High Display

The title is not referring at the fact that “kuro” means “black” in Japanese but at the special capability of this 50-inch flat screen TV showcased at Customer Electronics Show in January.

KURO display is only 9 mm thick and has a never before seen contrast ratio created by the Extreme Contrast Concept technology which gives the plasma TV model the special capability of displaying the absolute black, without relying on measurable light emitting.



Reaching the absolute black leads to the creation of the richest and accurate colors possible and Pioneer accomplished this by achieving 0-idling luminance in over 6 million cells.
Besides coming with this extraordinary feature, the KURO TV is also the world’s thinnest in its 50-inch class and it weighs only 18.6 Kg to be easily mounted on a wall adding one more style to your entire room decor.

The LG LCD TV line that impressed at Customer Electronics Show this year is indeed impressive.
LG Electronics has put accent on design and the stylish finish of all the housings.
The last HDTV series consists of 24 models from which 17 are full HD 1080p displays.
Let’s take a brief look at those that have stand out at CES.

LG75 LCD HDTV LED Backlit display measuring 47 inches is an Innovations Honoree with full HD 1080p capability and LED backlight technology covered in an elegant finish.
This display is combining the TruMotion 120Hz technology with the LED backlight, the latter being partitioned into 128 LEDs to enable a fast response to the changing images, this leading to less power consumed.



The basic features of such a display include a dynamic contrast ratio of 1,000,000:1, an invisible speaker system, automatic optimization of colors and brightness ia the intelligent sensor, 24p TruCinema characteristic, ISFccc Calibration-ready, AV modes, four HDMI with 1.3 deep color, USB 2.0 which permits you to view JPEG pictures and listen to MP3 files, Clear Voice technology, and not at last, the LG SimpLinkTM connectivity which permits the user to control other devices that support this feature.



LG71 Wireless LCD HDTV models with sizes ranging between 47”-52” is another Honoree coming with full HD 1080p capability, in a teardrop design and featuring the 802.11n wireless technology which eliminates the use of those annoying wires or external components.

There is also a separate wireless receiver that comes together with the TV display having a 50 foot radius to allow other devices to stay in the same area.
The receiver has four HDMI 1.3 with Deep Color inputs for cable, satellite, DVD, HDTV and other similar sources.



Among the specifications we have a 20,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio, TruMotion120Hz technology, an invisible speaker system, the intelligent sensor for brightness and colors optimization, 24p TruCinema, ISFccc Calibration-ready, USB 2.0 to support JPEG picture format and MP3s, Clear Voice technology and the LG SimpLinkTM connectivity.



Next comes the LGX LCD HDTV Super Slim with a 42” diagonal and an ultra-slim body of just 1.7 inches thin with a red colored back and capable of delivering a superior viewing experience.
Its special features include a dynamic contrast ratio of 15,000:1, TruMotion 120Hz technology, invisible speaker system, intelligent sensor, 24p TruCinema, ISFccc Calibration Ready, four HDMI 1.3 with Deep Color, USB 2.0, Clear Voice technology, and the LG SimpLinkTM connectivity.



The glossy LG50 LCD HDTV TV display comes in several dimensions ranging from 37” to 52” so its future owners to have what to choose from depending on their needs and free room space.
Here we have a 15,000 dynamic contrast ratio, intelligent sensorm 24p TruCinema, ISFccc Calibration ready, three HDMI 1.3 with Deep color, USB 2.0, Clear Voice technology and the LG SimpLinkTM connectivity feature.



The model that you see in the picture having a red back visible from the front, is no other than LG40 LCD HDTV of 32 inches in diameter which comes in a stylish finish with a built-in DVD player, 12,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio, three HDMI 1.3 with Deep Color, AV modes, Clear Voice to accentuate the dialogues when the background noises raise, and the LG SimpLinkTM.



Of course, you can find many other models on the LG official website with full descriptions but I had to choose the ones that have attracted me most to ask your opinion about them eventually.

If you like Phillips models and want something large to fit your living room and in the same time to look cool, you might be interested in the new Flat TV 42” from Phillips, a stylish designed TV display that mixes full High Definition 1080p capability with Pixel Plus 3HD engine to render great colors and sharp images surrounded by a superb audio environment created by two built-in loudspeakers and the Dolby Digital system with an output power of 25W and 5-bands equalizer.

Just to make a parenthesis for those of you that don’t know what the Pixel Plus 3 HD is, I will add that this engine is the core of the sharpness-high details-incredible vivid colors-the natural motion mixture of this HD TV display, as the pixels are enhanced so that they match the surrounding pixels to render a natural resulting image.

The wide display here has a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels, the highest resolution of the moment for such screen, and more than that, it comes with support for the next-generation external devices like Blu-rays or the latest HD game consoles.
It has 500 cd/m2 brightness, 29000:1 dynamic screen contrast, 8ms response time, 3D Combfilter, Active Control plus Light Sensor, Dynamic Contrast Enhancement and Progressive Scanning.



Also, there are other features included such as child protection with lock control, clock, sleep timer, Autostore installation type to save your time, favorite lists, Auto Volume Leveller, settings assistant, USB port, MP3 playback, JPEGs slideshow, and the following accessories: tabletop swivel stand, remote control, power cord, quick start guide, user manual and the registration card.

The supported resolutions are ranging from 640 x 480 to 1920 x 1080 (60 Hz) for computers, and from 480i, 60Hz, to 1080p as video formats.
The Phillips Flat TV 42” full specifications list is available on the official product page.

Green House is an electronics manufacturer that sells most of its products on the Asian market, since I have never heard of it so far. Anyway, today they just released a new 19-inch wide LCD monitor, and despite the fact it's only available in Japan at this time, maybe you happen to go on a trip there in the near future, and grabbing one on your way back doesn't sound like such a bad idea, after all...


In the month that passed, Green House also released new 22-inch and 17-inch monitors, but all of them are currently available on the Japanese market only. Just like its predecessors, the new 19-inch GH-TIF193SDW model, pictured above, will be released in Japan first.

The new 19-inch LCD monitor from Green House features HDCP (High-Bandwidth Digital Content Protection, a copy protection scheme to eliminate the possibility of intercepting digital data midstream between the source to the display), has 1,000:1 contrast, 5ms response speed, 400cd brightness, and a native resolution of 1,440 X 900 pixels.

The GH-TIF193SDW is expected to be available in a few days on the Japanese market, for a price of JPY31,800($296).

I don't know if this a first timer in the world, because probably some "boatware" producer from China already manufactured something similar, but for Mustek, as well as other "serious" companies, designing a digital photo frame having an additional LCD screen doesn't really make sense...or does it?

Once upon a time, I got a watch having an LCD display, and despite the fact it came really cheap, I had it on my wrist for a few good years, and I must confess that watch took a lot of punishment during its "life". Now, Mustek brings together the "old" and "new" LCD technology, with its PF-E700 picture frame, pictured above.

If you are curious about the "dual-LCD" part, here's the deal - first, the PF-E700 has a primary display that's a 7-inch LCD with 480 X 234 pixels resolution, while the second LCD provides time, date and temperature info. It doesn't blow me off the chair, to be honest, but some people may consider it useful.

In case you already want a PF-E700 for your bedroom, then you should know this one isn't going anywhere until April, when Mustek will start shipping the first units, for a price tag of $150.