CES 2004/2005 HDTV Home Theater news: LCoS vs LCD, DLP, Plasma - technology review

We also mentioned we would be reporting on the CES 2004 show in Las Vegas ... well, it turned out that home theatre was a cornerstone of the show, and there were so many product releases we decided it merited a whole page. Some were calling it "2004 - Year of HDTV". This should keep everybody going until CES 2005! (Editor's Note: See the update from CES 2005 in Las Vegas, and new coverage of the CES 2006 show).

DLP Front Projectors For HDTV Aimed at home Market:
The folks that manufacture front projectors for presentation displays are now targeting home theater users as a legitimate (and desirable) market segment. These projectors can be mounted on a table or ceiling, projecting images on to a 16 x 9 aspect ratio drop-down screen. Some use the latest HD2+ DLP chip from TI. With resolution running at 1280x720, this chip again boosts contrast performance over the HD2. It also features Dark Video Enhancement (DVE), made possible by modifications to the color wheel architecture. This results in a reduction of dithering artifacts that are often visible in the darker areas of a DLP projector's video display. 

Here's an example of the release notes from InFocus about their new 480P, 16x9, 854x480 home projector (This unit does not have the HD2+ chip, but the Screenplay 7205 does, MSRP $9,999):

"True home entertainment complete with front projection, once the bastion of the ultra rich, is now available and affordable to any big-screen enthusiast with InFocus' newest DLP high-quality, affordable front projector. InFocus^® Corporation (Nasdaq:INFS), the worldwide leader in digital projection technology and services, today announced the InFocus ScreenPlay 4805, its newest projector for consumers looking to transform their homes into a palace of entertainment. Now, anyone can watch the latest DVD releases, high-definition broadcasts, biggest sports events, season finales of favorite TV shows and play video games on screens measuring up to twelve feet across, with unmatched image quality. 

Consumers can easily connect all of their home entertainment components because the InFocus ScreenPlay 4805 is compatible with a broad range of entertainment sources such as DVD players, satellite receivers, high-definition broadcasts, TV's, computers and video game consoles. The projector is native 16:9 resolution, meaning the onscreen image doesn't have to be compromised from its intended format, and includes a 2000:1 contrast ratio to deliver the brightest whites and best black scene detail. Unrivaled connectivity includes DVI with HDCP and a 12-volt trigger to raise and lower the screen. "The ScreenPlay 4805 delivers amazing, larger-than-life images at a price consumers can afford so everyone can experience true home entertainment," said Scott Hix, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Americas Business Unit at InFocus." (MSRP is $1400)

Here's the announcement for the BenQ PB 6200 projector (XGA 1024x768) from around the same time (MY CHOICE):

City of Industry, CA - BenQ, a leading manufacturer of DLP™ based digital projectors, introduced its latest digital projector with the PB6200. The PB6200 is a sturdy, yet lightweight digital projector that is ideal for a variety of professional and personal home theater applications and installations.

The PB6200 utilizes proprietary BenQ video-processing technology to support the latest DLP chipset from Texas Instruments. The new DLP DDR chipsets produce flawless pictures that won't fade or degrade over time, and the optical engine lifetime exceeds 100,000* hours while maintaining the images' original clarity.

"The BenQ PB6200 is an ideal projector for those wanting a powerful and compact projector with XGA resolution capacity," said Jeff Chen, vice president of Digital Media at BenQ America. "The PB6200 delivers the functionality and the performance of an XGA projector, but at a competitive price point. As visual presentations become more sophisticated, the need for an XGA projector becomes greater. The PB6200 offers the features to match the latest software programs, presentation ideas and videos."

The BenQ PB6200
The BenQ PB6200 is an XGA digital projector with a high 2000:1 contrast ratio at 1,700 ANSI lumens. It has a native resolution of 1024 x 768, and can support resolutions from 640 x 350 up to 1280 x 1024 and 4:3 or 16:9 aspect ratios. The PB6200 has a throw ratio of 60-inches at 6.6-feet and delivers images from 40- to 300-inches. It is compatible with NTSC, PAL, SECAM and NTSC 4.43 video systems, and is HDTV-compatible (480p, 720p and 1080i) with direct YPbPr/component (through VGA port), S-Video and composite video inputs.

The PB6200 integrates BenQ's proprietary Dynamic Color Management System (DCMS) technology and supports 16.7 million color palettes, as well as four-segment color wheels to ensure accurate color reproduction. It features PIP functions and a Digital Keystone correction system for quick and easy set-up. The PB6200 delivers a lamp life of up to 2,000 hours, which can also last up to 3,000 hours under "economy" mode.

All BenQ digital projectors come with the company's product commitment-a free first year "Xpress Xchange" program and a three-year limited warranty.

The BenQ PB6200 has a manufacturer's suggested retail price of $1,795 through BenQ's distribution channels.

The competition is heating up on home theatre front projectors; here's an excerpt from the Optoma press release:

The Optoma EzPro 757 is the first fully loaded single-chip Double Data Rate Digital Light Processing (DLP) technology from Texas Instruments micro portable projector with 2,300 lumens, 2000:1 contrast ratio, fully HDTV compatible video and near-silent operation, while weighing only 6.6 pounds. Equally at home in the boardroom or on the road, the EzPro 757 performs like a much larger projector, yet its small size and light weight mean you can take it anywhere. Pixelworks deinterlacing and scaling technologies provide excellent film reproduction and smooth onscreen images. The 2000:1 contrast ratio is twice that of a typical professional movie theater. This technology contains a new-generation TI DLP chip, so-called DDR technology (Double Data Rate). The miniature mirrors on the chip turn at a higher speed than do conventional DLP chips, creating a higher quality picture. MSRP: $2,395.00

New DVD format re HDTV:
One of the key developments is the announcement of a new blue laser DVD technology that will allow HDTV movies to be stored on disk. Increasing the data capacity of DVD players is important because a current DVD can hold about 2 hours of standard definition (480p) on a 4.8 Gigabyte disk, but if you want a full HDTV picture (1080i) you'll need a disk capable of holding about 50 GB of data. A current DVD of 4.8 Gig can hold only 20 minutes of HDTV picture content.

Toshiba Corporation announced development of a prototype high-definition DVD player that can play high-definition DVD discs and current DVDs. The player features a single-lens optical head mechanism that integrates both red and blue laser diodes, assuring support for both the next-generation "HD DVD-ROM" format (version 0.9) recently approved by the DVD Forum and backward compatibility with today's DVD ROM discs. The new player points the way to a commercial product that will allow fans of DVD to enjoy the richer image quality of HD DVD while protecting their current investment in DVD software libraries.

LCOS Technology is Alive and Doing Well:
Toshiba introduced their Cinema Series 57XLX82 57-inch projection TV at CES 04 and won "Best of Innovations" in its category. Toshiba expects that this product will allow home theatre to cross the line into a true cinematic realm. The digital display screen will project images more than two times the resolution of other machines, while the speakers underneath the screen include separate tweeters and woofers for 3D sound. The screen is 57-inches wide and only 18-inches deep, so this unit can be considered a real space saver. The price? It's retailing for $8,999, which is less than other smaller sized flat screen TVs, such as LCD and Plasma.

Many think LCOS (Liquid Crystal on Silicon) televisions represent the future of TV. LCOS technology uses liquid crystals to avoid any light from being blocked out, allowing the digital image to be displayed directly from source to output. Colors are brighter and images sharper than ever before.

Philips debuted their 44PL9773 Single Panel LCOS 44-inch Wide Screen system at CES and won the "Best of Innovation" award. The set features PixelPlus and Digital Natural Motion technology that allows for a sharp, more fluid picture. Compact and sleek, the set will fit nicely into any modern decor. Like most of the newer HDTVs, it doesn't weigh much and the depth of set is fairly slim, allowing it to easily fit in your media room.

JVC was notably absent from CES 04 display floor (although they had a dealer display at the MGM Grand) - but that wasn't because they have nothing to offer. In fact, their D-iLA technology may just be the best out there. Consider their new 65" LCOS screen, the 57HLX82. It is an HD-ready rear-projection TV that has a 65-inch screen. With a manufacturer's suggested retail price of $8999, the picture on this set is excellent, and the digital image scaling technology converts all sources to 1080i. The picture is enhanced by 75Mhz high definition edge correction circuitry, a 3-D Y/C digital comb filter, and selectable scan velocity modulation. The colors are full and rich, whether you are viewing the content at the D6500K setting or adjusted to the presets for standard content, theater, dynamic action, or video games. They also have produced the world's first digital wide-screen consumer camcorder to shoot video in HDTV format.

NTE (Near The Eye) 3D Glasses:
The further development of NTE devices promises to be a an interesting story, that's for sure. Why buy a big screen if a pair of glasses will do it for you? Here's an excerpt from the Sensio/Xilinx press release:

At the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) today, Sensio™ and Xilinx, Inc. announced a collaboration that resulted in the breakthrough 3D video processing technology, SENSIO 3D, winner of the CES 2003 Product Innovation Award. Sensio credits Xilinx and its programmable chip technology with enabling the creative design and economic viability of its SENSIO 3D Video Processing system. The SENSIO system transforms conventional home theater into a 3D stereoscopic movie experience that rivals the best theme park experiences, using Xilinx low cost Spartan programmable chips as its central processing capability. The Sensio system recently featured as the cover story in Home Theatre magazine. Sensio has met with major motion picture studios like MGM, IMAX, Dreamworks, LightSorm Entertainment and TroubleMaker Studios in efforts to build up a library of 3D movies under SENSIO 3D DVD.

For the sake of clarity, here are some acronym and terminology definitions relating to the various display technologies, used in the other table below to compare the various screen types:

TERM	DEFINITION
TLA	Three Letter Acronym
HDTV	High Definition Television. The highest quality video picture available in Digital TV. In the U.S., the 1080i and 720p resolution formats in a 16:9 aspect ratio are the two acceptable HDTV formats. Regular NTSC analog TV is 480i.
HTPC	Home Theater Personal Computer. The use of a PC as a processing and source control platform for a home theater system.
RPTV	Rear Projection TV. The type of home theater screen system where the image is projected onto the back of the screen. Can be DLP, LCD, CRT projection technology.
Lumens	An ANSI Lumen is a measurement of light radiation or brightness. A 3,000 Lumen projector creates a brighter picture than a 2,000 Lumen unit. The ANSI prefix is a standards designation (American National Standards Institute).
Nits	Plasma and LCD manufacturers use this term to define the brightness of their screens. Another term for Nits is Candelas per square meter (Cd/m2). One nit = 0.2919 foot-lambert. Nits includes an area definition, unlike lumens, so you can't simply divide by Watts to establish a Nits/watt spec.
480i 720p 1080p	resolution measurement in lines, p for "progressive scan", i for "interlaced scan". Conventional TV (e.g. 480i) is interlaced whereby the screen is scanned twice by alternate lines that are interleaved (interlaced), whereas HDTV (e.g. 720p) can scan all lines sequentially (consecutively or progressively).
DVI HDCP	Digital Visual Interface technology with High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection. Developed by Intel Corporation, HDCP is a specification to protect digital entertainment content through the DVI interface. The HDCP specification provides a transparent method for transmitting and receiving digital entertainment content to DVI-compliant digital displays. Some products, such as set-top boxes and DVD burners will require this connector. Even if you have a HDTV set-top box, if it lacks the DVI, your signal may be degraded.
HDMI	High Definition Multimedia Interface. Like DVI, HDMI is another digital interface, and from what we saw at CES 2005, it may become the universal standard. Developed by Sony, Hitachi, Thomson (RCA), Philips, Matsushita (Panasonic), Toshiba and Silicon Image, the High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) has emerged as the connection standard for HDTV and the consumer electronics market. HDMI is the first digital interface to combine uncompressed high-definition video, multi-channel audio and intelligent format and command data in a single digital interface.
SACD	Super Audio CD uses a new recording technology called Direct Stream Digital. DSD records a one bit digital signal at a sample rate of 2.8 million times per second, 64 times higher than conventional CD's.
NTSC	Existing color TV standard developed in the U.S. in 1953 by the National Television System Committee. NTSC vertical line resolution is 525 lines/frame and the vertical frequency is 60Hz. The NTSC frame rate is 29.97 frames/sec.
CRT	Cathode Ray Tube - venerable old style picture tube
PDP	Plasma Display Panel, plasma is a physics term for an electrically charged gas
LCD	Liquid Crystal Display, same as laptop screens
TFT	Thin Film Technology, a type of LCD
DLP	Digital Light Processor, a reflective light switch chip developed by TI. Has a very fast response time - no motion lag
TI	Texas Instruments Corp., original manufacturer of DMD's and DLP's
DMD	Digital Micro-mirror Device - chip for DLP technology by TI
DNIe	Digital Natural Image enhancement - chip for optimizing video picture quality, by Samsung (used in their DLP units)
LCoS	Liquid Crystal on Silicon, reflective light switch
SXRD projection	Silicon X-tal Reflective Display: Sony's incarnation of LCoS technology. Sharp picture, no pixelation, very high resolution, reflective system won't burn out picture element, "no moving parts" design usually incorporates 3 imaging chips for primary colors, instead of color wheel.
SED	Surface conduction Electron emitter Display by Toshiba/Canon
FED	Field Emission Display: New technology from Sony
OLED	Organic Light Emitting Diode display: new technology from Seiko-Epson
D-iLA	Direct Drive Image Light Amplifier, LCoS chip developed by JVC
QXGA	high screen resolution of 2048 x 1536, attained by D-iLA chip
DCDi	Directional Correlation Deinterlacing (a de-interlacing method to eliminate jagged edges (jaggies) along diagonal lines caused by interpolation, developed by Faroudja corp. An important feature to look for, this Emmy® award winning technology was once only available in products costing $20,000 or more, and is now available in numerous products costing well below $2,000
aspect ratio	ratio of screen width to height. An aspect ratio of 4:3 is conventional TV and 16:9 is HDTV (and film)
3-2 pulldown	a method of film-to-video conversion
twitter and judder	terms describing film conversion related artifacts
anamorphic lens	a special lens that compresses the pixels of a 4:3 screen into a 16:9 format, and allows a projector to use the full brightness of the display, without black bars above and below the image. Must normally be removed for regular 4:3 viewing.
SDE	Screen Door Effect is a term used to refer to the visible pixel structure on a screen.
YADR!	Yet Another Dang Remote! A common exclamation heard from people who just bought their third or fourth home audio/video component. And then there are further unmentionable expletives when you find out a component isn't supported, or it's just too complicated to program everything in?? Maybe it's time to read about our experience in the remote control review article.

The following table provides a quick comparison of the display types; "pixelation" refers to the ability to see individual picture elements (pixels) at normal viewing distances (note that all the types below can contribute to the YADR index). Please note that these products are being constantly improved and not all manufacturer's models may be subject to the disadvantages listed below:

DISPLAY TYPE	PRO - ADVANTAGE	CON - DISADVANTAGE
CRT conventional picture tube	Cathode Ray Tube: very sharp and bright, high contrast ratio, good picture view from side, low cost, handles regular analog NTSC channels well, no moving parts	heavy and bulky, limited in size to about 36", picture can fade
CRT projection	low cost, large screens possible, no moving parts	heavy and bulky, limited viewing angles, visible raster lines, mis-convergence can be a problem, picture can fade over time
LCD flat screen panel	Liquid Crystal Display: bright, sharp picture, light and compact, can hang on wall, solid state, no moving parts	picture can fade over time
LCD projection	fairly bright, large screens possible, sharp picture, no moving parts	display can fade due to heat damage to organic compounds that some manufacturers use in the LCD, projector bulb can fail
PDP Plasma flat screen panel	Plasma Display Panel: bright picture, light and compact, can hang on wall, wide viewing angle, no moving parts, handles fast motion really well	expensive, some pixelation, display can burn out.
DLP projection	Digital Light Processor: bright, sharp picture, high contrast, no  pixelation, reflective system won't burn out picture element, very fast response time - no motion lag.	possible visual "rainbow" artifacts on single chip versions caused by spinning color wheel, projector bulb can fail
LCoS projection	Liquid Crystal on Silicon: bright, sharp picture, no pixelation, very high resolution, reflective system won't burn out picture element, "no moving parts" design usually incorporates 3 imaging chips for primary colors, instead of color wheel.	projector bulb can fail
SXRD projection	Silicon X-tal Reflective Display: Sony's incarnation of LCoS technology. Sharp picture, no pixelation, very high resolution, reflective system won't burn out picture element, "no moving parts" design usually incorporates 3 imaging chips for primary colors, instead of color wheel.	projector bulb can fail
SED panel display	Surface conduction Electron emitter Display: very bright picture, very high resolution, can hang on wall, very high contrast ratio, can be viewed from any angle, no moving parts, handles fast motion really well	expensive at first, not available yet
FED panel display	Field Emission Display: New technology from Sony, properties are similar to SED	expensive at first, not available yet
OLED panel display	Organic Light Emitting Diode display: new technology from Seiko-Epson	expensive at first, not available yet