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Hitachi is also working on an 8 layer disc that can hold 200GB of data. However, they've had problems with reflections decreasing the signal strength across the eight layers. If you'd like to read more, the entire article can be found here. Add a comment
Hitachi has developed a prototype four layer Blu-Ray disc capable of holding 100GB of data.
While companies such as TDK and Panasonic have previously mooted 100GB discs, they have always needed a specially developed optical head in the player to read the disc.
Hitachi, however, claims to have used a standard Blu-Ray drive optical head that's only slightly modified to allow it to read and write data across the four 25GB layers. It's believed this will only require a firmware update to make existing drives compatible.
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Blue Ray Technologies is launching a new television division to serve the burgeoning Hi-Def TV market with Blu-ray discs. With virtually all network and cable shows now shot in High Definition, a new market for Blu-ray DVDs is springing up for TV fans.If you'd like to read more, Blue Ray Technologies' entire press release can be found here. Add a comment
The home market for TV show on DVD is well-established: about 100 "Complete Season" sets, specials and TV movies are released every month - more than tripling new theatrical titles.
Complete Season releases can actually be cheaper to networks and consumers than regular DVDs as 13 episodes will fit into a single 25 gigabyte Blu-ray disc, rather than four DVDs. Boxed DVD sets retailing at $49 -$79 presently could be sold in the $29 -$39 range, with store prices being much less.
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No word on pricing or availability. If you'd like to read more, Transcend's entire press release can be found here. Add a comment
Transcend, a worldwide leader in flash memory cards, today announced a new Ultra Speed version of its successful Industrial CompactFlash memory card lineup with capacities up to 8GB. Transcend’s Industrial CF cards are specially designed to meet the strict demands of high-end equipment and machines that run at extreme temperatures. The operating temperature range of Industrial CF cards is much better than normal CF cards, with full functionality down to -40ºC and as hot as 85ºC (normal CF Cards are only rated at -25ºC to 85ºC). Aside from their excellent temperature flexibility, these cards are exceptionally resistant to shock, vibration and dust, while consuming less power and maintaining ultra fast data transfer speeds. Their superb compatibility and durability makes them suitable for use in standard PCMCIA-ATA equipped devices such as industrial PCs, embedded systems, medical instruments, factory automation systems, network infrastructures and other industrial equipment. In addition, Industrial CF cards can even be used as bootable disks in place of conventional hard drives that cannot withstand the harsh conditions of an industrial environment.
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Six major Hollywood studios and six leading consumer electronics manufacturers are extending the highly successful 5 FREE BLU-RAY MOVIES promotion through the busy holiday season, when consumer purchase interest in high definition is expected to be at a record high. Consumers who purchase any qualifying Blu-ray player, including PLAYSTATION3, between October 1, 2007 and January 31, 2008, will be able to choose five free Blu-ray movies from among 18 titles offered by the six participating studios.If you'd like to read more about the BDA's promotion, their entire press release can be found here. Add a comment
The program is intended to encourage consumers to join the millions of high-definition households who are now experiencing Blu-ray Disc. This exciting promotion will be supported with a significant ad spend - more than double that of the summer wave - including major online, gaming, men’s lifestyle, entertainment and business outlets.
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Today, Universal Studios Home Entertainment raised the bar on HD DVD’s unique web-enabled experiences by unveiling an Internet infrastructure that allows it to take advantage of the guaranteed Internet connection in every HD DVD player and deliver compelling, title specific features. Heroes: Season 1 on HD DVD was the first title to take advantage of web-enabled capabilities, but with the forthcoming availability of Evan Almighty on HD DVD, Universal is setting the stage for new home entertainment experiences with web-enabled features such as the Download Center, U-Shop, and much more. Taking advantage of the infinite possibilities of web-enabled experiences, Universal is utilizing HD DVD to explore the promise of digitally distributed scenarios and infusing movie content with e-commerce and social media capabilities.While I can't see myself buying anything through my HD DVD player, the ability to download exclusive content is definitely a nice feature. If you'd like to read more Universal's entire press release can be found here. Add a comment
“HD DVD provides a consistent platform that allows us to go beyond DVD to deliver the best possible next generation HD experiences and begins to introduce consumers to the infinite potential of web-enabled content,” said Craig Kornblau, President of Universal Studios Home Entertainment and Universal Pictures Digital Platforms. “With our web-enabled features, we wanted to deliver capabilities that compliment the HD movie watching experience while also offering a destination online that gives users the opportunity to dive deeper into their favorite movies and TV shows. We’ve just begun to explore HD DVD’s potential and this infrastructure lays the foundation for us to easily evolve with consumer preferences.”
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Biostar Geforce 8600GTS V-Ranger @TweakTown
Chill Innovation CP-520A4 PSU @Metku.net
Ideazon Merc Stealth Illuminated USB Gaming Keyboard @BCCHardware
Microsoft Streets And Maps 2008 With GPS Locator @Futurelooks
MSI NX8600GT Twin Turbo (GeForce 8600 GT) @Hardware Zone
NZXT Lexa Blackline Case @Virtual-Hideout
Viewsonic 42" N4261W 1080p LCD HDTV @I4U
Zalman Z-Machine GT1000 Case @HardwareLogic
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After initially turning a cold shoulder to China, the Blu-ray Disc Assn. is warming up to Chinese OEMs and consumers, BDA spokesman and Pioneer Electronics senior VP Andy Parsons tells Content Agenda.If you'd like to read more, the entire article can be found here. Add a comment
The BDA has begun formal evaluation of AVS (Advanced Video System), a Chinese-developed video codec, and DRA (Digital Rise Audio), a Chinese audio format, for possible inclusion in Blu-ray players made and sold in China.
The decision to evaluate the codecs was announced at a press conference held in Beijing on Sept. 28.
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Sony DADC today announced theproduction of its 10 millionth 50 Gigabyte Blu-ray Disc (BD50). Sony DADCmanufactures BD50s in its three plants, located in Terre Haute, Indiana;Salzburg, Austria; and Shizuoka, Japan. The ten millionth BD50 wasmanufactured at Sony DADC's Terre Haute facility, and was "Spider-Man(TM)3" from Columbia Pictures.The press release also points out that Sony DADC is seeing a yields of about 85% for 25GB Blu-ray Discs and between 75% and 79% for 50GB Blu-ray Discs. Full details can be found here. Add a comment
Since the launch of this High Definition format, Sony DADC has producedmore than 50 million Blu-ray Discs in its three plants, In addition, thesethree plants have a combined Blu-ray manufacturing capacity of 21 milliondiscs per month.
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PioneerCorporation, a leading global manufacturer of consumer and business-useelectronics products, and Sonic Solutions(R), the leader in digital mediasoftware, have begun a worldwide joint licensing program of patents andother related IP for the encryption and burning of video content torecordable DVD media for playback on DVD players. To respond to consumerand industry interest in "electronic sell-through" of video content and tofacilitate the adoption of secure download and burn applications inaccordance with the approved industry specifications for recordingdownloads set by the DVD Forum and the DVD Copy Control Association,Pioneer and Sonic have established a royalty-bearing licensing program thatwill be administered by Sonic under the Qflix(TM) name. The program willbroadly license the companies' combined intellectual property that allowsDVD recording technologies to use CSS (Content Scramble System), which isthe same content protection found on commercially released DVD movies.If you'd like to read more, the entire press release can be found here. Add a comment
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While Panasonic has not announced how much their Blu-ray Disc recorders will be, AV Watch expects them to cost anywhere from 180,000 Yen ($1,554US) to 300,000 Yen ($2,590US), depending on the model. If you'd like to read more, Panasonic's entire press release can be found here. Add a comment
The new recorders can store up to 18 hours of full HD video onto a 50 gigabyte (GB) double-layer Blu-ray Disc or up to 381 hours of full HD videos onto a 1 terabyte (TB) built-in hard disk drive (HDD). In terms of BS digital HD broadcasts, the new recorders can record four times more than previous MPEG-2 TS recorders (DR mode). In addition to video, the new DIGAs can record 5.1 channel surround sound broadcasts without deterioration in sound quality or surround effects.
Panasonic accomplished these achievements through innovative technologies including the new generation UniPhier system LSI based on the 45-nm process technology. A single chip supports real-time encoding of full HD videos. Additionally, MPEG-4 AVC/H.264 High Profile HD video compression technology contributed to the significant increase in HD video recording hours. Panasonic also drew from the advanced technology cultivated by its Panasonic Hollywood Laboratory (PHL) that offers BD-ROM authoring service to major Hollywood movie studios.
