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I have a Philips AmbiLight TV and while I love the inner glow I get from the glowing lights around the telly, I am continually frustrated by the positioning of the HDMI ports. Being underneath, they make sense only if you are wall-mounting but will freak you out if your TV - like most flat HDTVs - is sitting on a TV cabinet or table. Combine that with corner positioning and the theoretically simple job of swapping out HDMI devices becomes a task for a heavily-muscled contortionist. Cable and add-on specialist IXOS has an answer: the odd little Studio HDMI 90 degree Adapter. As you can see from the shot, it's a simple little L-shaped HDMI affair that fits into an awkwardly placed HDMI slot to make it easier - and safer for your connectors - to plug things in and out of. And it works a treat.It's also perfect for those side-mounted HDMI ports that leave you with an unsightly cable sticking out the side like a sore thumb. Using this, I was able to overcome the tricky underneath ports as well as being able to route the cable from the side down along the side of the TV. The adapter comes in two varieties: the Studio XS118 adapter-only and the XS218 which also sports iVEC Technology, for boosting the HDMI signal and which lets you use longer HDMI cables, up to 4m. The XS118 and XS218 cost £15 and £30, respectively - a cheap way of sorting out those niggling TV cabling snafus without putting your back out.-Martin Lynch [IXOS] news TV HDTV

from @ Gizmodo UK

Panasonic likes rolling out jaw-droppingly big tellies. Usually of the type that we can't afford but, nonetheless impressive to stand in front of at shows, drooling. This time out, the company is prepping a new 103in Plasma TV, the TH-103PZ800, for the IFA Show 2008, which kicks off on Friday. This is a third generation 103-incher and while the specs are impressive, it's most notable because it's around £10,000 cheaper than its predecessor launched in February.OK, at around £25,000, it's still not cheap but at this rate, I'll be able to afford one in around 5-7 years. Alright I'm joking since I think HD projectors are the only way to go for the really big picture without going bankrupt. This is a Full HD telly, with Deep Colour and x.v. Colour support, a 10,000:1 contrast ratio, 4 HDMI slots, Ethernet, SD Card slot and VIERA Link tech for hooking up simply to other Panasonic kit. Just make sure your wall can take this baby since it weighs in at 756 pounds. Oh, and there's no speakers. Go figure.-Martin Lynch [Akihabaranews] news TV HDTV

from @ Gizmodo UK

Archos has been churning out the best PMPs on the market for some time now, managing to stay ahead of the crowd by constantly updating with new and improved features. The latest series undergoes a major overhaul with radical ultra-thin styling and upgrades that fix many of the niggles consumers had with previous versions. The basic concept stays the same. It's a portable that allows you to view files on the move, stream media from your computer to a television and surf the internet via the built-in Wi-Fi connection. Aside from the design, the main improvements that pretty much guarantee the new series to be a success include the option of built-in 3.5G for permanent internet access and HD video support up to 720p, and you'll now find an HDMI connection available for hooking it up directly to your TV. You can still record from the TV to the internal storage if you buy the DVR station accessory, use it as a GPS device with the appropriate add-on and download a range of additional content, games and features from the Archos Media Club site. The touchscreen-based devices are available in three different guises. The Archos 5 and Archos 7 offer 5" and 7" screens respectively and the Archos 5g offers the 3.5G connectivity for an always-on connection. These new models aren't cheap and the latter will set you back a hefty £359.99 with 30GB capacity, but if you're happy to stick to wireless hotspots you can get a 250GB Archos 5 or a 160GB Archos 7 for the same price. The 5-series will be available from September, with the 7 following in October and the 3G model touted for 'Q4 2008'. I want one. - Paul Lester [Archos] Archos PMP 3G

from @ Gizmodo UK

If you've been contemplating whether or not to upgrade your Sky subscription to an HD box, it seems like now might be a good time. Not only has it recently dropped the price of an HD upgrade to £150 (plus £60 installation and the obligatory extra tenner a month), you'll now find that seven more channels are set to be added to the 19 currently available. They are mostly movie related with HD versions of its existing Sky Movies Action/Thriller, Sky Movies Sci-Fi/Horror, Sky Movies Drama, Sky Movies Modern Greats, Sky Movies Family and Sky Movies Comedy to appear from October. The seventh, rather strangely we might add, is Sky Real Lives HD, which offers programmes like 'The Real A&E' and 'Lorraine Kelly's DNA Stories'. The move will bring the current HD selection to 26 channels and Sky seem confident that it'll add four more by the end of the year. In addition, a new EPG (electronic programme guide) is also set to launch in October and with the popularity of HD-ready screens constantly on the rise, it seems like an upgrade for most people is simply a matter of time. - Paul Lester [Guardian] Sky HD movies

from @ Gizmodo UK

It's big telly time with Sony launching a new flagship series, the Bravia X4500 family, in 40in, 46in and 55in sizes. The TVs [above] are Full HD 1080p models and boast some new styling, with a 'floating' design and translucent frame. And let's not forget the sterling silver speaker covers. How posh. Optional speaker covers come in 'Ruby Red or Obsidian Black' and there's 4 HDMI slots as standard. On the performance front the TVs use the new Bravia Engine 2 Pro processing technology which claims to "filter, clean and optimise image data before it's displayed." These are also the first Bravia TVs that can connect with other consumer devices using DLNA technology for sharing content like music and photos. The TVs will upscale non-HD images, like DVDs, using DRC (Digital Reality Creation) 3.0 while the 46in and 55in models use something called Motionflow PRO 100Hz technology that creates extra frames, inserting them into the signal and doubling the displayed frame rate. In other words, the promise is smoother playback of sports and action movies. The company has also launched the less expensive W4500 series, also 1080p and available in 40in, 46in and 52in varieties. The design boasts a long horizontal gap under the screen for that contemporary twist. It uses the Bravia Engine 2 [not the Pro version like the X4500 series] and also supports DLNA technology. They will be cheaper than the X4500s but since we have no prices for either yet, we can't tell you what the difference to your wallet will be. They are due out next month. TV HDTV HD sony

from @ Gizmodo UK