We have seen a few good deals coming from Walmart including the $30 Pixi and the BlackBerry offers. Not to mention the sales on video games. But after digging through the leaked sales flyer for Black Friday, we now have a complete list of nice prices—including a Blu-ray player for $78. Of course this is a lower end model, its the Magnavox NB500 and it normally retails for $129, but still $78.

Anyway, in addition to the low-priced Blu-ray player, Walmart also has a good selection of HDTV’s, computers, digital cameras, GPS units. Here is a quick rundown of some of the deals that can be found, but the full list can be found by hitting the ‘read’ link below.

DVD Players

• Magnavox NB500 Blu-ray Disc Player - $78.00
• Samsung BD-P1590 Blu Ray Player (Saturday) - $148.00
• Sony BDP-S369 Blu Ray Player - $148.00

Televisions

• Emerson 32” LC320EMFX LCD 720P HDTV - $248.00
• Emerson 42” PL-P42W-10A Plasma 720P HDTV - $448.00
• Flat-Panel TV Stand - $89.00
• Philips Large Fixed TV Mount - $69.00
• RCA 46” LCD 1080p HDTV (Online Only) - $688.00
• Samsung 32” LN32B360 LCD 720P HDTV (Saturday) - $398.00
• Samsung 42” LN40B500 LCD 1080P HDTV (Saturday) - $598.00
• Samsung 42” PN42B400 Plasma 720P HDTV (Saturday) - $548.00
• Samsung 46” LN46B500 LCD 1080P HDTV (Saturday) - $848.00
• Samsung 50” PN50B400 Plasma 720P HDTV (Saturday) - $698.00
• Sansui 19” HDLCD1909 LCD HDTV - $128.00
• Sayno 50” DP50719 Plasma HDTV - $598.00
• Sony Bravia 32” KDL32L504 LCD 720P HDTV - $378.00
• Sony Bravia 40” KDL40S504 LCD 1080P HDTV - $598.00
• Sony Bravia 46” KDL465504 LCD 1080P HDTV - $798.00

Computers

• Acer 17.3” Blue Laptop w/4GB Memory, 320GB Hard Drive and Windows 7 Premium (Online Only) - $498.00
• eMachines 15.6” Notebook w/AMD Processor, 2GB Memory, 160GB Hard Drive (Model # EME627) - $198.00
• HP 15.6” Notebook w/Intel Processor, 3GB Memory, 250GB Hard Drive (Model # G60-519WM) - $298.00
• HP 17” Notebook w/4GB Memory, 320GB Hard Drive (Model # G71-329WM) - $398.00
• HP Pavilion All-In-One 19” Desktop w/4GB Memory, 500GB Hard Drive, MS213 AMD - $598.00
• HP Pavilion Desktop w/AMD Processor, 3GB Memory, 320GB Hard Drive, w/20” Monitor (Model # P6243w-b) - $398.00

Digital Cameras

• Kodak C182 12.0 Megapixel Digital Camera - $69.00
• Nikon CoolPix S230 10MP Digital Camera - $139.00
• Sony Cyber-Shot DSC S930 10.0 Megapixel Digital Camera - $79.00

GPS

• TomTom One 125-SE GPS - $59.00
• TomTom XL325-SE GPS - $89.00

Read [BlackFriday.info]  Via [Gizmodo]

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While there is no scan of the ad posted yet, bfads.net believes these prices will be the real deal on Black Friday.  This year, it looks like the bulk store took a beating as these deals look pretty good.  The site is confident the prices are correct.

Black Friday deals:
JVC 1080 Blu-ray player: $129
Garmin Nuvi 255w GPS: $119
Acer Aspire One 10.5” netbook: $197
Hitachi 1080p 42” LCD HDTV: $598
Vizio 1080p 47” 240Hz LCD HDTV: $997
Olympus FE-4000 12mp camera: $98

Surely the product on hand will be limited.  We’ll update if the site gets hold of the ad.

Read: [BFAds.net]

Image credit: Device Mag

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What’s better than a Black Friday sale?  A desperate Pre-Black Friday sale in hopes to get all the dollars you would have spent on the actual Black Friday.  Wal-Mart delivers with a sale this Saturday, Novermber 7.  The deals look worthy of making a special trip.

From the Xbox 360 reduced to $199 and includes a $100 gift card,  to a 46” Panasonic Plasma HDTV (I love mine) at just $788, $149 for a Sony Blu-ray player and $298 HP 15.6 laptop.  Both the Xbox and the HP laptop are guaranteed to have 10 units per store, according to our friends at bfads.com.

The Panasonic’s lowest price on Google Checkout is $830 and it looks to be a full 1080p, nice. 

Walmart says the sale starts at 8:00am on the 7th.

Read: [BFads]

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Physical media is slowly dying, or so it seems, and we all know it.  The retailers know it, too, and some have been striving to find a way to survive if/when the transition finally happens.  One of those retailers, Best Buy, has just inked an interesting deal with CinemaNow that it hopes will help.

The partnership between Best Buy and CinemaNow includes both physical and digital media.  More particularly, the deal will allow consumers to buy DVDs from Best Buy, then watch the same movie through CinemaNow on their computers, smartphones or Blu-Ray players.  It’s almost like buying a DVD and getting a digital copy on the second disc, but now you require just an Internet connection rather than the digital file.  The exact details of the partnership have yet to be revealed, but it’s expected the service will launch in early 2010, just as soon as some studios jump on board.

Getting studios to jump on, historically, has been difficult, but this might be different.  Best Buy’s plan will require a DVD to be bought, but there’s no guarantee that the DVD will stay with the buyer, or that the stream will.  If it does work, however, it will add yet another streaming service to our media boxes.  As it stands with Netflix, Amazon Video, Blockbuster OnDemand, Hulu among others, we already have quite a few.  When it all settles down, hopefully we’ll be down to just one or two major companies doing movie streaming/downloads.  That will make it much simpler to decide who to pay every month.  In the meantime, its a good idea from Best Buy, but it wouldn’t be all that surprising if it doesn’t work out all that well.

Read [Electronista]

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I am still happily sporting a regular old DVD player, not to mention I am not sure I even want to go the Blu-ray route at all, personally I think the future is heading towards devices like the Roku set-top box. Granted we still have a ways before we get there and maybe before that happens we will see some bigger adoption of Blu-ray. With that, lower prices will certainly help, and JVC has recently entered that lower price market. Of course lower price comes with a catch.

To begin with, the player is the XV-BP11 and it is currently available and selling for $199.95.

In terms of that catch, this model is running the (now older) Profile 1.1, which by itself is not all that bad, however this model also does not have any Ethernet port which means it will not be upgradeable. That said, it still is a nice sub-$200 player that should be nice for most users. In other words, it should be nice for the non-geeky who would never even think to upgrade their Blu-ray player anyway.

Additionally, other features of the XV-BP11 includes a wide range of support in terms of playable discs and formats (see the complete list below). The JVC player also has HDMI v1.3 and composite in terms of video connections and analog L/R, coaxial and HDMI v1.3 for audio connections.

One little perk with the XV-BP11 comes in the form of the front USB port which will allow users to directly hook up other electronics such as a camcorder for video playback.

Keep reading to check out the press release:

JVC Announces Popularly-Priced Blu-ray Player

New XV-BP11 player offers AVCHD file playback.

WAYNE, NJ, October 28, 2009 – JVC today announced the availability of a new entry-level Blu-ray player. The new JVC XV-BP11 is a truly versatile high definition player, offering playback of high definition Blu-ray discs, plus playback of the AVCHD format, the high definition format widely used for HD camcorders, including the JVC HD Everio line.

JVC XV-BP11 Features

• Playable Discs: BD-Rom, BD-R/RE, DVD-Video, DVD-R/RW, DVD+R/RW, Audio CD, CD-R/RW
• Playable Formats: AVCHD, WMV, JPEG, MP3, WMA, Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital plus, Dolby True HD, DTS, DTS HD Master Audio/Essential

Connections:

• Video: HDMI V1.3, composite
• Audio: Analog L/R, coaxial, HDMI V1.3
• USB Host (front panel)

Convenience Features: Quick loading, cinema zoom (x16), parental lock, slim design

The new JVC XV-BP11 Blu-ray player is available immediately for $199.95.

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This week’s Recession-O-Rama deals features a portable USB drive, an iPhone app, buy 2 get 1 game free deal, a Blu-Ray player, and a digital camera.

Patriot Xporter XT 8GB USB Portable Flash Drive

Our first deal this weekend is an 8GB portable USB drive from Newegg.  Priced at $19 and $3 for shipping, it operates at 200x read speed, features ReadyBoost, and comes in a rugged case to protect it against falls.  It is normally priced at $24, which is before the $5 MIR. 

Air Mouse Pro iPhone App

The Air Mouse Pro iPhone app is designed to turn your iPhone into a wireless remote and mouse for your computer.  It used to be available for $10, but now sells for $0.99.  This special deal may not always be available for such a cheap price, so better act fast.  The app can be purchased in iTunes. 

Buy 2 games get 1 free

Best Buy is allowing customers to purchase any 2 Xbox 360, Wii, or PS3 games priced under $60 and pick another one for free.  Not sure how long this deal will be around for, but don’t expect to take advantage of it by next weekend.  All three games would be eligible for free shipping. 

Panasonic DMP-BD60 Blu-ray Disc Player

Amazon has the Panasonic DMP-BD60 Blu-Ray player for $123, which is pretty cheap considering it originally sold for $199.  The player has support for Viera Cast allowing it to display YouTube videos, Picasa images, and weather information, has support for SD card and USB ports, and it features DVD upconversion to 1080p.  No word on how long this deal will be available for on Amazon.  Free shipping is available for this product. 

Kodak EASYSHARE Z1485 IS

Our last deal for today is the Kodak EasyShare Z1485 IS digital camera sold from Abes of Maine.  It is on sale for $132 and it originally sold for $179.  There is an $17 instant discount available, $20 instant rebate, and you can take $10 off by using the LOYALTY10 coupon code.  Shipping is free.  The digital camera features 14MP, 5x optical zoom, face detection technology, ability to take HD pictures and HD video, and a 2.5 inch LCD screen. 

That’s all the deals we have for this weekend.  Please visit us again next week for even more deals in technology. 

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It seems that Netflix is determined to be everywhere, we have seen dedicated players such as the Roku set top box, we have seen it integrated into television sets and even Blu-ray players.  That said, the Blu-ray players, despite being a nice option have not yet offered the most cost effective route.  That is, until now, well in all fairness it may not be the most cost effective yet, but the prices are getting better thanks to the recent deal from Netflix, Insignia and Best Buy.

Anyway, the official announcement has come and Best Buy is adding Netflix streaming to its Insignia line of Blu-ray players.  What we have is two available options which include the NS-BRDVD3 for $179.99 and the NS-WBRDVD for $249.99.  The main difference between the two players is the addition of Wi-Fi in the model for $249.99.

With that, current or future owners of either player will be able to begin streaming Netflix movies—that is right after they perform the necessary firmware update that offers the ability.

Read [Netflix]  Via [Engadget]

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What if you could make sure your movie purchases would work tomorrow, on any device, and you could lose worries of scratching a disc?  That is the idea behind Disney’s Keychest, a new way to future-proof your media purchases and instantly access your media on any device that is supported.  Could the DVD finally go the way of the Dodo?

According to a Wall Street Journal article this morning, media rights could be redefined as no physical possession will be involved.  The media would live in the cloud and be available on-demand in a way similar to the way Google Docs are accessed.  Users would simply enter their unique key and begin streaming their media.

Disney hopes to charge a little bit more for the convenience and security of keeping your media in the cloud and accessing it in a myriad of places.  As DVD sales have fallen, industry players seek new ways to make the register ring.  Disney says other players in the market have signed on to their service, but are not naming names.

Sony, as Sony tends to do, is backing a competing plan, the DECE or Digital Entertainment Content Ecosystem (catchy, right?).  Predictably, DECE wants to initiate new formats and new standards while Keychest relies on current formats that are already supported by many devices.  With Steve Jobs involvement with both Apple and Disney, we can safely bet the iPhone will be one of these devices.

One cool aspect of Keychest is no matter what service you bought the media from, the information is shared with Keychest members (say the cable company, movie studio, or ISP) so you only purchase it once.  No word when either service, DECE or Keychest will be launched.

Are we headed for yet another battle similar to VHS versus Beta or DVD-HD versus Blu-ray?  In short, “yup.”

Read [Wall Street Journal]

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It seems like no set top box is safe from getting Internet video options lately.  Amazon, Blockbuster and Netflix have been hard at work to get their respective video stores on as many boxes as possible.  We’ve seen a number of companies add the functionality through new hardware and firmware updates, and now we can add Samsung to that list of companies.

Samsung is now rolling out firmware updates to Blu-Ray players and Internet@TV displays that will feature two of the three major video services.  Blockbuster On Demand and Amazon will now be available through the updates, allowing users two more ways to get movies and TV shows instantly.  However, only Amazon video actually supports HD content, so it will probably be more preferable.  To bring Blockbuster back in, however, Samsung Blu-ray players will now be available at Blockbuster stores, which, assuming people still use the store, should hopefully bring in a few sales.

With all these companies adding all these services, eventually it seems we’ll all have a large number of boxes that support Internet video.  Not even just the boxes, but also HDTVs.  Soon there will be no excuse to not at least know of movie streaming services, if you don’t already use them.  Having a wide range of products that have the features is nice, but it can also become confusing and annoying.  Different services could have different stream qualities for specific content, and some devices could produce better video or audio assuming the user has no home theater surround sound setup.  Surely consumers will be able to figure it out, but for now, do we really need to have Netflix, Blockbuster and Amazon on every box that connects to a TV?

Read [Engadget]

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With the economy still on a downturn, tech retailers are preparing for the upcoming holiday season by offering a variety of cheap gadgets.  With no hot new must have gadget this year and consumers not as willing to snap up pricey gadgets, retailers are hoping that cheap gadgets will have enough appeal to keep their sales up.

Netbooks, digital cameras, digital picture frames and speakers are some of the items retailers are hoping will be big sellers for the frugal set.  Best Buy is also hoping to cash in on the growing popularity of e-books by setting up sections in stores dedicated to several varieties of e-readers all going for less than Amazon’s Kindle.  RadioShack is offering a 7 inch portable TV for $199, and Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo have all slashed prices on their video game consoles. Walmart meanwhile has dropped the price of some Blu-ray players to $99.

Some retailers, such as Sears and Kmart, are hoping their layaway programs will help encourage consumers to make some big ticket purchases.  Electronics are already the most popular items placed on layaway.  Sears also plans to follow Best Buy’s lead and offer e-readers this holiday season.

While experts agree that most consumers will be budget conscious this holiday season, and predict sales will be the second worst in 42 years, manufacturers still plan to push some high ticket items such as the new LED ultra thin TVs that go for upwards of $2000.  Vizo is hopeful its latest model, which connects to the internet and comes with a roll out keyboard, will be a hot seller but the $1700 price tag may turn off many.  Most consumers will be looking for deals on small ticket items rather than splurging.  Retailers plan to appeal to this mindset by offering BOGO deals and promoting add-ons and accessories.

What are your plans for this holiday season? Do you plan cut back on gift buying? Let us know what your holiday shopping plans are!

Read [Wall Street Journal]

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A few of us adventurous types have hooked up a computer to our living room television set up.  However navigating with a keyboard and mouse in a living room is less than ideal.  There are other ways to access your home video library and web content on your TV.  QNAP has its new NMP-1000 network multimedia player and it aims to bring HD content to your TV. 

The QNAP has Gigabit Ethernet and can connect to your computers on your network.  Gigabit is plenty fast enough for HD content. The NMP-1000 can support lots of file formats including MPEG2, H.264, MKV, M2TS (Blu-ray), FLAC, MP3, AAC, and plenty more.  If you want local storage, you can add in an internal 3.5” SATA hard drive.  The device has USB and eSATA connections so you can just copy data over locally.  The NMP-1000 also can handle bit torrent (without a computer) and DNS.  There is also access to YouTube and Flickr. 

The video interface looks pretty nice (you can see it in the video below), although not as polished as Windows Media Center or Apple TV.  The only price information I could find was on QNAP’s forums—the retail price should be $399.  Street price will probably be closer to $300-$350.  That price may be a little steep when compared to a full-fledged computer, but it depends on how involved you want to be with this home theater component. 

Back of the QNAP NMP-1000

Product Page: [QNAP NMP-1000]

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Sony is running some deals at their outlet store.  There are all kinds of deals available.  A Sony sound bar virtual surround sound system for under $150 (down from $240), the Webbie HD pocket cam for $99.99 (down from $169.99), televisions, computers, and even the old version of the 40GB PS3 for $219.99.  What’s the catch?  All these products are refurbished.  If you don’t mind your product being used by someone else, fixed by Sony, and then sent to you, this could be a good time to pick up some nice stuff on the cheap.  The PS3 is on backorder, but you can still order it at the $219 price and Sony will e-mail you when it ships.  This is a weekly deal so it will run out soon.

Store: [Sony Outlet]

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Yamaha has announced a new range of devices, including a line of Blu-ray disc players, channel network AV receiver and five disc CD changer.  You can find these products currently on sale at major electronics retailers.

First up is the RX-V2065, a 7.1 channel AV receiver with five 1080p-upscaling HDMI inputs and two HDMI outputs.  It also has the following HD audio decoding formats: Dolby TrueHD, DTS-HD Master Audio, Dolby Digital Plus and DTS-HD.  Features installed with the AV receiver include Rhapsody online music service compatibility, Internet streaming radio and music file playback.  The receiver has a current MSRP of $1399.95.

The new Blu-ray players include the BD-S1900 (MSRP $699.95) and the BD-S1065 (MSRP $599.95).  These players will have compatibility with the new AV receiver in order to provide a dynamic entertainment experience.  Both players include BD-Live and BonusView, an enhanced Blu-ray disc commentary feature.

Lastly, the CD-C600 is the new five disc CD changer available from Yamaha.  This changer is the first from Yamaha that was designed specifically for compatibility with iPods.  You can connect your mp3 player or iPod to the CD-C600 via USB cable. Additional features are 3-Mode CD text display, MP3 and WMA file compatibility, IR in/out terminals and remote. MSRP for the Yamaha changer is $379.95.

Site: [Yamaha]

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Grabbing a hard drive for video can be somewhat confusing.  Do you go with a 5400RPM or 7200RPM drive?  Will that hard drive spin be so loud that I’ll have to turn up the volume to 11?  Hitachi is trying to reach that consumer who wants to get hard drives for video with its CinemaStar line.  There are two new hard drives in the line, the 1TB CinemaStar 7K100.C (at 7200RPM) and the 1TB CinemaStar 5K1000 CoolSpin.  These drives are supposed to be quiet, require low power, and handle HD video.  Hitachi claims that the 5K1000 is “nearly silent . . . during operation.”  These drives seem like a good way to expand your TiVo or home theater PC.  They will be available in Q4 of 2009. 

Product Site: [Hitachi CinemaStar]

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TiVo has won a suit it filed against Dish Network and now the satellite TV giant must pay up to the tune of $200 million.  The original suit was filed back in 2004 when TiVo sued EchoStar, which is now part of Dish Network, for a patent violation involving DVR technology.  A jury found in favor of TiVo in 2006 and ordered Dish to pay nearly $74 million.  Dish appealed twice and lost and then was ordered to pay an additional $103 million plus interest after being found in contempt of court for violating a permanent injunction on selling the infringing DVRs.

Frustrated over Dish’s refusal to comply, TiVo sued for close to $1 billion saying it was entitled to all of the company’s DVR profits over the past 5 years while the suit has been going on.  A judge found in favor of TiVo, but awarded the sum of $200 million saying Dish had made a good faith effort to design around the patent.

TiVo said in a statement, “We are pleased by the court’s ruling to impose contempt sanctions of approximately $200 million against EchoStar for its continued violation of a court-ordered permanent injunction…We are confident that this ruling brings us closer to final resolution.”

Dish Network said they plan to appeal with full confidence that they will win.

Read [CNet]

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Toshiba, once know for fighting the on the HD DVD side has officially unveiled the BDX2000—a Blu-ray player.  Of course, we did recently see Toshiba apply to join the Blu-ray Disc Association, so this news should not really come as all that surprising.

In terms of features, the BDX2000 is pretty standard as far as Blu-ray players go.  We can expect it to feature BD-Live (profile 2.0) and Bonus View, have 1080p output, AVCHD playback, an SD card slot as well as support for Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio playback.

While not yet available, it looks like we are not going to have to wait all that long, Toshiba has stated that the BDX2000 will be in stores this November with a retail price of $249.99.

Product [Toshiba]  Read [PR Newswire]

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3D TV is coming.  At IFA in Germany, Sony’s Sir Howard Stringer will throw down the gauntlet and announce next year we’ll see 3D TVs from the company.  Sony could use a big hit and bringing the hardware is an important step as content and distribution look to figured out.

Sony is expected to make the announcement today, according to Financial Times, who almost never get it wrong.  Not only that, the cheeky bunch at FT are quoting the future Stringer, as if they’ve found some time/space portal, sweet.  Not only will the Bravia TVs adopt 3D but so will Vaio laptops and PS3.  A whole wave of Sony products will feature 3D technology.

But, but, but

Two big obstacles stand in 3Ds way: standards and customers.  Are we headed for another battle of format standards?  Perhaps, as there is currently no standard for 3D.  Hynduai, LG, Samsung, Phillips, Mitsubishi, and Panasonic all have 3D TVs in their sights as well.  Sony is using electronic glasses that shutter to create the effect. 

As for customers, blind faith that TV makers can force a new technology to make up for flat-lining big screen HDTVs with 3D is hopeful at best.  You thought searching for the remote control was frustrating, wait until you have to search for four pairs of glasses, too.

While sports nuts are probably an easy sell, it isn’t clear that 3D in the home is going to be a winner.  24/7 Wall Street says, “Sony may find out the hard way that ‘2D’ video is just fine.”  Will the market take to 3D?

Read: [Financial Times]

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S1Digital introduced what it calls the “Digital Entertainment Platform.”  This system uses three parts: “an Entertainment Server, Media Center clients and a control solution.”  You load all your content on the Entertainment Server which can support up to 32TB of hard drive space.  The server also has a Blu-ray player that can also play CDs and DVDs and supports CableCards.  Next up a Media Center client can play content from the server.  Their third part of their solution is a touch screen controller.  If you’re up for their system, you can buy only one version of the clients yourself for $1799.  For the rest, you’ll need to contact a dealer that does home theater installations.  Judging the price based on that media center client, you can expect to pay quite the hefty amount to get this system in your home.  If you are a geek, you could probably build yourself a pretty great solution using a Drobo, a server, some wired Ethernet, and small PCs hooked up to your televisions for less.

Company Site: [S1Digital]

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i.TV is an app in the App Store that deals with all television media.  The app has tons of features as it can tell you which programs are on when, rate programs and obtain reviews.  i.TV lets you check out local movies, purchase tickets, has YouTube support and even has the ability manage your Netflix queque.  All of these functions right from your iPhone or iPod touch is pretty enticing, especially considering that it is all for free.  Today, i.TV is looking to take that one step further with the 2.0 version of the app which features a Remote Control Framework. 

Using this framework, i.TV is looking to develop partnerships with various TV and DVR companies in order to create a universal remote control.  For example, they have already partnered up with TiVo hoping to allow users to control their TiVo HD or TiVo HD XL via iPhone.  Basically, you can change the channel, fast forward the show, record whatever you are watching or what you want to watch, and have the ability to play the content you have stored. 

I don’t know about you, but I lose my remote control a lot more than I lose my cell phone, so having the ability to use my cell phone to change the channel and perform all these other functions could definitely be pretty useful.  Connectivity between the iPhone and the TiVo is made possible by Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, or a dock. 

Possibly to appease Apple to approve their 2.0 app, i.TV has added the ability to purchase content from iTunes that is related to the show(s) you want to watch.  In addition, using the 3.0 software’s push notifications, the i.TV app can let you know when a new show is about to air even when the app is closed, ensuring you will never miss your favorite show again. 

The app is supposed to be approved by Apple sometime this month and then it will become available to download for free.  The concept of the iPhone acting as a remote control is definitely an interesting one.  Why waste money to buy a universal remote control such as a Logitech Harmony remote control when you can simply download an app on your already-paid-for iPhone?  It will be interesting to see in the future if i.TV partners up with any other company to create the necessary codes for compatibility with TVs and DVRs other than TiVo.  i.TV has the Remote Control Framework already laid out, they are just looking for additional partners. 

Read [i.TV]

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It looks like Toshiba is ready to fully move on from HD-DVD products and enter in the more popular field of Blu-ray products and goods.  Toshiba applied to join the Blu-ray Disc Association (BDA), in order to market Blu-ray capable devices.

The reason they decided to look into Blu-ray is because “of recent growth in digital devices supporting the Blu-ray format, combined with market demand from consumers and retailers alike.”  This makes perfect sense for Toshiba.  So what types of products can we expect from Toshiba?  For starters, they list Blu-ray players and notebooks equipped with Blu-ray drives will be the first products announced and up for sale.  Unfortunately, they don’t release any model numbers, pictures, or timeframes for any product releases.

Via [Toshiba Press Release]

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It’s no big news that Blu-ray adoption, at least in the US, is far from ubiquitous.  Not everyone has an HDTV and the players can be expensive.  While DVD adoption was partially attributed to the PS2, the PS3 hasn’t sold nearly as well as its predecessor with the HD standard.  However, as DVDs grew more commonplace TVs with DVD players built in became common as well, putting DVD players into the rooms of even more people.  Perhaps Sharp’s new HDTVs can do the same for Blu-ray.

Sharp Japan has introduced five new HDTVs in its AQUOS DX2 line, each equipped with a Blu-ray recorder.  While the recorders can obviously play Blu-ray discs, they’re even more impressive with their ability to record up to 30 hours of HD video onto one dual-layer Blu-ray disc.  It does this by recording the video in the MPEG4 AVC/H.264 format.  The recorder can be set to automatically record anything from the program guide for each of the two digital tuners and single terrestrial one.

In terms of other features, the HDTVs support Internet via the ethernet port, and can connect to BD-Live, Yahoo Japan, and IPTV.  There’s also an included ambient light sensor which will adjust brightness according to the brightness of the surrounding light, which is a pretty cool idea.

At the moment there’s no word on when, or even if these particular HDTVs will make it to the US market.  With the cheapest model, the 26-inch, costing the equivalent of $1,787 whether they would sell well in the US is debatable.  However, considering that price includes an HDTV and Blu-ray player, it might be a great idea for those many who still haven’t adopted either standard.  We’ll have to wait and see what happens, and just hope they came here fairly soon.

Read [Electronista]

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Thought having Season Pass recording, direct Amazon movie downloads, and Netflix Watch Instantly was enough for TiVo?  Think again.  Starting August 5, 2009, TiVo will be offering over 100 free podcast channels, including content from networks such as G4, FOX, and CBS.  Beyond these channels, independent video podcast providers can add their content to TiVo via RSS and H.264 video.

Users of TiVo Series 3, TiVo HD, and TiVo HDXL can watch the videos instantly or sign up for a Season Pass just like you would for a television show.  You can search for TiVo podcast channels and individual podcast episodes via TiVo Search.  If you can’t find the podcast you want to watch, you can enter its URL in TiVo’s “Video on Demand” menu.

TiVo’s move into video podcasts shows that not only is the podcast medium gaining in popularity, bu TiVo’s role in the home entertainment lineup is changing.  TiVo has become much more than a DVR - it is starting to behave like the computer it is, all the while easing the average consumer deeper into the world of online video content.

Company Site: [TiVo]

Full Story » | Written by Merlyn Akhtar for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »

The ‘net is currently all abuzz with speculation as to who might be the proud new papa to internet movie rental giant, Netflix.  We’re hearing Amazon being tossed about left and right as a suitor and a couple of people are even throwing Microsoft’s name into the ring.  There are obviously some pluses and minuses to either of those deals, should they occur.

Regardless, Amazon had to be happy with the fact that people are thinking they may be the winner, considering their stock prices took a nice jump yesterday after the rumor started going around about them possibly buying Netflix.  However, in this case, all that glitters isn’t exactly gold in regards to this potential buy-out.

What an Amazon-owned Netflix really means

If Amazon were to buy Netflix, more than likely, it would be costly—I don’t mean for Amazon, I mean for the consumer.  While a deal would bring a bigger selection due to Amazon’s vast library of over 40,000 movies in their on demand catalog, that selection would probably come with a not-so-nifty higher price tag.  Right now, Netflix tends to offer older movies and those more obscure titles.  Amazon, on the other hand, streams many new releases as soon as they are released.  I don’t really see Amazon offering its selection for the less than $10 Netflix charges; expect to shell out more for that monthly subscription.

Another thing to consider is while initially there would probably be a boom when it comes to getting your physical discs even more quickly since Amazon seems to have warehouses everywhere, what might eventually occur is that physical discs would eventually simply disappear altogether.  That is not good for those folks who actually enjoy getting actual DVDs to pop in a player, and not just stream them.

With all that Amazon already has on its plate, they could end up acquiring Netflix without doing all the cool things they could with it.  Netflix could get lost in the Kindle/mass marketplace shuffle. 

Microflix?

Then we have uber-giant Microsoft.  Are they also a contender in the battle to buy Netflix as some rumors suggest?  And if they did purchase Netflix, what then?  Well, let’s look at the fact that we already have a very nice partnership between Netflix and XBox Live, which lets users watch TV shows and movies on the 360.  And according to sources close to Microsoft, this partnership is “en fuego” (which very loosely translated means “on fire”).

And it is apparently so on fire, that the president of Microsoft’s Entertainment and Devices division (which includes the XBox division) has been in pow-wows with the CEO and co-founder of Netflix to try to see what else they can do to “expand their current partnership.”  Hmm.  Obviously, an acquisition would be a much bigger move. 

The deal would definitely give a more strongly defined video strategy that many seem to think Microsoft lacks and Microsoft has been trying to build better ties in the entertainment arena for a while now.

Is Netflix doomed?

Many experts feel that the current business model of Netflix, regardless of who they are acquired by, is doomed.  They argue that streaming is the wave of the future.  Perhaps going with Microsoft would give them a leg up if this is the case.

Because of this fact, even though I can see Amazon being the one to purchase Netflix, I actually think they would have a better shot at a really strong, innovative, successful future if Microsoft did step up to the auction block and buy them.  I can see it now….Microflix.  It’s got a certain ring.

Full Story » | Written by Jodie Andrefski for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »

Electronic superstore, Best Buy, and the well-known DVR company, TiVo, have become allies to promote a better home entertainment experience.  You may be wondering, what exactly can these two companies offer each other?  For the benefit of TiVo, Best Buy will be increasing its promotion and stocking of TiVo products in its stores.  It will also be looking to integrate TiVo’s interface into its exclusive brands like Insignia.

What about Best Buy - what does it get out of this arrangment?  TiVo will be working with Best Buy to develop a special TiVo user interface for units sold at the store that will allow Best Buy to provide digital services and updated information about consumer electronics.  Best Buy will also get a spot in the TiVo Showcase in order to reach more consumers.  In other words, TiVo is a huge promotional vehicle for Best Buy.

I think this will be a good partnership that will benefit the consumer who likes the Best Buy shopping experience - now you can get your HDTV, home theater, movies, and TiVo DVR (or HDTV with built-in TiVo) all in one stop.

Read: [Press Release]

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Today, TiVo announced a new program that will allow current users to upgrade their current DVR set up to a new HD DVR set up.  Many TiVo customers probably don’t have the income to purchase all this luxury equipment, such as HD DVR, and are often stuck using their regular DVR.  Well, starting today TiVo is rewarding their veteran customers by offering them $50 off an HD DVR.

Basically, as long as you have been a TiVo customer for a year, you are eligible for the $50 discount.  All you have to do is sign onto your TiVo account and you can save $50 or more off a brand new HD DVR.  It looks like the program is a mainstay as TiVo hopes to keep customers as well as gain new ones with exciting offers and promotions.  Remember, TiVo allows for instant Netflix streaming, access to YouTube videos straight from your television, Amazon Video On Demand access (as well as HD video access), and advanced search for broadcast and broadband content. 

Thanks Jessica for the information.

Company Site: [TiVo]

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If you have Cablevision, then you probably know about its remote DVR features, which allow you to record TV shows remotely for later viewing within Cablevision offices.  Previously, there was a petition questioning the legality of remote DVR usage which reached the Supreme Court.  Once there, the United States Supreme Court disposed of the petition, a move greatly appreciated by the CEA. 

CEO and President of CEA, Gary Shapiro, had this to say about the remote DVR technology, “The ability to record television programming has become commonplace to millions of Americans which has benefited consumers and allowed the consumer technology and content industries to contribute billions of dollars to our economy and create millions of jobs.” 

He goes on further to say that it doesn’t matter how you record shows, whether it be a box, or in an office.  Another argument used by Shapiro is the fact that Apple and Google already offer similar services, so it makes sense that remote DVR technology such as this is allowed to prosper. 

This always seemed like an odd case.  Why would remote DVRs be illegal when regular DVRs were legal?  If you had a very long cable between your hard drive and your set top box, that would be illegal?  With the Supreme Court denying to review the lower court’s decision, expect more cable providers to start setting up remote DVR functionality.  Just imagine never filling up your hard drive space on your DVR.  Or just imagine the cable companies telling you that you get 5 hours of DVR space and for a fee you can get more space.  Hmm…one of those options seems a lot more realistic than the other. 

The full press release is below.

CEA APPLAUDS SUPREME COURT’S DECISION IN REMOTE DVR CASE
Decision is a Triumph for Home Recording and Common Sense
Arlington, Va., June 29, 2009 – The United States Supreme Court today denied the petition for a writ of certiorari upholding the legality of Cablevision’s remote digital video recorder (DVR). The technology is functionally identical to a home DVR, and allows viewers to record programs on a remote system within Cablevision’s offices. The following statement can be attributed to CEA President and CEO, Gary Shapiro.

“We applaud the U.S. Supreme Court today for letting stand a decision that supports the growth of technology and innovation. The ability to record television programming has become commonplace to millions of Americans which has benefited consumers and allowed the consumer technology and content industries to contribute billions of dollars to our economy and create millions of jobs.

“From a common-sense standpoint, the Court’s decision was a slam-dunk. The Court has already ruled that consumers have the right to time-shift television shows. Whether the bits reside in a box under your TV or a box in the cable field office is not relevant.

“CEA has been at the forefront of promoting digital technologies for decades. The ability to shift content among devices and products within the home is paramount in allowing technology to thrive and allowing companies to continue to design and develop new products.

“In addition, remote computing and data storage, like that allowed by the remote DVR, offers extraordinary benefits. Indeed Americans already enjoy this technology through services like Google applications and Mac. An adverse ruling would have hamstrung this exciting new area of innovation.
“We commend the Supreme Court for protecting our ability to innovate and ensure that America remains the world’s technology leader.”

About CEA:
The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) is the preeminent trade association promoting growth in the $172 billion U.S. consumer electronics industry. More than 2,000 companies enjoy the benefits of CEA membership, including legislative advocacy, market research, technical training and education, industry promotion and the fostering of business and strategic relationships. CEA also sponsors and manages the International CES - Where Entertainment, Technology and Business Converge. All profits from CES are reinvested into CEA’s industry services. Find CEA online at www.CE.org.

Full Story » | Written by Natesh Sood for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »

Panasonic UK unveiled several new home theater components today.  Two are Blu-ray Disc recorders that allow you to record HD content to Blu-ray discs.  H.264 compression is being used to allow for up to 24 hours of HD content per disc. 

The two models of Blu-ray disc recorders, the DMR-BS850 and the DMR-BS750, have two HD tuners to record two programs at the same time and include a feature called “Series Record,” similar to TiVo’s “Season Pass.”  HD content can also be recorded from camcorders or digital cameras via SD cards or USB cable. 

The main difference between the two models is hard drive size; the DMR-S850 has 500GB of space, while the DMR-S750 has 250GB.  Panasonic also threw in a CD ripping feature that accesses gracenote to fill in track information.  Apart from those unique features, these models also have BD-Live, Dolby TrueHD, DTS-Master Audio Essential and allows for 7.1 audio.

Blu-ray recordings are done in several modes with varying compression techniques.  If AVCHD compression is used, the Blu-ray disc should be playable in many Blu-ray players.  Choosing a more compressed format will yield a disc only playable on certain Blu-ray players.

The third product, the DMR-XS350, is a DVD player that can record HD content to its built in 250GB hard drive.  However, you cannot archive HD recordings to Blu-ray discs.  The DMR-XS350 records to DVDs in standard definition. 

All models use Panasonic’s VIERA Link - if you have a Panasonic television and one of these players, you’ll be able to control both with one remote.  They also have access to VIERA Cast, which accesses Panasonic’s servers which offer Internet content like YouTube videos or Picasa albums.

These products are available only in the U.K.  They are pricey, though—the DMR-BS850 costs £1000, the smaller DMR-750 is £900, and the DVD-writing DMR-XS350 costs £700.  Similar products will be released in Australia and France, but according to Panasonic UK, no plans on such a device exist for the United States.  That’s too bad because it sounds like an interesting all-in-one solution. 

Product Page: [HD Everything]

Full Story » | Written by Iyaz Akhtar for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »

$800 for a portable Blu-ray player may seem crazy, but it’s really a step to make Blu-ray discs more prevalent.  One of the complaints about Blu-ray is “I can’t take it with me, so I’ll get a regular DVD instead.”  The portable player looks to take away that problem.

So you’ve seen this device before, but what’s new?  Gadgetell got to play with the DMP-B15 and found out a couple of new things.  The display is a bit finicky.  It only shows video if the unit is set up in tablet mode.  If you try to use the Blu-ray player in a laptop style mode, forget it.  The unit turns off.  Why this limitation?  The folks I spoke to at Panasonic also thought this is a bad idea.  Expect future editions to get rid of this oddball behavior.

Also, since this device is supposed to be portable, how about a shake test?  Of course, Gadgetell asked permission before shaking the portable Blu-ray player like a martini.  Take a look at an intentionally shaky video below.  Here you can see the device being shaken vigorously then wobbled to see what kind of anti-skip technology the DMP-B15 packs.  The disc didn’t skip at all.  At least that makes sense. 

Full Story » | Written by Iyaz Akhtar for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »

Sony has announced the new NW line of VAIO notebooks, which will now be its entry-level Blu-ray notebook.  Starting at $880 for the Blu-ray models , the notebooks sport a 15.5” 1366 x 768 widescreen display for watching your Blu-ray content on the go and an HDMI out so you can use the notebook as your home Blu-ray player.  They also pack a 2.0 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor, a 400 GB hard drive, 4 GB of RAM, and 512 MB of dedicated video RAM. 

Other interesting hardware goodies include a display off button that lets you conserve battery life and an instant internet button that bypasses the wait for Windows to load and takes you straight to your web browser.  Other than that the hardware is pretty standard for a 15” notebook - built-in webcam, mic, 3 USB ports, ExpressCard slot, SD card slot, Memory Stick slot, and chiclet-style keyboard.

As for software, the notebooks are loaded with Vista, as well as a a suite of Sony software: VAIO Movie Story (home movie maker); VAIO MusicBox software (hear your music library based on mood); and Click to Disc/Editor software (video editing). 

Though Sony is claiming this line of Blu-ray notebooks is entry level as far as price, a quick pricing of a Dell or HP notebook with a Blu-ray drive shows that there are cheaper alternatives for portable Blu-ray.  Also, the notebook’s native display is only 720p, which is not the full resolution for Blu-ray, so you’re not even getting a true Blu-ray experience on the go. 

Only with the notebook’s HDMI output can you get the full Blu-ray resolution.  Whether you decide to spend your money for this Sony Blu-ray notebook versus options available from Dell, HP, or another company, may come down to brand name loyalty, your acceptance of native 720p versus 1080p, and overall style, which this notebook line has in spades.

Read: [Press Release]

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Any self-respecting Transformers fan knows about the impending release of the “Revenge of the Fallen” movie set to premiere in theaters on June 24.  What separates this from a normal movie is the fact that LG is planning several events and a phone debut in an attempt to make the movie and the company itself more popular.  For example, LG started a new website and even made a special edition Versa phone for the occasion. 

First off, Peter Cullen did the voice over of a 30 second advertisement for LG and the movie.  As you probably know, Cullen is the voice of Optimus Prime.  In addition, the advertisement features Optimus Prime and a Deception from the summer movie, as well as the LG Versa.  The ad aired on television starting on June 1.  In addition, LG and Verizon are holding a sweepstakes, in which customers have to send one of three prerecorded messages by Optimus Prime to one of their contacts in Friends and Family.  The prize for the sweepstakes is an all expense paid trip to Los Angeles, where they can view the movie.  Moreover, they will receive 10 LG phones to give away to friends and family, a 55-inch LG TV to also give away to a family member (I’m just kidding about giving it away), and a LG Blu-ray system.  All in all, the sweepstakes is pretty enticing and the winner will be very lucky. 

Like I previously mentioned, LG has created a special edition phone of the LG Versa, and then is set to retail shorty only through consumer promotions.  There will probably only be a few of these phones available.  Of course, no phone is a special edition unless it comes with features that can’t be found in the original.  The “Transformed” Versa comes with exclusive voice tones by Cullen, preloaded ring tones, preloaded wallpapers, and the original Transformers movie loaded onto a microSD card.  To keep the phone safe, it comes with a specially designed case, which resembles the allspark cube found in the movie. 

Now, the website they released is called UncoverLG.com, which is actually a game website based upon the movie.  The whole idea is to get movie fanatics excited about the film, LG phones (specifically the Versa), and Verizon.  I went on the website and took a look at the game - it seems pretty cool but I haven’t actually played it, so don’t take my word for it.  All in all, this seems to be a successful advertising venture for LG and Transformers. 

Read [LG Press Release]

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Samsung’s latest offering into the Blu-ray market is the SD-P4600.  Very glossy and streamlined in appearance, but when are they going to give up attempts into the Blu-ray foray?  I just don’t see Blu-ray making it.

This one is different from other ones out right now due to its design.  It’s super thin and can be wall mounted.  But although they earn some kudos for “cool design” that doesn’t mean it actually works as well as it looks.

From several reviews I’ve read, set-up can be a pain in the rear.  Lots of “well that didn’t work” kind of steps to make all the features work correctly.  The side-loading discs are not exactly convenient and the port compartment is rather cramped. 

The BD-P4600 has built in streaming for Netflix movies and Pandora music.  Unfortunately, the Netflix movies didn’t work for many people trying to get them.  Instead, they got lots of error messages, without streaming any movies. 

My point regarding Blu-ray is that I just don’t see how it is going to be a “stick around” kind of thing that really makes it into every family’s home.  Discs are still expensive, and there are so many other viable opportunities to get your movie entertainment delivered right to your living room without this kind of price-tag attached. 

Then when you have the fact that people can buy upscaling DVD players and still get good quality video on their HDTVs using regular DVDs, there goes that perk Blu-ray tries to sell. 

But, if you are a technophile that needs one of every gadget in your home, now you have another choice for your product lineup.  It runs about $500 and just released June 10th.

Read: [Wired]

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While there is a war raging on about whether it is legal to copy your DVDs or not, you will be able to copy your Blu-ray discs (BDs) complete with the studios’ permission soon.  The Advanced Access Content System Licensing Administrator is responsible for the copy protection on BDs and will require the studios who use their technology to allow BDs to be copied by the consumer.  This is called a “managed copy.”

That means that movies that have the AACS copy protection will be copiable starting next year.  There are, of course, a bunch of qualifications to this news.

The AACS-LA is only requiring that the studios allow one copy of the BD.  There is nothing saying that these copies must be free; the studios will be able to charge for these copies.  Also, since this is a “managed copy,” expect it to be DRM-laden and it will probably only work with specific partners.  On the bright side, these are supposed to be full copies of the discs including special features as well as the feature film. 

The studios still must approve and then sign the agreement.  Since the agreement seems relatively studio-friendly, they will probably go along with it unless they want to adopt a new copy protection standard.

As an aside, Mac fans are out of luck since Apple is not participating in the discussions.  There’s nothing stopping them from joining in, so if they ever decide to officially support Blu-ray, who knows what will happen. 

Read: [Video Business]

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Panasonic has just released information on the upcoming release of the DMP-B15, the world’s first portable Blu-ray disc player.  Included with the DMP-B15 will be almost a nine inch LCD screen, Internet access and a SD memory card slot.  The only catch is that don’t expect to get the DMP-B15 for a steal; currently the player is priced at $799.95.

Panasonic combined many of the features of their other Blu-ray players and added them into the DMP-B15.  Panasonic is also including Viera Cast functionality into the player in order to use the player to access select websites.  These websites include Amazon’s Video On Demand service, YouTube, Google web albums, and weather channels.  You can access the Internet through the built in LAN port on the portable Blu-ray player.  The battery of the DMP-B15 will be able to hold a charge for about two and a half hours.

The Panasonic DMP-B15 is expected to be released some time this month and is available for pre-order through numerous online electronics retailers, such as PriceBreak.com.

Site: [Panasonic]

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I wish I could say that this was a brand new offer from Amazon, but either way it was new to me, so it is likely to be new to others as well.  In what may be a possible sign of the current economic times, Amazon is currently offering to trade your old DVDs, Blu-ray and HD DVD discs in for gift cards.  Basically, all you need to do is choose what items you want to trade-in, then pack them for shipment (which is free) and sit back and wait for your gift card to hit your account.

There are a few rules that go along with the trade-in though.  To begin with, the movies must be in what Amazon refers to as “good condition” which really just means that they need to be undamaged and in the original package including the cover art.  Additionally, once you decide on the items you are going to trade-in and submit them to Amazon, you then have to have your shipment postmarked within 7 days.  Of course, on the flip side, it only takes “2 business days” to have your gift card deposited in your Amazon.com account.

Finally, and I think this should most likely go without saying, but don’t expect to get full retail, or even close to it for your trade-ins.  Just take The Ultimate Matrix Collection as an example, on Blu-ray you will get $27.50 and only $7.00 on DVD.  Of course, even getting just a few bucks is still better than selling them at a garage sale.

Personally, this sounds great, especially considering I recently moved and discovered I had about a 100 movies that I had forgotten about and since learned that I can live without.  Now I just have to pack them up and decide what to do with my new found Amazon gift cards.

Read [Amazon]  Via [CrunchGear]

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A lot of people are putting more money into their living room because they are spending more time at home.  So what do you need to put together the best experience in your living room?  There’s the obvious stuff like a large screen television and that surround sound system.  Then there’s the non-obvious stuff. 

Get a good universal remote

Face the reality of how you use your equipment.  You could use all of the remotes that came with your components like a DVD player, the TV, and the receiver, but that’s just not worth the effort.  A universal remote is a hugely important part of any real home theater setup.  Bite the bullet, pay the $100 for a Logitech Harmony Remote.  The macros are definitely worth it.  

Trust in wires

Many home theater components need an Internet connection these days.  While you could try to have an all wireless setup, a wired network is more reliable.  Depending on your home’s layout, getting a wired connection to your home theater may not be easy.  Getting ready made cables for long runs can also get pricey.  If you’re inclined, make your own Ethernet cables and save yourself some money. 

Get an Ethernet switch

Once you get an Ethernet connection to your home theater, put in a network switch so you can connect your various components.  If you’re still squeamish about making your own cables, get a powerline adapter.  You probably won’t have the same speeds as Ethernet, but it’s better than nothing and may be faster than your Wi-Fi network. 

Get a HDMI switch

You can find older models of HDTVs for low prices.  Perhaps you even picked one up during the last holiday season.  One of the major drawbacks of older HDTVs is a lack of HDMI ports. 

You can get a receiver that supports multiple HDMI inputs and it will act like a switcher for your PS3, XBox 360, TiVO, or whatever.  If you pick up a budget receiver, it may have limited HDMI options.  No problem.  Grab a HDMI switch.  It adds another component to your setup, but it expands your options when you want to purchase a HDTV or receiver.

Protect your components

Invest in a hefty surge protector.  Don’t go into the bargain bin of your hardware store for one of these.  This device could protect every single component in case of a power surge.  You spent a lot of money on your devices, don’t protect it with a glorified extension cord. 

In no way is this an exhaustive list of everything you need, but these are things that are easily overlooked.  Hopefully you can use this advice to make your home theater experience fantastic. 

Full Story » | Written by Iyaz Akhtar for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »

Not sure why you’d need it, but you can have one set top box that can play Blu-ray and DivX video.  LG has put together these two technologies in its LG BD390.

This might actually make some sense.  Every electronics manufacturer needs to do something to differentiate their products from their competitors.  Samsung’s got its “Touch of Color” line of electronics and LG puts together technologies in one box.  It’s a safe bet to say that Blu-ray players were picked up by tech-savvy people.  Adding in DivX support will grab some more technophiles. 

The player will be able to decode up to 1080p videos over the network (it even has built-in 802.11n Wi-Fi), a DVD, or USB device.  I’ve seen some samples of HD DivX video and it’s pretty impressive.  You can get some nice quality video in a small file.  Maybe it’s not so crazy after all.  It’s available now for $450.

[Product Page] via [PRNewswire]

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Before the release of J.J. Abram’s massive success in “Star Trek,” “Watchmen” was the geek movie event of the year.  The amount of attention it got from geeks across the country couldn’t go ignored by Warner Bros., which decided to add a bit of extra functionality to the Blu-Ray release of Watchmen.

The Blu-ray Director’s cut of the movie will allow you to connect to use BD-Live to watch the movie along with any number of Facebook friends.  It will use Warner Home Video’s live community screening to link the movie between all those watching so you can comment on the movie as you watch it with your friends. 

Of course there is a bit of an obvious catch: everyone has to own a copy of the Blu-ray Director’s cut, and a Blu-ray player capable of BD-Live that is connected to a broadband connection.  Seems like a lot of trouble where it’d just be easier for that one person who has a PS3 or Blu-Ray player to buy the movie, and then invite their friends over to watch it together.

The BD-Live and Facebook connection sounds like it could be an interesting gimmick, but nothing more.  It seems like a way to get people to invest in Blu-ray for a feature they may never be able to use.  Warner Bros. has a better way of doing that with “Watchmen,” though.  The only way to obtain a physical copy of the Director’s cut is to get the Blu-ray version.  Granted, the Theatrical cut and Director’s cut only have a difference of 28 minutes, for some fans of the material it will be hard to not get the Director’s cut.  Those same people might not have Blu-ray yet, and may not be able to afford a PS3 or other Blu-ray player.  The only other options are to get the Director’s cut through Amazon On Demand or iTunes.

Read [PC Mag]

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There are some reviews that are a bit difficult to compose.  Sometimes the products are so intricate that it takes a whole lot of work to boil them down to a brief review.  Other times the products are just so simple that there isn’t much to say about them beside “it works” and “it is great.”  Thankfully, this review is the latter.

I am not sure about you but I am regularly running out of space on my living room DVR (from Time Warner Cable) and am forced to delete movies and/or TV shows that I haven’t have time to watch.  I could opt to record in SD instead of HD (which requires significantly less space), but that is just too big of a sacrifice.  With the Seagate Extender these problems dissolve away.

What is it?

The Seagate Showcase DVR Storage Expander allows you to expand your hard drive space on your DVR.  It is available in 500GB or 1TB versions.  Each version comes in USB 2.0 or eSATA variations.  Prices range from $119.99 to $164.99 depending on configuration.

The Good

The Showcase is a plug and play DVR expander via USB 2.0 or an eSATA connection.  It adds up to 200 additional hours of HD shows or 1000 hours in standard definition.  To get it going you turn off your DVR and then plug the large power block into the wall and the Showcase.  Finally, do the same for the USB or eSATA cable (now between your DVR and the Showcase).  Once this is complete (a.k.a. 30 seconds later) turn your DVR back on, at which time you should see a prompt asking if you want to “reformat your external drive.” 

Upon saying yes, you are done—your DVR will do the rest.  It will fill up your external drive as the internal drive reaches capacity and play off of either drive, based on where the program is recorded.

The Bad

The only downfall is that if/when you disconnect the Showcase and move it to another DVR (even if from the same provider and same model DVR), the device forces you to reformat your drive and lose those saved shows.

The Crux

If you’re looking for a way to expand your DVR without hacking, the Seagate Showcase DVR Storage Expander is a very good option.

Product Page: Showcase

Full Story » | Written by Adam Berger for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »

Ok, ok…so you can’t go to Newegg and buy it just yet.  But GE announced just today that they’ve made some huge steps forward in the whole process, and now just have to figure out how to make their lab success work in affordable mass-produced products.

Talk about the the ultimate in space saving!  I think they will get to take over that slogan from the Tupperware people (or whoever has it right now).  Richard Doherty, an analyst at the technology research firm Envisioneering says that “This could be the next generation of low-cost storage.”

This “low-cost storage” is built on holographic technology.  More and more on things like credit cards, you are seeing those 3D images on the card being used for security reasons.  With holography, it can store the 1’s and 0’s of digital data also.  The stored data is encoded in light patterns in light sensitive material.  Then, to read the recorded data, the holograms act like a mirror letting you see the refracted light patterns.  When a laser is shined on them, voila!  Magic.  The data “appears” and can be pulled and deciphered.

Although the potential of holographic technology has been known for quite some time, since the early 1960s as a matter of fact, it hasn’t become the road most traveled mainly due to cost factors.  But with this latest development by GE, many analysts believe that could be changing.  This is due in large part to GE researchers taking the path less traveled in their approach.  They use what is called microholographic storage.  This storage depends on less complex, tinier holograms than previously concentrated on.

The biggest challenge for the research team was to find a way to allow these smaller holograms to reflect enough light.  Their GE lab in NY made the breakthrough—use a 200-fold increase in the reflective power.  This increase puts them at the lower range of light reflections that are readable by current Blu-ray players.  “We’re in the ballpark,” said Brian Lawrence, the scientist who leads GE’s holographic storage program. “We’ve crossed the threshold so we’re readable.”

With this approach, the holograms are scattered over the disc kind of like they are on CDs, DVDs and Blu-Ray discs.  So, the same player could read them all.  The big difference here is storage.  While a standard DVD holds 5-9 gigabytes of data, and a Blu-ray comes in 25 or 50-gigabytes flavors, a microholographic disc could hold a whopping 500 gigabytes.

But of course, the bottom line to many is “how much is this gonna cost?”  When Blu-ray first came out in 2006, it cost about $1 a gigabyte for a 25-gigabyte disc.  It’s about half that now.  GE predicts that when their product is introduced (and they are thinking about 2011 or 2012), that holographic discs are going to cost way less than that…more like 10 cents per gigabyte..and keep falling.

They plan to market and sell to places like TV networks, medical researchers and movie studios before heading on to the corporate and consumer market.  But they believe the time is near.  And I think Bert Hesselink, a Stanford professor and expert in the field summed it up well. ““If this can really be done, then GE’s work promises to be a huge advantage in commercializing holographic storage technology.”

via: nytimes

Full Story » | Written by Jodie Andrefski for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »

MPAA and RealNetwork court proceedings started this week in a copyright lawsuit against the RealNetworks software system that allows consumers to make digital backup copies of their DVDs.  Lawyers from the Motion Picture Association of America have won a petition to close the courtroom, but their testimony is to be based around the fact that Real is selling software that allows copying of a copyrighted product.

The MPAA feels that they should receive compensation for every copy made of their copyrighted DVDs.  Consumers should basically only be permitted one copy of a DVD and have to pay again if they want access to a digital copy.  Real’s product also competes with the digital copy inclusion provided by studios in order to entice more buyers to select DVDs.

Real contends that as part of their merchandising agreement, users are not permitted to make unauthorized copies of the digital duplicates that they make.  However, Real has a difficult battle ahead of them since they need to prove that the copying software is legal. However, the DVD Copy Control Association encrypts DVDs in order to forbid consumers from copying DVDs.  The proceedings are expected to close towards the end of the week.

Read: [PC Magazine]

Full Story » | Written by Heather Wood for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »