Recently Filed in Slideshows

Some guys love power tools. Some love cars. Some are happy with a comfy chair, a remote and something to nosh on. Then there are those who need to go above and beyond—to create a space that most men only dream about. Today, we call these spaces “man caves.” In these caves, though, the only things being fired up are amps, Blu-ray movies, video games and gigantic TVs (sometimes multiple ones). They are places where a guy can play with his toys without worrying about… View this story
Home Theater • Cool Homes • Slideshows

The end-of-the-year shopping season means lots of goodies on the Blu-ray front. Sadly, November’s docket of Blu-ray releases doesn’t include any movies starring Megan Fox. But there are a number of blockbusters scheduled to come out to coincide with the holiday shopping season. Going where no Blu-ray release has gone before, new Blu-ray titles include movies starring Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock, Sulley and Mike, Tom and the Griswold family. Two of the notable music releases include Rush and Carlos Santana. Click here for The… View this story
Miscellaneous • Movies and Music • Blu-ray • Product News • Slideshows

In the spirit of Halloween (OK, maybe it’s because you guys just love terrible wiring jobs), we’ve rounded up seven more horrific (scary) wiring jobs. These entries were sent in by some faithful CE pros who have come across their fair share of wiring nightmares. We have more terrible jobs from cable guys and, sadly, from installers who just don’t care. Make sure to check out our previous roundups of awful wiring jobs: 10 Ways Not to Wire Your System and 10 Wiring Messes Cleaned… View this story
Cables, Wires and Tools • Info and Answers • Slideshows

Sequels usually aren’t very good. But the updates made to this fully-automated haunted house make it even better than when we wrote about it last year. Digital Panacea, an integration company that does a lot of Home Automation Inc. (HAI) control system programming, revisited its spookiest client for a pre-Halloween tune-up. Halloween Park, a haunted attraction outside York, Pa., isn’t a typical haunted house. It’s interactive, meaning that visitors must solve clues in order to move through the scary rooms. The HAI automation system is… View this story
Home Control • Home Control Systems • Cool Homes • Slideshows

We’ve tackled the list of our favorite scary movies that have been released on Blu-ray. But here are 16 more favorites that you can’t find (or may already be out of print) in the high-def format. Sure, we’ll cut the industry some slack for not restoring a 1929 horror classic, but since the likes of The Wizard of Oz and Snow White have already been restored, we’re hoping the same could be done for Nosferatu so we can really see all that grayscale shadow detail.… View this story
Movies and Music • Info and Answers • Slideshows

It’s always fun to curl up on the couch with that leftover candy and pop in a few movies over Halloween weekend. This year the scary night is even on a Saturday, so you don’t have to worry about getting up early the next morning (plus there’s that extra hour of setting the clock back). Of course it’s even more entertaining when you’ve got a big-screen TV or dark dedicated theater to help secure a fright-inducing environment. What else helps? We think high definition is… View this story
Blu-ray • Movies and Music • Info and Answers • Slideshows

Few people who buy a spec home leave it as is. They might change the light fixtures, put in a better front door or repaint the walls. In this 12,500-square-foot Atlanta charmer, the owners added a slew of sophisticated electronic systems, from a powerful home theater to a home control system and a lighting system that offers convenience, potential energy savings and dramatic architectural highlights. The homeowners didn’t rush into this project, though. In fact, this well-lit house exemplifies the power of prodigious planning. These… View this story
Home Control Systems • Lighting Control Systems • Cool Homes • Slideshows

Game on! The American League Championship Series gets under way tonight between the New York Yankees and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. While the Angels may play a little closer to Hollywood, we’ve been fortunate enough over the last three years to see how Hollywood—and super technology—has influenced two of the Yankees. Maybe more in A.J. Burnett’s case than C.C. Sabathia’s, as you’ll see. The big lefty has a home setup more suited for watching multiple sporting events, while Burnett, to take from the… View this story
Home of the Year Awards 2009 • Home of the Year Awards 2007 • Home Theater • Cool Homes • Slideshows

You’d never know it, but this room used to have a bay window and two standard windows. What was a home office became a dedicated cinema during a four-month collaboration between local Southern California electronics installation firm Sound Decision and New York–based theater designer Acoustic Smart. “Taking it from where it was to where it is now was a complete transformation,” says Sound Decision’s Scott Rousso. Because Sound Decision also served as general contractor, Rousso researched building codes and California regulations to plan the extensive… View this story
Home Theater • Cool Homes • Slideshows

The much-hyped DTV transition passed pretty quietly earlier in 2009. Consumers, for the most part, have adapted to the change without a hitch, settling in with their flat-panel TVs, HD projectors and digital television converter boxes. That’s the cue for engineers on the manufacturing side to push out the “the next big thing” to build on TV’s momentum. Some of the projects these engineers are working on can be evaluated as a logical technological progression in the format, while others will be evaluated as extreme… View this story
Displays • Flat Panel • HDTV • LCD • Video Projectors • Product News • Slideshows

If you’re a home theater enthusiast or movie buff, fall is a great time of year. Fall usually marks the time when summer blockbusters make their way onto Blu-ray and DVD. October’s scheduled Blu-ray releases are full of family-friendly titles, including the re-release of the 1937 classic Snow White, as well as action movies such as Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. We’ve rounded up our six favorite Blu-ray movies being released in October. View Editor’s Pick: 6 Best Blu-ray Movies of October Related: Holiday Classics… View this story
Miscellaneous • Movies and Music • Blu-ray • Product News • Slideshows

With CEDIA Expo 2009 now in the rear-view mirror, the custom electronics community—both the installers and tech-hungry homeowners—can look toward the coming months with some optimism. Many economists are saying sales this holiday shopping season will be more robust than in 2008. But not everyone goes to Walmart and Best Buy for their electronics fixes and projects. So we’ve rounded up six products that consumers will be excited to bring into their home theater installations, from projectors to receivers to loudspeakers. View 6 Products to… View this story
Product News • Slideshows