shirt. Khakis are out of the question. Why? Does that seem strange?”

While this fictional scenario may seem peculiar, it paints reality for most folks who purchase music online. The only difference is that the mechanism is not called SRM, it’s called DRM or Digital Rights Management. It is the reason why most downloaded music cannot be used however the purchaser wishes.

Why DRM?
The reason for DRM is simple: to prevent stealing. Restrictions came about several years back because of the gluttony of internet music sharing. This sharing violated copyright laws and robbed the music industry of its revenue. Peer to peer sharing networks enabled individuals to make their music collections available to anyone with internet access. The enabling websites included the original Napster, which now has transformed into a legitimate site that sells downloadable music. People would log into the old Napster, search for someone that had a song they wanted, and then download it from their PC – without ever paying for it. The music industry’s solution to this problem was to create formats of music that would restrict people from sharing the music so easily. Music formats with DRM were created, including the AAC format from Apple and the WMA format from Microsoft. The DRM electronically restricted the use of the music. While this helped curb sharing, it also created limitations for those who wanted to use the music legitimately.

Consequences of DRM
Most folks don’t even realize the limitations that DRM brings. People are fat and happy using iTunes to download songs at $0.99 a pop and playing them on their iPods. What happens if iPods fall from grace and consumers decide to later buy a competing device. Gasp! Can that really happen? Well, if it does, all of the protected AAC formatted songs that the consumer purchased are useless. They won’t play on other music players. And what if the consumer wants to burn a photo slideshow DVD and use a purchased iTunes song as background music? Buzz! Thanks for playing! Using the AAC music likely won’t work. Suppose a consumer wants to play music on her phone. Well, she better search hard for a phone that plays the AAC format because most do not.

Here is a summary of what Apple does permit: “Burn the music you buy to an unlimited number of CDs for your personal use, listen to it on an unlimited number of iPods, and play it on up to 5 authorized computers.” Seems reasonable until you start to get creative with how you use the music. This has is a sour point for a growing number of consumers, but optimism peered through the dark clouds last month. In April, Apple announced that for $1.29 it will offer EMI Music’s digital songs in a high quality, DRM-free version of the AAC format. This record label includes artists such as Coldplay, Norah Jones and Joss Stone. It appears to be the first step toward liberation.

The truth is that Apple is not the only one playing this DRM game. Rhapsody, Napster, Yahoo, and Wal-Mart, four of the most popular music download sites, all use a WMA protected format with similar restrictions. The WMA format will not play on iPods, but will play on a majority of the other personal digital music players. These other music devices are typically known as MP3 players because they were originally made for playing unrestricted MP3 music. Now they almost all support both MP3 and WMA formats.

DRM-Free
One site that does offer DRM-free MP3 music is eMusic. Their entire offering is in the unrestricted format. The selection, however, is vastly limited to niche music and emerging artists because the major record labels will not allow them to offer their music on their site. The big labels still fear the loss of revenue from illegal sharing. But changes in the horizon may change their opinion.

Just a few days ago, Amazon.com announced that later this year it will launch a DRM-Free MP3 music download store. It will offer millions of songs and albums from over 12,000 music labels. What Amazon adds to the equation is a hugely influential name that understands music preferences. They have sold music CDs for years and have the clout to influence. Although many of the big name record labels have yet to be mentioned, Amazon has announced that EMI Music’s digital catalog will be made available. Because the songs are DRM-free, the music will be playable on PCs, Macs, iPods, MP3 players, music-playing phones, and even as background music on a slideshow. This is big news and another step toward that liberation.

On their website, Amazon.com solicited feedback regarding their MP3 music store announcement. They received several comments from customers that currently purchase CDs from Amazon. These customers mentioned that they buy CDs instead of downloading songs in order to avoid DRM restrictions. The CDs can easily have the music ripped (extracted) and converted into the DRM-free MP3 format. The physical CD may cost a little bit more, but they say that it is worth the extra price. A new download store that features DRM-free music, however, was appealing to them. Now, with Amazon forcing the issue, it is up to the big record labels to make a move. To DRM or not to DRM? The music industry is taking note of consumer’s desire to use music however they wish. But the delicate balance between alienating consumers and protecting copyrights is a tricky one. Seeing everyone wear green floral iShirts is not impressive if everyone acquires it for free.

Chic to be a Geek! Is Technology Just for Nerds?

noreply@blogger.com (Cale) — Fri, 18 May 2007 05:04:00 +0000

About a month after my eight-year-old daughter received third place in her school’s science fair, I rented the movie October Sky. This heart-warming film tells the true story of four boys who are inspired by Sputnik to build a rocket of their own. About 15 minutes into the movie, the boys’ teacher recommends that they enter their rocket into the science fair. One of the boys emphatically states, “science fairs are for geeks!” My daughter, sitting next to me on the sofa, whipped her head around to look at me. “What?” she demanded in a look of disgust and utter surprise. Although the movie was set in the 1950s, the term obviously still triggered something in her today. I comforted her, though, and let her know that in today’s day and age, it is becoming more chic to be a geek.

Definition
Merriam-Webster defines a nerd as one slavishly devoted to intellectual or academic pursuits . It further defines geek as an enthusiast or expert especially in a technological field or activity . The connectivity of these terms with technology is undeniable, but are nerds the only ones who use technology? One of the earliest, best-known nerds may be William H. Gates III. His knowledge and use of technology to found Microsoft is at the core of his nerdiness. But here is a nerd that has the respect of his corporate peers. Spiderman and Mr. Fantastic were both called nerds on-screen for their undertanding of intellectual concepts. It shows, however, how we have created beloved nerds.

As we evolve as a society, our acceptance of technology has created a shift in how we view the relationship of technology with nerds and geeks. Twenty-five years ago it was precisely these nerdy outcasts that delved deep into the world of computers. Today, you are just about an outcast if you don’t use a computer on a regular basis. In fact, the teenage group that has traditionally been the most ready to define and ostracize nerds and geeks is precisely the age group that has readily accepted new forms of technology. A more socially acceptable term has been created for the technology lovers: "early adopters". But is this just the term "geek" in disguise?

Technology is being embraced by a greater variety of people than ever. It is true that high school students sparingly use text messaging on that rare occasion ;-), but teachers, parents, and other professionals are joining the texting scene. Craft lovers risk ridicule from hard-core croppers but are more aggressively using digital images to enhance their scrapbooks. Sports fans use high definition televisions to watch the games and get cell phone updates for the latest scores. Grandpa is using the internet to order male enhancements while Grandma is instant messaging her girlfriends to schedule time out of the house. Motorcycle enthusiasts are using eBay to order their leather jackets, chrome tailpipes, helmets, and doilies for the upcoming shower (he told his wife that he would). Thugs are using the internet to book their tattoo appointments so they have proper pampering time. Hikers and outdoorsmen are using GPS devices when there are no females to ask for directions. Athletes are using their iPods to listen to soothing music when the coach is yelling at them. This list can go on and on. At a growing rate, we are using technology to enhance our everyday lives. But it just doesn't seem nerdy anymore.

Geeks and Nerds Today
So as we see technologies being embraced by the masses, it is becoming increasingly difficult to identify the hard-core geeks in our society. In order to help with this distinction, I have provided a list of tasks that have become commonplace, along with some twists that can make the task uniquely nerdy. Once you read the first few, I think you’ll get the idea.

Accepted: burning a CD with your favorite music from Nelly Furtado and Akon
Nerdy: burning a DVD with your favorite episodes of MacGyver and Knight Rider

Accepted: using eBay online auctions to sell that old exercise equipment
Nerdy: using eBay online auctions to purchase pristine action figures

Accepted: knowing what brand of PC you have and the monitor screen size
Nerdy: knowing your PC’s video card memory and processor clock speed

Accepted: staying up late to read about Harry Potter battling dragons
Nerdy: staying up all night playing dungeons and dragons

Accepted: knowing your e-mail address
Nerdy: knowing your IP address

Accepted: cheering for the underdog in the NFL Championship
Nerdy: cheering for the Undertaker in the WWF championship

Accepted: Reminiscing about connecting to the internet by dial up
Nerdy: Reminiscing about connecting to the internet at 1200 baud

Accepted: Using an instant messaging service to stay in touch with friends
Nerdy: Using a Star Trek chatroom to find friends (betcha "KirkFan117" is cute)

Accepted: Watching television on a High Definition TV
Nerdy: Laughing at your neighbor's 1080p HDTV with s-video cables (what a dork!)

Accepted: Downloading your favorite songs on iTunes for listening on your iPod
Nerdy: Downloading “White and Nerdy” because you understand all of the references

Accepted: Using movies on demand to watch Spider-Man and Pirates of the Caribbean
Nerdy: Using CinemaNow to download Tron and War Games to watch over and over again

Accepted: Subscribing to Sports Illustrated and briefly paging through the swimsuit edition
Nerdy: Ordering hot wings from Hooters - for carry out

One of the things that I hope this list illustrates is that technological pursuits are no longer owned by the geeks. There are unique attributes that geeks may maintain, but technology alone does not a nerd make. Technology is for all of us to use and help improve our lives. So download that music, e-mail from your phone, use your car's GPS, and update your site on MySpace. Do this without fear of labels or ridicule...well, at least until someone notices your pocket protector. Nerd!

Size Matters! How Big Should My New HDTV Be?

noreply@blogger.com (Cale) — Mon, 14 May 2007 05:10:00 +0000

I can still remember growing up in a Chicago suburb in the late 1970s with our own version of home theater. To have the true theatrical experience, we sat about 2 feet from the television, giving us the illusion that the image on the screen was really large. Playing the video game Pong was like watching a tennis match, requiring our heads to turn back and forth. Looking back, this provided a valuable lesson today on how to determine the proper screen size. While new high definition resolutions are important, one must also consider viewing distance as a major part of the home entertainment equation.

In Support of a Larger TV
There are good reasons to believe that upgrading to a high definition television justifies a larger screen. Going from a standard definition television to a widescreen HDTV will require a 22% larger screen to support the broader image while maintaining the same viewable height. Additionally, the increased resolution from standard definition to high definition will allow an 84% larger screen to appear to have the same picture quality. These reasons, combined with dramatic price drops, contribute to the logic and feasibility of replacing that old 30” picture tube with a 50” high definition television. To readers who appreciate me mentioning this: you are welcome (you know who you are).

In the past, television sizes ranged from 19” to 30”. Today, the right size television lies somewhere between a postage stamp monitor and a billboard-sized screen that stretches from wall to wall. Does it make sense, however, to ask the salesperson at TVs ‘R’ Us for advice on screen size? The last time I did, the seller also mentioned their low rental rates on cranes to facilitate installation. What consumers really need is logical, third party guidance on defining the appropriate screen size. The proverbial retail fox will be more than happy to give advice on how to guard the henhouse. But the fox may end up using a toothpick to clean its teeth while we try to figure out how to remove the fireplace and make room for a mammoth television.

The “Eyes” Have It
To help determine the optimal screen size, one factor that we can consider is the capability of the human eye, called visual acuity. A person with 20/20 vision is able to distinguish lines on a screen separated by 1/60th of a degree. How much detail this person can see on a television depends on the resolution (display lines on the screen) and viewing distance. The greater the resolution, the more lines on the screen, and the more difficult it is to distinguish the individual lines. If you are able to actually see the individual lines on a TV screen, you may need to sit farther away, get a higher resolution screen, or both. It is my belief that you don’t want to be able to distinguish individual lines. This will ensure top picture quality perception.

Standard or enhanced definition televisions that have DVD-quality screens will have 480 lines of resolution, while high definition (HD) televisions have at least 720 lines. The premium HD televisions, called “Full HD” or “1080p”, will have 1080 lines of resolution. Although we will only be referencing television with “progressive scan” lines, keep in mind that there is an alternate resolution that uses something called “interlaced scan”. These screens only refresh half of the lines each pass and are inferior to a progressive scan screen. For our purposes, we can assume that the 1080i (interlaced scan) picture quality is closest to 720p quality (progressive scan).

Home Theater vs. Home Entertainment
Detection of individual lines is not all we need to consider. To truly mimic a theater, we may look at cinema standards such as those set forth by THX, a company that certifies theaters to ensure an optimal movie experience. They have recommendations for viewing angles, which determines how large a screen should be for a given viewing distance. These guidelines create a theater experience and should be taken with a grain of salt when considering home entertainment usage. In a movie theater, the entire focus is on the screen. This may not be the same goal within a family’s living room.

In the following chart, the range of data we discussed comes together. Resolution detection of the human eye is combined with professional cinema standards as well as some retailer/manufacturer guidelines. A "screen size data" spreadsheet showing background calculations may be accessed online. For a given viewing distance, the chart shows a range of recommended screen sizes and the highest resolution that may impact the viewer’s perception. The black areas show recommendations for a true home theater experience while the gray blocks show guidelines for more typical home entertainment applications. Although the topic merits a more in-depth discussion, it should be know that there is some debate as to whether 1080p is noticeable or worth the premium price tag. Also, there is currently almost no 1080p content available except for HD video games, HD DVD, and Blu-Ray players. For the budget conscious, a 720p or 1080i may be sufficient.

Ultimately, personal preference also needs to play a major role in determining the best screen size for your application. This is the main reason why we see a range of TV sizes for each viewing distance. You may not want a home theater television “swallowing” the majority of your living space. But then again, there are few better ways to get immersed in the viewing experience than wrapping yourself in a widescreen television. To go with a TV of this size, however, you’ll also need a tub of popcorn the size of a garbage can, a soda the size of a beach pail, gumdrops the size of golf balls, and a dentist with an opening next week. Happy viewing and chewing!

(click on chart to make larger)

Hi Def Jam! Why Do HDTV Images in Restaurants Look So Bad?

noreply@blogger.com (Cale) — Fri, 11 May 2007 04:54:00 +0000

If you purchase a High Definition Television (HDTV), shouldn’t everything look better on its display? No. And not anyone can make my powder blue leisure suit look good. Only I can do that. If you take a tour of local restaurants that have plasma displays, you’ll likely find a surprisingly high number of inferior-looking pictures. Poor resolution of the source signal can create sub-optimal picture quality. This is also why many folks are getting their new HD television home and becoming disappointed with the image they see. To get the best picture on your HDTV, you need to find good HD programming from your content provider (i.e. your cable or satellite company).

Is That Hi Def?
In a 2007 study by Leichtman Research Group, about 22% of HD owners state that they are not receiving HD signals. There are another 25% of HD owners, however, that incorrectly believe they are watching HD programming from cable or DBS (digital broadcast satellite). This reminds me of the stumbling drunk friend that needed a ride home. By the time we got to his apartment and I threw away the remaining empty bottles, I realized that he was drinking non-alcoholic beer. When questioned, he said that he thought it was the “good stuff”. I suppose this is the way a quarter of the HD owners may end up feeling. But instead of non-alcoholic beer, they’re being fed non-HD content.

Out in public view, Bubba the restaurant manager has placed a number of large plasma TVs in the bar area. What finer place to display very high-resolution pictures than at a bar where senses are being dulled by downed brewskies? Maybe that’s the reason the owner will plop down several thousand dollars for an HDTV, but then not spend the extra monthly fee to get HD content on the screen. The ultra-large super-size flat panel TV may be capable of sparkling “1080 I gotta P”, but the signal is from the same source they used with the old 25-inch picture tube. This may also be why ESPN’s Sportscenter shows Tiger Woods looking like he spent the week hanging out at Krispy Kreme. The television is attempting to display a narrower non-HD signal by stretching it to fit the HDTV widescreen. Analogously, they have spent the money on the powder blue leisure suit, but don’t have the collar that extends out to the shoulders. It falls short of creating the total package.

Non-HD Content
It is true that a high definition television has over 3x the resolution of a standard definition television. This feature combined with falling prices has meant that many people are upgrading to larger screen sizes. If a non-HD source is sent to the TV screen, however, the lower resolution image is much larger and the flaws have become much more visible. It relates to the celebrity close-up mug shot that shows all of the blemishes you didn’t see from afar.

Although 53% of the HD owners are receiving HD signals, it is likely that only a small subset of channels are available to them in HD. Most channels are only available in standard definition. Even HD channels will often display programs that are only shown in standard definition. While content providers are adding more HD content, it will likely be years before HD content is prominent. It is important to research your programming with your cable or satellite provider. There is a way to get free HD content: over-the-air. Local stations typically broadcast in HD, but you will likely need a new rabbit-ear antenna similar to the one I used when I first bought my blue leisure suit. This HD trend is bringing back the antenna into style - as opposed to the blue leisure suit that never really went out-of-style.

Surprisingly, I found one exception to the HD television phenomenon within restaurants. It was at my local Hooters. There were no plasmas or LCDs to be found anywhere. They had dozens of old picture tube televisions mounted on antiquated brackets that conspicuously wrap under the TV like the belt of a heavyweight champion. I guess they didn’t want to have anything flat associated with their brand of restaurant. They felt the need to stick to the ole "boob tube". Oops, I didn’t intend the pun to be that direct. If they did switch to a new flat panel television, however, they could always get a smaller LCD screen and wrap it in an XXS T-shirt to make it look larger than it really is.