Pioneer DVD Home Cinema Range

Pioneer is bolstering its already comprehensive AV range with three new DVD home cinema systems. The additions consist of two 5.1-channel systems, the DSC-590 and DSC-585 (pictured) and the 2.1-channel DSC-FS30.

The DSC-590 and DSC-585 differ in the type of speakers on offer, tallboys with the former and satellites with the latter with the DSC-FS30 featuring slim, height adjustable speakers in addition to the same subwoofer as shared by all three systems. Dolby Digital and DTS audio decoding is supported across the line-up and the DSC-585 and DSC-590 also include a "Multi-Channel Acoustic Calibration system" which adjusts the systems' speaker outputs to suit the installed environment.

DVD up-scaling to 1080p is possible, and all three players support DivX video. A front-mounted USB port on all three systems facilitates the playback of media files with mp3, WMA and AAC audio supported. CDs can also be ripped to mp3 files on a USB storage device. All three systems can be upgraded with a Bluetooth module, making it possible to stream content from a laptop, mobile phone or media player using A2DP.

The DCS-590, DCS-585 and DCS-FS30 will be available in August, with pricing to be given nearer launch.

Link:
Pioneer.

Panasonic SC-BT205 Blu-ray home cinema system

History tells us that one-box home cinema bundles rarely match the quality of a decent separates system, but for sheer convenience they simply can’t be beaten. And when it comes to Blu-ray, convenience and set-up simplicity are even more vital, given the potentially brain-frazzling compatibility issues surrounding Blu-ray’s HD audio formats.

So it’s with that in mind that we say hello to the SC-BT205, one of Panasonic’s latest all-in-one Blu-ray home cinema systems. It comes with a combined Blu-ray player/receiver unit, which serves up 1000W of audio power as well as decoding Dolby True HD and DTS HD Master Audio, plus you get a set of four tallboy speakers, a centre speaker and a passive Kelton subwoofer.

While it’s not the most jaw-dropping system we’ve ever seen, its mirrored fascia injects a touch of high-tech bling and the black finish elsewhere is tasteful enough. What’s less forgivable though is the hollow, plasticky build quality of the main unit and speakers, which is not what you expect at this price.

The main unit’s front panel is a carnival of connectivity. Not only does it boast an SD card slot and a USB port, but there’s also an iPod dock that slides out from the middle of the fascia. With your iPod hooked up you can use the system’s onscreen menus and remote to play your music, videos and photos.

The SD card slot can be used to play AVCHD, SD video (MPEG2) and JPEG files, or you can shove a flash drive into the USB port and enjoy DivX, MP3 and JPEG playback – but there’s no support for WMA, DivX HD or MKV.

The rear panel sadly lacks HDMI inputs but there are two optical digital inputs and an analogue stereo input to cover your other equipment. Among the other sockets are HDMI, Component and Composite video outputs and an input for the FM radio tuner.

If you’re repulsed by the sight of cables then you can even install an optional wireless kit (SH-FX70), which sends surround information wirelessly to a receiver at the back of the room, which in turn is connected to the rear speakers.

And because the system’s Blu-ray deck is a fully-fledged Profile 2.0 affair, you’ll also find an Ethernet port on the back that lets you download bonus movie content, as well as view YouTube clips and Google Picasa photos through the Viera Cast web portal. On the downside, you have to load up an SD card to store BD Live downloads as there’s no built-in memory.

The features don’t stop there – there’s a range of sound modes to play with (including Dolby Pro Logic II) and the system is equipped with the superb UniPhier chip, which uses P4HD processing to pull all the picture strings.

Set-up is a piece of cake thanks to the colour-coded speaker terminals and the Smart Setup mode, which sets all the sound parameters automatically using a microphone and a series of test tones. You also get a top-drawer remote, which boasts perfectly-sized, clearly-labelled buttons.

Just like Panasonic’s superlative DMP-BD60 and BD80 standalone players, the SC-BT205’s picture quality is impeccable. The depth, solidity and unadulterated clarity of the picture is a wonder to behold, making good quality Blu-ray transfers like The Dark Knight or Mamma Mia! look absolutely spellbinding.

It’s also a dab hand on the sonic front, with the speakers’ bamboo cones blasting out Dolby True HD and DTS HD Master Audio tracks with rare relish. It’s miles better than the hard, tainted sound of last year’s SC-BT100 – the sound is richly detailed, smooth and packed with plenty of oomph in the bass department, although the sub does get a little overbearing at times and could do with being a bit punchier. On the whole though, it’s a masterful performance by typical one-box standards.

LaCie LaCinema Rugged media player goes HD

Tough guy HD player can hold up to 700 movies, writes David Walker

If you're going to make something portable, make sure it's tough - and gadgets don't come much harder than the LaCie LaCinema Rugged media player, which has now been upgraded to playback your high-definition movies and footage.

Those fairly unassuming looks are the work of industrial designer Neil Poulton, but that (dare we say) dull exterior is more function than form, a scratch-resistant aluminium shell, internal anti-shock absorbers, and a shock-resistant rubber bumper guaranteed to protect your media from everyday accidents and quite possibly, double up as body armour - but don't hold us to that, it's certainly not a listed selling point.

As well as being the hardest kid on the block, the Rugged is a decent portable media player too, able to play and store your HD movies in glorious 1080p, with HDMI output for easy connection to your HD-ready TV, along with a remote and user-friendly graphical interface. Upscales your standard-def movies too, should you be lacking clips of a HD variety right now and with 500GB of storage, we're talking up to 700 movies or if you prefer audio and images, 165,000 songs or 165,000 photos.

Compatible with PCs and Macs, the LaCie LaCinema Rugged HD player is available right now, priced around the £259.99 mark

Link: LaCie

LG Freeview Blu-ray player out this month

Includes YouTube streaming and 160GB HDD

LG has announced that its HR 400 Blu-ray player will hit the shops in the UK this month.

The Blu-ray player has a number of interesting features, including the ability to stream YouTube content straight from the player and the inclusion of a built-in 160GB hard disk drive.

The player also has a Freeview receiver, so you can choose from 40 digital Freeview channels and pause, rewind and store them as you would with a Sky+ box.

Upscaling player

The player also makes use of an eight-day EPG and will upscale any standard-def footage you throw at it (ie DVDs) to 1080p.

And for those who like to get their content form the net, the LG HR400 will also recognise DivX files, because it is nice like that.

The LG HR 400 is available to buy at the end of July for around £350. For more information, click on http://www.lge.com/uk/index.jsp.

Technisat Digicorder HD S2x review

In many respects this twin-tuner hi-def PVR is a fine piece of work but, sadly, some silliness creeps in

An HD revamp of the twin-DVB-S2-tunered Digicorder S2, the HD-S2x has already been available (as the HD-S2) for some time in Germany.

Unfortunately, the HDD is the same 160GB as the S2's. Given the greediness of HD recordings, we would have expected bigger. That said, a 500GB version is available for extra outlay.

Build and connectivity

One cannot fault the contemporary and surprisingly compact styling of the S2x, which wouldn't look amiss next to – say – a Loewe TV. Function follows form with a control disc that facilitates basic timeshifting, soundtrack/subtitle and last-channel selection, as well as the usual channel-change, volume and standby.

They're augmented by a multi-function fluorescent display that, among other things, lists the name of the currently selected channel. The lower half of the front panel swings downwards to reveal the USB port, card readers for built-in Conax CAM and CI slots. You can swap the supplied hard disc for your own 3.5in SATA drives too.

The new model adds Ethernet capabilities, which enable the timer to be remotely scheduled via the internet, and recordings to be transferred to a PC. Multimedia files can fly the other way, thereby allowing you to make the most of the onboard media player (or you can transfer via the USB port).

Twin LNB

Along with twin LNBs, the rear panel has everything you would expect

Also on the rear panel (above) are the two LNB inputs that are configured in the setup menus, and support the SatCR and DisiCon type of single cable router LNB to feed both tuners.

Unfortunately, there's no UHF modulator or aerial connectivity. The component and HDMI will go from 576i to 1080i, and if you have a DVD recorder the RGB Scart output can be active at the same time as the HD outputs.

Setup

The S2x is ready for motorised dishes, courtesy of DiSEqC 1.2/USALS. Initial setup – the parameters of which include language, location, display format or whether you're using one or both LNB inputs – is conducted by a wizard. The options here are comprehensive – the LNBs that can be connected include single LO, C-band, and single cable routing (SatCR and DisiCon).

Unfortunately, you can't have two dishes aimed at different satellites, unless they're fitted with twin (or quattro) LNBs – and under those circumstances you'll need DiSEqC switchboxes to make sure the inputs are always from the same satellite.

The most flexible solution is to use a DiSEqC motorised dish with a twin LNB – our review configuration. The procedure to get this receiver to work with a DiSEqC rotor is quite unusual: you have to choose 'motorised' from the list of available satellites, then work your way through the satellites and enable the ones you can receive.

Searching

You can search individually or with an auto-search to allow for transit times

Instead of using a manual 'step' mode to set the precise sat positions, the excellent 'auto-focus' system peaks the dish for maximum signal strength. It's then a matter of searching the satellites, either individually or with a global search that automatically visits each in turn; sensibly, this allows for transit times between satellite positions.

In 'auto' search mode, you can choose all services, or just the free-to-air ones. Also provided are transponder and manual searches, with PIDs for individual channels if desired. You can also specify modulation type, though some reason you can choose FEC for DVB-S2, but not DVB-S. Most obviously missing is a blind search option for adding new transponders without downloading a new database.

Basic use

Pressing 'enter' accesses the channel navigator, and by default, the 'master list' of channels is displayed. Press the 'options' button, and you can access the 'all channels' list – a disappointing maximum of 6,000 – or sort channels according to provider. For more advanced sorting you have to select the main menu's 'TV (radio) lists organising' option.

From here, you can copy or remove channels from the all-channels list to the master list. The 'all channels' sorting functions include alphabetical order, free, new, HDTV, satellite and even language – but there's no ability to find a channel by progressively entering more of its name.

Another annoying characteristic of this receiver comes to the fore if you're using a motorised dish. When working through the all-channels list, the dish insists on moving to the currently highlighted one – a great way of wearing out your motor prematurely!

You have the six favourites lists (three TV, three radio), but we could find no reference to these anywhere in the menus. We had to wade through the manual to discover that favourites lists have to be turned on manually (this is a setup option). From then on, favourites can be defined by switching from the relevant master lists (i.e. radio or TV) to one of the three favourites.

This is daft – we would have thought that anyone wanting to remain sane would be using favourites by default. Disappointingly, you can't define favourite channels directly from the navigator. Rather than one button press, once they're switched on, favourites are available as a channel navigator 'option'. A more sensible system would be welcomed.

The EPG, which can program the timer directly, supports now-and-next and 7-day schedules. A neat feature is the 'SFI' button, which accesses an EPG now-and-next 'digest', complete with time-remaining bargraphs and the ability to proceed further through the schedules if available. This is tied in with Technisat's EPGPlus, an unusual system that involves downloading data from an unspecified transponder at 0.8°W.

Regrettably, the number of channels covered here is small and primarily Scandinavian, although a 'journal' function allows you to update user-defined channels from conventional DVB EPG. None of the UK's terrestrial channels is covered by the download, which is disappointing, given that on FTA (as opposed to Freesat) these broadcasters only offer now-and-next DVB EPG data.
Downloaded channels benefit from a 'genre' display mode for upcoming programmes, but this is denied to non-EPGplus channels that offer seven-day EPGs, such as the German ones. Odd, given the receiver's origins.

Other features include a picture zoom, teletext, subtitles and a useful channel technical information display, including bitrate and resolution. You'll also find a PiP function for insetting the picture of one channel into another. Only one of these can be an HD channel, which brings us to a severe limitation of the HD S2x.

Only one of the tuners is DVB-S2-compliant, which means that you can't view one HD channel while recording another (a twin-tuner model, the HD S2 Plus is forthcoming).

PVR and multimedia

Lack of dual-HD recording aside, the PVR functions rank very highly. An oddity to watch out for is that if the unit is in PVR mode, attempting to enter the menus will ask you if you want to stop recording. If you want to manually set or change the timer you'll have an interrupted recording.

However, you can still access the channel list and EPG – and play existing recordings, which are listed with a press of the green handset button. You can pause the current channel, kicking off the process of using the HDD as a buffer. You can then review, cue, jog/shuttle and play to your heart's content.

A welcome touch is that you can preserve the contents of the buffer as a recording should you decide it's worth keeping. Up to 999 recordings, initiated manually or using the 30-event/1-year timer, can be stored on the HDD. There's also an editing function for trimming off excess material, or copying a segment to a new file.

You can also use the Mediaport software (from Technisat's website) to transfer recordings (which are in standard transport-stream format) to a PC across the network, or from a PC to the S2x. MP3, JPEG and DVD-type VOB (MPEG-2) files are the only formats with which the HD-S2x is compatible; DivX and WMV aren't supported.

Networking also lets you access the receiver from any suitable internet-enabled device in the world, although for now this only extends to timer scheduling.

Performance

The HD-S2x may be fast at selecting channels – within a couple of seconds if it's on the current satellite – but searches are ponderous: an all-channels DVB-S/S2 search of Hot Bird clocked in at over 11 minutes. ITV HD is not receivable with the S2x, but reception of channels from a variety of different satellites proved reliable – even in damp weather.

The tuners are obviously up to scratch in sensitivity terms. In AV quality terms the HD-S2x also puts up a good showing. Pictures from Arte HD and BBC HD are sublime, intricate detail and impressive colour fidelity being only too apparent on the Full-HD Cineversum Paris projector we were fortunate to have in for testing at the same as well as our 32in Sony Bravia LCD.

Poor-quality SD channels (not Technisat's fault) remain just that. From MP3 files and digital TV alike, sound quality from both the analogue and digital outputs cannot be faulted. A final point to note is the relatively low power consumption.

Sagem DTR 67500 Eco review

The Eco credentials of this tuner are quite impressive at only 15W in operation

HD upscaling, recording exporting and multimedia playback make this a smart PVR

Over the past 12 months or so Sagem has been quietly ramping up the features in its Freeview PVRs while managing to keep down the price. The DTR 67500 Eco is a perfect example of this.

It has a 500GB hard disc capable of storing 250 hours of TV, Freeview+ certification (so supports series link and accurate recording) and HDMI out with upscaling yet still comes in at a reasonable £180 (a 320GB version, the 67320, is also available for £150).

The casing remains pretty much unchanged from the 67250. It's a step up from early Sagem Freeview recorders but the amber LED display (which shows the time when in standby) still looks a bit cheap. The Eco in the name refers to the fact that the receiver uses a reasonable 15W in operation and 2W when in standby.

Good connections

Connections include the HDMI, component video outputs, twin Scarts with RGB and composite out on each, plus S-video on the VCR Scart. There are also optical and coaxial digital audio outputs for digital audio. A front-mounted USB port is included for inserting FAT32 formatted flash drives and hard discs for importing and exporting MP3, JPEG and MPEG-2 files (recordings are stored as transport streams).

The remote is fairly unchanged from the 67250T with simultaneously coloured and lettered buttons frequently employed to make navigating the menus more intuitive. The EPG supports seven days of Freeview data displayed as a grid with the option to have the selected channel running in the top-left corner of the screen.

You can view data for TV and radio channels up to seven days in advance (skippable day by day) with programme synopses displayed in the top right. Or you can view lists of programmes by channel or filter the EPG to only show programmes of a certain type, favourite channels or channels of your choosing.

Sadly, as was the case with the 67250, the EPG is frequently sluggish in operation when you're recording at the same time. The programme information banner shows now-and-next data that can be expanded to give synopses. You can pick shows from the recording library without having to dip into the menus.

Recordings can be scheduled from the EPG and are added to the manually confi gurable timer menu which has single, weekly, daily and Monday to Friday/Saturday/Sunday options. You can record two channels at once and timeshift one while recording another or browsing the menus.

Recorded and timeshifted material can be fast forwarded and rewound at 4x, 10x or 60x, 300 or 600x normal speed. You can rename recordings, put them in folders, PIN-lock them and merge them into one file.

The recording format is the native transport stream (MPEG-2TS) equating to about 1.7GB an hour on average. Recordings can be exported to (and 'from' if you happen to have any transport stream files sitting around) USB connected drives. The receiver also plays back MPEG-2 files. There's no DivX or MP4 support, though this may be added as an update in future. Also playable are MP3 and JPEG files with playlist options for all.

Pictures from the 67500's tuners are decent if not exceptional. Upscaling helps to address incidences of artefacting but it's more of a case of smoothing the edges rather than delivering an enhanced feeling of crispness.

Nevertheless, the quality of recordings matches the original broadcast and we were able to play exported recordings on our laptop using VLC software. Audio performance is also sharp and clean, especially via the digital outputs, with high-quality MP3s rendered with faithful punch.

(Reviewed by Grant Rennell - What Satellite & Digital TV Issue 277)

Philips 32PFL9604 review

The 32PFL9604 uses Philips' Ambilight to great effect

Having produced some of the best TVs at this size in the past year, Philips is making the most of its glowing reputation with this feature-packed, aluminium-clad 32in TV. While the inclusion of Ambilight and wireless web browsing are the headline acts, the 32PFL9604 has got much more up its sleeve.

Features

It's exceptionally well connected, with Net TV being Philips' first foray into internet features. Unlike most sets that offer a ring-fenced platform on a wired ethernet connection, the 32PFL9604 can access the Net TV portal using Wi-Fi and even browse the internet at large.

Further digital niceties come in the form of DLNA networking (wired or wirelessly) from a PC, a USB port that plays video files and a stunning five HDMI inputs.

It all helps create a unique TV, but the engine room is elsewhere. On board is Philips' Perfect Pixel HD processing, which includes separate circuitry to improve contrast (Perfect Contrast), get rid of blur (100Hz Clear LCD) and lose judder (HD Natural Motion).

A staple of Philips TVs is Ambilight, which appears here in its Spectra 2 guise. It projects a dynamic light show onto surrounding walls that mimics the changing colours on screen.

Ease of use

Navigating the icon-based home page is a cinch, but finding what you want can be long winded. For example, switching the surround sound effect on or off during a movie takes so long that you will need to pause the disc.

We've also got issues with its major picture features, most of which are hidden away. The set really should come with a sheet of tips and hints on getting the best picture, especially since most of its excellent settings for Blu-ray and DVDs – HD Natural Motion and 100Hz Clear LCD – are not activated by default and can be tricky to find.

On the multimedia side, the 32PFL9604's USB slot can play MP3, JPEG and video files including MP4, MPEG and DivX, although the latter takes 15secs to load.

Those same files can be watched from a PC or Mac over a Wi-Fi network by simply entering your broadband router's WEP key, though loading times can become much longer.

Full Access

The remote for Philips' 32PFL9604 allows control over the TV's internet functions

The streamlined remote features a dedicated button to access the Net TV menus, which include icons for various content partners, including YouTube, a weather channel, internet radio and some simple gaming.

Loading times are reasonably fast, but not quite as impressive as Panasonic's Viera Cast. Manually entering web addresses is a pain, loading times are slow and no favourite sites can be set, but it's better than nothing.

Picture

The rich colour of The Matrix on BD hits you immediately, enhanced by Ambilight. As a fireball rips through the lobby in slo-mo, the vivid oranges and reds are stunning, as is the appearance on the wall behind the TV of a fierce glow.

Blacks are inky while containing loads of detail, as demonstrated by Neo's suit in an early scene. Perfect Contrast almost lives up to its name, though we did notice some light leakage from the top of the panel.



Domestic Bliss

The 32PFL9604's image quality and features list make it ideal for the living room

The helicopter scene atop a building shows off some terrific detail both in close-ups and surroundings, though as Trinity pulls Neo from the floor there are some noticeable artefacts around his shoulders and hair as he moves. The same flickers around moving objects are visible during the final scene where pedestrians walk past Neo as he leaves the phone box.

HD Natural Motion is the reason for this. Set it to its minimum setting and these artefacts become less noticeable, but they don't disappear entirely. Meanwhile 100Hz Clear LCD removes all but minute traces of blur. All in all, HD pictures are fabulous and unbeatable at this size.

The 32PFL9604 also makes a decent stab at upscaling our DVD of The Last Emperor, though even with MPEG noise reduction switched on there are jagged edges aplenty as the servants move around the Forbidden City, and a lot of picture noise in backgrounds.

It's a different story with Freeview, where some tennis on BBC2 reveals unusual depth, colour and contrast, with an odd shimmer of the net being the only issue.

With 15W speakers and two mid-bass drivers visible on the rear of the TV, it's no surprise that the 32PFL9604 serves up rounded audio, though its 'surround' mode is best avoided for dialogue-rich films.

The results from Blu-ray are something to behold and with Freeview also much stronger than on rival sets, the 32PFL9604 makes an ideal TV for the living room.

Gran Torino - DVD

Is there any kind of entry procedure for Mount Rushmore, or is it a closed shop and you have to be a long-dead president or summat? I’m just wondering, 'cos it’s clear there’s an argument that Clint Eastwood should be up there, something that Gran Torino backs-up in abundance.

Drawing upon that legendary Eastwood persona, here we find him playing Walt Kowalski, Korean war veteran and bang-up traditionalist, who just happens to look like he’s been hewn straight from the Easter Islands. Staunch advocate of moral values and respect he may be, but Walt’s also a racist curmudgeon from the top drawer.

Following the death of his wife, octogenarian Walt retreats into his shell, stopping merely to mow his lawn, tear strips off the local whippersnapper vicar, clean his beloved Ford Gran Torino and bemoan the influx of foreigners into his neighbourhood, in particular his new neighbours.

After the neighbours’ son Thao has a run-in with a local gang, Walt becomes an inadvertent hero when he gets all medieval on the punks for breaking his gnome. Lauded by the immigrant community and charmed by Thao’s forthright sister Sue, Walt’s bigotry thaws as he’s showered with more adoration than his own family can muster and display a respect for tradition and honour.

But sadly not everyone shares this, as the gang target Thao, evoking painful memories of Walt’s time in Korea, and causing him to take Thao under his wing and teach him how to "man up".

As the film progresses, Walt’s ill-temper is given shade, with his racial abuse serving not only as a tribal expression, but as a male bonding technique, a kind of industrial grounding he passes on. Walt is an arse, but one forged of experience rather than hatred.

Eastwood’s performance allows this to resonate so convincingly, showing a man who has the strength of his conviction, but also as a prisoner of his own beliefs. His physical on-screen presence is mighty, carrying the weight of both his heritage and his generation, with his withering disdain for what the world has turned out seeping from his every pore.

As director and producer, Clint shows a vision that makes his advancing years an irrelevance – Walt and Clint’s generation may be down on the modern world, but neither is afraid to admit they have exclusive ownership of the right way to live their life.

Win Teufel Speakers and Headphones

Although Teufel may not be a household name in the UK yet, in Germany it is considered a premium brand with over 30 years experience in making loudspeakers. Here at TrustedReviews we've looked at a fair few Teufel speaker sets, and have been impressed with the sound quality, design and solid build. Teufel will also deliver its speakers to your door, and allow you to audition them in your own home - if you then decide that they are not right for you, for any reason, Teufel will collect the speakers and refund your money.



So now we'd like to give you the chance to experience Teufel for yourself. One lucky winner will receive a set of Teufel Motiv 3 5.1-channel speakers. This set comprises five MO 3 FCR satellite speakers, which look as good as they sound. These round speakers are finished in glossy black and silver, and have a distinctly retro look to them. Each satellite is also supplied with a magnetic base, making it simple to place each speaker.


The A 300 SW subwoofer may not be the largest box available, but it complements the satellites perfectly, producing copious amounts of bass when needed, but never overpowering subtle effects in quiet scenes. The Motiv 3 speaker set will ensure that you get the best out of your DVD and Blu-ray soundtracks, for that true, immersive home cinema experience.

The first runner up will receive a set of Teufel's Concept C 200 USB multimedia speakers. If you spend a lot of your time working at your computer, this 2.1-channel set will let you blast some music out to help those hours fly by. And when you aren't working, you can fire up a movie or a game and treat yourself to some meaty sound effects to accompany the action.



With a USB port for a digital connection to your PC, you'll get the best possible sound from these speakers, while an analogue Aux input will let you hook up a second source too. There's also a desktop control with master volume, bass level control for the subwoofer, along with headphone and mic inputs.



Of course if you're not able to have your speakers blaring at your desktop, the second runner up prize will be perfect for you. The Teufel AC 9050 headphones are the perfect solution for anyone who wants to listen to music in an open plan office, or simply without disturbing others.


As well as being extremely comfortable, these headphones can also turn their hand to almost any genre of music. You also get an innovative removable cable system, along with both straight and coiled cables in the box.

JVC shows off super-slim 7mm LED-backlit TV at CEDIA

JVC's first LED-backlit telly breaks loose at CEDIA in London

Not one to be known for super-slim TV panels, JVC today showed off the LT-32WX50 LCD at the CEDIA show in London.

Measuring just 7mm thick - the company's slimmest TV to date - the 200Hz full HD LT-32WX50 is LED backlit with individual gamma adjustment, Photo Pro mode, and has a game mode with picture processing. It's the first 32-inch LED-backlit company the company has produced, and looked a treat at the CEDIA expo.

The contrast ratio is 4,000:1, and there’s two HDMI inputs, an RS-232C mini, PC input, Component and composite input, USB slot, and SD card slot.

Launching around October/November time, it should swing onto retailers’ shelves for around the £1,900 mark.

Link: JVC

Sharp develops Memory-LCD panel technology

AV giant creates ultra-low power graphics display

Sharp Microelectronics has developed a new LCD display technology with integrated memory, which it says can reduce power consumption by a factor of 130, compared to a standard LCD of equal size.

Memory-LCD panels feature an integrated memory chip at the back of each pixel cell. This means that instead of having to refresh the entire screen at a rate of 50- or 60-Hz, only those pixels where data changes are updated, effectively reducing the refresh rate to just 1Hz. This dramatically reduces the power requirement of the screen.

At the heart of the Memory-LCD is Polymer Network Liquid Crystal, a new reflective display technology that provides high contrast and wide viewing angles in high ambient light.

A prototype Memory-LCD panel featuring a small 96 x 96 monochrome display (pictured), measuring 1.35 inches, consumed only 15-microwatt in operation, compared to a conventional LCD which requires approx. 2-milliwatt to display the same image. The technology effectively enables a display to be powered by small solar energy cells.

Memory-LCD will debut in items such as watches and mobile devices early 2010, but its implications are wide-reaching. Products such as e-book readers and even TV displays could benefit from the eco-friendly tech.

Via Home Cinema Choice

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Philips 56PFL9954H 21:9 LCD TV review

Super-wide, ultra chic and devastatingly effective 1080p LCD

Widescreen is dead; long live Cinema 21:9. The Philips 56PFL9954H is a daring experiment in screen dimensions, designed to maximise the cinematic potential of hi-def discs while rewriting the rules on home entertainment.

There's a gunwale-bursting array of features at your disposal, the most obvious of which is that extra-wide screen. It is 21:9 (or 2.39:1, if you prefer), enabling it to display movies in the true-cinema aspect ratio in which most will have been shot, as opposed to the 16:9 compromise that has been the norm on standard widescreen televisions.

And, being wider than widescreen, the 56PFL9945H has an unprecedented horizontal resolution of 2,560 dots, which combines with a full HD vertical count of 1,080. All those dots are marshalled into line by the Dutch firm's Perfect Pixel HD processing Engine (with 200Hz scanning) and fed by no fewer than five HDMI inputs.

Ambilight Spectra 3

It also possesses the widgets that are now mandatory for any set with flagship aspirations that enable you to browse a limited selection of websites. The slender, but not ultra-thin, chassis also houses the Ambilight Spectra 3 sympathetic illumination system that has survived the gimmick-stage of its evolution to become a genuinely useful, and aesthetically pleasant, feature.

Bar None

Philips' Cinema 21:9 TV lets you see films in their intended aspect ratio without black bars taking up part of your screen

The back panel also carries a pair of rear-firing subwoofers to add an extra dose of low-end rumble to movie soundtracks.

Philips has re-imagined its traditionally tidy interface along similar lines to Samsung's tablet type graphics. Shaded, cool-blue pictograms are given a faintly ghostly, and really rather stylish, white halo. Many of the options are subtly animated with scrolling text and navigation, mostly by way of the directional keys on the impeccable remote's main disc, and so are effortlessly intuitive.

Settings assistant

Installation is quick and straightforward and, while videophiles will want to avail themselves of the reams of picture tweaks on offer, the technically timid will find quick and painless gratification in an efficient settings assistant.

This presents a series of still images divided into areas of more or less detail, higher or lower contrast and so on, and invites you to state your overall picture preferences. It's neat, foolproof and surprisingly effective. The attractive and satisfyingly weighty remote is also a pleasure to use, with a set of large, unambiguously labelled buttons and impeccable ergonomics.

Picture and audio performance

Total Control

The Philips' easy-to-use remote offers plenty of options to tame the giant screen

We're glad to report that the Cinema 21:9 is one of the best LCD TVs we've ever seen. We've marvelled at the detail, black levels and naturalistic colour palettes of countless displays over the years, but to have the best aspects of the finest sets all together on the first super-wide panel is truly exciting.

Picture performance

While this set is clearly destined for greater things, Freeview survives being blown up to 56in surprisingly well. It still looks fairly hideous, with blocking, digital mess and an ugly, garish set of hues on display, but it's nowhere near as vile as we've seen on many a smaller set.

Digital terrestrial, masked at both sides and stretched to its very limit, looks about as suitable on this chic, 21:9 set as dungarees at a black-tie dinner, and the sooner you switch to more refined DVD viewing matter, the better. Handling of DVD bears comparison with many sets' hi-def performance, with an almost uncanny crispness and fluidity of movement.

Blacks are solid and reach acceptable depths with adequate distinction between shades, although they fall just short of plasma-type depth. That's about all that's wrong with the picture, though, and switching to genuine hi-def is little short of breathtaking.


See Everything

With HD pictures, the 21:9 screen shows more detail than you could ever imagine

There is just so much picture to look at, for a start, however far back you sit and you'll find yourself gawping at different sections of the picture as your brain tries to take in the sheer breadth of it. It's fabulously detailed, superbly realistic and the overall experience is quite unlike anything we've seen outside an actual cinema.

Super-slim panels have been almost uniformly detrimental to flatscreen audio, and the Cinema 21:9's built-in subwoofers enable it to soar above the competition with a well rounded, faithful and genuinely muscular performance. It's still no match for a proper surround system, of course, with Virtual Dolby adding little worth having to the overall experience, but it is able to acquit itself nobly with movie soundtracks



Sound it out

Hidden just around the back are subwoofers that trounce the usual measly flatscreen TV audio

Four and a half grand is a lot of money, but then this is, in every sense, a lot of telly. It can be taken as read that this is not the sort of set you might buy on a whim from Currys on a Saturday morning, but if you are serious about video quality and have a substantial budget, then this set should be at the very top of your list.

Whether the 21:9 concept ultimately catches on or never develops into anything beyond a diverting curio remains to be seen, but for the time being this remarkable screen can consider its trail well and truly blazed.

Humax HDCI-5000 review

Humax's affordable FTA HD receiver is a great performer but we reckon that it's capable of more

In 2006, before Humax's HDCI-5000 was born, the HDCI-2000 was one of an elite breed. It wasn't the first FTA HD satellite receiver, but the 2000 could accommodate the cutting-edge H.264 and DVB-S2 standards.

You could use it to watch the BBC HD channel and also tune into the emerging European HD channels. Courtesy of its CI slots, the 2000 also made provision for European hi-def pay-TV.

The HDCI-5000 sells for about £100 less than its predecessor. The midi-sized 5000 is, alas, nowhere near as svelte in appearance, and the 2000's fluorescent display has been downsized to four green LED digits. In addition, you'll only find a single CI slot under the drop-down flap – the 2000 had two.

Front panel controls are minimal. There are no menu buttons, and so the blandly styled but solid handset is essential. And you'll need a PC to read the manual CD-ROM.

You get the (single-tuner) LNB input and output, component output, twin Scarts and optical digital output of the 2000, as well as its composite and analogue-audio socketry. Among these connectors is a switch that forces you to choose between component and RGB Scart.

Where the 5000 scores over the 2000 is in its provision of Ethernet connectivity. This terminal, which has so much potential, is described in the manual as a 'service port'. We hope Humax will do something useful with it in time.

GET CONNECTED: Humax have included an Ethernet port with the HDCI-5000, as well as the expected options like HDMI, component video and optical audio output

The 2000's RS232 port has gone AWOL. Humax has instead hedged its bets on the USB Host port – described in the manual as 'connecting to the USB memory or external HDD'. So can PVR functionality can be added?

Not at the moment. The USB port (also on the 2000) is currently provided for backing-up or restoring channel databases. No mention has been made of firmware upgrades here; these are (or will be) available over the air.

Setup

Unusually, the 5000 is compatible with SCD (Single Cable Distribution), a clever band-shifting system that allows up to eight receivers to be fed from a purpose-designed LNB via a single cable. SCD is one of the 'antenna type' options of the receiver's friendly 'setup wizard'. This also takes you through language, time-zone, default channel lists, dish configuration, initial searching and display configuration.

The wizard only covers simple DiSEqC switchboxes; further setup is necessary for motorised dishes. This wipes any previous searches from its memory; motorised dish users should cancel the search, let the wizard run its course and engage manual setup.

Which takes us to the slick and beautifully designed menu system, the options of which are divided among four groups. 'Preferences' looks after languages, time/ date and AV settings (such as Scart output, aspect-ratio, display mode and – if you're not using HDMI – lip sync correction).

From 'edit channels', you can delete, move, rename and restore channels. There's also the ability to import/export channel lists to/from USB – although we couldn't get this to work.

The third option is 'installation', and it's from here that your motorised dish is configured. From its 'edit satellite data' option, the satellites you can receive can be 'activated'. The DiSEqC positioner, which caters for 1.2 or USALS, is excellent – not only can you call on any positions residing in your mount's memory, but you have complete control over movement – continuous or (variable) steps in either direction. There's also a 'recalculate' function, and dish-limit setting.

You can search all transponders of the selected satellite, or just focus on one – it's also easy to define and store a new transponder for future searches. This is the closest the 5000 gets to manual searching. Parameters here are the expected frequency, polarity, symbol rate, modulation type (DVB-S or DVB-S2) and FEC. Disappointingly, no provision for PID entry has been made and blind-search is absent.

HD HAPPY: The HDCI-5000 had little trouble finding available HD channels, but Humax has yet to implement a workaround for accessing ITV HD

With a motorised dish searching couldn't be easier. You choose the satellite you want, the dish moves to the appropriate position, then you specify the terms of the search (free and/or encrypted, radio and/or TV) and off it goes. What a shame that automatic multi-satellite searches are not allowed.

Other installation menu options cover over-the-air firmware updates and a master reset. Finally, we have the 'system' menu, which reveals receiver and CI module status.

Navigation
Humax receivers traditionally score well in navigation terms, and the 5000 is no exception, owing to its fast channel-change and sensible use of the handset's coloured fast-text keys. Channels can be sorted alphabetically, or by conditional-access status.

Another press of a button and all available hi-def channels are listed. It's also easy to list all of the channels on a specific satellite. A pop-up menu activated by a press of the 'opt+' button allows you to delete, rename or lock channels. They can also be placed into one of the five favourites lists, each of which can be renamed. It's well designed.

Then there's 'i-Bar', Humax's name for the channel-information pop-up. This gives you channel/programme name, time/date, a programme-progress bar and HD/encryption status as well as signal strength and quality.

The EPG, which supports now-and-next and 7-day schedules, also employs the coloured keys to good effect. The default mode relies on the traditional grid format, which can simultaneously accommodate up to seven channels, but there's also a single-channel list view.

GREAT GUIDE: The HDCI-5000's EPG shares similarities with previous Humax receivers, making good use of the coloured remote keys and an 'i-Bar- for easy navigation

Owners of VCRs or DVD recorders can schedule programmes so that the receiver changes channel at the appropriate time. A useful 'quick browse' will let you hop around the schedules in speedy increments.

Then there's the three-step 'zoom', but the icing on the cake is a 'find' function. Enter a keyword, and programmes containing it are listed. To quicken the search a genre, day and approximate time frame can be chosen.

Performance and features

The 5000 has few gimmicks. There's no multimedia playback or 'picture freeze', and this receiver is the first we've come across in years not to include a Tetris clone or any other games. But you can arrange for the receiver to turn itself on at a specified time, switch to a channel of your choosing and then shut down again.

Rather more useful are two buttons marked 'v.format' and 'wide'. The first cycles through the various component/HDMI output modes (576i/576p/720p/1080i), while the second either expands the picture to fit the screen or displays in letterbox format.

This is particularly useful for HDMI because not all displays give you control over aspect ratio. If you're viewing a standard-def channel it's upscaled if a HD output mode has been selected.

Other features include teletext, subtitles and soundtrack selection (Dolby is supported). In performance terms, the 5000 scores highly. Searching is commendably fast; more than 1,700 Hot Bird TV and radio services were found in under four minutes by a tuner of above-average sensitivity.

While searching is fast, this receiver's inability to accept PIDs or conduct multi-satellite scans coupled with the lack of blind search will disappoint the enthusiast.

The 5000 found most hi-def services – BBC HD, Eins Festival and Luxe HD included – but ITV HD proved to be beyond its capabilities. A future firmware update – our test receiver had a very early version – will apparently address this.

Both picture and sound quality were first-rate, hi-def channels standing out with a rich visual texture and vivid, natural colour. By any standards, well-encoded standard-def programming fares well too, even with upscaling engaged. Sound quality, whether radio or TV, is detailed and clear.

If you're after a reasonably priced HD receiver and aren't bothered about the bells or whistles, the HDCI- 5000 is worth considering. We hope that improved firmware will fix some of our criticisms, especially the unused Ethernet port, underused USB, limited search capabilities and ITV HD incompatibility.

Panasonic DMR-BS850 Freesat Blu-ray recorder

They’ve had Blu-ray recorders in Japan for donkey's years, but the lack of free HD content in the UK has delayed their introduction here. But the emergence of Freesat - now a year old - has finally made Blu-ray recording a reality for us Brits, and naturally Panasonic is the company to make it happen given its previous pioneering exploits in the Blu-ray and Freesat markets.

The company has launched two Blu-ray/hard-disk combis - the top-end 500GB DMR-BS850 on test here and the 250GB DMR-BS750 - as well as a Freesat-equipped DVD/HDD model. At £1000 the BS850 isn’t cheap, but when you take a look at the vast array of features - many of which you won’t find anywhere else - it’s easy to see where your money is going.

The DMR-BS850 is the first hard-disk combi recorder to feature twin tuners, making it possible to record one channel while watching another, or record two channels while watching a previous recording. If you watch as much TV as we do, this will be music to your ears, and the presence of features like series recording makes it even more convenient to watch and record the programmes you love.

Because it’s equipped with Freesat tuners, you can receive high-definition programmes from BBC HD and ITV HD for free and record them directly onto the hard-disk. To do this, the unit uses a "DR" recording mode, which captures the raw bitstream (as well as subtitles and audio descriptions) rather than decoding it first. That means recorded pictures look identical to the live broadcast and subsequently allow you to make a pristine digital copy on Blu-ray.

That said, you can’t just make HD copies willy nilly. Broadcasters have the ability to flag high-def broadcasts and limit the number of copies that can be made. At present the BBC is flagging its programmes as "Copy Once" while ITV HDs are "Copy Never" although it’s by no means set in stone - there’s talk of BBC HD allowing unlimited copies later this year and ITV HD could have a change of heart. Until then, these restrictions could be a real turn off for people who like to share their favourite shows with family and friends.

When making a Blu-ray copy, the unit’s MPEG4 H.264 encoder can compress the file at a lower bitrate but retain its high-def resolution, which takes up less space on the disc without massively compromising on picture quality.

Although high-def recording is the BS850’s raison d'être, there are many more strings to its bow. It’s also a high-spec Profile 2.0 Blu-ray player, equipped with Panasonic’s lauded P4HD and PHL Reference Chroma Processor Plus technology, and it supports a healthy range of multimedia formats, including DivX, MP3, JPEG, AVCHD and SD Video. All of these, except DivX, can be copied to the hard-disk from USB or SD card (but not vice-versa), turning the BS850 into a multimedia hub, and it can even rip CDs and tag them automatically using the pre-installed Gracenote database.


Rear panel connections include HDMI, Component, S-Video and Composite video outputs, Scart input and output, two digital audio outputs and analogue stereo output. The Ethernet connection on the back not only allows you to download BD-Live movie extras but also lets you browse videos on YouTube or photos on Google Picasa through the Viera Cast feature. The Ethernet port will also provide access to the BBC iPlayer when it becomes available on Freesat later this year.

The BS850 isn’t a bad-looking machine around the front, with slim dimensions, a dark mirrored fascia and legible display panel. On the front you’ll find a USB port and SD card slot, a DV input for camcorder dubbing, plus S-Video, Composite and stereo audio inputs, reflecting the designs seen in Panasonic's DVD recorders in the past.

In action the BS850 is wonderfully intuitive, despite its potentially confusing array of functions. Channel tuning is quick and painless, while the onscreen displays like the EPG, Direct Navigator menu (where you find your recordings) and editing screens are straightforward. To cap it all, the button arrangement on the remote is superb.

High-def recordings from BBC HD look impeccable, with the BS850 retaining every last scrap of detail in the original broadcast. Programmes like Bleak House and Reggie Perrin are reproduced with mesmerising depth and clarity, while vivid colours blaze from the screen. HD recordings compressed to HL (the lowest-bitrate high-def recording mode) look sharp and natural, with fewer artefacts than we expected.
And its performance with pre-recorded Blu-ray discs is every bit as impressive as the DMP-BD60 and BD80, offering sharp and clean 1080/24p pictures that clearly benefit from P4HD’s awesome processing power. Even upscaled DVDs look incredible, with natural colour reproduction, remarkable detail retrieval and no edge artefacts to speak of.

The lack of multichannel analogue outputs on the back means you’ll need an AV receiver with HDMI inputs to enjoy Dolby True HD and DTS HD Master Audio tracks from Blu-ray. If you’ve got one, you’re in for a treat – the sound on offer is sharp, dynamic and fulsome. CD and MP3 playback are also hugely enjoyable.

Activision DJ Hero preview

If measured purely on the ‘hours of life wasted’ scale, Activision’s Guitar Hero World Tour was a clear winner of Stuff’s favourite game of 2008.

Clearly recognising that festival dance tents are as popular as the main stage, the US company has now crafted a version of the series for those who prefer spinning vinyl to shredding the fretboard.

Hit the decks
The final track listing for DJ Hero is, at the time of writing, still a mystery, but plenty of other details of how Guitar Hero’s simple but addictive gameplay will translate to the decks have emerged.

The decks themselves will have three buttons, each representing one note. This might seem like small beans compared to Guitar Hero’s five coloured buttons, but there are plenty more controls to fiddle with.

To win over the crowd, you’ll also need to adjust the crossfader at the correct moments and indulge in some scratching to rival Grandmaster Flash.

Euphoric moment
If that’s not taxing enough, there'll also be an effects dial, a rewind setting to loop back and replay sections of the songs and a version of Guitar Hero's 'star power' called 'euphoria'.

To whet your appetite, some of the track listing has been revealed by US mag Game Informer. So far, it includes mash-ups like Gorillaz’ Feel Good Inc. versus Marvin Gaye’s I Heard It Through The Grapevine and Nirvana’s All Apologies versus Rick James’ Give It To Me Baby, as well as unconfirmed tracks from Beastie Boys, Beck, Blondie and Billy Squire.

For an extended list of the tracks, check out our DJ Hero blog. Activision has promised at least 70 tracks in the final version – we’ll bring you more details and a hands-on video as soon as we get it later in 2009.

Pioneer LX-01BD review

For

>Fabulous Blu-ray player
>Build
>Iconic style
>Simplicity

Against

>Speaker position takes work
>No networking

I have always fancied a dodecahedron in the living room, but I confess I was thinking perhaps some objet d'art, or even a light fitting, rather than speakers. For it is an irregular 12-sided polygon (and no parrot jokes), upon which the satellite speakers of Pioneer's LX-01BD system is based.

The shape of the speakers comes from the precise angles needed to produce a phantom centre and reflected rear surround field from front-mounted speakers.

Pioneer is aiming this £2,000 system at the slick professional male archetype who would not want to compromise his Conran-inspired bachelor pad décor with speakers the size of VW Beetles or a rogue bolognese of speaker cable spaghetti.

In that respect the LX-01BD comprehensively outclasses its closet rival, Bose's identically-priced Lifestyle V30 system, in almost every respect.

The Pioneer is better looking, produces a much better picture, has Blu-ray rather than a DVD player, offers HD-audio decoding rather than just Dolby Digital, is packed with features and offers much deeper, faster bass.

The rival V30 has two things on its side, of course. Firstly Bose has trademarked the word 'Lifestyle' so it has the right to be officially called a Lifestyle system. Which probably means I can only say that Pioneer's is a system designed for a life full of style.

Secondly, own a V30 and all your friends will say 'Ooooohhhhh, Bose' and think you are cooler than a polar bear's ice lolly. Strange but true.

Mr Speaker

While the four satellites are actually best arranged in a surrounding square (the fronts producing a phantom centre), all four can also be placed up front. In this configuration they use reflected sound from their clever 12-sided joint shape to produce centre and rear effects.

The large but fairly slim subwoofer offers a lot more than it seems, too. Inside its immaculately-finished piano black exterior are six channels of amplification and all the Dolby and DTS format decoding any film fan could want, including the hi-res HD variations.

The Blu-ray player is a lightly disguised Profile 1.1 BDP-LX71, and connects to one of the sub's three HDMI inputs with a single HDMI cable for digital audio and video connections.

A slick-looking remote display handles all you IR interfaces, flashes lights at you at the relevant points and has a blue dot-matrix display to let you know what's going on.

Speakers connect to the sub cabinet with colour-coded push-fit plugs; if you have an iPod there is a docking cable supplied. Add to this Pioneer's excellent MCACC Room EQ and auto-set-up, complete with microphone, and the wicked touch-screen remote control, and you've got a system packed with style.

My first run of the setup, with speakers set on stands towards the room corners and the sub to one side, produced a wow-factor 'up-front' sound with the bass wound up so tight the sub threatened to leave the ground at the first explosion in The Dark Knight. Diving into the menus, I took 5dB from the sub level to regain a sensible neighbour-friendly balance before continuing the film.



Cream of the crop

The picture is typical of Pioneer's latest crop – that's to say, stunning. This is a company that has got Blu-ray player technology by the scruff of the transistors and is happy to show the world. Blacks are inky dark with masses of shadow detail and the colour range will stretch all but the best display devices

When running 1080p24 frames with The Dark Knight, the picture is an instant summary of all that's groovy about hi-def. The Pioneer's image is razor-sharp, crisp, detailed, scrolls like it's on rails and has a depth you want to step into.

Only Sony's BDP-S5000ES and Pioneer's own BDP-LX91 make really significant improvements over this image – and this from a packaged, all-in-one home cinema system designed to appeal to one's modern 'life style'.

It's no slouch on the sound front either. OK, the audio is not going to touch a mid-priced receiver and serious big-box speaker package for sheer presence and impact, but the spatial spread and clarity is definitely good. Helicopters pass tangibly overhead and the crack of gunfire has a deep, percussive impact.

Dialogue is a little less focused than ideal, but tweaking the centre level pulls speech up to give tighter enunciation and better projection. Wind up the volume and there is something disjointed about the overall soundfield, presumably due to the drivers firing in differing directions. Yes it is spacious and enveloping, but it isn't as cohesive as it could be.

Moving effect

Moving the speakers about changes this effect quite dramatically. Positioning close to a wall, perhaps on the rather swish supplied brackets, firms up the soundstage admirably. The Dark Knight's moody conclusion draws to a close with captivating intensity and plenty of emotion.

The final dialogue is focused while the pacey beat that precedes the titles thumps away with serious room-shaking intensity and speed.

Moving the rear speakers to the front is a surreal feat, not least because it gave me a fit of the giggles. Oh, how many times have I seen perfectly innocent mass-market customers assemble their Dixons-bought budget surround sound system with all the speakers in a line under the TV! Makes me chuckle every time, but now I'm not so sure, as the Pioneer's arrangement actually works – sort of.

The surround sound effect is vague and the result is very dependent on the relative position of side walls and heavy furnishings, but it has got a peculiarly solid feel, far wider and more entertaining than the simple stereo you'll get from your TV's own speakers.

Arranged at the front, the array is definitely at its best near to walls and positioned relatively close together. Initially placed either side of my 2.4m projector screen and less than 50cm from the side walls, the speakers threw the soundstage all over the place and the dialogue was lost somewhere in the neighbour's back garden.

Moving them closer – to around 1m apart – tightens up the dialogue focus and effectively used my evenly-spaced side walls to throw a surround sound effect to both sides of the sofa. Switching back to the helicopter scenes showed the limitations of the system – the movement being an ambient effect rather than a precise location-based one – but the overall balance and punch remains pleasantly potent.

Sophisticated system

The LX-01BD won't give you high-end home cinema thrills, but I just can't deny it does what it aims to do rather well. The picture is excellent and without peer against any similar solution on the market; the sound does the job with more conviction and punch than most.

And the product's real magic lies in its sophisticated integration, low cable count and flexible features. If spousal pressure or a house full of errant kids put a full-size speaker array out of the question, then Pioneer's LX-01BD is the perfect alternative

Denon RCD-M37DAB review

For
> Warm and energetic sound

>Decent quality components

Against
>Button and GUI layout

>Slow FM tuning

There's lots on offer for the price with the M37

Very much the baby brother on price grounds, the Denon RCD-M37DAB's physically diminutive system still packs plenty of features into its chassis.

In fact, the list very closely matches that of the Arcam Solo Mini, though the Arcam has a couple more line inputs and Denon's mono line output is unique. That being the case, one naturally looks for signs of corner cutting or cheese-paring to explain how Denon managed to offer so much for so little.

Impressively, there's not very much to give it away. The mains transformer is a frame type and slightly smaller than Arcam's, while the power amplifier is a single stereo hybrid circuit offering about the same output. But there's the same complement of separate DAB and FM/AM tuners, in addition to the CD transport, USB socket and iPod control port (adapter required).

Assembly is on several circuit boards carefully shoehorned into place and component quality is certainly nothing remarkable, though it's decent enough.

The user interface was, for us, something of a drawback: we like the rotary volume knob, but the layout of the function buttons seems a little arbitrary and some functions are awkward to use and access – FM tuning is a low point, being just gruesomely slow from the front panel or remote.

It's not always clear what menu options are on offer, due to a combination of inefficient use of the display and rather unclear instructions, but we got round it all in the end.

This system is very much of a piece with the matching loudspeakers and certain functions are optimised for them, notably frequency response.

The tone controls have a clever twist which will help protect any small loudspeakers, in that boost settings have no effect at high volume control settings, while 'Super Dynamic Bass' is a digital-age version of the old 'Loudness' control which boosts bass at low volume settings – of course this sort of thing is much easier to do when everything is digitally controlled.

Sound quality

To our listeners, there seemed to be quite a lot going for this unit, in a rather individual kind of way. In fact, it appears that Denon has pulled off a very smart trick in providing sound that grabs the listener on first hearing, but doesn't wear thin after a few minutes.

Starting with an old favourite from Michael Jackson, the sound was quite energetic and driving in the bass, and seemed a little warmer overall than previous systems had made it. While detail was a touch soft, there was still plenty of atmosphere to both music and special effects.

The very bright tones of Miles Davis and colleagues were, perhaps, slightly less edgy than usual, but it made the track easier to listen to and digest. There's clearly an issue here of 'active' versus 'passive' listening – Davis was an uncompromising individual and probably wouldn't have approved of his music being repackaged for the background, but the fact remains that our listeners nevertheless found it involving and a sound of this nature has its place in a domestic environment.

In the two classical tracks we used – both of them naturally miked and with wide dynamics – the sound seemed a little less assured in the bass and some lack of detail was noted. All the same, image depth was fairly good and the music had a good sense of flow that maintained a pleasing degree of realism.

Much the same could be said of the DAB and FM sources: they're respectable and certainly get the fundamentals well sorted. Little in our listeners' notes would make anyone think this the most accurate system in the group, but it's clear it is a more-than-competent musical performer.

Cambridge Audio One review

Believe it or not, Cambridge Audio’s been developing the One micro hi-fi for about four years. Was it worth the wait? Almost. ?The unit isn't ugly, but it's not quite beautiful either: an abundance of buttons and sockets makes it look cluttered. Still, it feels solidly made and the display is bright and clear.

Impressive speakers
We partnered it with Cambridge’s excellent S30 speakers (which cost an extra £120). Handily the One already comes bundled with a stylish dock, and connected iPods can be operated using the remote.

The bundled dock looks good and feels solid. As is so often the case, it’s not designed specifically for iPhone, so you’ll have to put one on Airplane mode to avoid feedback.

The Cambridge has lots of useful connections like an SD card slot, USB port and MP3 aux-in. They’re sensibly positioned on the front for easy access, too.

There are even more connections on the back, including two stereo inputs, one output and a subwoofer out to keep the big bass lovers happy, and the speaker terminals are the standard banana-plug type.

Upper bass issue
Sound quality is impressive and well balanced. There's great clarity and focus in vocals, and the treble is sweet and detailed.

It’s extremely listenable all-round, but the very best micro hi-fis – such as
Denon’s D–M37DAB – offer just a tad more excitement and attack.

The One also has a strange gap in the upper bass frequencies, which means that although deep bass is nice and chunky, the slightly higher bass of most rock and pop is a bit too subdued.

Having said all that, in isolation it would be hard to fault the One – it’s just that the brilliance on offer elsewhere means we have to be extra picky.

Brennan JB7 160GB review

Launch price £418 incl. speakers

Micro hi-fis are a great option if you’re still buying CDs, but what if you’ve been completely converted to the digital world? The JB7 from English hi-fi specialists Brennan could be the answer.

The tiny, bright-blue casing of the Brennan JB7 isn’t the only way it stands out from the crowd – the real headline is the built-in hard disk and CD ripping feature.

Ripping point
Pop a CD into the sleek slot-loader and it’ll rip it at 12-times playback speed. By default it rips into 192kbps MP3, but you can change this to 128, 320 or uncompressed.

Using our preferred rate of 320kbps still allows you to store 1,000 CDs on the 160GB HDD, and there are 80GB and 320GB versions available, too.

Ye olde database
Unfortunately the built-in CD database is quickly out of date. You can manually input track details but the irritatingly small, cluttered remote makes this tedious. While the buttons have surprisingly satisfying travel, there’s just too many of them.

Brennan will send you a database update CD, but this costs a fiver each time. Surely an Ethernet connection or database download from the website isn’t too much to ask for?

Plug and play
Luckily it’s more user-friendly in other ways. You can transfer music from your computer to the JB7, complete with track details, using the front-mounted USB socket, and there are also aux-in, line-out and headphone sockets on the back.

Hit the Next button and the Brennan will also turn on and automatically start playing your entire music collection on shuffle – perfect for when you just need some background tunes.

Enjoyable listen
The other good news is that the JB7’s an entertaining listen, with decent balance through the tonal range, tight bass, and nice dynamics. It’ll go loud without sounding shocking, too.

There’s a little bit of clatter in the treble, but given the fun, unique nature of the wee beasty, we’re still very keen on it.

Brennan’s speakers add just £60 to the JB7, but they also cause occasional harshness in the treble. If you can stretch your budget a bit, pick up a pair of £99 Roth OLi1s instead – they’re more exciting but also more controlled at the top.

Panasonic TH-65VX100 review

Pros

Black depth and contrast ratio. Great colour realism and accuracy. Adjustable,
flexible design. Sheer size

Cons

Sheer size. Price. Purist design is light on features

Panasonic’s new TH-65VX100 is a TV of extremes in every sense. It’s huge, for one thing – a 65in screen is some size even in the modern market, and that 69kg weight isn’t to be sniffed at either.

The price is equally eye watering: at a suggested £8,000, this set costs substantially more than many of the best 60in sets on the market.

Blank canvas
But you get plenty to play with to sweeten the deal, right? Nope: it’s stripped for action, resolutely focused on delivering the maximum possible picture performance.

There’s nary a trace of a widget or a fancy adaptive backlight – in fact, there aren’t any loudspeakers, and you don’t even get a TV tuner.


That’s because this set isn’t part of Panasonic’s Viera range of flat TVs: instead, it’s sold as part of the company’s professional operation, and so is aimed squarely at an enthusiast, home cinema-orientated audience.

Tailor-made telly
That means you can specify it to suit your needs with various input boards (ours had four HDMIs, for example) but at the same time, you don’t pay for features you won’t need or use, such as speakers.

Of course, you’ve a right to expect a good picture as compensation for all this hair-shirted purism: happily, the TH-65VX100 delivers that in spades.

Naturally, it’s a Full HD, 1920x1080 panel, featuring a new-generation plasma panel with a dramatic 60,000:1 claimed contrast ratio, a wider colour gamut and extraordinarily powerful 18-bit digital signal processing, able to deliver 7,160 steps of light-to-dark gradation. We can’t think of a TV that allows more adjustability, either: the on-screen options are amazingly complete.

Excellent picture quality
In action, the Panasonic’s picture quality is just wonderful. Detail is beautifully sharp and well-resolved, even with rapid motion, and textures are exceptionally convincing.

Black levels are brilliantly inky and consistent, too – only Pioneer’s Kuro plasmas rival the depth and sheer drama here.