Reviews, Articles, Ratings and Comparisonsen-usWed, 07 Jan 2009 02:28:16 CSTWed, 07 Jan 2009 02:28:16 CSThttp://www.televisioninfo.comhttp://www.televisioninfo.com/content/Gallert-Yest.htmJust before CES 2009 is ready to kick off JVC has decided to take the wraps off a prototype that it\'s calling the lightest 32-inch LCD HDTV ever. They\'ve achieved the feat by moving a lot of the components off of the TV itself to a separate box. In what looks like a trend leading up to CES this year JVC is also pushing the green angle here with 50% fewer materials going into the HDTV. [Via Gizmodo]http://www.televisioninfo.com/content/JVC-Shows-off-lightest-LCD-ever-717.htmNetflix has been remarkably aggressive about getting their streaming content into your living room via set top boxes like the Roku or Xbox 360, but it looks like you won\'t even need those to get your Netflix fix if you purchase a new LG HDTV. LG is announcing that they will be releasing a lineup of Plasma and LCD televisions at CES this week that will come with built-in support for streaming Netflix content. As you would expect HD Netflix content is also supported and you\'ll be able to control video playback with your TV\'s remote. We\'re sure this is just the next step in what has been an accelerating move towards getting streaming internet video on your HDTV. Macworld is happening this week too so we\'ll see if Apple has any updates to their Apple TV to compete with Netflix\'s burgeoning selection of straight to the television streaming options. [Via Engadget HD]http://www.televisioninfo.com/content/LG-HDTVs-to-stream-Netflix-715.htmRumors are abounding that Samsung will be revealing a 6.5mm thin HDTV at CES this year. If true this would represent the thinnest HDTV ever, but we\'ll have to wait until Samsung officially reveals their lineup this Wednesday for confirmation. [Yahoo Tech via Engadget HD]http://www.televisioninfo.com/content/Samsung-to-reveral-6-5mm-HDTV-at-CES--713.htmhttp://www.televisioninfo.com/content/test-gallery.htmThe Panasonic TC-37LZ85 is a 37-inch LCD HDTV that sits at the lower end of the price range for televisions in its class. Available for as little as $900 the Panasonic TC-37LZ85 offers a full HD experience with a 1080p resolution. It also offers a few nice extras like an integrated memory card slot for viewing your photos. Of course the most important thing about any HDTV is how well it displays your picture. Read on to find out how the Panasonic TC-37LZ85 performs.http://www.televisioninfo.com/content/Panasonic-TC-37LZ85-LCD-HDTV-Review-705.htmBlack Friday 2008 is upon us and we\'re here to bring you all the best HDTV deals we can find. Click through to see all of the HDTV deals we\'ve been able to find, and don\'t forget to read our reviews before you go shopping.http://www.televisioninfo.com/content/Black-Friday-2008-HDTV-Deals-702.htmWe were quite impressed with the 47-inch XVT when we looked at it in our review, and for those who were waiting for a larger screen you can now get 55-inch hotness with the XVT\'s goodies like 120Hz Smooth Motion, 50,000:1 contrast ratio and five HDMI ports. The XVT series is a great value, as we mentioned in our review of the SV470XVT. [Via Engadget HD]http://www.televisioninfo.com/content/Vizio-introduces-a-55-incher-into-its-XVT-lineup-701.htmApple has released an update for their less than impressive set top box (the Apple TV if you don\'t know). The update adds several long awaited features (note: sarcasm implied), including the ability to have universal remotes and viewing of iTunes playlists in the Apple TV interface. We should note, however, that if you have attempted to actually make the Apple TV useful by installing a third party interface like Boxee this update will cause Boxee to stop working. We\'ll let you make your own call on whether iTunes playlists are worth it. [Via Engadget HD]http://www.televisioninfo.com/content/Apple-TV-update-does-nothing--or-just-about----700.htmSilicon Mountain\'s got some slick new HDTVs for those who love all-in-ones. The Allio HDTVs are currently available in 32-inch and 42-inch sizes and pack a 1080p HDTV and a full computer with Blu-Ray drive and hard drives up to 1TB running Windows Vista Home Premium, which comes with all the media center goodies you might want. We have to admit, as hard core geeks these things make us salivate a bit. And why invest in the ultimate home theatre/pc setup when you can make one low payment of between $1600 - $2800 to get it all at once? [Via Engadget HD]http://www.televisioninfo.com/content/Allio-all-in-one-PC---HDTV-698.htmThe Samsung LN32A450 is a 32-inch LCD HDTV that\'s available for as little as $600, making it an attractive options as an entry-level HDTV for many. Although it qualifies as a high definition television it has a lower 720p resolution than the highest resolution 1080p televisions that are currently available, not uncommon amongst smaller HDTVs. We did not find that this had a significant impact on the Samsung LN32A450\'s performance. In fact we were pleasantlly surprised at how well the HDTV performed in many of our tests.http://www.televisioninfo.com/content/Samsung-LN32A450-LCD-HDTV-Review-695.htmWe decided to watch the election coverage in style here at the Televisioninfo.com offices: on 4 TVs at once. From the left we have the 32-inch, JVC LT-32P679, a rather old and cranky Hitachi  projection TV, the Vizio V047L and the Samsung LN32A450, which we are currently reviewing. the first three are being driven off a Comacst HD cable connection, while the Samsung is connected to a Laptop over a VGA connection. For those tedious moments imbetween results and concession speeches, the Vizio is also connected to an XBox 360.http://www.televisioninfo.com/content/How-Televisioninfo-com-Is-Watching-The-Election-693.htmThere\'s no question that OLED technology is the future of displays, most importantly because they will allow us to get displays in all kinds of new places. Not sure where? Samsung\'s pushing the envelope with both a paper thin OLED display and embedded OLED displays in windows. Gizmodo\'s got some great pictures of both, so head on over and check it out.http://www.televisioninfo.com/content/Cool-things-you-can-do-with-OLEDs-690.htmNetflix has had a busy week. First up was an announcement that they would be bringing their streaming video service to Macs, with the service now in closed Beta but expected to be available generally by the end of the year. Netflix will be using Microsoft\'s Flash competitor Silverlight to allow Mac users to stream Movies and TV shows from their website. You will need to be a Netflix subscriber to use the service, of course. [via: Boy Genius Report] Netflix also announced that they would be bringing their streaming video service to Tivo set top boxes as well. Tivo has previously had partnerships with Amazon\'s Unboxed service to provide downloadable Movies and TV shows, the streaming Netflix service now gives Tivo users even more options to get onlline content onto their HDTVs. [via: Engadget HD] Last up is word that Netflix will begin streaming HD video to Xbox 360s, which had previously already supported standard definition streaming. I\'m sure that Tivo and Mac users hope that HD streams come to their devices soon as well. [via: Gizmodo]http://www.televisioninfo.com/content/Netflix-aims-to-take-over-the-world-689.htmThe JVC LT-32P679 is a 32-inch, entry-level LCD HDTV, available for as little as $600. As befits an entry-level television the JVC LT-32P679 does make some compromises. The 720p resolution is lower than higher-end 1080p sets, for example. Still, it\'s in the prime price range for those who are looking to pick up their first HDTV for a reasonable price. The question is whether that price hides fatal flaws or a great value.http://www.televisioninfo.com/content/JVC-LT-32P679-LCD-HDTV-Review-684.htmAn interesting study indicates that your dreams are influenced by the TV you watch. Respondents to the survey who grew up watching black and white TV were over five times more likely to dream in black and white than those who grew up in the color era. Chock up another point for those who think we watch too much TV. [Via: Gizmodo photo by: Chor Ip]http://www.televisioninfo.com/content/Color-of-your-TV---Color-of-dreams-683.htmThe ongoing effort by the MPEG-LA consortium to get HDTV suppliers to pay licensing fees for their Mpeg-2 patents. The issue here is whether companies that rebrand HDTVs, DVD players and other equipment that uses Mpeg-2 need to pay licensing fees even if the original manufacturer has already paid the licensing fee. Target\'s move to reach an agreement with the MPEG-LA consortium is another victory for that group, while others like Vizio still hold out. [Via: Engadget HD]http://www.televisioninfo.com/content/Target-agrees-to-pay-licensing-fees-to-MPEG-LA-680.htmSharp has been known for its hybrid DVD/HDTV units and it looks like its moving into the Blu-Ray game with itx DX LCD lineup, which will now be available with built-in Blu-Ray players. The DX range will include sizes from 26 to 52 inches with smallers sets sporting 720p resolution moving into full 1080p on the larger ones. Prices will range between $1600 and $4900. [Akihabara News via Gizmodo]http://www.televisioninfo.com/content/Sharp-releasing-lineup-of-Blu-Ray-capable-HDTVs-665.htmThe Vizio SV470XVT is an entry-level 47-inch LCD HDTV. Available for around $1400 it sports some high-end features like 120Hz refresh rate. We found the Vizio SV470XVT performed admirably in most of our tests and should represent a good value for most people looking for a budget TV in this size range.http://www.televisioninfo.com/content/Vizio-SV470XVT-LCD-HDTV-Review-660.htmIn the latest sign that the place you\'ll be getting your content for your HDTV is probably going to change significantly over the next decade or so Netflix has announced that they have signed deals with CBS and Disney to distribute their content. The TV shows will be available 24 hours after the show airs for any Netflix subscriber that qualifies for their free streaming video service. Your can get Netflix onto your HDTV using Roku or an Xbox 360. The quality still isn\'t up to par, in fact it\'s quite poor right now, but you can bet that this sort of content delivery system is the future. [Wall Street Journal via Gizmodo]http://www.televisioninfo.com/content/Netflix-streams-TV-from-CBS-and-Disney-658.htm