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Wall-mounted hdtvs never looked so good [Virginian - Pilot](Virginian - Pilot Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) By Kevin Hunt Chicago Tribune Mounting a big-screen television above a fireplace might be America's favorite place for an HDTV. It's also the worst. Looking up four or five hours nightly invites a perpetually cranky, stiff neck. An active fireplace's heat and random smoke shorten the television's life, too. If that won't stop you, what about all the wires How is it possible to mount a television cleanly on a wall without a hideous tangle of wires or bludgeoning Sheetrock to find a hidden path Here's an idea: the DVDO Air, a wireless HDMI connection that sends high-definition video, including 3-D, and up to 7.1 channels of sound, across a room. With a 30-foot range, the DVDO Air is a barely visible link between a cable box, Blu-ray player or entire home theater and a freshly mounted HDTV. The price for this clean installation is substantial, $399, and actually requires two power cords on the wall - for the HDTV and the DVDO Air - which can be hidden behind the television by the electrical outlet now on your wish list. Considering the degree of difficulty in getting even standard video across a room wirelessly a few years ago, what the DVDO Air and products using Wireless HD technology accomplish is remarkable. The DVDO Air, in my tests, displayed 1080p images and 7.1-channel soundtracks wirelessly, and flawlessly, with a PlayStation 3 gaming console's built-in Blu-ray player. The DVDO Air's 60-hertz transmission technology deftly dodges signals from cellphones and microwaves but cannot penetrate thick walls and, sometimes, even the human body. DVDO, which also makes video-processing equipment, says the Air's range is about 98 feet when the two pieces - transmitter and receiver - are within sight of each other. The optimum range is about 30 feet. The DVDO Air communicates automatically. The user must make sure the receiver, a shotgun-shell cylinder about 6.5 inches long and about 2 inches thick, is connected by HDMI cable to the television. DVDO provides mounts for the transmitter to rest either atop the television or on the wall. The larger, 8-inch transmitter connects by an HDMI cable to your chosen source - a cable box, Blu-ray player or audio-video receiver. As with wireless speakers, the "wireless" DVDO Air actually uses more HDMI cables (two) than a direct-wire setup (one). Both transmitter and receiver also need a nearby electrical outlet. An HDTV over the fireplace looks pretty as a picture when installed with no wires showing. The Air can help give you that look, but it can't fix the pain in the neck. the scoop What DVDO Air Wireless HD transmitter-receiver Cost $399 The good Wireless high-definition audio sent to a television on wall, a ceiling-mounted projector or kitchen TV. Easy setup. The bad Expensive, cannot transmit from room to room. (c) 2012 ProQuest Information and Learning Company; All Rights Reserved. |