Wednesday, March 11, 2009

By PETER CROOKES

Movie marvel: Just as the arrival of home video in the 1980s impacted heavily on the movie-theater industry, free-to-air TV is now being undermined by pay TV and movies delivered via the Internet. Television-set manufacturers are helping to widen channels for the new methods of movie distribution, and now Sony is making VOD (Video On Demand) services easier with two new series of Bravia LCD high-definition TVs, the W5 and F5.

Each unit features a Felica/Edy e-Wallet reader on its remote control. This reader allows the Bravia owner to use their TV remote to pay electronically for VOD services from their sofa. In effect, it makes movies on demand almost as easy to access as free-to-air channels.

Enhanced picture quality is the other selling point for the new TVs. All but one of the six new models are equipped with a 240-MHz Motion Flow panel, and all have a full HD resolution of 1920×1080. One of the main failings of LCD panels is that they struggle to show fast-moving images smoothly. TV makers tout 100 MHz or better as the standard for decent quality, so Sony claims its 240-MHz panels will show even higher-paced offerings such as soccer games smoothly and sharply.

Backing up the Motion Flow, the new TVs include Sony's top-drawer Bravia Engine 3 processors, giving them contrast ratios of 3,800:1 up to 100,000:1. Sony also claims improved energy efficiencies for the new series. The W5 Series comes in three size choices — 40-inch, 46-inch and 52-inch — with each packing a dual digital TV tuner. The lower-rated F5 Series models have a single digital TV tuner and come in size choices of 32-inch, 40-inch and 46-inch. The dual tuner allows you to watch one show while recording another.

The W5 series will start at ¥289,800 for the 40-inch model, ¥369,800 for the 46-inch model and a hefty ¥449,800 for the 52-inch model. The 32-inch F5 model has only a 120-MHz panel, a lower resolution of 1366×768, but is the cheapest at ¥159,800. The 40-inch F5 will cost ¥269,800 and the 46-inch model is priced at ¥349,800. All six new models will be on the market from April 24.

Despite the improved picture quality, the real selling point for both the W5 and F5 models is the easy video-on-demand ability. If that is not important to you then save a bit of money and either go for another Bravia or a different brand. The top-selling Bravia 46-inch KDL-40X1S, without the VOD trick or upgraded picture quality, sells for ¥248,000. www.sony.jp/CorporateCruise/Press/200903/09-0302/

Cleaning up: Garbage can be valuable, which explains why some people can be reluctant to throw it out. However, Panasonic appeals to our instinct to recycle with its new, high-priced garbage-processing machines.

The Panasonic RISAIKURA MS-N53

The main unit is the RISAIKURA MS-N53. The recycler can take up to 2 kg of organic garbage, such as food scraps. It mixes it together and uses a combination of a platinum- palladium catalyst and heat to break it down. The end result is compost that can be used on your garden, with Panasonic claiming it is better than store-bought fertilizer.

The device has different settings, depending on how dry you want the recycled compost to be, with the process taking three to six hours; the longer the setting, the drier the result. Compost created at lower temperatures preserves more protein and so is good for the short-term fertilizing needs of flowering plants and vegetables. Drier compost is better for long-term fertilizing of trees. The company also trumpets the recycler as being kind to your nose.

The unit operates off mains electricity and consumes about 800 W of power. It measures 268×365×550 mm and weighs about 12 kg. A smaller model, the MS-N23, has a capacity of 1 kg and is a bit over half the size. If you are into recycling, the Panasonic pair are intriguing, albeit expensive, temptations.

The MS-N53 will sell for ¥85,000 when it comes on the market April 25, and the MSN-23 will cost ¥65,000. ctlg.panasonic.jp/product

Economical memories: Recycling of a different nature is the forte of the "Record Digital Audio" NV-RP001U from Novac. Essentially it is a record player that you can plug into a computer for recording your LPs as digital music files. It can record MP3 and WMA files with a choice of five different bit rates (32, 64, 128, 192 and 320 kbps), as well as higher-quality WAV files. The device connects via USB to a computer and you simply play your record on the NV-RP001U and, using software, copy the music onto your hard disk. But rather than copying an entire record as one long file, you can split it into smaller files as you wish, for example turning an album into a collection of tracks.

The Novac NV-RP001U

Once converted, the music files can be copied to your iPod or wherever else you want them. Novac emphasizes the device's ease of use, with the included Record Mate LP software supposedly taking the hassle out of preserving your vinyl memories. It comes with the USB cable included.

Apart from serving as a conduit to your computer, the NV-RP001U has built-in speakers and so can function as a stand-alone record player that can handle any 33-, 45- and 78-rpm record. You can even connect the Novac device to an audio system via the included RCA cable and play your vinyl tunes directly through your digital sound machine.

Regrettably, fans of vinyl and Apple's operating system cop the cold shoulder again: The device can only be used with computers that run on Windows.

The NV-RP001U will cost ¥14,800 when it comes out March 13. Of course, at that price don't expect to get Onkyo-like audio quality, in analog or digital form. But there are more expensive options on the market if you are willing to pay for better reproduction. www.novac.co.jp/products/hardware/nv-capture/nv-rp001u/index.html

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