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Disney to Cram Movies onto SD Cards, Does Anyone Care?

Paul Lilly — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 11:35:45 -0500

We've seen some third-party USB makers toy with adding movies to USB sticks -- PNY being the first by adding Ghostbusters to a 2GB USB thumb drive -- and now Disney is looking to do the same thing, only with microSD cards.

According to news site TGDaily, Panasonic and Disney have inked a deal to distribute Disney movies on microSD cards, the first of which will be the Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy this November. Looking longer term, Disney plans to release future titles on DVD and microSD at the same time.

Buyers will be able to view the movies on car navigation systems, mobile phones, and other portable media players with a microSD card slot, as well as some existing Panasonic TV sets that come with card readers already built in.

There are a couple of caveats, however. First, the card/movie bundles will only be available in Japan, at least initially. And secondly, the $53 price tag and included copy protection may scare off some potential customers.

Image Credit: cutiegadget.com

Asus Making Disney-Branded Netbook

Paul Lilly — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 10:00:24 -0500

In what could turn out to be a huge score for Asus, the Eee PC maker has teamed up with Disney to build a Disney-branded netbook being dubbed Netpal. Aimed at kids between the ages of 6 and 12, the netbooks will come in "Princess Pink" (with florals) or "Magic Blue" (miniature Mickey Mouse icons).

Disney's influence will extend beyond the casing. A kid-friendly user interface will sit on top of Windows XP making it easy for users to change the desktop with customizable themes, which will include Cars, Toy Story, WALL-E, and more, says USA Today. The Netpal also comes with a Magic Desktop 'gadget tray' with icons for a Disney browser, email, and parental controls.

On the hardware front, the 8.9-inch Netpal will pack an Intel Atom processor and a 16GB SSD or 160GB hard drive. It will also come with WiFi. Other specs are not yet known, but we imagine it will resemble any other Eee PC.

The Netpal is due out in late July for $350.

Image Credit: Disney

Hulu Announces Deal with Disney, Gets "Lost," "Grey's Anatomy," and Others

Paul Lilly — Fri, 01 May 2009 14:15:11 -0500

At long last, Hulu and Disney finally inked a deal giving Hulu permission to stream full-length episodes of such programs like "Lost," "Grey's Anatomy," "Desperate Housewives," and more. Under terms of the new deal, Disney will join the video sharing site as a partner and according to un-named sources, take a 27 percent stake in the venture, DigitalDaily reports.

"From our landmark iTunes deal to our pioneering decision to stream ad supported shows on our ABC.com player, Disney has sought to meet the constantly evolving viewing habits of our consumers, and today’s Hulu announcement is the next important step in that ongoing journey," Disney CEO Bob Iger bloviated. "Disney and Hulu share a focus on delivering the highest-quality entertainment experience and we look forward to working with Hulu to build value for our consumers, our brands and our shareholders."

The deal should inject a ton of new content into Hulu, which according to a joint press release, will include full-length episodes of primetime programs, ABC Family series, ABC Daytime and SOAPnet shows, classic series from ABC's library (like "Who Wants to be a Millionaire", "Dancing with the Stars"), Disney Channel hits (like "Wizards of Waverly Place" and "Phineas and Ferb"), yet-to-be-determined library titles from The Walt Disney Studios, and short-form content.

Rumor: Disney Might Take an Equity Stake in Hulu

Pulkit Chandna — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 17:15:47 -0500

The Walt Disney CO and Hulu.com have revived talks over the addition of ABC programming to the popular video-on-demand service. According to a report on paidcontent.org, which cites anonymous sources, Disney may settle for an equity stake in Hulu for allowing ABC programming on the video website. The talks have been described as “serious” and “definitely real” by different sources.

Although major ABC shows are reported to be at the heart of the discussions, the sources haven’t ruled out the possibility of the talks being expanded to include more content from Disney’s stable. Hulu is a joint venture between NBC Universal and News Corp with each having a 45% stake. A source has revealed that one of the arrangements being discussed is to allow Disney to be on equal footing with the two majority stakeholders.

Meanwhile, Disney and Youtube have struck a deal paving the way for ad-backed Youtube channels featuring videos from Disney and ESPN. These video channels will only be available in the U.S and won’t feature entire shows from the Disney stable. The ESPN channel and the ABC channel are scheduled to go live in April and May respectively. But, according to another paidcontent.org report, Disney’s deal with Youtube will not affect its talks with Hulu.

Real-Guitar Music Game Lets You Rock Your PC

Andy Salisbury — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 17:26:09 -0600

CES there was a new kid on the block by the name of Disney Star Guitarist that was looking to teach you how to play an actual guitar instead of memorizing the five color-coded buttons.

The game works about the same as guitar hero, little gems float down the screen and once they hit a certain spot it’s up to you to place your fingers in the right place and strum (you can find a video here). Only this time, instead of the aforementioned color-coded buttons, you’re using actual strings, on an actual guitar.

Should the game actually be good enough to hold people’s attentions (read: not just Disney songs), there could be some real value here. After all, as a drummer I can see it as a good possibility for someone that plays Rock Band on the harder difficulties to hammer out a beat on a real kit. Perhaps the same rule could apply, once someone’s had enough opportunities to play “Hakuna Matata” on the 5-string?

Image Credit: Wired

Daily News Brief: AMD's Back in Black!

Paul "One4yu2c" Lilly — Fri, 28 Sep 2007 20:03:21 -0500

AMD Unveils Black Edition Processor

AMD had enthusiasts speculating what to expect come September 25th, touting a dark side on their website to be revealed on said date. And while the hopeful dreamed of an early Phenom release, the surprise AMD instead sprung on the world was a second processor in their Black Edition lineup. The Black Edition X2 5000+ part is identical to the regular version, save for an unlocked multiplier and lack of a bundled heatsink/fan (it's a retail CPU). The new processor joins the 6400+ Black Edition released last month.

No XBox 360 Price Cut Planned for Holiday

Microsoft's manufacturing cost will go down when the XBox 360 switches to a 65nm CPU platform in time for the holidays, but DailyTech surmises that current pricing will likely stay the same. Instead, console gamers may find additional value with the inclusion of two bundled games; Forza Motorsport 2 and Marvel Ultimate Alliance. The assumption comes after spying the bundles on BestBuy's website at current pricing, which have since been taken down. Marketing images have also been spotted, giving credence to DailyTech's speculation.

XP Life Support Extended

Earlier this week we noted Microsoft was making it easier for Vista Business and Ultimate users to downgrade to XP. Now we've learned that MS will also extend XP availability to OEM system builders through June 2008, instead of making the cutoff in January as previously indicated. Windows corporate vice president Mike Nash contends Microsoft is "pleased" with the response to Vista, but are the customers? These two moves combined with Dell's decision to reintroduce XP as an OS option perhaps paints a different picture, with less roses...

Apple Hacks Back

Apple warned that those with the gall to unlock their iPhones and choose their own service provider would soon find their pricey gadget inoperable, and they're making good (bad?) on their claim. The 1.1.1 (3A109a) update is available through iTunes, and users are already reporting that their phones no longer work afterwards. But it's not just hacked phones that may be at risk, some owners of unmodified iPhones have complained of deleted contacts, photos, and music after applying the update.

Disney Abandons Cell Phone...Again

In other end-of-life cell phone news, Disney's pulling the plug on their branded cell phone service targeted towards kids. The Disney handsets went through Sprint Nextel Corp., and allowed parents to track their children's location, as well as set limits on how and when the phone was used. Unable to get large retailers on board, Disney will no longer sell the phone and service, and will continue to service existing phones until the end of the year. This is the second time Disney has closed the door on cell phone service, having previously partnered up with ESPN before shutting down one year ago.

iPod Earbuds Turn it Down

Concerned that today's youth (just like yesterday's youth) are killing their ear drums by playing music way too loud, Ingemi Corp. decided to attack the problem head on. Their new iHearSafe earbuds appear to be a regular set of earphones, except they contain a small volume-reducing circuit that limits the decibel level to 85, roughly the equivalent of city traffic noise. It's tough to imagine kids being thrilled with noise-capped earbuds, but hey, if they're getting an iPod this Christmas, sympathy goes out the window, and so does their risk for hearing damage by listening to loud music (above 85 dB) for an extended period.