HDMI Signals One of the common misperceptions about HDMI is that the digital signal is innately superior to an analog signal. In some people’s minds, the lack of analog-to-digital conversion means that the signal is in a pure, undamaged state when it reaches the HDTV set. It’s easy to imagine a high-definition, digital signal traveling […]
Inductive Coupling Inductive coupling uses magnetic fields that are a natural part of current’s movement through wire. Any time electrical current moves through a wire, it creates a circular magnetic field around the wire. Bending the wire into a coil amplifies the magnetic field. The more loops the coil makes, the bigger the field will
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How to Connect AirPlay Devices To send and receive streaming audio and video with AirPlay, the devices you’re using must first be connected to the same local network. This connection could be wireless, using WiFi or Bluetooth, or wired, using Ethernet. Though connecting with Bluetooth isn’t the same as being on your home computer network,
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We traditionally base the Gadget Master competition questions on a roundup-style post, and it is now high time for another one! How about tearing through all the teardowns we have featured? They are always popular posts – next to a shiny new gadget, the next best thing is taking apart a shiny new gadget! So, check out these posts covering Kindles, Sony VAIO laptops, MacBook Airs and a Galaxy Tab…
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Start the Ball Rolling When you first approach a modern pinball machine, you are met with an intricate weaving of electronic and mechanical parts, all designed to create a game in which you are challenged to score points without losing the ball or tilting the game. The main components of the game are the flippers
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What Is Home Theater? Home theater is difficult to define — it’s really just a vague term for a particular approach to home entertainment. Generally speaking, a home theater system is a combination of electronic components designed to recreate the experience of watching a movie in a theater. When you watch a movie on a
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Cameras: Focus We’ve seen that a real image is formed by light moving through a convex lens. The nature of this real image varies depending on how the light travels through the lens. This light path depends on two major factors: The angle of the light beam’s entry into the lens The structure of the
Inside a Telephone The very simplest working telephone would look like this inside. As you can see, it only contains three parts and they are all simple: A switch to connect and disconnect the phone from the network – This switch is generally called the hook switch. It connects when you lift the handset. A
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Console Let’s take a look at the components inside an N64, and what their capabilities are. [Be sure to check out How Video Game Consoles Work first for a general introduction to game consoles.] Processor: 64-bit R4300i “Reality Engine” Processor clock speed: 93.75 MHz Bus speed: 562.5 MB per second Co-Processor: “Reality Co-Processor,” 62.5 MHz
Mechanics of Virtual Laser Keyboards At their most basic, all keyboards, whether they’re physical or virtual, are input devices — once you type in a certain series of keystrokes, you’re telling the keyboard to deliver a command to your computer. This allows you to write in a word-processing document, close out a program or write
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