CEDIA 2008 was a whirlwind of new projectors, HDTVs and all sorts of other wares that home theater freaks just love. As always, we were here in the Mile High City covering every minute, but we completely understand if you missed anything. Just in case, we've compiled a summary of what all happened here in Denver, and make sure you head on past the break for the rest.

Hands-ons

Hands-on: Sony shows off prototype 400-disc Blu-ray Mega Changer
Hands-on with LG's BD300 Netflix / Blu-ray deck
Hands-on with the THX-certified QuietHome door
Hands-on with Niveus Media's Denali, Rainier and Cargo media wares
Hands-on with Sony's SXRD BRAVIA VPL-VW70 and VPL-HW10 projectors
Hands-on with Hitachi's 1.5-inch thick plasma prototype
Hands-on / a look within Pioneer's Elite BDP-09FD Blu-ray player
Hands-on with Toshiba's SRT REGZA HDTVs (and other old crap)
Eyes-on with Sony's BDP-S5000ES Blu-ray player

Mitsubishi has been trickling out details for its mysterious LaserVue HDTV for months now, but at long last, we finally know the most pertinent piece. Reportedly, the 65-inch set -- which was seen lookin' mighty fine on the CEDIA floor, by the way -- will retail for $6,999 when it ships to Select Diamond retailers at the end of this month. The forthcoming 73-inch version doesn't have a price / release date just yet, but given the way we've found things out about its smaller sibling, we can't say we're shocked in the least.

Mitsubishi has released a real light cannon with its HD8000, a 1080p 3LCD model that pumps out 5000 lumens so you don't have to live like a video vampire that hides your HD-feeding away from the sun. With this kind of light output, picture quality (black levels, contrast) will take hit and bulb life might not be great, but we figure the target market of sports bars and restaurants won't mind that; what will be downer will be the lack of an HDMI input. To be fair, there is a DVI input and Mitsubishi even throws a DVI-to-HDMI converter in the box, but for $15,000 you shouldn't have to use dongles from day one.

With all the projector introductions being made, you'd think that everybody was buying one. We suspect that's not the case, but Mitsubishi is doing its part to keep the model lists full by adding a trio of 1080P, 3LCD beamers to the mix -- the HC7000, HC6500 and HC5500. We heard about the whisper quiet HC5500 last month, and the HC6500 turns in a fine 15,000:1 contrast ratio performance, but the HC7000 is what lights our fire. We all know specs can lie, but this unit should leave your eyeballs and jaw on the floor if its 70,000:1 contrast ratio is accurate. Based on positive reviews of the predecessor HC6000, this projector could be a real winner, and the 5,000 hour lamp life might leave you enough time to pay it off before you have to change your first bulb.

When you're an industrial giant like Mitsubishi, it pays to cover your bets. In addition to the recently-announced MZW-, MXW- and MX-series LCD TVs, it is also showing off an unnamed 40-mm thick LCD TV prototype. As we've seen in the war of supermodel svelte TVs, getting down to these levels requires that the tuner is moved to an external box (those chunky boxes in the pic). The elegance of the panel just can't be spoiled by ugly cables, so just like we've seen with the Hitachi Wooo LCD TVs, the signal will get the wireless treatment. A production model of this TV is slated for a fall release, in a size over 40-inches. That's right around the corner, so we've got a feeling more details will be flowing soon. Meanwhile, hit that link for more pics.

[Image courtesy TechOn]

Now that AMIMON is being taken seriously in the high-def arena, we're hoping to see a number of these releases in the not-too-distant future. Merely months after Sharp announced that its X-Series LCD HDTVs would arrive with wireless HD technology built right in, Mitsubishi has declared that it too will offer sets in Japan that can communicate with WHDI-enabled equipment sans cabling. The TV itself will have an AMIMON chip embedded within, though it will arrive with a separate HDTV receiver unit that connects to the LCD in wireless fashion. Model numbers, prices and all that jazz has yet to be divulged, though the Japanese will evidently be able to buy one of the elusive packages as early as "this fall." Full release after the jump.

Barely a month after Mitsubishi launched its iSP 149 series of LCD HDTVs, the company is trotting out three new lineups over in Japan. The higher-end MZW series includes the 46-inch LCD-46MZW200 (¥400,000; $3,643) and 40-inch LCD-40MZW200 (¥300,000; $2,732), both of which pack a 1080p 10-bit Diamond panel, 120Hz technology and an October 21st release date. For those with tighter spaces (and smaller budgets), the MX / MXW series spans from 19- (¥100,000; $910) to 42-inches (¥280,000; $2,550), with the most expensive sets offering a Full HD display and the lesser ones topping out at 1,366 x 768. Oh, and it looks as if Funai won't be the only one delivering a Blu-ray / LCD combo, as Mitsu's already working up a concept. Peruse the links below for all the machine translated nitty-gritty.

[Via Impress]

Read - MZW series
Read - MX / MXW series
Read - Blu-ray / LCD combo concept

Given that Sharp will obviously be needing a few high-power laser diodes to go into its forthcoming 8x Blu-ray burners, it's good to see Mitsubishi Chemical hopping in the fabrication game in order to lower costs and keep consumers smiling. A new report asserts that the previously mentioned company will be dedicating at least some of its efforts to producing high-power (200 to 300mW) laser diodes, which are currently in short supply and used in the pick-up heads of BD writers. As it stands, just Sony, Nichia and Sharp are producing these things in volume, though a fourth wheel will certainly be welcome. There's no word on when exactly Mitsu Chemical plans to ramp up production, but the sooner the better, we say.

If Mitsubishi's WD-65735 proved a bit too, shall we say, bulky for your needs, those loyal to the brand may be wondering how the remarkably thinner LT-52148 performed. PC Magazine was able to get a set over on the test bench, and while the 52-inch 1080p panel was stunning (as was the ultrathin bezel), the excessive sharpening artifacts, elevated greens and above average (read: more than desired) power consumption left reviewers underwhelmed. Furthermore, the speakers consistently distorted when pushed over halfway on the volume scale, and the menu navigation was deemed "sluggish" at best. Overall, the set was a perfectly mixed bag, with just enough negatives to persuade prospective customers to check other options first. Think we're bluffing? Check out the read link below and see for yourself.

It's not often this day and age to see two RPTVs duking it out within the same fortnight, but shortly after CNET got ahold of Samsung's HL61A750 for review, the Mitsubishi WD-65735 showed up for its time on the test bench. For starters, critics couldn't deny that this 65-incher was big in more ways than one. Granted, consumers know full well what they're getting into with a DLP-based RPTV, but those not completely okay with a rather bulky set in their living room can stop right here and move on. Unfortunately, it seems that even those still with us will be looking for alternatives, as reviewers harshed on the inaccurate colors, soft details, lack of a PC input and lackluster array of controls. The unusually low 6.5 out of 10 rating suggests that there is value to be had for those looking for a big screen at the lowest possible cost, but the shoddy image quality will likely turn most folks away.

We've yet to be able to confirm any of this in our local stores, but HD Guru has it that major television manufacturers are lowering their retail prices in order to deal with swelling inventories. Despite upticks in demand from the upcoming Olympics, the overall economy here in America has apparently taken a toll on HDTV sales. Samsung, Sharp, Mitsubishi and Panasonic have reportedly notified their dealers of the drops, with some sets plummeting as much as $400. Of course, in-store (read: street) pricing will vary (sometime significantly) from the figures posted in the read link, but regardless, you ought to save a few bucks from just weeks ago. Oh, and if you're not desperate for a new flat-panel right this moment, let us remind you that Black Friday 2008 is barely two months away.

[Via The Boy Genius Report, image courtesy of StarTribune]]

Several Japanese tech giants are teaming together today in a quest to make 40-inch and larger OLED panels for televisions. Sony, Toshiba, Panasonic, Sharp and others will participate under a joint development project initiated by the Japanese government. All of this is of course meant to help the Japanese companies compete with South Korea's chaebols, particularly Samsung and LG, as the industry giants maneuver for an advantage over the next, next-generation flat panel technology to dominate the living room.

[Via OLED-info]

When Mitsubishi admitted that it was holding hands with NVIDIA and Aspen Media for no other reason than to prove that they all three hearted 3D, we must say, we were miffed. Now, however, it seems that plans are finally coming to light, and everything is starting to make a whole lot more sense. Reportedly, the three firms are gearing up to showcase how well they can work together to produce eye-pleasing 3D PC gaming results in select retail outlets this July. At first, none of the components will be sold together per se, but bundle deals are definitely in the works. Whether or not budding PC gamers are ready to switch to a DLP-based HDTV as their primary monitor, however, remains to be seen.

If you're a lazy ass consumer (the very best kind), bent on pulling a device out of the box, plugging it into a wall, and never messing with another bit of "setup" again, you're certainly not alone. In fact, most folks never lift a finger to calibrate their displays, plug better speakers in, or place those speakers in actually advantageous spots. To that end, Mitsubishi is debuting its new LT-46149 and LT-52149 LCDs with integrated 16-speaker sound projectors. Similar to the sound bars offered up by many home audio manufacturers, the "Integrated Sound Projector" (iSP) is designed to bounce sound off walls and around the room to give the illusion of surround sound. The perk of TV integration is an easy to use room configuration on-screen tool to specify your room's dimensions, couch placement and preferred sweet spot size. At the end of the day, your sound is all coming from one spot, so directionality isn't going to quite match a for-realsie surround sound setup, and the system we listened to was a little sharp in the high end, but it's certainly a unique and appealing offering from Mitsu to the everyman TV watcher. The TV itself is CableCard ready, can support sound over HDMI and PCM inputs, and offers Mitsu's 120Hz film dejuddering -- that rather awkwardly makes your favorite films look like they were shot by a TV news crew. The 46-inch and 52-inch LCDs will sell for $3,299 and $3,699, respectively.

We got a first glimpse of Mitsubishi's brand new rear-projection-ish laser-based TV tech, LaserVue, back at CES, but now the sets are just about primed for action, and should be hitting store shelves, as previously noted, Q3 2008. LaserVue will debut in 65-inch and 73-inch, with the 65-inch version hitting the scene first. Mitsubishi is still pretty coy about what exactly makes the technology tick -- other than the "zomg, lasers" aspect -- but is quick to point out the 200 percent color gamut that LaserVue provides, more than twice that of most traditional HDTVs. The sets also run at 120Hz, and boast 500 nits of brightness. Head to head against LCD and plasma sets we had trouble finding the differences, other than the color depth (particularly in the reds, almost too much so, though we're sure you can tweak that). Have no fear: the blacks are black, the brights are bright, and the viewing angle puts DLP to shame. That said, we're hearing price points are going to be more comparable to plasma and LCD than DLP, so Mitsubishi might have its work cut out for it in convincing consumers that these new "chubby," 10-inch thick TVs are the way to go. We're not entirely convinced ourselves, though one aspect can't be disputed: LaserVue draws under 200 watts, about half that of LCD and a third of plasma.