LG Dare, $149.99 after $50 rebate and two-year customer agreement
Take the Dare! This new handset will surpass your expectations with a large 3-inch touch screen that recognizes your handwriting and gives you tactile feedback. Zoom in closer to find a 3.2 megapixel camera/camcorder with a Schneider-Kreuznach lens for outstanding image quality, and advanced features like face detection. Of course, the Dare sounds just as good as it looks with a music player and Bluetooth® stereo. With HTML web browsing and a host of other alluring features, it’s up to any mobile challenge.

LG Lotus, $149.99
Fans of the fashion runways will appreciate the couture style of LG Lotus, exclusive to Sprint. LG Lotus is the recipient of the prestigious Red Dot Design Award for its unique, chic and sleek form factor. It is one of the first Sprint devices to offer One Click, a highly-customizable user interface that makes texting, Web access, email, Sprint Navigation, Sprint TV, Sprint Music StoreSM and other features easier to access. It offers the perfect combination of both style and substance with a full QWERTY keyboard that is ideal for quick text messaging, email or instant messaging. LG Lotus also boasts advanced features including stereo Bluetooth , a 2.0 MP camera/camcorder and Wireless Backup for safekeeping your contact list in the event that the device is lost, stolen or damaged.

A:There’s a lot of information—and misinformation—going around about the upcoming “digital TV transition”. So let’s set the record straight.

First, a brief synopsis of what’s going on. For the last 70-something years, TV signals have been broadcast in an analog fashion using the NTSC standard, which takes a lot of radio frequency (RF) bandwidth. During television’s infancy, there was almost unlimited bandwidth, so this wasn’t a problem. But as new RF-based electronics like CB radios, walkie-talkies, portable phones, cell phones, Bluetooth devices, wireless networks, satellite TV and even the new digital TV channels, have been added over the years, this bandwidth has become, shall we say, constrained.

With digital television using the new ATSC standard though, the same, and in fact much more, information can be sent in a fraction of the bandwidth the analog equivalent would take. So the government wants to reclaim some of the bandwidth currently allocated to analog television so that it can relicense the frequencies.

They’ve hired Bob Barker to remind you that, along with helping to control the pet population by spaying or neutering your pet, February 17, 2009 is the end of the line for analog broadcasts.

I stress the word “broadcast”, though, because this is where people are getting confused. Just because the airwaves are no longer carrying analog TV signals, this does NOT mean that your old television is useless. Probably 99% of the readership of this magazine has either cable through Time Warner, satellite through DirecTV® or Dish Network®, or IP-based TV through AT&T’s U-verse®. And for all TVs hooked up to any of these subscription-based services, you’ll continue to be able to watch TV. Even on the TVs that are hooked up to basic cable without a converter box, at least for now, you’re good to go.

The issue for most of us arises with the TVs we watch in the garage, or in the kitchen, where we didn’t think to put in a cable or internet outlet. And that’s where the government has your back, Kwan. If you go to www.dtv2009.gov/ApplyCoupon.aspx, they will send you $40-off coupons for up to two analog TVs you own. Using this coupon, you can purchase an “ATSC Converter”, which usually costs around $60 before coupon. It will use your trusty rabbit ear antennas to tune in the “new-TV-ese” and, well, convert it, to “old-TV-ese”. It takes about a month for the coupon to arrive, and it’s only good for three months, so you’ll want to get going on that.

Tom Wilkinson is a home theater enthusiast, and is owner of Xpress Home Theaters. You can reach him at tom@xpresshometheaters.com or at 512.217.6668.

Sony S-AIRPLAY Music System – $399.95

Listen to the tunes stored on your iPod® music player throughout your home with this S-AIRPLAY® wireless music system.

Available at SonyStyle at The Domain

iRobot Roomba 560 – $379.99

The Roomba 560 features the newest innovations in vacuum performance, room navigation, edge and corner cleaning, advanced anti-tangle technology and transitioning from carpets to hard floors. Available at Fry’s Electronics, 12707 North Mopac Expressway

Bissell Green Little Green – $89.99 

Engineered with sustainable design features, the BISSELL Green Little Green is a compact, multi-purpose deep cleaner that uses powerful suction to lift up spills before they set in. Available at Best Buy, 9607 Research Blvd

Harmony® 1000 Advanced Universal Remote – $499.99

Experience a new standard in simplicity with even the most complex components. With just one touch you can start watching, listening or playing. Available at Circuit City, 10515 North Mopac Expressway

Slingbox SOLO – $179

Watch your TV anywhere. With a single standard- or high-definition video input, the SOLO is perfect if you only have a cable/satellite box or you route all your TV through your DVR, such as TiVo. 

Available at Best Buy, 9607 Research Blvd

Spice and Nut Grinder – $39.95 

There’s nothing like the smell and taste of freshly ground spices. And with the Cuisinart Spice & Nut Grinder it’s easier than ever to efficiently grind any spice or create original, tantalizing spice blends. 

Available at www.cusinart.com

Location: If you read my article in the previous issue about how to decide on the size of a screen, you were probably surprised by how large of a screen was recommended for a really immersive experience (for a viewing distance of 15 feet, the recommended screen size ranged from 110” to 135”). Does the room you’re thinking about for this home theater have a wall that can be used for that size screen? Or are there immovable objects in each wall?

Lighting: Too much light in the room used to be the Achilles’ heel of projectors. It would wash out the picture, making objects on the screen look like just different shades of grey. But recent advancements in screen technology have helped this situation tremendously. For instance, Screen Innovations (an Austin-based company) makes the new Black Diamond projection screen. This screen will give you a great picture in almost any lighting situation! A large projected picture in a light-filled environment is no longer an oxymoron.

Lifestyle: One of the best parts of having a dedicated home theater with a giant screen is the control it offers. Instead of having to pay to sit in seats next to crying babies, people talking on cell phones, eating $5 popcorn, and missing part of the movie if “nature calls”, you’re in total control. On the other hand, if you have three-yearolds that like to write on the walls with crayons and markers, a projector and screen is probably not your best bet at this point in your life. How about the idea of playing Halo or Wii Sports on a life-size screen – sound good?

Loot: Most people believe that they will have to spend much more to get a front projector than it would cost to get a flatpanel. But this is really one of the biggest misconceptions about front projectors.

Today’s flat-panel television prices start to show diminishing returns around 58”. To get a larger TV, you’ll have to spend significantly more money for a couple more inches. Want a 100” diagonal screen? That’ll set you back around $100,000. Want a nice 100” projected screen? Maybe one-tenth of that figure.

With current prices, the crossover – the size at which front projectors become less expensive than good flat panels – is about 65”.

So, Jim, a little analysis of your current situation – and perhaps a home visit by an audio-video professional – can help you determine what’s best for you.

P.S. This issue of Your Address is all about giving back. As a cancer survivor, one of my favorite charities is the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (www.lls.org/ctx). Literally hundreds of thousands of people are alive today due to the research work they’ve provided.

Tom Wilkinson is a home theater enthusiast, and is owner of Xpress Home Theaters. You can reach him at Tom@XpressHomeTheaters.com or at 512-217-6668.