You know, we can't really imagine what kind of social setting you'd be in that would require the use of a TV-B-Gone and still be socially acceptable to carry binoculars, but if you're especially annoyed with your neighbor (whose TV happens to be relatively near and have line of sight), check out this simple TV-B Gone sniper hack. One TV-B-Gone plus one pair binoculars (monocular might also well work) equals some serious range -- about 40 feet according to the hack's creator. Anyone want to try this thing with a high powered home telescope? Forget WiFi-ing to other States, this week we're all about turning off TVs in the next time zone.

[Via Make Blog]

Like those Jupiter Research survey results we've seen before, Amberlight consultancy firm tells us that consumers do indeed want mobile television. However, they are put-off by poorly designed devices and lackluster services associated with those 3G streaming TeeVee solutions. They found current offerings to suffer from patchy 3G reception, slow startup times ranging from 2 and 5 minutes, and overly complicated usage experiences lacking on-screen displays and EPGs. Certainly, much of this is already being addressed by next-generation handsets with integrated digital TV tuners for accessing new broadcast, mobile TV solutions over DVB-H, T-DMB, and MediaFLO  -- so we're not overly concerned. After-all, Amberlight says their research, uh, "proves" that there is consumer demand for mobile TV if only operators can offer services which are "easy to use" and "competitively priced." Well, we're glad that argument is settled.

As much as studios and talent unions like go at it about royalties and such, the truth of the matter is that those addicted to ABC's "Lost" must be teased with tiny morsels of Internet and mobile content -- there's no escaping it. To that end, Hollywood labor types have just finalised contracts with ABC to define payments for actors, writers and directors to be featured in two-minute "mobisodes." Sounds to us like talent will be reimbursed and protected in much the same way they are for traditional episodes, just on a smaller scale. This keeps with the show's producers' aims of keeping the quality up to snuff for the "mobisodes," and is being lauded by both sides as a groundbreaking agreement that should set a good precedent for royalties related to micro content. Now, for the real question: did they consult Locke about this?

Today Sharp loosed their new Internet AQUOS TV/PC combo systems. At the top end is the LD-37SP1 LCD and PC-AX50M mini-PC kit capable of pumping out (and recording) those Hi-Vision (Japanese high-def) broadcast pixels onto a 37-inch LCD with 1200:1 contrast ratio, 6-ms response, 176-degree viewing angle, and HDMI and HDCP DVI ports. A wireless (RF) keyboard and remote are perfect for getting all potato-like up on the couch. The PC manages to eek out 500GB of S-ATA disk for hi-def recordings and such, up to 1GB DDR2 RAM, a DVD combo-drive, and SD and xD picture card slots with direct-to-card MPEG-4 recordings -- all powered by a 1.66GHz Intel Core Duo T2300 CPU and XP Home edition. The kit is also available with a 32-inch LCD (LD-32SP1) and PC sporting a terrestrial analog tuner and 250MB of disk (PC-AX50M) all of which you can mix-n-match to your heart’s desire. No doubt, we like the design, but these systems are kept out of the high-end game with their Intel graphics cards, LCD resolutions of just 1366 x 768, and lack of a Windows Media Center Edition install option. Expect these to hit shelves in Japan sometime in May for an undisclosed price.

[Via Akihabara News] 

Just because AT&T's Lightspeed and the late SBC and BellSouth's nascent FTTH rollout (which they now own, in a manner of speaking) aren't yet ready to provide prime time IPTV to the masses doesn't mean they will be stopped from taking on cable companies every which way they can; enter their new Homezone service. Since the DSL they currently serve up wouldn't be quite broad enough to give AT&T what they need for a true live-IPTV experience, they're bundling it with live TV from DISH, movie downloads from MovieLink, older programming from Akimbo, and DVR functionality in a single 2Wire-built box. It may seem a little piecemeal, but we're a little surprised this kind of  home entertainment hodgepodge angle hasn't already been explored -- our only real fear here is whether AT&T and 2Wire will nail it when bringing so many kinds of user experiences into a single livingroom box.

href="http://www2.panasonic.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/prModelDetail?storeId=11301&catalogId=13251&itemId=97264&modelNo=Content04172006034156146&surfModel=Content04172006034156146"> vspace="4" hspace="4" border="1" src="http://www.engadget.com/media/2006/04/103_1.jpg" alt="" />

You know that
103-inch,
ain’t ever going to go on sale, plasma TV Panasonic’s been lugging around the trade show circuit? Well, start
pinchin’ those pennies son, cause Panny is putting them on sale in time for the holidays. This 7.5 x 4.2-foot (8.5-foot
diagonal) plasma goes 16:9 and throws up a 1920 x 1080 resolution, 3000:1 contrast ratio and features Panasonic’s 1080p
HD high-speed pixel drive we’ve already seen in their href="http://www.engadget.com/2005/08/26/panasonics-viera-th-65px500-sub-9k-65-inch-plasma/">65-incher. The
perfect, er, accessory for their href="http://www.engadget.com/2006/04/12/panasonic-shows-off-dmp-bd10-blu-ray-player-final-design/">DMP-BD10 Blu-ray
player, no doubt. Sorry, no pricing announced — but if you gotta ask, href="http://www.engadget.com/2006/04/06/lg-brings-their-71-inch-plasma-to-the-us/">you can’t afford it.
/>[Via New
Launches]

Sony continues to milk the Walkman branding with the release of their new portable DVD player line-up. Introducing the roughly D-VE7000S DVD player (pictured) which brings the coveted Walkman branding in a compact package sporting a 7-inch display, a couple of headphone jacks, and a dock with integrated speakers capable of charging the unit in about 3 hours. Also announced is the DVP-FX810 which is just a regular ol’ portable DVD player with two headphone jacks for snuggling up against that 8-inch display for up to 6-hours at a time off battery. Yup, that's it... no DivX, no network, no USB, no tie-in to Sony’s Japan-only Portable-TV service or up-coming HUB PlayStation Network Platform. Just a couple of portable DVD players shipping in June for undisclosed prices. Come on Sony, we’re waiting to be impressed again. More snaps after the break.

[Via Akihabara News]

It’s less of a mobile TV service than it is a
convenient way to receive infomercials on the go, but VDC seems to be the new player in town either way. The service
transmits "live cable TV" to your Windows Mobile or Windows XP system, with data rates up to 3000Kbps, though
more EV-DO-friendly speeds are available as well. The subscription is a mere $12 a month, but the 20 channels of
"cable" programming are fairly awful, including such gems as "The Pentagon Channel" and
"ShopNBC." The service just went live today, and has more channels planned, including "Celebrity
Shopping Network" and "AP Newswires & Newsbites." Where do we sign up?

[Via href="http://www.windowsfordevices.com/news/NS2605556687.html">Windows For Devices]

Toshiba blasted us with a heap of new additions to their Dynabook and Qosmio line-up of laptops today. Let's start with the Qosmio F30/695LS Core Duo T2300 (1.66GHz) which features a bright 15.4-inch, 1280 x 800 (WXGA) LCD to check the teevee pumped out those integrated analog and digital terrestrial TV tuners. The F30 also features 160GB of storage for TV recording fun, up to 2GB RAM, nVIDIA GeForce Go 7600 graphics, 802.11a/b/g WiFi, fingerprint scanner, shock protection, and harmon/kardon's bass reflex speaker system already spotted on the G35. Next up is the new 1.9-kg Dynabook SS MX/395LS which also packs a Core Duo T2300 but delivers on a 12.1-inch WXGA LCD with 80GB disk, a dual-layer DVD burner, 512MB RAM, and 802.11a/b/g WiFi and goes 5.2-hours on a single charge. The compact, 2.5-kg Dynabook CX/875LS offers a 14.1-inch WXGA display and Core Duo T2300, harmon/kardon's speakers, and dual-layer DVD burner we've seen before. Rounding things out are the "high-grade standard" TX/880LS and budget AX/40LS which both offer 15.4-inch displays with the TX going Core Duo T2300 and 120GB disk while the AX manages to slip-in Celeron M 370 and dual-layer DVD burner on the cheap. Looks like all the models will be shipping no later than the 28th of this month. Big snaps of the SS MX and F30 after the break.

[Via Akihabara News]

It's the baby Bells (or not so baby Bells) vs. cable in the war for the one bill to rule them all, and it looks like Sprint Nextel is getting friendly with some cable providers to provide the wireless prong of their efforts. They've just announced a venture with Comcast, Time Warner Cable, Cox Communications and Bright House Networks. The combined services should launch later this year, and will start out slow, but the plan is to offer more TV for your phone, wireless control of your DVR, free calling of your own landline, and various other value-adds. The NY Times reports that research is showing a lack of consumer interest in bundles unless there are decently steep discounts included, so hopefully that's in the works as well.

It might not seem very cutting edge to get a "new" display from LG a year and a half after its Korean debut, but we suppose we should be used to it by now. LG is just now releasing their 71-inch, 1080p MW-71PY10 plasma display in the states, which features a 1200:1 contrast ratio, along with plenty of HDMI, DVI, and component inputs. To celebrate the launch, LG hosted red carpet events at Ken Cranes Home Entertainment in LA and Sixth Avenue Electronics a bit north of NYC. With celebrity guests like Stacy Keibler (of "Dancing with the Stars"), it sounded a bit too high falutin for our taste. But so does the 71-inch display, which rings up at an incredibly hefty $28k. Now where did we put that credit card...

[Via New Launches]

 

Motorola appears ready to take on the Slingbox and Sony's LocationFree TV with a new service that allows customers to stream television from a DVR to a cellphone. However, there are some caveats that may make the service little more than a novelty for the time being. The biggest limitation for the moment is that the service will require both a Motorola DVR and a next-gen RAZR phone. Since Moto's DVRs are built into set-top boxes provided by cable companies, and not sold directly to consumers, this means the potential user base is defined not by customer choice, but by the vagaries of the cable market. And, of course, you need a specific phone model -- one that doesn't currently exist on the market -- to make the service work as well. However, given that the service is just in demo mode at this point, a lot can change before it goes public. And Moto may well learn from Sony's experience with LocationFree that it's better to open up, rather than trying to force customers to stick with a closed system.

There's nothing we like more than a heavyweight grudge-match between two old, bitter rivals like Samsung and LG. While we might prefer Kun - Hee Lee (left) and S.S. Kim (right) throwing down street style, we still stood up and took note of LG's suit against Sammy over false and defamatory claims that their DVR TV required a cooling fan for its hard drive (when it apparently did not) and that it had a measly 20,000 lifespan when LG claims it would operate for at "at least 50,000 hours." Yeah, it's at best pretty unprofessional to even publicly discuss your competition like that -- especially when buyers are making choices for the World Cup -- but we'll let the judge sort it out while we lean back in our courtroom box seat just in case these two Korean heavyweight champions decide to settle this in the squared circle.

[Via The Reg]