MSNBC has a nice piece on the components coming together for the living room of the future. More than just DVD players, it goes into audio, and new large screen TV's, as well as the cables to connect it all. Start saving for the Christmas season now.
The newest component to enter the living room is the so-called “media server” -- basically a giant hard drive on which you can store both video and audio files. At the moment media servers are still evolving out of the personal computer world, as with Hewlett Packard’s top-of-the-line z557 Digital Entertainment Center. Media servers can offer a multitude of functions, ranging from an HD television tuner and DVR functionality to DVD recording and playback. One caveat, however: when users begin to play their MP3 files through the living room’s high quality surround sound systems, the results may prove distinctly disappointing. As media servers catch on, expect a big market for upgraded audio files in the years ahead.
The remainder of this decade will see an unprecedented makeover of living room entertainment -- an even bigger shift than the introduction of audio CDs produced back in the Eighties. The key concept to keep in mind is that everything will be connected. In the living room of the future, each component needs to play well -- and also to play well with others.
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