Home Entertainment Accessories

Why hide favorite photos in a computer subfolder when you can proudly display them on a digital picture frame? Unlike a conventional print-under-glass holder, today’s electronic frames run slideshows, show videos, play songs and double as clocks and calendars.

When multiple remote controls occupy the TV room, they clutter the coffee table, disappear into the recesses of the davenport and make for an uncomfortable stretch when the one you need is out of reach. There has to be a better way.

An aesthetic counterpart to a flat-screen TV, a soundbar has the advantage of occupying minimal space yet is capable of projecting theater-like sound into the viewing room. It can be wall hung or placed on a tabletop or shelf directly below (or above) the screen. 

When an all-in-one soundbar is a tad too minimalist, even with a separate subwoofer, consider a more complete solution such as the Bose® Lifestyle® 135 Home Entertainment System. 

Panasonic has begun shipping a home-targeted Full HD 3D projector that integrates cutting-edge capabilities with a proven projection technology to create breathtaking motion pictures—at an unprecedented price. 

To turn your TV into a home theater, you could install an A/V receiver plus at least five speakers—or you could add a single soundbar containing five smart speakers. The new Bose CineMate 1 SR Home Theater Speaker System takes the latter approach.

Whether you’re playing games on a PC or a Playstation 3, you’ll gain an edge with the new T.Flight Stick X Joystick from Thrustmaster. Though the plug-and-play USB controller comes preconfigured for Microsoft Flight Simulator X on the PC as well as for Ubisoft's Blazing Angels, Tom Clancy's HawX and IL-2 Sturmovik's Birds of Prey on the PS3, the joystick is fully compatible with the larger world of games available for Windows-based computers and PS3 consoles.

Spanning the world of projector technologies, LG Electronics has introduced several LED-based portables, including one with a TV tuner and a high-end LCoS 3D projector bundled with six pairs of polarized glasses.

We’ve all seen the seemingly endless racks of headphones and earphones at retail stores. What makes each pair different? How should you go about choosing which pair is best for you? In this B&H buying guide, we’ll get down to the bottom of headphones and earphones, so you’ll know what to look for.

A home theater is most like a movie theater when there’s a projector in the room. Even with flat-panel TV sizes growing, if you want a diagonal measured in three digits, you need to project the picture at some distance from the screen.

Universal remote controls are not new and exciting pieces of technology, but what if you could control your TV, Blu-ray player, stereo and cable box with an app built into a tablet computer? If this sounds compelling, the only tablet that’s capable of this is the new Sony Tablet S.

Three Network Education Series Projectors from Hitachi America have been introduced that will have particular appeal for educational institutions. All the models can be networked via built-in LAN ports and come with Hitachi’s PJMan projector-management software. 

Onkyo has announced that its most capable 9.2-channel network home theater receivers yet—the TX-NR5009 and TX-NR3009—will be available in early September. These THX Ultra2 Plus-certified receivers deliver a caliber of power, performance, audio/video processing and connectivity that A/V enthusiasts demand and home network users expect.

Except for DVRs like TiVo that you own instead of lease from your cable company, it’s hard to find a new home-theater product or TV that accepts CableCARD, a conditional access card that lets you tune in cable channels including premium channels like HBO and Showtime.

A home-theater projector capable of full HD and 3D, too, priced at under $1,500? Those are the latest specs to beat for affordable big 3D entertainment. The Optoma Technology HD33 DLP Projector incorporates a Texas Instruments 1080p DLP chip set and the ability to create images up to 300 inches in size.

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