The PDA As a Remote
Did you know you can use your PDA as a remote control for the TV? This can get really convenient when you (ahem) can’t find the remote. Of course, if the kids are arguing over the channel or you forgot to shut off the TV, you can direct your commands form the comfort of your Easy chair. The PDA can come with a preset format for doing this or programmable functions can be downloaded from the Internet.
HDMI Not So Multimedia
Everything’s in a name. Why is a cable that only carries HD signal names Multimedia? Just asking. HDMI is used specifically for high definition audio and video signal, yet wouldn’t a truer fit for the “Multimedia” tag be something like the nostalgically named “RCA” cables? The high resolution of the audio and visual is great, so long as the home theater owner has HD technology and visual display aptitude.
Pack In More Than You Pack Out
While most home theater and big-box TV articles focus on the scanning and resolution of a TV, the key dynamic consumers should worry about is recording. Without high quality digital hookups to receivers with the amplitude to handle the frequency without loss or distortion, recording will capture the video or audio at a much degraded level.
If you are planning a home theater or upgrading your technical components, keep a weather eye on how much quality is being communicated and lost between the capture device and the target output media device. If video recording or audio sound matter at all in your recorded material, think about your connectors and signal capability at the TV purchase point.
The Energizers
Ramping up to the big screen after year of 18-inch servitude? Finally convinced the consumer head of household that a larger TV won’t send the kids straight to hell and dump their grades too? Think ahead when the motivation to match the inches of your high-tech friends and neighbors overreaches your utility bill budget. A new 48inch HDTV device working at 300 watts plus 100 watts of subwoofer will absorb a lot more juice than the television LCD watcher device of twenty seven inches.
Be aware that televisions with vastly greater tubes or scanned lines will have a greater power consumption. Added components like speakers and receivers will also consume amperage from the wall socket. And likely interior lighting and even food consumption will jump. Will the unit overheat in hot weather? Make sure you assess correctly how much more TV you’ll be watching and decide on the right size device for your needs.
