Al Griffin

Vizio P42HDTV 42-inch Plasma HDTV

By Al Griffin
Posted May 2, 2006

What We Think A tasty-looking set that offers surprisingly good performance at an astonishing price. Some fascinating technology goes on behind the screen of a plasma HDTV, and it

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HP md5880n 58-inch DLP HDTV

By Al Griffin
Posted April 6, 2006

What We Think A solid-performing bigscreen HDTV that delivers crisp 1080p pictures at a great price. When it comes to buzzwords, "HDTV" holds considerable cachet: its ve

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B&W XT Series Home Theater Speaker System

By Al Griffin
Posted May 4, 2006

What We Think A gorgeous system that delivers great sound - but you'll pay for the pleasure. When TVs made the transition from bulky, oversize boxes to a slimmer, wall-friendl

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Make Room for HDTV

Finding the right high-definition set and surround sound speakers for your living room is as easy as 1-2-3.

By Al Griffin
Posted May 6, 2006

Right now is a great time to buy an HDTV. Why? Because prices have dropped to where many people can actually afford one. Another reason: the explosion of choices brought on by recent advances in technology. From compact flat-panel TVs with 20-inch screens to expansive rear-projection sets with 70-inch or larger displays, there's an HDTV out there custom-made for you. But which one?

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Apple iPod Hi-Fi Audio System

Bigger than iLife

By Al Griffin
Posted May 5, 2006

Apple's computers have always been audio- and video-friendly, but the company has mostly left the home entertainment part of the equation up to third-party developers. Although an Apple hard-disk video recorder or music server has seemed like an obvious thing for Steve Jobs to trot out, year after year there's been nothing but new (and very welcome) takes on the iPod.

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DVDs: Reference Disc

Ryan's Daughter

By Al Griffin
Posted May 10, 2006

David Lean's 1970 epic Ryan's Daughter (Warner; Movie •••½, Picture/Sound ••••, Extras ••••) gets the grand treatment in this two-disc special edition. Sourced from restored 65mm picture elements, the 2.2:1 transfer is consistently crisp, revealing every crag in stone houses.

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Inside Blu-ray & HD DVD

Exactly what makes the new players and discs tick?

By Al Griffin
Posted May 5, 2006

When DVD appeared in early 1997, it didn't take much prodding for people to trash their collections of primitive VHS tapes and embrace the shiny new disc. The dramatic boost in picture and sound quality had a lot to do with it - when experienced on a widescreen TV along with 5.1-channel sound, watching a DVD was almost like sitting in a movie theater.

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JVC SU-DH1 Headphone Surround Adapter

Headphone theater

By Al Griffin
Posted May 5, 2006

Here's the deal: It's late, the kid's in bed, the wife is reading, and I'm dying to watch the new Rob Zombie gorefest The Devil's Rejects on DVD. No chance of firing up the full surround sound rig under such conditions, but, hey, there's Dolby Headphone.

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ZVOX Mini Audio System

Mini surround

By Al Griffin
Posted May 6, 2006

Back in October 2004, we tested the ZVOX audio system, an all-in-one "virtual" surround option for those who want something better than built-in TV speakers. Now comes the $199 ZVOX mini audio system, a shrunk-down, portable version intended to provide sound for music players like the iPod or for TVs.

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DVDs: Brokeback Mountain

River deep, mountain high

By Al Griffin
Posted June 10, 2006

So much fuss has been made about Brokeback Mountain (Lionsgate; Movie ••••½, Picture/Sound ••••, Extras •••), especially after it was nominated for eight Oscars (winning three), that it's not worth rehashing the details here.

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