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MillimeterInfocomm: Mixed Signals
Aug 1, 2003 12:00 PM, By Peter Putman, CTS
Attendance was off. Traffic was good. Booths were smaller, but there were more of them. What did it all mean?
Many people anticipated this year's running of Infocomm, and with good reason. With the A/V industry experiencing a bit of a slump, many questions needed to be answered. Would there be any breakthrough products? What technological innovations would help kick-start the industry? How about the effect of lower-price pressures on flatscreens and projectors? Is the A/V industry “getting it” with AV/IT convergence products? What's the attraction of the home-theater marketplace?
 NEC's 40in. LCD4000 TFT LCD monitor, shown at Infocomm, heralded the arrival of another manufacturer in the big-screen LCD market. |
Depending on whom you asked, booth traffic was slow-to-terrible on Tuesday (day one of the show) and great on Wednesday (day two). Although attendance was down somewhat from last year (ICIA's official headcount: just over 19,000), there were plenty of booths to visit with lots of products to check out.
Trouble is, many of those products were me-too or lower-priced versions of things we'd seen before. And others were conceptual see-if-it-flies products fishing around for some sort of distribution channel.
Most significantly, many of the new products shown sell in the three-figure range, such as IP-control software or Ethernet to RS-232 converters. That almost ensures multiple product offerings from multiple competitors in the short run! As a result, some of the booths at Infocomm looked more like those you might have seen at computer shows.
There were several trends worth mentioning that will have an direct impact on the pro A/V channel, including Extron's entrance into the IP-controlled interface business and Crestron's introduction of a video scaler/mixer/switcher product, first seen at NAB 2003. (The traditional lines between video and audio signal distribution and control interfaces are rapidly blurring!)
Another trend was the increasing number of flat-panel product distributors, which is driving the cost of panels down faster than perhaps they ought to. Orion's 84in. 4×4 tiled plasma monitor (similar to NEC's) was of interest only because the company didn't seem to have any distribution arrangement, nor could it come up with a real-world price. Expect more of this sort of thing as the year progresses.
And it appears that everybody (and his brother) is getting into the home-theater channel. A significant part of Sharp's booth was devoted to its consumer LCD line, and several companies (Panasonic, Samsung, Mitsubishi, Optoma, and BenQ, among others) unveiled new home-theater front projectors.
One result of the current A/V technology glut is that attendees need to learn more about a diverse range of topics — from the convergence of A/V and IT to plasma and LCD technology. ICIA's educational offerings were as strong as ever, and class attendance was excellent across the board.
Down on the show floor, the feeling seemed to be, “Where do we go from here?” The pro A/V business has had an amazing 10-year run, one largely driven by the migration from CRT-based imaging and NTSC/PAL resolution to multi-scan, fixed-pixel projectors and monitors. Such technologies as digital video, LANs, HDTV, digital cinema, and wireless connectivity would pop up from time to time to keep this momentum moving forward.
Today? Everything seems to have slowed to a crawl as manufacturers look around to hitch their wagons to a new shooting star. A combination of market saturation, technology plateaus, aggressive pricing, and generic product platforms are making it tough to be in the pro A/V business these days.
Some manufacturers seem to feel the pro A/V channel is mined out and that they meet largely the same customers year after year at Infocomm. Consequently, several companies held dealer and rep meetings in less costly hotel suites instead of setting up large booths, something that started happening to the fall Comdex show a few years back.
At present, only one frontier (other than the consumer market) remains largely virgin territory for this industry, and that's the price-sensitive education marketplace. As a result, I saw many lower-priced projectors, anti-theft/security devices, and dirt-simple user interfaces. The sub-$1,000 barrier for projectors was broken by Epson, InFocus, and NEC this year, and we'll see a bunch more of that marketing action as 2003 winds on.
Ditto flatscreens! I fully expected to see a sub-$5,000 50in. plasma monitor at the show (I didn't), and await the appearance of a $1,999 42in. WVGA plasma monitor later this year. There's just too much flat-panel product out there and not enough demand. The fact that LCD monitors can now achieve 40in. and larger screen sizes will just hasten the downward price pressure.
In my online show recap (June's Between The Pixels e-newsletter), I mentioned a few products that I found to be noteworthy, although I didn't make it to every single booth to check out each and every offering. Here's a more in-depth look at what I did see.
Projectors
InFocus rolled out the LP120 personal projector. This tiny XGA (1024×768) DLP design weighs just 2lbs. (1.98lbs., to be exact) and looks like a small brick with a lens at one end. In addition, there's a Proxima version (DP1200x) with the same specs. Proxima also has a new desktop/installation projector, the Proxima DP8200x (1024×768, 3000 lumens), and of course, there's an InFocus version of it (LP820). Finally, InFocus unveiled a companion plug-and-play 802.11b wireless system called LiteShow that works with any of its projectors having M1-DA or M1-D interfaces.
Sanyo, as usual, brought along a truckload of new projectors (most of them IP-ready with Sanyo's PJ-Net Organizer software). In the ultraportable arena, there's the PLC-XU50/55 (1024×768, 2000/2500 lumens) and PLC-SU50 (SVGA, 2000 lumens). All three models have 1:1.5 zoom lenses and are aimed at the education market. The PLC-XT16 and PLC-XT11 are two new desktop/portables weighing less than 20lbs. with 1024×768 resolution and 3500 and 2650 lumens, respectively. They're joined by the PLC-XP55/L and PLC-XP50/L (lens not included) with 4500 and 3600 lumens. The crowd is filled out by the PLC-EF13N/L and PLC-XF13N/L installation designs, which can crank out 5800 and 5200 lumens, in that order.
Digital Projection once again had its new Mercury DLP projector (1024×768, 4500 lumens) on display. This three-chip 1024×768 DLP design is much more compact than traditional xenon-lamped large-venue projectors and is aimed at the conference-room market now dominated by LCD technology. DP also had the iVision compact chassis first seen at NAB; it's a 6.5lb. box with single-chip 1280×1024 imaging rated at 3000 lumens.
 BenQ PB7220 |
BenQ
placed a few new DLP projectors out for viewing, including the 1700-lumen PB2220 (1024×768), the PB7220 (2500 lumens, 1024×768), and the “combo” home theater/office PB8230 (1024×768, 2500 lumens). Next-door competitor Optoma made news with its H76 home-theater projector. It uses a single 1280×720 DMD with color wheel, is rated at 1000 lumens, and will sell for less than $6000 — a significant price drop for this category. Elsewhere in the Optoma booth, I found the 2.1lb. EzPro 725 (1024×768, 1100 lumens) and the EZ Pro 731 (800×600, 1100 lumens, 4.5lbs.).
Sony upped the ante with two new SuperLite LCD projectors, the VPL-CS6 (800×600, 1800 lumens) and the VPL-CX6 (1024×768, 1500 lumens). Both models weigh slightly more than 5lbs. A new network projector comes to the line in the VPL-PX35 (1024×768, 2600 lumens) while the venerable VPL-FX50 has gotten an upgrade to the VPL-FX51 (1024×768, 3500 lumens). Sony also “officially” rolled out its PJNet! network projector management software (about $500).
Toshiba was one of those manufacturers who opted to stay off the show floor and exhibit across the street at the Peabody Hotel. In its suite, I saw the new TLP-720/721 LCD projectors (1024×768, 2400 lumens, document camera on 721) with integrated 802.11b wireless connectivity, as well as the desktop/portable TLP-791. This box has 1024×768 resolution and is rated at 3000 lumens, plus it has a document camera with 1392×1040 pixel imaging resolution. There's an ultraportable, too, with the TLP-D2 (1024×768, 2500 lumens, 5.3lbs.).
NEC was all over the place with its projector intros. The eye-catching WT600 is a super-short throw single-chip DLP design that can fill up a 100in. 3×3 screen from as little as 26in. distant. It uses 1024×768 DMDs and is rated at 1500 lumens. Need to copy a document to the screen? The DT20 can do it and show 3D objects from its scanner using 1024×768 LCD panels and 2800 lumens brightness. At the other end of the scale, the high-powered GT6000 and GT6000R use new 1400×1050 LCD panels (SXGA+), claim 9000 hour lamp life, and use two lamps to crank out 5300 or 2700 lumens (GT9000) and 2000 or 1000 lumens (GT9000R).
Panasonic used Infocomm to debut the PT-LC80U, a 4.6lb. 1024×768 LCD design with a quick (1.5 second) auto setup mode, 2000 lumens, and anti-theft features like panel lock-out and text superimposition over any image (important for the education market). In the ultraportable space, you'll find the PT-L735NTU (1024×768, 2600 lumens, networking features) and PT-L735U (same, except no networking). Both weigh just less than 10lbs.
Barco has come out with a new “performer,” the RLM G5. It's intended for the staging and rental market and uses three-chip DLP imaging with 4500 lumens. More important, it also employs the Mercury XGA DMD engine with dual UHP lamps and weighs only 55lbs. Sharp announced one new projector (PG-A20X, 2000 lumens, 1024×768, 6.4lbs) and upgraded another (XG-C55X, 3000 lumens, 1024×768, 11.2lbs).
Mitsubishi is another strong player in the education market, and many of its 2003 offerings include security features, too. Of interest were the XL5950 ColorView (1024×768, 4700 lumens) installation LCD projector, the XD350 ColorView (1024×768, 2500 lumens) DLP chassis, and the tiny XD50U Mini-Mits (1024×768, 1500 lumens) DLP microportable. There was even a home-theater projector, the HC2 ColorView (800×600, 1100 lumens) on display.
Samsung apparently couldn't resist the lure of home theater and showcased the SP-H700AE front DLP projector. This design (as yet unpriced) uses the Mustang/HD2 1280×720 chipset, and much of its inner workings are the result of video guru Joe Kane's two cents. Epson (also M.I.A. from the show floor) put the spotlight on its PowerLite 7800p (3500 lumens, 1024×768) and PowerLite 8300i (5200 lumens, also 1024×768). Both are desktop/installation models.
Hitachi made further improvements to its SVGA line with the CP-S210W, a 6lb. 800×600 LCD projector rated at 1200 lumens. And for those wanting more lamp life, the CP-X870W is supposed to fill the bill. This 2000-lumen XGA-resolution lightbox has a lamp life of 4000 hours.
Flatscreens
NEC-Mitsubishi took the wraps off a new 40in. TFT LCD monitor, the LCD4000. First announced in February, this 1280×728 design brings another major player into the rapidly growing big-screen LCD market and puts more pressure on plasma. Sharp showed the LC-M3700, a 37in. LCD monitor with 1366×768 resolution and wide viewing angles that is adapted from its consumer TV offering.
Mitsubishi finally got its super-thin, 10in.-deep VS-60XT2OU MegaView DLP projection cube to market. This design measures 60in. diagonally and has XGA (1024×768) resolution. Orion showed the NeoDigm, a tiled 84in. plasma made up of four 853×480 PDPs. Given that NEC also has an 84in. plasma with the same approach, this is likely an OEM product looking for a distribution channel.
Panasonic announced its sixth-generation 42in. SDTV plasma, the TH-42PWD6UY (852×480 resolution). Spectacular colors and deep blacks are a Panasonic tradition, and this screen was joined by the new TH-42PHD6UY (1024×768 ns resolution). Panasonic also announced a line of proprietary plug-in video interface modules for these products and its 50in. offering.
Samsung finally unveiled the SyncMaster 403T, a 40in. 1280×768 TFT LCD multimedia monitor that is one of several LCD products intruding into the 42in. plasma market space. Samsung also announced third-generation versions of its 42in. PPM42S3, 50in. PPM50H3, and 63in. PPM63H3 plasma monitors and topped things off with the SVD-50D1S 50in. DLP rear-projection cube. It is unique in providing 1280×720 resolution and measures just less than 24in. in depth.
Toshiba had a full range of DLP projection cubes on hand, ranging from the 38in. P380DL (1024×768, 400 nits) to the 60in. P600DL (also 1024×768, 300 nits). Synelec featured Indisys, a 16Gb/s Ethernet backbone (claimed to be the world's first all-digital control room solution), a new 40in. 1280×768 LCD monitor, and the LM-1200, an 84in. DLP SXGA (1280×1024) display cube that is the largest currently available.
Clarity showed an upgrade to its Bobcat monitor, and it now claims longer life for the backlight as well as LAN-based monitoring and control. Sony announced a new public display plasma monitor, the PFM-42V1 PlasmaPro. This 852×480 monitor supports a wide range of analog and DVI signal sources, but no word on support for network control.
BenQ took the covers off a 30in. LCD TV in Orlando. The DV3080 has 1280×768 resolution and built-in NTSC tuner. It's also a PC monitor with support to XGA (1024×768 and 1280×768) signal sources. Panasonic also showed a 22in. WXGA TFT LCD monitor in its booth with no specs available at press time.
Interfaces and Odds and Ends
Folsom Research showed its ScreenShaper video-mapping system, which allows curved screen panoramic projection for immersive environments. Similar software was seen in other booths, although it wasn't as powerful as the Folsom demo.
Extron rolled out its IP Link line of interfaces during the show. These boxes provide IP to RS-232C conversion and can be used with any A/V equipment that employs an RS-232C interface. Three new scan converters (VSC 500/700/900) also took a bow, as did the BBG 6A blackburst generator. On the test equipment front, the VTG 300 is a complete overhaul of the older VTG 200 and offers 31 video output rates and numerous test patterns — plus it's battery-powered.
Incidentally, several companies showed similar IP to RS-232C converters on the show floor. Christie had its ChristieNet product, which is based on Spinoza's IP interfaces and allows email alerts, status monitoring, and file uploads. Sharp's AN-LS1 is another Ethernet to RS-232C converter that does pretty much the same thing, and, of course, Mitsubishi continues to sell the ProjectorView interface modules. All of these systems (and hybrids) support legacy projectors and displays.
 Silicon Optix Image AnyPlace scaler |
Vista Systems
had a nice demo of its Montage multichannel seamless video mixing/switching system. It can handle up to 12 overlaid channels and also transition between seamless panoramic video and graphics. And Silicon Optix showed a brand-new video scaler that incorporates its image reshaping technology for off-axis projection.
Kramer somehow figured a way to make an even lower-cost video scaler, the VP-719DS. It accepts everything from VGA to UXGA (even DVI) and converts to five PC and six non-standard display rates to best match fixed-pixel imagers. For more power, there's the VP-724DS, which improves on last year's model with additional video and audio connectivity. In addition to PC and flat-panel output rates, it also supports 480p, 720p, and 1080i.
Astro Systems announced a new portable video signal test generator, the VG-848. It can crank out signals to QXGA (2048×1536) and also tests HDCP, plus it supports component, composite, and DVI interfaces. Gefen showed a clever system of building-block DVI distribution amplifiers (who says you can't split DVI?).
Analog Way declared it would provide three different Graphic Switcher II bundles for event and installation needs. In addition, the new Octo-Logo was displayed. It's a high-resolution logo inserter and seamless switcher for conference rooms and boardrooms. Up to eight logos can be stored in memory, and each logo can be positioned anywhere on the screen (using fully adjustable H&V logo position) and distributed to any of the eight universal inputs as a matte image or keyed over another image.
Magenta Research showed off the MultiView 1500. This receiver is fully compatible with MultiView 450 products and can pipe a UTP-converted XGA (1024×768) signal with 75Hz refresh up to 1,500ft., while a UXGA (1600×1200) source with 75Hz refresh is good to 1,000ft.
Finally, RGB Spectrum showcased the DGx Model 102 dual-channel high-resolution recording system. It can capture, compress, store, and play back imagery at up to 1600×1200 pixel resolution. Recordings are time-stamped and may be event-marked for random access. RGB's DSS option provides 9- or 15-hour recording capacity on removable hard drives.
Pete Putman is president of Roam Consulting, Inc., Doylestown, Pa. He can be reached at vspete@projectorexpert.com.
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