ASUS announced this week that its Xonar HDAV1.3 Series sound cards now support Dolby TrueHD audio bitstream. Thanks to the cards' AV200 audio processor and ArcSoft’s TotalMedia Theatre software, users can output Dolby TrueHD audio to their AV receiver at a lossless compression rate of 24bit/192KHz.

asus xonar hdav1.3 series.png

Following the success of becoming the world’s first sound cards to be equipped with the next generation DTS-HD Master Audio and Dolby Digital Plus bitstream on the PC platform, the ASUS Xonar HDAV1.3 Series once again moves to the forefront as the world’s first and only solution to offer Dolby TrueHD audio bitstream on the PC platform. A powerful combination comprising of C-Media’s custom-made AV200 audio processor and ArcSoft’s TotalMedia Theatre software player lets users be the first to enjoy Dolby TrueHD’s lossless compression rate of 24bit/192KHz over to their AV receivers. This breakthrough in the emerging Blu-ray era was unprecedented before the release of the Xonar HDAV1.3.

Add a comment

Transcend Information, Inc. (Transcend®), a leading manufacturer of flash memory products, is proud to announce its stylish new P8 All-In-One USB Card Reader. With rounded edges and a streamlined design, the versatile P8 is compact (77.7mm x 46mm x 15.8mm) and easy to carry. Unlike other card readers with confusing designs, all four of the P8’s card slots are clearly labeled to avoid confusion and save time. Just plug the P8 directly into any USB2.0 port to lightning fast and hassle-free transfer of music, videos, photos or documents.

transcend p8 all-in-one usb card reader.jpg

In addition, each P8 Card Reader comes with free photo recovery software that features quick and easy previews of recoverable data. This useful software can help users easily restore lost or damaged files with just a few mouse clicks.

Add a comment

A-DATA Technology Co., Ltd., a worldwide leader in high performance memory products, announced today that it is launching XPG Dual SSD 3.5” RAID Enclosure to expand its portfolio of SSD solutions.

a-data xpg dual ssd raid enclosure.jpg

The A-DATA XPG Dual SSD 3.5” RAID Enclosure is a complete RAID solution through the use of two 2.5” SATA SSDs and/or HDDs mounted on one standard 3.5” form factor drive cage. This multifunctional RAID enclosure can be used as two separate drives, as a redundant drive to protect against drive failure, combined to become one high-performance drive or combined to become one large drive. By utilizing the hardware DIP switch on the back of the unit or included software utility, all these different RAID configurations and more can be set in an instant. Connection via SATA or USB enables easy direct access.

Add a comment

Verbatim sent out a press release today, announcing the launch of two new Quad Interface Desktop Hard Disk Drives. Available in 500GB and 1TB capacities, these new drives offer support for all four of the leading interfaces: USB 2.0, FireWire 400, FireWire 800 and eSATA II. The drives are also housed in a black aluminum case and feature a 7200rpm spindle speed and 32MB of cache.

verbatim quad interface desktop hard drive.jpg

Verbatim® Americas, LLC, a global leader in digital storage solutions, announced today two new Quad Interface Desktop Hard Disk Drives (HDDs) with capacities of 500GB and 1TB. The pro audio/video-grade storage and backup solutions offer Mac and PC users universal connectivity with plug and play support for all four of the leading interfaces: USB 2.0, FireWire 400, FireWire 800 and eSATA II (external Serial ATA II). With these connection options and the equivalent of 1000 Gigabytes of storage backed by Verbatim’s reputation for reliability, the new external drives are ideal for audio, video, digital photography and music professionals as well as graphics applications where capacity, performance and reliability are essential. Affordably priced, the drive also puts volumes of storage within the reach of consumers and small businesses with large amounts of video, photos, music, and data files that they want to store, edit and protect.

Verbatim’s new Quad-interface Desktop HDDs weigh 3.3 lbs. and measure 8.7 in. X 5.9 in. X 1.5 in., making them easy to transport from one desk to another and requiring minimal desk space when connected to a desktop system. Housed in sleek yet durable black aluminum cases, the 3.5” drives feature a 7200rpm spindle speed and 32MB of cache memory to optimize performance. A silent cooling fan is also included.

Add a comment

Moser Baer recently announced that its has achieved product verification from the Blu-ray Disc Association for its new 6x BD-R media. According to their press release, they are the first company outside of Japan to develop and ship 6x BD-R media.

Moser Baer India (MBI) has announced a breakthrough in technology development in the next generation Optical media format. The company, along with its subsidiary OM&T, Netherlands, has achieved product verification from BDA (Blu Ray Disc Association)  for its latest Blu Ray (BDR) 1x-6x media. Furthermore, MBI media has been accepted by the BDA as a test disc to check the performance of BDR 1x- 6x media in various BD drives being manufactured globally. With this verification certification, MBI becomes the first company, outside Japan, to develop and ship 1x-6x BDR media.

The latest innovation from MBI with BDR 1x-6x enables customers to have a faster media recording. Typically this will allow a 2-hour transmission equivalent of HD (High Definition) quality video / data to be recorded in less than 20 minutes.

Add a comment

RunCore is happy to announce the immediate availability of our Low cost 1.8” Zif/PATA SSD solution in 16GB, 32GB, 64GB (5mm) and a special 128GB (8mm).  Retail pricing for these parts will be $69.99, $119.99, $199.99, and $389.99 respectively.

This low cost upgrade promises to boost computer performance vs. the traditional 1.8” HDD by more than 400% with read/write speeds up to 75/40MB/sec. This will prove to be a life/computer saver for the hundreds of thousands of people who have bought computers running on a 1.8” HDD.

The upgrade process is user friendly and rewarding due to our onboard USB slave port allowing for easy cloning with any off the shelf cloning software. This option will truly unleash the power of any compatible PC allowing for a much more rewarding user experience for both the personal and professional user. In many cases the speed gains seen are equal to that of a power desktop PC.

Add a comment

Advanced Media has announced a new converter that allows a CompactFlash card to function as a Solid State Drive (SSD). Using the converter, two Ridata CF cards can be configured into a RAID 1 array and mounted in a drive bay or a slot on the rear of a PC or notebook.

Advanced Media, Inc., is a manufacturer and marketer of the Ridata brand of electronic storage products, and digital accessories. The company is pleased to announce Ridata 233x Lightning Series CompactFlash® cards plus a SATA Converter RAID 1. Compatible Ridata CF cards range in capacity from 512MB to 32GB. The adapter allows a CF card to function as a Solid State Drive (SSD). In the case of a hard drive failure, the CF card via the converter appears as an ordinary hard drive to any OS and can be configured as a boot device.

"Many of our portable device customers would like to try an SSD without the bigger price tag. Our industrial customers face the problem of waiting for long hard disk drive (HDD) rebuilds that may cause over heating issues. By using our CF card and SATA converter, users can hot swap the HDD with the card and converter saving storage rebuild time with low temperatures and high transfer speeds," commented Harvey Liu, president of Advanced Media, Inc.

Add a comment

LG announced today that it has expanded the number of online services available to owners of its network-connected Blu-ray players. Along with the Netflix service that is currently available, consumers will soon be able to be able to stream movies, TV shows and video clips directly from CinemaNow and YouTube. LG has not stated whether or not the BD300 will get access to these services. However, they will be available on their 2009 line of Network Blu-ray Disc players.

LG Electronics today announced the expansion of network entertainment options for its Network Blu-ray Disc players through new alliances with CinemaNow and YouTube(TM).

Available on new LG Network Blu-ray Disc Players in the first half of 2009, these new services complement LG’s instant streaming from Netflix and advanced Blu-ray capabilities to deliver consumers an exceptional entertainment experience. (In 2008, LG was the world’s first manufacturer to stream movies instantly from Netflix on a Network Blu-ray Disc Player.)

CinemaNow – an innovator in digital entertainment technology, delivering high-quality movies, TV shows and videos to users through online connectivity – and YouTube – a leading online video community for people to discover, watch, and share originally created videos – will be available in LG’s 2009 line of Network Blu-ray Disc players to be unveiled next week at the 2009 International CES®.

Add a comment

AMD Athlon X2 7750 Black Edition @ InsideHW
Arctic Cooling Silentium T2 ECO 80 Case @ BCCHardware
CoolIT Domino A.L.C. Advanced CPU Liquid Cooling System @ Tweaknews.net
Epson WorkForce 600 Multifunction Printer @ Futurelooks
Pro-Termal 81 Thermal Paste @ BCCHardware
SilverStone Fortress FT01 Case @ TweakPC
Thecus N4100PRO Four-Drive NAS Server @ TweakTown
Thermaltake Spedo Advance Chassis @ High Tech Reviews
Thermaltake SpinQ CPU Cooler @ Rbmods
Xirex Liquid Cooling Starter Set @ Madshrimps
Zotac 790i Ultra SLI Supreme Motherboard @ Virtual-Hideout

Add a comment

SlySoft announced today that it has defeated the latest version of BD+. According to their press release, AnyDVD HD 6.5.0.2 decrypts the copy protection on all current Blu-ray movies, including once problematic titles such as "Futurama: Bender's Game", "Meet Dave" and  "Babylon A.D."

slysoft-logo.gifDespite some sites reporting that "Slysoft has been beaten", the Antiguan company renowned for promoting Fair Use Rights has effectively defeated BD+ once again and much earlier than expected; the cat and mouse game of DRM has entered the next round.

Although newer BD+ decryption wasn't expected until February 2009, today's AnyDVD HD 6.5.0.2 release decrypts copy protection on all current Blu-ray movies and, in turn, ensures that consumers may continue to backup and enjoy their Blu-ray movie purchases even when using computer monitors that are not HDCP compliant. In fact, Anydvd HD remains the only program that can decrypt all commercial Blu-ray releases, and this incredible magic is, as per usual with Anydvd HD, performed on the fly without requiring users to rip first to their hard drives.

Add a comment