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Gear
March 2000
Focus: Digital living room
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Nerve center
The iCEBOX (Information Communication Entertainment Box) seeks to rip the Internet experience out of the study and deposit it in the home's most important room: the kitchen. The machine comes in counter-top and under-the-counter designs and includes a grease-proof wireless keyboard and remote. In addition to looking up online recipes, the manufacturer suggests you use the device to keep an eye on the kids in another room while you whip up dinner at the stove. CMi Worldwide, www.cmiworldwide.com
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Sleek screen
The Multiscan N50 beautifies the desktop in more ways than one. In addition to its 15-inch flat panel, 0.5-inch edge thickness, and James-Bond appeal, it also features Sony's GVIF (Gigabyte Video Interface), which hides the video, audio, and power circuits in a module you can hide discreetly; only a single interface cable mars your minimalist workspace. The $1,499 monitor also senses its master's presence, putting itself to sleep 20 seconds after you walk away, and snapping to attention within 1 second of your return. Sony, www.sony.com
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Tube type
Never mind continuous-grain silicon, plasma, holograms, or moving microscopic mirrors (TV technologies explained elsewhere in this section). The F38310 HDTV uses a modern version of the good-old picture tube to create its 38-inch image. The set includes electronics to receive over-air analog broadcasts and DirecTV programming and will retail for about $3999 when it debuts in mid 2000. Thomson Multimedia, www.thomson-multimedia.com
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Tapeless video
Like many recent digital cameras, the VPC-SX500 does double duty, recording both video and still images. Unlike its kin, the unit captures VGA-resolution video clips directly into silicon memory, rather than onto a tape. As a still camera, the device shoots 1360-by-1024-pixel still images and catches fast-moving action by snapping up to 7.5 exposures each second. A CompactFlash II slot can also accommodate a 340-Mbyte IBM Microdrive. Sanyo, 1-888-495-3452, www.sanyodigital.com
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Multi-talented
By merging the functions of a camcorder and a digital camera, the Digital DualCam (GR-DVL9800) reduces by one the number of appliances you'll have hanging around your neck during the next family outing. Using a 680,000-pixel CCD image sensor, the $2000 camera records video onto a Mini-DV-format tape and captures XGA-quality still photos on a removable MultiMediaCard. You can even shoot a still photo while you're recording video. An i.LINK interface transports your masterpieces to a PC. JVC, www.jvc.com
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Mirror images
Sounds like sci-fi, but it's not. Within the UltraVision/DLP HDTV, you'll find a 0.8-inch semiconductor chip—manufactured by Texas Instruments. The surface of the chip is covered with nearly 1 million microscopic mirrors, which move to create a picture that's then projected onto the set's screen. The television offers 1280-by-720-pixel resolution and will be available in late 2000 for around $10,000. Hitachi, www.hitachi.com/tv
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Envy generators
If you're not content to merely keep up with the Joneses, a new line of HDTVs could be just the thing. The lineup includes 34- and 36-inch FD Trinitron WEGA sets with 4:3 aspect ratios ($5500 and $5000) and rear-projection 57- and 65-inch DTVs with the full 16:9 aspect ratio ($6000 and $7000). All the sets contain digital tuners, i.LINK ports (Sony's flavor of IEEE 1394) for connecting AV components, and Dolby-Digital decoders. Sony, www.sony.com
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Living room printer
Here's another example of convergence changing the shape of things to come—literally. The LR1 PrintStation is a Bubble Jet printer in a new form cosmetically distinct from its PC-related forebears. The VCR-shaped printer fits inside an entertainment center, loads and ejects paper from the front, and comes in gunmetal gray (not beige). The printer works with an Internet set-top box, offering couch-bound Web surfers the ability to print Web pages and email messages. Canon Computer Systems, www.ccsi.canon.com
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Access machine
As far as the consumer/user knows, the iBrow provides Internet access without PC hassles. It turns on instantly, gets online, and displays Web pages on its 10-inch LCD. No need to install, upgrade, or tweak. But underneath the hood, the machine's architecture allows a remote administrator to perform updates, such as installing new applications, splash screens, or access numbers. The machine is aimed at businesses—ISPs, banks, portal companies—who want to use it to hook customers into their services. The machine is based on National Semiconductor's Geode WebPAD reference design. Boundless Technologies, 1-800-231-5445, www.boundless.com/ibrow. National Semiconductor, www.national.com
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Reflective kind
The D'Ahlia AV-61S901 projection television uses the 1.22-inch D-ILA Hologram Device to produce a 61-inch, 1280-by-1028-pixel image. The D-ILA device reflects light off of a mirror below the pixels, producing a brighter image than transmissive LCD technologies, where the light must pass through the LCD's liquid-crystal layer. $7000. JVC, www.jvc.com
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Lost no more
The StreetFinder GPS package transforms a Palm III or Palm V handheld computer into a GPS receiver. The package includes a funky-looking GPS antenna, which weighs less than six ounces, plus CD-ROM map software. Just snap the receiver onto the back of the Palm Pilot, then follow your progress toward your destination on a downloaded map. $179 for the Palm III and $199 for the Palm V. Rand McNally, www.randmcnally.com
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Go with the grain
The LC-R60HDU is the first HDTV using Sharp's continuous-grain-silicon LCD technology. The projector consists of three separate 2.6-inch LCD panels (red, green, and blue), each with 1.31 million pixels. The 60-inch image cast by those panels features a 400:1 contrast ratio, high brightness, and wide-angle visibility. As with any new technology, it's not for the budget conscious: $49,995. Sharp, www.sharp-usa.com
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Digital sponge
The Platinum HD set-top receiver soaks up standard and high-definition DirectTV programming, and can grab local, high-definition digital broadcasts from the airwaves via an antenna. The receiver converts pictures from standard into high-definition format (and vice versa), features DirecTV's advanced program guide, and supports the company's DirecDuo high-speed Internet access. Hughes Network Systems, www.hns.com. DirecTV, www.directv.com
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Thin is in
Just 4 inches thick, the LC-PD50U plasma display presents a 50-inch HDTV image in a 16:9 aspect ratio. The TV displays several formats (720p, 1080i, 480p, and 480i), includes an RS-232 input so it can work with custom AV control systems, and can also display PC signals. $20,995. Sharp, www.sharp-usa.com
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Instant gratification
Remember vintage instant cameras? The whirring sound as the photo emerged? The anticipation while you waited for the image to magically appear? The DCR-TRV820 digital video/still camera recaptures some of that feeling thanks to a built-in color printer. The camera can spit out a business-card-sized rendition of either a still image or a frame from a video scene. Available in May for $1300. Sony, www.sony.com
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