Samsung Brings Interactive Yahoo! Widget Engine to HDTVs

Samsung will soon be offering a line-up of HDTVs that offer the Yahoo! Widget Engine, which will enable TV watchers to interact with a set of “TV Widgets”.

The Internet-based service will be available on select flat panels in the spring of 2009. These TVs will also be on display at CES 2009 at Samsung’s booth (11033). Samsung is also prepping the world’s thinnest LCD that’s between 0.256 to 0.276 inches thick.

The TV Widget service is called “Internet@TV - Content Service.” It offers a range of widgets that include:

* Flickr
* Yahoo! News, Yahoo! Weather and Yahoo! Finance
* USA Today
* YouTube
* eBay
* Showtime Networks

The content and services offered will grow to include video streaming and other popular internet services, according to Samsung.

Users can access the service by connecting the HDTV to a home network via the built-in Ethernet port or using an optional Wi-Fi USB dongle. Developers will be able to develop and deploy TV Widgets with the open-platform Widget Development Kit (WDK).

“This new interface allows [viewers] to interact and connect with many of their favorite Web services on a personal level,” says Boo-Keun Yoon, Executive Vice President of the Visual Display Division at Samsung Electronics.

“It’s frankly way beyond just passively watching broadcasts and is no doubt the future of TV.”

source : Electronichouse.com

Samsung HL61A750 61-inch 1080p LED Powered DLP HDTV

The Samsung HL61A750 61-inch 1080p HDTV has some special features that differentiate it from other televisions on the market. It has a full 1080p HD resolution, 1 tuner PIP, 3 HDMI inputs, and the DLP is powered by an LED light source.

DLP, or digital light processing, technology allows the consumer to have a higher picture quality than a plasma television would provide while costing less than an LCD HDTV. The Samsung HL61A750 improves on that design by being LED powered instead of using a lamp. The LEDs last the lifetime of the television, so you no longer have to replace bulbs and the TV starts faster since it no longer requires warm up.

The Samsung HL61A750 is a 61″ widescreen television with an aspect ratio of 16:9. The dynamic contrast ratio is 10,000:1. It is a full 1080p HD resolution and is 1920 x 1080 pixels.

Whether you have cable service or use an antenna, there are a few features of the Samsung HL61A750 that you might find useful. One is the QAM cable TV tuner that receives unscrambled programs if you have cable service but don’t use a set-top box. For antenna users, there are built in tuners (both digital and analog) for over-the-air broadcasts.

The Samsung HL61A750 might offer the best screen quality and features for a 61-inch HDTV in its price range.

source : Pressemeldungen.at