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Editor's HDTV Pick

HP 47 inch MediaSmart 1080p LCD HDTV "Out of the box" digital media platform. Enjoy videos, pictures and music from home network + digital media delivered over your broadband Internet connection + 3 x HDMI

One fact of life when working with a front projection interactive whiteboard is positioning oneself to avoid casting a shadow on the screen in the wrong spot or at the wrong time. Technical solutions are use a wide screen television (display) with an interactive overlay or use one of SMART Technologies rear projection interactive whiteboards (2000i and 3000i) which the new 4000i model joins.

All models in the series are mobile, have a 66 inch (167.6cm) screen and integrated stereo speakers.

A significant difference between the new 4000i and the existing models is the change from an NEC VT670 or VT676 LCD projector with SGA (1024 x 768) resolution to a Projectiondesign DLP projector with SXGA (1400 x 1050) resolution. The 4000i has the latest Texas Instruments DLP microdisplay panel - a single 0.95″ DarkChip3. SMART Technologies Inc. don’t specify whether they integrate Projectiondesign’s 3 or 4 segment color wheel projector design into the DLP projection system. More color wheel segments reduce the likelihood of viewers being aware of color rainbow effects during video action sequences. For the differences between DLP and LCD display technologies see Presentation Technology Reviews comparison article.

Other significant differences between the three models are listed below:

2000i

• storage tray
• screen is height adjustable between 69″ (175.3 cm) and 83″ (210.8 cm)

3000i

• lockable integrated storage cabinet
• 2,100 lumens projector
• wireless keyboard with built-in trackball (except Japan) for mounting on holder at side of cabinet.

(read more..)

Epson announced on December 12, 2006 their development of a new high-temperature polysilicon (HTPS) liquid crystal midrodisplay panel to boost performance of 3LCD technology projectors and LCD rear projection TVs (RPTV). The new panel, measuring only 0.7 inch or 1.9cm diagonally, supports full 1080p high definition.

Thin-Film Transistor (TFT) panels are active matrix display containing a microscopic thin-film transistor in the corner of each pixel. High-temperature polysilicon (HTPS) panels are active matrix displays with TFTs. HTPS panel design facilitates miniaturization while delivering higher pixel counts and higher aperture ratios. They also offer higher definition and higher contrast than conventional TFT panels.

3LCD is a projection train architecture using three LCD panels for bright, natural images. 3LCD projection technology features the use of high-temperature polysilicon (HTPS) panels. HTPS panels provide improved contrast levels and magnificent black and shadow reproduction that is excellent for theatre and home entertainment applications

(read more..)

Epson is has announced the introduction of a new “flagship” home theater projectors specifically to maximize viewer benefits of 1080p (1,920 x 1,080) resolution video sources. Epson have always made a point of developing and manufacturing the technologies built into their projectors and the Powerlite Pro Cinema 1080 Home Theater Projector is no exception.

3LCD Technology

Probably the biggest feature of the PowerlLite Pro Cinema 1080 is the use of 3LCD projection technology. 3LCD technology was initialted in 1995 and adopted by numerous front projector manufacturers (Fujitsu, Hitachi, Panasonic, Sanyo and Sony) for its compactness and image quality. (read more..)

Elmo have just released a new document camera, the P100. The flexibility to used for a slide show without a PC is a bonus to those who would need to transport the unit to different presentations.

Elmo produce a range of presentation tools for business, education and medical applications. The P100 Document Camera joins Elmo’s range of other digital and analog digital presenters including the Teacher’s Tool TT-02, P10 XGA Visual Presenter, P30 XGA Visual Presenter and the top of the range HV-5100XG.

With a PC connected using USB two useful features of the P100 are annotation of the image being viewed and showing a split sreen with a live image and an image from memory (eg. before and after).

Features include:

• 30 frames per second image capture - smooth natural movement
• 1,300,000 pixels, SXGA (1280×1024) native resolution, 800 HV lines industry standard
• HDTV 1280×720 dot output - no oblong display, even with 16:9 TV monitors
• Quick Setup - one action, fast and easy
• Ultra functional design - smooth operation
• Integrated LCD monitor - fast positioning
• Max clarity 64x zoom (16x optical, 4xdigital1)
• Exclusive lens minimizes distortion
• USB connection to PC supports instant drawing to highlight and annotate image
• Built-in SD Card slot allows stored image slide shows, and split image (9 &16 split), without PC
• Split display - live and stored images on PC
• Flexible camera and light arms - show parts or side views of any 3D object on stage
• Clear text mode - accentuates black and white contrast for excellent readable text
• Progressive Scan eliminates flicker and blur

Purchase an Elmo P100 Visual Presenter, 1.3MP, Sxga, from Amazon.

Further Reading

Read PTeks reviews of theToshiba TLP-SC2500U LCD Projector with Document Camera and Canon RE-455X Visualizer.

SMART Technologies, a leading interactive whiteboard manufacturer, has announced the release of SMART Board software 9.5 for Linux operating systems to compliment previous releases for Mac and Windows operating systems. Three core Linux distributions are supported; Fedora Core 3, Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 and SUSE 10.

Version 9.5 of the SMART Board software offers features such as;

• Gallery search,
• powerful annotation tools,
• full drag-and-drop functionality,
• pre-loaded digital content,
• Freehand Screen Capture tool,
• attachment and export of files,
• multi-language support in English, Spanish, French, German and Brazilian Portuguese,
• the Spotlight tool and more.

Version 9.5 can be used with all SMART Board interactive whiteboards.

Further Reading

For a better understanding of the features of Interactive Whiteboards read Presentation Technologies article Interactive Whiteboards - an Overview.

SMART Technologies have previously won awards for their software as detailed in the article SMART Technologies Wins Three Education Software Review Awards.

Read a review of one of SMART’s products, the SMART Board 600i Interactive Whiteboard.

Read the full press release from SMART Technologies.

You Can Use an Interactive Whiteboard for Ages 4-7 (You Can..)

LCoS technology is a native high resolution display technology capable of producing exceptional, flicker free (high refresh rates) video with no pixel definition as inherent with LCD, high contrast ratios, bright natural colors, and no possibility of plasma like “burn-in”.

Although relatively new in terms of market perception, LCoS has been around for over a decade with JVC having shipped professional quality LCoS projectors since 1998. Sony and Brillian began shipping LCoS technology in 2005. Currently there are a few prominent proprietary versions of LCoS technology consisting of JVC’s D-ILA (Direct Drive Image Light Amplifier) chip technology, Sony’s SXRD (Silicon X-tal Reflective Display) and Syntax-Brillian’s Gen II LCoS.

LCoS microdisplay panels are generally less than an inch in size. JVC ship 0.7 inch D-ILA chips with full 1920 x 1080 resolution allowing the display of a full HD 1080p input signal without scaling. (read more..)

The DLA-RS1 High Definition, 1920 x 1080p, home theatre projector is part of JVC’s Reference Series intended for the up-market home theatre installations.

The JVC DLA-RSI incorporates JVC’s D-ILA (Direct Drive Image Light Amplifier) chip technology could be considered as an evolutionary development of LCoS (Liquid Crystal On Silicon) technology. JVC’s D-ILA technology competes with Sony’s SXRD (Silicon X-tal Reflective Display) and Syntax-Brillian’s Gen II LCoS.

Apart from the excellent D-ILA display technology and full 1080p high definition resolution, the DLA-RS1 boasts a very high contrast ratio, has features which contribute to significant set-up flexibility and accepts a wide range of HD signals through a good range of input connections. (read more..)

InFocus’s Play Big IN72 has the same eye catching, futuristic, black and silver, highly curved body as it’s higher specification family member the IN76 which won the European Projector of the Year 2006-2007 awarded by the European Imaging & Sound Association (EISA). It only “under the hood” that the differences become obvious.

The IN72 has a native 480p (854×480) high definition output with other formats being scaled to fit the native resolution. In comparison, two other projectors in the Play Big range the IN74EX and the IN76 have resolutions of (1024×576) and the IN76 (1280×720) respectively.

An interesting feature of the IN72 is the swivel and tilt pedestal. Functionally the base is far easier to use for setup than multiple extendible support legs. The pedestal can be removed if the unit is to be ceiling mounted. Lens shift is not included so digital keystone correction needs to be used to correct any projected image distortion. (read more..)