MISSISSAUGA, Ontario (djc) – Thomson has recently unveiled its new RCA Scenium HDTV lineup, featuring incredible Digital Light Processor (DLP) technology courtesy of Texas Instruments.
RCA says it aims to be the world leader in video technology. The electronics giant invented the colour TV back in 1952, and has continued to bring high quality media products to consumers; they came out with liquid crystal televisions in 2001, followed by plasma panels in 2002.
However, this year, and perhaps every subsequent year, will signal the DLP era. Although computers have used this technology for about 10 years, it is finally starting to trickle down to the home-entertainment market.
Basically, DLP eschews traditional electron beams and cathode tubes for a simple 120-watt lightbulb and a not-so-simple microchip consisting of 1.3 million micromirrors, capable of shifting up to 5,000 times per second. A rapidly spinning colour wheel supplies no fewer than 16.7 million colours to enhance the 1,024 shades of grey available — twice the contrast of traditional CRT screens.
The high frame rate (120 Hz) reduces flickering and produces none of the “smearing” effect seen in some LCDs. Because the mirrors are reflective, it uses light more efficiently than a system that transmits through a screen, resulting in a brighter image. The tiny gaps between the mirrors — each about one-fifth the width of a human hair, representing one pixel on the screen — ensure sharp, accurate, seamless video without any pixellation effects.
Overall, the effect is very pleasing to the eye. It produces almost shockingly realistic images, even when compared to plasma. The single light source (unlike CRT, which uses three) the light is distributed evenly around the screen, allowing for a slightly wider viewing angle. Moreover, the chip is not affected by heat, moisture, vibrations or time — at least, until the bulb runs out, which you can replace for a few dollars at any hardware store. However, this will only be necessary after 8,000 to 10,000 hours of viewing.
RCA’s DLP lineup (so far, available only in 50- and 61-inch diagonal units) uses their proprietary TruScan intelligent signal processing system and Scenium bit sequencing to produce superior, more precise images, the company says. Both include the CinemaScreen floating picture screen: A glossy black border around the viewing area that makes it appear suspended in midair. With the lights down low, it’s an almost eerie effect.
It includes four viewing modes: Vibrant, Natural, Cinematic and Custom, as well as a built-in electronic guide and user menu. Add to that a FireWire and Ethernet connection, and you can simultaneously surf the Web (using the Picture in Picture setting).
DLP televisions are substantially smaller and lighter than earlier species; they’re about half the size, depth and weight of projector TVs. RCA’s 50-inch version is only 16 inches deep and weighs about 94 pounds. Compare that to a 200-pound “projo.” Better yet, there’s never any screen burn-in.
So the real question is: What’s it gonna cost me? Less than you’d think, and much less than a similar plasma screen. RCA is selling the 50-incher in Canada for about $5,500, and the 61-inch model for about $7,000. An equivalent plasma unit would cost about twice that. Then again, a plain, old glass flat-panel is only about $2,500, but they are extremely limited in size, and don’t look anywhere as good.
Both offerings include an integrated ATSC digital tuner with QAM cable demodulation capabilities, which would normally set you back a few hundred bucks. RCA says they threw in the receiver — which will allow you to get high-definition footage of butterflies and flowers from far-off lands — as an incentive to drive sales and bring the company to the forefront of the DLP revolution. At this rate, RCA execs say, plasma screens will soon be as obsolete as Betamax.
Speaking of VCRs, RCA has concurrently released its DVR-10 digital recorder for HDTV. Easily connected to the new DLPs, they can record up to 40 hours of standard television or nine hours of HDTV, so you’ll never miss those picture-perfect images whatever they may be. The DVR-10 is currently available for a suggested price of $700.
