Comcast Offers The Masters Golf in 3D – Starting this past Wednesday thru the 11th Comcast HD cable is offering the Masters Golf Tournament in 3D in many U.S. cities, including Philadelphia, San Francisco, Portland, Seattle, Boston, Washington, Chicago, Miami and Indianapolis. To view the telecasts, users will require a new “Full HD 3D” TV, Comcast’s digital HDTV service, an HD set-top box, an HDMI connection from the box to the TV, and the manufacturer’s specified 3D glasses for each viewer – either polarized or active-shutter glasses. (Those with prescription distance glasses wear the 3D pair over their normal glasses.) The side-by-side display is being used, and sets must be manually adjusted for 3D because automatic switching has not yet been implemented. About two hours of 3D is scheduled for each day’s broadcast. (Wonder if they turned one of the 3D cameras skyward to show the private plane which trailed a banner saying "Tiger – Did you mean Booty-ism?")
Belkin Routers for Home Use – Belkin has announced a new line of wireless routers to help users play music, HD video and games over their home networks. They have built-in apps to help customers enhance their wireless experience, boosted range for both 2.4Ghz and 5Ghz wireless network bands, allowing for faster transfer rates. UPnP server technology and 256-bit WPA2 or 64.128 WEP encryption is available for added security. Pricing ranges from $50 to $130.
ZigBee Chips to See Increased Used in Consumer Electronics – ZigBee operates on the same 2.4GHz frequency as wi-fi and Blutooth, but it works at much lower data rates and therefore battery life is much longer in portable devices such as remotes. It’s been around for about seven years, used in alarm and moitoring systems and fancy custom-installed home automation systems. But now it’s showing up in the remotes for TVs, controlling the lights in the home, monitoring senior’s health or turning off the air conditioner when no one is at home. It excels at simple commands such as turning on a TV or making sure a door is locked. Utilities around the country are installing ZigBee smart meters, and it is felt it may become an important technology in smart-energy management. It is not line-of-sight dependent, as is infrared, and is therefore being used in many consumer electronics remotes. However, it’s competing against other wireless and wired technologies.
Sony “Audio Laser” Technology – Sony has announced a new range of home cinema products using Audio Laser technology, also known as SASER (Sound-Amplified Stimulation of Radiation). The process allows sound waves to be targeted towards a very precise area – in case the listener’s ears – meaning less power is needed to achieve the same effect. Up to 20 users can be supported by the system at once. Unfortunately, just as 3D glasses are required for viewing 3D, each has to wear special SADER earrings in order to fully experience the audio system – they are provided along with the systems. The first system will be the SA-PA01, with a Blu-ray payer and a 5.1 wireless speaker setup, with more products coming out later.
Rhapsody Lowers Subscription Feeds – Subscription music service Rhapsody has dropped its connection with RealNetworks and Viacom and lowered their monthly fee from $15 to $10. Rhapsody Premiere is an all-you-can-handle music streaming service to PCs, audio systems or mobile devices. Rhapsody – with around 700,000 users – is among the most successful of the online streaming music services and has deals with Sonos, iPhone, Android and others. Their offering of a streaming library of millions of tracks differs from Apple’s iTunes Music Store, which music lovers purchase downloads and supposedly have them forever. Of course there is also the free streaming service Pandora.
