We love gadgets. If you are getting into HDTV, we expect you’re no different from us (or the rest of the world). In this article, we cover cool HDTV gadgets that can act as direct sources of content to enhance your video oasis. Whether it’s a highpowered home-theater PC or specialty gear destined to connect to your HDTV, you can really boost your HDTV’s usage with just the right accenting gear. HDTV technology itself is only slowly starting to infiltrate the gadgets that you’d use with your HDTV system — in other words, most of the stuff in this article doesn’t send an HDTV signal to your HDTV. There aren’t many true HDTV gadgets out there yet, but we tell you what’s available today and where to find it. Home Theater PCs While nearly all of today’s PCs are multimedia-capable (they can display pictures, play sounds, and show video), a select few PCs can be considered Home Theater PCs (HTPCs) that can feed video (and surround sound audio) into an HDTV. HTPCs are simply high-powered PCs running the Windows, Linux or Mac operating system (the majority use Windows), which have been specially configured with hardware and software that lets them operate as the DVD player, TV tuner, or even DVR (see Article 12) source for your HDTV. No rigid set of rules defines what makes a regular PC into a HTPC, but here’s what we recommend:

-  Video card: Perhaps the most important item in an HTPC (particularly one that feeds video into an HDTV) is the video card. This specialized set of computer chips spares the computer’s CPU from most of the “heavy lifting” of video processing. Both ATI’s Radeon series (www.ati.com) and NVIDIA’s GeForce series (www.nvidia.com) include high-end video cards that can support HDTV resolutions and support HTPC applications.

-  Audio card: If you want to support the surround sound (Dolby Digital and other systems like DTS) found in HDTV broadcasts and on DVDs, you need a relatively high-end audio card in your PC. A card like the Sound Blaster Audigy or Audigy 2 (www.soundblaster.com) is a good choice.

-  CPU: There isn’t a hard-and-fast rule here, but you build an HTPC around a PC with a fast processor. Look for either

• A 2.8GHz or faster Pentium 4 processor Microsoft requires a 3GHz Pentium 4 for full 1080i HDTV playback with Windows Media.

• An AMD Athlon 64 3200+ processor

-  Hard drive: You need a decent-size hard drive on any mediacentric PC. Media take up room; you need enough to store such data as MP3 and other music files. If you want an HTPC as a DVR feeding your HDTV, go for

• At least 200 gigabytes of hard drive space

• Plenty of FireWire jacks for attaching more hard drives

-  TV tuner: If you want to use the HTPC as a DVR, a TV tuner card is essential. Most of the DVR hardware/software kits on the market include a TV tuner. If you just want the PC for playing DVDs or Internet content, a TV tuner card inside your HTPC might not be important.

-  Software: There’s a wide range of software you might eventually want for your HTPC — such as software that turns your PC into a PVR or organizes your media library. The most important software may be a video-utility application such as Powerstrip (http://entechtaiwan.net/util/ ps.shtm) that helps you perfectly match the resolution of your video card output to your HDTV. A great place to get advice, see the results of people’s projects, and generally dig into the topic of HTPCs is on the AVS Forum Web site (www.avsforum.com). Check out the section titled “Video Processors and HTPC” for all the info you could ever want. An easy way to get into the HTPC game is to buy a new Media Center PC with the Microsoft Windows XP Media Center Edition operating system. Media Center PCs meet stringent minimum hardware requirements that allow them to work as HTPCs right out of the box. The big advantage of an MCE PC (besides having the hardware checklist all “X’d” off) is the software — the Media Center software provides a really nicely integrated experience for such home-theater functions as DVD playback, DVR functionality, and TV-watching. MCE PCs are optimized for connections to widescreen HDTV sets, but not all MCE PC functions (such as the DVR function) support HDTV resolutions today. We expect that HDTV will be an even bigger part of the experience in future MCE PCs. Hi-definition fun If you’ve never visited AtomFilms (atomfilms.shockwave.com), you are missing out on one the greatest sites on the Web. Atom Films, which was bought by Shockwave, specializes in creating and buying all sorts of animated and live-action independent film shorts and making them available on its site. Under each section, you can find the top five shorts for that genre. Be sure to check out the comedy section. The most popular comedy when we visited was Survivin’ the Island, a funny look at what happens to Survivor stars when they return from the island. But what’s really distinctive about AtomFilms is its new Hi-Def service (http:// atomfilms.shockwave.com/af/spotlight/collections/hidef/). Hi- Def is a free service that really brings together broadband and HDTV. It automatically delivers AtomFilms hits to your computer for near-DVD quality viewing on your HDTV. Each week, Hi-Def will deliver three cool films using the idle bandwidth on your computer system. Films arrive automatically — all you have to do is sit back and enjoy them in their full-screen, Hi-Def glory. Films are yours to watch as many times as you want until they expire two weeks later. When older films expire, new films automatically appear to take their place. This is simply too much fun. Video Jukeboxes It isn’t unusual to find movie junkies with thousands of DVDs. Organizing and accessing these DVDs can be troublesome at best, and the more you have, the harder it is to find one movie that you really wanted to watch. Enter video jukeboxes, gallantly riding to the rescue. Jukebox 101 A DVD video jukebox does what you’d think — stores massive numbers of DVDs so that you can watch them on your HDTV in a more organized and accessible way (which is great when you want to watch movies all over the house). The entry-level video jukebox is the megachanger, also called a DVD carousel. These DVD devices can store 300 or more DVDs and play any of them (usually one at a time). Some DVD changers can even control a second changer (doubling the capacity, for example, from 400 discs to 800)! A DVD jukebox needs the following features (which become more and more essential the as the jukeboxes get bigger): -  A library function that can keep track of what disc is in which slot -  An easy way to access that library function, such as

• An OSD (on-screen display) that you see on your HDTV

• An LCD screen display on the jukebox itself -  An easy way to feed information into the library The easiest way to enter information is a PC keyboard, not the remote control. Depending on the jukebox, you connect a keyboard in one of two ways:

• Directly to the jukebox

• By linking to a PC (usually a USB connection) Check whether the device automatically looks up disc-title information on the Internet — it can save you a ton of dataentry time. -  Progressive scan -  Support for other disc formats, such as CD-R and MP3 CDs -  Support for new audio formats such as SACD or DVD-A -  A full range of digital audio outputs and HDTV-friendly video outputs (such as component video) Jukebox 301 For advanced students (okay, for those with more advanced budgets!), you can leave behind the DVD jukebox, and move into the hard-drive-based video jukebox. These devices are really more properly classified as media servers— computer-based devices that store various media (such as video, audio, and photos) on a hard drive. Media Mogul A company named Molino (www.molinonetworks.com) is launching a pair of these souped-up video jukebox servers: the Molino Media Mogul and Media Mogul TB. These servers use large hard drives (a terabyte in the case of the Mogul TB — 1,000 gigabytes — you know, large!), and a sophisticated user interface (UI) designed by Molino to control the system. Media Mogul servers can “import” content from these sources: -  Any DVD (or CD) you own. The hard drive saves a perfect copy (including any special menu items) that you can play whenever you want, without needing to find the DVD itself. -  Digital pictures from your digital camera and home video from your camcorder (via USB or FireWire cable connections — see Article 3 for more on these connections). The Moguls can connect to your HDTV via DVI video connections (as well as standard analog video connections) — keep in mind, however, that the DVDs you copy onto the Media Mogul aren’t HDTV sources! The 300-gigabyte version of the Media Mogul costs $995, and the 1-terabyte version costs $2,995. Kaleidescape The Kaleidescape System is a truly high-end media server solution (www.kaleidescape.com). The big advantage of the Kaleidescape system is its modular, multiroom support — but you’ll pay accordingly. A Kaleidescape system can start at over $27,000 for the base system. The Kaleidescape System is similar in functionality to the Media Mogul systems, only everything is cranked up a bit. In particular, the Kaleidescape is high-definition-ready, and supports 720p and 1080i HDTV. This multiroom system consists of -  A central server with interchangeable hard-drive cartridges -  A movie player that connects to your HDTV As you expand your budget and desires, you can add movie players connected to HDTVs (or any TV) in other rooms. -  A DVD reader The whole system connects via Ethernet cabling (see Article 17 for details on Ethernet LANs). It can use a broadband (cable or DSL modem) connection to the Internet to update content (like the movie-guide service) and upgrade the system’s software. Do the Roku Roku Labs (www.rokulabs.com) has a fabulous product, the HD1000 ($299). It’s an ultra-sleek, high-definition, digital media player that’s the first to support HDTV. You can use the Roku HD1000 to view stunning digital photos, music, video, and art on your HDTV. Tired of having all your relatives crammed around your PC monitor to see your latest pictures? Show them the snaps on your HDTV. Want to show your artistic side during a party? Why not display the latest art gallery quality photos of Renaissance art? What a Renaissance man (or woman) you are! The HD1000 is simply a worthwhile addition to your HDTV, even if just for access to the Art Packs. The HD1000 is better than standard non-HDTV digital media players, hands down. The Roku HD1000, unlike standard video players, does two things to ensure that the image quality is not compromised: -  It shows the image at HD output resolution. Its 1080i resolution is equivalent to about 2 megapixels, which is a huge improvement over the 1⁄3-megapixel output of standard non-HDTV digital media players. A standard media player, when it displays photos from your digital camera on your TV, scales down the picture by dropping out information to fit the standard-definition format of 720 x 480 pixels. On a practical basis, this reduces the quality of a picture from your 3- or 4-megapixel camera to a mere 1⁄3 megapixel — a huge reduction in quality. This is why standard- definition media players always make your pictures look wimpy, even if they’re hooked up to a high-definition display. -  It stores all the pixels of the source image so you can zoom and pan the image without losing clarity. The Roku HD1000 also plays digital music files over your home network, so you can finally enjoy that growing MP3 library on your home stereo system. But what shakes Danny’s cerebrum is the Gallery Collection Art Pack, which includes images of famous art and compelling photos to turn your HDTV into a showcase. Roku offers themes like The Classics, Nature, Aquarium, Space, Holiday and Clocks on Compact Flash and CD-ROM. Way cool! To hook up the HD1000 to your HDTV, just run a video cable from the HD1000 to your TV (Component cables are included; VGA, S Video, and composite are also supported). You can connect to your home LAN via an Ethernet port. It even supports Wi-Fi to get to your Internet connection too, if you’d like to get there that way. We find nothing to complain about with this product. There are a lot of other cool media-adapter products on the market (like the Prismiq Media Player, found at www.prismiq.com, or the Omnifi, found at www.omnifi.com) that can bridge the gap between your PC and any TV so you can send audio, video, and photos. Not much to say about these here; none of the popular models currently support HDTV. Looking for HDTV Gadgets Given the pace of change in the industry, here are the best places to check out if there are any new HDTV gadgets that artificially stimulate your fancy: -  www.digitaldummies.com: Our companion site for all our articles. We update our site with information about updates in HDTV topics, including new gadgets you should consider. -  Geeky gadget sites with the latest innovations:

• www.gizmodo.com: This is Pat’s favorite site.

• www.engadget.com: If this looks similar to Gizmodo, that’s because the site’s editor used to be editorial director at Gizmodo. -  www.ehomeupgrade.com: This site tracks various developments in digital media gear, including streaming video and digital media servers — two areas where we expect a lot of change in HDTV.

Making HDTV Wonderful If you’re looking to build an HDTV-capable HTPC, one step you can take is to invest in ATI’s new HDTV WONDER video card (http://www.ati.com/products/hdtvwonder/ index.html), or one of ATI’s ALL-IN-WONDER systems. The HDTV WONDER is an add-on to your existing graphics card, and for just $199 it gives you all you need to turn your desktop PC into an HDTV receiver — including a QAM/VSB tuner that can pick up any of the over-the-air digital TV formats (both high-def and plain old digital TV) as well as old-fashioned analog TV broadcasts and non-scrambled cable TV channels. The system also includes software that lets the system function as a PVR (for both analog and high-def TV shows!), a remote and even an antenna for picking up HDTV broadcasts. If your system doesn’t have a powerful enough graphics card (you need at least 64 Mbytes of RAM and DirectX 9.0 support), you can also consider one of the ATI ALLIN- WONDER packages, which combine the HDTV wonder with one of ATI’s graphics cards.