Best Tech of 2010: TVs, Players and Portable Entertainment

2010 has been a great year for technology in general affecting various sectors and cultural groups around the world. Here is As I See Tech's rundown of the best technologies for home and mobile entertainment that made remarkable achievements in 2010...

Check out my Holiday List for TVs for some of the best TV brands and models this year.

TVs
LED TVs are the biggest hit this year creating significant drops in the prices of LCDs. For example, the LCD surplus during the holiday season retailed 32" models for less than $300 compared to around double that price just 3 or 6 months before.

LED TVs are actually just LCDs as well. However, instead of using CCFLs as backlight, LED TVs use LED backlighting which results to thinner panels and brighter displays with better contrast levels while consuming less power and emitting less heat.

Almost all TV manufacturers already have LED back-lit models. Edge-LEDs have the... well... "edge", because edge-LEDs are generally cheaper than full array LEDs. Samsung and Sony 240Hz LEDs are usually Internet TVs as well. LG, Vizio, Toshiba and Sharp have "plain-and-simple" 240Hz LED TV models -- which is important to mention specially if you want to DITVY (Do Internet TV Yourself).

3D TVs
2010 opened up with a 3D excitement care of CES 2010 where many manufacturers launched their 3D LED TV models. Most of the commercially successful models require 3D glasses. Demos spread around the world to push the 3D hype. They're awesome to experience... but are they compelling to own?

If you are to buy 3D TVs, the question to ask would be, "Why 3D TVs"? It's a valid question that could make or break your budget. Reality check, 3D TVs are still for enthusiasts. Follow-through from content makers is neither as wide nor as fast as expected. However, if you are buying TVs now that are ready for the future, 3D TVs are your best bet.

Samsung and Sony have some of the better models of 3D LED TVs, most of which are Internet-ready.

Internet TVs
Internet TVs are great replacements to computers that are used primarily for home entertainment purposes. Although Internet TVs can be a DIY project (DITVY! Yeah, yeah, I know. Don't mention it...), Internet TVs out-of-the-box are attractive sells for most people.

To DITVY (aherm!), boxes like Apple TV, Roku XDSLogitech Revue and Boxee Box by D-Link can help speed up the process. If you're a PC user, you can use Windows Media Center. If you are a PS3 or XBox 360 owner, you can use either of them as well.

Sony is one of the best harbinger of Internet TVs this year. Not surprisingly, the Sony experience is actually similar to the PS3 interface. Sony even partnered with Google to launch the unsuccessful and ill-supported Google TV -- which by the way is supposedly a good idea... if only Google knows how to make friends with the movie and TV/cable broadcasting industry.

Check out my Holiday List for TVs for some of the best TV brands and models this year.

Players and DVRs
It seems that Blu-ray would stick around for a while... So, yes, Blu-ray players are still in. Sony's PS3 is still the best choice if you want the best value for your money, although Samsung offers some of the sleekest models specially if you want 3D support.

For DVRs, I'll have to agree with this list from CNet really.

Portable Media Players
Most modern portable devices with multi-media capabilities can be anyone's preferred portable media player.  For those who want an all-in-one device, the smartphone and super smartphone models offer the best options.

Apple's iPod Touch, which upgraded this year to match some of the capabilities of the iPhone 4 including FaceTime and other upgrades included in iOS, is the best you can own as your primary portable media player plus much, much more. Value for money, Apple's new iPod Touch just got to be the best choice... and I'm not even a fan of Apple!

Panasonic and Samsung released portable Blu-ray players this year. Panasonic has a Wi-Fi enabled DMP-B500 10-incher. However, the most interesting is Samsung's BD-C8000 which is a sleek Internet-ready and 3D-ready player.

Digital and electronic entertainment are no longer confined to appliances that stay at home. Entertainment that comes with us where ever we go and whenever we want them is no longer a fantasy. It's real! So we can all seat back and enjoy the shows anytime and anywhere.

Read all Best Tech of 2010...

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