Category: Video Junkie

You're buying so many tech gifts this year, so wouldn't it be nice of those companies actually gave you a present in addition to their products? Yes, we thought so, too. We saw an interesting deal between Sharp and new video-on-demand service Vudu, where the purchase of a new Aquos LCD display gets you a free Vudu set-top box and $50 in download credit. You'll put that to good use, for ...

It's crisp. It's colorful. It's widescreen and it swivels. Plus, the Samsung Syncmaster 245T has HDMI inputs in addition to standard DVI and analog inputs. A 24", better-than-1080p TV, computer monitor and swivel head all for $800? Looks sweet to us. Related Links: Finally, a PC that can dress like a Mac Our BEST HDTV Pick: The Pioneer Kuro Elite 50" Plasma Four Cell Phones ...

Samsung P2 $250, samsungusa.com Most so-called iPod-killers hardly live up to the name, much less Apple's digital audio player, but Samsung's P2 is pretty darn close. The size of a pack of Dentyne, and yet boasting a three-inch, 16:9 touchscreen, the P2 is a perfect alternative for iTunes haters, or just somebody who's got a lot of WMA or cell-phone-music-store-purchased tunes on their PCs. The ...

Vudu $399, vudu.com About as big as a Mac Mini, the Vudu box gives you access to over 5,000 movies for rent or purchase. Vudu uses the same peer-to-peer technology that pirates use to illegally swap movies online, but for good purposes like letting you watch a movie instantly even though it's not done downloading. The service just started offering HD movies you'd actually want to watch – ...

Surround sound home theater systems sound awesome, but all those wires and speakers can clutter a small room. The TV2 from Boston Acoustics might not deliver surround sound, but it does pack much more punch than your TV's built-in speakers as our very own Tom Samiljan demonstrates here. Related Links: Finally, a PC that can dress like a Mac Our BEST HDTV Pick: The Pioneer Kuro ...

For the videophile who's been really, really good this year, there's no better way to say "I love, but I'd like you to stop talking so much" than by giving the top-of-the-line Pioneer Kuro Elite 50-inch PDP-5010FD. With picture quality so pristine that, from 3.5-feet you can see the film grain -- but not the pixels -- this TV will leave anyone speachless. ...

In a move destined to give gadget heads with gridiron proclivities a reason to rejoice, Verizon has announced that its V Cast customers will have access to live, full-length NCAA college football bowl games on their cellular phones this season. While the major BCS championship bowls will not be offered, subscribers with V Cast-outfitted phones will be able to view 24 of the less-heralded ...

HYPE CHECK: BURTON SLEEPER HOODIE . What it is: Burton's Sleeper Hoodie is designed for the busy air traveler, but should be a big hit with everyone from bands who spend weeks at a time tour buses, to those of us who like to catch a nap on the bus on our way to work. Inside the neck rests an inflatable neck pillow; blow it up, and you've got immediate, built-in head support. (Much better than ...

The power of so-called New Media is again on display as a YouTube political attack ad makes mainstream media headlines. Wired reports that a 58-second video vilifying Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee has generated 47,955 hits since Thursday on the popular video Web site. The ad, made by 29-year-old Republican Keith Emis, criticizes the former governor of Arkansas for paroling ...

And you thought everything was going to High Def in a handbasket? Here's more evidence we live in a lo-fi world: a more YouTube-capable experience is out from Helio, maker of the Ocean, an already cool mobile communications device (the word "phone" just doesn't cut it) that provides video, GPS and a whole slew of other features in addition to making calls. Many mobile phones already let you ...

LG Electronics announced it is putting its second-generation hybrid high definition disc player on retail shelves, making good on a promise made in September at the CEDIA trade show to have the new devices ready for the holidays. The LG Super Blu Player, officially known as the BH200, will carry a $999 price tag and is capable of reading high-definition discs in the two competing formats ...

Verizon Wireless recently released the FlipShot by Samsung, a snazzy new 3-megapixel (MP) camera phone with swivel 'technology.' The crisp 240x320 pixel phone display swivels 180 degrees to allow for different viewing angles and easy sharing of multimedia with friends. To activate the camera, you just open the clamshell halfway and swivel the display 90-degrees towards you and begin shooting ...

For those who need screen real-estate for High-Definition graphics manipulation (or maybe just some home video- or picture-editing), the new $1,700 Gateway XHD3000 LCD 30-inch monitor is perfect -- it's not only huge for a computer monitor, but it also up-converts video to 1600p, a startling four times higher than standard 720p high-definition video. With state-of-the-art connections, including ...

Now that Skype and Logitech have unveiled upgrades to their video calling software, it's time to start videocalling over the Internet in High-Definition. With the QuickCam Pro 9000 and its snazzy Carl Zeiss lens, travelers can finally make those 30--frames-per--second calls to their buddies (or significant others) and do lightning-fast karate moves with no frozen frames! It's small and compact, ...

The movie buff in your family would certainly appreciate the new HT-SP908 Home Theater In a Box (HTIB) from Onkyo. Bonus points if said film fanatic also happens to have a soft spot for over-the-top tech. The feature list on the receiver alone makes this package a steal in the $750-$850 price range. First of all, it's the first HTIB system to have state-of-the-art HDMI 1.3 connectors, which ...