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Blockbuster kiosks to offer movies on SD cards, you some candy as you checkout

by Darren Murph posted Nov 11th 2009 at 9:21AM

Blockbuster's been trying all sorts of, um, innovative things to get more foot traffic in its stores, but thanks to a dastardly invention known only as "Netflix," that very task has proven exceptionally difficult. Now, it seems the flagging movie rental company is giving one more far-flung idea a whirl: movies on SD cards. Around six Blockbuster and Hollywood Video stores will soon begin offering titles on SD cards, though the included DRM only allows customers 30 days from the purchase date to view it, and once it's fired up, you've just 48 hours before it vanishes completely. Each rental will cost $1.99, and while we definitely see the benefit of renting something that you don't have to return, we're still skeptical that folks will be more willing to make even one trek for a card when Netflix brings it all to one's mailbox (and PC, etc.) for just $8.99 per month.

[Via FastCompany]

Samsung develops first chip for US mobile digital TV transmission, provides no release date

by Darren Murph posted Oct 19th 2009 at 9:33AM

Mmm, nothing like a pinch of predictability to wake us in the morning. Just days after the Advanced Television Systems Committee (ATSC) finally announced that a North American mobile DTV standard was struck, Samsung has jumped in with what it's calling the planet's first single chip solution designed to handle those very transmissions. All we're told is that the solution combines RF and "digital chip components" into one 65 nanometer chip, making it ideal for smaller devices such as smartphones, car-mounted televisions and portable media players. Of course, Sammy doesn't even bother to mention a mass production date, so we're guessing we all just rise awkwardly and start a roaring slow clap to celebrate the accomplishment.

China Blue HD crosses over to the UK, third Opium War inevitable

by Richard Lawler posted Oct 13th 2009 at 9:24PM

We've given HD DVD's bastard child China Blue HD its due for a good start in its native land, but now that U.K. Importer GBAX has made a few units available it's time for English language buyers to at least consider this Blu-ray alternative. Of course, with a £259.99 ($413.22 U.S.) pricetag for this plain TCL player, AV and HD cables, plus 14 CBHD movies (The Aviator, Blood Diamond, The Invasion, The Island, Flood, Poseidon & 8 Chinese-only flicks) to get you started the barrier to entry is high, but as shown in the unboxing / preview video -- embedded after the break, watch for ninjas -- the experience is very familiar. As Format War Central points out, the 220/240Hz power cord makes things complicated for the U.S. and other places outside Europe, but hardcore HD DVD holdouts are used to a world filled with only Warner and Universal movies already, so why not give the other blue laser flavor a try?

[Via Format War Central]

Continue reading China Blue HD crosses over to the UK, third Opium War inevitable

TDK's heavily stacked 320GB disc shows its nearly-clear face at CEATEC

by Darren Murph posted Oct 7th 2009 at 1:59AM Featured Story


As with pretty much every other optical disc out there that claims to hold a near-infinite amount of data, we're still skeptical about TDK's ability to actually bring to market the 320GB spinner you see above. But hey -- it's got ten 32GB layers and it's practically see-through. Did you really expect us to walk on by without clicking the shutter even once? Exactly.

Gallery: TDK's 320GB optical disk

TDK stacks 10 layers on a single 320GB disc

by Richard Lawler posted Oct 2nd 2009 at 4:09PM

Even though we have yet to see the long-hinted 100GB and 200GB prototype Blu-ray discs as real products, TDK is looking beyond that, ready to display 320GB ten-layer platters at CEATEC 2009 that can be read and written with current blue laser technology. Key in stacking so many layers is improving the transmittance of the outermost layer as seen above - that nearly clear one on the right doesn't require a more powerful laser to get through. The only thing we can't see? When or if any of these will actually be released.

[Via Hot Hardware]

GE shows off 1TB holographic discs but Wolf Blitzer remains skeptical

by Richard Lawler posted Oct 1st 2009 at 11:04PM

We're confused as to how technology that was supposed to be available in 2006 can still be featured at an Emerging Tech conference in 2009, but so it is for General Electric's attempt at holographic storage. Predicting drives for archival purposes in two or three years with consumer products around two years after that, manager Peter Lorraine claims Blu-ray has "two to four years of life to go" and expects licensees to clean up with speedy 3ms access time, 1TB+ storing (up from a mere 200GB), backwards compatible hardware. The latter portion, plus other breakthroughs in cost and reliability are listed as reasons to believe the market will catch HVD anytime soon, but right now it's about as likely returning to a matching 2006-era MySpace page or believing Wolf was staring at anything other than a mark on the floor on Election Night.

[Via Physorg]

Sony single lens 240 fps camera is great for 3D (& 2D) sports

by Richard Lawler posted Oct 1st 2009 at 3:56AM

We've said it before and we'll say it again, sports, not movies or video games is 3D's killer app, and this prototype camera from Sony is designed specifically to help bring the two closer together. Set to debut at CEATEC next week, the HFR Comfort-3D records at 240 fps through just one lens instead of two thanks to a new half-mirror system that takes left and right eye images at the same time, better for capturing fast motion and providing viewers lacking polarized glasses a 2D picture with minimal blurring. One of our few complaints during last year's BCS National Championship 3D experience was occasional benefits caused by fast left-right motion which this system could make a non-issue. Check after the break for a detailed (in Japanese) diagram that should help make things clearer -- for those that can read the language -- the rest of us are waiting for ESPN or someone else to tote a few of these down to the Super Bowl in 2010 and make magic happen.

[Via AV Watch thanks Derek for English PR]

Continue reading Sony single lens 240 fps camera is great for 3D (& 2D) sports

China Blue HD adding supporters and talking trash to Blu-ray

by Richard Lawler posted Oct 1st 2009 at 3:40AM

It momentarily slipped under our US-centric noses, but another log was thrown on the Chinese high definition format war recently when Universal Studios and National Geographic joined Warner in supporting China Blue HD. Format War Central also reports 8 new manufacturers have signed up to join the CHDA backing the format. That plus a claimed 3-1 sales advantage have the CHDA calling the format war "a game no one played" thanks to Blu-ray's high prices and licensing fees. It's still unlikely China's son of HD DVD could affect that high definition movie marketplace anywhere else, but it will be interesting to see if the country's manufacturers choose that path and upgrade their existing DVD equipment instead of replacing it to produce the even cheaper Blu-ray players we'd hoped for.

[Via Format War Central]

Nokia, Samsung, Toshiba and Sony align on Mobile High-Definition Link

by Darren Murph posted Sep 29th 2009 at 10:19AM

Say it with us now: "Yippee!" Why such joviality? We'll tell you why. Nokia, Samsung, Toshiba, Sony and Silicon Image have all teamed up to create yet another new connector, with this one hoping to forever harmonize the strained relationship between mobile phones / PMPs and high-def displays. The so-called Mobile High-Definition Interface Working Group is seeking to create a new "industry standard" for connecting handsets and other portable consumer electronics to HDTVs and displays, though we're still wondering why exactly we need a replacement for HDMI, DisplayLink and the forthcoming Light Peak so soon. As with most of these things, details about the actual product(s) are slim, but trust us, they're working on it. And they're working hard.

Comcast could serve TV over WiMAX, inflate your bill even higher

by Darren Murph posted Sep 16th 2009 at 5:03PM


Think you're good at turning down the upsell? Try saying no to adding WiMAX to your home internet service for the low, low price of whatever Comcast wants to charge. Thanks to a multi-billion dollar tie-up with Clearwire, Comcast has been offering WiMAX-based internet services in a few markets, but now that On Demand Online is a go, it makes sense to think that the operator would use that as leverage to get people hooked. For those unaware, ODO enables Comcast pay-TV subscribers to watch a vast array of programming from any internet connection, which of course means that any ole 3G / 4G data connection would work just as well as Comcast's own. Oh, and while mobile TV is pretty good -- and we're going to let Comcast finish -- watching HDTV at home with a DVR is definitely the best scenario of all time.

Update: Just to be clear, this service won't deliver TV straight to phones.

Blockbuster plans to part with 960 retail stores by end of 2010

by Ross Miller posted Sep 15th 2009 at 8:32PM

Seriously, Blockbuster can't seem to get a break. In a recent SEC filing, the company identified 18 percent of its retail outlets it deemed unprofitable and announced plans to close up to 960 stores by the end of 2010. That's divided into up to 685 by the end of this year and the remaining 275 the year after, but the filing continues to say that up to 1,560 locations, or 22 percent of its total retail coverage, could end up falling the wayside. Another slide indicates how the company sees itself going forward, with an expansion of kiosks and its Total Access subscriber base, and putting OnDemand in "nearly every connected device." Of course, if this brings Blockbuster back to profitability as it expects to be, then more power to it, but it's clear that the one-time king is fighting wars on a number of sides and has a long way to go if it intends to stay afloat, much less reclaim its crown.


[Via CNET]

Grant Fidelity's $3,200 Impression II weds CD player, tube amp and overkill

by Darren Murph posted Sep 9th 2009 at 6:58AM


See that? That's a $3,200 CD player, which will be impossible to justify for pretty much anyone not featured on Joan Rivers' newest TV show. Designed and produced by Grant Fidelity, the CD-1000 Impression II packs a high-end Sanyo CD drive, tube analog output, tube headphone amplifier and a rather basic display screen, while the "anti-vibration aluminum chassis" tries as hard as it can to look both unorthodox and absurdly expensive. It's hard to say if your burnt MP3 discs will actually sound better on this thing (okay, so they won't), but at least you can rest easy knowing that shipping on this 50 pound beast is completely gratis.

[Via OhGizmo]

Paramount, Lionsgate, Warner Bros. & Sony Pictures movies finally available (legitimately) in DivX

by Richard Lawler posted Aug 26th 2009 at 8:00AM


Over the last few years we've witnessed a slew of DivX Certified devices including HDTVs, DVD & Blu-ray player, set-top boxes, game consoles and even cell phones, but until now, despite several content agreements, in the U.S. there hasn't been any content available in the format from the major studios. That changes today now that online store FilmFresh.com, has signed up Paramount, Lionsgate, Warner Bros. & Sony Pictures to offer new release and archive movies for purchase as DivX formatted downloads. The bad news? For now at least, they'll be standard definition (stereo audio) only. Rick Bolton, CEO of Film Fresh as well as Eric Grab and John Greene of DivX filled us in on the details, and from what we've learned -- if you'll stand for lower res video -- the combination of compatibility and portability could make this download service a competitor against the likes of iTunes, CinemaNow and Zune.

Continue reading Paramount, Lionsgate, Warner Bros. & Sony Pictures movies finally available (legitimately) in DivX

CEPro breaks down Real and Kaleidescape cases, uncovers more questions

by Steven Kim posted Aug 20th 2009 at 11:27PM

DVD legal rulingIt's been a rough week for DVD copying services from Real and Kaleidescape, and public understanding of the whole DVD copying mess hasn't been spared. People like to watch DVDs and lawyers like to get paid, however, so we're willing to bet there's more to come. CEPro has put together a breakdown of the issues at hand, which not only makes for some good reading but also shows just how far from any real clarity we are. Whether it's legal to make bit-for-bit copies, but illegal to view them; legal to use copying tools, but illegal to produce them; or just plain mean to do something Hollywood doesn't want you to, consumers are going to push for media convenience. We're still hoping Blu-ray's Managed Copy gives us enough wiggle room on our HD digital handcuffs, but sadly, it seems like DVD fans can pick between taking up residence in legal limbo while the courts struggle to catch up with tech or just strip the CSS from discs and get on with their lives.

Kaleidescape gets in line behind RealDVD for rough treatment

by Steven Kim posted Aug 13th 2009 at 6:44PM

DVD lawsuitWhen it rains it pours -- right on the heels of the punishing blow dealt to RealDVD, the money-laden Kaleidescape crowd suffered its own setback at the hands of the law. You just know that the DVD CCA (Copy Control Association) appealed the 2007 ruling that allowed Kaleidescape owners to rip DVDs to their media servers, and yesterday a California Appeals Court overturned that ruling. Next stop -- the Santa Clara Superior Court, which could place an injunction on Kaleidescape if the appeal is upheld. It's not over yet, but we're prepping the soundboard with ominous music, boos and noisy hand-wringing. Whatever (and whenever) the outcome, we can only hope that Blu-ray's Managed Copy comes to the scene sooner rather than later and settles this issue for our beloved HD content




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