Now that I finished renovating my apartment is time to bring in the furniture. Uhh excuse me, but when I say furniture I’m actually talking about all sorts of gadgets, because I already have a couch and it’s all I need for a geek I am. Right? Therefore I asked our good friends at TestFreaks to suggest me a few home theater systems, that I could review (and maybe buy). They did and the one that promised the most, was LG HT902TB.

After reading more stuff about it and comparing it with other home theater systems, I got the idea that it’s really going to do the job for me if I need style and performance at an extremely wallet-friendly price system. And yes the 1,000 Watts (rated at 5 x 155W plus 225W for the subwoofer) can really scare your neighbors if you’re throwing in a party.

If it were to nominate just a few things that I really liked about LG’s HT902TB then that would be the:

• decodes Dolby Digital and DTS soundtracks
• it can play DVD-R/-RW and DVD+R/+RW discs, and MP3, WMA, JPEG and DivX files
• it has an XTS Pro Digital Amplifier
• the DVDs look great with images upscaled to 1080i (not 1080p, too bad)
• it also features a Virtual 10.1 Ch Sound that takes sound to a whole new level
• lots of ports: HDMI, 3.5mm audio input, USB port, an RGB-capable SCART, composite video output and optical digital audio input
• a lovely large remote with a tidy arrangement that becomes very useful when you have a lazy day
• a very good price (just check your local guys for a quote, or Amazon?)

Too bad:

• it doesn’t support MP3 long filenames
• there seem to bee some dotting noise when it displays images and things doesn’t seem to improve when switching from 720p to 1080i

I’ll be honest that this little monster would fit really really nice in my new geek crib and I’d definitely buy one with such specs and price.

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These days I’ve been working on redesigning my apartment so I really had a hard time to decide if I should install a home theater system in my living room (office, too) so I took some time reading reviews about all sorts of devices. Some were cheap some were expensive, but now I can tell that I’ve made my mind.

I got Sony’s utra-compact 5.1 home cinema system that an average person could setup in no time, Sony DAV-IS10 got my attention with its black finish and the slick hidden controls that light up once touched.

Sony’s new technology, Bravia Theater Sync, the whole system is extremely powerful : 5 satellites x 50W and 2-way subwoofer x 100W. That makes a total of 450 watts which is more than my neighbors can bear. But I still love it. It also comes with a compact, single disc DVD/CD player/ receiver with touch-sensitive controls, has a Digital Media Port to enable WiFi and Bluetooth streaming and an iPod docking.

The specs are speaking for themselves and I still can’t understand how a satellite as big as an apple can sport 50W (real) but it’s a Sony. They know stuff.

Just to be brief, here are the things I enjoyed the most with the new Sony DAV-IS10:

• Incredibly small surround satellites. Despite their size, they deliver a surprisingly powerful performance.
• The active subwoofer fills the gap. It has dual drivers that take care of the midrange frequencies that the satellites can’t manage.
• Image quality is excellent. Colors are rich and vibrant without overwhelming natural tones and there is very little noise, especially with upscaled images.
• The stylish design is impressive, but you would’ve expected this from a Sony, wouldn’t you?

A review wouldn’t be complete if we wouldn’t tell you what are the weaknesses of this home theater system.

• Though it was built for maximum discretion, we’d go for slightly bigger cabinets for more midrange depth and detail.
• I’d love it to have 1080p video upscaling

That would be all on Sony’s DAV-IS10. Do you own one? Do you love it?

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