Home theater proliferation is running slightly behind the nice boom that Pro A/V has enjoyed. But this is the year it looks like it's taking off on a steady, if not monumental, growth that should last a good, long time. This year's CEDIA EXPO (September 5-9, Indianapolis) has hundreds of courses, a sold-out boot camp and fun stuff such as the Installer Olympics and Bonnie Raitt performing at the awards ceremony.

The keynote breakfast list is full, they're still adding courses, and there is something for everyone, from the hour and a half CEDIA Gateway seminar for those new to the industry (this looks like a great seminar, by the way, with marketing, product and corporate structure info), to designing highly customized systems. There are 300 exhibitors, including a number of those we know and love, but obviously there are quite a few new players in the field.

Just who is going to benefit most from the first wave of the boom is somewhat under question, though. Although there is certainly a market for those high end systems in 4,000-sq.-ft. homes, the masses have some options this year. Big players are coming in with packaged solutions and early adopters of home systems are likely to be technophiles eager to patch their own.

The two big companies with turnkey home theater systems are Sony and Panasonic. Some of Sony's home A/V packages include 27" - 43" TVs, Dolby Digital surround sound system and DVD players. (They might also show off their 65" rear projection system.) Panasonic's home theater system is comparable, but (they don't appear to have a package that includes the TV). Both Sony's and Panasonic's systems start at $599..

Panasonic's SC-HT290D Home Theater Receiver and 5-DVD/CD Changer -- $799.95

Toshiba, Sanyo Fisher, Hitachi, Fujitsu, Samsung, Philips, and Sharp seem to be sticking with the component route, with projectors, TVs, or audio systems, for example. But new product announcements should start rolling in in the next few weeks, so we'll know more about their plans then.

Other exhibitors of interest:

Microsoft will be there, most likely showing the new Xbox game console, which has a multilingual audio-video connector that allows you to hook it up to televisions and home theater systems. And direct competitor Sony will no doubt have its stronghold product, PlayStation 2. Game consoles will likely be incorporated into a high percentage of home theater systems, so it will be interesting to see how they will address the Pro A/V market.

And for those of you going - please let me know what Whirlpool is showing there. Maybe a hidden refrigerator and microwave for the AV cabinet?I

 

 

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