Category Archives: Testing

Terms and Conditions

Posted on June 18, 2008 by Stephen Dawson

There is no real fixed system for obtaining gear for review. It’s all over the place, with different companies and relationships. Do I get to keep the stuff I review? Unfortunately, no. Otherwise I would be a very wealthy man. … Continue reading →

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On the scrounge again – Sony Playstation 3 to the rescue

Posted on June 17, 2008 by Stephen Dawson

Today I found a package behind the screen door of my house (a remarkable number of couriers seem unable to read the ‘Stephen Dawson, Writer, Office at Rear’ sign on the house). Within was a ‘Testmold’ Blu-ray from Sony Pictures … Continue reading →

Posted in Admin, BD-Live, Blu-ray, Testing | Leave a comment

A suggestion for TV manufacturers

Posted on March 11, 2008 by Stephen Dawson

I have just reviewed two depressingly bad TVs. It occurs to me that some TV makers are simply not doing the obvious thing when designing a TV: standing the near finished design beside a good TV and comparing them. Of … Continue reading →

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Confusion on channels

Posted on January 14, 2008 by Stephen Dawson

Oh wow, this is confusing. HDMI devices talk to each other, but what are they actually saying? As mentioned in the last item, I’ve been working on a roundup of all HD disc players. One of these is the Panasonic … Continue reading →

Posted in Audio, Blu-ray, Compression, Equipment, Testing | Leave a comment

How not to review a Blu-ray player

Posted on January 10, 2008 by Stephen Dawson

Okay, I’m putting together a roundup of all high definition disc players currently available in Australia. I’ve reviewed most of them, but there are three that I haven’t. One is the Sony BDP-S300, one is the Toshiba HD-E10 and the … Continue reading →

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Check, Recheck and Triple Check

Posted on November 30, 2007 by Stephen Dawson

One of the tasks involved in doing reviews on equipment is identifying faults with that equipment. That may seem easy, but it isn’t always. If you have a lousy picture while watching HDTV, is it the HDTV receiver that’s the … Continue reading →

Posted in DTV, Firmware, HD DVD, HDTV, Testing | Leave a comment

Greenery

Posted on November 23, 2007 by Stephen Dawson

Recently I purchased a power meter. What with environmental concerns, and the Australian greenhouse agency making noises about banning certain TVs that fail to use sufficiently small amounts of power, I figured that it was something I really ought to … Continue reading →

Posted in Power consumption, Testing | Leave a comment

Sloppy Post Production in Kingdom of Heaven?

Posted on June 17, 2007 by Stephen Dawson

When I was on the scrounge for Blu-ray discs last year (it’s difficult reviewing Blu-ray players when you don’t have any discs), I hassled various movie distributors until they shot a few my way. One company to come through was … Continue reading →

Posted in Blu-ray, Disc details, Testing | Leave a comment

Do you call that a review?

Posted on May 18, 2007 by Stephen Dawson

Today I embarked upon a begging mission. I wrote to eight different purveyors of projectors and asked if they’d like to lend me one for at least several months. Odd behaviour? Here’s why. I shall henceforth be writing four HD … Continue reading →

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‘Dynamic Peak’

Posted on May 17, 2007 by Stephen Dawson

I’ve been reviewing a lot of subwoofers lately and for almost all of them the manufacturer quotes two power specifications for their built-in amplifiers: the continuous output power (sometimes erroneously labelled ‘RMS’), and ‘dynamic peak’ or similar words. The latter … Continue reading →

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