Early fan reviews of the Rockets' new 56-foot-long videoboard "were mixed," with many "impressed with its size and clarity," according to David Barron of the HOUSTON CHRONICLE. But other fans said that the board's "comfort level is best suited for fans on the club and suite levels, where the board is roughly at eye level." The videoboard was part of a $15M upgrade to the Toyota Center. It measures 56 feet by 25 feet, "roughly free-throw line to free-throw line," and has 25-foot square boards facing each end line. When the ball is in play, game action "generally runs the entire width of the board, with the score and team statistics stripped across the top." The board also "can be split between screens showing replays and live action." During timeouts and "some portions of live play, the live picture is wrapped by statistics or advertising banners." The videoboard is "the centerpiece [of] the arena upgrade that includes a new control room for the 30-person scoreboard and audio operation, new statistical/video boards at each end of the court, about 400 new flat-screen TVs throughout the building, a new point-of-sale system for retail and concessions and improved Wi-Fi" (CHRON.com, 11/3).
KEEPING PACE: The INDIANAPOLIS STAR noted the Pacers' regular season home opener against the Kings on Saturday "featured the debut of the new scoreboard high above Bankers Life Fieldhouse's court." The new scoreboard "features twin 1080p high definition video screens, each measuring 50 feet long -- extending nearly foul line to foul line -- by 21 feet high" (INDYSTAR.com, 11/4). Also in Indianapolis, Bob Kravitz wrote, "The most impressive part of the whole evening was the gigantic new scoreboard, which would look really good in my man cave" (INDIANAPOLIS STAR, 11/4).
