Support Our Site
Get Better Gear!
- Kensington Windshield/Vent Car Mount with Sound Amplified Cradle for iPhone from Kensington, $39.99
- SigFx Energy iPhone Case Contains Smart Battery from SigFx Energy, US$69.95
- NAVIGON AG - True GPS Software for the iPhone from NAVIGON Inc., 89.99
- Tweetie 2 from atebits, $2.99
- Snood: Flawed Casual Play from Electronic Arts, US$3.99
Premier Sponsors
Top 5 Free Apps
iTunes New Music Releases
Top 5 Paid Apps
Discover New Music
- Weather Report
- This is Weather Reports quintessential line-up captured live. Jaco Pastorious and Peter Erskine join Wayne Shorter and, of course, Joe Zawinul to create this masterpiece.
- Secret Machines
The Secret Machines' inaugural album, Now Here is Nowhere is both old and new in its sonic assault. The trio's surprisingly big sound evokes Pink Floyd (without ever sounding like any Pink
- Wolfmother
Black Sabbath, The White Stripes, The Stooges. There aren't many bands worth their salt that want to be compared to other bands, but when I listen to Wolfmother's self-titled American debut, I can
Music Has The Right To Children
- Boards of Canada
- This one will haunt you. From the first notes to the last, their sound surrounds you. BOC has put out a fantastic catalogue, and this album is a great starting point for a new listener. Jump straight
- Massive Attack
"Black Milk" knocks me off my feet in this collection of moody and eclectic songs. Massive Attack uses samples and keyboards in a very unique way, but not all the songs pack the same punch.
Reader Specials
Visit Deals On The Web for the best deals on all consumer electronics, iPods, and more!
News
Texas Instruments Scrambles to Keep DLP Relevant
Sunday, January 20th, 2008 at 3:00 PM - by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Back when Plasma TVs cost $10,000, the rear projection TVs using the Texas Instruments DLP technology were a cost-effective alternative. Now, however, the wave of inexpensive LCD and Plasma HDTVs that can be hung on the wall and the imminent demise of rear projection TVs has Texas Instruments scrambling to keep their Digital Mirror Device technology viable, according to the on Monday.
Both Sony and Philips got out of the rear projection TV business in December. The market is rapidly moving to LCD, and about 80 percent of all new HDTVs are LCD. That has Texas Instruments, the developer of the Digital Light Projection technology (DLP) based on its micro mirror Digital Mirror Device (DMD) working hard to maintain interest in the technology.
For now, sales are holding, and Samsung, Mitsubishi and Toshiba still sell DLP TVs. Recently, LED driven DLP HDTVs have emerged that eliminate the rotating color wheel found in older DLP sets. In addition, the mirror wobble used in the 960 x 1080 mirror array allows for 3-D TV that other TVs are not capable of. T.I. believes that continued improved technology will keep the DLP system in the running.
"Most analysts use a rear view mirror when forecasting results," said TI’s Doug Darrow "They do not think of trends in the technology. We serve a different type of customer: the home theater enthusiast." Even so, the fear is that the thin TVs than can be hung on a wall will squeeze out the rear-projection TV in the long run.
At CES, the company showed some other advanced technology that allows slimmer TV sets (7 inches deep) and creates brighter images, higher contrasts, and smoother motion than before. Some projectors are small enough to fit in a cell phone.
Mitsubishi has reported excellent sales for now, especially for TVs over 70 inches (1.8 meters) where current Plasmas and LCDs cannot compete. Finally, TI is looking at many different types of devices where the technology can be showcased in order to ensure the future of DLP. "All of a sudden,” said Mr. Darrow, "we’re into a market of 100 million game machines, cellphones, iPods, and other portable devices used to consume media." Those are devices that no one thinks about hanging on a wall.
Recent Headlines
- Apple TV 3.0.1 Update Fixes Missing Content Bug
- Taiwan Leak Shows Verizon UTMS/CDMA iPhone for Q3 2010
- iPhone Moves Into RadioShack
- Dictionary, Dictionary, Dictionary, And More
- The Latest App Store Games: Gravity Sling, RocketBird, Ground Effect, Checkers!
- iPhone Game Developer Sued for Collecting User’s Cell Numbers
- Apple May Be Bringing RFID to the iPhone
Post Your Comments