Home Cinema?

At the simplest level, a home cinema system is a means to enjoy television and videos while enjoying approximating the function of a real cinema. It can be as simple as plugging your television set into a stereo to enjoy better sound quality, or as involved as a fully integrated projector screen, custom designed sound system, and a top quality dvd player or a top of the line multi media PC or Media Centre act as a hub.

 Most commonly, Home Cinema has come to mean a package including a wide screen television - preferably a flat panel system such as a large 42-inch or more plasma screen connected to a PC or DVD player, and using a dedicated Dolby 5.1 amplifier that powers a large sub woofer speaker and satellite speakers around the room to create a surround sound effect.

 Whether you choose to buy a basic system in a box like the one above, or want a full installation with a projector system and built in speakers, the idea is the same - to enjoy a film, video game or even televisions programme in a more exciting manner, so make sure you find a system that suits the room you intend to place it in, and meets your budget.

 A key concern when buying any home cinema system is whether it is upgradeable in the future. A kit you buy today might include a regular DVD player, that you may wish to replace in a year or two, or standard speakers that you feel could be improved upon as your budget allows. You might pay a little more in the long run buying one item at a time to improve the overall system, but the result makes a high quality home cinema package a more achievable, and cost effective solution in the longer term.

Home cinema, also commonly called home theater or home theatre, are home entertainment set-ups that seek to reproduce movie theater video and audio feeling in a private home. In the 1950s, playing home movies became popular in the United States with Kodak 8 mm film projector equipment becoming affordable. The development of multi-channel audio systems and later laserdisc in the 1980s created a new paradigm for home cinema. In the early to mid 1990s, a typical home cinema in the United States would have a laserdisc or VHS player fed to a large rear-projection television. In the late 1990s, home theatre technology progressed with the development of the DVD-Video format, Dolby Digital 5.1-channel audio ("surround sound") speaker systems, and high-definition television.

In the 2000s, the term "home cinema" encompasses a range of systems meant for movie playback at home. The most basic and common system could be a DVD player, a standard large-screen television, and a "home theater in a box" surround sound speaker system with a subwoofer. While a decent common home cinema set-up might more likely include a Blu-ray player or media center appliance/computer with a 10-foot user interface, a video projector and projection screen with a "widescreen" 16:9 aspect-ratio format, and a several thousand-watt home theatre receiver with five to seven surround sound speakers plus a powerful subwoofer.

A home theater with video projector mounted in a box on the ceiling.

The most expensive home theater set-ups, have high definition digital projectors and projection screens, and maybe even a custom-built screening rooms which include cinema-style chairs and audiophile-grade sound equipment designed to mimic (or sometimes even exceed) commercial theater performance.