Media @ Home

Anybody looking to dump a year’s worth salary on a pretty flat screen? Then look no further than Panasonic’s 103″ plasma. It’s selling now for a mere $69,995.00.

Highlights:

• Full HD pixel resolution of 1,920 horizontal x 1,080 vertical
• Industry’s leading 16-bit processing to produces 4,096 steps of gradation
• Contrast ratio of up to 4,000:1 to reproduce exceptionally deep, rich blacks
• Effective display area is approximately 89″ wide by 50″ high
• Supports 1080/60p/50p, 1080/60i/50i/24p/24sF/25p/30p, 1080/50i, 720/60p/50p, 480/60i/p, and 575/50i/p video signals
• Advanced Dual Picture mode to overlay a video image onto a full-screen PC image
• Expanded configurations for multi-screen displays and the ability to enlarge an image up to 4X vertically and horizontally
• Three interchangeable slots and comes standard with the TY-FB9DD DVI board (compatible with UXGA input), TY-42TM6A analog component board, an integrated D-sub15 PC input, and an integrated D-sub9 RS-232C interface
• Plug-in architecture allows the addition of multi-function terminal boards for added connectivity and functionality

Oh, yeah. Professional installation is required.

It all started in 2005 when I got tired of chasing my photos and music spread over several laptop and desktop systems in my home. I decided to consolidate my media library and put it on a single PC, so it would be easier to share, manage and back-up.

After weeks of unsuccessfull attempts of trying to make a blueprint for a decent do-it-yourself HTPC for under a $1000 I decided to go with a ready-made Gateway FMC-901X [review 1, review 2] bought from eBay for under $600.

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