TORONTO (Digital Journal) — Today’s Sony Canada event at the Interior Design Show in Toronto had all the signs of a routine product unveiling: continental breakfast, PR personnel eager to offer thick press kits, PowerPoint presentation awash with tables, charts and statements studded with exclamation marks.
But after a few minutes, the hype took a backseat to the main truth emerging from the Sony camp: 2005 will be the year of the TV. More specifically, high-definition TV.
Where DVD went — quickly into the mainstream — HD hopes to go. CHUM, CTV and other Canadian broadcasters are already airing HD content and about 70 per cent of U.S. primetime shows are available in the HD format.
No better way to wow journalists than with a new product proclaiming the future. The new 70-inch, high-definition, QUALIA 006 aims to “set itself apart from the pack in an industry promoting the slimmest models available,” says Sony’s senior marketing manager Robin Powell.
Current market stats show that almost half of Canadians own a rear projection TV (Canada is actually the world leader in buying rear projection TVs), and the two emerging darlings of home theatre enthusiasts — plasma and LCD TVs — have only managed to scoop up 16 per cent of the market. With HD being the new revolution, Sony has invested a lot of time and research money developing rear projection TVs, to open the door to stunning picture quality.
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Robin Powell, Senior Marketing Manager for Sony of Canada, demonstrates Sony’s new 70-inch QUALIA 006 — the latest high-definition TV — to Digital Journal Features Editor, David Silverberg. — Photo by djc Features |
Powell explains that new Sony-designed technology called SXRD delivers maximum 1920 x 1080 pixel resolution for HD viewing (compare that to Sony’s Grand Wega LCD, with a res of 1386 x 788). Creating uniform brightness across every frame is not just a tag line for journalists to snatch; it is essential for home-theatre fanatics, for TV lovers, for anyone desiring lush colours in a movie, show or sports match.
Also impressive is the QUALIA’s “Pure Red” colour reproduction, which creates stunning red colours via the Optical Engine. Often, some wide screen TVs display an orange tint to reddish hues, and watching Peter Parker don an orange-shaded superhero suit is always a buzz killer.
A few bonus features propel this TV into must-check-out status: an advanced video menu allows you adjust settings for each video input and also label them, so you can replace “Video 2” with “DVD”, for example; a replaceable 200-watt lamp makes HD viewing less cumbersome; a contrast ratio at 3000:1 with optimal black level reproduction creates a deeper black and a whiter white; and detachable speakers let creativity reign supreme in case of custom cabinet work.
Attached to any HD television this impressive is a price tag that will make many a jaw drop: $17,000, plus $2,000 for the stand. The QUALIA may not be ideal for the regular TV junkie, but it’s a dream gadget for serious home-theatre enthusiasts and millionaires looking to shed a few dollars.
But on to the sight test. Journalists were led to the Sony booth at the Interior Design Show, and we were then instructed to gather around a mammoth QUALIA displaying a gorgeous display of a high-definition nature show. My eyes tried to find some precedent to recall when I’d seen such a vibrant TV picture, but I soon realized I was viewing a benchmark in my life. How could I go back to my boring standard definition boob tube now?
Sony’s Powell was quick to grab a reporter and sit him three feet from the screen, saying the picture quality didn’t degrade at such an angle. The reporter turned to us and said, “I like it!” At any angle, at any position, the picture was well worth adoration. I tried hard to be skeptical but the only fault I could name was the high price. However, Powell assured us that Sony was working on smaller models using the same technology.
HDTV was not the only item on Sony’s menu. The latest version of the VAIO V-Series PC TV ($3,000 CDN) was released today, displaying a convergence perfect for the intense TV addict. A wider display at 17-inches crowned a PC that could moonlight as a TV, DVD player, stereo and personal video recorder. Sony’s Puneet Jain said, “This machine does it all stylishly without sacrificing quality on either the computing or entertainment side.”
Of particular interest is DVD creation software that allows double-layer DVD burning. Double-layer DVDs hold up to 8.4 gigs of data, twice as much as regular DVDs. Basically, you can record a library’s worth of Family Guy on a DVD and take it on the road to enjoy at your leisure.
Little criticism can be levelled at a company pouring so much R&D into their projects, because more often than not, user-friendly products and innovative technologies emerge. As John Challinor, General Manager of Sony’s corporate communications, said today, “Ask anyone who is the leader in home electronics and the answer will be Sony.”
With new products like the 70-inch HDTV QUALIA 006, Sony is once again using innovation to enhance our digital lifestyle.
