Garden Of High-Definition Delight IV
Dear Gary: I just read your editorial in Issue 67, December 2002, on the CEDIA EXPO 2002 Garden Of High-Definition Delight, and am pleased to know that I’m not the only one who takes issue with this annual presentation. Many attendees have noted that this mass display of mediocrity is a poor representation of what the technology can offer. Let’s hope that someone is listening, and will revise the format to showcase the best that HD can deliver. Ken Whitcomb, Calibrations, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana whitcomb@aol.com Dear Gary: I am writing you to support the article you wrote in Issue 67, December 2002, on the Garden Of High-Definition Delight. I spent a lot of time in there working on some specific sets, and I have to agree with your article on the overall quality of the presentations. Kevin Miller, founding Imaging Science Foundation (ISF) member kevin@isftv.com Dear Gary: As a video calibrator and consultant in the home theatre industry, I have been quite disappointed with the displays I have seen at CEDIA EXPO 2002, especially the Garden Of High-Definition Delight. I think that your article definitely hit the nail on the head. Proper calibration and display of any device is the only way to truly show what it is capable of. The “Garden” does not do this. David Abrams PrecisionTheater@aol.com Dear Gary: After reading your article on this year’s CEDIA EXPO 2002 “Garden Of High-Definition Delight,” which appeared in WSR’s Issue 67, December 2002, I echo similar feelings. The problem is that there is no clear definition as to what products would qualify to be included in the Garden. My company had a product that we know displayed 720p and 1080i resolution HDTV images, but we were not allowed to enter the Garden, because our stated “specs” on our Web site did not meet the “minimum resolutions specifications.” I had the opportunity to visit the HDTV Garden, and I felt that our products were at least as good, if not better than a good percentage of the CRT displays there. My company had a very successful CEDIA show without being included in the Garden, but I felt that other people needed to know a little more about about the current setup, so that it can be improved for future events. We do not blame anyone for this oversight, but we would like it to be improved for next year’s show. There is a place for the HDTV Garden, but there has to be some clear regulations and rules, to truly maximize the opportunity that this event provides to manufactures of HDTV products. Once again, a great magazine and a great article. Keep up the good work! Barry Coles, Albatron USA, Inc., barry@albatronusa.com
Editor-In-Chief Gary Reber Comments:
Thank you to those who have written Letters To The Editor in reference to last month’s editorial. I based my criticism on literature provided to manufacturers and the brochure that was available at the actual exhibit. The official invitation went to CEDIA EXPO 2002 exhibitors who market direct-view or rear-projection high-definition-capable display devices—“CEDIA EXPO 2002 ‘Excellence Through Education’ The Garden Of High Definition Delight IV Special ‘Early Bird’ Invitation.” Nowhere in this document are there specifications stated for a display to be eligible to be exhibited, other than “who market...high-definition-capable display devices. While the participation was limited to direct-view CRT, plasma, or other flat panel displays, and rear-projection (regardless of specific imaging technology) “due to space limitations,” I think CEDIA is missing an important opportunity to expand this annual exhibit and include front-projection devices. I also think that each display should be calibrated according to SMPTE and digital video display standards. While I was not impressed with the actual exhibit’s environment and the lack of calibrated display standards applied to each display device, I was impressed with the implementation of an isolated UPS electrical power system, augmented with Furman line regulators, and the full broadcast-grade, ultra-wide bandwidth signal distribution. Since the article was published, I received a strongly worded response from its organizer, Frederick Ampel, President of Technology Visions, and Chairman, creator, and producer of CEDIA’s Garden Of High Definition Delight IV. He severely criticized my editorial, yet failed to convincingly refute my criticisms regarding the HDTV demonstrations. I urge CEDIA members, who are concerned with making the annual Garden event everything that it can be as a valued educational resource, to express their own views and recommendations to CEDIA management c/o Don Gilpin (dgilpin@cedia.org).
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