Which is better, or more precisely, which isn't worse

It's not that I hated Time Warner Cable. In fact, in a lot of ways I kind of liked them. For several years, I had the Scientific Atlanta 8000HD DVR box, which, after many updates, was a pretty decent piece of equipment. Then, after my second one died (as hard-drive based equipment is bound to do), they gave me the 8300HDC. This is the worst consumer electronics product I've ever used, and my days with TWC were numbered. And along came AT&T.

How well do the new compression schemes from Dolby and DTS stack up against uncompressed audio? We buff up our golden ears to audition and compare the latest Blu-ray audio codecs, in the design labs that developed them.

Compared to DVD, the tremendous increase in storage capacity of the Blu-ray disc format, necessary to carry the increased high definition video data payload, also provides for expanded audio options, including the ability to carry so-called lossless audio formats such as Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio.

Launching today, Disney's new Innoventions Dream Home has the kind of toys that adults will want.

Where once robots touted magical machines like microwaves and dishwashers, now it is all about the smart home. Key to the interaction of all the various bits is Life|ware, makers of extensive home automation gear.

Each room in the "house"(really just the center of the old rotating Carousel of Progress exhibit) has touch panels, and all interact with streaming HD feeds and HP media servers running Microsoft's Media Center.

The Audience is Viewing

THX, as a company, has an interesting "job" so to speak: work with companies to help them design better performing products. Their work with audio is well known, but home video is a new realm for them, which you can read about in Seal of Approval.

Panasonic plasmas offer a great starting point. Rarely underwhelming, Panasonic's displays are usually aimed towards the mainstream market, with performance to match. That is to say, good, but rarely great. To say I was intrigued by the idea of these two companies working together would be putting it mildly.

A capacious mountain getaway, designed for family and business retreats, is sprinkled with technological treats that are easy to use.

There’s a certain ruggedness—a rough-and-tumble way of life—in Colorado that’s as irresistible to the locals who run the ski mountains as it is to the well-heeled who build vacation homes from the ground up.

Color from Glossy Black

Whatever you do, don't touch the PD8150. This is not, as you're certainly expecting, because it will bite you. Once your installer mounts it and wipes it off, leave it alone. This is because the stylish, gloss black case attracts fingerprints like a Hummer attracts scornful glances. There's even a handy cloth in the case to clean it. But once it's up there (out of reach), the color that comes out of it is something to behold.

Get in touch with your music

Admit it: If you’re into audio, you’ve always dreamed of having simple access to all of your music at any time. No digging through hundreds of vinyl or CD albums to find the right one, and no searching a computer hard drive or portable music player interface to create a suitable playlist.

An Audio Lover’s Video Player.

Over the past year, Denon has quietly assembled an interesting array of Blu-ray players designed to suit a host of budgets and systems—from the digital-only DVD-2500BTCI transport ($999) to the recently announced “entry-level” DVD-1800BD ($749).

Residing at the top of the chain is the reference DVD-3800BDCI ($1,999), a beefy unit whose build quality and high-end components befit that higher price tag.