New News: Hitachi releases details about 11 new Wooo Plasmas/TVs

The unveiling of the 2009 Hitachi Wooo line of panels don’t differ much from their brethren on the outside and share some inside features  (120Hz tech, 250GB HDD equipped models with iVDR slots for more hard drives and Wooonet DLNA network support) but as any HDTV TV fan knows, it’s the inside that counts. And these could give many other companies a run for their money with these specs.

The 4 XP plasmas range from 42″ to 50″ and will feature better contrast ratios, as high as 40,000:1 in one case, with improved colors and energy savings too, as mandated by improvements made by other companies.

The super-thin 35mm / 1.4-inch thick LCDs are back in four cool new models, with UWB connected tuners, auto sensing brightness and green “eco” features too.

The XP line of LCDs has just 3 displays, but like the rest can hook up to the net and interface with Yahoo! Japan’s web TV portal (sadly probably won’t see the light of day when the US versions of these debut later this year).

The XP and Plasmas are scheduled to be available to get our greedy mitts on in Japan in the next month or so, and the ultra-thin line should be debuting around October or so.

Breaking: Pioneer and Sharp to join together in Blu-Ray agreement

As was mentioned during Pioneer’s “reorganization” (read: laying off people and realizing they need to adapt to survive), it’s joining forces in the Blu-Ray biz with Sharp, and have signed a tentative agreement to start joining brains October 1.

What this means right now for both companies with their existing players isn’t really clear, but odds are the players that come of this agreement will be first class, and hopefully help to strengthen both companies position in the disc market.

Negotiations are still happening and a final agreement with full details are expected by June 25th or so. Hopefully, their meeting of forces will help to push BR discs to the general populace and help it to gain more of a foothold.

Big News: Mitsubishi releases details about 3D-ready Home Theater line

Mitsubishi “big” (and we mean big) announcement today is the release of its 2009 Home Theater TV line, a family of large DLP TV’s that include the beginner 737 Series (60″, 65″, 73″ and 82″), medium-range 837 Series (65″, 73″ and 82″) and the 82-inch WD-82737. See, we old you they were big. All have premium sound systems built in, and mega sharp 120hz pics.

The entire large group of sets are 3D ready and the whole bunch features their exclusive 6-color processor, four HDMI 1.3a ready sockets and a JADE activity-based interface for smart modifications to picture quality. All include full Energy Star 3.0 compliance too, so they won’t jack up your power bill too much.

Prices range from $1,499 to $4,999, which isn’t terrible for the size, and especially with its 3D readiness. From what we’ve heard, there will be 3D versions of some films coming out to take advantage of this tech, so with these sets, you’ll be all ready to rock ‘n roll.

Cell High: Toshiba soon to launch big-time Cell TV

The latest rumor from Toshiba, who has been working on their big Cell TV for awhile now, is a rumor that has projected the TV for a possible late 2009 debut.

The HDTV, expected to feature a 3D GUI, six HD tuner recorders, network video playback, SD to 4K upscaling and more – is scheduled to be released in 4-6 months in Japan. It appears right now that Japan is going to see the new tech first, Europe a few months later and the U.S. somewhere in between those two dates.

We personally can’t wait; it’ll be a big step forward for integrated HDTV units that are a bit smarter than current TVs, with upscaling far superior to anything out there right now.

Somewhat Related News: Blockbuster may be its way out

Is anyone shocked by this development? With rental prices for new movies hovering in the $4-6 range, and competitors like Netflix and Redbox popping up, and both even renting HD Blu-Ray discs for much less than Blockbuster, no one should be very surprised.

In a recent SEC letter, the company basically stated that they were taking on water and weren’t sure how long they were going to survive. They’re encountering “massive debt load” and have no real way to pay it off.

What also didn’t help was the recent hamstringing of their Total Access online plan by not allowing returns in stores, and cutting back on available stock for new movies.  They really needed to go online only (or at least mostly), as the property rental fees of their B&M stores were dragging them down, and they really had no way to compete in today’s marketplace.

We’ll see how this shakes out, but it doesn’t look good for Blockbuster right now.

Soap Waves: General Hospital to be made in HD

General Hospital has been on for a very long time — 46 years and 11,500 episodes to be exact — but hasn’t ever been produced or broadcast in HD. That will change on April 23rd, when the long-running soap will be getting a 720p HDTV makeover. More good news for lovers of melodrama and HD.

ABC has spent over $3 million to bolster the facilities for HD production, including seven HD cameras and five Panasonic plasmas to keep our hearts warmed and our eyes amazed.

ABC is hoping this will increase the viewership and realism of the drama, and at a time when televised soaps are really struggling badly in the ratings department, they need something to encourage people to tune in. This may very well be it.

Blu-Ray: New releases accelerating a bit – a sign?

It seems Blu-Ray has started to grow more quickly in terms of new releases (and releases of older movies in the format), which could be a good signal for the future of the medium.

We count 15 new releases for BR this week, which is a record of sorts. With pundits saying the medium may not do very well, the studios don’t seem to agree so far, with releases slowly accelerating as the weeks go by.

Highlights this week include: 2010, Yes Man, John Q (Denzel Washington is amazing in this one), No Country for Old Men (ditto Tommy Lee Jones), and 6 new Discovery nature documentaries that are supposed to look amazing in BR.

Here’s the whole list here.

ESPN SportsCenter to be produced in 1080p capable studio

Most HDTV owners are quite fond of ESPN/SportsCenter, and now for HDTV lovers, there may be even more of a reason to switch your station to there soon. A West Coast produced edition of SC, to be broadcast 5 days a week at 10PM Pacific may change the rules a bit (eventually) when it comes to regular broadcasts in 1080p.

The Sony supplied studio in Los Angeles is the world’s first studio fully capable of 1080p production, but until someone starts broadcasting live that way, it will br 720p as usual when it airs tonight.

It’s only a matter of time though, as the digital transition will be final in a few months, and more studios will slowly add 1080p capability. Good news for HDTV fans, sports or otherwise.

We Know You’re Excited: C-Span may switch to HD soon

MSNBC, CNBC have switched to HD (more or less), and C-Span may be deciding to follow them into the breach quite soon, it appears. We know you’re breathless to hear more, so here’s the bottom line.

New hardware and an equipment upgrade in the works from C-SPAN promises to make the channel HD capable very soon, to take effect with the all-digital switch on June 12th. Yes, hold back the cheers, it may not appear on your cable/satellite system right away, but its coming and that should be enough to make the drool of anticipation begin.

Yes, we’re being slightly sarcastic, but you know…the more channels that buy into HD, the better off the format will be.

Paper-Thin Tech: Samsung releases ultra-thin TV line

What’s more impressive – super-thin displays that hang on a wall, or a wall that itself is the display? Easy question, we know. But Samsung has taken a step closer with this new line of super-thin HDTVs.

For those who still just like big, thin mega-slick LCD TV’s, Samsung has released their new line: the 460UT, 460UTn and 460UTn-UD — all 46-inch LCDs with bezels a wire-thin 2.4-mm thick on the right and bottom and a still quite thin 4.3-mm on the left and top.

The models themselves are only different with a few features — for example, built-in networking in the 460UTn and Samsung’s Ultra Definition very cool video wall software in the 460UTn-UD — and all three TVs have the same basic specs: 3,000:1 contrast ratio, 700n brightness and 1366×768 resolution. No, it’s not 1080p but the video wall feature may allow a 2732×1536 or so video wall, which is quite awesome indeed.

Thought: Does HD need an official definition?

There’s little doubt that much of what passes for HD isn’t very HD at all (ie 720p isn’t really HD if you look at it side by side with 1080p), but it seems many throw up their hands when it comes to officially defining what makes a signal or TV HD. This is part of what makes the medium so confusing.

Older movies in Blu-Ray, for example, are not HD in our opinion, since they were not sourced in HD originally, needless to say. Some older 1080p HDTV’s also don’t look great, even though they’re true HD.  Yes, the pixels are there, but the decoder is what really matters to the naked eye and subjective appearance quality.

Many say the bitrate per second is what should be HD, or perhaps the quality of the source medium. All agree basic DVD is NOT HD at all, and we agree with that as well.

What would be HD to you, our readers?

Report: Consumers aren’t too bowled over by “green” TVs

Is there really big demand for energy friendly “green” TVs? Apparently based on a new survey there isn’t much demand, but in this case it mostly boils down to price and suspicion whether a TV is really green or not.

In a Retrevo survey and follow-up report, over 75% of people replied that energy efficient products were important to them, but only 48% had actually purchased any green appliances, and only 35% would be interested in they had to pay a premium for such an item, which is a little disappointing, but understandable.

Some replied they don’t trust a maker when they say a TV or appliance is energy saving, as they feel companies aren’t always truthful about it, and with very good reason. Some companies do tend to “fudge” the numbers when it comes to this sort of thing.

Retrevo’s word to TV makers? Become more consistent when labeling things energy-efficient, and clearly spell out in what modes you can save the most power.

Sweepstakes: Charter is giving away a 22″ HDTV every day in April

Apparently Charter cable services needs some new customers, and they’ve announced today it will make everyone who orders service online an entry in a contest for a chance to win a 22” LCD HDTV every day throughout the month of April.

Everyone will also be eligible for a big Grand Prize package, which includes a 52” LCD flat screen HDTV, Home Theater System, plus one year of free Charter Cable service with HD. Not bad at all. It’s a good way to get people to try out HDTV.

Prospective (and existing) customers are invited to check out more details at www.charter.com/hdtvaday which contains all the rules and legal mumbo jumbo, no doubt.

“With the ever increasing popularity of HD programming, awarding these HDTVs will enable our customers to get the most from the HD Charter offers,” stated a company spokesman.

We couldn’t agree more; anything that gets more press for HDTV is a winner in our book.

Sky-High Resolution: 4K x 2K resolution Eizo screens to be released soon

Eizo is known for known for releasing extremely expensive, high-end LCD HDTV screens, mainly for practical and hospital use, but this one is truly one of the most detailed LCD screens ever produced, which is why its noteworthy for the blog.

Slated to be released to applause in hospitals and selected private applications in mid-July, the RadiForce LS560W is a 56″ monster HDTV LCD that includes a razor-sharp res of 3,840 x 2,160 (or almost native 4k x 2k, which would have been unthinkable just a few years ago).

It will feature a 176-degree field of view, 1,200:1 contrast ratio and 450n brightness. No retail price for now, but you know it won’t be cheap; probably 4-6k range wouldn’t be ridiculous. Needless to say, this is overkill for consumer purposes, but it could lead to advances in the res of consumer units later on down the road.

Great Wednesday HDTV Deals

It’s April Fools Day, but you aren’t a fool if you came here to read this blog and save money. Read on.

More great HDTV deals for the bargain hunter in all of us, courtesy of your friends at Screen Sleuth.

Feel free to browse today’s deals below:

TigerDirect.com – The LG 42LG50 42” (I own it myself and paid a lot more for it!) is a nice, solid set and is on sale for a great price: this dip in 1080p goodness is on sale for $799.99 + shipping = $898.99 total.

6ave.com - How about a Toshiba 37” 720p Flat Panel LCD HDTV – Black version for $699.00 – 15% off coupon code we’re providing for you: ”AFLTV15″ (Expires 04/15/2009) = $594.15 with free shipping. Now that’s a nice deal.

Small package, big features: Viewsonic 22″ 1080P VT2230

Not quite ready to go full on big screen, or need something nice for a main bedroom? This new Viewsonic release might be just the ticket for you, these situations being the case.

Today, Viewsonic announced the release of the 22″ VT2230. The set is one of the smallest to feature Full 1080p HD, VGA / HDMI, a built-in multi-type digital tuner and a wallet-friendly price tag. More specs for techie among us: a solid 1,000:1 contrast ratio, 5ms response time, 300n brightness and 3-watt speakers.  Pretty good stats for a TV this compact and portable.

It’ll retail for $349, which isn’t bad at all, and you can probably find a lower price at discount retailers.  Buy it now at Newegg.

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