CEDIA

September 2007—At the recent 2007 CEDIA Show in Denver, Colorado, Tributaries debuted two new ranges of cables destined to redefine the high-end value/performance connectivity category. The Tributaries® Series 9 and Series 7 families of interconnects will extend its reputation for quality still higher with designs suited to the most demanding audio and home-theater systems and installations.

“There are a lot of very expensive cables out there,” says Joe Perfito, President of Tributaries®. “But few if any can match the new Series 9 and Series 7 for thoroughness of engineering and quality of construction—and we know for certain that none can approach their value. Everything we’ve learned in more than 15 years of cable and connector design is reflected in these products, and we’re proud of them. We fully expect these new Tributaries to take their place at the top of the cable and interconnect world.” Read more

September 2007— Bowers & Wilkins’ Custom Theater lineup, which brought the world-standard performance of B&W’s 800-series Nautilus™ designs to high-end custom-installed home theaters, created quite a stir upon its introduction two years ago. The British maker unveiled a new, more widely accessible Custom Theater lineup at the 2007 CEDIA Expo in Denver, Colorado. B&W’s CT700 Custom Theater lineup is more modest in enclosure size, and considerably more modest in price than the frankly cost-no-object Custom Theater 800 range—yet it delivers precisely the same kind of jaw-dropping sonic impact, timbral and dialog integrity, and sonic transparency as its larger siblings.

The CT700 comprises three different front/surround-channel options, 10-inch and 12-inch subwoofers, plus an outboard, rack-mounted subwoofer amplifier of 1,000 watts. All five 700-series loudspeaker elements are finished in a durable matte black, being intended for custom-installed concealed locations behind acoustically transparent screens, in custom cabinetry, or built into custom theater partitions. (To facilitate such designs, maximum depth of all CT700 models is 10.5 inches.) Read more

Sept. 6 /PRNewswire/ -- Panasonic, the market and technology leader in Plasma HDTVs, announced today at the opening of the 2007 CEDIA convention, that it has expanded its already industry leading line of 1080p High Definition Plasma TVs, to include two new, more affordable models -- the TH-42PZ77 and the TH-50PZ77. Scheduled to ship this month, the new 42-inch and 50-inch class Plasmas have SRPs of $1799.95 and $2799.95 respectively.

The introduction of the PZ77 series increases Panasonic's already deep line of 1080p Plasmas to eight -- the widest selection of Plasma TVs in the industry -- and further demonstrates Panasonic's industry leadership and cutting edge technology in big screen Plasma entertainment. The two new 1080p TVs join the critically acclaimed 700 and 750 series providing consumers with a wide selection of Plasmas with the highest, to date, possible resolution. Panasonic's top rated Plasmas are available in 42-inch, 50-inch, 58-inch and 65-inch class models, all of which include the unique SD memory card slot, a feature that allows consumers to view images from an SD Memory Card on the big screen Panasonic Plasma, rather than the camera's small screen or a computer monitor. Read more

September 6, 2007--Pioneer Electronics (USA) Inc. unveils a sophisticated collection of new product offerings at the Custom Electronic Design & Installation Association (CEDIA) Expo this week that reinforces its position as the quality leader in home theater entertainment. Pioneer® distinguishes itself among discerning entertainment junkies with technology-rich audio and video components as well as new music devices that elevate home entertainment to new levels. With robust customization and integration capabilities, home theater professionals can confidently design an array of high performance theater systems with these new Pioneer products. The Pioneer booth #740 will utilize visually stimulating imagery from its newly launched advertising campaign. Read more

Sept. 6, 2007 – The second-generation dual-format LG Super Blu™ Player and new 1080p HDTVs enhance LG Electronics' robust, premium and innovative product line demonstrated here this week at the Custom Electronic Design and Installation Association (CEDIA) EXPO 2007 (booth #720).

Ranked by integrators as one of the top three preferred brands for flat-panel displays,* LG Electronics has expanded its LCD HDTV line to include displays in sizes that span 20 to 52 inches. Read more

September 6, 2007--Sharp introduces the new slim-profile AQUOS® BD player, model BD-HP20U, the company’s first offering in the U.S. market and first U.S. product outside of the Sharp LCD suite to carry the AQUOS name. Combining full digital 1080p video output with an AQUOS HDTV Liquid Crystal Television, the BD-HP20U allows consumers to view the latest high-definition films as well as enhanced definition titles in stunning high-definition quality.

“Consumers have become comfortable watching high-definition programming, and now they want to transform their entire home theater experience into high-definition,” said Bob Scaglione, senior vice president and group manager, Product and Marketing Group, Sharp Electronics Corporation. “Our new Blu-ray disc player produces a breathtaking and vivid picture with enhanced audio quality that closely mimics a true cinematic experience.” Read more

September 6, 2007 -- Hitachi America, Ltd. today announced the company will be showcasing the recently announced Reel60 technology, Blu-ray camcorder and televisions from its fall line up at the upcoming CEDIA Expo 2007 in Denver. In addition to the new televisions and camcorder products and the launch of a new campaign, Hitachi is realigning its sales strategy to focus on the custom install community. This new direction is part of Hitachi’s commitment to provide accessible luxury to consumers.

Hitachi is revamping its entire go-to-market strategy for its Director’s Series televisions to embrace the custom channel with programs suited to the custom specialist. To implement the new strategy and provide best-in-class service at the same time, Hitachi has recruited a national network of manufacturer’s representatives to provide face to face account service, training and sales support. The reps will work alongside Hitachi’s Regional Sales Managers on a direct basis with custom installers, something no other major flat panel TV line is doing. In addition, Hitachi is suspending all distribution of its Director’s Series line, selling it on a direct to dealer basis only. Read more

September 6, 2007 -- Panasonic Projector Systems Company, Unit of Panasonic Corporation of North America, today announced the debut of its newest LCD home theater projector with 1080p (1,920 x 1,080 pixel) native resolution: the PT-AE2000U. Designed for savvy home theater enthusiasts and audio video professionals who desire an immersive home entertainment viewing experience, the new projector delivers 1080p images with a carefully-tuned lens system to reproduce remarkable detail and clarity with 1,500 lumen brightness and 16,000:1 contrast ratio.

The new PT-AE2000U model is the next evolution of its predecessor, the PT-AE1000U, which has been widely accepted and used to display professional movies. The new projector reproduces the original picture quality intended by Hollywood movie and television directors – all within the comfort of consumers’ home theaters. Read more

September 6, 2007--Samsung Electronics America, Inc., a world-leading manufacturer of professional LCD and PDP display products, today unveiled the SP-A800B projector, a premium projector that enhances the home theater experience by delivering film-like picture quality in high-definition 1080p. A selection of Samsung’s home theater offerings, including the SP-A800B, will be on display at the CEDIA Expo 2007, in the Samsung booth, SR-10, at the Colorado Convention Center, September 5-9.

With the SP-A800B, home theater enthusiasts are able to watch their favorite films in the comfort of their own living and media rooms without compromising on picture quality. The SP-A800B leverages an advanced 1080p DLP engine to deliver a level of color and image quality that is traditionally only found in studio-grade monitors and commercial movie theaters. In addition to its native resolution of 1920 x 1080, the SP-A800B features an impressive 95% aperture ratio and a fast 16 microsecond (0.016 millisecond) response time to further facilitate accurate and natural motion graphics. Furthermore, the SP-A800B projector features a contrast ratio of 10,000:1, providing for darker shades of blacks and achieving an image closer to what is originally intended by the filmmaker. Read more

September 6, 2007 – At the CEDIA show, Toshiba announced two additions to its premium REGZA LCD HDTV line. The new 1080p Full HD models feature the latest high quality video and audio features offered by Toshiba and the “World’s Thinnest LCD TV Bezel” measuring less than 1” wide, offering more screen in less space. These new REGZA Super Narrow Bezel (SNB) models will be available in 40” and 46” diagonally measured screen sizes.

“Our new REGZA LCD line has already been a huge success,” said Scott Ramirez, Vice President of Marketing. “We have set new standards in picture quality with our PixelPure™ 14-bit internal processing, and we will now set a new standard in design with the world’s thinnest LCD TV bezel. These premium models are not only strikingly beautiful; they also allow you to put a larger TV in a smaller space. In fact, our new 40” SNB model fits in the space of a standard Toshiba 37”, which means that many consumers can now fit a 40” model into their existing home theater furniture.” Read more