Aeneon XTune 2GB DDR3-1600 Dual Channel Memory Kit @Bigbruin.com
Cyber Snipa Sonar 5.1 USB Surround Headset @Tweaknews.net
Dell XPS 730 H2C Performance Gaming System @HotHardware.com
Kingston DataTraveler HyperX 4GB USB Stick @Madshrimps
Sparkle Calibre GeForce 9600 GT @InsideHW
ZEROtherm ZEN FZ 120 CPU Cooler @ThinkComputers.org
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LaCie sent out a press release earlier today, announcing an updated version of its d2 Blu-ray drive. Along with a new alloy case and software suite, the drive's Blu-ray writing speeds have been boosted from 2x to 4x.

LaCie announced today that is has doubled burn speeds to 4x for it d2 Blu-ray Drive and has updated the aluminum alloy case and software suite. The drive records, rewrites and reads 25 gigabytes (GB) or 50GB BD-R (recordable) and BD-RE (rewritable), as well as DVD±RW DL and CD±RW. The LaCie d2 Blu-ray Drive come fully equipped with Roxio burning software and dual FireWire 400 and USB 2.0 interfaces.

“In early 2007, LaCie was the first vendor to ship worldwide an external solution for professional Hi-Def video recording for both Mac and Windows. Since that time, Blu-ray technology has proven to be the dominant source for video recording and playback,” said Patrick Salin, LaCie Business Development Manager. “Burning up to 50GB of data can take a reasonable amount of time, so doubling burn speeds not only increases work performance, but provides a cost-effective, long-term archival process for storing data to sturdy scratch-resistant media.
LaCie d2 Blu-ray Drives are available now for a suggested retail price of $649.99. If you'd like to read more, LaCie's entire press release can be found website. Add a comment
Sony has announced the European launch of its new upscaling DVD player, the DVP-NS708H. Along with the ability to upconvert standard DVD's to 1080p, the DVP-NS708H offers features such as HDMI output, DivX playback and support for BRAVIA Sync.

A perfect complement to your BRAVIA LCD television or any HD Ready TV, the DVP-NS708H upscales Standard Definition DVDs to 1080p for sublime, detail-packed pictures. The highest resolution format your HD TV can display, 1080p presents 1920x1080 Full HD images with progressive scanning. This guarantees a richer, more cinematic viewing experience, especially at larger TV screen sizes.

It's also a great way to get even more enjoyment from your precious digital photo collection. JPEG images burned onto CD or DVD from your Cyber-shot or α digital SLR camera can be enjoyed on a connected BRAVIA television with breathtaking HD quality. If your BRAVIA TV supports PhotoTV HD, still images are optimised further for the ultimate photo viewing experience.
No word yet on pricing or availability. If you'd like to read more, Sony's entire press release can be found here. Add a comment

Cyber Sniper SONAR 5.1 Headset @tkArena
Gl acialtech Altair A380 HTPC Case @Tweaknews.net
Lenovo ThinkPad X300 Series Notebook @TweakTown
Logitech diNovo Mini @InsideHW
NZXT Tempest Case @ThinkComputers.org
PNY Verto GeForce 9600GT Graphics Card @TweakTown
ThermoLab Micro Silencer CPU Cooler @BCCHardware
Western Digital My Passport Elite 320 GB USB 2.0 Portable Hard Drive @Futurelooks
ZEROther m Zen FZ120 CPU Cooler @Virtual-Hideout
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JVC announced today that it is spinning off its recordable media business into a new company called Victor Advanced Media Co., Ltd. Once the spin off is complete, JVC plans to transfer a portion of the new company's shares to Taiyo Yuden.
Under its new Medium-term Management Plan, JVC is currently reforming its businessstructure and management foundation by focusing on consumer electronics, professionalsystems, and entertainment as its three future core businesses. These reforms includeconcentrated efforts to strengthen these core businesses, as well as fundamental review ofother businesses.

In the process of JVC's investigation of thorough structural reforms the company consideredthe transfer or spin-off of its recordable media business.

As a result, JVC decided to spin-off this business to the new company Victor AdvancedMedia Co., Ltd. and transfer a portion of the shares of this company to Taiyo Yuden Co., Ltd.JVC judged this to be the best option for business continuity. It will also make maximum use ofthe brand strength, technology, and know-how that JVC has cultivated up to the present;ensure continuity in responsibility for product supply to existing customers; and secure the employment of JVC personnel working in the recordable media business.
It's good to see JVC and Taiyo Yuden working together. Hopefully, this way we'll actually see the DVD-RW DL media that JVC has been developing. If you'd like to read more, JVC's entire press release can be found here. Add a comment
Samsung announced this week that it has developed the world's fastest 256GB multi-level cell (MLC) based solid state drive (SSD). This new 2.5" SSD is equipped with a SATA II interface which allows it to read at 200 MB/s and write at 160 MB/s.
Samsung Electronics, the world leader in advanced memory technology, announced today that it has developed the world's fastest, 2.5-inch, 256 Gigabyte (GB) multi-level cell (MLC) based solid state drive (SSD) using a SATA II interface, at the fifth annual Samsung Mobile Solution Forum held here today. Samsung's new 256GB SSD is also the thinnest drive with the largest capacity to be offered with a SATA II interface.

With a sequential read speed of 200 megabytes per second (MB/s) and sequential write speed of 160MB/s, Samsung's MLC-based 2.5-inch 256GB SSD is about 2.4 times faster than a typical HDD. Furthermore, the new 256 GB SSD is only 9.5 millimeters (mm) thick, and measures 100.3x69.85 mm.

Once introduced, the Samsung's 256GB SSD will mark the largest capacity SSD from the global market leader in SSD sales, effectively eliminating density as a barrier to SSD adoption in the consumer space.
Samsung is expected to begin producing its new 256GB SSD by year end, with customer samples available in September. A 1.8-inch version of the drive is expected to be available in the fourth quarter of 2008. Full details can be found here. Add a comment
I/OMagic recently announced that they have started shipping their new internal and external Blu-ray burners. To test the technical support needs of these new drives, I/OMagic has decided to offer them exclusively through their website.
I/OMagic (OTCBB: IOMG), a leading online retailer of personal data storage devices to major retailers, announced today the availability of internal and external Blu-Ray drives from their new redesigned website. I/OMagic is among the pioneers of optical storage and has maintained a strong presence in this market by offering quality, reliable CD and DVD optical drives. The addition of the Blu-Ray optical drives is an ideal extension of the I/OMagic optical drive line, which already encompasses internal and external dual layer, LightScribe, and slim notebook drives.

"There is strong demand for Blu-Ray burners for video editing, data backup and archiving, playing high resolution movies and state-of-the-art games," says Don Wallis, VP of Marketing. "With ever increasing need for more storage for video, photos, and data, Blu-Ray discs satisfy this need with their huge 25GB to 50GB data storage capacity on a single disc."
Unfortunately, I/OMagic has not released any details about the drives themselves or how much they will be. As we find out more, we'll let you know. In the mean time, I/OMagic's entire press release can be found here. Add a comment
With increased competition for OEM orders, the price of optical drives has dropped considerably over the last few years. According to DigiTimes, these price drops will soon be coming to an end. Due to the increased cost of materials and components, companies like Lite-On and Quanta plan to raise the price of optical drives by as much as 10% in the third quarter of 2008.
Lite-On IT and Quanta Storage, the largest Taiwan-based ODM/OEM makers of half-height and slim-type optical disc drives (ODDs), respectively, are planning to increase their ODM/OEM pricing by 3-10%, depending on the type of ODD, in the third quarter of 2008, according to industry sources in Taiwan.

The planned hike in pricing is because procurement costs for key materials and components have cumulatively risen to levels beyond Lite-On IT and Quanta Storage's tolerance, the sources explained.
With the price of oil going through the roof, we should feel lucky that manufacturers are raising prices by only 10%. If you'd like to read more, head on over to DigiTimes. Add a comment
Panasonic announced today that it has developed a single-chip signal processing LSI for Blu-ray Disc players. The MN2WS006 offers support for the latest BD standards and includes functions such as dual-screen simultaneous video playback, high-quality audio playback and network compatibility.

Panasonic, the leading brand by which Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. is known, has developed the world's first Blu-ray Disc (BD) player-specific single-chip signal processing LSI (product number: MN2WS006), in response to the latest BD standards. This LSI combines a front end to read the signal from the BD, and a back end to convert this into AV data. Samples of this LSI will begin shipping in June 2008.

By using this product, Panasonic will be able to realize smaller sizes and lower power consumption in BD players compatible with the latest BD standards.
If you'd like to read more, Panasonic's entire press release can be found here. Add a comment
I/OMagic announced this week that it has begun shipping its new Portable USB 2.0 DVD-RW drive. This slim and lightweight drive weighs less than half a pound and is powered through its USB port. It also features 8x DVD±R and 4x DVD+R DL writing speeds and is capable of storing 8.5GB of data onto a single DL disc.
I/OMagic Corporation (OTCBB: IOMG), a leading provider of data storage products, announced today that they are shipping their Portable USB 2.0 DVD ReWritable disk drive that comes in a sleek, sturdy, black enclosure. This attractive and easy to use Portable USB 2.0 DVD-RW is powered by the USB port making it a very easy to use add-on to a personal computer or notebook for burning large amounts of music, photos and video, and data.

"The greatest demand for our Portable DVD burners are notebook users," says Tony Shahbaz, I/OMagic's CEO. "Most of the less expensive notebooks only have DVD readers and sub-notebooks have no DVD at all, so the need for Portable DVD burners is growing as the notebook market grows."
I/OMagic's Portable USB 2.0 DVD disk drive is available now for suggested retail price of $99.99. Full details can be found here. Add a comment