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More People Watching HD-DVD Over Blu-ray

Andy Salisbury — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 16:53:15 -0500

According to a recent poll very few Americans are onboard with high definition media players, given that only 11 percent own an HD-DVD player, while 7 percent own a Blu-ray player.

While these numbers may not seem that high, they are up notably from 2008, where only 6 percent had HD-DVD players, and 4 percent had Blu-ray players. And, while there are a good amount of people with these players, many are still buying standard definition discs to watch on them, with only one high definition disc being bought per six standard definition discs.

Interesting results, especially given that Blu-ray was declared the winner of the format war sometime last year.

If you’d like to see the whole poll, be sure to check it out here (clicking the link will download a PDF).

Image Credit: Harris Poll, 2009-6-18

Think HD-DVD is Going to Make a Comeback? Now There's an HTPC for You

Andy Salisbury — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 17:21:55 -0500

While HD-DVD fell to Blu-ray years ago, it looks like Kinetic is still looking to push an HTPC that supports the format.

Though, that may be a bit unfair. The Kinetic HD:Hub has a drive in it that supports not only HD-DVD, but Blu-ray as well (keep in mind though, if you’re looking to pick up some leftover HD-DVD movies at liquidation prices, you’ll actually have the means to watch them!). And under the hood of this beast you’ll find an Intel Core i7 processor, up to four TV tuners, 802.11 a/b/g/n WiFi, and a creative X-Fi Titanium sound card.

No word yet on pricing or availability.

Image Credit: Kinetic

Speculation: Toshiba Thumbs Nose at Blu-ray, Toys with Internet Enabled DVD Player Instead

Paul Lilly — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 11:04:32 -0500

Now that Blu-ray rules the high definition roost, many are left wondering what Toshiba's next move be in the wake of HD-DVD's death, and a new logo has kicked speculation into high gear. The Toshiba-chaired DVD Forum recently approved the DVD Download/DL logo, a new spec likely to show up in Toshiba's next batch of super upscaling DVD players. But what exactly is this new feature? According to wireless consumer advocate Christopher Rice, DVD Download/DL equipped players will enable transmissions of HD-quality video from the web, so not only will your standard videos look better when upscaled, but you'll have the option to download the DVD in HD.

If true, one has to wonder why Toshiba would go down this road again and wage another war with Blu-ray, but is it really such a big gamble? Despite winning the high definition format war, Blu-ray sales have been a bust among consumers, and buyers are realizing that upscaled DVDs look pretty darn good on a HDTV. And because the new players won't introduce a new optical format, movie studios won't be able to render the player obsolete as easily as they did with HD-DVD. Sounds promising in theory, but let's see how it shakes out in practice.

Image Credit: DVD Forum

No BS Podcast #50: The Epic CES Edition

The Maximum PC Staff — Fri, 11 Jan 2008 19:20:12 -0600

CES is over, and what better way to celebrate then this, the big 50th edition of the Maximum PC Pocdast! This week, Dave, Will, Gordon, and Jeremy discuss all the awesome stuff they saw (or heard other saw) at the big trade show, Will's huge rig-building victory at CES, and what the heck happened during last week's podcast! We don't even answer any tech questions this week, it's that news-heavy of a show!

To learn more about Intel-sponsored LAN parties, mosey on over here.

Do you have a tech question? A comment? Just have something you want to get off your chest? Email us at maximumpcpodcast@gmail.com or call our 24-hour No BS Podcast hotline at 877.404.1337 x1337, operators are standing by. Also, get your game on with the editors of Maximum PC by joining our Steam group or Facebook Page.

Modders and modding aficionados, check out Mod Shop: submit and vote on the coolest mods around—and win prizes!

Subscribe: http://feeds.feedburner.com/maximumpc/1337

Daily News Brief: Hackers Declare War on Pirates

Paul Lilly — Wed, 09 Jan 2008 18:19:57 -0600

Civil War Amongst Pirates

Hackers are sending a strong, albeit ironic message to parts of the BitTorrent and P2P community: Don't steal. The hackers have targeted private BitTorrent tracker Feedthe.Net, releasing a text file containing personal details about one of the site's administrators along with promises of more attacks to come. The file appears to have originated from the same person(s) responsible for attacking SuperTorrents late last year, which resulted in the theft of $2,000 from the site's PayPal account. More details can be found here.

XBox 360 May Support Blu-ray (UPDATED)

Microsoft's XBox 360 gaming console has been entrenched in the HD-DVD camp, but that could change if Blu-ray continues to pick up momentum. Albert Penello, group marketing manager for XBox hardware, said "It should be consumer choice; and if that's the way they vote, that's something we'll have to consider." Penello's comments came just days after Warner Bros. announced they're dropping support for HD-DVD and exclusively backing the Blu-ray format.

Update: Microsoft has categorically denied any upcoming support for Blu-ray.

Apple Faces Class Action Suit

It's been a banner year for Apple, who enjoyed a record financial quarter as iPhones and iPods became must-have items and Leopard roared onto the scene. But they've also been the target of numerous lawsuits, the latest of which is a class action suit that takes issue with Apple's dominance in the MP3 player market. Specifically, the suit alleges that Apple's iTunes dominance is in violation of the Sherman Antitrust Act based on an estimated 75% control of the online video market, 83% control of the online music market, over 90% control of the hard drive based music player market, and 70% of the Flash based music player market. The suit goes on to point out the lack of WMA support, which Apple previously attributed to licensing fees.

DRAM Pricing Going Up?

Hynix thinks so. Kim Jong-kap, CEO of the No. 2 memory-chip maker, stated there's a "likelihood of a rebound in the second quarter." DRAM pricing has hit what appears to be rock bottom this past year, falling more than 85 percent according to data provided by DRAMeXchange, and in some cases has even fell below the cost of production. Kits of memory that have previously sold for between $200 and $300 can now be had for under a C-note, but Hynix remains confident pricing will soon rise based on the "huge number of new products" they saw at CES that require memory. Hynix plans to invest less than the $5.12 billion they spent in 2007.

Skype Hops on PSP

Sony announced they are introducing Skype features to its recently refreshed Playstation Portable. The partnership will give gamers free voice calls between Skype users along with other standard Skype features. This marks the first time the VoIP service has moved from the desktop and merged with an entertainment device, which falls in line with Sony's hope to make the PSP a fully fledged media player. A Skype icon will be added to the PSP's Network category following an update to the PSP's system software.

Best Buy Has Nerves

Not everyone is excited about the transition from analog to digital broadcasting, which is set to take place by February 17, 2009. Best Buy CEO Brad Anderson indicated that they're "very nervous about the potential risk" of having to supply millions of digital TV converter boxes before analog transmissions are shut down. According to data from the Nielson Co. roughly 14.3 million households rely on over-the-air broadcasts for TV programming, all of which would need a converter box to continue to receive signals.

Daily News Brief: Intel Gets FAB-ulous

Paul "One4yu2c" Lilly — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 19:14:27 -0500

Intel Opens Arizona Plant

With a cool $3 billion to spare, Intel today opened a chip manufacturing plant in Chandler, Arizona. The new factory will focus solely on processors based around 45nm Hi-k silicon technology, extending their lead to at least six months over AMD in the transition to the new chip-making method. Intel's first 45nm parts, code name Penryn, will go on sale November 12.

How to Manage a Prima Donna

We know it's been on your mind, and the good folks at Microsoft have developed 5 guidelines for managing that Primia Donna in the workplace. In fact, Microsoft's website is a veritable treasure trove of pearls if you're willing to dig around...

Toshiba HD-DVD Two Part Update

For starters, Toshiba put the kibosh on rumors they're working with Microsoft to deliver an integrated HD-DVD drive into a future XBox 360 model. Bummer. But as one speculative door closes at the rumor mill, another one opens, as a pictured surfaced showing Wal-Mart displaying a $198 Toshiba HD-DVD player. The wallet friendly player will reportedly go on sale November 3rd.

Microsoft in Your Facebook

Not all rumors turn out false, such as Microsoft's infatuation with Facebook. Ending speculation, Microsoft has agreed to pay $240 million for a minority stake in the social networking site. Microsoft gets exclusive rights to sell advertising aimed at the 50 million Facebook member base. But is it all business? Both Microsoft and Facebook were started by Harvard dropouts, giving the couple like, sooooo much to talk about. Aww.

Geforce Card Cracks Passwords

Apparently nVidia's flagship 8800 Ultra isn't just capable of cranking through the benchmarks, but it can crack passwords too. And Elcomsoft, a Moscow based software company, wants to patent the technique. Taking advantage of the massive parallel processing capabilities in the 8800 Ultra, Elcomsoft managed to increase how quickly they can crack passwords by a factor of 25, boasting just three to five days to crack Vista login passwords. Only trouble is, once inside, then they have to deal with Vista. ZING!

SanDisk Flashes 25 Lawsuits

SanDisk feels scorned, and they're letting no less than 25 companies know about it by suing them for patent infringement. SanDisk filed suit with both the U.S. District Court in Wisconsin and the U.S. International Trade Commission, seeking damages, a permanent injunction, and a ban against importing their products. The laundry list of names include A-Data, Corsair, Kingston, PNY, Buffalo, and several (20) others.

Daily News Brief: iPhone Killer on the Horizon?

Paul "One4yu2c" Lilly — Wed, 03 Oct 2007 20:49:49 -0500

Verizon's Voyager Takes on iPhone

While Apple continues to alienate a portion of its customer-base with premature price cuts and bricked iPhones, some competitors are seeing opportunity. Enter Verizon, who today unveiled the LG Voyager. Featuring a similar aesthetic design, the Voyager operates on a faster network (3G), comes with a full keypad, and support for MP3, WMA, and unprotected AAC files. Enter 'can you hear me now' joke here.

Too Attached to Robots?

You've heard of the Roomba vacuum cleaner, and if you've been around anyone that's owned one, you may have heard the iRobot Corp. creation referred to as a member of the family. In a study involving emotional design, Ph.D. student Ja Young Sung found that people are naming their Roombas, traveling with them, and even introducing them to their parents. Some also arbitrarily assigned a gender, referring to the device as he. But before you too get too cozy with your lifelike appliances, we must caution that not all robots are deserving of our affection - just ask Old Glory Insurance...

Evan Almighty Encourages Online Shopping

Blu-ray and HD-DVD continue to look for ways to get a leg up on each other, and today Universal Studios announced that the HD-DVD Evan Almighty will be the first disc to include an online shopping feature. The move highlights the ability of all Toshiba HD-DVD players to utilize a broadband internet connection, a feat not found on all Blu-ray. Evan Almighty will contain a simple web browser, giving viewers access to Universal's online store with products related to the movie. It's anyone's guess which will be the first romantic comedy to connect to FTD.

Adobe Previews Online Photoshop Express

Last night Adobe systems showed of their online version of Photoshop (Photoshop Express) at the Max 2007 developer conferences. The Flash-based image editor aimed at consumers (not professionals) runs inside a web browser, giving users the ability to remove red-eye with a single click. You can also preview images with various effects, view a timeline of thumbnail images cataloguing all the changes made, selectively change colors, and other impressive features for a web based app. Still no word yet on when Photoshop Express will be made available to the public.

Malware Writers Hath No Shame!

We already knew this, and spreading malware in email purported to have been written by the Dalai Lama only furthers the claim. Taking advantage of the violent protests in Myanmar, security firm Sophos alerted the public to a new scam making the rounds. The malicious email contains a Word document seemingly written by the Dalai Lama in support of pro-democratic demonstrations, but really contains malware, opening a back door and making the PC vulnerable to attack. The dirty attachment only works on machines with Word installed.

CoolWebSearch Gets Man Fired?

It might have! David Farr, a hospital respiratory therapist, was fired for having pornographic bookmarks in his favorites, despite his claims in a lawsuit (ultimately dismissed) that malware put them there. Is it inconceivable? The widespread CoolWebSearch malware is capable of doing just what he alleges, with some reports estimating 5 million infected sites. A computer forensics specialist backed Farr's claims, but the court refused to listen. There's a lesson to be learned here - surf safely, and take anti-malware measures into your own hands; your job could depend on it.

XtremeMac HDMI Switcher

Michael Brown — Wed, 05 Sep 2007 19:12:27 -0500

Planned obsolescence is one of the great evils of the Industrial Age, and it’s especially pernicious when it comes to consumer electronics. HDMI is only the latest example.

I love the new interface because it reduces the number of cables needed to connect my HD CATV set-top box to the 37-inch Viewsonic N3760w monitor I’ve been long-term testing. And as long as that was the only device I needed to plug into it, the TV’s single HDMI input served me well.

But then Netgear sent me their awesome Digital Entertainer HD EVA8000 to review. Having to unplug the set-top box to watch YouTube videos on the Viewsonic was a royal pain the butt. And then I upgraded my DVD player to a model that also supports HDMI. Now I had three devices competing for the single HDMI port on my TV.

I used Accell’s UltraAV HDMI switch for a while, but that product has only two inputs. I was also considering upgrading my A/V receiver to a new model that supports HDMI—Yamaha’s luscious RX-V2700 has three HDMI inputs and one HDMI output—but after building a new home, I just can’t afford it. So when Xtreme Mac pitched me their XtremeHD 4-port HDMI switcher, I asked them to send me one, stat.

The switch is enclosed in an attractive case—it’s considerably more appealing than Accell’s two-port switch—with four LEDs indicating which source you’ve selected with the wireless remote control. The remote control is chiclet-style, but large enough that it won’t get lost in your couch cushions (but I’d recommend teaching its functions to your programmable remote anyway).

The switcher—and the five 6.6-foot HDMI-to-HDMI cables XtremeMac sent along for the test—delivered excellent video and audio quality (both support the HDMI 1.3 standard). The products are reasonably priced, too: The switcher goes for $100 and the cables sell for $20 each (they also offer 13.2-foot cables for $30).

I’ll upgrade my A/V receiver eventually—there are advantages to be had beyond the multiple HDMI ports—but XtremeMac’s HDMI switch is an affordable stopgap measure .