Details

• Print

Optical Storage

15 February 2008

The Japanese company, Buffalo, has announced a new series drives based on the Panasonic's 4x Blu-ray Disc writer, the SW-5583. The internal BR-416FBS and external BR-416U2 feature 4x BD-R, 4x BD-R DL and 2x BD-RE writing speeds and a maximum BD-ROM read speed of 4x. Here are some of the specs:

Writing Speeds: BD-R: 4x BD-R DL: 4x BD-RE: 2x DVD±R: 16x DVD±R DL: 8x DVD+RW: 8x DVD-RW: 6x DVD-RAM: 5x CD-R: 40x CD-RW: 24x

Read Speeds: BD-ROM: 4x BD-R: 4x BD-R DL: 4x BD-RE: 2x DVD-ROM (Single): 16x Max DVD-ROM (Dual): 8x Max DVD±R: 16x Max DVD±RW: 8x Max DVD±R DL: 8x Max DVD-RAM: 5x Max CD-R/ROM: 40x Max CD-RW: 32x Max

The BR-416FBS and BR-416U2 will ship in late February and are priced at 48,500 Yen ($450US) and 53,000 Yen ($492US) respectively. More information can be found here. Add a comment

Details

• Print

Home Entertainment

15 February 2008

HD DVD was dealt another major blow today. According to CNN, Wal-Mart has decided to phase out HD DVD in favor of Blu-ray. Starting in June, the retailer will only stock Blu-ray titles and movies in its Wal-Mart and Sam's Club stores.

National discount retailer Wal-Mart announced Friday that it had decided to only sell Sony's Blu-ray hi-definition movie discs, and will phase out Toshiba's competing HD-DVD formatted discs over the next several months.

Wal-Mart said that by June, its 4,000 Wal-Mart and Sam's Club stores would sell only Blu-ray discs and Blu-ray hardware players. Blu-ray and Toshiba's HD-DVD format are not compatible.

"We've listened to our customers, who are showing a clear preference toward Blu-ray products and movies with their purchases," said Gary Severson, Wal-Mart's Senior Vice President of Home Entertainment in a statement.

With Wal-mart going Blu-ray, I think its safe to say that the format war is truly over. Without the support of the nation's largest retailer, there is little chance of HD DVD making a comeback. If you'd like to read more, the entire article can be found here. Add a comment

Details

• Print

Flash Memory

15 February 2008

Samsung announced this week that it has begun mass production of its new 64GB SATA II SSD. With the ability to read at 100MB/s and write at 80MB/s, Samsung's new SATA II SSD is 60% faster than SATA I drives and 2-5x faster than conventional hard disk drives.

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd, leader in advanced semiconductor technology, announced today that it has begun mass producing 64 GB solid state drives (SSDs) with its new SATA II interface, offering the highest performance rates in the industry for premium notebook PCs.

Able to read data at 100 megabytes per second and write it at 80 megabytes per second, Samsung’s SATA II SSD is up to 60 percent faster than SATA I drives and performs two to five times faster than conventional hard disk drives (HDDs). It also consumes nearly 75 percent less power than typical HDDs (1.45 watts compared to 2.1 watts) and at 73 grams, SSDs are much lighter than HDDs.

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

Details

• Print

Optical Storage

14 February 2008

Sharp has announced that it will begin volume production of two new blue-violet semiconductor lasers in April. With an output of 250mW, the GH04P25A2G and GH04P25A4G are capable of writing to dual layer Blu-ray Disc media at speeds as high as 6x. Here's part of their press release, translated from Japanese:

Sharp will mass-produce two models of the blue purple high power semiconductor laser that achieve the output of 250mW pulse of the top level in the industry that can be recorded about BD etc. two layer 4-6 X speed in April.

Best laptop industry's top small package adopted φ3.3 mm , and BD recorders for the PC desktop package φ5.6 mm commercialize the rapidly rising demand for recording BD market Lineup for strengthening.

Once the get rolling, Sharp plans to produce 700,000 blue-violet lasers per month. If you'd like to read more, Sharp's entire press release can be found here. Add a comment

Details

• Print

Hard Disks

14 February 2008

Verbatim Europe has announced the launch of its new line of 2.5” portable hard drives. These palm-sized drives come in sizes ranging from 120GB up to 320GB and offer your choice of a USB interface or Combo USB/FireWire interface.

Verbatim launches a whole new line of Verbatim 2.5” Portable Hard Drives (HDDs). With the new, elegantly designed External Hard Drives, consumers and businesses can immediately add 120, 160, 250, or 320GB removable capacity to their computer. The palm-sized external drives will be available for both Windows and Mac users in specialist stores from February.

The need for a fast, easy way to store, backup, share and transport data and multimedia files is fueling explosive growth in the worldwide removable storage industry. As a result, the market research company GfK predicted sales of around 10 million external hard drives in Western Europe in 2007 - an increase of just under 90 percent compared to 2006, when 5.2 million external hard drives were sold. For 2008, GfK anticipates a total sales volume of over 14 million 2.5" and 3.5" External Hard Drives in Western Europe.

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

Details

• Print

Optical Storage

14 February 2008

ASUS announced two new DVD-ROM's today. Along with 18x DVD-ROM and and 48x CD-ROM read speeds, the DVD-E818A2 and DVD-E818A2T are the first drives to support the 5x DVD-RW DL format.

Catering to users who require high quality multimedia experiences, ASUS, producer of top-notch optical drives, has today released the ASUS DVD-E818A2/A2T. This series of optical drives is the world’s first ODD that supports 5X DVD-RW DL, and provides users with cutting-edge multimedia experiences backed with superior playback capabilities and high-speed data transfers; while built-in advanced ASUS exclusive technologies will provide a quieter, more stable and higher performance multimedia environment.

The ASUS DVD-E818A2 and ASUS DVD-E818A2T provide leading-edge multimedia experiences with the ability to read 5X DVD-RW DL - the brand new industry format. With this support, users will be able to view high quality videos directly burnt into DVDs from camcorders and obtain fabulous playback capacities. It also allows users to access all CDs, DVD-ROM/DVD±R/ DVD±RW/DVD-RAM and DVD-Video discs.

No word yet on pricing or availability. As we find out more, we'll let you know. In the mean time, ASUS's entire press release can be found here. Add a comment

Details

• Print

Other

13 February 2008

AMD Phenom 9600 Black Edition @TechwareLabs
ASUS Silent Square EVO CPU Cooler @HardwareLogic.com
ASUS U6S Ultraportable Notebook @HotHardware.com
Eagle Tech ET-CS2LSU2-BK 2.5 Inch USB Drive Enclosure @Bigbruin.com
Foxconn G33M-S Micro-ATX Motherboard @Virtual-Hideout
Gigabyte GA-X38-DQ6 Motherboard @InsideHW.com
Nexus Caterpillar ATX Quiet Case @Virtual-Hideout
NZXT Cryo LAX Notebook Cooler @tkArena
ThermalTake SopranoRS 101 Case @ASE Labs

Add a comment

Details

• Print

Flash Memory

13 February 2008

Panasonic announced this week that they will be releasing their new 32GB SDHC memory card in April 2008. Developed for high-def camcorders, their 32GB SDHC card offers 20MB/s transfer speeds and a new user-friendly labeling feature.

Panasonic, today announced the release date of the world’s first* 32 Gigabyte (GB) SD High Capacity (SDHC)** Memory Card with Class 6 speed specification. With a global release in April 2008, the new SDHC Memory Card, RP-SDV32GU1K, is perfect for those wanting High Definition content,as it can record up to 12 hours of High Definition video. The new SDHC Memory Card will have a manufacturer’s suggested retail price of $699.

The newly developed card, featuring a massive 32GB of capacity is ideal for AVCHD High Definition video recording, a growing demand thanks to the recent expansion of High Definition SD Camcorders. When used with Panasonic’s newly released High Definition SD camcorder, the HDC-SD9, the 32GB card can record approximately 12 hours of 1440 x 1080i High Definition video in HE mode, and approximately four hours of 1920 x 1080i full High Definition video in HA mode. With the Class 6 speed specification and maximum data transfer speeds up to 20MB/s, the 32GB card allows users to enjoy superb performance and high-quality recording.

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

Details

• Print

Software

13 February 2008

Roxio sent out a press release today, announcing the launch of three new applications. With MyDVD 10 Premier, Easy DVD Copy 4 Premier, media enthusiasts have the tools to create, manage, and enjoy photos, music, and videos whenever and wherever they want.

Roxio, a division of Sonic Solutions (NASDAQ: SNIC), the leader in digital media software, , today launched three new applications that enable consumers to make the most of their digital libraries. MyDVD 10 Premier, Easy DVD Copy 4 Premier and RecordNow Music Lab 10 Premier easily turn photos, videos and music into impressive digital media creations that can be shared on CD, DVD or enjoyed on a variety of portable devices. MyDVD 10 is a comprehensive video editing and DVD creation suite for the growing number of consumers who want to edit home movies and create slideshows and video compilations to view on widescreen TVs or to share online. To satisfy consumers who wish to enjoy their favorite personal media content and entertainment on the road, Roxio is also releasing Easy DVD Copy 4, the ultimate DVD copy and video conversion application. Designed for the music enthusiast, RecordNow Music Lab 10 makes collecting, organizing and creating perfect playlists quick and easy.

MyDVD 10 Premier and RecordNow Music Lab 10 Premier are available now for $69.99 and $49.99 respectively. Easy DVD Copy 4 Premier will be available later this month for $49.99. Full details can be found here. Add a comment