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Home Entertainment

25 February 2008

Microsoft announced over the weekend that they too will be dropping support for HD DVD. According to Bloomberg.com, the company will stop making HD DVD players for the Xbox 360 and will drop the price of the addon to only $49.

Microsoft Corp. plans to stop making HD DVD players and cut the price of existing supplies by more than half after the leading promoter of the high-definition video format conceded defeat to Sony Corp.'s Blu-ray last week.

``From tomorrow, we will cut the price to $49,'' said Grace Chou, a Taipei-based spokeswoman for the Redmond, Washington- based company. Microsoft's Xbox 360 game console includes a standard DVD player, and customers can buy an HD DVD machine to use with the console at $119.99 through retailers such as Amazon.com.

There is still no official word from Microsoft as to whether or not we'll be seeing a Blu-ray player for the Xbox 360. Hopefully, we'll hear something soon. In the mean time, Bloomberg's entire article can be found here. Add a comment

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Home Entertainment

22 February 2008

While many electronics retailers in the US have put Toshiba's HD DVD players on clearance, six of Japan's major retailers have pulled them from their shelves altogether. According to INQUIRER.net, these retailers have asked Toshiba to take back its stock of players.

As of Friday, six major Japanese electronics retailers -- Yodobashi Camera, Kojima, Nojima, Edion, Best Denki and Joshin Denki -- had suspended all sales of HD DVD, company officials said. The chains are in talks with Toshiba for the electronics giant to take back its stock either fully or partially.

Edion, which operates 1,000 stores across Japan under various names, announced an offer for any customer who bought HD DVD hardware from Toshiba to switch for a Blu-ray machine sold by Sony, Panasonic or Sharp. The offer is available only in March, with customers expected to pay any price difference if the Blu-ray machine was more expensive.

While I'd be surprised if Toshiba took back their stock of HD DVD players, its good to see that some retailers care enough about their customers that they'd give them a way to move to Blu-ray. If you'd like to read more, the entire article can be found here. Add a comment

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Hard Disks

22 February 2008

Transcend recently announced their new shock-resistant portable hard drives. Available in 160GB and 250GB capacities, the StoreJet 25 mobile features a rugged silicone outer case and a shock absorbing suspension system to protect the internal hard drive from damage.

Transcend Information, Inc. (Transcend), a global leader in the digital storage industry, proudly announces its new shock-resistant high capacity portable hard drive - the StoreJet 25 mobile. The new StoreJet 25 mobile is lightweight (206g) and easy to carry around, with compact measurements of just 134mm by 80.8mm by 18.8mm. Inside its extra-rugged shockproof silicone outer case is a high-capacity hard drive that lets you backup and store up to 250GB of data. To protect against data loss or damage from accidental slips or falls, the StoreJet 25 mobile meets U.S.military drop-test standards (MIL-STD-810F - Transit Drop) with advanced two-stage anti-shock technology, literally making it one of the safest places to keep your data. In order to ensure maximum compatibility with most desktop and notebook computers, the StoreJet 25 mobile uses a high-speed USB 2.0 interface, which provides data transfer rates up to 480Mb per second while offering the convenience of plug and play.

If you'd like to read more, Transcend's entire press release can be found here. Add a comment

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Other

21 February 2008

Belkin In-Desk 3" Grommet Hole USB Hub @Everything USB
ECS A770M-A (V1.0) AMD 770 Motherboard @Bigbruin.com
Fanatec Porsche 911 Turbo Wheel for PC & PS3 @I4U
Foxconn Mars Motherboard @InsideHW.com
Noctua NH-U12P CPU Heatsink @Madshrimps
NVIDIA GeForce 9600 GT 512MB @Hardware Zone
Palit GeForce 9600GT Sonic @ChileHardware
QNAP TS-109 Pro SATA Gigabit NAS @Benchmark Reviews
RaidMax Aztec Case @TweakPC
Rosewill RX81-MP 3.5" e-SATA Enclosure @Virtual-Hideout
Sigma Shark 635W Power Supply @ThinkComputers.org
XFX 9600 GT Video Card @I4U
ZOTAC GeForce 9600GT 512MB AMP! Edition @TweakTown

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Optical Storage

21 February 2008

Traxdata has announced the availability of Europe's first 16x DVD+R DL media. According to their press release, an entire 8.5GB disc can be written in as little as 10 minutes.

Traxdata, a leading optical and flash media storage vendor, has today announced a European market first with the availability of its Double Layer(DL) DVD+R 16x media enabling users to store 8.5GB on one disc.

Traxdata’s DVD+R DL 16x can burn 8.5GB of audio, video or data files in just 10 minutes compared to the standard DVD+R DL 8x which takes nearly 20 minutes to burn the same amount of content. This equates to up to four hours of DVD quality video, 16 hours of VHS quality video, or more than 120 hours of MP3 audio.

Traxdata's 16x DVD+R DL media is available now in packs of five. Full details can be found here. Add a comment

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Optical Storage

21 February 2008

While Taiwan's media manufacturers have been reluctant to mass produce blue-laser discs, Toshiba's recent announcement has motivated companies like CMC and Ritek to invest in the production of BD-R and BD-RE discs.

CMC and Ritek are technologically poised to kick off production of BD discs, as they have each obtained level A laboratory certification for 4x BD-R SL and 2x BD-RE SL formats, the sources pointed out.

Among second-tier Taiwan-based makers, Prodisc Technology and Daxon Technology are willing to step into the production of BD discs while Lead Data and Gigastorage hold a conservative attitude, the sources indicated.

While Blu-ray has become the high-def standard, manufacturers do not expect the market for blank BD-R and BD-RE discs to take off for another year or two. If you'd like to read more, head on over to DigiTimes. Add a comment

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Home Entertainment

21 February 2008

Paramount, the last Hollywood studio to support HD DVD, has announced that it too will be releasing titles on Blu-ray. In a statement sent to The Hollywood Reporter, Paramount announced that it was pleased that the industry was moving toward a single format and that it would would begin releasing titles on Blu-ray in the near future.

Paramount Home Entertainment quietly came onboard via a statement sent exclusively to The Hollywood Reporter on Wednesday: "We are pleased that the industry is moving to a single high-definition format, as we believe it is in the best interest of the consumer," the statement reads. "As we look to (begin) releasing our titles on Blu-ray, we will monitor consumer adoption and determine our release plans accordingly."

While Paramount has provided any details in regards to a release schedule, a Blu-ray version of Transformers has already shown up in Circuit City's computers. If you'd like to read more, the entire article can be found here. Add a comment

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Other

20 February 2008

Buffalo LinkStation EZ 500GB Network-Attached Storage Device @ThinkComputers.org
Corsair Dominator TWIN3X2048-1800C7DFIN G Kit @HotHardware.com
Seagate 750GB Recertified Hard Drive @Madshrimps
SilverStone 400 Watt ST40EF Power Supply @HardwareLogic.com
Soyo Topaz S 24" LCD Monitor @ASE Labs
Super Talent Vidego28 MP4 Player @High Tech Reviews

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Home Entertainment

20 February 2008

While Toshiba plans to out of the HD DVD player market by the end of March, LG isnt dumping the format quite yet. According to Pocket-lint.co.uk, LG will will continue to develop and offer players that support both both Blu-ray and HD DVD.

"LG believes that at this present moment in time, it is necessary to provide a player which supports both formats and therefore create simplicity and convenience for the existing HD DVD consumer..."

"...With the recent announcement from Toshiba, Blu-Ray will now be the format that will pave the way for high definition movies, however this does not rule out HD DVD immediately as there are still a number of consumers who have chosen HD DVD and begun to build a HD DVD collection."

This is definitely good news, especially for those who already have a sizeable HD DVD collection. If you'd like to read more, the entire article can be found here. Add a comment