Posted 12/09/08 at 02:30:57 PM by Paul Lilly

OCZ's making a pitch for its new Slate Series ExpressCard, a storage expansion drive the company claims is better suited than USB flash devices and external hard drives.

• Compatible with USB 2.0
• 18 MB/sec read
• 12.5 MB/sec write
• Voltage: 2.7V - 3.6V

The new ExpressCard storage drives aren't going to win any speed crowns, so OCZ is touting convenience and low power consumption over alternative backup solutions. Users who don't like to lug around external hard drives or who are prone to bumping into USB keys sticking out of a notebook may find appeal in an ExpressCard that stays put and out of the way.

Specific pricing and availability has not yet been announced, though OCZ did say its new Slate Series will come in 8GB, 16GB, and 32GB capacities.

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Posted 07/02/08 at 04:18:53 PM by Paul Lilly

Watch TV on the go, you say? Leadtek says 'yes' with the announcement of its new hybrid TV capture card. The WinFast ExDTV2300 H supports the ExpressCard interface, with features that include:

• DVB-T and worldwide analog TV reception (NTSC, SECAM, and PAL)
• MPEG-4/2/1/WMV/VCD/DVD/SVCD
• Component input video up to 480p
• Full screen stereo/SAP support
• DVB-T and FM Radio

The capture card comes with Leadtek's WinFast PVR2 software, which boasts Time Shifting, Scheduled Recording, Power on/off by Remote, and TwinView. Even better, Leadtek throws in an I/R remote allowing you to level-up your couch potato skill-set, whether you're home or not.

Could this be a growing trend? Last year Pinaccle introduced its PCTV HD Pro Stick, a bus-power tuner sized just right for notebooks. Unfortunately, performance was marred by somewhat slow channel surfing, nor did it work with unencrypted QAM signals, but in its favor, Gordon Mah Ung noted the dual-core notebook used to test the device never broke a sweat while playing back or recording HDTV content. This also begs the question; do notebook owners prefer an ExpressCard TV tuner over a USB-based one?

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