While older SD televisions with built-in hard drives already exist, LG has upped the ante by offering HD recording straight to a 250Gb hard drive built-into a new 50-inch plasma and a 42-inch LCD HDTV.

Four years in the making, LG Electronics have fused HD recording capabilities and an HDTV at last. While no HD DVD or Blu-ray drive is also incorporated into these TV, so you could easily transfer HD recordings straight to an external disc, this feature is slated to appear in future models as the cost of recordable HD DVD and Blu-ray technologies eventually fall in price.

With an onscreen menu that combines standard TV features along with the standard interface you see with most HDD/DVD recorders, you can easily record, play, pause and rewind programs at will, with the ability to jump 30 seconds in time to skip commercials as desired, allowing complete viewing control.

A continuous recording function can automatically record TV programs being watched, allowing you to pause and rewind live TV to search and replay a specific scene, something that sports lovers will definitely appreciate.

Both new models are equipped with a 250Gb hard drive, allowing 40 hours of HD recording, or 100 hours of standard definition (SD) television to be recorded. As the quality of the recording is determined by the channel you are watching, the amount of recording time left will vary. However the remaining time is easy to discover by pressing a button on the remote, so users will always know when it’s time to delete older programs.

Operated by a single remote control, both new models come with an HD and an SD tuner, although you can only record one program from one channel at a time. The ability to record at least two programs from either tuner simultaneously is slated to be available in future models.

Both models are capable of displaying HD at 720p, with a 47-inch 1080p capable model due for release in February 2007.

As with all TV manufacturers, LG has their own video processing engine, known as ‘XD’. It offers 14 bit colour processing, able to handle 4.3 trillion colours (!), and helps to improve brightness, colour, contrast, detail and definition for crisper images

Darren Goble, Category Manager of Audio Visual, LG Electronics Australia, said that “The development of these televisions with in-built High Definition Digital Video Recording not only incorporates LG’s advanced technology, but also provide versatility for the consumer by removing the inconvenience, clutter and cost of an external digital video recorder or set-top box.”

Key features of the 42” LCD Television with in-built High Definition Digital Video Recorder (42LC2DR) include:

• In-built 250GB High Definition Digital Video Recorder, offering up to 40 hours of HD, or 100 hours of SD recording time

• An 8ms response time, provides sharper, clearer pictures when watching fast moving pictures such as sporting events or action movies

• Wide viewing angle (178°), allows the screen to be viewed from almost anywhere in a room

• Excellent screen resolution (1366 x 768), 500cd/m2 brightness, 1,600:1 contrast ratio

• Two HDMI inputs, which allows connection to a range of devices including DVD players and home theatre systems using a single cable

• An in-built High Definition Tuner, enables the TV to receive and broadcast HD signals eliminating the need for an additional digital set-top box

Measuring at just 137mm in thickness, the 42-inch DVR LCD TV is available from November 2006 at AUD $5,375.00.

Key features of the 50” Plasma Television with in-built High Definition Digital Video Recorder (50PB2DR) include:

• In-built 250GB High Definition Digital Video Recorder, offering up to 40 hours of HD, or 100 hours of SD (standard definition) recording time

• Excellent screen resolution (1366 x 768), 1000cd/m2 brightness, 10,000:1 contrast ratio

• Two HDMI inputs, which allows connection to a range of devices including DVD players and home theatre systems using a single cable

• An in-built High Definition Tuner, enables the TV to receive and broadcast HD signals eliminating the need for an additional digital set-top box

Measuring at just 125mm in thickness, the 50-inch DVR Plasma is available in a glossy black finish, in November 2006 for AUD $6,875.00.

For more information, visit LG’s website.

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