Stand-alone touch screen controllers and universal remotes have a new rival in the quest to eliminate coffee table clutter… the Apple iPhone. There is now a wide array of applications with solutions for your home entertainment needs, whether it is setting your DVR, streaming whole-house audio, or having access to all the electronic devices in your home. All iPhone apps are downloaded from the iTunes App store and in most cases can also be used on the iPod Touch.

Ever leave home and forget to set your DVR? It’s certainly frustrating if it’s the season finale of your favorite show. The actual name of the app has been bolded and italicized, so you can easily search the App store.

If you are a DirecTV subscriber, the free app comes in handy during such lapses of memory. You can search for your favorite shows (title or channel) up to two weeks in advance and set them to record once, or even the entire season. It’s possible to even record pay-per-view movies.

The DVR Remote manages TiVo Series 3, TiVo HD and TiVo HD XL DVRs. Not only can you record your favorite shows from where ever you are, the app also includes a control screen with Play, Pause, Fast Forward and Rewind buttons, which legitimizes the $2.99 price tag. You can browse and search for shows and movies by actor, title, director, Daily Recommendations and Most Popular. The app also features Amazon Video on Demand and YouTube. The free “lite” version of the app has fewer navigation buttons and has considerable browsing limitations.

If you are Slingbox owner, you’ll love the SlingPlayer Mobile that allows you to watch or control your Slingbox SOLO, PRO, or PRO-HD directly from your iPhone/Touch. Change channels, control your DVR and watch your favorite shows either at home or on the go. There are no monthly fees, just the cost of the app ($29.99). This app could be the reason to finally get yourself a Sling Media product. According to the company, it only functions with WiFi at Apple’s request.

The iPhone ships with a simple Remote app that controls the iTunes music library on your computer or Apple TV over WiFi. You can do many of the same things you would do in iTunes, such as scan your artwork and create/edit playlists.

Controlling music seems to be a natural for the iPhone with several apps designed to control specific music streaming systems. The first such app that caught my attention comes from Sonos. This free app turns your iPhone into a fully operational Sonos Controller (a $400 value). For what you save on the stand-alone controller, you can buy more zone players. From the iPhone you pick a zone, then chose a playlist or a song to play. You can group zones together, in any combination, for complete whole-house audio.

If you are using Logitech’s Squeezebox player and the Squeeze Center server, download iPeng from Penguin Loves Music, Inc. Sync multiple Squeezebox players (just like grouping zone players with the Sonos system) and play the same music in several locations. Manage your playlists and listen to Internet music and music services such as Rhapsody. The app sells for $9.99.

If you’ve connected the Roku Soundbridge to your home network, the $2.99 RokuRemote allows you to select Internet stations, make individual selections by artist, album, or song. You can change the volume, pause, advance, or repeat a song, even select repeat, and shuffle for playback of the current playlist.

Taking it up a few notches, ReQuest, provides comprehensive IP-based music and movie server systems. While they have keypads and touch screen panels, there is also the ReQuest app that provides the same level of control for any of their N, F or S Media servers. (It is not compatible with their IQ system.) You can quickly find a song by artist or genre, play entire albums or playlists, even search, and sort your collection.

Many key manufacturers of home automation systems offer an iPhone app to control their IP-based systems (i.e.you need an Internet connection) including Crestron, Control4, Savant Systems, Lifeware, and HomeLogic. All the apps are free, except one.

It’s important to note that you can’t do anything with these apps if you don’t have a system installed in your home. Savant Systems even makes sure you think twice before downloading with an eye-popping $199 purchase price. The only home automation system and media server built on the Mac OS, Savant’s ROSIE Home Automation system allows customers to control all their AV gear, and other subsystems such as lighting, security and climate control from a highly sophisticated iPhone interface.

Crestron, the company whose name is synonymous with revolutionary touchscreen controllers and fascinating graphic user interfaces (GUI) also brings fully integrated control to the iPhone. When you launch the Crestron app, communication is automatically established between the mobile device and the Crestron control system. The iPhone will display the Crestron GUI and seamlessly control and manage all of your home entertainment and environmental systems just like you would from a dedicated Crestron touchpanel.

Displaying Control4’s standard interface, the app Control4 My House works exclusively with home automation systems using the company’s Director version 1.7 or later. A Mobile Navigator License is required to begin operation. Use the iPhone app to view the feeds from your security cameras, control the climate, lighting, and AV devices in any room of the house.

An elegant and inexpensive alternative to their touch panels, Lifeware controls playback of stored media, AV equipment, and all other installed subsystems. Since Lifeware works with Microsoft Windows XP Media Center you can even view and record content right on your Media Center PC. Who said Apple and Microsoft can’t co-exist?

Like all the other apps, the HomeLogic app lets you control all your home systems when using HomeLogic solutions. However, this is the only app that offers a live demo so you can see what an iPhone controlled system can do. The HomeLogic demo allows you to navigate through the individual screens and make adjustments to see how the app functions. When you get to the screen that controls your TV and see how easy it is to pick your favorite stations just by their unique icons, you’ll be searching for your local HomeLogic dealer. Smart sales tool, guys.

A few companies provide iPhone apps to control their gadgets such as the free VUDU Movie Catalog app that allows subscribers of the service to browse and search the catalog (as long as there is WIFI). Find what you want, and then rent or purchase your movie and it will be waiting for you to watch at your leisure. I sure wish Apple would do this for the Apple TV’s movie rental functions. Duh!

Remotescape is designed for controlling all of their highly acclaimed Kaleidescape Music Players. The iPhone interface is designed for one handed-operation, allowing you to browse and play music from any room in the house without sitting in front of a TV monitor. Use iPhone’s ‘flick’ gestures to scroll through albums, by artist, genre, and track or scan the details of a particular film. Remote control buttons – fast forward, reverse, pause, stop, and play – are also provided. For all this functionality and a lot more, the app was priced at $59.99.

If you have a lot of Z-wave compatible home automation gear you should download Melloware’s $9.99 ZWave Commander app, allowing complete control of your ZWave devices from anywhere in the world. You’ll need a ControlThink USB ThinkStick connected to your PC (Windows only) for the ZWave Commander to communicate with your gear. Unlike other apps that need WiFi, the ZWave Commander also works on 3G and Edge networks. It also uses the iPhone’s unique scroll wheel for easy selections.

A relatively new company, ThinkFlood, is releasing the RedEye system, which will be the first universal remote for the iPhone. As of press time, the app was not yet available in the iTunes App store but I had to include it in my roundup. The app itself will be free for download in September, however, the associated hardware will run $149.00, pretty much what you would expect to spend on a highly adaptive universal remote anyway. The RedEye hub uses Wi-Fi, which means no line of sight is required. The hub receives the iPhone’s commands and sends out infrared signals to control your devices. It will be possible to control almost an infinite number of components and multiple iPhones can be set up, allowing everyone in the household to have their own remote. The Hub’s built-in iPod dock also serves as a charger.

With only a couple of years into its development, the iPhone/Touch is proving to be the ultimate gadget with a solution for just about everything. Even as I was wrapping up this rather extensive round up, I heard that Denon is considering an app to work with the Enhanced Web Browser functionality in their networked AVRs. I think it’s safe to say, this is only the beginning, and there will be a lot more exciting and intriguing apps in the months and years to come.

Source: hometheaterdesignmag.com

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Samsung’s flashy CES 2010 Blu-ray news may be the BD-C6900 3D Blu-ray player and ultraslim BD-C7500, but the company also rolled out two mainstream models, the BD-C5500 and BD-C6500. Like most of Samsung’s CES 2010 home theater announcements, details are scarce, but here’s what we know so far.

Key features of the Samsung BD-C5500:

• Low power consumption (13 watts during playback; .1 watts in standby)
• Wi-Fi ready (requires USB dongle, sold separately)
• Supports Internet@TV/Samsung Apps, which will provide content from Netflix, Pandora, Vudu, Blockbuster, Picasa, and Twitter
• Meets Energy Star 4.0 guidelines
• No release date or pricing announced

Key step-up features of the Samsung BD-C6500:

• 15-second disc load; 15-second boot-up
• Built-in Wi-Fi
• Meets Energy Star 4.0 guidelines, but doesn’t have the same low power consumption as the BD-C5500
• No release date or pricing announced

Editors’s note: This section has been updated with more information about Samsung Apps

Internet@TV and Samsung Apps are Samsung’s new proprietary content portals for home theater products. As of now, it’s not perfectly clear exactly how it will work; Samsung says that the first free apps will launch in the spring, with premium apps following in the summer. When we talked to a Samsung rep at the booth, he said that standards services like Netflix, Pandora and Vudu would all be free; he used Tetris as an example of something that would be a premium app. We get the feeling that a lot of the particulars still have to be worked out.

Overall, there’s not much info released about these players, although we’re happy to see that the step-up BD-C6500 has built-in Wi-Fi, a step-up over last year’s BD-P3600. We’ll update this post as we get more information from Samsung.

Source: cnet.com

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Each household has more or less at least one iPod, and many homes have two or more – one for each occupant. Well, this is where the new shelf systems from JVC – the JVC NX-D2 and JVC UX-F3 come in, where both of them are able to hold a couple of the portable media players simultaneously. The former features a powerful 230-watt system with three-way speaker design, juicing up the two iPods side-by-side at the same time while letting you playback your tunes from each via the dock’s speaker system. As for the JVC UX-F3, this model pumps out 60 watts of juice and is paired with two-way speakers, offering video output that lets you hook up whatever video content you have on your iPod to your TV – no high definition support here though. Other standard features for both shelf systems include USB support, a CD player just in case you want to get retro with your collection and an integrated AM/FM tuner. You can pick up the JVC UX-F3 and JVC NX-D2 for $199.95 (May) and $399.95 (January), respectively.

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LAS VEGAS–We covered all of LG’s major product announcements on Wednesday, but when we swung by the booth yesterday the LLB915 Blu-ray sound bar caught our eye. We’re not quite sure why LG didn’t mention it at the press conference, but the feature set is impressive. Here’s what the product card said.

Key features of the LG LLB915:

• Sound bar with built-in Blu-ray player
• 2 HDMI inputs, 1 output
• 430 watts of power
• Wireless subwoofer
• Built-in Wi-Fi
• LG’s NetCast suite of streaming media services, including Netflix, Vudu, CinemaNow, YouTube, Pandora, Picasa, and AccuWeather
• DLNA-compliant
• No release date or pricing announced

The card at the booth also mentioned the LLB915 was “made for iPod”, which implies it has an iPod dock, but we couldn’t see one at the booth. Again, LG hasn’t released any info for this product beyond the product card at the CES 2010 booth, but we’ve requested more details.

From the first glance, the LLB915 appears to have stuffed the functionality of the BD390 standalone Blu-ray player into a sound bar, plus added two additional HDMI inputs for other devices. If it delivers passable sound quality, this could be a product to look for in 2010.

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Sony, Samsung, LG, and Toshiba all announced 3D-compatible HDTVs at this year’s CES, but Panasonic has made the most noise about the technology. The company began touting an extra dimension at last year’s CES, and this year it has finally announced a shipping date for its first 3D plasma TV. Dubbed the VT25 series, it’s expected to be released in the spring. It will be among the first 3D-capable flat-panel HDTVs available for sale in the U.S.The set will include one pair of 3D glasses–every other 3D set announced at the show, save Sony’s XBR-LX900 series, lacks included glasses. Also, like all other makers, Panasonic will employ an active LC shutter system. The right and left lens in the glasses alternately darkens and lightens, too quickly to perceive, while the TV synchronously displays the corresponding right- and left-eye-specific images. The result is a stereoscopic 3D effect that, in the case of the VT25 mated to full-resolution 3D content, preserves all 1,920×1,080 (1080p) pixels for each eye–hence Panasonic’s term “Full HD 3D.”Toshiba and Samsung have announced 2D to 3D conversion systems with their sets, which purport to create a 3D effect with standard 2D material; however, Panasonic avoids such processing tricks with the VT25. The only way to get 3D out of this TV (at least until 3D-upconverting players come along) is to mate it to a true 3D source, which means a 3D-compatible Blu-ray player playing a 3D disc, or a cable or satellite box tuned to a 3D channel. Such hardware-content combinations are nonexistent today, but given the preponderance of 3D related announcements at CES–including Panasonic’s own DMP-BDT350–they won’t be for long. We’ll take a closer look at 3D after the show, but in the meantime, Panasonic’s 3D HD Web site provides a good overview–as long as you can stomach the inevitable boosterism.

Aside from 3D, the VT25 is separated from step-down models in Panasonic’s lineup by the inclusion of Infinite Black Pro, which we assume improves upon the already excellent black level performance found on current Panasonic plasma TVs. The company lists the same 5,000,000:1 contrast ratio (for what it’s worth) for both the Pro and non-Pro versions of the feature, so we’ll have to wait for a review sample to see how black this latest Panasonic can get.

The VT25 also offers ISFccc, a protocol to help professional calibrators home in on the perfect picture, and an RS-232 port for custom installations.

Update January 8, 2010: We asked Panasonic’s rep whether the the new TVs, like the current V10 series, would include a 96Hz refresh rate, to better display native 1080p/24 content. We were told that the VT25 would have a 96Hz option, but that the new G25 and G20 models would have the same flicker-prone 48Hz refresh rate option found on the current G10 models. See the review of the Panasonic TC-PG10 series for details.

Aside from these differences, its feature set is identical to that of the company’s TC-PG25 series, so check out that write up for more information on the other features below.

Panasonic TC-PVT25 features:

• 3D compatible
• Includes one pair of 3D glasses
• Infinite Black Pro
• ISFccc mode
• THX certified
• VieraCast interactive suite adds Netflix, Pandora, Twitter, and Fox Sports to previous content
• Skype video calling
• Optional Wi-Fi connection

Panasonic TC-PVT25 series models:

• Panasonic Viera TC-P65VT25: 65-inch, available spring 2010, price TBD
• Panasonic Viera TC-P58VT25: 58-inch, available spring 2010, price TBD
• Panasonic Viera TC-P54VT25: 54-inch, available spring 2010, price TBD
• Panasonic Viera TC-P50VT25: 50-inch, available spring 2010, price TBD

Source: cnet.com

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Vizio captured our attention with its “Via” platform of interactive applications, and while it still hasn’t shipped a Via-equipped TV–the VF552XVT should appear later this month, according to the company–Vizio has announced the imminent arrival of improved versions, which it calls the VT Pro series.

What’s different? The three-model XVT Pro series delivers that trendy buzzword, 3D, and the company claims its 3D technology, which employs Sensio XpanD shutter glasses, surpasses that of other 3D purveyors. We’ll be sure to test that claim when we can review one.

Vizio has also upped the number of zones on its local-dimming LED backlight, from 80 on the VF552XVT to 120 on the same-sized XVT Pro model, the 55-inch XVTPRO550SV. The larger, 72-inch model gets 480 zones, whereas the 47-incher gets 160 (that’s not a misprint; per Vizio’s press release it does have more zones than the larger 55-incher). More zones generally equals less blooming, although in our review of the VF551XVT (another 80-zone model) blooming was not a major problem.

The company incorporates the same extra-high refresh rate, 480Hz, that we saw announced by LG and Toshiba on their respective flagship HDTVs this year. Like those models, we expect the Vizio employs a scanning backlight in conjunction with conventional motion estimation and motion compensation technology. It sounds like a mouthful, but we don’t expect much of an improvement in motion resolution over standard 240Hz models.

In addition to built-in Wi-Fi, which is also found on the VF552XVT, the XVT Pro series has another wireless trick up its sleeve. The TV has a built-in wireless receiver that can communicate with an optional base station via a 60GHz signal, designed to minimize interference with other wireless devices and preserve the full resolution of 1080p. The station has four HDMI inputs, and when you plug your gear in it can send the picture and sound to the TV without wires. A similar optional wireless system is available on LG’s models, and we like the idea.

Notably, Vizio is the only TV maker to actually announce pricing on a 3D-compatible TV. It even went so far as to promise a release date. The company has a history of inaccuracy on both counts, but at least it’s given prospective TV shoppers something to work with. And with the 72-inch model going for $3,500, it’s given other manufacturers something to shoot for. Vizio XVT Pro features:

• full-array LED backlight with local dimming
• 3D compatible
• 480Hz refresh rate
• Via interactive functionality with Amazon Video on Demand, Netflix, Rhapsody, Twitter, VUDU, Yahoo TV Widgets and more
• Optional-in Wi-Fi connection
• Optional wireless HDMI base station

Vizio XVT Pro models:

• Vizio XVTPRO720SV: 72-inch, available August 2010, $3499 MSRP
• Vizio XVTPRO550SV: 55-inch, available August 2010, $2499 MSRP
• Vizio XVTPRO470SV: 47-inch, available August 2010, $1999 MSRP

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You can’t swing a CES badge around without knocking over a LED TV this week, it seems. ViewSonic isn’t doing much to help the situation as the debuted four new LED HDTVs during the show.

First up are the 18.5-inch VT1900LED and 32-inch VT3200LED. Both are 720p, Energy Star 5.0 compliant and offer a response time of 5ms.

The 42-inch VT4200LED and 23-inch VT2300LED feature full HD 1080p panel resolution, delivering the ultimate visual experience for HD movies and Internet content. In addition, the VT4200LED delivers 120Hz operation, fast 4ms response time, and a 100,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio.

Source: cnet.com

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DTS-HD Master Audio is nothing new, of course, but the 7.1 demo sounded superb using standard home-theater gear, including a Sony PS3, Onkyo TX-HR3007 AVR, Definitive Technology Mythos 1 speakers, and Earthquake subwoofer. I learned a bit about the upcoming next-gen Neo, which will upmix to 11.1 channels to add height and width speakers to an existing surround system, much like Dolby Pro Logic IIz and Audyssey DSX.

Source: ultimateavmag.com

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When Panasonic released the first portable Blu-ray player at CES 2009, it received a lot of skepticism, but when we actually reviewed it, we found ourselves liking it a bit more than we expected. Yes, it was too bulky, too expensive, and you had to get really close to see the visual benefits of Blu-ray, but it did enable you to watch your new Blu-ray collection on-the-go. Plus Panasonic made it work as a fully-functional standalone unit too.

Panasonic has now announced its second-generation portable Blu-ray players, with two models this year: the DMP-B100 and DMP-B500. Here’s a quick look at the announced features.

Key features of the Panasonic DMP-B100:

• 8.9-inch WSVGA LCD display
• 3.5 hour battery life
• PHL Reference Chroma Processor Plus video processor
• Onboard decoding for Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio
• SD card slot
• Adjustable position screen
• No release date or pricing announced

Key step-up features of the Panasonic DMP-B500:

• 10.1-inch WSVGA LCD display
• Built-in Wi-Fi
• Supports Panasonic’s VieraCast streaming content portal, which will feature content from Amazon Video On Demand, YouTube, Picasa, Netflix, Pandora, and Twitter
• No release date or pricing announced

Editors’ note: We’ve updated this section with new information on battery life.

Panasonic hasn’t released the most important information yet–pricing–but the new players are definitely upgrades over last year’s DMP-B15K. The sleeker design and built-in Wi-Fi on the B500 is nice, but to us the big new is that both players will now have a battery life of 3.5 hours, an hour more than last year’s player. Portable Blu-ray players will likely still a niche product, but we expect these models to be a little more popular than the DMP-B15 now that Blu-ray is more established.

Source: cnet.com

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LAS VEGAS–We don’t see many home theater AV receivers at CES, with home audio manufacturers generally waiting for their own line shows to release new product lines. However, most AV receivers don’t have Blu-ray players built-in.

Denon has announced the S-5BD AV receiver/Blu-ray Disc player combo unit at CES 2010, melding the two components into a sleek, glossy package. Here’s the initial info from the news release.

Key features of the Denon S-5BD:

• Blu-ray player and AV receiver combo unit
• 5.1 AV receiver
• 2-zone, 2 source capability
• 3 HDMI 1.4 inputs
• Dolby Pro Logic IIz decoding, along with Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio
• SD card slot
• $1,800 list price, available in March 2010

The S-5BD certainly has a slick design and it’s the first combo unit we’ve seen, but we can’t help but feel it will ultimately have limited appeal. The integrated Blu-ray player has a relatively bare-bones feature set since it lacks Wi-Fi and the streaming media services (like Netflix) available on competing models.

Finally, the integrated design really limits your upgrade options. With separate components, it’s easy to swap in a new Blu-ray player while you still try to squeeze some extra years out of your receiver. You could add a new Blu-ray player with the S-5BD (with its three HDMI inputs), but that’s defeating the point of the unit in the first place. The S-5BD might make sense in certain applications where there’s limited space or ease-of-use is a priority, but it’s probably not the best choice for buyers who value flexibility in their home theater setup.

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