European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - October 15, 1994, Darmstadt, Hesse Changes in sight and sound new tvs bigger flatter and better sounding kvt�23 a0 a amp pert Lnu Oil 4-t �2 a Ltd a it a a Quot by Wayne Bledsoe Scripps Howard news service he television Industry in t sitting still waiting for a div High definition television to come on the scene. There Are plenty of upgrades for conventional television sets and the to manufacturers have been Busy applying them to this year s products. The trend in tvs is bigger flatter wider and better sounding. Toshiba is one of the leaders in the flatter Market. The company s St flatter Square tube tvs have less distortion around the edges of the television picture plus they have More immunity to reflections from room lighting. The St sets Are currently offered Only on Toshiba s top of the line 32-and 35-Inch sets. Flatter screens have always been one of the Best Selling Points of Sony trin Itron sets. Sony now offers its flattest super Trinton screens on both 32 and 27-Inch Abr models. Then there s the Black question a As in How Black is the Black on the to screen quasar offers superblock picture tubes which the company promises create a "40 percent improvement in contrast Over conventional picture until this year the feature was Only offered on the company s High end sets. Now superblock screens come on some lower Law 1 a Sony. End models As Well. Superblock is just one of the Trade names for higher contrast picture tubes nearly every to manufacturer advertises High contrast picture tubes. Just getting a Good picture in t everything though. More and More Consumers Are creating Quot Home Heaters Quot a upgrading the size of their to sets and paying for theater Quality or better than theater Quality sound. Televisions equipped with stereo sound Are becoming the Standard. The next step up is dolby surround sound which gives sound systems much More clarity and depth so that the sound actually does seem to surround the viewer. Thirty television shows including Fox s professional football games being aired this fall Are regularly broadcast using the system. A a a a. A a a a. A a a a a a a few of the higher end sets such As Philips wide screen 34-Inch direct View set include the dolby pro logic surround sound in the set itself. However most Consumers who want the dolby pro logic system will probably buy it As an outboard item. Surround sound packages can be had for just under $500 if the buyer already has a compatible audio video stereo amplifier those who really Avant to shake the Earth during an earthquake scene could spend thousands of dollars upgrading their sound system. Aside from picture and sound Many of do Sony sound Tajno ave 2961d Supertzi Nitro i. A Juma v a. A \ to s new Bells and whistles have to do with on screen program guides and easy Var programming. Zenith enters the fray with Starlight the system promises Quot one touch Var programming and will be used in future sets produced by race and possibly several other companies. Other to features that continue to be refined include Philips smart to line with sets that automatically lower the volume of commercials and Remote control handsets that Are voice activated. While Overall to technology veers toward bigger advances Are also being made on the smallest sets. Cd liquid Crystal display technology keeps improving making it easier to make better tiny televisions. Sharp has a 1 Pound portable to with a Clear 4-Inch screen. The company s View am a camcorder with a 4-Inch color viewing screen looks to be the format of the future in camcorders. More than the to itself though viewers May be changing the Way they get their to signals. The Long promised digital satellite system was launched Early this year. Ass relies on a digital signal broadcast from a satellite that can be picked up on an 18-Inch dish. The disc is connected to a decoder Box about the size of a Var. The picture is Clear and subscription packages Range from under $10 to just under $40. Getting online a it to ass in the markets where it is available a about half of the United states but according to a audio video marketer in Germany not yet in Europe a costs Between $700 and $900. The systems Are being sold through major audio video chains such As circuit City and Sears. A. A a a a a a. A a. Ass is sure to make Sellers of conventional satellite systems sweat As Well As some Cable companies. Unlike conventional satellite to setups ass does not require a Large amount of space which makes it practical for City dwellers unhappy with their Cable systems As Well As for people who live in Rural areas where Cable is not available. Also customers can create Channel packages that Are More customized to their tastes rather than having to take whatever package Cable companies offer. On the Downside the satellite systems cannot broadcast programming from the. Over the air networks Abc Abc lbs pcs and Fox unless they Are unavailable Over the air in their area. Still ass probably will be the system where new broadcast technology is introduced. The satellite systems would be the easiest Arena to introduce wide screen to and a div. Transmitting from one satellite direct to millions of Homes would be cheaper than setting up the system for a each individual Cable company or each television station when will wide screen and a div transmissions be regularly available it s still anyone s guess but most prognosticate Aren t expecting regular transmissions to be in use until the turn of the Century. Sony s 27-Inch television set features its Fla t trin Itron screen. Above Phillips top of the line match Tine to has More Black and More contrast in its pictures. A amp photos by Michael Abrams the Small sound a Sony mini disc and a min disc Walkman Are shown with a Standard size compact disk right. Music disks smaller tougher and More versatile by und Castrone Scripps Howard news service a hat some see As the future of sound is upon b l us. And it is expensive. A a b please Welcome the �111 min disc player and a ii recorder Sony s latest by addition to the world. Bib of music. In Case. You re wondering what it could that has t been covered by the record player the cassette deck and the compact disk player consider these Points. A a r a records scratch Warp and Are hard to listen to while skating across town. A a cassette tapes sometimes sound like they be been recorded underwater. Especially when you be recording yourself. Plus the tape often tears binds or wears thin if you listen to it too much. A compact disks Aren t really so compact nor Are they really durable. Ever notice How people hold them by the edges just like they used to hold records and if you think the technology is smooth think Back to the last time you tried to listen to a cd while driving on a bumpy Road not to mention the fact that once you be bought a cd there s no Way to record another one. Sony is promoting the min discs As the answer to All those problems. They re Small about the size of a credit card but two or three times As thick have the same optical disks , but they re enclosed in a protective ase they re recordable they Don t skip if you bump them and. They re so durable you can record on them up to 1 million times a without losing any sound. A Quality. A a if it sounds too Good to be True it is. At least for prices for the pocket sized portable. Players Are about $550, for the Home a player and recorder about $800. They re too expensive for most people. A. The technology is ahead of its Lime analysts agree and prices undoubtedly will fall As time goes on. In the meantime those who buy the system will have the same problems Early cd player owners had a sparse selection of discs to play on it. T he min disc Section has but a fraction of the shelf space afforded cd in most stores meaning far loss selection. Sony spokesmen say the company started developing the format in 198f> and introduced the first generation min disc to the United states Japan and Europe in. 1992, the portable car and Home min discs now available in stores were introduced this Spring. A sales have Beer predictably Slu Goli hut Sony has targeted a Young musically sophisticated audience for follow up advertising. A Sample min disc was a attached to copies of rolling Stone Magazine at midyear and later ads. \ promised up to $300 of free music with each player Purchase. Two styles of the Home player and recorder Are Selling for about $800. Above Bruce Springsteen s Quot Lucky town Quot is one of a limited selection of disks. \ a 16 the stars and stripes saturday october 15, 1994 the stars and stripes 17
