HDTV

LG unveiled its flagship SL9000 ‘BORDERLESS’ LED TV to a string of 'ooohs' and 'aaahs' at IFA 2009 this week, where it stood out from the pack with a uniform, seamless surface from edge to edge, with no visible frame. By using a special sheet of laminate film LG was able to eliminate the gap between the screen and the bezel and also reduce screen glare. The SL9000 is also extremely thin at just 2.9cm, with the end result being a TV that appears to be a continuous sheet of smoked glass. Read More

Grundig has just come up with a replacement for your Tivo or similar recording device, and the odds are you already have it – well, part of it anyway. By adding USB-recording technology to various models of its new TVs, which it had on show at IFA 2009, Grundig has turned any standard USB flash drive or external hard disk drive (HDD) into a personal video recorder (PVR). The only catch is you will only be able to watch the recorded content on a compatible Grundig set. Read More

Toshiba has chosen IFA 2009 to confirm that this month Europeans will be able to get their hands on two new full 1080p HD televisions in its Regza range, a 46in and a 55in. As well as being LED backlit for the first time, these new SV models also sport a sensor that monitors ambient light and constantly readjusts image settings so that the viewer automatically gets the best possible picture. Read More

The Metz Primus 55 HDTV 200 twin R was shown for the first time at IFA in Berlin yesterday and it’ll be as close to the state-of-the-art all-purpose TV when it goes on sale in November. As brilliant (200 Hz, 1920 x 1080, LED and backlight with Local Area Dimming) as the 55 inch picture is, it’s the connectivity (integrated HDTV tuner, DVB-C and DVB-T), separate sound module and 500 GB digital recorder (PVR) which makes it very special – open the back and there’s a circuit board designed for easy removal and upgrading. They’re the first to do it and won’t be the last! Read More

The increasing consumer desire to watch TV shows on demand, combined with the proliferation of home theater PCs (HTPC), has given rise to the AVerTVHD Duet – a pure HD Dual Digital TV tuner for your PC that lets you watch one show while recording another or record both simultaneously. And, by recording your HD content to your HTPC's hard drive, it becomes a personal video recorder (PVR): you can time-shift your favorite shows, skip annoying bits, pause and rewind, you know the drill … Read More

Whether you’re sticking it out with your trusty old 4:3 TV or shelling out for a shiny new 16:9 widescreen model, there’s no escaping the black cropping bars that come into play when viewing programs in the incorrect aspect ratio for your particular TV – I know most widescreen TVs have a zoom option to fill the screen of 4:3 content, but that runs the risk of cutting people’s head’s in half. Now a creative studio in France has come up with an interesting solution to the problem with a concept TV design that maximizes the viewable picture area and minimizes the black bars for both aspect ratios. Read More

LG has unveiled its newest LCD and LED HDTVs at its annual Summer Line Show in New York. It sounds more like a fashion show than a platform for launching consumer electronics, but given that the new TVs’ main selling points are more in the looks rather than the specs department, perhaps it is. Both the SL80 (LCD) and SL90 (LED) series comprise FullHD 1080p resolution units featuring a single edge-to-edge panel of glass over a slim bezel, which incorporates an Invisible Speaker design to give the units a clean seamless look. Read More

Maingear has added some gaming grunt to its line of high end Home Theater PCs (HTPCs) in the form the Axess-HD Gamer. Just like its stable mates, the Axess-HD and HD PRO, the HD Gamer sports a low profile design with aluminum case and optional OLED Front Panel Display that is designed to blend in with other home theater components. However, behind that stylish exterior lies a system built for gaming, an intention made more obvious by the inclusion of the Phantom Lapboard as standard. Read More

Toshiba’s flagship REGZA SV670 series that first caught our eye at CES 2009 is set to hit stores alongside the REGZA XV648 and ZV650 series. The SV670 is Toshiba’s first-ever LED-backlit HDTV and incorporates the company's FocaLight Full Matrix LED with local dimming instead of the standard edge LED lighting used in many other LED TVs. This ability to turn off individual groups of LEDs where required allows the SV670 to achieve deep blacks without sacrificing peak brightness and according to Toshiba, delivers a dynamic contrast ration of 2,000,000:1. Read More