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Before Larry Sanders, there was Garry Shandling - surreally enough it's now on DVD

Chris Jenkins — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 12:36:24 +0000

You should know Garry Shandling from the critically lauded The Larry Sanders Show, but how many of you remember his previous series? Well this is it. read more »

The man...the machine...Street Hawk! - and it's coming to DVD at last!

Chris Jenkins — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 11:46:21 +0000

Some people loved Knight Rider, adored Airwolf or worshipped Blue Thunder, but for others there was only one 'undercover cop with a suped-up vehicle' show in the '80s, and that was Street Hawk. Now it's coming to DVD at last. read more »

HDMI body announces early update to v1.4 specification, promises better 3D support

Steve May — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 10:19:35 +0000

The HDMI Licensing body has announced an early update to its version 1.4 HDMI specification, to further broaden compatibility for 3D technology. The new v1.4a iteration will incorporate mandatory TV support for a variety of broadcast 3D formats, ensuring display equipment knows how to adjust depending on the type of 3D signal received.
While the first version of HDMI v1.4 provided 3D support for Blu-ray and read more »

Race relations in contemporary LA gets hi-def makeover as award-winner Crash hits Blu-ray

Anton van Beek — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 13:05:49 +0000

Paul Haggis' Crash is a film that tends to polarize audiences - you either love or hate his multi-narrative look at race relations in Los Angeles, and I have to admit that I definitely belong in the second of those camps.

Unlike some, my dislike of the film doesn't simply come from the fact that it beat out the far superior read more »

Sky introduces new Sky+HD box with massive 1TB hard drive, phases out standard def Sky+

Steve May — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 09:05:53 +0000

Sky has expanded its Sky+HD receiver lineup with a new box featuring a massive 1TB drive. Available now, priced at £249 (installation costs £30 for newcomers and £60 for the rest of us), the new model can store up to 240 hours of hi-def, or 740 hours of standard definition TV. read more »

Sky kicks-off 3D TV service this Sunday with live football, channel to bundled at no extra cost

Steve May — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 00:48:28 +0000

Sky has announced that it will launch the UK’s first dedicated 3D TV channel this April. To kick-off publicity for the service, the satcaster will transmit this Sunday's Premier League match between Arsenal and Manchester United at the Emirates Stadium live in 3D to selected pubs around the UK and Ireland. read more »

Strip, strip hooray - Immodesty Blaize and Dita Von Teese bare almost all on DVD

Chris Jenkins — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 15:29:28 +0000

Burlesque is back in fashion, with artistes like Dita Von Teese and Immodesty Blaize, and even international stars like Kylie Minogue and Lady Gaga, bringing feathers, fans and over-the-top glamour to the stage. read more »

HCC Movie Awards Digital Edition

HCC News Team — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 15:02:21 +0000

The HCC Movie Awards 2009 special edition is now available online and as a free download!

Welcome to the first ever Home Cinema Choice movie awards. If you've been wondering what Blu-ray discs are best to show off your home cinema system, then look no further. We've auditioned hundreds of platters to find the very finest in picture and sound quality – not to mention uncover the best examples of special features available and applaud the extraordinary efforts made by studios when it comes to remastering older classics for hi-def... read more »

Samsung first to begin mass production of 3D LCD screens, 'We will lead market' says boss

Steve May — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 10:13:38 +0000

Samsung announced today that it has begun mass production of 3D panels for LCD and LED backlit TVs.
The new 3D screens will come in 40-, 46- and 55inch sizes. All are designed to be used with Active Shutter glasses and have a frame rate of 240Hz.
The new displays claim to have a 20 per cent faster response time than conventional glass, at 4 milliseconds.
Samsung says that this read more »

The Avengers: The Complete Series 3 offers a taste of 'Death a la Carte'

Chris Jenkins — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 16:22:27 +0000

Optimum Home Entertainment continues its sterling work in re-releasing classic TV spy series The Avengers on DVD with this latest full-season set. read more »

3DTV is 'Not going to be easy, and there will be surprises' says standards guru

Chris Jenkins — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 14:59:33 +0000

Bringing 3DTV to the home is 'not going to be easy, and there will be surprises' said standards expert Peter Symes of SMPTE yesterday. Speaking at a high-end Digital Television Group (DTG) seminar to which HCC had exclusive access, Symes explained that the technicalities of encoding 3D signals were proving a challenge - for instance, early attempts at compressing signals using MVC (Multi-View Coding) delivered disappointingly read more »

Avatar prompts Lucas to reconsider re-jigging original Star Wars trilogy in 3D

HCC News Team — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 13:40:20 +0000

Short of curing the common cold, is there anything that James Cameron's 3D spectacular Avatar can't do? Not only has the stereoscopic sci-fi drama single-handedly rewarded Hollywood's faith in 3D as a commercial medium, it's also bagged a hat-load of awards (and may be set for even more following today's BAFTA nominations) and even has George Lucas returning to his old idea of releasing read more »

Samsung to sell a range of 3D TV glasses for all tastes, launches Wi-Fi DNLA camcorders

Steve May — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 13:34:43 +0000

Worried that wearing 3D spex will leave you looking like a dork? Well your choice when it comes to buying funny glasses may be wider than you think. Samsung says it will support its launch of 3D televisions and Blu-ray with a separate range of active shutter glasses.
Talking exclusively to HCC at the launch of its first wi-fi enabled hi-def camcorder range, Andy Griffiths, Vice President of Consumer Electronics for Samsung, revealed: 'We will be offering spectacles to suit a read more »

A bloody guide to the work of Dario Argento and the sensational world of Giallo cinema

Allan Bryce — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 09:25:11 +0000

Director Dario Argento has been heralded by some as the great hope of international horror cinema. Clearly, the director of Suspira (out this week on Blu-ray) has delivered classics of Italian horror – but equally has served up some pretty awful movies, notably Mother of Tears, the abysmal followup to Suspiria and Inferno that envisaged the end of the world in terms of a read more »

Samsung rules UK TV market for third year running

HCC News Team — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 14:28:28 +0000

Samsung has claimed the top slot in the UK TV market for the third year running. New data from research outfit GfK reveals that the brand now commands a 23 per cent market share.
Andy Griffiths, Vice President of Consumer Electronics for Samsung, says: 'To be market leader for three consecutive years in the flat panel TV sector is fantastic news and reinforces the strength of Samsung's product range. read more »

Five classic Italian genre movies you must see

Allan Bryce — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 09:06:54 +0000

Excited by the Blu-ray release of Suspiria? Want to learn more about Italian genre movies? The sick puppies at HCC have come up with a fistful of must-see horror thrillers from the masters of spaghetti splatter that are guaranteed to take your video collection beyond the edge... read more »

Italian splatter classic Suspiria on Blu-ray cuts deeper than the rest

Steve May — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 09:00:22 +0000

It’s arguably one of the greatest horror movies ever made. And now Dario Argento's horror classic Suspira comes to Blu-ray. The Italian splatter classic has undergone a brand new high definition transfer courtesy of Nouveaux Pictures and Cine-Excess.
The BD comes with a host of freshly commissioned extras including a new documentary featuring director Dario Argento and composer Claudio Simonetti alongside a feature length audio commentary by Argento experts Alan Jones and Kim Newman.

Released this week, it tells the story of read more »

Home Cinema Choice #178 - On Sale Now!

Rik Henderson — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 16:57:37 +0000

The new issue of Home Cinema Choice is out now and it's jam packed with the very latest in AV tech...

A new decade has started, one that promises some incredible advancements in home cinema tech – 3DTV is on the way, and OLED may appear as  a bigscreen format soon. However, it’s something  a touch more futuristic that’s getting us excited at HCC in the latest issue… read more »

LG Display creates world's largest e-paper

Steve May — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 09:41:22 +0000

LG Display has unveiled the world’s largest e-paper. The A3-sized 19inch bendable sheet uses revolutionary electronic ink microcapsules embedded on a substrate of ultra thin, transparent metal foil to replicate the look and feel of traditional print.
It’s this use of lightweight foil rather than glass as a substrate that gives the display its unique paper-like flexibility.
The display is a mere 0.3mm thin and weighs just 130 grams. The announcement follows read more »

BBC iPlayer breaks 100 million monthly streams, Top Gear & Dr Who most popular

HCC News Team — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 09:06:30 +0000

The BBC iPlayer broke 100 million requests for programmes in a single month for the first time last December, according to new stats released by The Corporation.
The news corresponds to a big increase in player requests from games consoles and other devices. One in eight of all iPlayer requests are now coming from either a Nintendo Wii or the PS3.
The most popular iPlayer show over the festive period was the Top Gear Bolivia Special, with read more »