What an $18,000 Home Theater Looks Like

kgagne writes "Computerworld has a blog with video about an $18,000 home theater system that Intel set up at Storage Networking World in order to promote their new home server system. But what's really cool about this set up is that the server was connected to a 24" iMac, an Apple TV, an Xbox 360, a Wii, an iPod Touch, a Nokia N810 mobile Internet tablet, various cameras and a 15" wireless digital picture frame. The server was streaming all the various feeds to a top-of-the-line Pioneer Elite 50" plasma TV. The Intel reps said the high-definition movie downloads, which could be browsed through a menu, were as high quality as those from a Pioneer Elite Blu-ray player they had set up."

PS3?

[HalAtWork]

So where's the PlayStation 3? It's even better than the Blu-Ray player they have listed, and besides that, why include the other consoles but leave out the PS3?

Bah

[JMZero]

I wouldn't call this a home theater - and I don't think it's intended to be one. It's a technology showcase / bunch of useless crap. Besides that, how could you call it a "theater" with such a tiny screen?

Here's how I'd spend $18000:

1. Epson Powerlite 1080UB (projector) = $3000
2. Pair of Martin Logan Quest front speakers = $10000
3. Decent amp = $2000
4. Random center/rear channel speakers = $800
5. PS3 = $400
6. Decent 100" 16:9 screen = $500
7. Random subwoofer = $400

Now you're set up to watch movies, play games, listen to music, whatever - and your friends won't laugh at your pitiful 50" plasma.

And if you don't have $18000, substitute in a few cheaper alternatives and you can do a very decent theater for $3000 and still have a setup people will like more than the one in this article.

Re:All they need is...

[Thalagyrt]

I think one of the coolest voltage stabilization/emergency power backup systems I've seen is at the Terremark building in downtown Miami.

Part 1: Excessively huge electric motor attached to power grid.
Part 2: 5 ton concrete disc attached to motor spinning at exactly 60 rotations/second.
Part 3: Generator attached to 5 ton concrete disc that powers the building.

There are 8 generators around it, uniformly spaced. At any given time two of them are operating in sync with the commercial grid and also powering the electric motor. If the power goes out, the rest of the generators kick on and take over the electric motor within minutes, long before the disc loses any momentum. As soon as power comes back on, all of the generators are cut from the motor and two new standby generators are picked and synced up with the grid.

Granted, almost all of the traffic to South America is routed through this building, so it's gotta be pretty resilient. It also has if I recall a 20 ton concrete roof to prevent any hurricane problems.