Editorial Review

Epson's Stylus Photo 1280S is a large format, photo-quality printer perfect for a wide variety of professional and home uses. With a high 2,880 x 720 dpi resolution, six-color ink palette, and Epson's Micro Piezo inkjet technology, the 1280S produces exceptionally crisp and detailed prints. This printer also offers BorderFree printing--the image goes right to the edge of the paper.

Supported photo sizes include 4-by-6, 5-by-7, 8-by-10, letter, 11-by-14, and 13-by-19 inches. A wide variety of paper types are also supported, including photo papers, roll papers (with included roll paper holder), inkjet transparencies, self-adhesive sheets, greeting cards, banner paper, labels, and envelopes. Media sizes range from 3-by-5 cards up to large-format 13-by-44-inch posters. Epson claims that when stored under normal conditions, images are water and light resistant for up to 25 years.

Compatible with both Mac and PC platforms, the 1280S's software bundle comes with both Epson's Film Factory and Adobe's Photoshop Elements 2.0 to help users get the best possible prints. Epson also provides a one-year limited warranty.

Editorial Review

Panasonic's DVD-LS5 offers the versatility of a portable DVD player alongside the performance of a sophisticated home-theater component--and you can use it as both. The player handles DVD-Video, high-resolution DVD-Audio, DVD-R, and DVD-RAM playback, as well as standard and recordable audio CDs, including MP3- and WMA-encoded discs. Its slender, 1-inch chassis holds a 5-inch widescreen (16:9) liquid-crystal display and a built-in rechargeable battery good for about 2.5 hours between charges.

Designed to take full advantage of both audio and traditional video DVD formats, the DVD-LS5 delivers the super high-fidelity (192 kHz/24-bit) sound of DVD-Audio. DVD-Audio software titles offer classic music titles in both multichannel and stereo, though be aware that this model plays discs in stereo only. Most DVD-A discs have compressed Dolby Digital or DTS 5.1 surround tracks, however; these can be passed through the unit's digital-audio output to a compatible surround receiver and speaker system.

Audio features also include DTS and Dolby Digital passthrough, built-in stereo speakers, and Panasonic's Dialogue Enhancer for DVD movie viewing. Advanced Surround Sound (VSS) simulates surround effects from any two speakers or from headphones.

Cinema Mode reduces the detrimental effects of screen glare from ambient light, rendering cinematic colors in pictures that are gentle on the eyes. Further, Cinema Mode improves the visibility of details in dark scenes by automatically adjusting picture contrast.

This player is HighMAT compatible. High-Performance Media Access Technology is a standard co-developed by Panasonic and Microsoft to improve interoperability for digital media programming between PCs and electronics devices. HighMAT provides an efficient method for arranging digital photo, music, and video collections on recordable media.

Editorial Review

The ViewSonic VPW425 42-inch plasma TV includes a built-in TV tuner to bring stunning images into the home and boardroom. At less than 4 inches deep, it easily fits in just about any location. Revolutionary NextVision technology brings images to life with spectacular brightness and depth, and XtremeView performance offers viewing angles up to 160 degrees while delivering vivid images with unmatched picture quality.

Progressive scanning, for use with sources like DVD players and digital TV set-top boxes, creates a picture using twice the scan lines of a conventional picture, providing higher resolution and sharper images while eliminating nearly all motion artifacts. The display is compatible with high-definition signals, including 480p, 480i, 720p, and 1080i.