LG has announced a new 2008 range and we’ve got the first details, including some surprising new information from Mr Mark Levinson during a press briefing at Hyde Park.First up is the new range of Freeview DVD recorders which have just hit the shops.

The LG RHT399H, LG RHT398H and the LG RHT397H are the three models. Broken down into simpler terms, they’re all the same – bar the size of the hard drive which is 320GB, 250GB and 160GB respectively.

LG claims that you can copy one hour of recorded footage to DVD in just 27 seconds. Other features on all the models include HDMI 1080p upscaling, DiVX playback, a USB input and an optical output.

Next up is a new iPod dock. The high-gloss PC12DAB unit (pictured) features a CD drive and DAB capability. It can rip CDs to a portable music player too, with LG pitching the dock as a simple device which can rip tracks without the need for a PC.

It features a four-mode audio equaliser – pop, rock, jazz and er, ‘flat’ in addition to a bright LED clock display. The PC12DAB goes on sale at the end of July.

The FA163DAB is a 395 USD micro system with DAB and iPod functions. We’ve already covered it here, so expect a full review later this month when the FA163DAB hits the shops.

LG has also launched new portable DVD players. The DP371 is a slimline player which, once opened, features an adjustable swivel screen.

The DP391B on the other hand, is a sleek slab which allows discs to be placed just behind the screen. LG suggest that the size makes it an ideal digital photo frame. It has 256MB of internal memory and can read SD and MS cards, should you wish to put family photos on there.

A DVD home cinema system, the LG HT953TV, marks the end of the line up. We’ll have more details very soon.

Finally, Mr Mark Levinson is working with LG, tuning the above products but Mark is also helping the company develop a range of high-end hi-fi products which will debut at CES 2009 in January. Expect more details shortly.

Networking device manufacturer D-Link and DivX have begun shipping the first DivX Connected media player in the U.S. (distribution in Canadian markets is expected to soon follow). The HDMI-connected D-Link MediaLounge DSM-330 offers streaming of music, photos, Internet services and high definition video from PCs to any connected television, ostensibly challenging Apple TV, Apple’s device for the living room. The set-top box, however, uses the slower 802.11g networking (or optional wired Ethernet), while most newer devices, including Apple TV, use the new (and faster) 802.11n band. Unlike Apple TV, the device supports a larger range of format, including DivX (including DivX VOD files), Xvid and WMV9 (transcoded on PC) as well as a variety of image formats, including JPEG, JPEG 2000 and BMP (non-compressed). Continue Reading…

Conventional wisdom says that a consumer electronic product from a “brand name” will be superior to that from a small company, So you wouldn’t expect better video or premium features to be found on Oppo Digital’s DV-981HD DVD player – which retails for $229 USD and is sold over the Internet. But as we’ll see, (with a few noticeable exceptions as to design and menu navigation) when it comes to performance the DV-981HD is right there at the top.

Features and Design

The DV-981HD is svelte and has on the front the expected Power and Eject buttons, along with Play/Pause and Stop. So using the Remote is really a necessity, and even though there are tiny buttons, they at least follow a conventional format and can be seen in a poorly lit room, since they glow-in-the-dark. The front panel LCD display is fair in size and readable from a respectable range, and the Eject button glows blue which looks cool while in use. Continue Reading…