Sorry HDTV…. I can’t see you.

High Definition in the world of display technology usually refers to 720 horizontal lines, or more, of video format resolution.

HDTV has taken over the world of television viewing, there in most homes, all the good sports bars and by some estimates as many as 90% of new commercials are being shot with HDTV in mind. It’s not just TVs, these days if it has a screen it is more than likely HD. The problem with this is. If you are one of the third of the country that wears glasses or contacts then an HDTV may not be for you, unless of course you are up for a trip to the eye Doctor for a new prescription. 

Dispensing optician Phillip Hyde recommends that if you are interested in HDTV you may first want to schedule an eye exam to make sure you are ready and able to get the full benefit from these TV's. If you have poor eye sight that is simply not correctable you may want to invest in an HDTV set just for the ease of viewing a large screen.

On the bright side those who do suffer from poor eyesight might want to consider saving a little money by buying a set that’s a model or two down from the "bleeding edge" of HDTV technology. Becasue according to Phillip Hyde you most likely will not be able to see the difference anyway. But of courses it’s your money.

Two Monitors Better Than One

Is using two monitors actually better than using one? According to numerous study’s and surveys the answer is yes, and it is said to increase productivity 7% to 50%. Those are some high numbers, but lets just dig a little deeper here.

Computer users nowadays are always multi-tasking. You usually will be surfing the web with numerous tabs, you will also be instant messaging you buddies, checking your email, typing something up on word, and maybe even playing a game. Now how can you ever expect to fit all of this on one monitor, it just is not possible. This is where two monitors really comes in handy. For example you are writing a paper about a topic you researching on the internet. Instead of having to keep tabbing back to the article and then back to word you can just have the article on one screen and word on the other.

Using two monitors is so easy. A main complaint that many people say is I don’t want to have to go through the hassle of setting up two monitors and getting the right software for it to work. Well the good thing here is Windows already has a built in monitor feature that will automatically register your second monitor when you hook it up to your computer. To edit this feature just right click your desktop background and go to settings. It will show both of your monitors and it will let you adjust a number of features for both monitors.

Some computers may not support two monitors though. To check this, just look on the back of your computer and check to see if there is another monitor input (VGA or DVI) right next to where your first monitor is plugged in. If you look on the back of your desktop and you see your first monitor is hooked up to a VGA or DVI port, but you do not see another VGA or DVI port. If this is the case then you have an older video card that only has 1 hookup for a monitor. There are two ways around this: You can either buy a monitor switch box or buy a better video card that has dual monitor ports. You can buy a brand new low end card that has 2 monitor ports for around $50-$100.

Once you have two monitor inputs just plug in both monitors with either the VGA or DVI cords. If your video card has one VGA input and one DVI input then you are going to have to put on a DVI to VGA adapter on the DVI port to get it to work. This adapter will usually come with any video card you buy. Once again your computer will automatically register your second monitor once you turn it on.

In closing this is well worth the effort. I highly encourage you to give this a try and I guarantee that you will never want to go back to one monitor again. If you have any questions leave us a comment.

Samsung Unvieils New Luxia HDTV Line

Samsung has just unveiled a new line of television that utilize LED-backlight technology, called Luxia. The new HDTV’s offer promise to bring a new line of high quality display, energy efficient technology and ultra thin design.

The Luxia line-up comes with a handful of new feautures including Samsung’s signature Touch of Color image display that helps produce better contrast ratios and a full range of colors with crystal clear detail. They will also come with a built in internet yahoo widget that will allow you to watch internet videos, check your mail, and view photos. Additionally the Luxia line will be one of the many new televisions coming out with a 240 Hz refresh rate, which will help make a clearer picture. Expect to see the new line-up of television to hit store shelves in the first half of 2009.

HP w2207h Widescreen Flat Panel Monitor

HP's w2207h 22-inch wide screen monitor is a diagonal, wide LCD-TFT active matrix monitor. It has a 1680x1050 resolution at 60Hz. It allows you to comfortably view two full pages of text or images side by side. It also comes with digital photography and video editing.

Ever wanted to veiw everything you look at in a portrait view? Well now you can, with the HP w2207h monitor you can rotate your monitor into a portrait view to see long documents or web pages from your PC. And with a double-hinge base you can adjust it to just the right height.

Ever get the feeling like your desk is crammed full a stuff just getting in the way? Well you don't have to worry about that because this monitor comes with a nice slim profile and integrated speakers. And you can also mount this monitor on any wall for access in any room of the house because this monitor is compatible with any VESA standard mount.

Now I know as well as anybody that "Green" is the way to go now and all you green freaks out their will be very pleased to know that the HP w2207h monitor is ENERGY STAR and MPR ll qualified and it's recyclable. It comes standard with a one year warranty and custom support.

Contents of the box upon delivery contains the monitor, power cable, audio cable, VGA cable, HDMI cable, documentation CD, and warranty card. All of this runs under the price tag of $299.99 and offers free standard shipping.

JVC's New HD LCD Televisions Unveiled

JVC has launched a new four-model line of LCD televisions which will feature full HD resolution and a "sleek new cabinet design". Each type of TV model will of course feature 1080/24/30p and will range in size fro mthe 32-inch LT-32J300 to the 52-inc LT-52J300.


The new line of TV's will include a unique dynamic backlight in order to deliver an increased contrast between the blacks and whites on screen. JVC will also be installing an easy to navigate on-screen display with drop down menu's for improved user-interface. The TV's will also come with JVC's Smart Picture technology chip that will analyze source brightness for better images and also a timer for scheduled power up times. All four sets will come with thre HDMI inputs, two component inputs, two S-Video inputs, PC input, SPDIF input and analog video output to ensure maximum compatibility with other media devices.

Availability:

Model Available
LT-32J300 March
LT-42J300 March
LT-46J300 March
LT-52J300 August

See here for more information on JVC's New HD TV Line.

Are You Really Watching HD On Your HDTV

The Leichtman Research Group recently conducted a phone survey and reported that 18 percent of HD television owners think they are watching HD television when in reality they are not. In my opinion I find this very believable and in fact I could see it being much higher than this. The reason I say this is mostly people around the age of 16-25 are the only people who really know how to hook up an HDTV, but most people around 16-25 do not have $800-$2000 sitting around to buy an HDTV.

The first thing you need to make sure when you get your HDTV is to connect it right which requires you to first of all buy the premium High Definition Plan on you cable or satellite. So make sure you do not just plug in the cable straight into your television and expect HD quality television.

Once you get your cable or satellite box and you have upgraded to the HD plan then your next step is to connect your HD box to your television with the appropriate cables. In almost all cases an HDMI cable will do the trick. It will send both the video and the audio signal and all you need to do is connect the HDMI cable from your HDMI output in your HD cable box to the HDMI input on your Television. Any new HD cable box should have an HDMI output, but if yours does not then you will have to use compenent cables.

Finally once this is all hooked up do not expect every single channel to be broadcasted in HD. Only certain channels will be broadcasted in HD and make sure to contact your cable or satellite provider to find out which channels you have in HD.

Also CNET has a great how to connect to HD video here.

Netflix ready HDTVs coming soon

In 2007, Netflix introduced instant streaming movies for the PC, then devices that were capable of displaying that content on a TV started appearing, like the Xbox 360, Roku player, and certain Blu-Ray players.

Now Netflix is partnering with LG to release TVs that are capable of playing movies from a Netflix account without an external device. All that is needed is a Netflix subscription and an ethernet connection.

The new models are being shown this week at CES 2009, and LG already has 2 honoree awards at the convention. They will be available in spring 2009.