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The PX-800A is expected to ship later this month for a suggested retail price of $79.99. More information can be found here. Add a comment
Plextor LLC, a leading developer and manufacturer of high-performance digital media equipment, today announced the immediate availability of the TurboPlex PX-800A DVD Super Multi Drive. Fully compatible with the new Windows Vista(TM) operating system, the new DVD+/-R/RW CD-R/RW drive introduces a new level of performance and features, including 12X DVD-RAM and a software bundle that includes Roxio Easy Media Creator 9.
The Plextor PX-800A drive features an E-IDE ATAPI interface for easy connectivity with personal computers running the Microsoft Windows 2000/XP/Vista operating systems. The PX-800A drive also supports industry-leading 12X-speed DVD-RAM functionality for removable data storage applications. A user simply inserts a blank DVD-RAM disc and the system automatically formats the disc and assigns a driver letter. Users can drag-and-drop files, use the "save as" command, and remove the disc, which can then be read in any PC or desktop player with a drive that supports the DVD-RAM format.
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The earlier announced joint venture between Royal Philips Electronics (Philips) and Lite-On IT Corporation (Lite-On) is starting to take shape. The European Commission has cleared under the EU Merger Regulation the entry by Lite-On IT into Philips & BenQ Digital Storage Corporation (PBDS) of Taiwan. Lite-On IT has taken over BenQ's shares in PBDS and the name has now changed to Philips & Lite-On Digital Solutions (PLDS).If you'd like to read more, Lite-On Europe's entire press release can be found here. Add a comment
PLDS will be effective in Europe from 1st of May 2007. Lite-On IT BV, the European head office of Lite-On IT Corporation, will continue to provide the same service to it's customers under the new flag of PLDS. The company will handle sales, marketing, service, finance and logistics of Optical Disc Drives (ODD). PLDS will continue to sell ODD under the brand names Lite-On and HP (under exclusive license from Hewlett-Packard).
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Apple today announced that EMI Music's entire digital catalog of music will be available for purchase DRM-free (without digital rights management) from the iTunes Store (www.itunes.com) worldwide in May. DRM-free tracks from EMI will be offered at higher quality 256 kbps AAC encoding, resulting in audio quality indistinguishable from the original recording, for just $1.29 per song. In addition, iTunes customers will be able to easily upgrade their entire library of all previously purchased EMI content to the higher quality DRM-free versions for just 30 cents a song. iTunes will continue to offer its entire catalog, currently over five million songs, in the same versions as today -- 128 kbps AAC encoding with DRM -- at the same price of 99 cents per song, alongside DRM-free higher quality versions when available.While some may not paying a premium for DRM-free music ($1.29 vs. $0.99 per song), this is definitely a step in the right direction. Hopefully, other record companies will see the light and offer DRM-free music through iTunes as well. If you'd like to read more, Apple's entire announcement can be found here. Add a comment
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A couple days ago I cautiously approached Universal's next Combo Format HD DVD with U-Control functionality, 'The Good Shepherd.' My gut suspected the disc would suffer from the same playback issues as 'Children of Men,' but given how that disc's errors have been random across various players, there was at minimum a shot for success. Sadly, my gut was correct. 'The Good Shepherd' disc failed to play on both the HD-A1 and Xbox 360 HD DVD players with the exact same error messages 'Children of Men' returned. Whether my experience will be shared by the greater HD DVD community remains to be seen; however, it's our duty to pass along this caveat to those having pre-ordered the disc or plan to pick it up on Tuesday. Keep those receipts!Universal has not officially acknowledged these issues. However, the company has already discontinued the combo versions of some titles and has retooled a few upcoming releases to be HD DVD-only. Needless to say, this doesn't look good for the combo format or HD DVD in general. If you'd like to read more, head on over to TheManRoom. Add a comment
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Panasonic maker Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. Ltd. and Taiwan's CMC Magnetics Corp. said on Monday they have reached a settlement on a DVD-related patent infringement lawsuit.If you'd like to read more, the entire article can be found here. Add a comment
Matsushita, the world's largest consumer electronics maker, last year filed a patent suit against CMC, charging that the Taiwanese disc maker's DVD discs infringed its patents.
As part of the settlement, they have formed a patent cross licencing agreement on manufacturing and sales of DVD discs, and CMC is set to pay royalties to Matsushita, both companies said.
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CyberLink Corp. (5203.TW), a world leader in digital home solutions, today announced support for the Advanced Video Codec High Definition Standard (AVCHD) for video playback and authoring. CyberLink has already incorporated AVCHD support in high-definition disc player software PowerDVD Ultra, and will launch support for disc authoring software PowerProducer mid-year.If you'd like to read more, CyberLink's entire press release can be found here. Add a comment
"The AVCHD format offers exceptional quality for the recording, storage and playback of high-definition video content," said Alice H. Chang, CEO of CyberLink. "With our expertise in developing leading playback and authoring products, CyberLink's support of the AVCHD format delivers greater flexibility for our hardware partners and even more choice for consumers."
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'Children of Men' hit stores earlier this week on March 27, as one of the most highly-anticipated HD DVD releases on the format thus far, and as our Kenneth Brown wrote in his recent review of the disc, it apparently boasts stellar video and audio. Unfortunately, more than a few Xbox 360 owners have had issues playing it on the device's popular HD DVD add-on drive, with many of our readers writing in to say that the disc simply won't play, and that even multiple returns of the disc have produced the same issue.If you check out the posts in High-Def Digest's forum, you can see that 'Children of Men' isn't the only title people are having problems with. Lets hope that Microsoft can address these issues in the next Xbox 360 update. If you'd like to read more, the entire article can be found here. Add a comment
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The DRU-835A is most likely based on a drive from Samsung or Lite-On but at this point, I'm not even going to guess which one. No word on when the DRU-835A will ship. However, Sony's website lists the price as being $79.99. More information, including a full list of specs, can also be found here. Add a comment
Writing Speeds: DVD+R: 4X CLV, 8X P-CAV, 16X, 18X CAV
Buffer Size: 2MB
DVD+RW: 2.4X, 4X CLV, 6X, 8X Z-CLV
DVD+R DL: 2.4X, 4X, 6X, 8X Z-CLV
DVD-R: 4X CLV, 8X P-CAV, 16X CAV, 18X CAV
DVD-RW: 2X, 4X, CLV, 6X Z-CLV
DVD-R DL: 2X, 4X CLV, 6X, 8X Z-CLV
DVD-RAM: 5X, 6X CLV, 8X, 10X, 12x P-CAV
CD-R: 8X, 16X CLV, 24X, 32X, 40X P-CAV, 48X CAV
CD-RW: 4X, 10X, 16X CLV, 24X, 32X Z-CLVRead Speeds: DVD-ROM: 16X Max
Access Times:
DVD±R: 12X Max
DVD±R DL : 8X Max
DVD±RW: 8X Max
DVD-Video: 6x Max
DVD-RAM: 12x Max
CD-ROM/CD-R: 48X Max
CD-RW: 40X MaxCD-ROM: 130ms
DVD-ROM: 140ms
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The decision marks a rare, though small victory for a Silicon Valley startup facing the interests of a group of large movie studios and consumer and computer companies. The ruling also could open the door for other systems makers who want to design personal video libraries that store DVD movies on hard drives.I wouldn't be surprised if the DVD CCA appealed the judge's decision. However, in the mean time, it may open other doors in regards to DVD ripping and fair use. If you'd like to read more, the entire article can be found here. Add a comment
Judge Leslie C. Nichols ruled against the DVD Copy Control Association (DVD CCA) in a civil suit that asked the court to force startup Kaleidescape to change its design or stop selling its server that stores hundreds of DVD movies on a hard drive array. Nichols said the basis for his decision was his ruling that an entire section of the DVD CCA's spec for the Content Scramble System (CSS) was not technically included as part of the license agreement.
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While Sony Europe has not announced a price or ship date yet, the BDP-S1E should hit store shelves some time this summer. If you'd like to read more, the entire press release can be found here. Add a comment
Responding to a rapidly growing market demand throughout Europe, Sony has announced the latest addition to a Blu-ray Disc family including High Definition gaming, editing and now, the ultimate home theatre experience. The BDP-S1E represents one of the company's most powerful and intelligent consumer equipment models ever developed: the player sets new standards in High Definition audiovisual playback of movies. The superbly stylish BDP-S1E integrates seamlessly within Sony's ‘BRAVIA' Theatre concept to produce one of the most stunning and engaging entertainment experiences ever developed.
Film lovers will relish 24p True Cinema incorporated into this Blu-ray Disc player. Cine cameras actually film at 24 frames per second, but televisions operate at a higher frame rate, so conversion has traditionally been necessary. The result is a 4% discrepancy from the original - the film on TV actually runs 4% faster than the original, and the soundtrack rises by 4% in pitch. When the BDP-S1E is connected to a TV with 24p capabilities such as the ‘BRAVIA' D3000 series, the original 24 frames per second are displayed just as the camera first recorded them. You see - and hear - exactly what you should, exactly as the director intended.
