CEA Line Shows Demo “Hot Products” – The Consumer Electronics Association is featuring seven “hot product” demo sessions at their Line Shows in NYC June 22 & 23. They allow the media to preview the coolest new products in a wide range of lifestyle categories. The annual mid-year conference takes places at 7 West 34th St. in NYC. We thought the seven product areas were interesting: Digital Health, Entertainment Gadgets, Senior Gadgets, Back-to-School, Seasonal Gadgets, Travel Gadgets & Mommy Tech. Details at www.cealineshows.com
Don’t Be Misled by TV Display Specs – David Birch-Jones makes some worthwhile observations in the latest online edition of The Perfect Vision. TV makers make a big point about two of their specs: the dynamic contrast (ratio from darkest black to white), and the viewing angle of the display. Both are exaggerated and don’t aid shoppers to make the right purchase. Nearly all TVs are grossly adjusted for overmuch brightness and too-bold colors out of the box; the standard for proper imaging is how a display looks at a much lower light level and with more normal color balance. Most manufacturers claim a near-180-degree viewing area for their screens. That is absurd, especially for LCD displays, says Birch-Jones. Plasma displays do have a wider viewing angle, however. Proper viewing angle will be even more narrow for 3D TV.
Logitech Replacing Harmony Remotes with Free Apps for Google TV – The various Harmony universal remotes (which we have reviewed) are among the most popular programmable remotes in the AV world. But Logitech is now turning Harmony into a (so-called) free iPhone/Android phone/iPod application to work with their new Google TV companion input device. The Google TV box – not yet priced or offered – will have the full powers of Logitech’s Harmony remotes and ecosystem. In fact, Google TV is portal to everything media – TV or Internet. The box has a pair of USB ports, IR blasters and HDMI in and out. The app – Harmony Link – is the equal of Logitech’s most sophisticated universal remote. It can control all your home entertainment gear, and you can even have multiple phones operating as remotes simultaneously. The platform is open, so other third party remote solutions will probably follow on Logitech’s.
Second Year of Losses for Sony – Sales of Sony consumer products – including their Bravia LED TVs, Handycam video cameras, and Cybershot digital cameras, fell 19.9% during the past year. Their Playstation division had 10.2% losses and Sony Ericsson mobile phones fell a reported 37.2%. However, with massive layoffs of staff and factory closings around the world, the company expects a return to profitability this year.
Sony Goes 3D with Its PS3 – This coming week in Japan, with the first Sony 3D TVs going on sale, gamers will be able to obtain the first four 3D game titles for the PlayStation3. They are existing games converted to 3D, not original 3D titles, and at first will only be available in Japan. A recent software update for the PS3 sets it up for playing 3D video games. More titles and availability in other markets will follow shortly. It’s still up in the air whether non-hardcore gamers will want to sit in front of their TVs wearing 3D glasses to do video games, but gamers have jumped at surround sound and binaural sound for their games, and the coming of 3D will be a natural for them.
Dangers of Lithium Cell Batteries – According to the medical journal Pediatrics, the ingestion of tiny lithium button-cell batteries – which children may mistake for candy and seniors for medication – has become a surprisingly common problem. About 3500 cases of button cell battery ingestion are reported annually to poison control centers. The development of larger and stronger lithium cell batteries for electronics has increased the risk. (And think about the ones in audio greeting cards…) Toys that use the batteries have battery compartments locked with screws, but devices for adults often hold in batteries with a simple plastic cover that can fall off or be removed easily. (I have a calculator where they are held in with duct tape.) So be more vigilant about keeping batteries out of reach of the susceptible.
