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Five best LED TVs for picture quality

This year the gap between the picture quality of the best LED/LCD TVs and the best plasma TVs has grown wider than ever. Unless you're interested in overspending for buying a Sharp Elite, there's no 2012 LED TV that can come close to the picture quality of even midlevel plasmas like the Panasonic TC-PST50 and Samsung PNE6500.

But maybe you're simply not interested in plasma. If that's the case, then check out the following list of 2012 TVs that (A) employ an LCD panel illuminated by LEDs and (B) perform better than most such TVs. The list doesn't include the Elite and the Sony XBR-HX929 simply because they debuted in 2011; both are excellent performers, still current and exceedingly expensive. It also considers picture quality only, so if you're interested in seeing the best LED TVs overall, including some that scored well according to our other TV reviews criteria, here ya go.

The list appears in descending order of picture quality.… Read more

Facing 4-year prison term, Surfthechannel owner lashes out

Anton Vickerman wanted to make one final and lasting statement before going off to prison for copyright violations. It appears he won't get to even do that.

Vickerman, 38, was the operator of Surfthechannel.com, a Web site that provided links to unauthorized copies of TV shows and movies. A British court on Tuesday sentenced Vickerman to four years in prison. He is believed to be the first person in the United Kingdom to be incarcerated for linking to pirated material.

On the eve of going to prison, Vickerman decided to leave a message on Surfthechannel.com, but he … Read more

Get new Mars Curiosity Rover photos in your inbox

The photos and videos coming from NASA and the Curiosity Rover on Mars are truly stunning. It's fun, exciting, and even a little puzzling at times to see the landscape and how another planet so far away compares to Earth.

Both the official NASA and Mars Curiosity Twitter accounts are great sources to keep up on the latest news and photos coming from the brave little rover so far from home. But, we can't sit and watch Twitter all day long, making the chance of missing a photo a real possibility.

While browsing If This Then That shared … Read more

Road Trip Pic of the Day: The secrets of perfection

If you ever have a mystery image you need identified, Phil Yao's your man.

For the last nine weeks, I ran CNET's Picture of the Day challenge, posting a new photograph each day and tasking readers with writing in and guessing what they thought it was. I offered one weekly prize for people who got at least one right answer, and a grand prize -- a complete GoPro camera package -- for the person that got the most right throughout.

And may I tip my hat to Yao: over the nine weeks -- 63 mystery photos in all … Read more

Road Trip Pic of the Day, 8/12: What is this?

Update (Wednesday, 2:18 p.m PT): The answer to Sunday's challenge -- which 45 people got right -- is Walt Disney Studios and Walt Disney Animation, in Burbank, Calif., as seen from near the Hollywood sign. My apologies for not publishing the answer sooner. Thanks to everyone who played today, and throughout this year's contest, and to all, please come back next year for the Road Trip 2013 Picture of the Day challenge.

Welcome to the final day of the Road Trip 2012 Picture of the Day contest. This is your last chance to win some cool … Read more

Road Trip Pic of the Day, 8/11: What is this?

Update (Saturday, 7:55 p.m PT): The answer to today's challenge -- which 154 people got right -- is the Walt Disney Concert Hall, in Los Angeles. Thanks to everyone who played, and to all, please come back Sunday for the final Road Trip 2012 Picture of the Day challenge.

Welcome to the final weekend of the Road Trip 2012 Picture of the Day contest. This is your chance to win some cool prizes as you test your skills at recognizing pictures.

For the last eight-plus weeks, I've posted a new photograph from my various travels every … Read more

Google's new plan to fight piracy draws skepticism

Some among those who advocate for Internet users see within Google's plan to downgrade accused pirate sites in the company's search results the potential for abuse.

Google announced on the company's blog today that sites that generate too many take-down notices will find themselves pushed down in the search rankings. Takedown notices are the documents that owners of copyrighted material file in order to request the deletion of unauthorized copies of their work from Web sites.

Under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, Web site owners must remove unauthorized files once they've received a legitimate takedown notice. … Read more

Road Trip Pic of the Day, 8/10: What is this?

Update (Saturday, 1:45 a.m. PT): The answer to Friday's challenge -- which 33 people got right -- is the former Boron Air Force Station, north of Kramer Junction, Calif. Thanks to everyone who played, and to all, please come back for the final two challenges this weekend.

Welcome to the Road Trip Picture of the Day contest. This is your chance to win some cool prizes as you test your skills at recognizing pictures.

Each day, I'll be posting a new photograph from my various travels, and your job is to try to correctly identify it … Read more

Road Trip Pic of the Day, 8/9: What is this?

Update (Thursday, 8:56 p.m. PT): The answer to today's challenge -- which 11 people got right -- is presumptive Republican party presidential nominee Mitt Romney's house in La Jolla, Calif. Thanks to everyone who played, and to all, please come back for Friday's challenge.

Please note: Today's picture is not my house, as some readers have suggested.

Welcome to the Road Trip Picture of the Day contest. This is your chance to win some cool prizes as you test your skills at recognizing pictures.

Each day, I'll be posting a new photograph from … Read more

Road Trip Pic of the Day, 8/8: What is this?

Update (Wednesday, 8:27 p.m. PT): The answer to today's challenge -- which 167 people got right -- is Morro Rock, in Morro Bay, Calif. Thanks to everyone who played, and to all, please come back for Thursday's challenge.

Welcome to the Road Trip Picture of the Day contest. This is your chance to win some cool prizes as you test your skills at recognizing pictures.

Each day, I'll be posting a new photograph from my various travels, and your job is to try to correctly identify it using any means at your disposal. Throughout Road Trip 2012, … Read more