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Optical Storage

22 December 2006

With both Ritek and CMC accepting Veeza, second-teir manufacturers are reportedly feeling pressure to sign up for Philips' CD-R licensing scheme.

Second-tier makers of optical discs in Taiwan are feeling increasing pressure to comply with Veeza, Philips' new licensing scheme for its CD-R patents, following acceptance of the scheme by the two top makers CMC Magnetics and Ritek, according to industry sources.

Philips, in a strong attempt to promote Veeza, has dissuaded global leading brands of CD-R discs from importing unlicensed discs, warning that such discs will subject to confiscation by custom officials, the sources indicated. Philips has even extended such warnings to large retail channels, such as Wal-Mart and Best Buy, and distributors in the US and Europe, the sources noted.

While second-tier manufacturers can still export discs to Latin America, Russia and markets in the Third World, Veeza is making it hard for them to export their discs to the US and Europe. If you'd like to read more, head on over to DigiTimes. Add a comment

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Optical Storage

22 December 2006

BenQ has officially unveiled their new 20x DVD±RW drives, the DW2000 and DW2010. According to BenQ's website, the two drives offer 20x DVD±R, 8x DVD±R DL and 12x DVD-RAM writing speeds as well as features like SolidBurn and QSuite. The DW2010 ups the ante even further, offering support for LightScribe technology. Here are some of their specs:

Writing Speeds: DVD±R: 20x Max DVD±R DL: 8x Max DVD+RW: 8x Max DVD-RW: 6x Max DVD-RAM 12x Max CD-R: 48x Max CD-RW: 32x Max

Read Speeds: DVD-ROM: 16x Max CD-ROM: 48x Max Access Times: DVD-ROM: 160ms CD-ROM: 160ms

If you live in Europe or North America, don't hold your breath, waiting for these drives as they will most likely be limited to the Asian market. Fortunately, the Lite-On LH-20A1P and LH-20A1H are readily available and based on the same design as the DW2000 and DW2010. Add a comment

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Optical Storage

21 December 2006

Last month, a German court declared that the DVD media manfacturer, Optical Disc Service (ODS), was infringing upon certain patents licensed in the MPEG-2 Patent Portfolio License. According to the verdicts, ODS must stop its current DVD production and pay damages to the patent owners.

With the posting of security bonds earlier this week, several patent holders enforced verdicts in the German District court (Landgericht Dusseldorf) cases finding that DVD disc manufacturer Optical Disc Service ("ODS") infringed patents licensed in the MPEG-2 Patent Portfolio License offered by MPEG LA, and enforcement of additional verdicts is expected. See http://www.mpegla.com/news/n_06-11-30_pr.pdf. As a result, although the verdicts can be appealed, ODS must cease and desist its current DVD production, which uses the enforced patents, and pay damages to the patent owners for past DVD production.

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

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Other

21 December 2006

The guys at CD Freaks have put together a review of LG's 18x "Super Multi" drive, the GSA-H22N. Here's a sample of what they had to say:

The LG GSA-H22N is a Super Multi DVD burner supporting nine types of DVD and CD media: DVD+R/RW/DL, DVD-R/RW/DL, DVD-RAM, and CD-R/RW.

High-speed 16x and 18x DVD+R and DVD-R writing works very well and produces discs of very good quality, in record time.

48x CD-R writing is equally fast, with very good disc quality as well.

We too have a review of the GSA-H22N in the works. Unfortunately, our test unit refuses to work at UDMA Mode 4, which has caused some problems when writing at 18x. If you'd like to read more, CD Freaks entire review can be found here. Add a comment

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Other

20 December 2006

Ratpadz XT Premium Gaming Mousepad @ Tweaknews.net
G.Skill F2-6400CL4D-2GBPK 2048MB DDR2-800 Memory Kit @ Redaktion ocinside.de
Antec NSK1300 MicroATX Cube Case @ ThinkComputers.org
Steel Series SteelSound 4H Gaming Headset @ Tweaknews.net
Crucial Ballistix PC2-8000 2GB Memory Kit @ TweakTown
Steelsound 3H & 4H Headsets @ ASE Labs
Sony BWU-100A Blu-ray Disc Writer @ HardwareZone

If you'd like to see your reviews listed here, please drop us an email. Add a comment

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Optical Storage

20 December 2006

CMC Magnetics has announced that they've joined Philips' Veeza licensing system for CD-R discs. By joining Veeza, CMC's royalty rate was reduced by 45%, to USD 0.045 per CD-R disc.

Royal Philips Electronics (AEX:PHI; NYSE:PHG) and CMC Magnetics Corporation (CMC), a well-known leading manufacturer of optical storage media based in Taiwan, today jointly announced that CMC has entered into Veeza, the new Philips licensing program for CD-R discs. This marks a great step forward between Philips and CMC to cooperate for a win-win result. By joining Veeza, CMC will enjoy a lower royalty rate of USD 0.025 per CD-R disc which is 45% lower than the current royalty of USD 0.045 per CD-R disc.

Ben Beune, Senior Vice President of Philips Intellectual Property & Standards, said, "We are delighted and encouraged that CMC, one of the leading manufacturers, has decided to enter the Veeza program. This again demonstrates that Philips' Veeza program and our combined efforts with the CD-R industry to create a healthier market have been recognized. Philips will closely work with CMC through better customer service and technology sharing as part of the Veeza licensing program."

With both Ritek and CMC on board, it will only be a matter of time before other CD-R manufacturers join Philips' Veeza program. If you'd like to read more, CMC's entire announcement can be found here. Add a comment

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Software

20 December 2006

MadZ Software has announced the release of their new DVD backup software, Clone DVD Pro 1.0. Here's part of their press release:

MadZ Software announces the release of version 1.0 of its Clone DVD Pro software. Clone DVD Pro 1.0 makes backup copies of your favorite DVDs.

With Clone DVD Pro, you can quickly and easily copy almost all DVDs including original DVDs, DVD copies, even downloaded DVDs. You can choose which titles and chapters are copied and even preview them prior to copying. Also, you can rip DVDs to create DVD Video_TS folders or DVD ISO/UDF image files on your computer hard drive, and you can burn existing Video_TS folders or ISO/UDF image files from your hard drive to DVDs.

It's going to be interesting to see who sues MadZ Software first. The name Clone DVD Pro is a bit too similar to Slysoft's CloneDVD software. And, with its ability to backup CSS protected discs, the MPAA probably won't be too happy either. If you'd like to read more, MadZ Software's entire announcement can be found here. Add a comment

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Software

20 December 2006

NCH Swift Sound has announced a new version of its ExpressBurn software. According to their press release, ExpressBurn v3.00 supports Blu-ray and HD-DVD and is Windows Vista compatible.

NCH Swift Sound, specialists in business and audio software, announced the release of ExpressBurn v3.00 with Blu-ray and HD-DVD support.

"We have made the leap into Blu-ray technology even though it is still emerging and pricing for hardware is currently restrictive for the average consumer," said Stephanie Lee, sales manager for the Canberra based company. "The data storage capacity that Blu-ray allows for was the main reason to support it now rather than later. It compliments our range of applications such as our PC based call and radio logging application, VRS, because of the ability to archive an enormous amount of audio recordings on the one disk."

ExpressBurn v3.00 supports both single and duel layer disks with write and re-write capabilities (BD-R, BD-RE, BD-R DL, BD-RE DL) as well as Data HD-DVD, DVD and Audio/Data CDs. Using proprietary optimizing systems it is one of the fastest CD/DVD/Blu-ray writing programs in the world.

ExpressBurn v3.00 is available now and can be purchased directly from NCH for $27US. More information can be found here. Add a comment

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Flash Memory

19 December 2006

Advanced Media has announced they will be adding Solid State Disk (SSD) flash memory to its RIDATA line. Available in capacities of 16GB and 32GB, the RIDATA Flash SSD can fully replace the hard drive in a notebook or portable device.

Advanced Media, Inc., manufacturer and marketer of the popular RIDATA brand of recordable CD and DVD media, electronic storage products, and digital media accessories, is set to add a non-volatile Flash Solid State Disk (SSD) storage medium to its RIDATA line. It is available in 16 GB and 32GB capacities. It will be on display in the Advanced Media 2007 International CES booth, South Hall 3 (Upper Level, S3) Booth 31573.

"Based on flash-memory technology, our new RIDATA Flash SSD offers highly reliable data storage and rugged, high-performance," remarked Harvey Liu, Advanced Media president. "When compared to a traditional HDD, the RIDATA SSD requires less power, weighs less than half as much, offers faster boot and access times, and operates at a lower temperature and no mechanical movement part. It is the perfect HDD replacement for any notebook, sub-notebook, or tablet PC."

Since it has no moving parts, the RIDATA Flash SSD produces virtually no noise, no heat generation, and no vibration, while offering more reliable temperature and humidity that assures long-lasting storage. It is engineered with semiconductor components and uses NAND flash memory. Importantly, it also has the same host interface as a hard disk drive, so there is no issues with compatibility or upgrading. It simply plugs into a device's IDE slot.

The RIDATA Flash Solid State Disk will be available around the middle of December for a suggested retail price of $169. More information can be found here. Add a comment