Home Theater Shopping Tips
Ready to put together a home theater of your own? Here are recommendations for displays, DVD players, and speakers.
Go with HD: Choose a wide-screen high-definition TV in the size most appropriate for your room. Only if you're on a very tight budget or have a very small room should you consider anything else.
Choose an appropriate screen size: Bigger is usually better, up to a point. Your own eyes are your best guide on this, but a good (though rough) rule of thumb is that the diagonal screen size should not be larger than about half your seating distance. With a 42-inch TV, for example, you probably should not watch from closer than about 7 feet.
Look for HDMI or component-video inputs on the TV: These inputs will allow you to connect high-definition and progressive-scan sources and will produce the best possible picture quality. The set should also have composite-video and S-Video inputs for sources such as VCRs. And a set of A/V inputs on the set's front or side will make it easier to hook up a camcorder for viewing home videos.
Opt for progressive scan: It's hard to find a current DVD player that doesn't include progressive scan, which produces a sharper, flicker-free picture. However, the TV you use will need to have component inputs that support the progressive-scan signal as well. A high-definition Blu-ray Disc or HD DVD player will provide an even better picture; it also will require a component input--or, better, an HDMI input. Some regular DVD players will upconvert their outputs to pseudo-high-definition resolution, but since this does not actually increase the amount of detail in the picture and duplicates a function built into most TVs that can accept a high-definition input, it is seldom a genuinely useful feature.
Consider a multiple-disc setup: A five-disc carousel DVD player allows you keep a movie or two and several CDs in the player at once, so you don't have to get up to change discs.
Start with three speakers: If you can't afford the full surround-sound setup, start with the center, left, and right speakers. You can always add the subwoofer later if you miss the extra bass, and you can buy the satellite surround speakers if you want a full surround-sound effect.
Use 100 watts as a guideline: A receiver than can produce 100 watts per channel will be more than adequate for most home theater systems.
Look for Dolby Digital support: Make sure the receiver you buy includes Dolby Digital decoding. Dolby Pro Logic II is highly desirable as well, to provide surround sound from videotapes and from ordinary stereo music sources such as CDs.
Look for a good return policy: Some speakers may sound great in the store but not in your living room. Make sure that you can return them if the way they sound in your home disappoints you.
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
How to Drive Down Electricity Costs
The most dreaded utility bill in my household is the electric bill, and the highest one usually comes in January after the holidays. What can you expect, really, after powering a house full of electronics and Christmas decorations for an entire month non-stop? It would be great if we could monitor our energy use all year, but until we all have smart meters installed to check our energy use online, we'll just have to search for alternatives.
One of these available alternatives is called The Energy Detective or TED, an energy monitor that allows you to see electricity usage in real time. The best part is that it tells you exactly how much you're spending on electricity in dollar amounts and kilowatts, so there are no surprises at the end of the month. According to the site, TED is extremely accurate and can be set up in less than 15 minutes by a qualified homeowner or electrician. It has many features, and you can even set up parameters to tell you when the cost-per-hour amount exceeds a specified amount within your budget. You can purchase one online for $140, but I'm sure this gizmo will save you a lot of money and pay for itself in less than a year. Saving energy during the holidays is one incentive for buying a gadget like TED, but people who work from home could seriously benefit from it all year long.
Another way to conserve energy is to look for Energy Star products when shopping for office equipment and home electronics. These products usually use about half the electricity of standard equipment. The U.S. Department of Energy offers a few other energy-saving tips such as buying a laptop because they use less energy than desktop computers, turning off monitors instead of using screen savers to reduce energy, and plugging a computer into a power strip that can be switched off easily.
One reason you should completely unplug certain electronics when they're not in use is because some of them consume power even when they're on stand-by mode. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, 75 percent of the electricity used to power home electronics in the average home is consumed while the products are turned off. These vampire electronics or phantom loads are racking up a bill even when you think they're not, so you need devices that can help you identify them in order to save money.
A more affordable device that can help you do this is called the Kill-A-Watt EZ. The Gadgeteer has an extensive hands-on review of the device here, along with some interesting tests she conducted. The Kill-A-Watt EZ estimates she'll spend $35 to $40 a year to power her iMac. That's good to know, because now she can unplug those devices she doesn't use on weekends and holidays to save the extra cash. Overall, she said this was an easy to use tool that can save money and can easily be found online for about $60 or less.
These are just a couple of devices you can use. To reduce your energy bill, you could always go solar, so I'll have more on that in my next post. In the meantime, let me know if you have other ideas that could help us drive down electricity costs.
One of these available alternatives is called The Energy Detective or TED, an energy monitor that allows you to see electricity usage in real time. The best part is that it tells you exactly how much you're spending on electricity in dollar amounts and kilowatts, so there are no surprises at the end of the month. According to the site, TED is extremely accurate and can be set up in less than 15 minutes by a qualified homeowner or electrician. It has many features, and you can even set up parameters to tell you when the cost-per-hour amount exceeds a specified amount within your budget. You can purchase one online for $140, but I'm sure this gizmo will save you a lot of money and pay for itself in less than a year. Saving energy during the holidays is one incentive for buying a gadget like TED, but people who work from home could seriously benefit from it all year long.
Another way to conserve energy is to look for Energy Star products when shopping for office equipment and home electronics. These products usually use about half the electricity of standard equipment. The U.S. Department of Energy offers a few other energy-saving tips such as buying a laptop because they use less energy than desktop computers, turning off monitors instead of using screen savers to reduce energy, and plugging a computer into a power strip that can be switched off easily.
One reason you should completely unplug certain electronics when they're not in use is because some of them consume power even when they're on stand-by mode. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, 75 percent of the electricity used to power home electronics in the average home is consumed while the products are turned off. These vampire electronics or phantom loads are racking up a bill even when you think they're not, so you need devices that can help you identify them in order to save money.
A more affordable device that can help you do this is called the Kill-A-Watt EZ. The Gadgeteer has an extensive hands-on review of the device here, along with some interesting tests she conducted. The Kill-A-Watt EZ estimates she'll spend $35 to $40 a year to power her iMac. That's good to know, because now she can unplug those devices she doesn't use on weekends and holidays to save the extra cash. Overall, she said this was an easy to use tool that can save money and can easily be found online for about $60 or less.
These are just a couple of devices you can use. To reduce your energy bill, you could always go solar, so I'll have more on that in my next post. In the meantime, let me know if you have other ideas that could help us drive down electricity costs.
Blu-ray, HD DVD Camps Wooing Warners
Here's a scenario that "Survivor" fans know well: two equally matched voting blocks stuck in a stalemate, with a single, undecided player suddenly the key to the game. Both sides wine and dine the holdout, hoping to break the tie. The two tribes are Blu-ray and HD DVD. The holdout? Warner Brothers, the last major movie studio still making HD discs in both formats. And according to BusinessWeek, the wooing has reached a fever pitch.
The news magazine reports that representative from both camps are reaching out—way out—to Warner Brothers, with Toshiba HD DVD business lead Yoshihide Fujii making three trips to the United States in recent months, while Sony CEO and Blu-ray proponent Sir Howard Stringer has been personally making his case to top execs at Time Warner, the parent company of Warner Brothers.
The stakes are high for the warring HD camps. Blu-ray has exclusive deals with Disney, Sony (natch, given Sony's massive stake in Blu-ray), Fox, and MGM, while HD DVD has Universal, Paramount, and DreamWorks. The HD DVD group lured Paramount and DreamsWorks (which had previously supported both formats) earlier this year, and Sony clearly hopes to strike back by getting Warners to go Blu-ray-only.
The BusinessWeek story argues that Blu-ray may have the edge in the wooing, for a couple of reasons: It has a base of 2.7 million players (including Blu-ray-equipped PlayStation 3 consoles) in the United States, compared to 750,000 for HD DVD (including Xbox 360 add-on HD drives), and Blu-ray discs have been outselling HD DVD at a two-to-one ratio in recent weeks. All true...although cheaper HD DVD stand-alone players easily won the Black Friday sales way with a 62 percent market share, compared to just 37 percent for Blu-ray.
So, let's say Warners did jump to one camp or the other come next month, when the curtain rises on CES in Vegas. Would such a move be a knockout blow for the loser? I doubt it. Both camps have serious backing—Toshiba, Unversal, and Microsoft all have stakes in HD DVD, with Sony the big muscle on the Blu-ray side—and each side still has studio exclusives locked in (Paramount, which distributes hits like "Transformers," is signed with HD DVD until about 2009, and Disney, with franchises like "Pirates of the Caribbean," is cozy with Blu-ray). I think this war has a good 12 months (or more) to go, regardless of what Warners does.
That said, if Warner Brothers does go ahead and choose a side, it'll be a blow for those of us who already have HD players of one format for another (Warners has some big movies in its catalog...you've heard of "The Matrix" and "Batman," right?), although it'll make pricey but slowly-getting-cheaper dual-format HD decks that much more attractive.
What do you think? Will Warners choose a side? Would that matter to you if you're shopping for an HD disc player?
The news magazine reports that representative from both camps are reaching out—way out—to Warner Brothers, with Toshiba HD DVD business lead Yoshihide Fujii making three trips to the United States in recent months, while Sony CEO and Blu-ray proponent Sir Howard Stringer has been personally making his case to top execs at Time Warner, the parent company of Warner Brothers.
The stakes are high for the warring HD camps. Blu-ray has exclusive deals with Disney, Sony (natch, given Sony's massive stake in Blu-ray), Fox, and MGM, while HD DVD has Universal, Paramount, and DreamWorks. The HD DVD group lured Paramount and DreamsWorks (which had previously supported both formats) earlier this year, and Sony clearly hopes to strike back by getting Warners to go Blu-ray-only.
The BusinessWeek story argues that Blu-ray may have the edge in the wooing, for a couple of reasons: It has a base of 2.7 million players (including Blu-ray-equipped PlayStation 3 consoles) in the United States, compared to 750,000 for HD DVD (including Xbox 360 add-on HD drives), and Blu-ray discs have been outselling HD DVD at a two-to-one ratio in recent weeks. All true...although cheaper HD DVD stand-alone players easily won the Black Friday sales way with a 62 percent market share, compared to just 37 percent for Blu-ray.
So, let's say Warners did jump to one camp or the other come next month, when the curtain rises on CES in Vegas. Would such a move be a knockout blow for the loser? I doubt it. Both camps have serious backing—Toshiba, Unversal, and Microsoft all have stakes in HD DVD, with Sony the big muscle on the Blu-ray side—and each side still has studio exclusives locked in (Paramount, which distributes hits like "Transformers," is signed with HD DVD until about 2009, and Disney, with franchises like "Pirates of the Caribbean," is cozy with Blu-ray). I think this war has a good 12 months (or more) to go, regardless of what Warners does.
That said, if Warner Brothers does go ahead and choose a side, it'll be a blow for those of us who already have HD players of one format for another (Warners has some big movies in its catalog...you've heard of "The Matrix" and "Batman," right?), although it'll make pricey but slowly-getting-cheaper dual-format HD decks that much more attractive.
What do you think? Will Warners choose a side? Would that matter to you if you're shopping for an HD disc player?
Sneak Preview: TV Tech at CES 2008
Bigger sets? Sure, we'll have those in spades at CES come January, with another record-breaker undoubtedly being unveiled on day one. But more excitement is actually churning in the realm of core technologies. Here's a sneak peek at what to expect from TV tech.
LCD and Plasma - It's funny to think it, but LCD and plasma are now the old guard of TV tech, with both focusing on getting bigger, brighter, lighter, cheaper, and more energy efficient. For a couple of years, plasma has been the choice for very large screens, and LCD the choice for smaller sets... but as LCD continues to grow and grow, that distinction is vanishing. We're at the point where some are now wondering how much time plasma has left. Don't count plasma out just yet: Pioneer's KURO line, for example, promises exceptionally deep blacks and superb colors (a longtime weakness of flat panels); some say they're the best-looking plasmas ever. I'll be reporting from the show with word on how all these technologies look in person... and how big they've gotten.
Laser TV - Last year there was a minor hubbub about so-called laser television, but it was ultimately a no-show (though it may have been presented behind closed doors), with some people calling the whole technology an outright scam. But it does, however, seem to exist in some form now. Laser TV is a projector TV technology that uses lasers instead of incandescent lamps to create light. Proponents say it uses less power and allows for lighter sets than even LCDs offer, with "bulbs" that never burn out. True? We'll see soon; Mitsubishi has sent fancy invitations to a big unveiling of the technology at the show already, and I've got one in my hot little hands. Stay tuned.
OLED TV - The sketchiest TV technology of them all, OLEDs, or organic LEDs, have found only minimal adoption in the industry so far, and primarily in tiny applications like MP3 player and camera displays. OLEDs are attractive because they don't require a backlight, unlike all other display technologies, which means they are very energy friendly and (eventually) affordable. Last year, a 27-inch prototype was on display by Sony, and the company launched the set commercially in Japan a month ago. Are bigger sets on tap? No one's saying... yet.
SED TV - Another long-suffering TV technology, SED (Surface-conduction Electron-emitter Display) is an LCD competitor with a similar design, but this one has been in the works for about 20 years with little to show. Prototypes were shown in 2006, then none in 2007. A few announcements have emerged in recent months, but nothing concrete. Whether or not SED appears at all this year is a mystery.
LCD and Plasma - It's funny to think it, but LCD and plasma are now the old guard of TV tech, with both focusing on getting bigger, brighter, lighter, cheaper, and more energy efficient. For a couple of years, plasma has been the choice for very large screens, and LCD the choice for smaller sets... but as LCD continues to grow and grow, that distinction is vanishing. We're at the point where some are now wondering how much time plasma has left. Don't count plasma out just yet: Pioneer's KURO line, for example, promises exceptionally deep blacks and superb colors (a longtime weakness of flat panels); some say they're the best-looking plasmas ever. I'll be reporting from the show with word on how all these technologies look in person... and how big they've gotten.
Laser TV - Last year there was a minor hubbub about so-called laser television, but it was ultimately a no-show (though it may have been presented behind closed doors), with some people calling the whole technology an outright scam. But it does, however, seem to exist in some form now. Laser TV is a projector TV technology that uses lasers instead of incandescent lamps to create light. Proponents say it uses less power and allows for lighter sets than even LCDs offer, with "bulbs" that never burn out. True? We'll see soon; Mitsubishi has sent fancy invitations to a big unveiling of the technology at the show already, and I've got one in my hot little hands. Stay tuned.
OLED TV - The sketchiest TV technology of them all, OLEDs, or organic LEDs, have found only minimal adoption in the industry so far, and primarily in tiny applications like MP3 player and camera displays. OLEDs are attractive because they don't require a backlight, unlike all other display technologies, which means they are very energy friendly and (eventually) affordable. Last year, a 27-inch prototype was on display by Sony, and the company launched the set commercially in Japan a month ago. Are bigger sets on tap? No one's saying... yet.
SED TV - Another long-suffering TV technology, SED (Surface-conduction Electron-emitter Display) is an LCD competitor with a similar design, but this one has been in the works for about 20 years with little to show. Prototypes were shown in 2006, then none in 2007. A few announcements have emerged in recent months, but nothing concrete. Whether or not SED appears at all this year is a mystery.
HDTVs Growing to Epic Size This Season
If you went shopping this weekend, you might have noticed that deep discounts were comparably lacking on new flat-panel TVs, at least compared to 2006. Instead, they've simply gotten bigger, part of manufacturers' strategies to avoid getting sucked into the huge discounts that siphoned away virtually all profits for the sets during last year's cost-obsessed holiday season.
Jumbo sets are flooding the market this year. Sony has 20 models measuring 40 inches or larger in LCD alone, now making up 68 percent of the company's TV lineup, according to the Wall Street Journal. And Sony, like everyone else, is hoping you'll go big: At $1,273, the average 40-inch TV offers substantially better profit margin than a $763 32-inch set (in part because there is less competition in bigger sets from budget brands like Olevia and Westinghouse). The goal is obviously that you'll get sucked into jumping up a size or two when you see the difference in the stores.
Still, prices are dropping, just not as much: 12 percent on average this year for LCD sets. As well, technology continues to improve, with focus on deeper blacks, faster response times, and even lighter and thinner screens. Interestingly, Sharp says it can now fit a 42-inch screen into its old 40-inch frame because there's less wasted space around the edges.
So... are you TV shopping this season? If so, what's the magic number (in inches, I mean) that's tickling your fancy?
Jumbo sets are flooding the market this year. Sony has 20 models measuring 40 inches or larger in LCD alone, now making up 68 percent of the company's TV lineup, according to the Wall Street Journal. And Sony, like everyone else, is hoping you'll go big: At $1,273, the average 40-inch TV offers substantially better profit margin than a $763 32-inch set (in part because there is less competition in bigger sets from budget brands like Olevia and Westinghouse). The goal is obviously that you'll get sucked into jumping up a size or two when you see the difference in the stores.
Still, prices are dropping, just not as much: 12 percent on average this year for LCD sets. As well, technology continues to improve, with focus on deeper blacks, faster response times, and even lighter and thinner screens. Interestingly, Sharp says it can now fit a 42-inch screen into its old 40-inch frame because there's less wasted space around the edges.
So... are you TV shopping this season? If so, what's the magic number (in inches, I mean) that's tickling your fancy?
WindowsXP SP3 Boosts Performance 10 Percent
On the heels of last week's news that Windows Vista's first service pack would do nothing to improve performance comes some good news for those who wisely chose not to upgrade the new OS: XP's upcoming Service Pack 3 (now in limited beta) does improve performance, in the range of 10 percent, a substantial boost.
Exo.blog has the benchmarks again.
The results are initially somewhat surprising, as Exo notes, since SP3 is largely meant as a bug fix rollup for a mature OS and shouldn't carry with it any architectural changes serious enough to shave that much slowness off of the OS's operation. But on further reflection, it's important to remember how small changes can have major impacts on OS performance. Tweaking the way and the frequency with which memory is paged to the hard disk, for example, can have major ramifications for computer speed. The hope is that none of this has any negative effect on system stability. (And so far, things are looking up in that department too.)
Want to see something really scary? Check out how slow Vista is compared to XP on the same tasks now. (Vista is the leftmost two bars on the graph above.)
Latest word on XP SP3 is that it is still planned for release in the first half of 2008. If you want a (legal) preview of what SP3 will look like when it comes out, you might check out TheHotfix.net, which offers a "preview pack" release that's likely to emulate what SP3 is like.
Exo.blog has the benchmarks again.
The results are initially somewhat surprising, as Exo notes, since SP3 is largely meant as a bug fix rollup for a mature OS and shouldn't carry with it any architectural changes serious enough to shave that much slowness off of the OS's operation. But on further reflection, it's important to remember how small changes can have major impacts on OS performance. Tweaking the way and the frequency with which memory is paged to the hard disk, for example, can have major ramifications for computer speed. The hope is that none of this has any negative effect on system stability. (And so far, things are looking up in that department too.)
Want to see something really scary? Check out how slow Vista is compared to XP on the same tasks now. (Vista is the leftmost two bars on the graph above.)
Latest word on XP SP3 is that it is still planned for release in the first half of 2008. If you want a (legal) preview of what SP3 will look like when it comes out, you might check out TheHotfix.net, which offers a "preview pack" release that's likely to emulate what SP3 is like.
Verizon's LG Voyager, iPhone Killer?
Amid all the rhetoric about whose network is the most "open," some cool hardware is getting shuffled under the rug. And that's a shame, because the new LG Voyager is probably the best handset that Verizon's ever offered.
If it's not targeted squarely at the iPhone, I don't know what is. At first glance, the two handsets look a lot alike. You'll find a big (2.8 inches diagonally), touch-sensitive LCD front and center, complete with a "touch here" unlocking mechanism, not unlike the iPhone. A single hardware button is used, again, as a "home" function, though you'll find send and end buttons on the Voyager as well. All the rest of the phone functions are accessed via the touchscreen.
But the Voyager has a secret weapon: It flips open, clamshell style, to reveal a spacious (and excellent) QWERTY keyboard and a landscape display, also 2.8 inches diagonally. The interior keyboard isn't touch-sensitive, but it would be difficult to use it with a fingertip anyway, as it's set back and at an angle, not unlike the AT&T Tilt. You can do anything you want on either screen (a fingertip keypad pops up on the exterior display when you need it), and you can swap between them on the fly.
What can you do with the Voyager? What can't you do? It's got a fairly good web browser that's plenty fast; unlike the iPhone, the Voyager has a 3G radio inside, so it's as zippy as it gets on a cell phone. No, you don't always get picture-perfect pages like you do with the iPhone, but the rendering is way better, at least, than Mobile IE. There's room for improvement: Scrolling around a busy screen really bogs down the handset, for example.
There's a 2-megapixel webcam and email, of course, but there's also integrated GPS (subscription fees are extra), complete with voice-assisted instructions. Plus, you get all of Verizon's usual VCast music and TV features. Video quality is impressive... and don't miss the cute, retractable antenna! A microSD card slot lets you add as many tunes as you want. iPhone can't touch Voyager on these features.
For a 3G phone, battery life isn't bad: 4 hours, 40 minutes of talk time in my tests. And call quality is outstanding, as good as any cell phone I've tested.
What's missing? The Voyager lacks the absolute stunning looks of the iPhone, but it's still handsome. Imagine LG's prior clamshell phones like the enV but on a diet. There's oddly no Wi-Fi on the Voyager, either, though the faster cell network at least makes up for some of that.
All this will set you back $300, or $100 less than the iPhone, with the same two-year contract (though you can add data or not, your choice). Whether it's all worth it is up to you, but I'll say that if I was shopping for a new Verizon handset today, this is definitely the one I'd snag. No question.
If it's not targeted squarely at the iPhone, I don't know what is. At first glance, the two handsets look a lot alike. You'll find a big (2.8 inches diagonally), touch-sensitive LCD front and center, complete with a "touch here" unlocking mechanism, not unlike the iPhone. A single hardware button is used, again, as a "home" function, though you'll find send and end buttons on the Voyager as well. All the rest of the phone functions are accessed via the touchscreen.
But the Voyager has a secret weapon: It flips open, clamshell style, to reveal a spacious (and excellent) QWERTY keyboard and a landscape display, also 2.8 inches diagonally. The interior keyboard isn't touch-sensitive, but it would be difficult to use it with a fingertip anyway, as it's set back and at an angle, not unlike the AT&T Tilt. You can do anything you want on either screen (a fingertip keypad pops up on the exterior display when you need it), and you can swap between them on the fly.
What can you do with the Voyager? What can't you do? It's got a fairly good web browser that's plenty fast; unlike the iPhone, the Voyager has a 3G radio inside, so it's as zippy as it gets on a cell phone. No, you don't always get picture-perfect pages like you do with the iPhone, but the rendering is way better, at least, than Mobile IE. There's room for improvement: Scrolling around a busy screen really bogs down the handset, for example.
There's a 2-megapixel webcam and email, of course, but there's also integrated GPS (subscription fees are extra), complete with voice-assisted instructions. Plus, you get all of Verizon's usual VCast music and TV features. Video quality is impressive... and don't miss the cute, retractable antenna! A microSD card slot lets you add as many tunes as you want. iPhone can't touch Voyager on these features.
For a 3G phone, battery life isn't bad: 4 hours, 40 minutes of talk time in my tests. And call quality is outstanding, as good as any cell phone I've tested.
What's missing? The Voyager lacks the absolute stunning looks of the iPhone, but it's still handsome. Imagine LG's prior clamshell phones like the enV but on a diet. There's oddly no Wi-Fi on the Voyager, either, though the faster cell network at least makes up for some of that.
All this will set you back $300, or $100 less than the iPhone, with the same two-year contract (though you can add data or not, your choice). Whether it's all worth it is up to you, but I'll say that if I was shopping for a new Verizon handset today, this is definitely the one I'd snag. No question.
When Good Electronics Go Bad
I don't often get my tech advice from Real Simple magazine, but there are times when its straight-ahead, let's-just-deal-with-this approach to technology makes lots of sense. The September issue had a simple a story about when to pull the plug on your various pieces of aging electronics. Plus, it gave tips about how to extend the life of various gadgets so that they don't die an early death.
Some simple wisdom:
Flat-screen TV: Keeping your fingers off the screen and keeping the unit well ventilated will help prevent damage, but if your flat screen is more than five years old, you're probably better off replacing it than paying the hefty labor and parts charges for repair.
DVD player: Keep the unit cool and try not to jolt things. A DVD cleaning kit can sometimes revive a player that skips. But if you've tried cleaning the player and the disks, but your disks won't play, it's less expensive to buy new than repair. DVD players have gone way down in price. (Even Blu-ray and HD DVD players — the new high-definition contenders — have come down in price significantly in the past few months.)
Cell phones: The best advice is to let your battery drain fully once a week, say the editors. Try keeping your cell phone away from extreme temperatures, too. The most common fix is trying a new battery (which you should purchase from a reputable dealer). If you have an inexpensive phone, just recycle it. (Information for recycling can be found at your carrier's web site.) If it's fallen into the drink, take it apart and dry it out for a day or two. It may come back to life. Finally, get an estimate on repairs, but if the repair cost is more than half the price of the phone, buy new.
Some simple wisdom:
Flat-screen TV: Keeping your fingers off the screen and keeping the unit well ventilated will help prevent damage, but if your flat screen is more than five years old, you're probably better off replacing it than paying the hefty labor and parts charges for repair.
DVD player: Keep the unit cool and try not to jolt things. A DVD cleaning kit can sometimes revive a player that skips. But if you've tried cleaning the player and the disks, but your disks won't play, it's less expensive to buy new than repair. DVD players have gone way down in price. (Even Blu-ray and HD DVD players — the new high-definition contenders — have come down in price significantly in the past few months.)
Cell phones: The best advice is to let your battery drain fully once a week, say the editors. Try keeping your cell phone away from extreme temperatures, too. The most common fix is trying a new battery (which you should purchase from a reputable dealer). If you have an inexpensive phone, just recycle it. (Information for recycling can be found at your carrier's web site.) If it's fallen into the drink, take it apart and dry it out for a day or two. It may come back to life. Finally, get an estimate on repairs, but if the repair cost is more than half the price of the phone, buy new.
Big TV = Big Electric Bill
Are you sizing up your home in the hopes of filling it with a brand-new big HDTV screen this holiday? Not so fast. Following in the tradition of SUVs, the bigger the package, the bigger the guzzler. SUVs guzzle gas; large-screen TVs guzzle electricity.
But it's not just the size of the screen that affects energy usage; it's the technology used inside. One sobering chart comes from CNET.
The chart looks at the energy consumed by 80 different HDTVs. While there are many differences from brand to brand, one size to another, and the technology used, a few trends become really obvious.
Sort the list by the technology being used—LCD, plasma, or rear-screen projection—and you'll see LCD having a distinct advantage in requiring less power, although part of the reason for this is that LCD sets tend to be small to medium sizes, with a few exceptions. But if you sort it by cost per square inch, there's no question that rear projection is the energy-efficient winner.
It's no surprise that when you sort the list by the size of the screen, the bigger screens generally consume more power. But I was surprised to see how efficient rear-screen projections are. If you're energy-conscious but thinking big, you should be thinking rear projection.
Plasma generally consumes twice as much power as rear projection at a given size, and in the larger sizes, that often works out to over $100 per year more to operate a plasma set. (The chart is based on 10.4 cents per kilowatt-hour, which was the national average in 2006, according to the Energy Information Administration. Here in NYC, we pay a lot more than that, so the difference between plasma and the rest is even more per year.)
One of the worst performers was the Panasonic TH-58PZ700U, using 609.53 watts per hour in "on" mode, costing a user almost $200 annually, assuming eight hours of on time per day. Come down a bit in size and the Vizio, a 42-inch plasma, only uses 190 watts per hour.
The most random category in the table was the standby power. Standby ranged from 0.3 watts on the Panasonic TH-58PZ700U to 76 watts for the Sharp LC-65D90U. In between were TVs of all sizes and technology, in no obvious order. Most units were under 5 watts in standby, but there were about a dozen above 5 watts. It's one thing to consume a few hundred watts while you or your family is being entertained. It's quite another when you're sleeping and so is your TV, chewing up 76 watts all night long.
NOVEC, a not-for-profit distributor of energy in Virginia, posts this chart showing the average watts used by screens of the same size, just different technology.
Average Television Power Consumption Rate
* Plasma: 328 watts
* Rear-projection: 208 watts
* LCD: 193 watts
* CRT: 146 watts
Bad enough when your own monthly bill takes a hike, but as more and more people buy larger and larger screens, the impact will be felt. According the National Research Defense Council as told to The Christian Science Monitor, by 2009, when half of all new TV sales are expected to be extended- or high-definition digital sets with big screens, TV energy use will reach about 70 billion kilowatt-hours per year nationwide—about 50 percent higher than at present.
But it's not just the size of the screen that affects energy usage; it's the technology used inside. One sobering chart comes from CNET.
The chart looks at the energy consumed by 80 different HDTVs. While there are many differences from brand to brand, one size to another, and the technology used, a few trends become really obvious.
Sort the list by the technology being used—LCD, plasma, or rear-screen projection—and you'll see LCD having a distinct advantage in requiring less power, although part of the reason for this is that LCD sets tend to be small to medium sizes, with a few exceptions. But if you sort it by cost per square inch, there's no question that rear projection is the energy-efficient winner.
It's no surprise that when you sort the list by the size of the screen, the bigger screens generally consume more power. But I was surprised to see how efficient rear-screen projections are. If you're energy-conscious but thinking big, you should be thinking rear projection.
Plasma generally consumes twice as much power as rear projection at a given size, and in the larger sizes, that often works out to over $100 per year more to operate a plasma set. (The chart is based on 10.4 cents per kilowatt-hour, which was the national average in 2006, according to the Energy Information Administration. Here in NYC, we pay a lot more than that, so the difference between plasma and the rest is even more per year.)
One of the worst performers was the Panasonic TH-58PZ700U, using 609.53 watts per hour in "on" mode, costing a user almost $200 annually, assuming eight hours of on time per day. Come down a bit in size and the Vizio, a 42-inch plasma, only uses 190 watts per hour.
The most random category in the table was the standby power. Standby ranged from 0.3 watts on the Panasonic TH-58PZ700U to 76 watts for the Sharp LC-65D90U. In between were TVs of all sizes and technology, in no obvious order. Most units were under 5 watts in standby, but there were about a dozen above 5 watts. It's one thing to consume a few hundred watts while you or your family is being entertained. It's quite another when you're sleeping and so is your TV, chewing up 76 watts all night long.
NOVEC, a not-for-profit distributor of energy in Virginia, posts this chart showing the average watts used by screens of the same size, just different technology.
Average Television Power Consumption Rate
* Plasma: 328 watts
* Rear-projection: 208 watts
* LCD: 193 watts
* CRT: 146 watts
Bad enough when your own monthly bill takes a hike, but as more and more people buy larger and larger screens, the impact will be felt. According the National Research Defense Council as told to The Christian Science Monitor, by 2009, when half of all new TV sales are expected to be extended- or high-definition digital sets with big screens, TV energy use will reach about 70 billion kilowatt-hours per year nationwide—about 50 percent higher than at present.
Will the Last Gadget Standing Have Wires?
Didn't I tell you that we would need your help? Time for you to voice your opinion on the Last Gadget Standing at the CES event. Ready to begin?
One of the biggest trends we're likely to see at the show is the growing sophistication of the wireless world. Wireless technologies such as Bluetooth and 802.11 spawn new types of gadgets from smart phones to printers and cameras that can bypass the PC.
Here's a look at a few of the wireless products that will take the wireless connection to the next level. Drop me a short answer and let me know which one of these really moves you.
Plantronics' Calisto: Handles VoIP, Landline, and Cellular Calls
The Plantronics Calisto is like buying three phones in one. It combines a wireless Bluetooth headset for VoIP and cellular calls with a DECT 6.0 phone for landline calls ($280).
Eye-Fi: Turn Any Camera Into a Wireless Wonder
This product launched just about a month ago. The Eye-Fi Card is the world's first wireless SD memory card for digital cameras. The Card uses your home Wi-Fi network to create an effortless and convenient way for users to send photographs directly from digital cameras to PCs, Macs, and online photo and social networking sites ($99).
ANYCOM Solar Car-Kit SCK-1: Bluetooth Plus Green Design
ANYCOM's Solar Car-Kit is a Bluetooth car-kit with an added solar panel. Don't chuck your batteries just yet, though. With sufficient sunlight, three hours of charging will provide 30 minutes of talk time, according to the company. Still, it's a start.
IOGEAR's Powerline Audio System lets you listen to music wirelessly throughout your home—even in hard-to-get-to places like outdoors or out in your shed. You'll be able to distribute music from up to three different sources throughout a home by simply plugging the IOGEAR unit into your electric outlet. By using the pre-existing electric lines in your home instead of wireless or radio frequencies, the IOGEAR Powerline Audio System can handle loseless audio without interference from architectural barriers or from other devices. The unit consists of a docking station that allows you to connect iPods, CD players, MP3 players, cell phones, and other audio devices to the dock and transmit sound via the powerlines. Each adapter is plugged directly into a power outlet and then to a pair of external speakers (purchased separately: $329.95).
One of the biggest trends we're likely to see at the show is the growing sophistication of the wireless world. Wireless technologies such as Bluetooth and 802.11 spawn new types of gadgets from smart phones to printers and cameras that can bypass the PC.
Here's a look at a few of the wireless products that will take the wireless connection to the next level. Drop me a short answer and let me know which one of these really moves you.
Plantronics' Calisto: Handles VoIP, Landline, and Cellular Calls
The Plantronics Calisto is like buying three phones in one. It combines a wireless Bluetooth headset for VoIP and cellular calls with a DECT 6.0 phone for landline calls ($280).
Eye-Fi: Turn Any Camera Into a Wireless Wonder
This product launched just about a month ago. The Eye-Fi Card is the world's first wireless SD memory card for digital cameras. The Card uses your home Wi-Fi network to create an effortless and convenient way for users to send photographs directly from digital cameras to PCs, Macs, and online photo and social networking sites ($99).
ANYCOM Solar Car-Kit SCK-1: Bluetooth Plus Green Design
ANYCOM's Solar Car-Kit is a Bluetooth car-kit with an added solar panel. Don't chuck your batteries just yet, though. With sufficient sunlight, three hours of charging will provide 30 minutes of talk time, according to the company. Still, it's a start.
IOGEAR's Powerline Audio System lets you listen to music wirelessly throughout your home—even in hard-to-get-to places like outdoors or out in your shed. You'll be able to distribute music from up to three different sources throughout a home by simply plugging the IOGEAR unit into your electric outlet. By using the pre-existing electric lines in your home instead of wireless or radio frequencies, the IOGEAR Powerline Audio System can handle loseless audio without interference from architectural barriers or from other devices. The unit consists of a docking station that allows you to connect iPods, CD players, MP3 players, cell phones, and other audio devices to the dock and transmit sound via the powerlines. Each adapter is plugged directly into a power outlet and then to a pair of external speakers (purchased separately: $329.95).
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