For many years, I’ve moaned about DTT PVRs with one tuner. Now, I encounter this non-PVR curiosity with two tuners and no hard drive. It’s presumably designed for those who want to digitally-upgrade their existing TV and VCR. True to form, the Zapbox Gemini has separate Scarts for TV and VCR. The idea is that you can independently select the channels sent to each.

The Metronic approach is not perhaps as odd as it seems. Unlike hard disks, VCRs don’t crash; if you live in an area with unreliable mains then you’ll get the entire recording until the point where power was lost. Some people too are just loath to part with their old-tech VCRs.  read more »

Quite simply, the range-topping PDP-LX6090 is the best TV in the world bar none. The 60incher’s smaller sibling, the LX5090, runs it a close second and is, in itself, a standard-setting TV. But size, in this case, is everything. At present, I’d argue that there is no better way of viewing hi-def movies or games than on Pioneer’s king of screens, unless you require a much larger picture and therefore a projector. But I’d even suggest that the image quality of the LX6090 is so good that it represents a viable alternative to a projection-based home cinema installation.  read more »

So Sharp’s second-gen 100Hz TVs come to market with quite a big credibility gap to bridge. Enter the LC-46XL2E, new champion of Sharp’s flatset. A look at the form book indicates that this screen should be a notable improvement on what’s gone before. While Sharp has yet to break into the premier league in the UK, the brand is rapidly becoming the go-to company for LCD panels for the rest of the Japanese TV industry.  read more »

Two things have come from the demise of HD DVD. Firstly, my hi-def movie collection has become massive since the format’s back catalogue started selling for silly money, and secondly, it’s encouraged fence-sitting manufacturers to fast-track Blu-ray decks.  read more »

This new LCD screen from Ambilight advocate Philips boasts the sort of design flourishes you’d expect from a top-of-the-range HDTV: the 42in screen is surrounded by a narrow gloss black frame and transparent plastic lip; the glass tabletop stand is slightly angled forward to give it a sense of poise; and push the power switch and two LED backlights kick into life, bathing the wall behind the TV in dynamic colours that instantly shift to replicate the tone of whatever’s on screen at the time. So it might surprise you to learn that this is merely a mid-range model in Philips’ new television range – one that’s available for well under £1,000.  read more »