….this “5D” cube opening on Friday. Constructed from 156 Sharp 60-inch HD displays, the 5D Miracle Tour can only be found at Huis Ten Bosch, a “residential-style resort built after a medieval 17th-century Dutch town” located in Sasebo City, Japan. The unique attraction accommodates 32 guests at a time, and consists of one main front screen, surrounded by additional panels on the top, bottom, left and right. Lasting eight minutes, the tour presents the story of a mermaid named Sirena, though content will occasionally change — given the transient nature of mermaids, of course.

Very cool indeed….brought to you by your friends at Screen Sleuth. We’re only hoping an exhibit like this would come to US shores at one point.

According to NPD, 77 percent of consumers they surveyed have watched a movie on DVD/Blu-ray hi-def disc in the past 3 months. However, only 21% have watched a home movie via a digital source like on demand or streaming. That’s quite a gap that will take a long time to shrink, more than likely.

Want more telling stats? You got it: NPD also found that 80 cents of every dollar spent on home video is going for the rental or sale of DVDs or Blu-ray discs, not streams or On Demand (the latter of which is too expensive most of the time anyhow compared to hard media). Not only is HD still hot, but the real thing is still pretty hot as well.

Philips stated that their HDTV division lost the company €87 million in the first quarter — Philips will be selling the majority stake in it to Hong Kong manufacturer TPV Technology, but keeping a 30 percent ownership part and royalty payments of €50 million per year from 2013 onwards, making it a win-win deal for Philips all the way around.

It’s a sad end to a era of solid quality HDTV units, but the economy has spoken and dictated a change in strategy, and we’re here to cover it, as usual. We’ll update this as it becomes final.

Would you do 3D? Plasma or LCD or LED? There’s always a minefield of choices to make, and each has their plus and minus bullet points, but the good news is: prices have rarely been lower than they are right now, so now’s the time to jump on the deals.

So it’s up to you, dear readers: any suggestions for anyone who’s searching in the HD wilderness? A model that you own and enjoy that you would recommend to a friend? Feel free to post your thoughts in the comments area for the benefit of others, and pass on your wisdom.

Bang & Olufsen’s new BeoVision 4-85 isn’t just another run-of-the-mill 3D TV for the unwashed masses. It’s a really pretty 3D TV, for the refined and the opulent. The 85-inch plasma screen comes encased in a high-grade aluminum frame, and combines anti-reflection coating with automated image controls, to guarantee crystal clear, Full HD viewing at any time of day. B&O’s first foray into the 3D/Full HD realm also features a BeoLab 10 central loudspeaker, which uses Acoustic Lens Technology to deliver consistently high-frequency sounds, regardless of where you’re sitting in relation to the speaker. And, much like its 103-inch brethren, this 85-incher comes with a motorized stand, which automatically elevates and tilts the screen to ideal viewing position whenever the system is turned on. Once you’ve finished marveling at the BeoVision 4-85′s robust design, you can turn it off and watch in awe, as the display magically lowers itself to “within inches” of the floor (where, incidentally, you’ll also be able to find your jaw).

No word on price ranges, but we’ll just assume your wallet will be quite empty after getting ahold of this thing.

Walmart – How about a great deal on a Vizio 42″ E420VL 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV for $548 – free in-store pickup included (option is $20 for shipping). With a 120Hz refresh rate, 100,000:1 contrast ratio, and 3 HDMI inputs, tough to beat this one!

BuyDig.com – You know we love LG: how about a 55LV5500 55″ 120Hz LED HDTV for $1619 and $30 off with our special coupon code “BUYDIG30” = $1589 – and with free shipping? How can we do it?

Thanks for joining us and have fun!

According to research firm iSuppli, the Japanese earthquake has not had an impact on prices for LCD HDTV units, according to an article by Home Media Magazine published last week. While the research firm notes that prices for LCD sets are expected to decline again in April (by 0.8 percent, which is a healthy drop), it says the drop is due to the ongoing abundance of back-stock LCD panels and the global economic downturn which is still going on.

They even note that production is slowly beginning to ramp upwards again, so there may be no shortage of units as feared at first. We as HD lovers heave a sigh of relief collectively.

High-Def is what has held back the machine from total gaming domination in our opinion for awhile now, as fun and cool as the console is currently. The graphics are just kinda blocky and old-school for our HD trained eyes, and apparently Nintendo agrees.

While actual hard details are in short supply, as they typically are with something like this — mostly just the typical claim that the system will wipe the floor with competitors, be the oasis for gamers everywhere, etc — they told IGN that it will fully support 1080p resolutions and be fully backwards-compatible with games for the Wii.

Naturally, we’ll believe it when we see it, so we’ll update you as details become available.

Chlorine? Yes, it isn’t just for keeping your clothes white and your pool clean very soon. Soon, layers of it just a single atom thickness could play a huge role in OLED making, which is something we never could have predicted, to say the least.

Researchers in Canada at the University of Toronto have found that this minute amount of pool cleaner can double the efficiency of displays while knocking down complexity and driving down production costs (the best part for consumers, who love the advantages of OLED but shy away from the price tag for now).

The procedure itself is simple, involving UV light, Cl and other various other ‘sooper secret’ tech, the team was able to chlorinate standard electrode panels found in regular everyday OLEDs without having toxic gas floating around. Our prediction of inexpensive OLED’s on Wal-Mart shelves in the next few years may actually become a reality even faster now.

The package normally costs $4.99 a month and includes eight content packed channels: Hallmark Movie Channel HD; HDNet Movies; MGM Movies; Sony Movie Channel HD; Crime & Investigation HD; Universal HD; Palladia HD; and Smithsonian HD. The free preview will go from April 6-April 13, and is available to everyone capable of getting HD on their units and TVs.

At DIRECTV’s web site, the company is also offering a free 3-month trial of the Extra Pack as well, which is even better for prospective HD searchers.