Saturday, December 23, 2006
Beginnings
I welcome the first signs of our great return home to a culture fit for humans - our true natural state.
In her position, $400 wouldn’t go far, but I hoped, as I approached the spot the next day, that she would at least be more warmly dressed. She wasn’t there and I never saw her again.
Looking good
We've had our Sony KDL-40XBR2 Bravia 40" flat screen for three weeks now; and — if you're in the market for some last-minute testimonials — can recommend it highly.
First, it's a pretty thing. The glass bezel looks a lot nicer than the other models out there. In my opinion, anyway. (There are other choices from Sony too. Here they are.)
Second, the picture is gorgeous. The toughest tests will come with actual 1080p video input. There isn't any yet, but the 1080i video from Dish Network channels we get it's mighty fine. (Yes, compressed and artifact-y, but far less so than with the digital cable pictures I've seen at stores.) It's even better for displaying pictures from family albums, when serving as a laptop display.
Third, the sound — while not as good as you'll get with speakers in an audio system — isn't bad for built-in TV speakers.
Fourth, it serves very nicely as a 1920x1080 computer screen. You have to be sure to view it in "standard" rather than "vivid" mode; but that's one button on the remote control.
Fifth, although I've had my issues with them (not big ones, considering), I have to recommend Dish Network as a companion source service for the Sony. The remote controls work the TV, right out of the box. And much more intuitively than Sony's own remote. (We're using this receiver/DVR, which serves two locations and lets you record one thing while watching another.) We'ver got the DishHD Silver package for $60/month.That plan comes with 26 HD channels and more standard-definition channels than we can bother to count. You can't beat that with any cable system, far as I know.