Unique Wiring Solutions, Inc | AV Blog
Audio / Video Installation Blog & News
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YouTube going 1080p
November 16th, 2009
Paul B
YouTube’s Co-founder Steve Chen announced the release of new 1080p player last week at the NewTeeVee Live conference in San Francisco. It should be available within the next few days, my guess is before the end of November. The idea for the player’s 1080p capability sprung from the increased production of “connected TV displays”. The only questionable aspects are bandwidth capability. Lower bandwidths may cause loading lags and pixelation of the content. So before you decide on the new plasma or LCD, make sure to consider the YouTube capable TV. Also, many BluRay players are already YouTube ready.
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Ultimate Tailgating Trailer – Now At Your Local Sam’s!
August 23rd, 2009
Paul B
If you absolutely need to impress your buddies this football season, this “Brat-Shack” will turn heads whether you are in a Soldier Field parking lot or in your own driveway.
Were you looking for an ultimate “Man-Cave” on wheels? Sam’s Club could be your last stop. Tailgating Innovations 7.5′ x 12′ Big Cook features a 52″ Sony Bravia LCD HDTV, an additional 19″ Sharp LCD HDTV, 5.1 Sony Home Theater System/DVD Combo, slide out 1000 sq in event propane grill. bathroom and sink, 2.7 cu ft refrigerator, 1/2 Barrel Keg Cooler. Rear and side doors allow easy access, and interior cabinets provide organized storage. The trailer also features electrical outlets w/ 30 amp breaker box & 25′ shore cord, internal E-tracks for secure hauling, internal lighting, smooth aluminum exterior and aluminum wheels w/ spare tire and wheel.
How much does it cost? A mere $35,000 (shipping included).
via Sam’s Club.
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Sony Walkman X: Superior Hardware, Inferior Software
August 19th, 2009
Paul B
College is the perfect time to experiment with strange new things. Why not start with a portable media player that isn’t made by Apple?
On the surface, the most unsexily monikered NWZ-X1051 is everything we’d expect from Sony’s next-gen Walkman. It covers the obvious bases (music), sprinkles in some goodies (video playback), and caps it all off with a bright 3-inch OLED touchscreen (fancy!).
As a music powerhouse, the X1051 definitely makes the grade. In addition to supporting the standard file types, Sony threw in both FM radio and internet radio chops, courtesy of Slacker. Although these are great additions in their own right, they made for awesome additions to the X1051’s MP3 chops. Tired of listening to your English Lit lecture? Pop on some tunes. Sick of your selection? Try the radio. No luck there? Then fire up your own personalized radio station via Slacker. With all these options at our disposal there was rarely a moment where we weren’t bumping tunes.
Sony took a similar multi-tiered approach to the video. Not only did the X1051 play back our H.264, MPEG-4 and WMV video files, but it also has YouTube access baked in (Wi-Fi permitting). Though the quality of web video was a bit herky-jerky, it was definitely on par with other mobile devices we’ve used. Otherwise, locally stored video clips ran smoothly and looked great on the 432 x 240 screen.Unfortunately, the biggest hitch was the web browser. Smallish icons and hyperlinks made navigating with the touchscreen a chore, and for some reason the proprietary browser would slap some funky formatting on the occasional (cough, Wired.com). This was a bit of a downer given the otherwise well-appointed X1051, but ultimately a small price to pay given all the included goodies and the iPod-taunting price point.
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Motorized TV Mounting Solutions
August 19th, 2009
Paul B
Possibilities are endless when it comes to motorizing and/or concealment of your flat panel.
Below are a few examples what you can do to make all your friends jaws hit that hardwood floor of yours.
Read the rest of this entry »
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Logitec makes routers fashionable again with ultraslim LAN-W300N/R
August 17th, 2009
Paul B
Logitec makes routers fashionable again with ultraslim LAN-W300N/R
It’s part PS2 Slim, part AspireRevo. And according to Logitec, the LAN-W300N/R is the company’s thinnest 802.11n router ever. Measuring just 7 millimeters thick at its thinnest and 24 millimeters thin at its thickest, this ultra-glossy wireless router packs a pair of inbuilt antennas, four LAN ports, a WAN socket and an AC input. Beyond that, the device seems relatively unmoving, with a ¥9,100 ($95) price tag and a late August release over in Japan.
via www.engadgethd.com.
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TiVo turns on custom RSS video feed support
August 17th, 2009
Paul B
More than a year after dropping video podcast support into TiVo Desktop 2.6, the company will let users download them directly to their Series3, TiVo HD and HD XL set-top boxes.
This allows expansion beyond its own directory of web videos, allowing users to stream instantly, download a single episode, or setup a Season Pass (subscription) and download them automatically. As Dave Zatz points out the press release mentions supporting h.264, but offers no specifics on resolution or bitrate. Check out TiVo’s site for more info on setting it up either through the box or creating a compatible feed, and let us know if your preferred web series are working yet.
via www.engadgethd.com.
