Starting to feel like you need professional help when you visit an electronics store these days? You’re not the only one. But fret not! Frank Lee from LG and the techies at Dabbler are here to help.

We sat down with Frank right before Christmas to take a look at the latest and greatest LG devices and are using them as a reference to explain the ins and outs of modern tech. So take a walk with us as we draw a map through the electronics jungle.

Plasma and LCD TVs (a.k.a. flat-screen and/or HDTVs)

Right now, there are two types of flat-screen TVs: Plasma and LCD, which are very different and serve different purposes. Plasma TVs have blacker blacks and crisper colours, which make them perfect for home theatres. On the downside, they are heavy and expensive – at least in the “smaller” sizes (smaller being anything below 46”). LCD TVs are cheaper and lighter, but have somewhat fainter colours (though they are getting close to plasmas in this area). LCDs used to be plagued with bad viewing angles, meaning they looked like crap unless you sat right in front of them. That’s not the case any more. Different manufacturers have found different solutions – LG inserted chevron shaped pixels that “throw” the light in all directions.

Now, if you’ve been out shopping for a new TV, you’ve probably been presented with some weird numbers: 1080p, 1080i, and 720p. These numbers make no sense unless you know what they mean. Basically the number signifies how many pixel lines are stacked on top of each other from the bottom to the top of the screen (so a 1080 screen has 1,080 pixel lines and a 720 has 720 pixel lines). The “i” and “p” stand for interlaced and progressive and tell you how the image is presented. Interlaced images are what you normally see on TV. The TV shows you half of one image and then half of the other in a combing pattern. You don’t really notice this unless you are on a computer or in a TV studio but it makes the images very smooth and liquid. Progressive images are full screen images that are displayed consecutively, just like film. This gives a more jittery picture that seems more like a movie. The difference between interlaced and progressive is one of the reasons why news footage and movies look and feel different. Salesmen will always tell you that 1080p is the best (and technically it is), but in reality, there is very little difference between 1080i and 1080p, and unless you have a 42” screen or bigger, you won’t even really see the difference between a 720p and a 1080p screen. On top of that, all of this only matters if you have an HD source like an HD cable or satellite receiver, Blue-Ray or HD-DVD player (don’t buy an HD-DVD player by the way – they are going to be extinct in 6 months), an XBOX360 or a PS3.

Higher end TVs now also come with surprising features like USB and memory card inputs, so you can play music and watch photos right on your TV without a computer.

Audio Systems

According to Frank, the new trend is towards smaller and simpler systems where you have two speakers and a sub-woofer instead of massive 5 or 7 speaker systems. These are called micro-systems and they employ a sneaky audio delay technology called “virtual surround” that tricks your ears into thinking you are hearing sounds from several speakers around the room, even though they all come from the two in the front. The micro-systems are also easier to handle because they are small (and you don’t have to trail cables all over your living room).

GPS: The Interactive Map

GPS navigators are hot. And unlike a lot of other hot tech gadgets, they are actually useful. These devices work like interactive maps and tell you not only where you are, but where you should go – perfect for people with no sense of direction. Because of their popularity, they have dropped in price (down over 70% from last year) and the manufacturers are cramming in new features like BlueTooth, MP3 players, slide shows and all sorts of other rubbish to get you to buy their model. The one thing not all of them have that really makes a difference is text to speech – pioneered by LG. Text-to-speech means that the navigator will read out the street names for you, so instead of saying “turn left in 400 meters,” they’ll say “turn left at Granville Street,” so you’re paying attention to the road in front of you, as opposed to constantly looking at your navigator. That can make all the difference

Portable DVD Players

After investing all your money in Dora the Explorer and Franklin DVDs to keep your kids occupied while you take a breather, you should really cough up the extra dough for a portable DVD player so the entertainment can be enjoyed in the car / plane / train / boat / at grandma’s house. These devices are now available for just under $100 and often come with handy accessories like a carrying bag that straps onto the back of a car or airplane seat. The image quality on the screens isn’t all that impressive but who cares. They’re cheap and they work. That’s all that matters.

Cell Phones (Shine and Chocolate)

Even though North Americans are lagging far behind Europeans and Asians when it comes to cell phones, they are slowly starting to catch on. And as technology advances, so do the features. The new handsets feature video-to-video calling, web surfing and all sorts of other things to distract you from your daily life. The LG Shine (named for it’s shiny mirror-like surface) and the LG Chocolate are fairly popular phones that offer many interesting features. And like all cell phones, they will be obsolete in 10 seconds.

Monitors and Laptops

Bigger is better when it comes to computer monitors. And huge LCD monitors now cost less than small heavy CRTs did 3 years ago. Not surprisingly, the trend is bigger desktop monitors (you can get 30” ones now!). When it comes to laptops, it’s the opposite. People are moving away from the bulky monsters and towards ultra-portable minicomputers and tablet PCs with touch screens. The new LG C1 Tablet PC even incorporates new technology that lets you slide in a cell phone SIM card and use it to surf the internet, making the internet truly portable (until you have to mortgage your house to pay the wireless bill that is!).