Tuesday, May 22, 2007
Sunday, May 6, 2007
Dell W3207C 32-inch HDTV
RATED #1 BY PC WORLD ~~~~~$949.00 RIGHT NOW AT Dell!
!
This 32-inch LCD TV boasts good image quality and a nice design.
The Dell W3207C is a well-rounded 32-inch LCD TV. This $1200 model earned solid scores on every viewing test, and it has an attractive design, too.
The W3207C, which includes both ATSC and NTSC tuners for, respectively, digital and analog signals, consistently pleased our judges in both standard- and high-definition video tests. Greens and reds were correctly saturated in high-def clips. The unit did very well when subjected to bright fluorescent lighting: Despite such intrusive ambient lighting, we could still see vivid colors and good contrast.
The unit's black-and-silver cabinet sits on a round black-and-silver base, which is in turn balanced on a narrow stand. This straightforward design is one of my favorites, and the stand swivels. Dell doesn't skimp on connectors, although they are a little difficult to access on the back of the TV. (I found myself doing contortions to view the labels on the connectors even when using the swiveling stand.) The W3207C has one HDMI, two component, and two composite inputs; however, it lacks the digital audio/optical input that other models offer. Though color-coded, the connector labels lack text descriptions and require some amount of guesswork.
The matching black-and-silver remote control appears iPod-like with its circular navigational control, but it has four directional buttons rather than a touch-sensitive wheel. This remote works only with the TV and not with any other components, but it has cleanly organized buttons. I found the W3207C's on-screen menus easy to use. The main menu appears at the bottom, while the submenus float in the middle of the screen. A row of Tic Tac-sized controls sit on the right side of the TV panel. The white-on-silver labels are a bit hard to read and I found myself squinting to discern letters, but the controls were easy enough to activate. Dell offers a trilingual manual dedicated to this model.
Our listeners found the audio--which comes from built-in speakers mounted on the sides of the cabinet--flat. The SRS TruSurround XT feature did help audio quality. Even so, this somewhat disappointing result surprised us, since Dell says that these speakers are the same as those on the previously reviewed Dell W3201C, except that now they are not detachable. In the W3201C review, we found speaker audio powerful and clear. This time around, however, the same reviewer found the speakers to have less clarity and frequency response (for outputting both bass and treble frequencies). Also, because the speakers are no longer detachable, you can't increase their separation to enhance stereo audio.
All in all, however, the Dell W3207C LCD TV offers a great combination of sleek industrial design, enticing picture quality, and a reasonable price.
This 32-inch LCD TV boasts good image quality and a nice design.
The Dell W3207C is a well-rounded 32-inch LCD TV. This $1200 model earned solid scores on every viewing test, and it has an attractive design, too.
The W3207C, which includes both ATSC and NTSC tuners for, respectively, digital and analog signals, consistently pleased our judges in both standard- and high-definition video tests. Greens and reds were correctly saturated in high-def clips. The unit did very well when subjected to bright fluorescent lighting: Despite such intrusive ambient lighting, we could still see vivid colors and good contrast.
The unit's black-and-silver cabinet sits on a round black-and-silver base, which is in turn balanced on a narrow stand. This straightforward design is one of my favorites, and the stand swivels. Dell doesn't skimp on connectors, although they are a little difficult to access on the back of the TV. (I found myself doing contortions to view the labels on the connectors even when using the swiveling stand.) The W3207C has one HDMI, two component, and two composite inputs; however, it lacks the digital audio/optical input that other models offer. Though color-coded, the connector labels lack text descriptions and require some amount of guesswork.
The matching black-and-silver remote control appears iPod-like with its circular navigational control, but it has four directional buttons rather than a touch-sensitive wheel. This remote works only with the TV and not with any other components, but it has cleanly organized buttons. I found the W3207C's on-screen menus easy to use. The main menu appears at the bottom, while the submenus float in the middle of the screen. A row of Tic Tac-sized controls sit on the right side of the TV panel. The white-on-silver labels are a bit hard to read and I found myself squinting to discern letters, but the controls were easy enough to activate. Dell offers a trilingual manual dedicated to this model.
Our listeners found the audio--which comes from built-in speakers mounted on the sides of the cabinet--flat. The SRS TruSurround XT feature did help audio quality. Even so, this somewhat disappointing result surprised us, since Dell says that these speakers are the same as those on the previously reviewed Dell W3201C, except that now they are not detachable. In the W3201C review, we found speaker audio powerful and clear. This time around, however, the same reviewer found the speakers to have less clarity and frequency response (for outputting both bass and treble frequencies). Also, because the speakers are no longer detachable, you can't increase their separation to enhance stereo audio.
All in all, however, the Dell W3207C LCD TV offers a great combination of sleek industrial design, enticing picture quality, and a reasonable price.
Wednesday, May 2, 2007
Altec-Lansing unveils iPod mini-theater
Speaker creator Altec-Lansing on Wednesday released the inMotion iMV712, a new speaker dock for the iPod that transforms into a small-scale home theater. Owners of the fifth-generation Apple music player can play videos on a large, 8.5-inch LCD embedded in the front of the system. Any Dock Connector iPod can take advantage of an enhanced sound stage, says the company. A four-inch subwoofer enhances the bass reponse compared to most speaker docks; the three-inch satellites also use Altec-Lansing's Sound Field Expander technology to widen the typically narrow stereo effect of all-in-one units.
The iMV712 is also more accommodating to third-party devices with both a minijack input for audio and RCA input for both audio and video from DVD players or similar sources. A cradle holds more portable devices separately from the iPod dock.
Altec-Lansing expects to ship the new inMotion hybrid dock later this month bundled with a wireless remote and should sell at a price of $350.
The iMV712 is also more accommodating to third-party devices with both a minijack input for audio and RCA input for both audio and video from DVD players or similar sources. A cradle holds more portable devices separately from the iPod dock.
Altec-Lansing expects to ship the new inMotion hybrid dock later this month bundled with a wireless remote and should sell at a price of $350.
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