1/31/2012

Toshiba 42HP95 42-Inch Widescreen HD-Ready Flat Panel Plasma TV Review

Toshiba 42HP95 42-Inch Widescreen HD-Ready Flat Panel Plasma TV
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It was time to upgrade to a new TV after moving to a new house. After seeing several of the new plasma TV's at the local electronic stores I decided that was the route for me. After doing weeks worth of research I was set to go with the Panasonic 42px500u. The unit had all of the specs that I wanted: 42", cablecard, TV Guide, VGA input, PIP and media card slots. Then I read about the new Toshiba Plasmas that were coming out in August/September. The Toshiba 42hp95 pretty much had the same specs as the Panasonic except for the name.
I went to a local electronics store that had the TV and watched it side by side with the Panasonic 42px50u. Both had clear black levels and an unbelievable picture. Not finding the 500u in a retail store, I went with the Toshiba. I have not regretted it at all.
First what you should expect: bright clear picture. HD of course looks incredible. I do have digial cable and the digital channels look extremely well but surprisingly the SD channels look great! Setup was easy and within 10 minutes of hooking up the audio/video cables I was watching HD football.
Probably the biggest surprise with this TV is the quality of the built in speakers. The speakers create a pseudo-theater sound that I was not expecting.
Bottom line is that this TV is great. Toshiba obviously spent the time to come out with a quality set that should be recognized with the plasma kings Panasonic and Pioneer.

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Enjoy stunning, brilliantly colorful imagery from the 42-inch Toshiba 42HP95 widescreen plasma television. It includes an integrated ATSC tuner, enabling you to receive off-air high definition broadcasts without the need for an external set-top box. It offers a 720p (progressive) true HD display with a 1024 x 768-pixel resolution and 16:9 widescreen aspect ratio. It also features a digital cable tuner (QAM), which allows for the reception of digital cable signals that are not scrambled, and a CableCard slot for optional card, which can pick up HD (ATSC) broadcasts from your digital cable provider (digital cable subscription required). The integrated TV Guide on-screen guide provides an easy to read listing of the television programs available to view or record. It includes an 8-day program listing, the ability to perform keyword searches for locating favorite programs, and the G-Link IR Blaster for controlling cable boxes.
To ensure the highest possible picture quality, this plasma set features Toshiba's next generation PixelPure AT digital video processing technology. It includes Motion Adaptive De-Interlacing, Adaptive MPEG Processing, Adaptive Contrast Enhancement, and Adaptive Color Enhancement--all critical elements to deliver a consistently high quality picture. Other specs include a 1000 cd/m2 (candela per square meter) brightness rating and 3000:1 contrast ratio.(The higher the contrast ratio, the greater a TV's ability to display subtle color details and not get washed out by ambient room light.)
A 3D Y/C comb filter (4 MB, 10-bit with Vertical Contour Correction) further enhances resolution by removing blurred edges between colors and reducing dot crawl (tiny, moving dots of color along a sharp color separation in a vertical line, as in a depiction of a character's striped T-shirt). The CableClear feature utilizes the Digital 3D/YC Comb Filter to compare frames and determine the existence and extent of video noise. It then applies the needed amount of digital video noise reduction, and the appropriate sharpness adjustment to keep the picture clear. This feature now works on RF, composite and S-Video inputs, and can be selected by input. The HD Dynamic Contrast feature increases contrast and color saturation to create deep, rich images. The intelligent circuitry analyzes both the dark and bright areas of the picture, and separately optimizes the dynamic range in each area of the picture.
Convenience features include HD Window POP with split screen and nine multi-windows, color temperature control, closed captioning on mute, sleep timer, tri-lingual on-screen display, V-Chip parental controls, video input labelling, channel labeling, and Toshiba's GameTimer feature, which allows parents to set the television to shut off after a specified period of time and stay off until a lockout key code is entered.
The OmniViewer memory card slot accepts five different types of memory cards, including SD (Secure Digital), MM (Multi-Media), MS (Memory Stick), CF (Compact Flash), and SM (Smart Media). In addition, it includes a JPEG Viewer program that allows the TV to display pictures from most digital cameras, which can be rotated and viewed in an automatic presentation format.
The speakers provide a total of 20 watts of power (10 watts per channel). The SRS WOW virtual surround sound system provides amazing, enveloping sound through just the two built-in speakers. It also provides MTS stereo/SAP with dbx. The StableSound feature eliminates the annoyance of normal program volume being followed immediately by extremely loud commercial messages or drastic volume fluctuations while changing channels.
It offers the following connection options:
Composite AV (RCA): 3 in (1 front), 1 out
S-Video: 3 in (1 front)
Component video: 2 in (480i/480p/720p)
HDMI: 1 in
PC VGA: 1 in
RF: 2 in
Firewire (IEEE1394): 2 in
Analog audio (RCA, L/R): 1 out
Digital optical audio: 1 out
Headphone: 1

Tech Talk SRS WOW -- This virtual surround sound processing technology consists of three separate sound expanding systems, which work together to extract "buried" highs and lows. The three systems are, SRS 3D, TruBass, and FOCUS. SRS 3D creates a three dimensional sound field from just two speakers, thus giving the listener the feeling of hearing a multi speaker surround sound system. TruBass produces a powerful, yet low, frequency sound by utilizing a process called psychoacoustics. From only two small speakers, TruBass will give the effect of an expensive sub bass woofer that will leave the listener amazed by the quality of the sound. FOCUS was added to direct the energy from the speakers of the television set in a vertical direction up towards the listenerÕs ears. The addition of FOCUS means that there is virtually no loss of sound from the speakerÕs position on the bottom panel near the floor, which achieves a clear, undistorted range of audio. CableCARD -- The CableCARD system enables the "Plug-and-Play DTV" functionality as agreed between cable operators and consumer electronics manufacturers. It allows the decoding of encrypted or scrambled content delivered from the cable system. CableCARD functionality includes conditional access and copy protection. A CableCARD-enabled television without a CableCARD inserted receives high-definition standard TV broadcasts. When a CableCARD is inserted, the television receives high-value high-definition, cable programming.
What's in the Box Plasma TV, table stand, remote control (with batteries), IR blaster

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Samsung WMN1000C 58" - 65" Black Ultra Slim Wall Mount Review

Samsung WMN1000C 58 - 65 Black Ultra Slim Wall Mount
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Yes, this is expensive (especaially when compared to the off-brand ones like High Def Concept Samsung WMN1000C Alternative for Compatible with LED ('2010 - C6300, 6400, 6500, 6800, 7000, 8000 series : 60-inch & 65-inch) and Compatible with Plasma ('2010 - C6400, 6500, 7000, 8000 series : 58-inch & 63-inch) ) but I figured if you are spending a few thousand dollars on the TV, whats another $134 to get the one made by Samsung--after all, the livelihood of my Samsung TV depends on the wall mount.
Thats how I picked the Samsung mount. Now let me tell you why I really love the design of this mount: I think its the only way to have your cake and eat it too--for me, that means a slim fit (TV really close to the wall) AND being able to access the connections without taking the huge TV down every time. The kickstand feature is great for this and I just do not think its possible on any of the standard VESA "hook" style mounts (which is pretty much all mounts). I like the slim fit as I have the TV hung in an entryway, so if it stuck out alot, people would bump into it. I took down my standard slim-fit VESA mount because I was constantly having to take the TV down to fix connections in the back and it requires alot of strength, 2 people, and a carefulness that you do not scratch the TV. This solved all that and I highly recommend.
They give you all kinds of hardware to mount to any surface--it does not have to be in your wall studs, there are bolts and nuts to mout it right to drywall!
I would have given this 5 stars but there is one big drawback: Since your TV is hung like a picture, its not as solid as a standard mount. Bumping it makes it crooked, but its easily fixed. The real bad result is that depending on how you run your wires, if a particular corner has any bulky ones, that corner will stick out further from the wall. Not a huge deal but realize your screen may not be exactly parallel to the wall. If your TV is thin enough (like the Samsung 1.1" thick models) it will also torque your TV slightly away from flat, which may have adverse affects over time. Still, this issue is not enough to make me send it back and it is outweighed by the kickstand feature for me. And I took care to route all cables as flat as possible. Not easy since they all converge in the bottom left corner (thats where the Samsung TV hookups are).

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Samsung 58" - 65" Black Ultra Slim Wall Mount - WMN1000C/ Ultra Slim Depth Of 0.6"/ Easy To Install Photo Frame Style Mount/ Compatible With 2010 LED C6300 Series Through C8000 Series (60" - 65") And 2010 Plasma C6400 Series And Up (58" - 63")/ 2010 LED C9000 series (46" and 55")/Black FinishNow you can hang your Samsung LED HDTV just like you hang a picture frame. The Ultra Slim Wall Mount makes it easy. And at only 0.6" deep, it's as elegant as it is functional. The Ultra Slim Wall Mount even uses a unique cord-and-disc system that keeps you untangled, and keeps your walls and home neat and organized.

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1/30/2012

Logitech Harmony 520 Advanced Universal Remote - universal remote control ( 966191-0403 ) Review

Logitech Harmony 520 Advanced Universal Remote - universal remote control ( 966191-0403 )
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I picked up this remote today at Wal-Mart, which is currently the only retailer carrying it.
Since a number of my friends have 600-series Harmony remotes, I decided to give it a go. I don't need program listings on my remote, nor a color screen. This remote does one thing, and does it well: Simplifies your life. I was previously juggling 5 remotes- not cool.
The unit comes with a USB to Mini-USB cable and a driver/application CD for Windows and (Mac) OS X. I can't comment on the Windows software, but the OS X software worked quite well. Uses some of the opensource Mozilla web technologies, too. That gets them a Gold Star, in my book.
The USB cable is used for programming the remote, based on programming data delivered from the website. The remote itself has a mini USB port on top, and an IR receiver on the bottom, for the off chance that you've found an unsupported device. With my setup, I had no need for it at all.
I can't comment on the Windows software, but the OS X software worked quite well.
Once I'd registered, and followed the extraordinarily simple "wizards" on their site, I was controlling my DirecTV TiVo PVR, Sony AV receiver, Phillips DVD player, and my XM Satellite Radio receiver. All in all, its now set up for 7 devices, all of which it controls flawlessly. No learning IR codes or punching in long digits.
My only (minor) gripe is that the DVR layout isn't the same as the TiVo remote- it has VCR-style Pause/Play/FF/RW controls. No biggie, actually.
The real test for me was giving it to my wife. She is in no way a technophobe, but she has a "thing" for things that "just work." If she has to fiddle with something, she won't use it. She picked up this remote, and a few clicks later, she "got it." I asked her to try to switch it to the DVD player, and she had no problem at all.
Outstanding remote. Very stylish, too.

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Harmony 520 Remote

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1/29/2012

VideoSecu Heavy Duty Dual Arm 4-32 inch Long Extension Cantilever Swingout Articulating Wall Mount for 37"-63" Plasma LCD LFD LED TV Flat Screen Display MP860B 1Y4 Review

VideoSecu Heavy Duty Dual Arm 4-32 inch Long Extension Cantilever Swingout Articulating Wall Mount for 37-63 Plasma LCD LFD LED TV Flat Screen Display MP860B 1Y4
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I bought this mount due to very limiting space in my bedroom to mount a tv. I needed one with a lot of movement, and the ability to pull far from the wall, this way it could be mounted in a corner. This did the job perfectly. The mount had plenty of holes for the mounting bolts, which helped out with the studs on that section of my wall not being standard distance apart.
PROS:
*Very Sturdy
*Plenty of movement, and ease of movement
*Backplate has a variety of mounting holes (ease of mounting)
CONS:
*Terrible instructions
*Bit of work to install
The instructions were absolutely terrible for this thing. They were not needed for me, but I can see where it would be a problem for many other people. Its a bit unwieldy securing it, so if you are weak, don't install it alone. The tools you will need are: Drill and bits (pilot holes into the studs), nut driver or rachet, level, stud sensor, and screwdrivers.
All in all, an excellent product. Took me about 30 minutes from receiving the box to mounting it on the wall, but expect it to take upwards of an hour and a half. It holds up my 46" with ease, and allows me to swivel the TV easily.

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Model MP860B is one of the strongest mounts on the market today. It has easy to follow instructions with a Durable Powder Coated Finish. The color for this mount is Black VESA 850 compatible Solid Steel Arms Strongest on the Market Unlike the other mounts online this is made from heavy gauge steel on wont warp when fully extended. Will this mount fit my TV? First, check the weight of your TV. It must be less than 200 lbs. Second, look at the back panel of your TV. If your TV has 4 holes or 6 holes on the back of the screen, measure the vertical and horizontal distance between the holes. If the vertical distance is within 23.6 inch, horizontal distance is within 33.5 inch, then this bracket will fit. Finally, the width of your TV should be 37" or above, otherwise the mount is too wide to hide behind your TV. If you are not sure whether this fits your TV , please contact us, we will check for you. This mount is VideoSecu brand. Please report to Amazon if the product you received do not bear VideoSecu logo.

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OmniMount UCLX-P Articulating Wall Mount for 42" to 63" Displays (Silver) Review

OmniMount UCLX-P Articulating Wall Mount for 42 to 63 Displays (Silver)
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I purchased this item to wall-mount a 50" plasma TV. It is a very high quality product, was easy to mount (though it definitely takes two people), the instructions were clear, and the manufacturer included all the necessary hardware and then some. Once mounted, it is very stable and easy to adjust, and adjusts in many dimensions (left to right, tilt, pan, roll, in and out). The wishbone extension can hold the TV as close to the wall as 5", or as far as 28". I am very glad I spent the extra few dollars to buy such a professional product.

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UCLX-P Color: Platinum The Wishbone Cantilever arm allows extension and 180lateral rotation for viewing from multiple locations. It is also easy to install thanks to OmniMount's Lift n' Lock system. Features: -Complete assembly of CL-X and UAL Universal Adapter Plate -Mounts to two studs -Fits most screens 42'' to 63'' -Integrated cable management -Extension range: 6.2'' to 28'' -Die cast aluminum construction -200 lbs (68 kg) max weight capacity -Available in platinum or black -Includes complete mounting hardwareUCL-X SpecificationsUCL-X Installation Instructions Need professional installation? Use the Flat Panel Mount Installation Card (for up to 30screens) or the Large Flat Panel Mount Installation Card (for over 30screens)! Give us a call with any questions!

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1/28/2012

Sony HDR-SR11 10.2-MP 60GB High Definition Hard Drive Handycam Camcorder with 12x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom Review

Sony HDR-SR11 10.2-MP 60GB High Definition Hard Drive Handycam Camcorder with 12x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom
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I write this review because I wish it had been written during the time I was purchasing my camcorder. I will summarize this review between the Sony HDR-SR11 vs. Panasonic HDC-HS9 as basically a toss up, but the little things of Sony leaned me to the SR11.
First, let me say that I really did not want to buy Sony HDR-SR11, granted a Bravia TV is my LCD of choice, but I cannot stand their proprietary memory. Since this camcorder was not purchased for photos this was not a big deal. Though I commend Panasonic for using SD that can be readily found. Sony is pricey (though some may say justifiably so because of the quality) but competition is good for the consumers as we benefit through new, quality, and innovative features.
A salesman from a particular store told me that Sony was good to get for camcorders, and I'd add Nikon or Canon are a way to go for digital cameras, anyway I digress.
Having to see it for myself, initially I purchased the Panasonic HDC-HS9 and after a tough decision I had to switch for the small things mainly from software which I'll get to later, but first let me give a side by side comparison between the two after testing out each product for a couple hours about the features that matter to me at least. I will refer to the products as HS9 and SR11 for the remainder of the review.
Appearance: I'd have to give it to the HS9 for being noticeably smaller. But the SR11 is not big (especially not 90's camcorder big), as I have a man sized hand, but the HS9 wins the compact comparison in this case. While we're on the physical appearance of it, I was disappointed in the HS9 placement of the external adapter. The battery must be physically removed every time you want to connect the adapter as the cable connector is behind the battery. Therefore you cannot charge the battery simply by pluging in the charging cable as you can on many products that you can usually do this and as you can for the SR11. And the HS9 forces you to use the external cable when transferring a video, even though this may make sense, but when you have a short clip and just took the battery off the charger, it's annoying to remove the battery and find the external adapter every time to do so. Bad placement of the external adapter on the HS9 unlike the nicely placed (as is with most camcorders, at least with a previous Canon ZR200 that I own) with the HS9. If size is an issue for you, the HS9 may be your choice.
Video Quality: My opinion of the quality between the HS9 and SR11 was comparable. Between the two it's a toss up during daylight conditions as both are excellent, and the SR11 is stunning as your eye sees it, it appears on the screen, very nice. The HS9 records in a 1080p vs. a 1080i format, that may give the albeit slight edge in terms of theoretically video quality to the HS9. Though the software provided with the HS9 to play back these high quality videos ruins the superb video recording. I hate to say my eye didn't notice the difference between 1080p and 1080i though my correction lens aren't the greatest, mileage of your eyes matter perhaps.
In low light conditions, the HS9 seems to record slightly brighter images which are decent, the SR11 are a bit darker, though look extremely realistic. A true toss up, and really based on personal preference and would have to say they're evenly matched for you to decide.
In extremely low light conditions I found the HS9 surprisingly grainy. It seems to brighten up a extremely dark image thus resulting in grain. I have not recorded the SR11 in low light conditions other than finding a youtube video of a low light condition video and it seemed to keep it's realistic tone but remained dark. The HS9 seems to be on the right track to attempt to brighten up things, as the SR11 does not, but at this point I would have to say the HS9 was unsatisfiability grainy.
Both were grainy in bedroom light condition when displaying directly from the camera to the TV (not recording, just displaying through the cables) though the SR11 might have had a slight lead when panning or moving the zoom in and out a bit more responsive, though hardly noticeable.
Formats: The HS9 takes the lead in this regard as it has a 24 cinema mode, that records frames at 24 frames like some movies. Otherwise the HS9 records in 60 frames per second. However, the Pinnacle trial version could not handle the 60 fps mode and only the 24 cinema mode (though it said it was 30 fps). Though the HS9 software could handle its own 60 fps video fine, more later on software. The SR11 records it's videos in 30 fps
Night vision between the two the HS9 uses a blue illumination for night vision and the SR11 uses the commonly known green illumination as often seen on TV. I like the green better, but the blue was a nice change and this did not affect my decision either way, though it was nice to have on both.
Transfer to PC: Both transfer to your computer via a USB extremely quickly and at seemingly equal times.
Sound: Both are 5.1, the sound is acceptable and nice on both camcorders, I would say that the wind cut function on the HS9 was nice to have and did seem to work, the SR11 does not have this feature, though I'd wish it did. I'd give a slight edge to the HS9 in this one, especially if you record in windy conditions often (soccer games perhaps), which I don't.
Optical Image Stabilization: Both claim image stabilization, the OSI on the HS9 seems to slightly work better, though not noticeably. I think both still need to work on this.
Face recognition: The SR11 impressed me with the facial recognition as it just works. Turn the camera on a person and a white box appears around a persons face and moves as the person does, always keeping focus on that persons face. The focus on the HS9 on faces seemed very good, though I couldn't figure out the white box feature, it might have had to been enabled through a button a readily accessible button at the very top, so not that bad, but the HS9 was automatic.
Cables: Both have an ample about of cables that allows you to connect your camera to the TV with both RGB and Yellow and white/red audio cables.
Remote: Both had remote controls, a definite plus.
Software: This is where I must reluctantly gives this definitely to the SR11 or Sony. First, very few software handle the AVCHD videos at this time, so both Panasonic and Sony include their own software to retrieve the videos from the camera. The Panasonic software is a bit clumsy when it asks which folder you want to save it in, it's a bit manual where the Sony software detects when the camera has been connected, and simply asks whether you want to import all your videos, one click and it does, in a folder already created with an independent name. The Panasonic software called HD Writer had some additional editing capabilities to slice, merge, and delete unnecessary scenes and save to dvd and mpeg2 whereas the Sony had no editing features.
Playback software: I really hope panasonic gets this point. Their playback software most likely did not use directx, where the Sony PMB or Picture Motion Brower does. What this does is use your video card when the HD videos are playing back video. At one point I thought there was something wrong with the camcorder because the playback would skip using the HS9 playback software, but after encoding it to another format, my native video player kicked in and played back smoothly. This really scared me thinking that there was something wrong with the HS9 when there was not, however my x2300 dual core processor was not able to handle the playback of the native HS9 videos alone. This is in contrast to Sony PMB software for playback that installed directx that utilized my video card so that playback of the native format of the camcorder was silky smooth. What's more the Picture Motion Brower is a nice video playback software that throws in additional calendar features of when a video was imported and such, a nicety that should be used with backing up as it's insanity to store large amounts of precious moments on a computer instead of constantly backup up these priceless moments on DVD's and such, those who have had hard drive failures know. Panasonic included a copy of Pinnacle trial version 11 for HD cameras, it could import the HD 60 fps videos, but did not encode them properly. The 24 cinema mode (or 30fps) videos has no problem in Pinnacle. The SR11 videos also were imported into Pinnacle with no problems. Once additional nicety of the Sony software is that you can make a still picture at any moment making a jpeg without importing it into an editing software. Though the HD Writer software has nice features to backup your videos, hard to use in other cases like loading the HD videos stored on your computer. Sony's Picture Motion Brower software is very good to view and backup, though a register folder option was awkward, why not just allow the ability to just drag in folders to register, always room for improvement I guess.
Viewfinders: Both viewfinder display a clear image, though the SR11 has a touchscreen where the HS9 does not, though understandable with the price difference. I was disappointed I could not navigate to playback a video on the SR11 without using the touchscreen since the screen would get a lot of fingerprints, though there are less buttons to complicate things because of the touchscreen. Both have easy buttons to begin recording.
The HS9 had a feature to offer advice how to record like turn on the low light feature (should have had a feature that this would turn on automatically) or you're panning to fast, this advice can be taken as good or bad.
Zoom: The HS9 had digital zoom, but it would not work in 24 cinema mode, go figure, and was...Read more›

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The Sony Handycam camcorder HDR-SR11 with Face Detection technology captures faces clearly so your videos and photos are recorded more beautifully. The ClearVid CMOS Sensor (with Exmor technology) and BIONZ image processor provides extremely detailed Full HD 1920 x 1080 resolution video11, and stunning 10.2 megapixel still images, with long battery life. Super SteadyShot optical image stabilization system reduces blur even when using the 12x optical/150x digital zoom. Moreover, Hybrid recording technology gives you the flexibility to record to the internal 60GB hard disk drive or removable Memory Stick PRO Duo media (sold separately), as well as easily copy video or still images from the hard disk drive to Memory Stick media without a PC.

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1/27/2012

Boston Acoustics TVee Powered Soundbar Speaker System with Wireless Subwoofer (Black) Review

Boston Acoustics TVee Powered Soundbar Speaker System with Wireless Subwoofer (Black)
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Be very clear about this- it is designed to enhance/replace your TV's speakers. It is not a 'virtual' surround bar or a 'surround' system. For me it was perfect. I am trying to keep my room simple. I have the plasma mounted on the wall above the TV. All the components are in the basement controlled via the Next Generation remote extender. I don't want speakers/wires all over the room. But in a big room, the speakers on my TV were terrible. People sounded like they were talking inside a cardboard box. Dialog was tough to hear. I needed something to fix that and this works perfectly.
One nice feature is that it turns on when it senses incoming signal and then turns off a few minutes after you turn off the TV.
The sound is good, almost great. It's plenty loud for my room (16 x 20 living room that opens up to a dining room and 2 story vaulted ceiling). The hookup is simple- TV audio out (or headphone out) to the speaker. Plug it into the wall. Plug the subwoofer into a power outlet and you're done.
I set mine up on the headphone jack and control the volume through the TV. You can set it up to learn your remote in about 5 minutes and control the speaker bar directly with your remote. Very cool. I programmed mine from 12 feet away and it works fine (some reviews posted problems with the remote- most of them programmed up close and then it wouldn't work). But when I mute the internal speakers on my TV I get annoying "Not Available" screens when I use the volume buttons. When it's plugged into the headphone jack the TV still mutes the internal speakers but I get a visual volume bar on the screen. I like having the visual bar.
So between the auto on/off feature, and controlling through the TV, this thing basically works like the internal TV speakers, I don't have to fumble around with yet another remote or reprogram my existing remote.
The bottom line: it sounds MUCH better than the internal speakers. It does what it says it will do.
The cons:
Expensive for a stereo setup, but the simplicity was what I wanted. I looked at a cheaper sony bar but I would have been running wires through walls and the basement. The wireless sub is a great idea and is what sold me. If you don't need wireless, the Sony bar seems to have more inputs including digital, and I think has some equalizer controls. I went for the wireless sub instead.
There's no equalizer, two little bass and treble knobs would go a long way. You could probably get great sound. My TV has a very nice equalizer- but it only affects the internal speakers. I have no way to adjust the soundbar.
The sub starts to respond in the middle ranges which leads to a heavy vocal experience (ie football games) and I have to turn it down to the point where it's almost useless. Good punch for movies and stuff.
If you want a simple sound bar, this is for you. You can probably go cheaper for a wired sub. Not a whole lot of options as far as setup. The remote learning feature is very cool and easy to use.
EDIT: After a while, I noticed the background noises sometimes were louder than the dialoge, esp watching sports. It sounded like the crowd/band/ect were much louder than the announcer. I changed the trim setting on the back to the lowest setting and that has made all the difference. I'm even more pleased with it now. I can turn the sub up a little more to where it should be.

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Boston Acoustics presents the TVee Model Two Soundbar and Wireless Subwoofer. This remarkable new sound system is designed from the ground up to be exceedingly easy to set up and use. It consists of a slim, single soundbar that can be placed above or below a television, or it can be easily mounted on the wall. The matching wireless subwoofer can be placed anywhere in the room to deliver added dynamic bass response. Installing this compact system is fast and easy, allowing you to enjoy fantastic sound wherever your television may be.

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Philips 42PFL3603D/F7 42-Inch 1920 x 1080p LCD HDTV (Black) Review

Philips 42PFL3603D/F7 42-Inch 1920 x 1080p LCD HDTV (Black)
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Bought this Philips TV as we were looking for a LCD 42" set without breaking the bank. There are those who would want more in a TV I am sure. These are the same folks who want more in anything they buy. But for the cost of this set, we are very happy with the easy of setup, the quality of the picture and the many options of connecting external devices.
We studied for weeks about the different TV's and what they had to offer. Studied so much that we became more confused. Doing some research on this model, we felt very comfortable buying it. It now has been in the house for a couple of weeks with out any problems or disappointments. The only thing we did do was to make some of our own adjustments after using the quick set up guide.
For the price, it is very hard to beat.

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Designed for ease of use, Philips 42PFL3603D 42-inch 1080p LCD HDTV features modern design, 3 HDMI connections, Incredible Surround sound, a powerful 1080p display and brilliant Pixel Plus HD engine. Making the smart choice in total picture quality has never been easier.

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1/26/2012

Cambridge TV Stand - Cherry Finish Review

Cambridge TV Stand - Cherry Finish
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Arrived early from Everything Furniture(because est ship date was ridiculously delayed).
Arrived in good condition. Small split topside veneer + big scratch on 1 plexiglass window.
Assembly was easy for 1 person - took under 2 hours to complete. Looks good with 58" flatscreen, and my center channel fits (barely) in the center shelf (the key reason for purchasing this model).
Design probs: Once you install doors there is no way to remove them to install an electronics component with the standard 18" width. The door hinge pins should have been designed for easy removal. Instead I had to unbolt the top panel of the unit to remove the doors (and first move the 100lb unwieldy tv). A huge p.i.t.a. for what should be simple door removal.
Secondly, the doors are constructed so that there is no manner to remove the windows without breaking/damaging the door itself. The windows should be removable for ease of cleaning - for easy replacement (with plexiglass, glass, frosted glass, colored glass, speaker mesh, etcetcetc).
I'd like to meet the morons who designed the doors and kick them directly in the genitals for being absolutely incompetent.
Otherwise, the unit is looks nice. Its sturdy and holds a fair amount of stuff (remember to load everything & wire it all before installing the doors).

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Classically inclined, the Cambridge TV Stand slides easily and stylishly into a similarly-themed living or entertainment area. Distinguished by a beveled-edge table top and detail-carved feet and pilasters, the Cambridge has an Old-English character that befits the name. Two component shelves join a pair of single shelf plexi-glass door cabinets in providing the necessary A,V and library storage space, and a warm cherry brown finish is a fitting final touch in completing the look and appeal of the Cambridge Cherry TV Stand. Features:Cherry brown finishDual open shelvesDual plexi-glass panel doors with single adjustable shelfStand will accommodate Plasma,LCD TVs up to 60" WTraditional designHardwood construction with MDF and veneersSpecifications:Overall dimensions: 24.5" H x 57.75" W x 21.38" DWeight: 128 lbsCenter compartment: 17.63" H x 18.13" W x 17.75" DBehind doors: 17.63" H x 15.63" W x 17.5" D

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1/25/2012

Sony BRAVIA XBR Series KDL-40XBR9 40-Inch 1080p 240Hz LCD HDTV, Black Review

Sony BRAVIA XBR Series KDL-40XBR9 40-Inch 1080p 240Hz LCD HDTV, Black
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I will admit up front that I am a complete HDTV newbie. I hung on to a 20 year old, 22 inch CRT color "monitor television" for far too long, in part because I do not watch much television programming (a bit of baseball, PBS, occaisional Law & Order reruns, that sort of thing) and in part because the whole HDTV techno nerd thing was too intimidating. After much online research and a few surreptitious visits to Big Box electronics stores, I finally settled on the 40XBR9 and bought it from an Amazon seller -- and could not be more pleased with my selection. The picture quality is simply riveting. The menus are reasonably user friendly and I have not found it all that difficult to calibrate for optimum results in a softly lighted room. With minor tweaking, the factory defaults work well for most cable television programming. I used the CNET suggested calibration for movies on the 52XBR9, and it works very well on this 40 inch unit.
This is a beautiful television. The bezel is as slim as they come and is an unadorned, moderately glossy black. While it is not a small television, it is not too overbearing for a medium sized bedroom or office. Considering its slender bezel, and the fact that there are no visible speakers, the sound is more than adequate for watching most TV programming. I purchased a ZVOX 525 sound base and an OPPO blu ray player to go with it. I have yet to watch a blu ray disc, but upscaled DVDs like Ratatouille and Wall-E are incredibly crisp, vivid and detailed, with wonderfully natural color, deep, pure blacks and brilliant whites and grey tones. With sound from the ZVOX, this is a wonderful way to enjoy movies in a moderate sized room without an enormous investment of time and money and without a lot of wiring and equipment monopolizing the space.
The one down side is that the XBR9 is not very forgiving of poor quality source material. My local cable provider still offers a limited selection of true HD content. SD television does not fare well on this set, although with some tweaks you can get acceptable picture quality -- ratchet down the sharpness so the poor resolution is not obvious, use a 4:3 aspect ratio rather than 'stretch' the image to fill the screen, so the perspective is not distorted, turn down the brightness and restrict the color range to avoid the exaggerated and artificial hues that seem to be part and parcel of SD TV, and you get a reasonable picture on par with a decent CRT. But once you've seen good quality 16:9 HDTV content, you will be somewhat disappointed with SD sources.
This competes head to head with the high end LCD and "LED" TVs from Samsung. I think it beats them for at least two reasons. First, the Samsung models have a very glossy, "wet look" screen, which is really a distraction. Under some conditions, it gives the picture more "pop," but except in a darkened room, the glare problem is insurmountable. Second, the comparable Samsung televisions have wider and more obtrusive bezels with a brilliant piano black finish, which is made even more garish by Samsung's somewhat ludicrous red "Touch of Color" gimmickry. The Samsung design is like over the top prom wear. The 40XBR9 is the electronics version of the perfect, simple and refined little black dress.
Prices seem to fluctuate wildly -- the prices quoted on the date of this review are about 15% higher than they were when I made my purchase ten days ago. You may want to keep an eye on the market and catch the next wave of "sales." But you won't buy this TV because it is an inexpensive "bargain" -- you may buy it because dollar for dollar, it will give you the most pleasure during the years it will be in service.
TWO MONTHS LATER: Having now had the opportunity to use my Sony 40XBR9 to watch post-season baseball in HD, as well as a number of blu-ray discs, I remain as pleased with my purchase as ever. This has transformed the way we watch movies and cable programming at home. I added a Harmony One remote to the system to avoid the remote control shuffle required to operate the blu-ray player, Zvox, cable box and Sony in tandem. It all works nicely and with a minimum of effort.

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Experience powerful performance and superior design with the Sony BRAVIA XBR9 HDTV, featuring Motionflow 240Hz technology for maximum motion detail and clarity, plus broadband internet connectivity with built-in BRAVIA Internet Video1 capabilities that let you view select on-demand movies, TV shows, music and more, and even lets you personalize your entertainment experience by selecting and positioning widgets containing the latest news, weather, sports and more directly on your TV screen. Buy This Product and Related Items

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Sanus MT25-B1 Tilting Wall Mount for 26" to 42" Displays Review

Sanus MT25-B1 Tilting Wall Mount for 26 to 42 Displays
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This Sanus tilting wall mount is the smaller version of the non-tilting one I use on my $6,000 50" Fujitsu plasma TV. It has all the ruggedness and strength of its bigger sibling, lots of mounting hardware for both the wall mounting and TV mounting, and provisions for locking the TV to the wall.
Thick, heavy gauge steel that's finished with a nice black paint, a smooth up/down tilt track and positive screw-clutch mechanizm completes the package. Very good straight-ahead instructions are included, too.
There are multiple holes to mate to your TV threads. The two brackets attach independantly to each side of the back of the TV.
Getting the whole thing onto the wall mount is as easy as tilting the TV bottom out, hooking the tops of the brackets over the wall mount, rotating the TV bottom down and flipping the locking tabs in place.
Once you get the wall mount bolted to the wall and the two brackets on the TV, it takes about 30 seconds to get the TV secured to the wall, which is great because you don't want to have to fumble and fool around trying to get "your precious" secured to the wall.
When I was shopping for the 32" Samsung LCD TV that is going onto this mount, I looked at some of the wall mounts they had at the store, and they were pitiful little things by comparison. I headed right home and ordered this one from Amazon.
This is a great medium-size wall mount, highly recommended.

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The Sanus MT25-B1 VisionMount is a tilting wall mount for 26" – 42" flat-panel TVs. Sanus Systems’ Virtual Axis™ tilting technology provides easy adjustment of viewing angle with just the gentle touch of a finger. Its powder-coated steel construction offers a sleek, high-tech look while providing strength and durability. TV is positioned less than 2.5" from the wall for a clean, low profile appearance. Universal mounting pattern including VESA 400 x 200 fits virtually any 26" – 42" LCD TV or monitor up to 100 lbs.

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1/24/2012

VideoSecu LCD Plasma Flat Panel TV Ceiling Mount Bracket for most 30"-55" LCD LED Plasma TV Flat Panel Displays MPC53B 1S5 Review

VideoSecu LCD Plasma Flat Panel TV Ceiling Mount Bracket for most 30-55 LCD LED Plasma TV Flat Panel Displays MPC53B 1S5
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I purchased this ceiling mount for a 32in Samsung HDTV and mounted it in my basement above my computer desk. The advertisement says "to be used in masonary, block, stone" but I attached it to a wooden 2x6 mounted between the floor joists with lag bolts and it works great. Very sturdy and easy to adjust, now I can work on my computer or spin the tv around and watch my favorite HD DVDs or programs while laying on the couch. I will probably buy another one for a 2nd smaller monitor!

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This mount offers exceptionally strong support for your flat panel TV while maximizing your workstation environment. It allows your TV or monitor to successfully adapt to any environment where a wall or desk mount is not an option. Once your ceiling mount is installed, you can change the height adjustment of your flat panel monitor to meet your specific needs. Note: the TV is not included.

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1/23/2012

HDMI Cable (6 feet) Review

HDMI Cable (6 feet)
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FINAL (?) UPDATE:
The writeup for this cable now says that it meets HDMI 1.3 specs (i.e. category 2) so much of the following is no longer pertinent. I won't delete anything because it might be entertaining or perhaps even useful for general information. Note that it still has that GOOFY LEGAL DISCLAIMER which doesn't seem to have any meaningful legal content.
SUMMARY: (after many changes to the product description and my attempts to keep this review up to date)
Basically, this is an HDMI 1.0 - 1.2 cable. Look elsewhere for HDMI 1.3. You could try Eforcity's own HDMI Cable 6FT: 1.3a Category 2(Full 1080P Capable)(Compatible with Xbox 360 & PS3). See NOTE ON TERMINOLOGY at the bottom for a discussion of HDMI 1.2/1.3 and cable categories 1 and 2.
If Amazon would let me I'd take away a couple of stars as HDMI1.3/category2 cables are now pretty common and reasonably priced. For example, the above referenced cable was at one point only $1 or $2 more expensive than this cable. I see they have now upped the price. I'm sure there are others and that prices will generally drop. For example Premium Gold Series 6ft / 2m Hdmi 1.3 Certified Cable for Ps3, Blu-ray.
It appears this part number is no longer available at the Eforcity web page, nor a couple of other places I looked.
Amazon has a GOOFY LEGAL DISCLAIMER above and I am not sure what that is all about.
I wouldn't be surprised if this cable was just as good as the 1.3-certified cables and that the manufacturer/importers just didn't find it cost effective to re-certify at the newer standard. But it costs little for you to get a cable that is so certified so you might as well get something with a better pedigree.
FOR NOW I WON'T REWRITE ANY OF THE FOLLOWING, but keep the above in mind.
=========================================================================
ORIGINAL REVIEW:
These same cables can be found all over the internet under various brand names at prices ranging from nearly free (plus shipping) to at least $25. List prices are quoted anywhere from $25 to $70. Simply google for either POTHHDMIH2M1 or 410000100189. You will even find that you can buy them from Amazon for a variety of prices under different brand names.
They are reviewed as being great cables pretty much everywhere, although most reviews are simply quoting Amazon. In my opinion the cables look well built and quite sturdy. They work just fine with my Samsung Blu-ray BD-P1200 paired with my Samsung 1080p 46-inch LCD. Also work great with my DirecTV HD.
Seems to be no reason not to buy these cables! The question is from whom and for how much.
So how to choose?
I like dealing with Amazon and I like dealing with Eforcity. Eforcity shipping has always been prompt and, once, when I decided to return something that I simply changed my mind about Eforcity took the return without any hassle. I did find that for these cables it was cheaper to buy via Amazon than directly from Eforcity!
Another point:
I hear a lot of talk about "HDMI is digital so either it works or it doesn't -- therefore buy any HDMI cable you can find". I'm no expert but I don't buy that. There are other considerations, for example durability of the cable.
But I am thinking of electronic considerations. How about bandwidth (aka bitrate) -- how much data can be transferred at what rate? The newer high-definition sound and video formats demand fairly high bandwidth. How about the differences between HDMI versions 1.0, 1.1, 1.2 1.3? Some of the new versions specify higher data transfer rates. Can every HDMI cable handle the higher rates? I don't think so, especially since the newer HDMI specs are *very* new. To what version was a particular HDMI cable designed? How about error rates? Note that there are sophisticated tests used to verify that HDMI cables meet various specs.
Just because a cable works to your satisfaction with the DVDs (or Blu-rays or HD-DVDs or HDTV) available to you today doesn't mean they will work well with media available to you in the future. Few (if any?) current Blu-ray disks use the full capability of the Blu-ray format, for example color depth (24-bit, 48(?)-bit).
All hard questions to answer.
I give this product 5 stars based on my experience, on apparent high-quality construction, on the source (Eforcity) and on almost universal approval everywhere I look. I do wish that the info Amazon gives for HDMI cables would answer some of the above questions. We might have a more objective way to evaluate these things!
UPDATE1:
Since I wrote this review I have seen advertisements for 1.3-certified HDMI cables (the ones reviewed here do not make that claim). I have also found some companies selling HDMI cables that go into great detail on the differences between their high-end cables and their more moderately priced cables (examples: search for "blue jeans cable", "monoprice cables", "lenexpo cables" -- there are others).
I think one can learn a lot reading the (admittedly self-serving) write-ups on those web pages. You can then make a somewhat more informed decision on just what it is you are buying.
UPDATE2:
I see now that Amazon gives the bitrate spec for this cable as 5 gigabit/second. This is about one half of the HDMI 1.3 spec. Here is a chart:
Spec => ...... These Cables ... HDMI 1.3
Bandwidth
MHz............ 165 ............ 340
Equivalent
Bit Rate....... 4.95 ........... 10.2
Gigabit/sec
So these cables are good for most HDMI applications but may fall behind where any of the following are true
-- Your image is greater than 1920x1080p
-- Your refresh rate is greater than 60hz
-- You use the newer uncompressed, lossless audio
Now a 6ft/2m cable is likely to do better than its spec and it is likely this cable will perform OK in the above circumstances but there is no guarantee.
NOTE ON TERMINOLOGY:
CATEGORY: The HDMI spec defines two "categories" of cable: category 1 and category 2. The categories determine the speed at which defined amounts of data can be passed. It's a capacity thing called "bandwidth" and is measured in "MegaHertz" (MHz). HDMI versions (e.g. 1.2, 1.3) incorporate these different categories. HDMI 1.2 specifies category 1 (lower bandwidth) and HDMI 1.3 specifies category 2 (higher bandwidth).
BANDWIDTH: Category 1 requires a bandwidth of 75MHz. Category 2 requires a bandwidth of 340MHz. We can see from the above table that these cables support a bandwidth greater than that of category 1. This is good because category 1 is only good enough for 1080i. 1080p requires the bandwidth advertised for this cable. Some HDMI applications require category 2, which this cable does not support. Higher bandwidths may be required for future HDMI applications/features.
HIGH SPEED: HDMI reserves the term "high speed" for category 2. Note that the sales info for these cables is careful to avoid that term, but it confuses matters at the same time by using the similar but imprecise terms "high resolution" and "warp speed". More appropriate designations would be "adequate resolution/speed for the majority of today's HDMI applications".
OFFICIAL INFO:
See the official HDMI web page for more details. Google for "HDMI org" and read the FAQ.

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Brand new NEW HDMI to HDMI M/M Cable for PS3 1080p HDTV 1.3M Long; 100% new high quality ; A premium quality HDMI-HDMI cable suitable for use in HDTV, Home Theater, and business class projector based applications; Features gold-plated connectors, molded strain-relief, and mylar-foil shielding. Cable constructed using the high quality material for best contact connection between HDMI equipment.

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Terk HDMI-31 Smart HDMI Switch (3 X 1) Review

Terk HDMI-31 Smart HDMI Switch (3 X 1)
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When I bought my plasma TV a year ago, I never imagined that I would want to connect more than one HDMI device. That changed when I bought a DVD player with HDMI and the ability to upconvert DVD's to near HD quality. After first considering spending $400+ on a new receiver with dual HDMI ports, I opted to first try this device for about $65. Money saved. The device automatically switches between the cable and DVD inputs when I turn them on and I now can enjoy the much improved DVD video quality (I had been using composite video on the DVD player) that comes from HDMI. There is no change in the input quality from my cable box HDMI input. There was virutaly no setup involved. I simply unplugged my TV's existing HDMI connection from the cable box and plugged it into the output on the Terk box. Then I ran HDMI cables from the DVD and cable box to two of the three inputs on the Terk box and powered up. That was it. Rather than buy super costly HDMI cables, I purchased two HDMI cables from Abacus 24-7 (an Amazon contractor) at $6.99 each. They work like a charm. Since for audio I use a recevier rather than my TV speakers and my receiver is not HDMI capable, I have connected my receiver to the audio outputs of my cable box and DVD player using digital fiber optical cable and get all the capability of surround sound that I could want. Those optical cables are $5.99 each from Abacus (I found them for $12.99 to $25.99 at Fry's Electronics).
Update as of May 11, 2007. Still working like a charm. I haven't had to do anything to the unit and I basically forget it is there.
Update as of June 13, 2007. I now use my computer as a digital recording device, like a TIVO-type box. I record HDTV over the air using a Terk HDTV antenna and a Hauppauge HDTV capture card. My computer graphics card has a DVI output, so I bought a DVI to HDMI converter cable ($12 at Amazon) which connects my computer to one of the HDMI source inputs on the Terk HDMI-31 Switch. It operates flawlessly. Another reason to have Terk's multiple HDMI connection capability.

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Audiovox HDMI31 3x1 Smart HDMI Switch HDMI-31 System Selectors

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1/22/2012

HDMI to Ypbpr Component RGB / VGA Converter Review

HDMI to Ypbpr Component RGB / VGA Converter
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I need this product, or something like it.
I have a very good TV that has no HDMI input, just the classic Component Video, and some other not so good interfaces, such as RF, Composite Video and S Video along with audio left and right jacks.
I have devices that have HDMI and need a way to get the HDMI interface working so I can feed all HDMI devices into a preamp without having to cable-up the Component Video and audio cables. (You still need HDMI, regardless of classic video and audio if you want proper HDTV and its audio).
HDMI specifications will not allow your equipment to down-convert the HDMI (up-converted or not) to Component Video (and its audio) once it is HDMI. The preamp can up-convert to HDMI if a non-HDMI device is attached to it and it supports this feature, but does not down-convert. I do not know if it is because the consumer electronics industry wants the majority of TV sets to become immediately obsolete or if it has something to do with HDCP (Hollywood scared of Piracy). I do not care why; I just want it to work until my TV finally dies on its own (it is a great TV, better than most flat panels out there).

This device provides this down-convert ability, at least to a Component Video resolution (not real 1080P, but as good as the Component Video spec will allow). It also will allow you to attach a computer monitor to it with a switch to set either VGA (RGB) or Component Video... but not both at the same time. I did not test the VGA port. I am quite sure it works just fine.
This device does the job. I would give it five stars, except the audio is unacceptable. Makes loud cracking noises. Maybe it is a singular product defect and could be replaced with another, or maybe just bad design.
The video is five stars (not perfect video, but that is a limitation of Component Video); the audio is zero stars, resulting in three stars for the product.
Its audio has both classic RCA Left and Right jacks, and fiber (TosLink) outputs. I have no idea about the format (codec) you get out of the TosLink output. Both are hosed up. I personally do not need the audio so I personally do not care about it.
Because I do not care about the audio I did not pursue a replacement. The Video part of this is what I needed and I am happy with it. If you need audio, you may or may not have problems.
This will work for most people because they play the audio through their stereo system and simply need to pass video to their "obsolete" TV.
Hope this helps...

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For older generation of analog TVs / monitors with component or VGA interface to adopt digital HDMI A/V signals. No need for the TV to be HDCP compliant. The Converter uses a single HDMI source?accessing to single VGA + L/R audio sink or single Component YPbPr + L/R audio sink. The Converter allows one HDMI device to be converted easily to one VGA or one YPbPr Component Video monitor or projector. Power adapter is included with the unit.Works well with video sources, such as DVD/cable/satellite boxes and HD media player. But using computer HDMI output as video source, results may vary, due to the significant variations in different video cards and user experience / expertise, in particular, when using TV as an extended display, instead of a clone display, it may or may not work out. For in component video mode, the picture can shift off center to the left. This product does NOT support AppleTV (Video is fine, but no audio). The SPDIF optical audio output doesn't work properly, don't count on it.

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1/21/2012

SHIPS FREE Corner Lcd Plasma Wall Mount Fits Vizio, Sony, Sanyo, Panasonic, RCA, Tv's 32-37-40-42-46-47-50 Inch Huge 25" Extension Review

SHIPS FREE Corner Lcd Plasma Wall Mount Fits Vizio, Sony, Sanyo, Panasonic, RCA, Tv's 32-37-40-42-46-47-50 Inch Huge 25 Extension
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Very happy with the bracket. Very sturdy, easy to install. Could hold a truck !!!

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Corner Lcd Plasma Wall Mount Fits Vizio, Sony, Sanyo, Panasonic, RCA, Tv's 32-37-40-42-46-47-50 Inch Huge 25" Extension

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Eforcity For SONY Playstation 3 PS3 - 15 Feet Gold HDMI Cable Review

Eforcity For SONY Playstation 3 PS3 - 15 Feet Gold HDMI Cable
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It says Sony ps3 cable in the add, but I have a ps3 & the HDMI cable with it - this is just a standard HDMI cable not a ps3 HDMI cable. The special Sony ps3 HDMI cable is for using 3D with the connectors being green & as I said this is just a standard HDMI cable

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