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Home Entertainment
Futuresource Consulting recently released the results from its new home copying consumer research study. Sponsored by Macrovision, the study asked more than 5,000 people whether or not they made copies of pre-recorded DVDs. According to the results, one-third of the respondents made a copy of a DVD in the last six months. This is up from just over a quarter of respondents in 2007. Here are some of the highlights from the study:


  • Around one third of all respondents in both countries admit to making copies of pre-recorded DVDs in the last 6 months, up from just over a quarter of respondents in 2007.
  • As in 2007 it is 18-24 year old males who are most likely to be copiers.
  • Copiers of DVDs are using both analogue and digital copying methods, with the two being of almost equal importance.
  • In both territories, the most common way of copying is either from a DVD player to a DVD recorder, or using a single PC software application for burning DVD copies.
  • In the last 6 months, the average number of movies copied in the UK was 13 new release and 9 catalogue; in the USA the figures were 7 and 6 respectively.
  • Although the majority of people are copying from their own purchased DVD in both the UK and USA, a significant proportion of people are copying from rented and borrowed titles.
  • The majority of UK and USA respondents would most likely buy these movie titles new at sale or promotional price.
  • From a list of 40 recent blockbuster movie titles supplied to respondents, more than half of all DVD copiers in the USA and more than one third in the UK had successfully made copies of the titles on the list

Keep in mind that this study was sponsored by Macrovision and is being used to show that movie studios are losing revenue due to home copying. Personally, I'm not surprised by the number of people making copies. What does surprise me though is the the number of people making analog copies. It makes you wonder where they found the people in this study. Anyway, if you'd like to read more, the details from the study can be found here. Add a comment

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Home Entertainment
While best known for their digital cameras, Kodak has set its sites on the high-def market with a suite of new products. Along with its new Zi6 Pocket Video Camera, the company recently unveiled the KODAK Theatre HD Player. The player connects to a household’s private Wi-Fi Network, allowing them to view images and high-def (720p) video on their television. The KODAK Theatre HD Player can also internet radio, podcasts and online video and photo sharing sites such as Flickr and YouTube.

Revolutionizing the way images and video can be enjoyed in HD, the KODAK Theatre HD Player is an interactive device that displays personal and web-based content on an HDTV, while wirelessly connecting to a household’s private Wi-Fi Network. Able to display HD still images (16:9 Aspect Ratio) and video (720p) on a HDTV, the remote operated KODAK Theatre HD Player lets consumers relive their favorite, and even forgotten, memories through a HD slideshow, as well as edit and upload images and videos to popular online content sharing sites.

Through unique partnerships with pioneers in photo sharing, such as KODAK Gallery and Flickr™ the KODAK Theatre HD Player provides consumers with easy and compelling ways to share pictures with friends and families. Additional partnerships with FrameChannel, a service of Frame Media, Inc., YouTube™ and RadioTime provide access to more than imaging content, offering an interactive and engaging multimedia experience. The KODAK Theatre HD Player is also compatible with USB drives and SD memory cards.
The KODAK Theatre HD Player is expected to ship in September for a suggested retail price of $299.99. Full details can be found here. Add a comment

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Hard Disks
Seagate recently unveiled the world's first 1.5-terabyte desktop and half-terabyte notebook hard drives. The 3.5-inch Barracuda 7200.11 packs 1.5TB onto four platters and delivers a sustained data rate of up to 120MB/second. The 2.5-inch Momentus 5400.6 and Momentus 7200.4 are available in capacities up to 500GB and are tough enough to withstand up to 1,000 Gs of shock. The Momentus 7200.4 also offers a 7200-rpm spin speed and a 16MB cache.
The debut of the Barracuda® 7200.11 1.5TB hard drive, the eleventh generation of Seagate’s flagship drive for desktop PCs, marks the single largest capacity hard drive jump in the more than half-century history of hard drives - a half-terabyte increase from the previous highest capacity of 1TB, thanks to the capacity-boosting power of perpendicular magnetic recording (PMR) technology.

The Barracuda 7200.11 hard drive combines proven PMR technology, components and expert manufacturing to provide 1.5TB of reliable storage for mainstream desktop computers, workstations, desktop RAID, gaming and high-end PCs, and USB/FireWire/eSATA external storage.

Seagate’s new 2.5-inch half-terabyte 5400- and 7200-rpm drives - Momentus® 5400.6 and Momentus 7200.4 - deliver the best combination of capacity, mobility and durability for mainstream and high-performance notebook computers, external storage solutions, PCs and industrial applications requiring small form factor.
The Barracuda 7200.11 1.5TB will ship to retailers in August 2008. The Momentus 5400.6 and 7200.4 hard drives are scheduled to ship some time during the fourth quarter of 2008. If you'd like to read more, Seagate's entire press release can be found here. Add a comment

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Home Entertainment
D-Link sent out a press release earlier today, announcing the availability of the first DivX Connected device in the U.S. The D-Link MediaLounge DSM-330 connects to a user's home network via 802.11g Wi-Fi or Ethernet and streams music, photos and high-definition video from PCs to the television.

DivX, Inc. (NASDAQ:DIVX), a digital media company, and D-Link, the end-to-end networking solutions provider for consumer and business, today announced the availability of the first DivX Connected™ device in the U.S., with distribution in Canadian markets soon to follow. The D-Link® MediaLounge® DSM-330 enables the seamless streaming of music, photos, Internet services, and high-definition video from PCs to the television.

“As more and more people embrace the DivX® platform, we recognize the growing demand for a media player that supports all the capabilities that the DivX interface has to offer,” said Chris Wong, Director of Product Management, D-Link Systems, Inc. “There is increasing market demand for solutions that bridge the gap between the PC and television and we are proud to be the first to work with DivX in bringing DivX Connected to North America.”
The D-Link DSM-330 is available now for a suggested retail price of $299.99. If you'd like to read more, D-Link's entire press release can be found here. Add a comment

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Software
Corel announced this week that WinDVD has been certified for BD-Live (BD Profile 2.0). With this new feature, WinDVD users will be able to enjoy Internet-connected activities such as social networking, multiplayer gaming and the downloading of movie trailers and subtitles.
Corel Corporation (NASDAQ:CREL) (TSX:CRE), a leading developer of graphics, productivity and digital media software, today announced that Corel® WinDVD® Blu-ray Disc® playback software has received BD-Live™ certification, also known as BD Profile 2.0. By receiving certification for BD-Live, WinDVD has passed the stringent standards and guidelines set by the Blu-ray Disc Association to ensure the best possible user experience.

With BD-Live support, WinDVD users will be able to enjoy a full spectrum of Internet-connected activities including social networking, multiplayer gaming, online shopping as well as the ability to download movie trailers and subtitles - all while viewing Blu-ray Disc movies and videos.
WinDVD with BD-Live support is available to OEMs immediately and will be available to retail customers beginning in early 2009. If you'd like to read more, Corel's entire press release can be found here. Add a comment

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Other

Alienware m15x 15.4-inch Gaming Laptop @ThinkComputers.org
ASRock K10N78FullHD-hSLI R3.0 Motherboard @Redaktion ocinside.de
MSI Wind U100 @InsideHW
Mushkin Enhanced PC3-14400 2GB Memory Kit @HardwareLogic.com
OCZ Rally2 32Gb USB Stick @Madshrimps
Sapphire Radeon HD 4850 @ASE Labs
SilenX IXTREMA Heatsink @High Tech Reviews
SilverStone Decathlon 800W Power Supply @Phoronix
Super Talent Pico-C 8GB Flash Drive @TweakTown
Thermalright IFX-14 CPU and Back-side Heatpipe Cooler @Bigbruin.com
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Hard Disks
Addonics has announced a new hard drive enclosure that provides native 256-bit AES hardware encryption on the fly with no detectable performance degradation. The Diamond Cipher enclosure can be connected to a computer via its built-in eSATA and USB 2.0 connectors or mounted into a 5 ¼” drive bay using Addonics cradle system.

Addonics Technologies www.addonics.com today announced a hard drive kit with built-in eSATA and USB 2.0 connectors that allows users to easily connect an external SATA hard drive to a system or use any SATA hard drive as a removable cartridge drive with the highest level 256-bit AES hardware encryption.

The 256-bit AES hardware encryption incorporated inside the Diamond Cipher enclosure is the most secure storage solution available today. AES is secure enough to protect classified information up to the “TOP SECRET” level, which is the highest security level and defined as information which would cause "exceptionally grave damage" to national security if disclosed to the public.

Diamond Cipher enclosure is also the first enclosure solution to provide native SATA encryption on the fly with no detectable performance degradation to the hard drive though a simple encryption key.
The Diamond Drive Cartridge system is available now and lists for $139. The system comes withDiamond Cipher drive enclosure, a Diamond drive cradle and a pair of 256-bit AES cipher keys. Full details can be found here. Add a comment

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Other

Aeneon XTune DDR2-1142 2GB Memory Kit @TweakTown
ECS GF8200A Black & ASRock K10N78FullHD-hSLI @Phoronix
FSP Everest 80Plus 700W Modular PSU @BCCHardware
LapLogic AeroGel Extreme Lapdesks @Virtual-Hideout
Prestigio Data Safe II Fashion Edition @InsideHW
Qpad CT Mousepad @Rbmods
Thecus N5200BR NAS Server @HotHardware.com
Thermaltake Armor+ MX PC Case @ThinkComputers.org
Tuniq Miniplant 950W Power Supply @HardwareLogic.com
ZOTAC GeForce GTX 280 Video Card @Futurelooks
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Hard Disks
Hitachi sent out a press release today, announcing its second-generation one terabyte hard drive, the Deskstar 7K1000.B. This 7,200 RPM drive features a SATA 3Gb/s interface as well as a new three-disk design that improves idle power consumption up to 43% over its predecessor.
With today’s announcement of its second-generation one terabyte hard drive, the Deskstar 7K1000.B, Hitachi Global Storage Technologies (Hitachi) is forecasting the dawn of a new age in technology that it has dubbed the “Tera Era.” As the amount of digital information created, captured and duplicated around the world continues to grow at an uninterrupted, unrelenting pace, Hitachi’s vision is that three elements - rich media content, culture, and increasing capacity - are uniting to create an entirely new landscape for enterprise and consumer data storage. It is against this exciting backdrop that Hitachi is announcing the Deskstar 7K1000.B, the world’s most energy-efficient 7,200 RPM one terabyte (1TB) hard drive.

The Deskstar 7K1000.B provides an exceptional blend of power efficiency and performance, making it an ideal solution for power-friendly consumer and commercial PCs. The new three-disk design improves idle power consumption up to 43 percent over its 1TB predecessor, which was already among the industry’s most energy efficient hard drives. Increased protection against data loss and piracy is provided via Bulk Data Encryption (BDE) which is available as an optional feature to users. Hitachi is also shipping the Deskstar E7K1000, designed to provide high-capacity storage for low-duty-cycle, 24x7 applications.
The Deskstar 7K1000.B and Deskstar E7K1000 will ship to customers worldwide in July. More information is available on Hitachi's website. Add a comment

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Flash Memory
Samsung Electronics announced this week that it has begun mass production of its new multi-level cell (MLC)-based 64GB and 128GB solid state drives (SSD). Samsung's 1.8- and 2.5-inch MLC-based SSDs offer 70MB/s write and 90MB/s read speeds are are expected to last 20x longer than traditional notebook hard drives.
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., the world leader in advanced semiconductor technology, announced today that it has begun mass producing 1.8- and 2.5-inch multi-level cell (MLC)-based solid state drives (SSD) with a 128 Gigabyte (GB) storage capacity. Mass production of the Samsung MLC-based 64GB SSD also began this month.

With the 64 GB and 128 GB MLC SSDs, we are satisfying the density requirements of most business users and many PC enthusiasts, who will appreciate not only the performance gains and added reliability, but also the more attractive pricing,” said Gerd Schauss, Director Memory Marketing EMEA, Samsung Semiconductor Europe.

Samsung SSDs feature far greater reliability, faster boot times and faster application start-up times than hard disk drives. Power consumption for the Samsung SSD is exceptionally low in standby mode at approximately 0.2 watts and in active mode at 0.5 watts.

The Samsung MLC-based SSD has a write speed of 70MB/s and a read speed of 90MB/s - performance levels that approach those of single-level-cell (SLC)-based SSDs now in mass production. Moreover, the new 128GB SSD will last approximately 20 times longer than the generally accepted 4-5 year life span of a notebook PC hard drive.
No word yet on pricing or availability. If you'd like to read more, Samsung's entire press release can be found here. Add a comment

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