Wireless TV Screens
Several large-screen manufacturers including Sony, LG and Samsung are releasing flat-screens that may once and for all eradicate the tangle of spaghetti behind the average set. The system, which is based on the 802.11n high-speed Ethernet standard, will allow a receiver to transmit a high-def image to its associated screen wirelessly. Just hang your plasma wherever there’s power and fire-up the receiver! Nice!
Sony TransferJet
Sony has a cool docking system designed to streamline the transfer of data between all of your Sony devices. Just place your device (say a camera, camcorder or cellphone) on the Transferjet dock and voila! The data is automatically transferred to the device connected to the dock (like a PC). According to Sony, this transfer technology will be applied to a large variety of Sony’s digital media devices in the- near future.
Samsung WiFi Picture Frame
Finally! A digital picture frame I don’t need to tether to my PC to load with media. The new Samsung frame relies on standard WiFi to access the media stored on your home network. According to Samsung, it is also capable of retrieving media from a variety of online sources. This includes the ability to send new video or images of your kids in LA to the picture frame in your Mother’s house in Pougheepsie. Now get off my case, Mom!
Toshiba Hand Gesture Remote
Cool new chip-tech solution from Toshiba will allow a webcam to recognize simple hand gestures (like a thumbs-up) and translate that into a command to control your media. In the demo of the VERY early version of the interface, I controlled a DVD menu by waving my arms and making hand shapes reminiscent of Sign Language. No more searching under the couch for the remote.
Sirius BackseatTV
It’s not just radio anymore. Sirius has sacrificed some of their broadcast bandwidth to add video to their offering. Sirius BackseatTV is an add-on to your satellite radio service that will give you cable-like access to 3 of your kid’s most cherished networks: Disney Channel, Nickelodeon & Cartoon Network. Of course, you will need a new car receiver, but what is the value of not having to listen to ‘Are we there yet??’ a few hundred times? Who do I write the check to?
