By Alex Villafania
INQUIRER.net

DESPITE the almost non-existence of high-definition signals in the Philippines, Samsung is expecting that the growing demand for audio-visual equipment would push their latest product lines that are geared toward the HD market.

Samsung is already introducing its first Blu-ray standalone player to complement its widescreen displays. HD refers to high resolution digital image processing, usually by LCD (liquid crystal display) TVs, plasma panels and some projectors. Current broadcast signals are still in analog standard resolution, normally at 480p (progressive) and an aspect ratio of 4:3. However, HD can produce better images of up to 1080p with 16:9 aspect ratio.

Samsung Philippines president Spencer Shim said he is confident the company will be among the key drivers in the HD space, citing its performance in the Asian region where it said it had sold about 600,000 widescreen displays in 2007.

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By Alex Villafania
INQUIRER.net

DUTCH electronics giant Philips showcased its latest line of LCD TVs in an effort to appeal to budget-conscious video enthusiasts and Philippines.

Three LCD models that range from 32 inches, 42 inches and 47 inches were unveiled. These use the new Pixel Perfect HD Engine processing module, an upgrade from Philips’ renowned Pixel Plus Engine. As the name implies, the Pixel Perfect HD (for High Definition) Engine increases the clarity, color definition, refresh rate and contrast of images rendered on the screen.

An advanced feature in the Philips LCD TV line is the Horizontal and Vertical Luminance Transient Improvement which increases the lines and pixels per line to match the resolution of the display. This application increases the luminance for each pixel while matching the luminance and gradient of the nearby pixels. By far, the new TV lines have 6.2 million pixels, able to produce up to 4 trillion colors, depending on the image or video source.

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By Lawrence Casiraya
INQUIRER.net

WHICH would you rather buy: an SUV or this 70-inch LCD TV by Sony?

Sony’s famous for making things small but this newly launched Bravia X-series is touted to be the largest full-screen HDTV in the local market to date.

The screen size is as whopping as its price — around P2 million (ka-ching!).

I just asked the Japanese execs and they said they have yet to decide on the exact price. So if you’re “seriously” buying one, leave room for possibly a few hundred thousand pesos. Seriously.