ERROR in link to DVD Town -- it's linked to Page 2 of their review, instead of Page 1.

The web demo provides these details:

"Coming soon, the world’s first truly cinematic TV that perfectly matches the original 2.39:1 movie format used by directors. Over 60% of DVD and Blu-ray Disc movies support the 2.39:1 movie format. That means no more annoying black bars on this ultra widescreen TV. No picture loss. Just movies the way the director wanted you to see them. As our top of the range TV, Cinema 21:9 offers a 56 inch ultra wide screen with Ambilight Spectra 3 and Perfect Pixel HD Engine to maximize the cinematic feeling. Plus with Net TV you can enjoy some of the best websites tailored to fit your TV."

This would be a nice feature... for plasma! LCD picture quality is still not up to plasma, so I would not be interested in the set unless Philips (or someone else) were to produce a 21:9 plasma model.

LaserDisc still has some of the best editions of:

The African Queen (not on DVD in North America)
John Wayne's The Alamo (185 minute director's cut not available on DVD)
It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (super-long "roadshow" version.. not on DVD)
1933's King Kong COLORIZED and in re-mixed STEREO!! (not available on DVD)
and tons of exclusive live concerts and videos released by Pioneer Artists label (and many others) for both the USA and Japanese market (both of which are NTSC and fully compatible).

My first widescreen laserdisc (1985!) - the Japanese import of RAMBO: FIRST BLOOD Part II, in Dolby Surround stereo - I was stunned at "really seeing" a movie the way it was meant to be seen!

Alas... I still have a large personal collection and 3 working players, including two with AC-3 (DD 5.1) output.

But now I love HD DVD and Blu-ray too!

I don't think $399 is high for it's features (and 1080p resolution, HDTV tuner etc). Gateway has that 30" monitor-only (at 1600p resolution and premium image processing chip), but it retails for $1600, although I saw it on sale a week ago (online) for $999.

Viewsonic usually offers good products at value prices. I like the look of this product. Three years ago I purchased a Sony 17" Widescreen 720p HD monitor (only has the analog tuner), which cost almost $600, so this Viewsonic 24" 1080p model with digital turner is a great bargain at $399 retail, and maybe less within a few months at dealers like Fry's Electronics.

"Please, NO! First they ruined the original AT&T Wireless..."

This is not true. The current at&t (formerly SBC Communications) was not the same "AT&T" of AT&T Wireless - that was the old company (& old management).

When AT&T Wireless was going south, at that time SBC was the principal owner of Cingular Wireless (a competitor), and only later acquired assets of the old AT&T when it went under -- including the name, which they kept (it's over 100 years old you know), but changed the logo from all caps to lower caps: at&t

Again, the new (& current) at&t didn't have anything to do with the management and business practices of the older "AT&T Wireless", an asset that was originally McCaw Cellular, started by Craig McCaw (the "father" of the modern cell phone business, and very wealthy). Here's his Wikipedia page: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Craig_McCaw

Actually, things aren't looking well for DISH's outlook these days,
according to a BusinessWeek report in this week's issue. Losing
market share (while DirectTV gains), with customer defections, and
even more so when at&t stops using Dish TV's service in the next 6
months. I'm a subscriber to the print edition, but here's the online
link...

http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/08_31/b4094065678206.htm?chan=search

The "well dried up" for good Warner HD-DVD exclusives? ...hmm, scratches head.

How about -

CONSTANTINE
CASABLANCA
GRAND PRIX
FORBIDDEN PLANET
ADVENTURES OF ROBIN HOOD
MUTINY ON THE BOUNTY
...etc

-LOL- (at your comment)

For clarification (not mentioned)...

DIVX discs were in Full-Screen only (NO widescreen titles) and did NOT have any special bonus features. Also, Fox was primarily releasing on DIVX (Disney too), and only occasionally released a title on regular DVD. By the way, Sony and Warner NEVER supported or released titles on DIVX.

CED (like LaserDisc) held 2 hours on a disc (two sides). Since Raiders of the Lost Ark has a running time of 115 minutes, it did NOT require a 2nd disc (see comment above) - both the CED and LaserDisc were on one disc. However, any movie over 2 hours required a 2nd disc, although a few movies that were just a few minutes beyond the two hours were often released 'time-compressed' so as to fit on one, 2-sided disc.

quote: "Try Samsung, with more patents per year than any other company."


You absolutely sure about this claim? I always heard that it's IBM receives "more patents per year than any other company."

Nothing wrong with Fujitsu displays, except their price, as even those who can afford them might lean these days to the latest generation of high-quality plasmas [Pioneer, Runco, LG] than those available by the legendary Fujitsu.

I recently picked up the 50" Pioneer #5080HD KURO 720p plasma [w/4 HDMI, new plasma cell structure - deep blacks and higher contrast, beautiful color, no image rentention with Orbitor option, etc], a $3499 MSRP unit that I picked up after sale price/discount/price matching for a low $2249. It's the best HDTV I've ever seen (or owned).

I agree with the above from HDpurist. After owning a Sharp Aquos for the last 2 years, I decided to buy a REAL HDTV for dark-room (lights out) theater viewing of movies and concerts. So I just bought a 50" Pioneer KURO 5080HD 720p plasma (w/3-year, 0% interest financing at BBuy) on sale for $2699, with another 10% off (coupon), so my net cost was $2430 + tax. And this past week, I price-matched and saved another $200 since they had lowered the price (to $2499).

The other night I watched APOCALYPTO on Blu-ray from my PS3, with 1080i/60hz output to the Pioneer Kuro, via HDMI, with "smooth" setting on the Kuro's Pure Cinema control [perfect scaling and 3:2 pulldown]. Well... OH MY GOD! Jaw-dropping clarity, color, contrast [w/deep blacks], and no blur at all (unlike LCD) - so much realistic detail, color, and shadow depth that it looks 3-D!!

I will never buy another LCD (except for a office environment, etc), as it is no match to plasma's picture quality, especially the new Pioneer deep-black KURO line released this year. PLASMA ROCKS!