We saw the other day that LCoS is making inroads in the HDTV market, thanks probably almost entirely to Sony and JVC for their SXRD and D-ILA products (respectively). In 2001, 1% of the rear-projection microdisplay HDTV’s sold were LCOS. In the second quarter of 2006, that number has jumped to 17%.

Syntax-Brillian is looking for a part of that market come September when they release their Syntax-Brillian 6580iFB03 1920x 1080p 65″ LCoS HDTV. Strangely enough, for a brand new product, this thing doesn’t have an HDMI input. But it does have a DVI/HDCP input that accepts 1080p, which should be good enough. But I’d do some heavy investigating first just to make sure! On the plus side, it includes an ISF calibration, which is unusual and cool at the same time.

This set has something called “exact pixel” which is basically a direct passthrough of the signal to the display, undergoing no processing in the transition. This is something every display should have, and allows an external scaler to do its job more effectively. It should also help eliminate gaming lag.

The reviewer of this set had lots of good things to say, so you should go check out the review at Ultimate AV. But here’s a paragraph to whet your appetite:

It had the most transparent presentation of any microdisplay-based RPTV I’ve seen, in part because it didn’t exhibit any “sugar coating.” Yet the picture was pleasingly bright and vibrant. Post calibration, the peak light output measured 115 foot-Lamberts! The 6580iFB03 is also equipped with the most non-reflective RPTV screen I’ve seen yet, though the Sony’s was also outstanding in that regard. The Brillian’s effective viewing angle is also noticeably wider than any other RPTV I’ve looked at, both vertically and (especially) horizontally.

High praise indeed. The reviewer often compared this set to Sony’s SXRD one, and the Syntax-Brillian came out on top every time. That goes back to the high praise thing again. As a matter of fact, this more expensive set ($8000) is the best RPTV this reviewer has seen.

Great, now I have to add another set to my “must audition if I ever get another RPTV” list.

Syntax-Brillian 6580iFB03 1920x 1080p 65″ LCoS HDTV