High Display

I like small gadgets, as long as they are not too small, so they become very likely to be lost without their owner feeling that. When talking about projectors, it's really nice to see one that can be carried around in a pocket, compared to older models that are pretty large and, in some cases, very heavy. Anyway, we're not going to talk about some small projector, because Explay is the company that managed to design and build the smallest projector available at this time!

If you didn't know about this, just as I wasn't aware of it, Explay is a company from Israel, and their tiny projector, called Oio and categorized by its creator as a "nano projector", is a device that may be incorporated in various mobile phones and cameras, as well as laptops and other devices, in the years to come.

Basically, the Oio employs a hybrid laser, combined with a LED light source, to project images on a certain surface. It is battery-operated, child safe, and future products incorporating it will be able to project screen sizes starting at 7 inches, up to 30 inches.

For now, this is more of a prototype than a finished product, but I am sure we'll get to see it more and more often, in the second half of this year. A PMP with built-in projector, anyone?...

I love people that would do anything to see their dreams come true. In fact, it's more about "spend as much as required to see their dreams come true" than anything else, but nothing compares to the feeling you get after working year after year to achieve a goal, even if this goal and the amount of money spent may be ridiculous to some. Today, I just found out about a home cinema system worth 6 million US dollars, and you have to see it, because I think it's simply great, despite the fact I wouldn't wish for something similar, even if I had those money...

Now, I should tell you about the Sony insane-resolution (4,096 X 2,160) SRX-S110 digital projector, the sound system capable of reproducing frequencies between 10Hz and 100kHz, basically an 8.8 system, but with countless sets of individual speakers, as well as the horde of players and sources used or the impressive cooling system of the whole thing. Should I give you more details?

NO, no more details! That's it! Why? I am simply stunned. Just take one more look at the image below...

Now, that's what I call "HD home cinema"! ...and if you want to know more and, maybe, buy one similar setup, go here...

I love Sony for all they have done so far, but most of all, for the Trinitron technology. I had 2 monitors using Trinitron tubes, and I loved them. Anyway, this is not about me, and despite the fact it's about Sony, it's not about their Trinitron technology either. To make a long story short, I will say only this: Sony is now Number One!!

Well, I must repeat this - I love Sony, but I am not addicted to them (in fact, I have an LG LCD monitor now). Moving to the subject, you should know the news is about Sony's evolution on the American LCD HDTV market, so here we go...

According to a study coming from the research group DisplaySearch, during the last quarter of 2007, Sony was the top seller of LCD HDTVs in North America! This is even more impressive, if we consider the fact that, in the third quarter, Sony didn't even catch the podium, arriving in the fourth position. Now, they got the first place, followed by Samsung, the previous market leader, and Vizio.

At last, when talking about Plasma HDTVs, it's no surprise finding Panasonic on the first position, with a market share almost double as its follower, Samsung, which only got a bit over 20 percent of the Plasma HDTV market.

When it comes to LCD TVs, it seems today the battle between the industry's giants is reduced to screen size, digital image enhancement chips, connectivity, and as many features as possible, with each new model. Anyway, while some like it big, others like their TV to be easy to carry around, and some would go as far as to carry their TV in the pocket. Exactly for them, Sony created the smallest BRAVIA model so far, XDV-G500, as well as the XDV-G200, which is just a bit different...

First, we have "the little brother", namely Sony XDV-G200, with the looks of a regular MP3 player, but incorporating a TV tuner, as well as a FM/AM radio tuner. The XDV-G200 also has a 2-inchd QVGA screen, and has an autonomy of 8h for watching TV and 18h for only listening to your favorite radio stations. It has only 87g, and 58 X 92 X 14mm in size.

Next, we have the smallest BRAVIA so far, the XDV-G500. The "BRAVIA Pocket TV", as Sony calls it, has the same TV and radio tuners as the smaller XDV-G200, but features 2GB of internal memory which can be used to record video footage from TV stations, a larger 3-inch WQVGA TFT screen, and enhanced autonomy when operating in radio mode, up to 27h. This model is 20g heavier than its "little brother", and has 98 x 59 x 14.3mm in size.

Currently, there is no information about when these devices are going to be available in Europe or US, and not even its pricing in Japan is available, but be sure we'll give you all the info you need to grab one, as soon as we find out!

NEC's MultiSync family of LCD monitors already has a lot of members, but that's doesn't mean there's no room for new ones. In fact, NEC has just announced the upcoming release of a new "almost 30-inch" LCD monitor for professionals, and revealed some pictures and technical details. If you are not just a regular computer user looking for a large LCD monitor, and you don't think over 2,500USD is too much for your budget, then read on...

Yoshiaki Tsuda, NEC Display's president, announced the LCD3090WQXi and LCD3090WQXi(BK) monitors are scheduled for release to the public on the 10th of March, but since the technical specifications are available (unfortunately, there is no accurate suggested retail price available yet), let's see what do we have here, shall we?

First of all, we know that the only difference between the two models mentioned above is their color, the WQXi coming in Silver finish, while the WQXi(BK) is completely black. Other than that, you get a 29.8-inch WQXGA display with a native resolution of 2560 X 1600 pixels, using a H-IPS panel, Adobe RGB color gamut of 107%, both HDMI and DVI inputs, 1,000:1 contrast ratio and 350cd brightness.

These being said, I am sure some of you may expect news about this product as soon as it hits the market, and I'll do my best to provide you the info you need, despite the fact you may end up being the only one in your city to own such a beast, since NEC's declared sales target for these monitors is set at 2,000 units per year...