Back in 2006, Mitsubishi was promising us all a new kind of Laser TV that would kick the butts of current HDTV heavyweights, LCD and Plasma. It even had a prototype [pictured].
Now, in 2008, the company finally demonstrated what all the fuss is about at the CES 2008 show with new, bigger prototypes and technology under the hood.
At a private screening, Mitsubishi unveiled some 65in LaserTVs, boasting twice the colour of current HDTVs. Mitsubishi claims that today’s HDTVs display less than 40% of the colour spectrum that the eye can see. In addition to doubling the colour intensity, the LaserTV is meant to have better blacks, more clarity and greater depth of field. Oh, and they consume less power than other similar-sized tellys.
To top it all off, the new LaserTV is also aiming to bring some 3-D realism to home cinema, using an in-built Real-D 3D chip along with special glasses to give viewers the ‘in-the-movie’ experience. Still, don’t expect to find these TVs in your local electronics store when they ship this Autumn since they will be sold only through AV specialists.
What that really means is that they will cost more than existing HDTVs, sell a whole lot less and probably disappear from view in a couple of years.-Martin Lynch
TV HDTV laser
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No one really wants to feel the impact of a real bullet nor the crushing weight of a sweaty 300lb wrestler body-slamming you into the canvas, but gamers are always up for a little more realism in their gaming.
From rumbling controllers to shaking steering wheels, we all want a little more feedback. At CES 2008 TN Games is taking the concept to a different level with its 3rd Space FPS Vest, a full-on force feedback vest that translates in-game bullet hits to your body. And it’s not just a general thump either as TN Games says the vest uses 8 air-filled cells to imitate exactly where you got hit and the direction of the bullet. The vest has been doing the show circuit for some time but now it’s ready to buy.
There’s also a helmet for those ever-painful headshots and a driving game version of the vest that replicates G-forces and the effects of rapid acceleration and deceleration.
There are just two games with native support for the FPS vest, including Call of Duty 2, but the company has free software that enables the action in other games to be translated to the vest. These include Crysis, F.E.A.R., Half-Life 2 and others.
The vest costs around £85.-Martin Lynch
[TN Games]
games PC gadget
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Intempo did some interesting things with digital radios in 2007 and it’s off to a flying start in 2008 with the introduction of the first portable, low-power Internet/FM radio.
Codenamed Daisy, the little radio sports a rechargeable battery for 20-hours of Wi-Fi radio play. Intempo launched its first Wi-Fi Internet radio, the GX-01, back in September.
Daisy supports all Internet radio formats, like Real and Windows Media, and can access more than 6,000 Internet radio station. Music can be selected by genre or by country and, using an Internet connection, FM stations can be tuned in too. Katie Richards, marketing manager at Intempo said:
“Internet radio has rapidly progressed from tuning in on your PC to more recognisable standalone receivers such as Intempo’s GX-01 which launched in 2007. We have now taken this one step further with Daisy. At last people can buy a gorgeous truly portable radio which will let you listen to music and news from anywhere in the world, wherever you are.”
The Daisy will ship in April with a £150 price tag.-Martin Lynch
[Intempo]
radio internet wi-fi music
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In the ultimate example of ‘mine is bigger than yours’, Panasonic saw off all TV rivals at the CES 2008 Show by presenting an enormous 150in plasma HDTV.
The giant telly, as you can see from the shot above, makes last year’s 103in Panasonic offering look like something you’d throw up in a kids room.
Even last year’s CES swinging dick TV, the 108in LCD TV from Sharp, has well and truly been kicked into touch. Panasonic’s president, Toshihiro Sakamoto, pointed out that the 150in Life Screen is the equivalent of nine 50in TVs stacked on one another.
“The 150-inch PDP delivers dynamic, overwhelming image quality with an 8.84m pixel resolution (2,160 x 4,096) - more than four times the 1080p HD specification (1,080 x 1,920). The prototype has a screen size equivalent to nine 50-inch PDPs with an effective viewing area of 11 ft (3.31 m) (W) x 6 1/4 ft (1.87 m) (H). With the enhanced PDP technologies Panasonic accumulated in the development of its 103-inch PDP, the 150-inch PDP provides stable and uniform images across the vast expanse of the screen and the same brightness as the 103-inch PDP. Featuring true-to-life colour reproduction capability and quick response to moving images, the ultra- large PDP renders clear, crisp, spectacular images unrivalled by any other.”
There’s no doubt that this is TV taken to ridiculous levels but you can be sure that footballers are already queuing up for one. After all, Panasonic sold more than 3,000 of the 103in sets.
All you need for this one is £50,000 and the ability to wait a few years. Jump for another shot.-Martin Lynch
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If you own a Sony gadget then it’s possible it sports a slot for Sony’s own brand of expensive Flash memory, Memory Stick.
Unlike the more commonly used SD Card/SDHC card technology used by the rest of the planet, it usually costs more and comes in smaller capacities. Typically Sony then. At CES 2008 though, Sony just launched a 16GB version, the Memory Stick PRO Duo.
According to Sony it will be "perfect" for its new HD Handycam camcorders [more on those later] and its digital cameras, not to mention its PSP. The card is capable of storing up to 110 minutes of HD video recorded in 1920 mode [I can only assume Sony means Full HD] and 4,000 still pictures in 10MP resolution. It’s due out in March and will cost a bloody fortune, no doubt.
In actual money terms, the US price will be £150, so add on what you like as it flies over the Atlantic. If you're an SDHC card user you can get the new Transcend 16GB Class 6 SDHC card for just £70 these days. -Martin Lynch
storage flash memory gadget
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Editor and Contributor | Martin Lynch
Contributor | Tamlin Magee
