Televisions

KOREA: LG shows superthin LCD screens, and brighter 3D displays

2009-05-27T11:23:00Z

They may be spending more time than usual keeping a nervous eye on what's going on just north of their Paju display factory at the moment, but that hasn't stopped LG's TV engineers coming up with a couple of serious technological breakthroughs of late.

Not only has the company developed the world's thinnest LCD TV panel – the 42in and 47in screens are just 5.9mm thick – but it's also been showing an enhanced 3D display, claiming twice the brightness of existing screens.

The new super-thin panels (above) are made possible by the company's LED edge-lighting system, along with propietary Light Guide Sheet technology.

This enables the Light Guide Plate in the screens to be halved in thickness, and of course means that the screens are much thinner than conventional LCDs lit by cold cathode fluorescent lamps.

A further benefit is that the display panels are around half the weight of conventional CCFL-backlight devices: the 42in weighs 6.1kg, and the 47in 7.3kg.

Meanwhile on the 3D front, LG has developed a Full HD LCD panel with twice the brightness of devices to date – in fact, it's said to be the world's brightest.

It's a 23in model, and gets over many of the existing problems with 3D displays. Usually, the time-sequential processing required to deliver alternate images for left and right eyes, thus creating the 3D effect, is either in an external processing box or special viewing glasses with LCD shutters.

However LG has embedded most of the 3D technology directly in the panel, which makes 3D viewing both brighter, and possible with low-priced polarised glasses.

The Week in HD - Friday 22nd May

2009-05-22T15:31:00Z

Welcome to The Week in HD.

This week, you're in for a treat. Tom is currently easing himself in to his lederhosen and no doubt sampling some sausage on a romantic weekend away with his good lady in Munich - he assures us that the clash with the Munich High-End Show was entirely coincidental - so I've been let loose in the worn, and slightly musty, hot seat.

Having had the good chaps at Sky install my HD box just this morning, I guess the hat fits. So, without further ado, here are some selected HD highlights for the forthcoming week...

Friday 22nd May

UFC 2009: Undisputed (Xbox 360)

While I would never normally recommend you spend your bank holiday beating the living daylights out of people, in UFC 2009: Undisputed that sort of behaviour is very much encouraged. The graphics are scarily realistic and gameplay worryingly addictive, but hey, perhaps I've just had a long week. Head over to our friends at The Leisure Lab to see a review.

Damnation (Xbox 360)

The equally cheery-sounding Damnation sees you guide Rourke through an incessant modern-day civil war, helped by a cache of stupendously damaging weaponry. The usual first-person style romp through death, destruction and I guess, damnation, follows, helped no end by some rather splendid visuals and a heart-stopping soundtrack.

Hay-On-Sky - Sky Arts 1 HD - 7pm

When you've finished beating people up and/or blowing them in to tiny pieces, why not unwind with coverage from the 2009 Guardian Hay Festival. Mariella Frostrup is joined by various other luvvies from the arts world for one of the world's foremost festivals of writing, comedy and music. Yep, I do high-brow, too...

Fantastic Four: Rise Of The Silver Surfer - Sky Action HD - 7.20pm

...but I also realise it's Friday night. So feel free to remove your brain, settle back on the sofa and doze your way through this Fantastic Four escapade. Of course you'll find it pretty hard, what with the arresting HD images and stirring soundtrack - this is one to blow the cobwebs out of your AV system.

Shaft - Channel 4 HD - 10pm

Samuel L. Jackson stars as Shaft in this remake, with Christian Bale finding himself on the wrong side of the tracks here as the bad guy trying to avoid a murder rap. Very strong language/violence, I might add.

Friday Night with Jonathan Ross – BBC HD – 10.35pm

Isn't Wossy naughty? So naughty they'll be pre-recording his radio show from now on. He still does his best to push the decency boundaries on his TV show but it's usually with rather amusing results, so I'll let him off. Martin Sheen and Yvette Fielding will be doing their best to get a word in edgeways, while Grace Jones will probably manage just fine.

Saturday 23rd May

Gillingham v Shrewsbury - Live - Sky Sports HD1 - 2.30pm

Gillingham take on Shrewsbury Town in the Coca-Cola League Two play-off final at Wembley. If you're looking to have a flutter, I'll point out that Shrewsbury beat Gillingham 7-0 in the league game at Prostar Stadium... Or you could just bet on when the first player gets cramp. I'll go for 78 minutes.

The Lost Tribe Of Palau - National Geographic HD - 8pm

Follow a geographical expedition to the middle of the Pacific Ocean as scientists unearth a collection of human remains which are believed to be a new species. This is arguably one of those programmes that is just as jaw-dropping when watching on mute, but I didn't say that...

Dead Man Walking - Sky Drama HD - 8pm

Susan Sarandon won an Oscar for her role in this 1995 classic, which also stars Sean Penn and was directed by Tim Roth. Look out for an appearance by the real Sister Helen, upon who's life this film was set, outside the prison during the candlelight vigil scene.

Sunday 24th May

Live Ford Survival Sunday - Sky Sports HD1 - 3pm

Sky's Sports department could generate excitement about literally anything. And give the event an alliterated title. And give over hour after hour for live coverage. So we have 'Survival Sunday' as neutrals around the country cross everything within sight in the hope that Shearer takes Newcastle down. Or is that just me?

The Shining - Sky Sci-Fi/Horror HD - 8pm (pictured, above)

Now this is what I call a film. Jack Nicholson goes from mad, to madder, to just plain ol' scary in one of Kubrick's finest works. If you've seen the Blu-ray you'll know this scrubs up nicely, with special mention to the brilliantly atmospheric soundtrack.

Come Dine With Me - Channel 4 HD - 8.30pm

Well I never, they film Come Dine With Me in HD? Who'd have thunk it. It's worrying how often I can't find anything better to do than watching Come Dine With Me, but now at least I can nose in to other people's homes, and indeed their pots and pans, in glorious high definition. Yay.

Monday 25th May

Battle Of Britain - Blu-ray

An exclusive to play.com, this is 'a spectacular retelling of a true story that shows courage at its inspiring best. Few defining moments can change the outcome of war; but when the outnumbered Royal Air Force defied unsurmountable odds in engaging the German Luftwaffe, they may well have altered the course of history!' So there you have it. Stars Harry Andrews, Michael Caine and Trevor Howard.

Iron Maiden: Flight 666 - The Film - Blu-ray

What happens when you take a legendary British metal band, a customised Boeing 757, 12 tons of music and stage equipment, a film crew and fly them to 13 countries in 45 days? You get Flight 666 - a full length documentary charting Iron Maiden's ambitious 2008 "Somewhere Back In Time World Tour". And with Bruce behind the controls - yes, really - it's a wonder they're still with us.

The Spirit - Blu-ray

A second appearance for Samuel L. Jackson, this time in a film adaptation of the legendary comic strip. Directed by Frank Miller, of Sin City fame, it should make for an interesting visual spectacle, not least in HD.

Tuesday 26th May

The Chase - BBC HD - 6.30pm

A new series for BBC HD - we'll look over the fact it was on 'normal' BBC yonks ago - comes in the form of this drama set around a veterinary practice. I can't help thinking this is one of the last places you want to be sticking in a HD camera but there you go.

Live Super League - Sky Sports HD1 - 8pm

Leeds and Hull meet to tug at each others shorts and leg it about a muddy pitch for 80 minutes or so. Two of the biggest names in the game's history should provide a spectacle and you can always marvel at the way the HD picture shows the players' breath in the air if you're not engaged by the rugby league action.

Pirates Of The Caribbean: At World's End - Sky Screen 1HD - 8pm

Capatin Jack returns in what Sky's TV Guide calls 'a pounding sequel'. Reviews may have been mixed but Depp is pretty dependable when it comes to putting a good turn, not least in his role as the Keith Richards of the sea.

Wednesday 27th May

Champions League Final - Live - Sky Sports HD1 - 6pm

There is really the only event to be thinking about this week. The mighty Manchester United, champions of England, champions of Europe and champions of the world, look to add another big shiny cup to their bulging trophy cabinet and pile on yet more misery for those scousers and cockneys watching at home and cheering on Barcelona. Forza United. (Not that I am in any way biased on this one...)

Thursday 28th May

Changeling - SBO HD1 - 8pm

Angeline Jolie stars in this period thriller directed by Clint Eastwood, the man who's done the unthinkable and topped his acting career after his move behind the camera.

Spider-Man 3 - Sky Family HD - 8pm

Webslinging smash starring Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst, though as ever J.K. Simmons steals any scene he appears in, here playing the no nonsense publisher of The Daily Bugle newspaper. No nonsense publishing editors? What's one of them?

The Alpine Chronicles - Rush HD - 9pm

This channel shouldn't be over-looked - not only does it pump out plenty of high definition content, it always seems to make a pretty impressive job of it in to the bargain. This look at American skiers aiming to get on the US ski team should provide plenty of opportunitites for your TV to show-off.

Tom Parsons is away. Having fun.

The Week in HD - Friday 15th May

2009-05-15T13:26:00Z

Ok, so it’s magazine deadline week and all those exclusive reviews aren’t going to write themselves, so this Week in HD is going to have to be a quick one. So yes, I’ve cheated, and there are some things listed here without any explanation, and some with a synopsis taken straight from the Sky TV Guide. Needless to say I've listed them because I think they're worth checking out, though!

Friday 15th May

Games
Battlestations Pacific – a solid WWII game for the Xbox 360 that sees you flying planes and commanding ships and subs in key battles between the U.S. and Japan. Try before you buy by downloading the demo from Xbox Live Marketplace.

Cricket: England v. West Indies – Sky Sports HD1 – 10.30am

Good Morning Vietnam – Sky Premiere HD – 8pm
Robin Williams classic.

Dexter – FX HD – 10pm
All in the Family: Dexter’s gone from someone petrified of commitment to trying desperately to persuade Rita to marry him. Don’t worry; the killing’s not over.

Vantage Point – Sky Premiere HD – 10.15pm
Fairly solid thriller that looks great in HD.

Friday Night with Jonathan Ross – BBC HD – 10.35pm
Big night, as Jonathan interviews Ben Stiller, Ewan McGregor, Eminem, and someone I’ve never heard of called Charlotte Uhlenbroek.

Generation Kill – FX HD – 11.10pm
Combat Jack: brilliant episode in this brilliant series.

Later with Jools Holland – BBC HD – 11.35pm
Good show tonight: New York Dolls, Morrissey, Little Boots and Annie Lennox.

Saturday 16th May

Cricket: England v. West Indies – Sky Sports HD2 – 10.30am

Football: Manchester Utd v. Arsenal – Sky Sports HD1 – 12pm
Man U need just 1 point to win the Premier League.

Natural World – BBC HD – 6pm
Snow Monkeys.

Wanted – Sky Premiere HD – 10pm
Silly action film with brilliant effects.

Sunday 17th May

Planet Earth – BBC HD – 6pm
Deserts.

Lost – Sky1 HD – 9pm
The Incident: it’s double-episode season finale time!

Cricket: England v. West Indies – Sky Sports HD2 – 10.30am

Football: West Brom v. Liverpool – Sky Sports HD1 – 1pm

Football: Chelsea v. Blackburn – Sky Sports HD1 – 3.30pm

Monday 18th May

Blu-rays
Solid week – pick from the excellent Frost/Nixon, solid and thrilling Defiance, or silly Underworld: Rise of the Lycans.

24 – Sky1 HD – 9pm
Day 7: 5am to 6am.

Tuesday 19th May

Sunshine – Sky Screen 2HD – 7.10pm
Great sci-fi from Danny Boyle.

Wednesday 20th May

Blade Runner: The Final Cut – Sky Screen 2HD – 6.55pm

Thursday 21st May

Cricket: England v. West Indies – Sky Sports HD1
The first one-dayer at Headingley.

Platoon – Sky Drama HD – 12am
Vietnam war classic.

NEC's 'glasses-free' 3D TV: double the pixels, double the fun

2009-05-12T10:13:00Z

OK, OK, so the press image is more than a bit fanciful – never was the disclaimer more relevant – but NEC's engineers think they're on to something when it comes to the one thing likely to crack 3D TV in the home: the ability to get dimensional effects without having to wear silly glasses.

The company has come up with an LCD TV with SVGA resolution, using the company's Horizontal Double-Density Pixel structure. Unlike conventional 'naked eye' screens, which rely on the existing vertically-striped pixel structure to deliver 3D, and thus present images in greatly reduced resolution, HDDP uses a horizontally-striped configuration.

In this, each pixel is made up from three sub-pixels, each split in half lengthwise, as illustrated in the 'science bit' above, allowing data for left and right eyes to be shown alternately with no loss of resolution, leaving persistence of vision to do the rest.

The system can also display conventional 2D images, by using pairs of adjacent pixels, and indeed can mix 2D and 3D content on the same screen without viewer-fatigue, according to NEC.

At the moment the screen is a 12.1in (31cm) diagonal monitor, developed from a 2.5in HDDP LCD module originally developed by NEC's Central Research Laboratories for portable devices.

It's thought the initial applications will be in the industrial market, since this is now NEC's main area of interest. Typical applications are thought to be amusement arcades, digital signage and computer-aided design, and medical image analysis.

Then again, Japan already has 3D TV broadcasting, and has since the end of 2007...

The Week in HD - Friday 8th May

2009-05-08T15:11:00Z

This week's another fairly quiet one for games and Blu-rays, but the TV line-up includes plenty of cricket, football and some cracking shows.

Oh, and remember, if you're a Sky user you can set recordings from sky.com, but you need to have set up Remote Record from within your HD Box's menus first. Believe me, it's absolutely worth it!

Games

It’s another quiet week on the games front, with no releases for the PS3 and only Velvet Assassin hitting Xbox 360. Despite a fairly intriguing plot and unique presentation, the game itself is a rather generic sneak-em-up.

Friday 8^th May

Cricket: England v. West Indies – Sky Sports HD1 – 10.30am

Who’d’ve thought it? We’re actually giving the Windies a bit of a pasting! Fingers crossed the weather remains dry for the rest of the day and we can continue in that vein.

Dexter – FX HD – 10pm

The Lion Sleeps Tonight: Dexter’s still trying to slow down his colleagues in the police, while trying to work out what to do about Freebo and whether he can really trust Miguel Prado.

Friday Night with Jonathan Ross – BBC HD – 10.35pm

Old Wossy’s got another rather dull line-up tonight. The Loose Women? Seriously?! Tom Hanks is admittedly much higher profile, but how many times have we seen him interviewed over the years. Think I’ll just record this one and skip to Dizzee Rascal’s appearance and performance.

Generation Kill – FX HD – 11.05pm

Another sobering, exciting, hilarious and frightening episode in this series about American troops in Iraq. This really is telly at its very best.

Later with Jools Holland – 11.35pm

Does anyone still listen to Manic Street Preachers? If you do, this week’s Later... may well be of interest, but to be honest, I’m not that bothered about them or the other guests, which include Paolo Nutini, Booker T and Taylor Swift.

Saturday 9^th May

Cricket: England v. West Indies – Sky Sports HD2 – 10.30am

It’s day four of the first test, and judging by the way we were running away with it at the time of writing, it may all be over by now. I rather hope not, though; I’m supposed to be watching it at Lords!

Sunday 10^th May

Cricket: England v. West Indies – Sky Sports HD2 – 10.30am

It’s looking unlikely that the first test will continue into the fifth day, but if it does, this is where you’ll find it.

Football: Manchester Utd v. Manchester City – Sky Sports HD1 – 1pm

This should be an especially tasty Manchester derby, as United push to seal Premiership victory, while City fight for the final spot in Europe.

Football: Arsenal v. Chelsea – Sky Sports HD1 – 3.30pm

The sorest of sore losers travel to the Emirates and attempt to keep their Premiership title hopes alive. Arsenal, also keen to put their Champions League exit behind them, aren’t going to make it easy.

Planet Earth – BBC HD – 4pm

Caves: Another edition of the Beeb’s excellent nature documentary, this time all about the world’s deepest, darkest nooks and crannies.

Lost – Sky HD – 9pm

Follow the Leader: After last week’s revelations and drama concerning Daniel, this week the focus turns to the apparently immortal Richard Alpert. Meanwhile, Sawyer and Juliet find themselves in a spot of hot water at the Dharma camp. Honestly, if you gave up on Lost during the slow and confusing second season, you’re really missing out now.

Fringe – Sky HD – 10pm

Midnight: Blimey, this one really is a creepy episode, which features a serial killer who drains his victim’s spinal fluid. Could this be related to the experiments conducted on Agent Dunham?

Monday 11^th May

Blu-rays

Not a lot again this week, but Role Models is certainly worth checking out if you appreciate the odd bit of silly, immature comedy.

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly – Sky Screen 2HD – 5pm

I actually missed this hugely well-regarded film at the cinema and on DVD, so I’ll be recording it today. It’s an adaptation of Elle editor Jean Dominique Bauby’s memoir, which he dictated by blinking his left eye after being paralysed by a severe stroke. Apparently it’s an astonishing watch.

24 – Sky 1 HD – 9pm

Ok, the last couple of episodes have been better, and even the music’s less rubbish, but seriously, how many times are they going to arrest a terrorist leader, only for them to say, ‘oh, I’m just a cog in a big machine – now you’re gonna have to deal with my boss, and he’s even scarier and more powerful! Mwa ha ha!’? I think that’s happened three or four times in this season already!

Tuesday 12^th May

Beverly Hills Cop – Sky Modern Greats HD – 6.10pm

Yeah, I know this is on all the time, but it’s a quiet night for telly, so why not sit back and enjoy one of the greatest action-comedies of all-time, and the film that made Eddie Murphy a star.

Beverly Hills Cop II – Sky Modern Greats HD – 8pm

Well, you have just watched the first one...

Wednesday 13^th May

Football: Wigan Athletic v. Manchester Utd – Sky Sports HD1 – 7.30pm

Could this be the game that confirms United’s Premier League victory? Wigan will hope not, but it’s hard to see them getting the win.

Napoleon – BBC HD – 10pm

This drama-documentary tells the story of Napoleon Bonaparte’s rise from the rank-and-file to military legend. It forms part of the BBC’s Heroes and Villains season, which in my opinion could do with a little less dramatisation, but has been very interesting all the same.

Thursday 14^th May

Cricket: England v. West Indies – Sky Sports HD1 – 10.30pm

Action switches to The Riverside for the second test.

One to Avoid

Quantum of Solace

007’s latest outing hits Sky Box Office this week. It’ll cost £3.91 to watch in HD, and it’s really not worth it, with the badly directed and edited action combining with a weak baddy, ill-conceived story, occasionally ropey special effects and a charmless Bond to create a film that serves only to undo all the hard work done with Casino Royale.

In a couple of year’s time, those of us who’ve seen the film will be trying desperately to forget it so that we can get excited about the next one. If you can, save yourself the effort by not watching QoS at all.

The Week in HD - Friday 1st May

2009-05-01T17:14:00Z

That’s right, the greatest blog-feature in the history of the internet* is back! If you don’t know what I’m talking about, this is my regular look at the best HD content coming over the next week. It doesn’t matter if it’s a game, Blu-ray or TV show – if it’s hi-def and good, it makes the list. If you disagree with my picks or think I’ve missed something good, post in the comments section below.

Friday 1st May

Games
The only notable game release of the week is X-Men Origins: Wolverine, which bucks the movie-game tie-in tradition by actually being half-decent. It’s available today on Xbox 360, PS3, and just about every other format you can think of.

X-Men – Sky Screen 1HD – 8pm
Decided not to put yourself through the astronomical prices, sticky floors and badly calibrated surround sound of your local cinema in order to catch Wolverine? How about curling-up with his first (and best) movie outing at home, for free, instead?

Lake Placid – Sky1 HD – 10pm
Ok, so it’s silly and a bit old now, but this comedy-horror about a giant killer croc is lots of fun, and fairly family-friendly.

Dexter – FX HD – 10pm
Finding Freebo: after a bit of a rough patch during last season, Dexter is absolutely back on form. In this episode everyone’s favourite blood-spatter expert / vigilante serial killer tries desperately to track down Freebo before the rest of the cops do.

Generation Kill – FX HD – 11.05pm
The Cradle of Civilization: this short series focuses on the American soldiers of Bravo Company during the early stages of the Iraq war. It’s from the creators of The Wire and, as you might expect given that pedigree, is complicated, morally ambiguous, and totally, utterly brilliant. It looks and sounds superb, too.

Friday Night with Jonathan Ross – BBC HD – 10.35pm
Frankly, I couldn’t give two hoots about what musical-director-turned-reality-TV-sellout Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber has to say, nor our Eurovision ‘hope’, Jade Ewen, but Rob Brydon’s also on and he’s absolute class. Plus, The Enemy are playing live, and there’s nothing wrong with that.

Later with Jools Holland – BBC HD – 11.35pm
Tonight’s guests include Depeche Mode, Sonic Youth and the lovely Lily Allen.

Saturday 2nd May

Live Ford Football Special – Sky Sports HD1 – 12.30pm
Middlesborough v. Manchester United: Premier League victory’s tantalisingly close for Man U – can Borough become a stumbling block?

Turner & Hooch – Sky Screen 1HD – 3.55pm
This early Tom Hanks vehicle about a cop and his dog is a certified family classic – perfect for a lazy Saturday afternoon.

Deep Blue Sea – Sky Screen 2HD – 7pm
Yeah, ok, this ultra-stupid film about genetically-modified super sharks is far from high-brow, but it’s still tense fun, and the underwater action looks great in HD.

I Am Legend – Sky Screen 2HD – 7.15pm
Much like the film’s star, Will Smith, I Am Legend divides opinion. I’m quite keen on it myself, and the frequent dark scenes make it a great system tester.

Sunday 3rd May

Live Ford Super Sunday – Sky Sports HD1 – 3.45pm
Sunderland v. Everton: Sunderland are desperately trying to stay out of the relegation zone, but a visiting Everton side will prove dangerous opposition.

Planet Earth – BBC HD – 5.30pm
Freshwater: Planet Earth always looks stunning in HD, and this edition, which follows the trail of our greatest rivers from mountain to sea, promises to be no exception.

The Terminator – Sky Screen 1HD – 8pm
The release of the very promising-looking Terminator Salvation draws ever-nearer, so why not remind yourself what all the fuss is about by watching the first movie in the series in HD. I don’t care what anyone says; it’s definitely better than Terminator 2.

Lost – Sky1 HD – 9pm
The Variable: Lost’s 100th episode sees the return of my favourite character, the secretive Daniel Faraday. It’s time for some answers.

Fringe – Sky1 HD – 10pm
Bad Dreams: this excellent X-Files-like series continues with Agent Dunham experiencing some rather nasty visions.

Monday 4th May

Blu-rays
It’s far from a massive week for HD discs, with no brand new films hitting shelves. However, modern classics Sin City, Silence of the Lambs, There’s Something About Mary and the superb Fargo all get the Blu-ray treatment.

Live Ford Football Special – Sky Sports HD1 – 7.30pm
Aston Villa v. Hull City: Villa may have messed-up on getting fourth place, but they’re still playing for a spot in Europe, while Hull are desperately fighting for Premier League survival.

Natural World – BBC HD – 7.40pm
Great White Shark – A Living Legend: nothing scares the hell out of me like sharks do (I blame Spielberg), but they’re also fascinating, so I’ll be checking out this BBC documentary.

24 – Sky1 HD – 9pm
I’m still in two minds about this latest series of 24: it’s peculiarly paced, riddled with plot-holes, and boasts some of the most jarringly rubbish and inappropriate music I’ve ever heard accompanying a TV show, but it’s also occasionally thrilling and action-packed, so I may well stick with it to the end of the series.

Tuesday 5th May

Mad Men – BBC HD – 10pm
Meditations in an Emergency: the final episode in the current series of this excellent drama series promises to be a thriller.

Wednesday 6th May

England v. West Indies – Sky Sports HD1 – 10am
Day one of the first test at Lord’s. Here’s hoping for good weather and a decent English performance.

Chelsea v. Barcelona – Sky Sports HD2 – 7pm
It’s the second-leg of Chelsea’s Champions League semi-final. Fingers crossed they’ll actually try to score a goal this time.

Thursday 7th May

England v. West Indies – Sky Sports HD1 – 10am
Day two of the first test.

One to Avoid – Meet the Spartans
Clogging up valuable airtime on Sky Premiere HD all week is this truly repulsive film from the team that brought you Scary Movie. Not only is the film offensive, it’s offensively rubbish, with zero laughs and an abundance of homophobia and racism. Avoid like Swine Flu.

* blog-feature may not actually be the greatest in the history of the internet.

How US TV companies are racing to fill the 'Pioneer gap', and get the high-end TV market humming again

2009-04-14T11:11:00Z

It seems Pioneer's decision to pull out of the TV market, depriving consumers and retailers of reassuringly expensive flat-panel models, is providing an opportunity for other companies.

And clearly some of them believe that, even in These Difficult Economic Times™, there's a market for high-end tellies, set apart from the mass-market.

Already Panasonic is reported to have been targeting US AV specialist retailers hit by the Pioneer decision, and facing shrinking margins created by the still-intense competition in the flatscreen market.

Now it seems Samsung is going after the same upmarket approach, rolling out a $65m (£44m) advertising campaign, and implementing a new Minimum Advertised Pricing policy Stateside.

It's a bold move, tied in with a desire to reposition the brand as an elite one, and aided by the new styling and technologies being offered in the company's 2009 models. Samsung already has market-leading status in the USA, and is building on that by reducing the number of online retailers offering deep discounts, and potentially cutting by a third the number of authorised 'e-tailers' carrying its products.

The company isn't enforcing its pricing strictly, and says that retailers will still be free to set their own pricing levels, but those wishing to take advantage of the company's major promotional push, and get involved in co-operative ads, will be expected to stick to the prices carried in those adverts.

The company is setting out its stall with a focus on its new models combining LCD panels with LED backlighting and 240Hz frame rate (200Hz here in the UK), which will be its main focus this year. In addition, it clearly thinks its plasma range, which is both ultra-thin and able to deliver high-contrast, is a tempting prospect for those former Kuro dealers.

Tim Baxter, president of Samsung's US consumer electronics division, told trade magazine TWICE that, “Our over-arching strategy in TV has been to continue to move up stream, and we have done that quite effectively over the past few years.”

The LED TV technology is, Baxter said, "about bringing in the best picture quality with its mega-contrast ratio.

“It is about leveraging the design technology around its edge-based lighting system that allows for a panel thinness of about an inch and it gives us the ability to offer a truly environmentally friendly solution that is lead-free, mercury-free and requires 40 percent less power to operate.”

It'll be interesting to see how this policy pans out in the States, and whether Samsung can succeed where Pioneer clearly felt it was destined to fail.

Panasonic's 2009 Viera TV range in detail - pictures and prices

2009-02-26T12:07:00Z

As we've already reported in our News channel, Panasonic has unveiled a staggering array of new Viera TVs for 2009, plus two Freesat HDD/Blu-ray recorders, three new Blu-ray players, a host of Blu-ray home cinema in a box systems, plus new DVD players and recorders.

There are 42 TVs in the line-up, with screen sizes ranging from 19in to 54in. We couldn't fit everything in one story, so here's our roundup (with pictures) of all the key new models with prices (where we have them).

C10 Series (Plasma and LCD)

HD-ready
2,000,000:1 contrast ratio
Viera Link
Viera Image Viewer
Two HDMI inputs
Eco mode
100Hz double scan
V-Audio
26 and 32in LCD (£tbc)
37, 42 and 50in plasma (£tbc)

Panasonic TX-L26CE10PS

X10 Series (Plasma and LCD)

HD-ready
2,000,000:1 contrast ratio
V-Audio Surround
Viera Link
Viera Image Viewer
100Hz Intelligent Frame Creation
19, 26 and 32in LCD (£349, £499, £599)
37, 42 and 50in plasma (£699, £799, £999)

Panasonic TX-L19X10E

X15 Series (LCD only)

HD-ready
100Hz Intelligent Frame Creation
32in only (£649)

Panasonic TX-L32X15P

S Series (Plasma and LCD)

Entry-level Full HD models (1080p)
400Hz Sub-field Drive Intelligent Frame Creation Pro
2,000,000:1 contrast ratio (plasma)
50,000:1 contrast ratio with Intelligent Scene Controller (LCD)
Viera Image Viewer
Viera Link
32, 37 and 42in LCD (£699, £849, £949)
42, 46 and 50in plasmas (£999, £tbc, £tbc)

Panasonic TX-L37S10ES

G10 Series (Plasma and LCD)

Full HD, 1080p
ISP Alpha panels with 50,000:1 contrast ratio (LCD)
2,000,000: 1 contrast ratio (plasma)
Freesat tuner
Viera Link
Viera Image Viewer
32 and 37in LCD (£899, £1049)
42, 46 and 50in plasma (£1199, £1399, £1499)

Panasonic TX-L32G10E

G15 Series (Plasma and LCD)

Full HD, 1080p
DLNA network connectivity
Narrow bezel and slim design
Freesat tuner
Viera Cast
Viera Image Viewer
37in LCD (£1149)
42 and 46in plasma (£1299, £1499)

Panasonic TX-P42G15E

V10 Series (Plasma and LCD)

Full HD, 1080p
Freesat tuner
Digital Cinema Colour
THX Certification
DLNA connectivity
Viera Cast
Viera Image Viewer
42 and 50in plasma (£1499, £1799)
32 and 37in LCD (£1099, £1299)

Panasonic TX-P42V10E

Z1 Series (Plasma only)

Flagship Full HD models
Only 1in thick
Aluminium casework
Full HD wireless transmission technology
DLNA connectivity
DiVX playback
Freesat tuner
46 and 54in plasmas (£tbc)

Panasonic Z1

Blu-ray players and recorders

Panasonic DMP-B15 (799 Euros)
8.9in WSVGA LCD screen
HDMI socket
PHL Reference Chroma Processor Plus
SD memory card slot
LAN port
Viera Cast
BD Live
HD audio output via HDMI

Panasonic DMP-B15 Blu-ray portable

Panasonic DMP-BD80 (400 Euros)
Viera Cast
Advanced audio components
7.1 analogue output
SD memory card slot
Playback information function
USB socket
Viera cast
Viera Link

Panasonic DMP-BD60 (350 Euros)
Same as DMP-BD80, but without advanced audio components, 7.1 analogue output and playback information

Panasonic DMP-BD80 Blu-ray player

Panasonic DMR-BS850 Freesat recorder (£tbc)
Twin Freesat HD tuners
Blu-ray recorder
500GB hard disk drive
SD card reader
Viera Cast

Panasonic DMR-BS750 (£tbc)
As above, but with 250GB hard drive

Panasonic DMR-BS850 Freesat recorder

And just in case this isn't enough for you all, how about the world's largest plasma in the shape of Panasonic's 150in monster? I'm sure they'll make one to order for a suitable fee. Only millionaires need apply.

Panasonic's 150in plasma!

Inside Top of The Pops!

2008-12-18T13:41:00Z

Ok, so it’s not often you get to go to BBC’s Television House and see the return of one of the country’s most-loved TV shows but that’s exactly what we did recently.

What are we talking about? The return of Top of The Pops, of course! It’s back for one off shows on Christmas Day and New Year’s Day and has been off your screens since July 2006. The BBC haven’t decided if it will return for good, despite Simon Cowell and several bands demanding it. And as it’s Christmas, we thought a blog about it might provide some light entertainment while you wind down and prepare for the big day.

So what can you expect on Christmas day? Alex Burke from X Factor appeared, singing her ‘number 1’ single, accompanied by five (FIVE) make-up artists chiefly tasked with stroking her hair. Burke said she had only one hour’s sleep (she won X Factor the previous night) and had to do two takes as some festive glitter paper went up her nostril during filming. That was the most interesting part of her performance. She didn’t even cry.

Chris Martin and Coldplay ran through euphoric versions of Viva La Vida and Life in Technicolor. Pausing to pick out an audience member with a frankly ridiculous festive jumper, Chris Martin protested that he did write Viva La Vida after claims that he pinched bits from another band. Martin also said that because their military style uniforms had got so much stick from the press, he was going to put them all on eBay. For charity of course…

The man in the festive jumper looked a bit scared when he was pulled on stage and predictably danced like an idiot. Sam Sparro appeared seconds after, played hit single Black and Gold before taking pictures of his band and the audience.

And as the show slipped further into the realms of pop music, the cast of Mamma Mia (the musical) ran into the studio and danced like pirouetting, sequinned jelly beans, offering an ABBA medley including Dancing Queen and, of course, Mamma Mia. We may have been given festive dress and been told to dance, though we’re reticent to provide concrete details.

Elsewhere, Adele gave a stunning performance of Chasing Pavements and Hometown Glory making Alex Burke look underwhelming by comparison. Naturally, Radio 1 fave Fearne Cotton presented the show in her own excited scattergun garble. BBC haven’t given exact broadcast times or confirmed a BBC HD version of the show but tune in - it deserves to be a part of your big day if only to see a man in a festive jumper that’s even worse than yours.

SAMSUNG, KOREA: You think that's a big TV factory? THIS is a big TV factory...

2008-12-04T13:03:00Z

It was so nearly the factory visit that never was, although expectation was high as I grabbed this quick picture through the bus window before we entered Samsung's Cheonan plant, two hours south of Seoul on a buckaroo expressway.

As the gates opened for us, the blanket camera ban came into effect.

Cheonan is huge, and is at the heart of Samsung's plasma display panel production. Except yesterday it wasn't - producing, that is. A very short-term halt had been called, partly due to the effects of the global economic crisis and a spot of over-productivity, and partly to regroup and get things rolling again for production for the future.

The picture above shows what would have been happening if anything had been happening, but aside from some maintenance guys and a few staff taking displays out of their ageing/testing racks, not much was going on that day.

We were assured that the factory will be going like the clappers again in the next few days, but we still had the slightly surreal experience of being guided around a generally dark and deserted factory by the manager, who explained to us what the machines would be doing if they were actually doing anything.

But if Cheonan is huge, the nearby Tianjeong complex is positively scary colossal, to the extent that we needed a guided bus tour merely to get round the place. This is Samsung LCD Panel Central, and in just one building we visited we watched an automated line producing panels at the rate of one every 15 seconds, 24 hours a day, in complete clean room conditions.

"And," our guide explains, "we have ten lines on this floor, ten on the floor below, and 11 upstairs, so if you want to know how many panels we make a day, you can do the maths."

Travelling abacus to the fore, I reckon that makes a capacity of some 180,000 panels a day, all produced by highly automated assembly, with most of the staff being involved in quality control and checking the processes.

But even that, or the large tower blocks in which single staff-members can live for $30 a month, everything supplied, isn't the most impressive thing about this place - even though our tour guide hinted that there's a lively social scene in the dormitory blocks. They must have great parties, we suggested - to which she just replied, somewhat dreamily, "Friday nights...".

No, what really gets to you is how fast the plant is expanding. There are several enormous production buildings already, and more are on the way. One is just nearing completion, and when it's done will have taken just five months from ground-breaking to fit-out and production start-up.

Our guide tells us that of course it's being built by Samsung's construction company - other recent projects include one of the Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Taipei 101 in Taiwan, which is currently the world's tallest building, and the Burj Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, which will steal the crown from Taipei.

"And," she says, "since the factory works 24 hours a day, so do the construction workers."

I would have grabbed you a picture but the entire complex, even down to the perimeter fence out onto the street, is covered by CCTV. Take a snap and a fast response security team will be with you in 30sec or less, ready to erase your memory.

Or at least that in your camera.

LG, KOREA: Seoul wrap, part one

2008-11-28T22:17:00Z

Well, the LG UK press trip is over, and by now the rest of the group should be back home after their 12-hour-plus flight. I’m still in Seoul, for reasons I’ll explain in a moment.

For now, what’s striking about this city is that everyone’s watching TV. You see them watching Korean drama in their cars in the traffic, sitting on park benches soaking up the soaps, or moving slightly to music videos even on the subway system.

And a visit to LG’s Digital TV Research Lab, located on the campus of Seoul National University – think Korea’s equivalent of Oxford or Cambridge – showed why: just about everything in the company’s range able to receive a signal can get digital TV.

We were welcomed by Choon Lee, the head of the Lab, who explained that the facility was established six years ago, and works closely with the university on research projects, as well as recruiting graduates.

His colleague, Dr JR Kim, then gave us an overview of digital TV in Korea and beyond, and how LG is positioning itself to provide suitable devices wherever there’s a service.

The DMB – digital multimedia broadcasting system – has been in place in Korea for a couple of years, and has caught on like wildfire. It seems just about every mobile phone can receive live TV – at which point Dr Kim produced his own from his pocket, screwed in a little telescopic aerial and proved the point.

It’s in car navigation systems, too. In fact, even the least expensive satnav systems on the Korean market – and we’re talking around £60 or so – have DMB capability.

Why? It’s not just ‘because we can’: the traffic in Seoul is so bad that people do a lot of their TV viewing on the move. Or rather on the crawl.

Same goes for mobile phones. One of our hosts explained to us that she spends two hours a day commuting. Each way. So she’s glad that her phone can receive TV even in the depths of the Seoul subway.

The people at the lab have to struggle with competing standards, from the DMB-T/DMB-S (terrestrial/satellite) used here, via the European DVB-H (handheld), Japan’s ISDB-T and the ATSC-MH (Mobile Handheld) system in the States, or MPH (Mobile Pedestrian Handheld) as it used to be called.

It’s quite a technological struggle – the system needs 4Mbps data rates for standard definition, and up to 15.4MBps for high-definition, which you might want in the car, if not on the bus.

But they reckon they’ve got it cracked – the current system can receive a clear picture in vehicles travelling at 140mph/225kph, signal to noise and Doppler effect problems notwithstanding.

And in case you think all this is just another Asian thing, and will never happen here, on Thursday LG announced the launch in Europe of its LG-KB770 phone, which has a 3in display, 3MP camera, 3.5G capability, internet connectivity and DVB-T reception.

Initially on sale in France and Germany, it could come to the UK as soon as there’s sufficient service and interest.

And that’s about it, so I’ll wrap up from LG in Seoul with a shot of our novel greeting during a trip on a submarine to which the company treated us the other day – as you do.

I’m staying in Korea this weekend and joining a Samsung press event for the whole of next week – stay tuned for more posts giving the view from Korea’s other consumer electronics giant.

Have a good weekend!

SEOUL: LG TV - past, present and future

2008-11-26T08:29:00Z

At LG's Paju Display Cluster here in Korea, we were taken through a short tour of the history of the company's involvement in TV, which covers the past 40 years.

Entering the gallery past the bust of company founder Koo In Hwoi,

which you find in every one of the company's major facilities, we were first given an insight into where LG and TV got together.

This was where it began, with Korea's first black and white TV set back in the 1960s. Seen here in close-up

It's still working, and forms part of a display that leads the visitor through the company's TV milestones, up to its first plasma and LCD offerings.

Opposite, and next to an array of awards won by the company's display division, is a history wall (below) which contains the significant milestones in the company's TV business.

As was explained to us, LG claims an almost embarrassing range of firsts and superlatives, including:

Korea's first black and white TV, in 1966
The world's first digital TV solution, in 1997, two years after its acquisition of US TV manufacturer Zenith
The world's first 60in plasma TV, in 2001, followed by the first 76in two years later
The world's first 55in LCD, in 2004, with the first TV with a built-in HD digital video recorder the following year
And the world's first 100in LCD, in 2006

In the gallery, however, history soon gives way to an overview of where the company is now, with demonstrations of its wide-viewing angle LCD technology, and the way its Intelligent Sensor system can reduce power consumption on TVs.

And TV is celebrated here, with the large high-quality panels arranged as if in an art gallery

In fact, the company had plans to market its TVs as an art form, with famous works available

but was stymied by licensing problems.

Instead, it suggests, how about the flat-panel window, just the thing to give the basement dweller an improved view of the world?

The gallery also demonstrates the way the company is marketing its displays as simulator solutions both for automotive applications

and for military training (below)

before you go on to see the advanced technology section.

Here you can experience TVs with LED backlighting, perhaps giving a hint about the way the company is thinking, and the inevitable 3D TV demonstrations.

LG has both conventional 3D TV, for which you need special glasses, and a 3D monitor system, which needs no special glasses.

There'll be more on the latter when we've had a closer look at one of the company's R&D facilities, but the 'with glasses' version certainly seemed to impress our irrepressible and indefatigable tour guide, Cindy Myung.

She enjoyed it so much she had to be persuaded to give up the glasses, even if the man from Stuff, in the background, doesn't seem quite so sure!

And then they press a button and you're on the way out of the exhibition, but not before you pass through this amazing hi-def aquarium, formed from TV display panels on three walls and the ceiling to give a truly surrounding effect.

Optimum backlight settings for Sony Bravia LCD TVs

2008-11-11T17:27:00Z

Some users have reported problems with their Sony Bravia W4500 TVs as discussed on our Forums. We've been in touch with Sony HQ, and they've come back to us with a set of optimum settings for the backlight to get the best picture.

So if you've bought one of the new Sony models, we suggest you follow Sony's recommendations as outlined below:

To achieve a high level of performance and picture clarity, Sony utilises a very bright backlight setting. This helps deliver the brightest picture possible, as well as exceptional picture clarity even with the darkest image sources.

However, under certain dark viewing conditions, the setting may cause the screens on some of these televisions to exhibit a slight uneven uniformity, especially for a blank screen with no video source.

This condition is not normally visible under typical viewing situations, such as watching movies or television programmes, and should not affect viewing experience.

Should customers find that this condition affects their viewing enjoyment, we suggest adjusting the following settings to minimise this condition:

1) Setup Menu - select - Light Sensor: ON
2) Setup Menu - select - Power Saving: Low or High
3) Picture Menu -- Reduce the Backlight Level eg 'Standard' or 'Cinema
mode' (Factory Setting = 'MAX')

Half-life, half truths, and TV myths

2008-08-19T08:35:00Z

Interesting to read that Panasonic is now saying that the 'half-life' of its latest plasma TVs, such as the TH-46PZ81B (left), is in the region of 100,000 hours.

That's the amount of use it takes for the screen to drop to 50% of its original brightness – when it'll still be perfectly usable, just not as bright – and it equates to about 11.4 years of continuous use, with the set on 24 hours a day.

In the USA, where the statement was made, commentators worked out that means with an average of 6.5 hours' viewing a day, the set will be good for 42 years. And given my average viewing of around 4 hours a day – not so much in the week, but we tend to watch more at the weekends –, that would give us an expected half-life of getting on for 70 years.

So forget worrying about whether your TV will still be going strong come London 2012: on the current record of London as the host city, we should have had at least one more Olympics in the capital before the set needs to be put out to grass.

By which time I strongly suspect we all might have moved on to a new TV standard, let alone new sets. Not, of course, that I'm expecting to be around to celebrate the 70th birthday of any new TV I buy now.

But it got me thinking about the common myths flying around in consumer electronics, mostly coming from the mouths of babes, sucklings and the desperate on the sales floors of the nation.

Here's a very Top 10.

1. Plasma screens don't last as long as LCDs
Not so - see above.

2. Plasma screens need re-gassing after a few years' use
No, and I'm never quite sure where this one came from. Could it be because some old TVs needed degaussing if they were exposed to strong magnets – for example in badly-shielded speakers – ?

3. LCD screens don't last long
No. Reported to me by an amazed customer who'd been told "Well, your pocket calculators use LCDs, don't they? And how many of those have you thrown away?"

4. LCD screens are useless once the backlight goes
No, it should be perfectly possible to open up the set and replace the backlight, then it'll be as good as new. Whether it's economically viable, given the falling price of TVs, is another matter.

5. Plasma screens are no good for gaming, due to the risk of screen burn
Nope. Modern screens have strategies to avoid screen-burn – the permanent imprinting of static areas of light tones onto the screen. You see it in old panels used at airports or railways stations used to display timetables: when the signal goes down, you can still see the 'grid' on the screen. I have a plasma at least four years old, and it's never had a sniff of screen-burn.

6. There's no point buying a big flatscreen if you're only going to be watching standard TV
Again no. I'm typing this sitting in the office with a 32in Panasonic about 8-10ft away screening the Olympics - women's beach volleyball, since you ask – and it looks absolutely superb. And that's on a distributed aerial feed, with dozens of sets around the building hooked into it.

7. There's no point buying an HD ready set – Full HD is the way to go
Simple answer to this one - 8th-generation Pioneer Kuros, still among the best-looking TVs you can buy.

8. Flatscreens look worse than good old CRT TVs
Not really – see the answer to 5 above, and bear in mind it's unlikely you ever had a CRT much above 32-36in. Factor in the truly atrocious picture quality available on some Freeview channels, thanks to massive amounts of compression, and you have a recipe for disaster.

9. Product X is just as good as Product Y, and much cheaper – after all, the panels come from the same factory
No. That may be the case, but the two sets are likely to have very different picture processing, and maybe even totally different backlight technology. It's a bit like saying all CD players using the same transport or digital to analogue converter sound the same.

10. There's no point having a large TV – most films on DVD or Blu-ray have black bars top and bottom, so you're only using part of the screen
Plenty of point - you try watching a film in its original format on a 26in screen! The black bars are there as the film is being presented in the format the director intended. And if they really offend you, you can always use the zoom function on player or screen to give a full-screen image, provided you don't mind losing about 12.5% of the picture area from each side.

Hands-on preview of the new Sky HD EPG

2008-06-17T08:44:00Z

A few weeks ago – presumably to ensure not all the high-definition TV attention was on the Freesat HD launch – Sky announced a forthcoming update to its Sky HD electronic programme guide (EPG).

We reported the story here, highlighting the main new features, but I’ve since had the chance for a hands-on play with the updated EPG, and there are some hidden delights that’ll make life a lot easier for Sky HD users.

New HD highlighter
For example, as those of us know who regularly trawl through the EPG on the hunt for high-def gems, there’s still a lot of standard-def (SD) content lurking on HD channels. Well, a new feature allows you to highlight all native-HD shows and movies in orange (shown above). That means no more getting over-excited about, say, a classic film on Channel 4 HD that turns out to be a sludgy SD transfer.

This HD highlighting needs to be activated via the customisation area of the EPG’s options menu – which is where you can also choose to view the channel listings with or without the new mini TV option, which allows you to keep an eye out on the action as you browse.

Hello mini TV; goodbye music
I can see the pros and cons of this small screen (shown above right). On the plus side, I can see it coming in handy to browse the guide/your recordings during ad breaks, while still keeping an eye out for the show restarting. However, it does cut down on your at-a-glance listings – reducing the number of channels per page to a mere six. Turn it off and you actually get one more channel per page than with the existing HD EPG.

What’s missing from the customisation menu is an on/off option for the music that’s traditionally accompanied the TV guide. That’s because Sky’s canned the tunes completely – a sad day for the musicians who used to send in their compositions in the hope of EPG airplay (yes, really).

Meet the blue ‘back’ button
But let’s get back to some more useful updates. If you’re a fan of shuttling between shows – maybe two concurrent Champions League games, or head-to-head X-Factor/Strictly Come Dancing – the Sky HD remote’s blue button is about to become your friend. Press it and you’ll go straight back to the last channel you were watching, with no need to go via the TV guide itself.

Browse while you watch
If the mini TV allows you to keep an eye on the action while browsing the full guide, the new now/next/later menu bar (shown above) reverses that scenario – allowing you to peruse a cut-down version of the guide at the bottom of your main picture.

It shows you what’s coming up on that channel for the next 12 hours, with the ability to scroll down to other channels, plus to hit the ‘i’ button to get show information (as you would on the full planner). It also simplifies recording, as we'll come onto later.

Full search – at last!
As you’ll know if you’ve had the frustrating displeasure of using the current A-Z search, it’s far from easy to find a show on Sky. The recent searchable guide on Sky.com has been a revelation – it’s saved my viewing bacon several times by finding second screenings of shows it’s missed – and I’m delighted to see an on-screen version of this is due in the new EPG.

As shown above, you can use your remote control to input up to 10 characters; hit search and seven days of programming will be searched, with the results able to be stacked and sorted (see below) so you can easily see what you’re after.

The new search function also allows you to browse the week’s programming by genre and sub-genre – for example movies/comedy or sports/football.

Recording tweaks
Another aspect of the current Sky HD EPG that really irritates me is the long-winded process of recording a whole series – or ‘series linking’ in Sky parlance. Once you’ve found what you want to record, you hit the R button and you’re taken to your planner, from where you hit ‘series link’. There’s then a hold-your-breath pause while you wait to see if Sky will play ball.

The new EPG aims to make that a lot simpler. When you hit the record button (and, as illustrated earlier, this can be from the mini now/next/later guide as well as via the main line-up), if it’s part of a a series, you’ll instantly be given an option of ‘record once’ or ‘record series’.

Another neat update is the addition in the TV listings of an ‘R’ symbol (see bottom left, below) on programmes you’re already planning to record – no more duplicate recordings in the planner.

Stack up those shows
Next, back to one of the features Sky chose to highlight in its initial release on the new EPG: series stacking. I didn’t understand the full appeal of this until I had a play with the system, and then it came to me: no more hunting around on my planner to find various episodes of a series I’ve recorded, possibly missing one and then watching a show out of order (hell, Lost and Heroes are random-enough as it is…)

Series stack (shown below) removes the strict chronological ordering of the planner and allows you to view all recordings of the same show in a single block-listing, which you can expand or collapse as needed. A boon for over-tired watchers everywhere…

Lock and load
Finally, if there are shows on your planner you don’t want younger members of the family having a gander at, Sky has made it easier to PIN-protect any recording – not just the time-, channel- or certificate-specific content it already requires PIN access to.

The EPG update is due by Autumn: Sky says it’ll be rolled out over a two-week period, with every Sky HD customer receiving a written guide to the new system via post, with interactive tutorials also available at Sky.com and on Sky Anytime.

By then - as reported here - we could also have some price-cuts to write about to....