At long, long last, we've finally picked a winner for our biggest (and most time consuming) HD contest ever. It took us a while, but after poring over almost 3,000 entries we believe we've finally unearthed our favorite sad setup around. The honor (or dishonor?) goes to reader Samuel Goldstein -- congrats! We know it's hard to imagine that our + $5,000 worth of gear will match up to his 19-inch Zenith Space Command TV, RCA VCR from 1995, recycled car speakers, or the "picture-in-picture" that is a Citizen portable television, but we think he'll manage. Watch the video "tour" of the winner's "system" after the break, and be sure to check out all the other painful entrants in the gallery below.

It's been well over a year since our last big redesign, which in gadget time means our last design was unveiled circa original Walkman. So we're freshening up the whole joint -- all seven sites -- with a brand new design. Oh, and we're also adding an eighth site to the Engadget network: Switched!

Our latest addition, Switched will be dishing out features for those with a more casual interest in tech, as well as highlighting fresh, hand-picked tech news from our network of sister sites. So expect to see hot stories from Engadget classic, Mobile, HD, TUAW, and Download Squad running over there, as well as news from other geeky Weblogs, Inc. sites like Joystiq, Xbox 360 Fanboy, and Wii Fanboy.

As for Engadget's new design, we went through and really cleaned up the joint, yanking out old modules and ads wherever possible. You might spot our new and improved photo gallery browsing and updated looks on things like comments and polls, but it's hardest to miss the new rotating carousel over on the right. Keep an eye on that thing, it's where we'll be plugging in our biggest stories and must-see features.

Of course, launching eight sites at the same time is bound to cause a few problems, so please tap that first adopter attitude and bear with us as we squish bugs and tweak styles. And definitely hit us up in comments to let us know what you think (or if you see anything wonky)!

P.S. -Big ups to the gang that worked tirelessly to make this happen: Matt, Mark, Erik, Gavin, Celly, Alex, Christoph, Charlie, Marty, and the rest of the crew!

You know, this last week we closed up two contests where you'd have the chance to win an HDTV (among other things), but we were feeling a little magnanimous and decided to leave them open through this weekend. Just remember, you can enter both contests one time, but you can't enter either contest more than once. Check out all the details and rules below:

Read - Win a Philips 42PFL5603D 42-inch 1080p HDTV
Read - Win an LCD HDTV, Xbox 360, and plenty of Old Spice

Look, if you're going to sit around the house watching HDTV and playing Xbox 360, you might consider taking yourself a damn shower every once in a while and get out the musky smell; -- and that's where Old Spice fits in. They're hooking up one lucky Engadget reader with a 32-inch 720p HDTV, Xbox 360 (and some MadCatz peripherals), and a year supply of the scented stuff, so hit up the rules and best of luck cleaning up your act.

• Leave a comment below. You know the drill!
  
• You may only enter this specific giveaway once. If you enter this giveaway more than once you'll be automatically disqualified, etc. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.)
  
• If you enter more than once, only activate one comment. This is pretty self explanatory. Just be careful and you'll be fine.
  
• Contest is open to anyone in the 50 States, 18 or older! Sorry, we don't make this rule (we hate excluding anyone), so be mad at our lawyers and contest laws if you have to be mad.
  
• Winner will be chosen randomly. That winner will get a Dynex 32-inch LCD HDTV ($600), Xbox 360 ($350), Mad Catz Xbox Racing Wheel ($100), Mad Catz Xbox Arcade Stick ($50), and a one year supply Old Spice products ($180), total value of $1,280.
  
• Entries can be submitted until Sunday, February 24th, 11:59PM ET. Good luck!
• Full rules can be found here.

After recording four episodes last week during CES and Ben's computer being off for service, we're taking the week off -- it's not like anything has happened in the past few days worth talking about anyways. But don't worry, we'll be right back on track next Wednesday with a new episode for your listening enjoyment.

So yeah, if you haven't already noticed by the slew of news today (and our liberal use of the CES category), we're just days away from the biggest week of the year for consumer electronics (and, of course, Engadget).

Naturally, we'll be swarming the joint bringing the freshest, most up to the second coverage on all the new 2008 gear -- but to make things easier for everyone reading, we're also rolling out a few improvements to the site. We'll be back shortly with the details.

Like you'd expect, we'll be covering press events in real time, but they'll be over at Engadget instead of Engadget HD, so now you know where to look for live coverage when HD DVD and Blu-ray kick off their press events.

In the mean time, take a moment now to sit back and relax. Because once we really get started, things are going to get a little crazy. And geeky.

Sunday, January 6th
All day - Almost all other press conferences. If it's a major company, they'll probably be holding their press conference on Sunday, so stick close by for the likes of Pioneer, Panasonic, Samsung, Toshiba, and LG.
4:00PM PT / 7:00PM ET - Sony's CES keynote.
6:30PM PT / 9:30PM ET - Bill Gates's 12th and final CES keynote (probably). Not to be missed!
8:30PM PT / 11:30pm ET - HD DVD Promotion Group

Monday, January 7th
5:00pm PT / 8:00PM ET - Blu-ray

Note from the editor: Okay, I'm trying not to crack up here, but publicity-hungry "small family owned business" WealthTV (which, according to their site, is "headquartered in a 40,000 square foot, high definition state-of-the-art facility in San Diego" -- yep.) issued an anti-Engadget linkbait press release, accusing us of being the long, long tail arm of Time Warner, and "big business at its ugliest." As it happens, this WealthTV network -- which, I, personally, have never even heard of until a few days ago when we wrote a story on it here -- apparently recently went to the FCC to protest Time Warner Cable's "monopolistic program access practices" because the provider didn't pick them up.

Of course, I probably don't have to tell you what an imbecilic accusation it is that some nefarious executive at TWC -- which is only partly owned by Time Warner -- was able to pull strings at Time Warner, which pulled strings at AOL, which pulled strings at Weblogs, Inc., which pulled strings with me, in turn resulting in some pretty hilarious verbal commentary by long-time editor Ben Drawbaugh on the Engadget HD podcast. But just so we're extra clear with the conspiracy theorists in the house that aren't convinced, WealthTV obviously wasn't paying too close attention to how we do our thing.

Knocking on Time Warner Cable is something of a pastime and running joke between myself and Peter Rojas on the original Engadget podcast. Hell, I'd like to take this occasion to remind everyone that in the five years I lived in New York, I had nothing but problems with Time Warner Cable as a consumer (whereas in the last year and a half I've been in San Francisco I've had nothing but amazing experiences with Comcast -- go figure). Might also be worth a quick link to the post where we called a TWC CableCARD installation a "fiasco" -- in the headline, no less!

But then again, since they totally busted us, we should probably come clean about a few Time Warner Cable-mandated stories I've had the team put in the hopper for this week:

• WealthTV so broke, the bank asked for their calendar back
• WealthTV so broke that when someone saw 'em walking down the street with one shoe and said, "Hey, you lost a shoe." WealthTV said, "No, we found one."
• WealthTV so poor when you ring the doorbell they say, "DING DONG!"

Look, WealthTV, if it makes you guys feel any better, we promise we'll never, ever cover your channel again. Thanks for reminding us all that cash and class are obviously two very different things.

Yours,
Ryan

P.S. -Release posted after the break, including the contact email / phone number of the channel's PR rep. Enjoy!

We like to have a lot of fun around here, but we also know that there are times to get serious and use our semi-prominent position to rally our readers around a good cause. Or in the case of the 2007 DonorsChoose blogger challenge, 25 good causes. Engadget has partnered with numerous different tech-centric programs around the country to help raise funds for the children that they serve, and with your assistance, we're hoping to collect a total of $25,000 to be distributed among these various organizations. The best part? As its name suggests, DonorsChoose allows you to allocate your donation however you please; so instead of contributing to the general "Engadget fund," you're actually giving directly to one or more programs impacting high-need public schools.

You have until October 31st to make a donation -- either by clicking here or on the Read link below -- and we sincerely hope that you'll consider helping out these projects that really do have a chance to give kids a better future. We'll keep you updated with Team Engadget's progress, and while it would be almost criminal to guarantee every reader a new HDTV if we meet our goals, well...

Read - Donate!
Read - Blogger challenge press release
Read - About DonorsChoose.org

Just a quick announcement about our home theater contest: we're extending the deadline until a minute before midnight tonight. Turns out the overwhelming response happened to overwhelm our email server, and maxed out our storage limit. Don't worry, we've sorted the problem -- just make sure to resubmit before 11:59PM EDT tonight if your email bounced. We're sorry for the inconvenience. If you haven't entered yet, check out the details here, first making sure to read the rules here. Good luck!

We'd like to extend a big welcome to Steve Kim, the latest addition to the Engadget HD team. Steve is a home audio nut and we'll be depending on him to round out our home theater coverage. Steve will also be co-hosting the Engadget HD podcast, -- yeah it still exists -- which will be getting back on track very soon; and if all goes as planned will be available on a weekly basis. So help us welcome Steve to the team, speaking of which, we forgot to ask him where he stands on this whole format war thing.

We know not everybody has the home theater of their dreams. We know there are some of you out there that shop longingly at your local electronics retailer, dreaming of the day you can dump that crappy rig and get something the neighbors will be envious of -- or hear all the way down the block, anyway. That's where we -- and about five thousand dollars worth of gear -- come in. Let us trick out your home theater.

We want you to send in photos of your janky home theater setup (accompanying video is fine too), and maybe a word or two about what kind of crappy equipment you're still using, and why you think it's time for an upgrade. (Please try to keep it brief.) We'll select the home theater most in need of the Engadget touch, and then hook you up with the following gear:

• You pick: Pioneer Kuro PDP-4280HD 42-inch 8th gen plasma OR Sharp LC-46D62U 46-inch 1080p LCD and...
• TiVo HD
• Xbox 360 Elite + HD DVD player
• Sony PS3 (60GB)
• Logitech Harmony 550 universal remote
• Onkyo TX-SR805 receiver
• Onkyo SKS-HT740 7.1 speaker system
• Slingbox Pro (with HD adapter)
• ... and some cables to hook stuff up with

Yeah, we've got it covered top to bottom: plasma or LCD, HD DVR, PS3 with Blu-ray and HD DVD, programmable remote, 7.1 system, even a placeshifter -- everything you need to bask in HD entertainment.

Rules

• You must be 13 or older to enter, with permission from your parent. No exceptions -- unless you're over 18, then you're allowed to enter without calling mom and dad.
• Anyone between 13-17 MUST provide your parent's email address in this form so we can notify them of your participation; your parents have the option of opting out by emailing us at the address below.
  
• You may only enter this specific contest once. If you enter this contest more than once you'll be automatically disqualified, etc.
• Entries must be in by 11:59PM EDT, Saturday, September 15th.
• Full rules and regulations here. Read them, because by making a submission you agree to the terms and conditions therein.
• Email submissions to contests [at] engadget [dawt] com with the subject "Trick out my home theater!".
  

Also, big ups to Comcast for sponsoring the contest! We hear this gear should go nicely with a couple of CableCARDS.

Update: We've got a winner -- Congrats, Samuel Goldstein!

There is nothing new about us linking to ourselves, it is practically a Engadget commandment, but even we aren't so vain that we don't second guess writing a post for the sole purpose of linking to ourselves. But in the interest of our loyal Engadget HD fans who don't read classic Engadget, here goes (yeah, there are probably only two of you). Of all the Engadget awards, the one you guys just have to have your voice heard is: the HDTV of the year award. There are not many surprises on the list, but once again the age ol' battle of the best technology rages on and now is your chance to get behind your horse, so follow the link to stand up and be counted.

So it looks like HD DVD fans are not going to get Spielberg's blockbuster films as soon as expected. The PR group for the HD DVD forum has just posted an apology for placing E.T., Jaws, and Jurassic Park on their Coming Soon list before consulting with Spielberg first. Long time movie experts know that Spielberg does not embrace new home movie formats right off the bat, but rather waits for a bit - George Lucas is the same way with his films. So basically, these three movies are not going to be the saving grace of HD DVD anytime soon.

We know we're a little late getting this one out the door, but believe it or not we still have two more HDTVs to give away before we get bum rushed by the holiday season. First, let's do up the overdue winner sof the last Samsung HL-S5679W and Philips 42PF9631D plasma: Aaron B and J Hofman, you guys are taking those things home! So the (last) HDTV we're giving away today is a Samsung HL-S5679W DLP, a hugemongous display sure to make that living room or den glow in the warmth of a massive LED backlit screen. For the record, here are the specs on today's prize:

• 56-inch LED backlit 1080p display
• DNIe video enhancer and Cinema Smooth light engine
• 4,000:1 contrast ratio
• Built-in NTSC / ATSC tuners with PIP
• 2 HDMI, 2 component, 3 composite, and 2 S-Video inputs
• We're also throwing in a 6-foot HDMI cable from eHDMI

To be entered to win this sick piece of screen, just leave us a comment telling us which next-gen console(s) you plan on using it with. Seriously, that's all you have to do to get a chance to win a 56-inch Samsung HDTV. You'll have until next Monday (the 27th), then we'll pick the winner at random, assuming s/he follows the rules:

• You may enter other Engadget contests, however...
• You may only enter this contest once; if you enter more than once on this particular contest post you'll be automatically disqualified and barred from all future giveaways. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.) You may enter future Engadget relaunch giveaway contests though!
  
• You can only win once. (If you win and then try to go for a second prize during our relaunch giveaways, you'll be automatically disqualified, etc.)
• This contest is open to the US only, sorry!
• You will be shipped your HDTV in a few weeks when all our contests are over. Thanks for your patience!
Ok everybody, good luck!