Cheap home systems in-a-box are to be found everywhere and there you always get what you pay for. I mean, don't ever expect to get fantastic sound and eternal reliability form a $80 "home theater" system, for you will not.

The fact that there are some home cinema systems which are not expensive and yet they are pretty fine and hardworking even after years of heavy duty is nothing but an exception to the rule.

More and more these days, technology comes in "cheaper is-cheaper does"; in fact, I guess that in the case of low-price gear you actually get less per dollar than in the case of middle-class equipment, let alone top-shelf or more - audiophile-grade technology (which has nothing to do with our job today).

Harman/Kardon is a name more and more esteemed in the last years as they have begun releasing more and more hi-tech gear, from CD/DVD players, audio-video receivers, multiroom products up to the latest home theater systems. Far from being the Bang & Olufsen-type, Harman/Kardon runs with high-quality components and extremely careful manufacturing while delivering exceptional sound and overall performance.

It's now time to welcome two new products from Harman/Kardon, the HS 300 and HS 500 home theater systems. Based on the HS100 DVD/A/V receiver, these pieces of tech will give you a full and fat 5.1 sound coming from any audio source.

The cool thing about them is the HDMI connectivity and the internal video processing system to 1080i; the dual USB ports will have your Harman/Kardon system to interact with any portable player.

As I have told you above, neither the HS 300 nor the HS 500 will make people gaze in awe as they are not the utmost peak in such technology - nevertheless, they are sworn to make a solid statement in the field: the sleek and simple, yet very stylish design, combined with the serious quality Harman/Kardon has accustomed us to during the last years and the moderate $999/$1,199 for HS 300 and HS 500, respectively are sure to sell big starting this spring.

Watch out for Harman/Kardon later in the spring as they will be in all hi-tech stores.