APCO AUDIO VISUAL

Orlando Digital Media Companies.

2011-08-31T09:57:00.003-04:00

Orlando, Florida is an exciting place for digital media companies. One local company, B3N MEDIA, was founded by a UCF Digital Media graduate, Ben Hale. They offer website design, search engine optimization, search engine management, video production and more.

While APCO AudioVisual was still in business, we used B3N MEDIA exclusively for digital media projects, as the quality of his projects is the absolute best.

Orlando Digital Media Producers

2011-05-11T18:24:00.000-04:00

At APCO AudioVisual, not only do we rent audiovisual equipment, but we also provide digital media production services. Need a video for that video wall, or a custom kiosk touch-screen application, maybe an autostereoscopic video?

For the past 9 years we have used B3N Media LLC, Orlando, FL, as our digital media production provider. B3N Media delivers the best digital media consistently and we are proud to pass on the best to our clients.

B3N Media LLC

APCO AV Digital Media Production Provider

3D TVS Described In-Depth

2010-05-27T09:15:00.001-04:00

Everything you ever wanted to know about the new 3D TVs is explained by Yahoo Shopping in the following article:

http://shopping.yahoo.com/articles/yshoppingarticles/377/3d-tv-buying-guide-everything-you-need-to-know/

Microsoft releases Touch Pack for Windows 7

2010-04-22T15:24:00.003-04:00

Microsoft has just released the Touch Pack for Windows 7. It includes touch-specific programs to show off MultiTouch capabilities included in Windows 7.

At APCO, we've set up the Touch Pack programs on our 42" MultiTouch and it looks and works great!

Download the Touch Pack here:

http://windowsteamblog.com/blogs/windows7/archive/2010/04/21/microsoft-touch-pack-for-windows-7-now-available.aspx

See the Touch Pack program "Rebound" in action:

Gadgets of the Year 2009

2010-02-23T09:05:00.001-05:00

Endgadget has announced their gadgets of the year awards for 2009.

http://www.engadget.com/2010/02/22/the-winners-of-the-2009-engadget-awards/

Sony, IMAX, and Discovery to Launch Industry's Second 3D-TV Network

2010-01-06T09:37:00.003-05:00

Sony Corp. of America, Discovery Communications and IMAX Corp have signed a letter of intent to join together to launch a U.S. Television Network devoted entirely to 3D starting in 2012.

""We are delighted to be partnering with Discovery and IMAX, two premier companies also dedicated to leadership in 3D, in this groundbreaking new venture. It is clear to us that consumers will always migrate to a better and richer entertainment experience, and together we are determined to be the leader in providing that around the world."," said Howard Stringer, chairman, chief executive and president of Sony.

Read the full article from PC Magazine here:

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2357685,00.asp

ESPN to Unveil 3D Industry's First 3D Network in 2010

2010-01-06T09:05:00.006-05:00

ESPN 3D will show at least 85 live sporting events in 3D starting in June 2010.

"This is a turning point for 3-D," Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) CEO Gary Shapiro told USA Today.

Read the full article from ESPN Sports here:

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/news/story?id=4796555

TV Manufacturers are hoping consumers will embrace 3D-enabled sets in 2010

2010-01-04T14:57:00.003-05:00

LATimes has this story about the bet by TV makers that 2010 will be the year for consumers/viewers to embrace 3D technology and purchase 3D-enabled TVs.

The 3D we are talking about here is known as stereoscopic 3d which is 3D that requires you to wear special 3D glasses to see the 3D effect.

Read the full article here: http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-3dtv3-2010jan03,0,6084257.story

New Technology Review from SIGGRAPH 2009

2009-08-06T13:09:00.005-04:00

This year's SIGGRAPH 2009 in New Orleans has some very exciting new technologies on display. This article goes over the top five new technologies (as chosen by Technology Review), which include Touchable Holography, Augmented Reality, Hyper-Realistic Virtual Reality, 3D Teleconferencing, and Scratchable Input.

Read the full article here.

How to Create 3D Text and Place it in Photoshop

2009-07-08T13:31:00.001-04:00

Here's a turorial on how to create 3D text and put in in a picture:

How to Create 3D Text

Google Announces Chrome Operating System to be available mid-2010.

2009-07-08T09:19:00.004-04:00

Google Announces Chrome OS (Operating System) to be available mid-2010. They are targeting netbooks with this new operating system, which could take considerable market share away from Microsoft. The Chrome OS will be much more secure than Windows could ever dream of and it's tightly woven into the internet super-machine...

Slashdot article here: http://tech.slashdot.org/story/09/07/08/0953238/Google-Announces-Chrome-OS-For-Release-Mid-2010?art_pos=2

Our Senior Technical Director

2009-07-01T14:51:00.003-04:00

Ben Hale is our Senior Technical Director and Head of the Autostereoscopic Video Production Department.

He maintains the blog Autostereoscopic Video Production

as well as this blog.

He also designed our website: www.apcoav.com
and applied SEO to it.

APCO AV can convert Philips Wowvx 2D+Depth content into 9-view MultiView video.

2009-04-28T12:38:00.003-04:00

We can take your 2D+Depth images and convert them into a 9-view, MultiView with our software.

As you may know, Philips has stopped developing and manufacturing for their Wowvx technology.

APCO Audio Visual, with offices throughout the US, Canada, and England, can convert your legacy Wowvx 2d+depth content into the new and better MultiView.

An Interesting 3D Computer Interface.

2009-04-28T12:34:00.001-04:00

This video was just released, and it shows a neat device that senses your hand as you hover it over a square input device that has some sort of electromagnetic field that detects your hand. The implications of such a device could be fascinating.

See the video here.

Windows 7 Review

2009-04-27T15:22:00.002-04:00

At APCO AV, we have yet to update the bulk of our computers to

Windows Vista, but these changes in Windows 7 may be the turning point on adoption of this new operating system from Microsoft.

It is reported that Windows 7 will have a full-fledged Windows XP virtual environment available for all those still hanging onto XP.

Also, check out these default backgrounds!

Philips Steps Out of Autostereoscopic Market

2009-04-07T14:06:00.003-04:00

Philips has exited the autostereoscopic display and content creation market. Their WOWvx displays and content creation tools will no longer be developed.

Their Wikipedia entry (quoted on 04-06-09) says, "Because of current market developments, the point in time where mass adoption of no-glasses based 3D TV will occur has shifted significantly. Therefore, Philips has decided to stop the 3D Solutions venture. Philips has been marketing its leading no-glasses based 3D technologies through a pro-active approach for a long time, because it believes that over time, no-glasses based 3D TVs will bring the ultimate 3D experience to the home."

APCO AV initially supported Philips WOWvx displays and content creation, but as time passed we began to understand their approach's limitations. Early into 2008, APCO AV decided to pursue another type of autostereoscopic 3D display and content creation approach. Our current displays far exceeded the quality of Philips WOWvx displays. This is because Philips limited the quality of it's 3D video so that it could take up less bandwidth. That approach was fatal for Philips, because its leading competing technology didn't sacrifice video quality for bandwidth - it just used more powerful machines to deliver the higher-bandwidth video. Also, Philips charged way too much money for its content creation tools. These two things were where Philips went wrong and eventually ended their autostereoscopic ventures.

3D Stereogram Macros

2009-04-07T10:50:00.004-04:00

Here's a nice collection of 3D Stereogram Macros from flikr:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/lordv/sets/1571779/

These pics are the ones where you have to cross your eyes, then slowly bring them back to normal until you can see the 3D picture.

The best thing about our new autostereoscopic 3D monitors (A3D-4200) that we rent is that you don't have to cross your eyes or wear any special glasses to get the 3D effect!

Realistic 3D Renderings of People

2009-04-06T11:27:00.002-04:00

APCOAV has ventured into the autostereoscopic 3d world, recently winning the New product showcase at Exhibitor 2009. we will now include all 3d-related storioes in our blog.

Here's a nice list of some amazing 3d renderings of people:

http://blog.templates.com/reality-imagination-people-3d/

Samsung LED HDTV's set to Ship!

2009-04-06T09:26:00.003-04:00

These new LED TVs are the next big thing! Darker blacks (isn't that what they all promise?), addresses LCD motion blur and image judder issues with fast movement on LCDs, and uses the new LED technology.

Check out this great article about Samsung LED TVs.

Check out Samsung's LED HDTV page here.

Pioneer Stops Making Plasma TVs.

2009-02-17T10:20:00.003-05:00

The End of Plasma TVs? Pioneer has announced they will be completely exiting the plasma TV making industry. This is alongside their announcement of laying off 10,000 jobs due to "the global economic slump."

Panasonic, LG and Samsung are the only manufacturers left with Panasonic being the only manufacturer left that produces more plasmas than LCDs. Popular Science has a good article describing the current state of Plasmas here: http://www.popsci.com/entertainment-amp-gaming/article/2009-02/plasma-going-way-romans

Despite plasma TVs being superior to LCD in many ways, the future doesn't look good.

Samsung Introducs a Transparent OLED Display

2009-02-17T09:04:00.002-05:00

Check out this video to see this amazing new display.

Here's an interesting comment from reddit.com about these displays:

"Making large OLEDs isn't tough. The reason the display industry hails it as the 2nd coming is because OLED can be fabricated using inkjet printing processes over a theoretically unlimited surface area. OLEDs can be printed on curved substrates, flexible substrates, transparent substrates, you name it.
The tricky part is that they have a service life somewhere between yoghurt and beer. The dyes used really, really like to suck water out of the atmosphere and break down; some of them will actually leech hydrogen and oxygen out of the substrates on which they're printed. They also break down quickly in UV light; sitting all day on the dashboard of a hot car in a parking lot is pretty much the nightmare scenario for OLED at the moment."

I hope they work out these problems - the possibilities for these displays are endless.

Sony Bravia ZX1 Gets Ready to Launch

2009-01-29T09:43:00.003-05:00

The Sony Bravia ZX1 is about to be the thinnest LCD on the market. Read more about this visual stunner here:

http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/article5600478.ece

What to Expect From Social Media in 2009.

2009-01-28T13:33:00.001-05:00

Here's an interesting article from ReadWriteWeb about the changes social media will undergoe in 2009:

http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/10_ways_social_media_will_change_in_2009.php

It's a good read for all marketing/advertising/social media firms.

Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2009 - Articles and Reviews

2009-01-09T14:02:00.004-05:00

Here's a good article from this year's CES (Consumer Electronics Show), which is underway right now.

http://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/business/Nerd_Approved_Gadgets_at_the_International_CES.html

and another article here:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/scienceandtechnology/technology/ces/4208915/CES-2009-Can-the-latest-technology-beat-the-recession.html

Samsung will Unveil a 7mm-thick TV at CES 2009

2009-01-05T11:30:00.004-05:00

It is an LED-backlit LCD monitor.

At present, this is set to be the thinnest LCD monitor yet, although not as thin as OLED displays.

CES 2009 is set to begin this Thursday.

Read the MacWorld article here: http://www.macworld.com/article/137885/2009/01/samsung_thintv.html

Panasonic Unveils Plasma TVs with Record Contrast Ratios.

2008-12-08T12:44:00.003-05:00

These two giants, 50" and 65" models, are made possible by a new plasma technology that makes darker blacks and higher contrast ratios possible.

Check out the article here:

HP and ASU Demo New Foldable Screen.

2008-12-08T12:40:00.002-05:00

These new flexible displays are paper thin and made entirely out of plastic.

Read the article about the new flexible displays here.

Apple's New LED Display.

2008-12-03T10:50:00.001-05:00

Check out this article for hi-quality photos of Apple's new LED-backlit disply.

Samsung Displays a New OLED Display That Can Fold In Half.

2008-11-24T09:21:00.004-05:00

Samsung displays a new technology at a recent Japanese Trade show that offers a brief glimpse into what the future may hold for us. I would expect to first see these folding displays in use in cell phones but don't throw away that iPhone or G1 just yet - we still have a long way to go before we're gonna see something like this in the states.

The display is OLED (Organic light Emitting Diode)

Check out the Mark's Technology News blog article here.

Digital Formats Explained.

2008-11-21T12:31:00.019-05:00

Just like everything else in the world of computers, Digital Video (DV) has so many different formats that it's enough to confuse even a seasoned professional. Here, I'll try to explain a little bit about Digital Video.

In order to fit large amounts of data onto tape media, codecs are used for video compression.

A codec is what makes the magic happen. Here are some:

H.261
MPEG-1 Part 2
MPEG-2 Part 2
H.263
MPEG-4
MPEG-4 Part 2
MPEG-4 Part 10
VC-1
DivX (proprietary) (uses MPEG-4 ASP)
XviD (open source) (uses MPEG-4 ASP)
H.264
WMV

To make things even more confusing, the list above just refers to the codecs involved in encoding the video and not the wrapper...

The "wrapper" or "container" of your video file refers to what the extension of the file name is.

Common Wrappers:

AVI (Audio Video Interleave) is Windows' standard multimedia container
MPEG-4 Part 14 (known to you as .mp4) is the standardized container for MPEG-4
FLV (Flash Video) is the format used to deliver MPEG video through Flash Player
MOV is Apple's QuickTime container format
OGG, OGM and OGV are open-standard containers
MKV (Mastroska) is another open-specification container that you've seen if you've ever downloaded anime
VOB means DVD Video Object. Guess what? It's DVD's standard container, and what you get when you rip a DVD.
ASF is a Microsoft format designed for WMV and WMA—files can end in .wmv or .asf

To play a video file, your setup has to be able to handle both the actual video codec and the container. It's why you can try to play an AVI file and Windows Media Player laughs — the container was no problem, but it didn't have the right codec. Or conversely, even though an iPod could play back an H.264 encoded video, if it was wrapped up in MKV, it won't be able to read it.

How to Stay Ahead in a Down Economy.

2008-10-30T15:32:00.005-04:00

The key to staying ahead in a down economy is to emphasize the value of your event to both attendees and exhibitors. Focus on the importance of your product, service or event.

You must also be more aggressive, keep spending, marketing and adding visitor promotional material. Harness the intelligence of the community and the importance of staying in the loop, by understanding the short-term outlook of your industry by attending.

And most importantly, cut out un-needed costs. You don't have to rent from the official show rental company. It doesn't take a genius to understand that an event's official distributor pays to become the official distributor. Guess where they get that placement money from?

YOU!

You always pay more if you rent from an event's official distributor and the people who end up working for you usually have that attitude of laziness as if they are the only company you can use, so you are stuck with them. You have the right to rent your audio visual equipment from whomever you like! Give other AV rentals and staging companies a chance.

You WILL save money.

At APCO AV, we work hard to earn your business and we treat our clients like royalty. Give us a try and you will never waste your valuable money with the most expensive provider again.

http://www.apcoav.com/ - A Worldwide leader in AV Rentals and Staging.

Samsung Shows Off World's First Carbon-Nanotube Based Display

2008-10-24T11:06:00.004-04:00

The color active matrix electrophoretic display (EPD) e-paper was released at a conference in Korea.

It's 14.3 inch display is the product of a partnership between Samsung and Unidym, the company that developed the carbon nanotubes used by the device.

The new display has a variety of advantages over traditional flat panels. Since the EPD doesn’t require backlighting, it uses minimal energy and is visible under direct sunlight. Additionally, the image on the display is retained without the need to constantly refresh.

The EPD isn’t just limited to e-paper devices— it’s also a low-energy display option for cell phones and other mobile devices.

Sony Unveils the world's thinnest TV - the OLED TV

2008-10-12T19:48:00.005-04:00

Sony has announced the world's thinnest TV based on their OLED TV technology. The Sony Bravia ZX1 will be released in the UK the first month of 2009. Check out this article for more info.

OLED - Organic Light Emitting Diode is a variation of the more common LCD, and consumes less power than a lightbulb. The future of TVs? Who Knows. One thing I can tell you is, that in the AV Rentals & Event Services industry - the cost of delivery will be driven down when the weight of large TVs is light enough for just one person to handle.

Hitachi To Display New Upconversion Technology

2008-09-29T10:20:00.008-04:00

According to articles here and here, Hitachi has announced they will be displaying a new upconversion technology at the CEATEC show in Japan in early October 2008.

Hitachi claims its super resolution technology will upconvert DVD and SDTV images into near 1080p HD resolution, and also has the capability of improving the quality of HDTV broadcasts.

The new technology should be integrated into Hitachi's LCD and plasma lines by 2010.

First Look at the T-Mobile G1

2008-09-23T09:56:00.005-04:00

[Updated 10-20-08] - I'm getting the phone tomorrow! I checked the UPS tracking so I'll be taking the day off so that i'll be there to sign for the phone. here's a new review.

[Updated 10-16-08] - Only a week to go! Here's an in-depth review of the HTC G1 from zdnet.

[Updated 9-30-08] - As an existing T-mobile customer, [APCO AV] was able to pre-order the G1. It is scheduled for delivery on October 22nd. [APCO AV] installed the Eclipse API and the Android SDK and we are ready to begin developing software for this device. Expect a more detailed review of the phone once we get our hands on it!

[Original Post]
Here's the first look at the new "Google" phone, the T-Mobile G1, which will run Google's open-source Android mobile OS.

Read the article here.

Why Rent From APCO Audio Visual

2008-09-22T15:51:00.005-04:00

Did you know that you have the right to choose who you rent your Audio Visual gear from?

Companies that get their names on the Offical Vendor list have to pay for that ad placement. Those costs are then passed along to you. You have the right to rent your gear from any AV company you choose, and after a little investigation you will find the lowest prices don't come from the Official Vendors.

APCO Audio Visual can always beat the prices of Trade Show Offical Vendors anywhere across the country! We have offices and warehouses across North America, and in London and Japan. Above all else, we have the best staff available to work with you to make your next event go exactly how you imagine it without breaking your budget.

APCO AV rents LCD TVs, Plasma TVs, Video Walls, Computers (Desktops and Laptops), lighting equipment and audio equipment. We can also produce special creative services - the sky is the limit.

APCO AV is the #1 provider of the new Philips WOWvx 3D monitors. Just Google "wowvx rentals" and you will see for yourself. This shows that we always stay on the cutting edge of technology and have all the gear you need to make your next event a succes!

To learn more about what equipment and services we provide, and to request an online quote, just visit our website: http://www.apcoav.com/

LAME v3.98.1 - Released

2008-09-22T10:25:00.003-04:00

The new MP3 encoder has been upgraded.

Download it here.

VirtualDub - New Version Released

2008-09-22T10:20:00.003-04:00

VirtualDub v1.8.6.30009

VirtualDub is an extremely efficient video capture and processing program. Applications of it are almost unlimited. The new version has dropped support for ASF due to pressure from
Microsoft.

Download it here

The old version 1.3c has support for ASF.

Intel ships Atom 330 1.6GHz Dual-Core Processors

2008-09-21T00:29:00.003-04:00

Intel will begin shipping the Atom 330 chipset very soon.

The Atom 330 has a 1.6GHz clock speed and is Dual-Core. The processor uses the current 45nm technology with a 533MHz Front-Side-Bus.

The 330 chip features a 1MB of level 2 cache, support for DDR2 667, and 8-watt TDP.

The new dual-core Atom will be targeted at small-sized portable and desktop systems we now call netbooks and nettops. This means that we will soon have a new bunch of netbooks ready to take on an already crowded market.

3M launches the first "pocket" Projector.

2008-09-15T11:00:00.003-04:00

Looks like they beat Microvision and Texas instruments to the finish line. They say they will go on sale September 30th.

To read more about this new product click here.

RapidRun Cables.

2008-09-12T14:40:00.006-04:00

In the Audio Visual event services rentals and staging business, we get our hands on all types of cables and connectors. Proper selection of cables during a setup can eliminate many time-consuming problems. When we see something we like, we tell people about it!

These cables are able to support multiple signals over one cable, including VGA, Component Video, S-Video, analog and digital audio and more!

RapidRun cables have saved us time and money and we love using them. Check out the RapidRun website here: http://www.rapidrun.com/.

5 Apps for Windows Reformat and Re-install

2008-09-03T12:41:00.001-04:00

At APCOAV we are constantly re-formatting our computer hard drives and re-installing Windows on them. The proces can be time consuming, but with the right software tools, you can do it in a snap.

Check out this article for a list of the software tools that makes re-installing Windows a breeze:

http://www.downloadsquad.com/2008/09/01/5-apps-for-painless-windows-reformats-for-8-2-08-switched-thin/?rss

Oh yeah, and if you want to avoid the process of re-activating your copy of Windows, it's good to know that Windows XP creates a file called “WPA.DBL” and stores it in the C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32 directory. Just back it up and follow the directions in the following article:

http://www.online-tech-tips.com/computer-tips/how-to-reactivate-windows/

An Illustrated Guide of AV Cables.

2008-09-03T11:30:00.001-04:00

Our friends at Gizmodo have put together a guide to every cable you might come across in the AV Events Services Industry.

Check it out here:

http://gizmodo.com/5030810/giz-explains-an-illustrated-guide-to-every-stupid-cable-you-need

Welcome to the APCOAV Blog.

2008-09-03T10:16:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the APCO Audio Visual Blog!

At APCO AV, we take pride in the rentals and services we offer for the events services, trade show and convention industries.

This blog will contain useful articles relevant to Audio Visual rentals and services.