Mike Hobin appraises a projection screen as stellar as it is portable

Paired with the JVC projector I reviewed previously was the Indigo Screens Meteor Traveller 16:9 portable pull-up floor screen.

In short, this is a floor standing portable screen for use with home theatre or data projectors. It’s available in two flavours: 80-inch and 92-inch.

The screen ships in a very large cardboard box with excellent packing. The unit sits in a plastic bag, in a polystyrene cradle. Simply open the box, pull the polystyrene off, and lift the screen out.

The screen itself is housed in a great looking black aluminium carry case with a good solid handle. It’s not heavy, and despite its size it’s not hard to move around.

The case open with two catches, a quick flick of each of them and flip the top back and you’re set. To raise the screen, simply grasp the top bar of the screen and pull upwards.

The hydraulic lift scissor mechanism of the screen helps raise and lower the screen and keep it at the height you select.

The bottom of the case has two stabilising feet that you rotate 90 degrees to keep the unit stable. Once raised, the screen is stable and does not flop around at all.

A word from the (possibly) wise: when I first raised the screen, I had trouble with it catching on the right hand side, but this was caused by me not opening the case’s lid back far enough and the lift mechanism catching on the case. It’s just something to watch for the young players out there.

The screen itself is the standard off-white colour, with a gain of around 1.0 – 1.2. The screen area is surrounded by a black border to alleviate any image overflow from your projector.

The screen is washable, durable, and, apparently, fire-retardant.

The picture clarity was excellent with no blooming evident in the whites, and excellent deep black levels; colour clarity and consistency were equally good.

• Indigo Home Theatre Projector screens are available from RapalloAV.

By Mike Hobin

Some tasks are not necessarily a chore — like being asked to review a new HD home theatre projector from JVC.

First impressions of the DLA-HD250B were that it’s huge – a whopping 365x166x478mm unit that weighs a substantial 11kg.

The technical specs come first:

• Display device: Full HD D-ILA device
• Panel size: 0.7 inch (16:9)
• Resolution: 1920 x 1080 pixels
• Lens: 2x motorized zoom & focus, f=21.4mm — 42.8mm, F=3.2 — 4
• Lens shift function: Motorized ±80% vertical / ±34% horizontal
• Projection size: 60-200 inches
• Lamp: 200W UHP
• Brightness: 1000lm
• Contrast ratio: Native: 25,000:1
• Terminals: Composite x1 (RCA),S-Video x1 (mini DIN), Component x1 (RCA 3-pin),HDMI x2 (ver.1.3), RS-232C (D-sub 9-pin)
• PC input signal: Digital: VGA/SVGA/XGA/WXGA/WXGA+/SXGA/WSXGA+/WUXGA
• Video input signal: 480i/p,576i/p,720p 60/50,1080i 60/50,1080 24p/60p/50p
• Noise level: 19dB (Normal mode)
• Power consumption: 280W (Stand-by mode:1W)

Now that we have all the techy stuff out of the way, let’s get down to what really matters – is it any good?  Yes, yes it is.

Modern digital display devices often suffer from contrast ratio issues, specifically crushing in dark scenes in your movies.

JVC use D-ILA to combat this, its end result is a very high contract ratio and this leads to the ability to keep colours bright without washing out your darker scenes and causing the black to appear grey.

The colour was so good right out of the box I didn’t even bother running it through a colour calibration.

The JVC is all but silent (19dB) so you won’t hear its cooling system whirring away over the quiet scenes in your movie – a nice change from my DLP TV, which tends towards the noisy.

Having said that, of course, your movie should be loud enough to make your windows bow outwards and your neighbours complain, anyway.

The DLA-HD250B has two HDMI inputs and a plethora of the old analogue inputs, which I hope will never be used — you don’t spend the money on a spectacular HD projector to use a composite input!

Lens control is accomplished with the included remote control and is very easy to set up. Unless you’re moving your unit around a bit, you should only need to set it once.

Movement, both vertically (+-80%) and horizontally (+- 34%) as well as the 2x motorised zoom is done electronically and allows a large degree of freedom in placement of the projector; the throw distance is 3.0-6.1 metres.

A motorised lens cover opens when the unit is on and automatically closes when turned off, to project your shiny new lens from accidents and dust.

All-in-all, it really comes down to how easy a unit is to use on a day to day basis, and I had absolutely no issues with the JVC at all.

In fact, once the placement was done and the vertical horizontal shift, zoom and focus were set, it was a perfect unit.

I would happily have the JVC DLA-HD250B as my main HD display, and that’s all the endorsement you really need.

• The JVC HD250 usually is available from www.rapalloav.co.nz for $5499.00 but until the end of April can be bought for $5299.00, complete with a free 92-inch Nova 16:9 manual pull-down screen valued at $455.00.

TX-NR609

The NZ distributor of Onkyo products next month will announce the pricing and specs of the 2011 a/v receiver range.

But for a sneak peek, see Trusted Reviews’ rundown of four of the models.

The biggest news for HD diehards is the inclusion of Marvell Qdeo video processing on the TX-NR609, which will upscale standard video signals to state-of-the-art 4K-resolution (3840 x 2160).

The TX-NR609 also will have six HDMI inputs, including one on the front, two subwoofer pre-outs and an analogue RGB video input for accepting computer signals that are then routed via HDMI to the display.

Sharp VX-Z1700

Projector Central warns anyone contemplating buying a 3D home cinema projector to expect “a new assortment of artifacts” no matter which brand they choose.

It argues 2D home projection has neared perfection over the past 10 years and urges people to buy 3D-enabled projectors, such as those exhibited at the Consumer Electronics Show, only for occasional 3D use.

Of the brands it saw in action, which did it prefer?

Surprisingly, the relatively affordable Sharp VX-Z1700 ($US5000) was rated more highly than rivals’ models costing two to three times as much.

For more on this, see http://www.projectorcentral.com/1080p_3D_projectors.htm?em.

Meanwhile, Variety reports 3D TV has an image problem.

It says more than one million 3D TVs were bought in the US last year, outstripping first-year sales of HD TVs, but Samsung, the biggest proponent of the technology, expected sales would reach three million.

Variety attributes the modest take-up to lack of 3D broadcasts and the cumbersome glasses needed to view 3D content.

“Samsung, in particular, wants to do away with the current glasses and brokered a deal with RealD to incorporate the company’s 3D projection technology directly into Samsung’s new 3D TV sets.

“Doing so means the free pairs of RealD glasses that moviegoers currently wear in theatres to watch a 3D film can also be used at home.”

As for content, Variety says the major studios hope to release 100 3D films on their “Blu-ray 3D” line of discs this year, sports channel ESPN will launch its 3D sports channel on Valentine’s Day, and Sony has partnered with Imax and Discovery Communications to launch a 3D documentary channel, 3net, in 2011.

“Every videogame company is developing 3D titles. And Verizon’s fibre-optic FiOS TV network can deliver full HD versions of 3D movies and TV shows to Panasonic’s Blu-ray 3D players.

“Other content providers are focused on high-profile fare like sports and concerts, because as long as 3D TV requires glasses, it will only be used for event programming, not casual viewing.”

Panasonic's Viera 37-inch 3D LED TV

The hi-tech mecca that is the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas has just wrapped for another year.

Here’s a guide to some of the best coverage of new HDTV gear:

Sound+Vision reported on “smart stuff from Samsung” that ranged from now Internet innovations to a fresh design that minimises the frame of a plasma to such an extent that it increases the display area by another inch.

It also has coverage of Sony’s press bash, which included a prototype 3D headset that the Sydney Morning Herald dubbed one of the top 10 products of CES.

High-Def Digest has a series of excellent “Booth Tour” reports on Samsung, LG, Toshiba and Sony – as well as press conference coverage of Panasonic (and Samsung and Sony).

The site also covers Samsung’s roundtable and a Blu-ray director’s panel.

As for reports that the likes of LG will make clunky 3D glasses as much a relic as black-and-white TV, Consumer Reports has a different take on the technology.

The same is true of The Hollywood Reporter TV critic Tim Goodman’s blog on why making TV technology “smarter” could dumb-down the medium.

Sony today announced at the Consumer Electronics Show a 2011 range of HDTVs that includes 16 new 3D-capable models and 22 Inter-connected displays.

In all, Sony will market 27 new LED/LCD Bravia TVs this year, although not all will be offered in NZ.

Distinguishing all of the TVs will be Sony’s new X-Reality Engine and X-Reality picture engines, which the company says separate incoming video signals by outline, texture, and colour/contrast and adding “appropriate image enhancements” to optimise picture quality.

Top of the range will be the 3D-capable KDL-HX820 series (above) with Dynamic Edge LED backlighting.

The 55- and 46-inch models will boast built-in 3D sync transmitter, integrated Wi-Fi (802.11n), Skype-readiness and superior processing with Sony’s X-Reality PRO Engine, a two-chip digital processor that uses a “vast database” of “ideal” signal patterns and compares incoming video signals pixel-by-pixel to display vivid and detailed images.

See Sony’s full 2011 HDTV range here.

Panasonic today launched its 2011 range of plasma and LCD-LED TVs at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

There will be 12 plasma models, including two new screen sizes, and the company’s first LCD-LED Full HD 3D models.

At last year’s CES, Panasonic’s TC-P50VT25 (or the TH-P50VT20Z in NZ) was judged Best Product of the Show.

Panasonic reckons its 2011 line-up improves on this with better picture quality, new crosstalk reduction, faster acting phosphors, the inclusion of DLNA in all models, expanded Internet functionality via the proprietary Viera Connect IPTV platform and Neo Plasma technologies.

The 2011 Viera range also includes Viera Link for increased networking and 3D Viera Image Viewer for watching both 2D and 3D digital still and HD video on a large HDTV.

It’s not yet known how many screen sizes will be offered in NZ but internationally consumers will be able to choose from 3D plasma displays measuring 42, 46, 50, 55, 60 and 65 inches.

Panasonic’s first 3D LED-LED models (below) will be limited to 37- and 32-inch displays.

Panasonic says its new name for its more flexible IPTV functionality, Viera Connect, reflects a move from the walled garden approach of Viera Cast to the interactive and inter-connected philosophy behind the new Internet enabled platform – although don’t expect the NZ models to offer the wealth of apps planned for the US and Japan.

The new models also will be able to playback AVCHD 2D video and 3D video recorded on SD card.

Expect to see the first of Panasonic’s new range on sale here from around April.

For more information, see www.panasonic.com.

Smarthouse reports Samsung Electronics will unveil a “swag of new IP enabled TVs” at the Consumer Electronics Show this week, as it switches focus from 3D to Internet content.

Home Cinema Choice has a preview of LG’s 3D range for CES while on the eve of the year’s biggest hi-tech showcase, Trusted Reviews has posted a “look back in anger” review of 2010’s tech trends.

Writes John Archer: “In looking over 2010’s TV and projector technology as a whole, it seemed to us that for once, maybe the a/v world had innovated too much.

“It felt as if the TV brands had tried to introduce so much new stuff that they’d ended up fumbling some of it.”

The New York Times has published a useful guide to buying a TV, most of which is as relevant to the NZ market as it is to the US.

It includes a viewing distance rule of thumb that recommends you divide it by three, with the result being the ideal height of the screen (which is usually about half the diagonal measure).

And if you want to know how to hook up that new Boxing Day bargain, Engadget has the answers.

Trusted Reviews has judged the best TV of 2010 to be one you can’t buy in New Zealand: Philips’ ultra-wide LED model, the 58PFL9955H Cinema 21:9.

Runner-up was Panasonic’s 3D plasma series, with an LED model from LG and a Samsung LCD TV rounding out the top five.

Sony’s best placing was eighth, for its top-of-the-range 3D behemoth.

Another of its displays ranked 10^th, and Philips, Panasonic and Samsung each had another entry in Trusted Reviews’ top 10.

Loewe’s Individual 40 Compose Slim ranked ninth.

Sky TV will re-run all 12 episodes of the HBO gangster sensation, Boardwalk Empire, back-to-back in HD on Saturday.

They will air from 12.15pm on Sky Movies Greats on the eve of Sky’s free-to-air channel, Prime, picking up the series for 9.35pm Tuesday instalments from January 11.

The 12-hour marathon also precedes Sky’s live coverage of two key awards shows in which Boardwalk Empire star Steve Buscemi stands to win best actor kudos.

The first is The Golden Globes, where he has been nominated in the category of Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Drama; co-star Kelly Macdonald has been nominated for best supporting actress and the show is a contender for Best Television Series – Drama.

The Globes ceremony will air from 2pm on January 17 on Vibe, following live Red Carpet coverage on E! from 11am.

Buscemi’s also been nominated in the Screen Actors Guild Awards, where he’s in the running for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series; the show’s second SAG nomination is for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series.

The SAG Awards ceremony will air live, in HD, from 2pm on January 31 on Sky Movies, following live Red Carpet coverage on E! from 11am.

A month later, on February 28, Sky Movies also will air in HD the 83^rd Annual Academy Awards.

For more details of Sky’s 2011 awards coverage, see Sky Media Release Awards Season 2011.