David Hingtgen

I must preface this by saying I totally agree that contrast, color, processing, decoding, etc are all other important aspects---resolution could actually be the least important aspect. If resolution was THAT important, then the cheapest house-brand 720p TV would be just as good as the best Sony 720p XBR. But they're certainly not--it's all about contrast, color, response, etc. I'd rather have a really good 720 than a mediocre 1080. Part of the reason I really liked the Samsung 720p from last year over the Sharp 1080p of last year, though I know both were being fed (through a half-dozen splitters) 1080i when I viewed them together. Samsung's COLOR (and just overall "feel") blew away the Sharp. That said: Every single argument about 720 vs 1080 always says "unless you're close to a big screen"---and never give numbers. Or if they do, they're WAY outside of what I'm planning. They say stuff like "only if the screen is 50in at less than 8 feet". I'm doing 32in screen, 48in viewing distance. That's set in stone. And actually, at that close range, it's right at the "full benefit of 1080p is visible" line (attached) 48in is WAY closer than 99% of people talk about/consider, because they're always talking about putting a 50+in plasma at the opposite end of the living room. My TV is going to go on my nightstand next to my bed---WAY closer than most people's HDTV's. (Which is why even 32in is kinda big) (though I am REALLY close to getting the LN32A450 regardless--it just dropped 50 bucks this week, and the A550 still shows no signs of being at mass-market) (of course, at this range, if I push the TV back another foot, which is certainly possible--I won't know the EXACT viewing distance until I actually have it and can position/measure the stand base in 3D---it'd be a 5ft viewing distance, which just barely clears "1080p just starts to become noticeable"

For everyone in the US, "Carrier" starts tonight on PBS. (If you're totally unaware of it, it's a new 10-hour documentary on the Nimitz)

Only because he's seen on TV as clearly not being physically similar to Prime.

Kim Jong Il's been playing too much Ace Combat---underground runways/mountain tunnel runs: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/worl...icle3822538.ece

.ass goes with a raw, it is ONLY the subtitles. You need a raw, and a ass file, to see subs. VLC player can combine them, but I can never get them synched up right---the longer the ep goes on, the more out-of-synch the subtitles are for me. (I'm not talking about 2 secs of mouth movement, I mean an entire scene-time off) MKV is just another file format for video, it will (usually) be the video with the subs already attached. VLC player can play it, but I found that getting a MKV codec for MediaPlayer is MUCH smoother. (Though it did screw up one of my AVI files, but no others, so it seems worth it) (I doubt it's a lack of processing power/speed issue, as I have an E8400 now with an X38 Northbridge--VLC just can't play it back smoothly on my PC) PS---the Sendspace file/link works every time for me, it's just so slow it's not worth it. 50kb per second or so. Maybe I'll try again later tonight.

There's a Cyclonus coming?!?!??!!? PS--saw a boxed Titanium Skywarp. Exclusive? When/where?

Best Botcon ever. Period. I need ALL the new toys. I don't even like Ironhide, but he looks awesome. Everyone else doesn't really need comments. Except Silverbolt---now I'm leaning towards him being "like a kick-ass Soviet version of the FB-22".

Little request: I know some people prefer the "Fred" figure from the comics as opposed to the carded CG due to the helmet. But I actually like the helmeted ones better for most troops, but like "Fred" unmasked (for variety). However, the only Fred I could find for a while had a little paint smudge or something on his nose, and it can't be removed. But, if he was masked, it wouldn't make a difference. So---anyone willing to trade a "Fred head"? I'd really like a "flawless" head so I can display him unmasked all the time. If you like using masked Freds, the condition of his nose paint shouldn't matter to you.

Plus the fact that we did get Skywarp at "nearly" mass release (an exclusive yes, but one quite widely available and very cheap considering). There is no way anyone can argue that Thundercracker and Skywarp are not exactly equal in fame/fandom.

http://www.shortpacked.com/d/20080215.html (personally, as G1 Thundercracker is my all-time fave TF, I feel similar) PS to FFN: But what about all of us who wanted just our all-time personal fave seeker? Thrust and Dirge would be neat, but I'm not spending 300 bucks for them. I'd pay a decent chunk of change for a Classics Thundercracker--but nobody split up sets AFAIK, and even if they did, the price is still insane just for one. No matter how much you may like a character/toy, it's simply too dear a price to pay. I'd rather have a valk (or TWO) instead of paying 10x more than what the same toy cost in a different color. PPS--I will be that guy in the comic, bitching about Classic Thundercracker's non-availability forever.

Only at the Kaiyodo company store.

Dunno, I'm not familiar with the Gripen's design details. (I can tell a F-16C Block 30C from 30D, but not a Gripen prototype from production)

Basically "more". Better radar(AESA)/avionics, more fuel, more weapons, more thrust. (It has the Super Hornet's engine now, instead of the Legacy Hornet's) A quick blurb I saw said it can supercruise with an air-to-air load. There's not really an official name for it yet. Gripen N, Gripen DK, Gripen Demo are all used. I like Super Gripen. The first one will likely be a test-bed for the increased-thrust mods for the F414, 25,000lbs probably. (They're 22,000lbs normally). Technically, it's just a normal Gripen modified with a bunch of new features that COULD be used for a future Gripen E/F. But you can bet the next country to order Gripens will want some/all of those features, and others will want to upgrade their current Gripens.

Super Gripen rolled-out yesterday.

Really cool 787 article, worth reading for info about how composite planes are built alone. http://money.cnn.com/galleries/2008/fortun...tune/index.html

Apparently Hasbro's wholesale price to retailers went up 25%, BBTS I think said something about it.

Firebat would be nice, never had one. Anyways---any rumors of a 25th Ann. dress blues Gung-Ho? That was one of my all-time fave figures back when.

Because I couldn't think of anything truly funny to reference Blitzwing...

http://www.alert5.com/2008/04/georgia-behi...ions-putin.html MiG-29 shoots down a UAV. (as in it's an international incident--not training)

I still don't think we've seen a properly transformed one. He's got a LOT of joints. And there's always the possibility of "official instructions don't match the designer's obvious intent"---there could easily be a better way. Or not. Regardless, robot mode rocks so much he's a must-buy for me anyways. (And I'm usually not big on robot modes) Also, TF:A Blitzwing has the "BW" effect for me, which hasn't happened in a long time--the actual CHARACTER is a big factor in my purchase decision, not purely the engineering/aesthetics of the toy. Blitzwing has quickly grown on me. I must take back what I said earlier---the fact that he's 3 subtle variations of "a stereotypical German" is actually very interesting, and props to the voice actor(Bumblebee's IIRC) for making 3 distinct, yet subtle variations. Turned out better than if he was 3 completely different personalities/voices. More like 3 different aspects of the same person.

Lots more pics of Voyager (definitely) Blitzwing: http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/showthread.p...770#post2046770 I keep thinking--if only he had his intake shutters, he'd look a lot better in jet mode. The line art clearly has it, and a simple 180-degree flipping cover could have had it "swap" from jet intake to chest-mounted missile launchers in robot mode. But as it is, that part is "robot mode only" for appearance, and there's not even an indentation---he has no intakes at all.

I have spent many hours staring at both 720p and 1080p TV's. At 32in sizes, I do not see a difference, except for angled segments of static letters in large fonts--they are slightly less jaggy. Admittedly, BestBuy and Sears are not feeding their demo TV's the best source material. However, I plan for this TV to spend 70%+ of its time getting 720p stuff from my 360. Price is not really an issue---I've stated many times before I am buying the TV I think looks best, regardless of price. I still think that Samsung makes the best-looking 32in TV's period. Though it will be a couple of weeks until I get my money----if the 32A550 actually comes out somewhere, I'll certainly consider it. (Though I'd have to wait for another paycheck after that to afford it). (The 32A550 is basically a 1080p version of the A450 from what I can tell----only it's not listed at Samsung's site at all, and no physical retailer has any--seems to be online only, with no reviews)

Yeah, I wondered if they based it on the Energon mold, or it was simply "coincidence"---but the way the legs/feet are...

I don't know what the new one is. Doesn't strike me as being especially C-130-ish as often reported. The original art made him CLEARLY an A-10: http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e219/Foo...23/DSC00033.jpg But note that the photo next to that art is entirely different--an A400M (with altered tailplane location). Was he changed at some point? Jetfire replacing him?

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?sk...d=1202648740213 http://www.samsung.com/us/consumer/detail/...&fullspec=F A few months ago, the Samsung 3253 had the overall best picture IMHO. But, that particular model had several issues--notably, tearing via component inputs, audio sync/dropouts, and "corner pixel" issues. Plus it had a glossy black frame. My "alternate" was the Sony 32S3000. Almost as good a picture, no real issues. But cost more. But now, Samsung has come out with their 2008 models (and changed the numbering system). The 3253's replacement is the 32A450. It's better in every way than the 3253 picture-wise (contrast, response time, handling of SD sources), and has no known issues. (Asides from an occasional audio glitch from HD cable TV--and Samsung's pretty good about releasing updated firmware to fix audio issues). It still has a glossy black frame, but it's "not as bad" as last year's model. So, being 200 bucks cheaper than the Sony, and having a "2 steps better" overall picture, it's definitely the one to get. There is no such thing as a "perfect" HDTV with no flaws/issues at all. They're much like Yamato valks---99% of posts about them are complaining about their problems. PS---shopping at BestBuy? Go to the post office. Pick up the "change of address" packet. Inside is a coupon from BestBuy for 10% off any TV over 400 bucks. 10% off coupons for HDTV's at BB are pretty common, but you never have one when you need it. Good until May 31st. (but the packet's only going to be available until the end of April it seems)