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Home Entertainment
DivX, Inc. announced this week that DENON's latest Blu-ray Disc player has been certified for DivX playback. The DVD-3800BDCI will go on sale in the Japan and U.S. markets at the end of April.
DivX, Inc. (NASDAQ: DIVX), a digital media company, today announced that the latest Blu-ray Disc player from DENON, the high-end audio/video brand owned by D&M Holdings Inc., has achieved DivX(R) Certification. The DivX Certified(R) DENON Blu-ray Disc Player (model: DVD-3800BDCI) will go on sale in the Japan and U.S. markets at the end of this month. This is the second DENON Blu-ray player to receive DivX Certification, joining a family of DENON DVD players that also guarantee reliable playback of high-quality DivX(R) video files.

"DENON is a world leader in high-quality home theater systems and audio products. By extending the DivX standard into next-generation Blu-ray devices, we're further delivering on our strategy to provide consumers with a high-quality video experience on any kind of device, from the PC to the living room and on the go," said Kevin Hell, CEO of DivX, Inc. "DivX is just as relevant as a feature on a Blu-ray player as on standard DVD players and we expect more and more Blu-ray players to incorporate DivX technology."
If you'd like to read more, DivX's entire press release can be found here. Add a comment

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Hard Disks
Plextor Europe sent out a press release today, announcing a 750GB version of its PC-to-TV media player. Using the PX-MPE750U, consumers can take the photos, music and video stored on their PC and play them back on their TV at resolutions up to 720p.

Following the successful introduction of its 500GB PC-to-TV consumer multimedia player into the market in the New Year, Plextor is extending the range to add a 750GB version. The company’s latest personal storage device - the PX-MPE750U - enables PC files to be played back on your TV or hi-fi, including audio, video & photo files. With video upscaling to 720P (HD-Ready), it is a high performance drive with the ability to play a wide variety of file types.
No word on price yet. However, the PX-MPE750U will be available in Europe at end of March 2008. Full details can be found here. Add a comment

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Software
Primera announced today that it has begun shipping the latest version of Charismac Engineering's Discribe software with its Bravo-Series and XR-Series Disc Publishers. Discribe v6.0 has been rewritten from the ground up and runs on Apple's Mac OS X v10.5 Leopard operating system. The software features a new user interface and offers support for Blu-ray Disc media.
Primera Technology, Inc., the world’s leading manufacturer of CD, DVD, and Blu-ray Disc duplication and printing equipment, today announced an agreement with Charismac Engineering, Inc. for disc burning software that runs on Apple, Inc.’s Mac OS X v10.5 Leopard operating system. Beginning April 1, 2008, Primera will include Charismac’s new Discribe v6.0 software in all Bravo-Series and XR-Series Disc Publishers.

Discribe v6.0 has been completely rewritten from the ground up in Universal Binary Code for optimal performance on all current Mac platforms. It runs natively on both Power PC and x86 (Intel)-based Mac computers.
Those who bought a Bravo-Series Disc Publisher after September 1, 2007 qualify for a free upgrade. Otherwise, an upgrade can be purchased for $149-$225. Full details can be found here. Add a comment

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Home Entertainment
DTS has announced that it will be showcasing its DTS Digital Surround sound audio codec at the 2008 Intel Developers Forum. The company will also be demonstrating its DTS-HD Master Audio technology and will unveil its new DTS Surround Sensation UltraPC technology for the first time in China.
DTS, Inc. (NASDAQ:DTSI), a digital audio technology company dedicated to delivering the ultimate entertainment experience, is showcasing its acclaimed industry-standard DTS Digital Surround sound audio codec (mandatory for inclusion in all next generation Blu-ray Disc standard products) at the 2008 Intel Developers Forum (IDF) in Shanghai, China. The company will also demonstrate its DTS-HD Master Audio technology which delivers high definition lossless audio for home theater and PC applications. In addition, at IDF, DTS will unveil -- for the first time in China -- its new DTS Surround Sensation UltraPC technology, delivering immersive simulated surround from stereo and 5.1 source material over two-channel audio systems (stereo speakers or headphones).
If you'd like to read more, DTS's entire press release can be found here. Add a comment

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Optical Storage
DigiTimes is reporting that Lite-On is developing Blu-ray Disc drives for the Xbox 360. According to their sources, Lite-On will begin BD-ROM drive shipments in the second half of 2008.
Lite-On IT is developing built-in Blu-ray Disc-(BD) ROM drives for the Microsoft Xbox 360 game console, according to industry sources. Lite-On declined to comment, citing client confidentiality.

Lite-On's shipments of the BD ROMs to Microsoft will start in the second half of 2008, the sources added. Lite-On is currently one of the suppliers of Xbox 360-use internal DVD-ROM drives.

Microsoft has decided to switch to BD for its Xbox 360 game consoles after Toshiba announced to discontinue HD DVD, the sources said. The BD-ROM drives that Lite-On is developing for Microsoft are for the next-generation Xbox 360 game consoles, the sources said.
While Microsoft has denied that they will offer support for Blu-ray, the continuous stream of rumors indicate that an addon player is probably coming in time for the holidays. If you'd like to read more, head on over to DigiTimes. Add a comment

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Optical Storage
DigiTimes is reporting that the number of optical disc drives (ODDs) shipped by Taiwan-based manufacturers dropped by more than 7% in 2007. According to the article, the decrease was due to Hitachi-LG Data Storage (HLDS) and Toshiba-Samsung Storage Technology (TSST) being more competitive than manufacturers located in Taiwan.
Taiwan-based manufacturers in total shipped an estimated 80.591 million optical disc drives (ODDs) of all types in 2007, dropping by 7.1% from 2006, according to Digitimes Research.

The decrease was mainly because Taiwan-based makers were less competitive compared to Hitachi-LG Data Storage (HLDS) and Toshiba-Samsung Storage Technology (TSST), the world's top-two ODM/OEM makers of ODDs, in DVD burners which had become the mainstream ODD type adopted by international PC vendors, Digitimes Research pointed out.
Taiwan's ODD manufacturers are expected to bounce back in 2008 with a shipment volume of 91.217 million drives. If you'd like to read more, head on over to DigiTimes. Add a comment

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Other
Dell recently announced that consumers can get a Blu-ray equipped Inspiron 1525 laptop for less than $1000. The laptop features a 15.4" wide aspect display with 720p resolution and can easily be connected to other high resolution displays, such as HDTVs, using its HDMI port.
The high-definition format wars are over - and you won: Dell customers can now get a Blu-ray laptop for under a $1,000. Available today on dell.com, movie buffs can pick up the Inspiron 1525 with optional Blu-ray disc playback starting at $879.

As retailers and video rental companies expand their high-definition offerings, Blu-ray is the new “must-have” technology to help get the most out of your viewing experience.

The award-winning Inspiron 1525 laptop features a 15.4-inch high definition wide aspect display with 720p resolution. It also includes an HDMI port for easy connectivity to high resolution displays and HDTVs.
The Insprion 1525 is also available with a Blu-ray writer which allows consumers to burn up to 50GB worth of data onto a single disc. Full details can be found here. Add a comment

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