We can all thank HDMI for releasing us form the need for running a second cable for audio from our components to the TV or A/V receiver. I still have nightmares of having to switch the optical cable from source to source manually each time I wanted to play a game or watch TV.

HDMI Licensing LLC has announced some of the major features coming in the new HDMI v1.4 spec. The full specification list is set for availability no later than June 30, 2009. Among the new features is an HDMI Ethernet channel that allows HDMI devices to connect to each other with 100Mbps speed without the need for additional cables.

There was so much to see at CES 2009 back in January that I missed a lot of it. Each year at the show, there are some very interesting products that define new categories and let people do things that many haven’t even thought of.

One of the products I missed at the show was the Yoostar system that uses a green screen and a high-resolution webcam to make some movie magic. The system includes a webcam, mic, remote control, stand, and green screen and allows users to insert themselves into popular movies.

I have seen several of the new breed of 3D films at the theater over the last year. The most recent was the Aliens vs. Monsters flick that used RealD technology for all the 3D goodness the film offered. I will be happy when 3D finally comes affordably to the living room so I can watch my favorite shows in 3D.

RealD has announced today a new accessory for 3D ready projectors that is design for use in the home or office on screens up to 17-feet across. The accessory is called the RealD LP and promises to bring the 3D quality from the local cinema to small venues like conference rooms and other places.

Solar-powered gadgets are nothing new. But a solar powered home theater system? It’s appropriately named the “Guiltless Green Home Theater” and was manufactured from scratch by Home Theater Specialists of America (HTSA). It’s the first of its kind and has some surprising specs.

For one thing it will give you up to 19 hours of video and audio playback even if the sun isn’t shining that day. They didn’t sacrifice quality either, with a Sharp projector, a 100″ Stewart Filmscreen, six SpeakerCraft in-wall speakers, an Integra AV receiver, Monster Cable wiring, Lutron lighting, and Universal Remote Control.

This tiny LEGO movie theater is awesome. It actually features a working, very tiny movie projector. The projector works at 24 fps, so it may not be good picture quality, but Lego minifigs have a different eyesight than you have. It’s nicely detailed. Even the seats are numbered. Make sure you check out the video below.

The builder, Ricardo M. Oliv, did an awesome job. Now all he needs is full length movies and he can sell tickets to other geeks who can sit their minifigs in the seats with a miniature popcorn and soda.

We all know the economy is bad, businesses are closing, people are out of work and technology and many other industries are seeing very slow sales. The housing market in many areas is virtually dead. The recession has significantly impacted TV sales.

According to DisplaySearch, Q4 2008 was the first quarter in history that saw a decline in TV revenues. At the same time revenues declined shipments were up 33% year over year. The reason for shipments increasing and revenues falling is lower prices forced by poor sales.

I spend most of my year avoiding commercials to the extent that I don’t even know what movies are at the theater frequently. I can thank my DVR for the lack of product advertisement bliss I enjoy during a normal night of TV watching.

The one time a year that I actually like to watch commercials is during the Super Bowl. That seems more than a little odd to me, but still I watch them and often rewind them thanks to my trusty DVR. If you are a big fan of Super Bowl commercials, superbowl-ads.com has the spots going back to 1998 available for you to watch.

Having music in each room of your house is a great feature for music fans and fans of home automation. Many of the music servers that offer multi-room audio allow you to listen to different tracks and sources in each room.

CasaTools has announced its latest multi-room music server called the CasaTunes XL music Server. The system allows you to play music from multiple sources like your PC, iTunes, iPhone, AM/FM tuner and more. Each room can listen to their own songs and different sources.

Last weekend may have been rough on football fans that have spent the last few months feasting on the glut of weekend football games. The last big game for the season will be played next weekend and it’s the big game — the Super Bowl.

The Super Bowl is a big deal to many sports fans and means that each year many football fans go all out on parties to watch the big game. Usually these parties center on lots of food and a big screen TV to watch the action.

Anyone who watches TV has to have seen the constant public service announcements and ads that are talking about the digital transition happening next month. Despite the tons of commercials, many homes in America who watch over-the-air broadcasts have yet to get a converter box.

Nielsen reports that 6.5 million homes across the U.S. are still not ready for the transition. This is despite the fact that coupons for free or greatly reduced price converters have been available for a year or more.

Streaming movie rentals are seen by many consumers and movie rental firms to be the future of movie rentals. The problem is that many movie studios and large rental chains like Blockbuster are slow to support online rentals for fear of hurting their retail rental and sales business.

Blockbuster and Sonic solutions announced this week that they would be working together on a new digital movie service. Sonic will provide the software part for delivering movie content across PCs and consumer electronics devices.

A stylish new JVC home theater system is coming in May for around $600 that will fit the need of urban loft dwellers. It is called the NX-T10.

The NX-T10 is a 2.1 channel system which can be hung on a wall or placed on a table. It consists of a low-profile main unit, two compact omni-directional main speakers and a powered subwoofer. The speakers can be hung on the wall as well.

I wanted a surround sound system for many years and for one reason or another, I was never able to get one set up. In the early years of being married, our apartments were too small for a surround sound setup. Then once we had a house the wife deemed wires and speakers too ugly.

At the time, there were no sound bars for me to use, but for those in similar situations today you have options. ZVOX has a new device called the Z-Base All-in-One Home Theater that sits under the TV. Inside the scratch resistant case resides five 2-inch full-range speakers and one 5.25-inch powered subwoofer.

The nationwide switch from analog to digital broadcasts will be here before you know it. While the switch won’t affect most TV watchers in the U.S., there are some who are still not ready. As a result of old analog TVs not functioning after the switch, many have been upgrading to digital flat panel TVs. This has been one of the major factors pushing growth in the TV market.

DisplaySearch has released its quarterly reports on the number of TVs shipped worldwide for Q3 2008. Despite the poor economy, TV shipments grew by 11% quarter-over-quarter and 6% year-over-year. Over 53 million TVs were shipped worldwide in the quarter. Shipments in North America grew more than expected with a 12% increase compared to last quarter to 10 million units.

My god, it’s full of stars ports! It also makes for one fancy-ass iPod dock. The HomeDock HD Pro was unveiled at CEDIA earlier this year and it has now made its way off the production line and began shipping. This upscaling iPod dock takes your stored media and sends it out via HDMI in 720p / 1080i. It even has an RS-232 control port. It remains to be seen if this dock can really make HD video out of your iPod movies, but at $399 it had better.