Mr. Greenway from Home Theater Blog has an interesting article about AACS.

AACS is the thing that comes after HDCP, which was the thing that came after the stuff on the DVD. I’m talking copy protection systems, of course. The DVD was cracked, HDCP is compromised, and surely AACS will follow, according to Mr. Greenway. (You gotta like the guy - he has Linn speakers. Disclaimer: so do I.) And Mr. Greenway points out there’s one sure way of making sure people buy movies instead of stealing them: make them affordable.

AACS is quite restricting to say the least. See the DVD-Recordable article below.

Link: Home Theater Blog - HDCP already irrelevant, AACS next
Link: DVD-Recordable.org - Strong Protection for High Definition Content
Link: DVDFile - The Supreme Court Speaks

Projector Central has an article summarizing the state of HD on the current crop of consoles. If you have a PS2, GameCube, or Xbox, and you were thinking of connecting it to an HDTV, this article neatly sums up your options. To sum up their summation: PS2 and Xbox owners are okay, GameCube owners are screwed.

If you’re really interested in HD gaming, then you’ll need to check out the upcoming PS3 and Xbox 360. Both support native HD resolutions and both are covered in my other blog: PS3Blog.net.

Link: Projector Central - Video Gaming in HD

Sony’s Qualia SXRD rear and front-projection HDTVs have been getting some very good reviews. People just seem to like them. But man, their prices are enough to deaden some pixels!

But it looks like Sony may be making some new SXRD models that might be actually affordable.

The Herald Standard talks of Sony’s plans to hire 1000 workers at its New Stanton facility.

“I’m not sure of the screen sizes, but believe there will be a 50-, 60- and possibly a 70-inch version that we will be making here,'’ he said.

“We are already building five new production lines for the SXRDs. In fact, we started that yesterday (Tuesday). There are new jigs and things like that we need to install for the manufacturing process, but the manufacturing process will not be vastly different from making the LCD (liquid crystal display) televisions we have now.'’

Sony’s New Stanton facility, Koff added, has already ceased producing the 7-inch cathode ray tubes (CRTs) that went into its picture-tube-based rear projection television set.

But that’s one more CRT production facility gone…

Link: Digital Home Canada Forums - Cheaper, Smaller SXRD Rptvs This Fall Maybe?

Home Theater Magazine has a review of the Sharp AQUOS LC-45GX6U 45-Inch LCD HDTV. For an LCD display, it has great black-level.

To whom and for where would I recommend this TV? This TV would be perfect for a living room or any space where light can’t be controlled yet is small enough that the extra resolution will be seen and appreciated. It will certainly work in a light-controlled theater, too, as you can adjust the light output to have a decent black level. If your seating area is really wide, your guests or less loved family members won’t have the same viewing experience as you. (Hey, you paid for it—you get to sit in the money seat.)

As the quality of cameras, telecines, and storage media improve, the extra resolution this set offers over the plasma competition will be even more noticeable as time goes on. Mmmm, 1080p.

Link: Home Theater Magazine - Sharp AQUOS LC-45GX6U 45-Inch LCD HDTV

Buccaneers fans will be able to get their favourite football team in HD thanks to WFLA-TV.

“This is another exciting development for the Buccaneers,” said Executive Vice President Bryan Glazer. “We are always interested in using the newest technologies to provide our fans with the best possible game experience. We have BucVision and videowalls at Raymond James Stadium, and now we have the HDTV option for the fans at home.”

Link: Buccaneers - Bucs Go High Def

And Nascar fans, don’t forget that you can see serious zoom zoom in HD too.

Myers is looking forward to his next opportunity, as the West Series visits his home track of Irwindale (Calif.) Speedway for the King Taco 150 on Saturday, July 23. The event, the fifth in a 12-race schedule on this year’s circuit, will be televised to a national audience live in high definition on HDNet. In addition, SPEED Channel will provide an enhanced replay on Aug. 12.

Link: RacingWest - NASCAR WEST SERIES NEWS AND NOTES HEADING TO IRWINDALE

And for you NHL fans finally getting over withdrawal, only to find that NHL is coming back after all, you might have some NHL HD to look forward to.

The NHL is also banking on the advent of high-definition TVs becoming more widely available to fans. Casual fans have maintained for years that hockey is tough to watch on TV, usually because the puck can be so difficult to pick up. However, numerous media reviews have raved about how well the game projects on HD screens.

Link: South Bend Tribune - Will NHL fans return to game?

HD-DVD isn’t even on the market yet and Toshiba is looking beyond HD-DVD to what comes next. Toshiba has invested in Optware, a holographic optical disc developer. Toshiba is one of four companies who invested a total of $14 million into Optware. Optware’s Holographic Versatile Disc (HVD) is DVD sized, but stores more than 1TB (or 10024GB) of information. Optware is faster too - reading data at 1Gbps.

Link: The Register - Toshiba invests in holographic disc firm

I’ve heard before that HD broadcasts of the evening news has caused problems because HD revealed how cheaply the sets were constructed.

Now it seems like the high resolution of HD is revealing how badly people’s faces are falling apart. Celebrities are America’s version of royalty. They are larger than life, and more beautiful. They’re going to have to work harder to maintain that illusion, though, if there’s an HD camera trained on their faces.

Atlanta’s FOX5 news anchor Amanda Davis has even nudged management to consider using airbrushing - makeup that is applied as spray - when her station makes the digital switch.

“Obviously, it will be an issue for some more than others,” she said. “Women have been more vain about it than men. It’s my understanding we’ll need better coverage, which means heavier makeup. I don’t want people going, ‘Oh my gosh, look at the huge pore on her cheek!’

Tee hee.

Link: Sun Herald - Warts and all? It will be with HDTV

When Sony first announced their black-screen technology, and the masses agreed that this sounded really cool. A screen that only reflected red, green, and blue light, so that it can be used in a room with lights on. And the screen is black! Neato!

As it turns out, the screen is actually dark-grey. But it is still worth checking out. ultimate AV has a review:

Keep in mind that there are an infinite variety of interior lighting schemes that might be used with the ChromaVue. In the setup I used, it can provide an improved image over a high-quality white screen. But with the most difficult program material, which plays an important role in many films, you’ll need to keep the room lighting well subdued, even with this screen. The ChromaVue certainly can’t be expected to compete with bright sunlight. You’ll still get the best image any projector is capable of providing by using a good, conventional screen in a totally darkened room. But if your room’s ambient light can’t be completely controlled, and you have a suitable projector, the ChromaVue might help you see a better picture under less-than-ideal conditions.

Link: ultimate AV - Sony HCS-80 ChromaVue High-Contrast Home Theater Screen

After the Blu-ray Disc Association announced the results of a survey that showed consumers prefer Blu-ray, the HD-DVD camp fired back with their own survey. According to a survey commissioned by HD-DVD purveyors, 47% of those polled preferred HD-DVD, compared to 30% of Blu-ray supporters. The margin between the two camps aren’t as wide in this poll.

What have we learned? Something and lies and statistics, I think…

Link: Twice - HD DVD Offers Contrary Survey

Prognosticator of prognosticators Mr. Robert X. Cringely is never dull reading. How he comes up with this stuff is beyond me.

But Mr. Rob X is thinking that Intel will be coming out with some digital home entertainment devices that connect to Apple’s iTunes to download video content. He says that Apple is already working on a movie download service (an HD one at that!), so Apple’s switch to Intel is about more than just the PowerMac’s processor.

I don’t care much for Apple’s iTunes store because I still prefer to buy my CD’s and then rip them. But movies are a different thing. I don’t really need a backup copy of a rental movie. I watch it once and then I’m done with it. I looked at my shelf of DVDs not long ago and realized that I’m never going to watch most of them again. My DVD purchases have therefore gone way down. But I do love my zip.ca membership (similar to NetFlix in the USA). I get 4 movies at a time, as many as I want a month (limited only by the postal service). The iTunes Movie Store will hopefully offer similar subscription-based offers.

So, I love the idea of a download service for movies, especially if they’re HD. I’m not such a big fan of the Intel device. I don’t need another device sitting in my living room. Hey, you know what? I plan on buying a PS3. It would be great if I could download movies from the iTunes Movie Store to my PS3. But that would piss off Intel a little too much…

Link: i, cringely - There’s More to the Apple/Intel Deal Than Even Bob Thought At First

Now this is a beast.

This HDTV Media Center PC has four television tuners. Two each for standard definition and high definition. One terrabyte of storage, and a dual-layer progressive scan DVD recorder.

Too bad it doesn’t work with my Rogers cable.

Such is a problem for many HD devices these days, and until cable companies start supporting standards that everyone uses, it will continue to be a problem. CableCARD is unidirectional, so this technology is basically still-born. What we need is CableCARD 2.

I’m still waiting…

Link: Niveus Media - Niveus Media Center - Denali Limited Edition HDTV

Two obscure HDTV display makers are merging. One is “struggling” (Brillian), and it’s the one doing the buying. It makes LCOS displays. Brillian is buying Syntax, an LCD supplier.

The combined company is expected to leverage Brillian’s strength in LCoS high-definition TVs and components with Syntax’s strength in LCD TVs. Syntax is ranked as the third largest supplier of LCD TVs in North America with a 7 percent market share, according to DisplaySearch Inc., and is considered one of the top ten suppliers of LCD TVs worldwide.

At first glance, the merger appears to be a curious combination as LCDs and microdisplays are often viewed as competing technologies for large TVs. But given Brillian’s difficulties in establishing itself as a microdisplay-only supplier, the move is necessary for the company’s survival.

Link: Electronic Engineering Times - HDTV companies Brillian, Syntax to merge

I am now a member of the 9rules network. Yay! I literally did a jig when I heard the news. I bounded up the stairs and told my wife and danced with my daughters (aged two and four - they like to put their feet on mine to dance). Ah, good times, good times.

Members sometimes say that when they were accepted to the 9rules network, that it came as a suprise and that they didn’t expect to be accepted. They say how proud and privileged they were to become a part of such a great enterprise. That they hope to continue to bring great content to their readers.

What they said.

Thanks guys.

Sharp has developed an LCD display that shows two different images at the same time, depending on the angle from which it is viewed.

This is great for watching two shows at once. So if my daughter Annabelle wants to watch Arthur and Emily wants to watch Dora, they could both watch the same TV at the same time! How cool is that! Well, as long as one of them is okay without audio or reading subtitles. Hmm. Neither is old enough to read. And the display costs twice as much as a display without the technology. Mmmm, okay, scratch that.

So…. this display is great for goofing off at work! You can use dual-monitor support on this one monitor, and websurf on your computer while everyone walking past your cubicle thinks you’re doing real work! Yeah, that’s it!

Technology, always helping society to deteriorate further!

Link: seattlepie.com - Sharp develops ‘two-way viewing-angle’ LCD

My wife is pregnant with her third child. As such, she had to go see her somethingologist on Wednesday. Since doctors are famous for making their patients wait, she even called ahead and was assured that the doctor was running on time today. Waiting in a room for your appointment with a 4 year old and 2 year old can be trying. As it turned out, the doctor was late but at least the kids behaved. So they waited and waited and waited.

Which is what all of us who are waiting for the Digital TV transition are doing. Waiting and waiting and waiting. But in some interesting news this week, broadcasters agreed to give up their analog channels to replace them with digital by 2009.

Hear that everyone? It’s 2009 now. 2009 is the new date. Yup, January 1st 2009 will come and poof! No more analog.

I’m not so sure I believe that.

Link: USA Today - Broadcasters accept new deadline for digital TV signals