Code Retard » HDTV

Remote Play PS3 to PSP: How to use Remote Play

Son Riku — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 18:38:34 +0000

What is Remote Play? Remote Play is a feature on the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Portable which allows a PlayStation Portable user to interact with their PlayStation 3’s Xross Media Bar. Users can access music, videos, photos, games and various applications stored on the PlayStation 3’s HDD, or external flash drives and optical media attached to the PlayStation 3.

Remote Play works by encoding a live video and audio stream of the output image on a PlayStation 3, then delivering it over a wireless network connection to a PlayStation Portable. Actions performed on the PSP such as the pressing of buttons are uploaded back to the PlayStation 3 over the same connection. This is similar in concept to the Slingbox.

The latest update includes the ability to use Remote Play across the Internet, turn your PlayStation 3 on remotely, use a few applications, and play all PlayStation 1 games, whether stored on the HDD or on an optical disc.

Games/Softwares which are compatible with Remote Play include:

All PSone games are now playable with the original disc via remote play
Requires:
PS3 Firmware 2.10+, released 12-18-07
With the PSP release of firmware 3.72+, it included PS3 remote start.
PSP Firmware 3.80+, released 12-18-07

Imabikisou (BD game/PSN demo):
(Japanese horror visual novel game)
Text-heavy game with background visuals/movies

Lair (BD game):
Overrides mandatory SIXAXIS controls for PS3 play, allowing PSP control
Can start the game and fly around for a bit – but cannot complete many of the levels since certain SIXAXIS motions are required in-game
Frame-rate issues have been reported

Aqua Vita (PSN game) aka Aquatopia:
Requires PLAYSTATION Eye
No way to move or affect the fish tank from your PSP, fish still only respond to PLAYSTATION Eye movement

Bionic Commando: Rearmed
Possibly the first 3rd party game to include this feature
Fully playable from PSP

High Stakes on the Vegas Strip: Poker Edition (PSN game):
Fully playable via PSP remote play
Must perform upgrade to game by launching from PS3 first
Graphics look phenomenal, online play through PSP works great as well

High Stakes on the Vegas Strip website updated to show “PSP Remote Patch NOW AVAILABLE”

Mainichi Issho (PSN game):
Fully playable via PSP
Includes RSS feeds, video, mini-games, etc.

PixelJunk Eden
Remote Play listed under key features, along with trophy support
Source: Playstation.com

PixelJunk Monsters
Fully playable via PSP remote play
“We also support PSP remote play and it is probably one of the first games that supports this really well – ie. it is totally playable through your PSP, even at low bandwidths.”
Source: Q-Games President & Executive Producer Dylan Cuthbert via Playstation.Blog
Update: PixelJunk Monsters [Demo] released on US PLAYSTATION Store on February 21, 2008 – works via remote play.

SingStar Vol. 2 (BD game):
With a PSP and a wireless internet connection, you will now be able to browse, select and start downloading new songs from the â€˜SingStoreâ€™ on the go. Choosing your perfect tracklist is easier than ever before. You can also access to all areas of My SingStar Online and share the best SingStar performances with your friend and family!

Coming Eventually?

Formula One Championship [Not Yet Implemented]

PSP will function as rear-view mirror (originally in TGS 07 demo)
May be implemented in a future update to the game

Other Things to do with your PS3 + PSP remote play:

Chat (Video Chat)

Message all of your PSN friends from your PS3’s buddy list
If you start a new chat just by yourself, the PLAYSTATION Eye adds security camera functionality, you can check out your room
Update (12-18-07): You can now hear sound (listen in) via remote play video chat
Requires PSP Firmware 3.80 and PS3 Firmware 2.10
Only limitation is that the video doesn’t take up the whole screen so it can be hard to see

Folding@home
Folding@home can be remotely operated through the Remote Play feature of your PS3 system
Functionality added in client v1.2 – updated 8/21/07
Source: Official Playstation.Blog

When you use this feature, the Folding@home help screen will be specific to your PSP systemâ€™s controls
Use this screen if you need help in navigating Folding@home from your PSP system

Media
You can use remote play to access media streamed from your PC
This includes live tv streamed to your PSP if you have the right gear
Comment: User Joker4529 recommends +2 responsiveness and normal quality for best results
If you have a media server such as TVersity, this means you can stream & transcode video/audio/photos to your PS3, while viewing remotely on your PSP
Update: With PS3 firmware 2.20, you can select “Audio Output” to play your music through your PS3 (PSP acts as remote control)

PLAYSTATION Store
Download and install demos remotely from your PSP
You can add funds to your wallet and purchase full games and downloadable content as well

Web Browser
Allows additional Flash-enabled viewing

Addtional resources here:
http://boardsus.playstation.com/playstation/board/message?board.id=psnetwork&message.id=166903

HDMI ver 1.3 Category 2 Certified Cables Explained

adm_snackbar — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 18:56:00 +0000

I just bought a new PS3 to hookup as a Blu-Ray player for my 1080P LCD HDTV and was looking to purchase some HDMI cables on the Internet. What I thought was a simple task was actually more complicated than I imagined. Apparently there are many breeds of HDMI cables, defined by a version specification number, possibly a certification, lengths, and thicknesses. After a bit of research, I have compiled everything I learned into one post so that if you ever find yourself in the same situation, you’ll know what to do. Plus there’s a quiz at the end for you to take.

HDMI Versions

HDMI stands for high-definition multimedia interface. It’s currently the best video solution technology out there. HDMI is currently up to ver 1.3 but has undergone a few revisions since December 2002. The exact differences between each revision isn’t all that interesting or useful. Just know that any HDMI ver 1.0 to 1.3 is capable of displaying a 1080 pixel image, but that’s 1080i. If you want 1080p support, you’ll need to buy HDMI ver 1.1 and beyond. If you don’t need it because your HDTV only supports 1080i or your DVD player only outputs 1080i and that’s what you’re connecting to your TV, then all you need is HDMI ver 1.0 or greater. If you need 1080p support, get HDMI ver 1.1 or greater. Since HDMI ver 1.1 through 1.3 all support 1080p, what makes them different from each other? Honestly I found no useful differences between 1.1 and 1.2, but ver 1.3 makes a big jump in future proofing your HDMI cable for later technology. Know that all HDMI versions are backwards compatible so even if you don’t need HDMI ver X.X today, you can still buy it and use it with your current electronics until you upgrade tomorrow.

HDMI ver 1.3

Only useful if your devices support HDMI ver 1.3, like a PS3 for example, today’s most current revision increases the color depth from 24-bit to 48-bit, effectively increasing coloring capabilities from millions to billions. This advanced feature is referred to as Deep Color or xvYCC (Extended-gamut YCC) and goes beyond the color limitation of RGB (red, green, blue). HDMI ver 1.3 also supports higher refresh rates beyond 60Hz because it allows a higher bandwidth than previous versions.

Category 1 and Category 2 Certification

Category certification is a new testing standard introduced with HDMI ver 1.3. Any other certified cables you bought previously were not certified to a strict standard so you can’t really be sure what requirements the cable is certified to meet. Category 1 and 2 certifications, however, tell you exactly what your ver 1.3 cable is capable of doing. A category 1 certification means the cable means compliance testing is done at at least 720p/1080i frequencies. While there is no exact certification for 1080p frequency, category 2 measures a non-standard frequency at even stricter compliance than 1080p so for all intents and purposes, a category 2 certification means the cable is compliant for 1080p display or better.

Thickness and Distance

After deciding on a length of cable to buy, you might see “premium” versions of the same length cable at higher prices. These can be misleading and are there to trick you. The higher priced cables are generally thicker and while I can’t argue that a thicker cable isn’t better, it won’t really make a difference unless the length of cable you need is quite long. As long as you see that you are looking at “Category 2″ certified cables, THEY PERFORM EXACTLY THE SAME REGARDLESS OF PRICE. The category 2 certification means the cable is certified to category 2 compliance at that specific length. You would do yourself no favor to buy another category 2 certified cable of the same length that was simply marked “premium” and used a thicker cable. You can tell thicker cables from thinner ones because they have lower gauges. For example a 24AWG cable is thicker than a 28AWG cable.

Test Your Knowledge

Now pretend you’re me and you just bought a PS3 that supports HDMI ver 1.3 and you have a 1080p HDTV. You are looking for the best 6 foot cable to use that will fully utilize all your hardware’s capabilities at monoprice.com without having to spend more than you need. Which will you choose? For the answer, click here.

(source: bluejeanscable.com)
(source: wikipedia.org)
(source: hdmi.org)
(source: hdtvmagazine.com)
(source: audioholics.com)

HDTV vs Monitors

Son Riku — Wed, 21 May 2008 18:03:56 +0000

With the influx of new HDTV’s at 1080p, I was wondering to myself, why do we even need computer monitors anymore?

HDTV Numbers

Native resolution	Commonly called	Meets definition of high-def?	Frequency	Typical TV types
1,920×1,080	1080p	Yes	Rare but getting more common especially in larger TVs	Flat-panel LCD; DLP, LCD, and LCoS projection; very high-end plasma
1,366×768	768p	Yes	Very common in all screen sizes	Flat-panel LCD; 50-inch plasma
1,280×720	720p	Yes	Common in rear-projection but not flat-panels	DLP, LCD, and LCoS projection
1,024×768	HDTV plasma	Yes	The most common plasma resolution	37- and 42-inch plasma
852×480	EDTV plasma	No	Increasingly rare	37- and 42-inch plasma
640×480	VGA	No	Increasingly rare	Small LCD TVs

A 1080p set is 1920 x 1080 = 2.07 million pixels, which is high compared to even an old high-end monitor at 1600 x 1200 = 1.92 million pixels. A friend of mine bought a 40″ Samsung set for his PlayStation 3 and quickly discovered his gaming PC was perfectly usable on it from back on the sofa, especially with a wireless keyboard and mouse, of course.

Forty inches is probably a bit over the top for most needs – and the pixel per inch number for large sets is still quite far from high quality monitors – but it is more viable now than ever before. If you use a screen from anything but very close range, an HDTV can be a compelling alternative on price vs. picture size and pixels.

Computer monitors pixels are much smaller, and squeezed together tighter. They are clearer, whereas a television will be blurry. A monitor’s optimal viewing distance is about 28″ whereas a television, let’s say a 32″ for case being, has an optimal viewing distance of 7 to 8 feet.

The main test: take a 24″ monitor @ 1080p, and a 24″ TV @ 1080p resolution. Display a word document or a web page. Read the text on each. You’ll strain your eyes and squint at how blurry the television would be.

This is also why those crazy computer gamers with a a huge LCD TVs on their desks are all going blind.

Also, per size, you get far better resolution with a monitor.

How to Properly Clean Your LCD HDTV

adm_snackbar — Thu, 01 May 2008 21:52:10 +0000

For those of us who just bought brand new HDTVs, this question has definitely come up: what is the proper way to clean the LCD panel? At first thought, you might think, “Easy! I’ll just spray on some Windex.” Wrong. Windex and other similar cleaning agents contain ammonia, which are known to strip the screen’s anti-glare as well as cloud the plastic-based screen over time. Well, you think, “What about water?” Answer: it depends. If you meant the water that comes out of the faucet in your sink, you’re wrong, even if it’s filtered. Tap water contains minerals which can leave white smears on your screen. Also if you’ve got filtered water, depending on your filtration system, the minerals may or may not be removed as they are beneficial to your well-being anyways. Your best bet is to use distilled water or pure water which is mineral free. This can usually be purchased at your local pharmacy or drug store.

In fact, the widely accepted method to clean your beautiful LCD screen is to mix 50 parts distilled water with 50 parts isopropyl alcohol or rubbing alcohol (also known as IPA). Not only is this cheap for you to make, it is even recommended by LCD cleaner insiders, “The main ingredient in most wipes on the market is water. There needs to be a small percentage of isopropyl alcohol (IPA) to help get rid of the grease from busy fingers.” The best safe mixture, depending on the severity of prints on your screen you want to remove, varies from 30% to 50% alcohol. This affects the percentage amount of isopropyl alcohol to buy. For example, to get a concoction with 35% alcohol, you’d mix 50 parts distilled water with 50 parts 70% isopropyl alcohol (0.5 x 70% = 35%). If you wanted a stronger brew with 50% alcohol (anything over that could possibly damage the screen), you’d find 100% isopropyl alcohol to mix with equal parts distilled water.

Well, you think, “Why don’t I just go out and buy LCD cleaner solution?” You can, nobody’s stopping you. It all contains the same stuff (namely water and alcohol) so if you’ve got money to burn and want a little convenience, you can get pre-made LCD cleaner. Just know that even IBM says it’s OK to use your own 50/50 solution.

Now that we’ve established the proper liquid to apply to our TV screens, what is the proper way to apply it? Your LCD screen has crystal molecules sandwiched under layers of polarized panels. These panels are usually made of “plastic-like” polymer materials, and like any plastic they can easily be scratched, even by your fingernails. When wiping the screen, be gentle and do not apply a lot of pressure. Spray the cleaner onto a lint-free cloth like the ones eyeglasses usually come with. Some TVs, like yours truly’s, ship with a microfiber cleaning cloth that you can use. Do not spray directly onto your TV. Also stay away from any paper towels or tissues as they can leave little particles everywhere and can potentially scratch the screen. Using gentle circular motions, work your way from the top of the screen all the way to the bottom. Be careful not to let your fingernails contact the screen as you will scratch your screen!

Some other things to watch out for: don’t drink the isopropyl alcohol please. It’s deadly. Also, you can spot test a small corner of the screen first to make sure everything is working out. If you really want to be careful, unplug the television and any nearby electronics to reduce the risk of electric shock. You might want to move them away so you won’t risk damaging them with accidental spillage. Follow these guidelines and you’ll be able to enjoy years of trouble-free viewing service from your new LCD HDTV.

Blu-ray sales grow, but home video revenue still down

Son Riku — Sun, 27 Apr 2008 08:09:58 +0000

Despite large growth in the high definition market, standard DVD sales continue to sag, and home video revenue will continue to fall, report a few notable analysts.

According to Reuters, 5 million HD movies have already been sold this year (mainly Blu-ray) and that puts the pace far ahead then 2007 which saw only 10 million movies sold for the entire year.

This strong growth however is not enough to make up for the continued sagging sales of standard definition DVDs. In 2006, movie studios generated $25 billion USD in revenue for home video releases. In 2007 the number fell to $23 billion and Citigroup analyst Jason Bazinet believes that number will fall again this year to $21.4 billion.

Analysts also feel that consumers see less benefit in upgrading to Blu-ray then they did with the switch from VHS to DVD. Many consumers don’t even have the necessary equipment to enjoy Blu-ray, including Blu-ray players, HDTVs or surround sound setups. Price of course is another significant barrier with most Blu-ray players costing about $400 USD, about $250 USD more expensive than even the best upscaling standard DVD players.

Sony Electronics CEO Stan Glasgow agreed in March that a price drop was necessary for more market penetration but that the necessary $200 price point wont be available until at least 2009.

â€œI don’t think $200 is going to happen this year. Next year $200 could happen,â€ said Glasgow. â€œWe’ll be at a $300 rate this year. $299 will happen this year.â€

Another factor is that Blu-ray movies usually sell at a $15 dollar premium over their standard definition counterpart (yes, even at Amazon) making the alternative not as pretty usually despite its much improved audio and video.

Samsung and Sony to buy a new facility $1.9 billion USD

Son Riku — Sun, 27 Apr 2008 08:06:41 +0000

Samsung and Sony will reportedly spend 1.8 trillion South Korean won (about $1.9 billion USD) to buy a new facility to upgrade their S-LCD Corporation joint venture.

The new upgrade will allow the companies to produce enough 8G LCD panels to meet “increasing global demand.”

The Wall Street Journal adds that the “new manufacturing line will be located in the Tangjeong complex southeast of Seoul, where production will start in 2009. Monthly output is initially expected to reach 60,000 units, versus 50,000 sheets currently.”

Samsung recently reported a robust first quarter flat-panel division profit of about 1.01 trillion South Korean won. The company also reported that margins were at a four-year high.

Both companies expect LCD TVs to be in high demand globally in preparation for the Summer Olympic Games in China.

DVI vs. HDMI vs. Component Video — Which is Better?

Son Riku — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 08:57:44 +0000

As DVI and HDMI connections become more and more widely used, we are often asked: which is better, DVI (or HDMI) or component video? The answer, as it happens, is not cut-and-dried.

First, to clear away one element that can be confusing: DVI and HDMI are exactly the same as one another, image-quality-wise. The principal differences are that HDMI carries audio as well as video, and uses a different type of connector, but both use the same encoding scheme, and that’s why a DVI source can be connected to an HDMI monitor, or vice versa, with a DVI/HDMI cable, with no intervening converter box.

The upshot of this article–in case you’re not inclined to read all the details–is that it’s very hard to predict whether a digital DVI or HDMI connection will produce a better or worse image than an analog component video connection. There will often be significant differences between the digital and the analog signals, but those differences are not inherent in the connection type and instead depend upon the characteristics of the source device (e.g., your DVD player) and the display device (e.g., your TV set). Why that is, however, requires a bit more discussion.

What are DVI, HDMI and Component Video?

DVI/HDMI and Component Video are all video standards which support a variety of resolutions, but which deliver the signal from the source to the display in very different ways. The principal important difference is that DVI/HDMI deliver the signal in a digital format, much the same way that a file is delivered from one computer to another along a network, while Component Video is an analog format, delivering the signal not as a bitstream, but as a set of continuously varying voltages representing (albeit indirectly, as we’ll get to in a moment) the red, green and blue components of the signal.

Both DVI/HDMI and Component Video deliver signals as discrete red, green, and blue color components, together with sync information which allows the display to determine when a new line, or a new frame, begins. The DVI/HDMI standard delivers these along three data channels in a format called T.M.D.S., which stands for “Transmission Minimized Differential Signaling.” Big words aside, the T.M.D.S. format basically involves a blue channel to which horizontal and vertical sync are added, and separate green and red channels.

Component Video is delivered, similarly, with the color information split up three ways. However, component video uses a “color-difference” type signal, which consists of Luminance (the “Y”, or “green,” channel, representing the total brightness of the image), Red Minus Luminance (the “Pr,” or “Red,” channel), and Blue Minus Luminance (the “Pb,” or “Blue,” channel). The sync pulses for both horizontal and vertical are delivered on the Y channel. The display calculates the values of red, green and blue from the Y, Pb, and Pr signals.

Both signal types, then, are fundamentally quite similar; they break up the image in similar ways, and deliver the same type of information to the display, albeit in different forms. How they differ, as we’ll see, will depend to a great extent upon the particular characteristics of the source and display devices, and can depend upon cabling as well.

Isn’t Digital Just Better?

It is often supposed by writers on this subject that “digital is better.” Digital signal transfer, it is assumed, is error-free, while analog signals are always subject to some amount of degradation and information loss. There is an element of truth to this argument, but it tends to fly in the face of real-world considerations. First, there is no reason why any perceptible degradation of an analog component video signal should occur even over rather substantial distances; the maximum runs in home theater installations do not present a challenge for analog cabling built to professional standards. Second, it is a flawed assumption to suppose that digital signal handling is always error-free. DVI and HDMI signals aren’t subject to error correction; once information is lost, it’s lost for good. That is not a consideration with well-made cable over short distances, but can easily become a factor at distance.

So What Does Determine Image Quality?

Video doesn’t just translate directly from source material to displays, for a variety of reasons. Very few displays operate at the native resolutions of common source material, so when you’re viewing material in 480p, 720p, or 1080i, there is, of necessity, some scaling going on. Meanwhile, the signals representing colors have to be accurately rendered, which is dependent on black level and “delta,” the relationship between signal level and actual as-rendered color level. Original signal formats don’t correspond well to display hardware; for example, DVD recordings have 480 lines, but non-square pixels. What all of this means is that there is signal processing to go on along the signal chain.

The argument often made for the DVI or HDMI signal formats is the “pure digital” argument–that by taking a digital recording, such as a DVD or a digital satellite signal, and rendering it straight into digital form as a DVI or HDMI signal, and then delivering that digital signal straight to the display, there is a sort of a perfect no-loss-and-no-alteration-of-information signal chain. If the display itself is a native digital display (e.g. an LCD or Plasma display), the argument goes, the signal never has to undergo digital-to-analog conversion and therefore is less altered along the way.

That might be true, were it not for the fact that digital signals are encoded in different ways and have to be converted, and that these signals have to be scaled and processed to be displayed. Consequently, there are always conversions going on, and these conversions aren’t always easy going. “Digital to digital” conversion is no more a guarantee of signal quality than “digital to analog,” and in practice may be substantially worse. Whether it’s better or worse will depend upon the circuitry involved–and that is something which isn’t usually practical to figure out. As a general rule, with consumer equipment, one simply doesn’t know how signals are processed, and one doesn’t know how that processing varies by input. Analog and digital inputs must either be scaled through separate circuits, or one must be converted to the other to use the same scaler. How is that done? In general, you won’t find an answer to that anywhere in your instruction manual, and even if you did, it’d be hard to judge which is the better scaler without viewing the actual video output. It’s fair to say, in general, that even in very high-end consumer gear, the quality of circuits for signal processing and scaling is quite variable.

Additionally, it’s not uncommon to find that the display characteristics of different inputs have been set up differently. Black level, for example, may vary considerably from the digital to the analog inputs, and depending on how sophisticated your setup options on your display are, that may not be an easy thing to recalibrate.

The Role of Cable and Connection Quality

Cable quality, in general, should not be a significant factor in the DVI/HDMI versus Component Video comparison, as long as the cables in question are of high quality. There are, however, ways in which cable quality issues can come into play.

Analog component video is an extremely robust signal type; we have had our customers run analog component, without any need for boosters, relays or other special equipment, up to 200 feet without any signal quality issues at all. However, at long lengths, cable quality can be a consideration–in particular, impedance needs to be strictly controlled to a tight tolerance (ideally, 75 +/- 1.5 ohms) to prevent problems with signal reflection which can cause ghosting or ringing.

DVI and HDMI, unfortunately, are not so robust. The problem here is the same as the virtue of analog component: tight control over impedance. When the professional video industry went to digital signals, it settled upon a standard–SDI, serial digital video–which was designed to be run in coaxial cables, where impedance can be controlled very tightly, and consequently, uncompressed, full-blown HD signals can be run hundreds of feet with no loss of information in SDI. For reasons known only to the designers of the DVI and HDMI standards, this very sound design principle was ignored; instead of coaxial cable, the DVI and HDMI signals are run balanced, through twisted-pair cable. The best twisted pair cables control impedance to about +/- 10%. When a digital signal is run through a cable, the edges of the bits (represented by sudden transitions in voltage) round off, and the rounding increases dramatically with distance. Meanwhile, poor control over impedance results in signal reflections–portions of the signal bounce off of the display end of the line, propagate back down the cable, and return, interfering with later information in the same bitstream. At some point, the data become unrecoverable, and with no error correction available, there’s no way to restore the lost information.

DVI and HDMI connections, for this reason, are subject to the “digital cliff” phenomenon. Up to some length, a DVI or HDMI cable will perform just fine; the rounding and reflections will not compromise the ability of the display device to reconstruct the original bitstream, and no information will be lost. As we make the cable longer and longer, the difficulty of reconstructing the bitstream increases. At some point, unrecoverable bit errors start to occur; these are colloquially described in the home theater community as “sparklies,” because the bit errors manifest themselves as pixel dropouts which make the image sparkle. If we make the cable just a bit longer, so much information is lost that the display becomes unable to reconstitute enough information to even render an image; the bitstream has fallen off the digital cliff, so called because of the abruptness of the failure. A cable design that works perfectly at 20 feet may get “sparkly” at 25, and stop working entirely at 30. However, there are HDMI certifications in place today that will guarantee performance over a distance.

In practice, it’s very hard to say when a DVI or HDMI signal will fail. We have found well-made DVI cables to be quite reliable up to 50 feet, but HDMI cable, with its smaller profile, is a bit more of a puzzle. Because the ability to reconstitute the bitstream varies depending on the quality of the circuitry in the source and display devices, it’s not uncommon for a cable to work fine at 30, 40, or 50 feet on one source/display combination, and not work at all on another.

The Upshot: It Depends

So, which is better, DVI or component? HDMI or component? The answer–unsatisfying, perhaps, but true–is that it depends. It depends upon your source and display devices, and there’s no good way, in principle, to say in advance whether the digital or the analog connection will render a better picture. You may even find, say, that your DVD player looks better through its DVI or HDMI output, while your satellite or cable box looks better through its component output, on the same display. In this case, there’s no real substitute for simply plugging it in and giving it a try both ways.

by Blue Jeans Cable

Difference Between Coax Digital and RCA Analog Cables

adm_snackbar — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 23:37:13 +0000

Yesterday, my long awaited Samsung 46″ LCD HDTV arrived and I had a ball of a time hooking it up with the rest of my electronics. The TV is a 5 series which has been very widely regarded in the Samsung TV owner community, and the one I bought sports a 30:000 contrast and 3 HDMI inputs among its standout qualities, all in 1080p. When I bought it, it was $1591, but right now it’s $1499 with free shipping and no tax to most states. If you’ve been shopping around, I strongly recommend this unit at this price!!! I have been monitoring the price like a hawk since I bought it for price adjustment and I’ve seen it fluctuate wildly from the price I bought it at up to $1630. Just a reminder though, make sure you are buying from Amazon (not Electronics Expo or some other retailer) to get the free shipping and price adjustment guarantee.

Back on topic, I originally had an awful ghetto setup consisting of two very old Sharp speakers, an old tape deck, a car subwoofer and amp, a simple Realistic audio switch (literally a switch), and PC power supply (don’t ask). Anyhow, I’m saving a bit of space by replacing the sound system with my PC speakers, the Logitech Z-5500 THX certified ones without spending more money to buy a new receiver (I guess it’s that ghetto cheap streak in me). Anyhow, the Z-5500 unit has a coax digital audio input. I had always suspected that the input looked suspiciously like a regular RCA audio input so I gave it a try. I connected my DVD player’s digital coax output to the Logitech’s receiver and what do you know, it worked! Plain old regular analog RCA cables can be used in place of more expensive coax digital cables. This isn’t true for some cases certainly because the digital coax cables have a 70 ohm impedance requirement, but most RCA cables manufactured today adhere to that anyways though it’s not necessary. For a cable to be qualified as “coax digital” it must meet certain more stringent requirements than a regular RCA cable including the impedance requirement and additional shielding. With my foot long wire, I doubt there will be much signal loss or interference. Plus these cables were manufactured in the 90s I think. So if you must absolutely have the best quality sound, then you might want to buy a coax digital cable. Otherwise if you’re like me, a cheap guy who can’t tell the difference between good and bad sound, then try out our existing RCA cables in your home system. At best it’ll save you some money and you’ll turn one cable into two (your red and white RCA cables are substituted by a single digital coax cable, in your case it would be either the white or red one). Reduce clutter and get more cables? How awesome is that? At worst, you’ll lose nothing. So give it a try.

If you were also wondering like me whether to invest in the more expensive digital optical cable over a regular coax cable, unless you need a really long connection over 10 feet, you won’t hear any difference. The verdict is: save yourself some money and buy coax digital cables over optical cables.

Death of an Old TV = New HDTV Here I Come!!!

kiririth — Mon, 17 Mar 2008 20:58:00 +0000

So i was playing Super Smash Bros. Brawl on my old 42″ Sony RPTV on Friday night when it finally kicked the bucket. This TV has been on the verge of dying for the last 2 years I’ve had it in my apartment when i took it from my parents’ house where it’s been in use since 1993.

It was a good sized TV for and great for its time, but something was screwy with the video projector as it would start to make a high pitched squeal after watching for several minutes. You could turn off the TV for a couple of seconds it might go away, but it always came back especially when the screen was very white. You didn’t hear it as much when it was darker. On top of the squealing, the picture would sometimes flicker until there was a red ghost image of whatever we were watching appeared. Again, you could turn off the TV and turn it on and it would go away only to haunt us again another day.

I’ve had problems with this TV before. Had it repaired maybe twice in its lifetime at my parents’ house. I knew it wasn’t worth it to get it repaired again so i’ve been looking to get an HDTV for the past couple of months. Funny how it died because i was playing with my gf on the couch and she said “Do you smell something burning??” and i replied, “Yea… maybe its coming from outside” to which then 30 seconds later, the TV made a popping noise and shut off indefinitely. R.I.P. Sony TV….

Soooooo…. the need for a new TV came quicker than I thought and i’ve been doing HDTV research for a little while now but hadn’t found the one i wanted yet. Price was definitely an issue as i didn’t want to spend more than $1500. Ideally a 46″-50″ would be my 1st preference as 42″ wide screen looked a bit small to me and anything bigger than 50″ was too big for my living room. As far as the LCD vs Plasma debate, i liked the way LCDs worked in any room lighting, but Plasmas generally looked brighter yet had that glare issue. I also heard that you could only tell the difference of 1080p resolution over 720p if you had an HDTV over 50″ so i didn’t mind getting a lower priced 720p TV.

Anyways, we went to Costco on Saturday for some stuff and I browsed some of the HDTVs there. Nothing really caught my eye, although i could really see the difference between some of the low brand Vizios vs the better Toshibas or Sonys. We had some time to kill so we went to our local Best Buy to check out some more HDTVs that we could compare side by side in person. Checking out the massive wall of TVs organized by size, we hit the 46″ to 50″ section where we saw a decent deal on a 50″ Samsung T5054 Plasma at 720p for $1299. Kinda had everything i wanted at a decent price so i asked the sales guy if they had any in stock and they said it was sold out and discontinued.

Sad times until my gf then asked the guy if we could buy the display one and to my surprise he said “Sure. That’ll be $999.” My gf and I looked at each other and then went to check out the TV again for any blemishes or scratches. It looked pretty clean so we made our final decision and bought the TV. A couple of downers were that it didn’t come with a base stand so we had to find a way to mount it or buy a new stand. Then there was the issue that it was used on display for the past year, on for 12 hours a day everyday so we decided to get a 4 year warranty on it. Everything was all set to go, until 15 minutes later when they took it off the wall and while trying to take off the store brackets, they got the bolt stuck in the back of the TV and stripped the screw slot making it impossible to get the bracket off without breaking the TV back or taking it apart. The sales guy barely apologized and sent us to Customer Service to get a refund. It was the last one in the store and we were out of luck.

We left the store empty handed and a little depressed that we missed out on getting our 50″ plasma for 1K… but then we remembered there was another Best Buy 2 miles away! We drove there quickly rushed to the TV section where we saw the exact same Samsung T5054 50″ Plasma in even better condition than the 1st one we saw. The sales guy there said they were out of stock and we proceeded to ask if we could buy the display one. We told them the story of the other Best Buy, showed them the receipt of our returned TV to speed things up and VIOLA!! We successfully got it down and into our car heading to its new home. On top of the new TV, this Best Buy had the TV stand with swinging mount that we wanted in stock so we purchased that as well to mount our new TV onto. My gf also went a little shopping crazy and bought a new 160 gig Ipod classic to put on the new credit account she opened, all which has no interest for 2 years.

Say hello to my little friend:

So i did my research on actually getting the HDTV, but I’ve lacked the time to do any real follow up about all the other HD crap i now need to actually see anything in High Definition. I don’t have any component or HDMI cables. I don’t have a digital cable box with any HD outputs. I don’t have an upconvert DVD or an HD/Bluray player. So basically i’m just watching plain crappy TV and playing my Wii on a huge ass screen.

I’ve been thinking of getting this new Samsung Upconvert DVD player to tide me over until I can afford a PS3 or an HD-DVD player. Looks slick and it matches my new display very well. :-D

Anyways, time to do some more research on all the other stuff i have to get now. This should be fun…