Notable this past week was the release of the latest Mvix Media Center, the Mvix MX-780HD. The MX-780HD has HDMI out, supports up to 1080p and can now take either an IDE or SATA drive in its case. Still in the multi-media world, the Kaossilator Touchpad Synthesizer doesn't need keys or buttons to play musical notes.

A peppermill gadget? Yup. And get this, it's modeled on Star Wars' R2-D2. If you're into toys, check out the Mini Rubber Band Artillery. Take your basic rubber band finger gun to the next level!

USB has really revolutionized computer accessories; there's a USB gadget that does everything. Here's one for aromatherapy fans – the USB Aromatherapy Oil Burner. Now, you can get aromatherapy-relaxed while computing. Just plug this device into your USB port, add some oil and you're good to go.

For you retro-gamers, MAMEUI, the latest MAME for Windows was announced last week. Still in gaming, it appears that Mac gaming is making a comeback. Windows and console games have dominated the gaming world for years, after Macs showed how great games could look on a computer. Let's hope

Of course, arguably the biggest tech news this week was that Toshiba has dropped out of the DVD format war, with the HD-DVD format being pronounced dead. Sony's Blu-Ray format is what you'll be getting used to for the next 5 years at least.

Source: Gizmos for Geeks.

Labels: dvd, gadgets, games, HDTV

The format war between HD-DVD and Blu-ray came officially to a end this week when all six major Hollywood studios announced that they joined the Blu-ray Disc camp and Toshiba said that they would abandon the format in March 2008. Toshiba had been trying to put a positive spin on the loss of Warner Bros as a HD-DVD supporter since January.



Last week both Wal-Mart and Netflix decided to stock only Blu-ray DVDs.

Paramount Home Entertainment, who switched from Blu-ray to HD-DVD in August 2007, quietly came back to the Blu-ray camp via a statement sent to The Hollywood Reporter.

"We are pleased that the industry is moving to a single high-definition format, as we believe it is in the best interest of the consumer... As we look to (begin) releasing our titles on Blu-ray, we will monitor consumer adoption and determine our release plans accordingly."

Rumor had it that Paramount had a special get-out clause in their HD-DVD deal in case Warner Bros switched sides.

Thank goodness this HD disc format war is finally over. It's been one of the most ridiculous distractions the gaming industry has ever seen.

methodshop

Labels: dvd, tech news

UPDATE: Paramount spokeswoman Brenda Ciccone made this statement in response to reports that Paramount is abandoning the HD-DVD format: "Paramount's current plan is to continue to support the HD-DVD format." The statement didn't specify if Paramount would also produce Blu-ray DVDs in addition to HD-DVDs. It will be interesting to see how this story pans out.

According to the Financial Times, Paramount is going to drop their support for Toshiba's HD-DVD after Warner Brothers pulled out of the HD-DVD camp last Sunday night. This will most likely put the final nail in the coffin of the HD-DVD format and end the biggest home entertainment format war since Betamax vs. VHS.

I just gave the bad new to one of the guys in the Toshiba booth at CES. He wasn't happy. Their HD-DVD focused booth looks a little silly now.

Why the sudden switch? Why did Paramount go over to Sony's Blu-ray so quickly? Insiders are saying that a clause in Paramount's contract allowed the company to drop HD-DVD in the event that Warner Bros decided to back Blu-ray.

Paramount currently distributes DreamWorks Animation films and many believe that DreamWorks will probably follow Paramount over to the Blu-ray camp.




Blue-ray Members:

• Warner Brothers
  
• Walt Disney
• 20th Century Fox
  
• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
• Paramount (rumor)
  
• DreamWorks (rumor)
• Sony Pictures
• Sony PlayStation
  

HD-DVD Members:

• Universal Studios
  
• The Weinstein Company
• Microsoft Xbox
  

Paramount would have been a major content producer for HD-DVD. Paramount has several major blockbusters being released this year including the latest installment in the Indiana Jones franchise.


methodshop

Labels: dvd, tech news

While I'm getting over jet lag and waiting for the press office at CES to open so I can pick up my badge I thought I'd blog about the DVD format wars...

Last night, on the eve of the CES, Warner Bros. delivered what may turn out to be the decisive blow against the HD-DVD format.

Warner Bros. one of the largest publisher of DVDs in Hollywood, announced it will back the rival Sony-developed Blu-ray format exclusively starting on June 1, 2008. This means 5 of the top 7 movie studios have all gone Blu-ray.



Obviously the Warner Brothers announcement made the HD-DVD group (Toshiba/Microsoft/Intel) crap their pants. In fact Toshiba canceled a scheduled press event and claims to be "quite surprised" by the decision.

I don't know why people even argue for HD-DVD. Blu-ray has more storage. A dual layer Blu-ray disc can hold 50 GBs compared to HD-DVD with only 30 GB. Isn't more better?


methodshop

Labels: ces, dvd

Did you get a Sony PlayStation 3 or a Blu-ray DVD player for Christmas?

The Blu-ray Disc Association (BDA) is giving away 5 free Blu-ray DVDs to anyone who purchases a Blu-ray DVD player. The following companies are participating in the offer: Sony, Panasonic, Philips, Pioneer, Samsung and Sharp.

Just download this form and choose 5 discs from a selection of 20. The discs are split into 5 categories, and you can only choose one from each.



Honestly, there are a lot of stinkers on the list but I did find a diamond in the rough... The Band's concert DVD 'The Last Waltz' directed by Martin Scorsese.


Here’s the list of 20 DVDs that you can pick from:

Category 1:

• The Prestige
• Wild Hogs
• Pirates of the Caribbean: Black Pearl
  

Category 2:

• Swordfish
• Superman: The Movie
• Full Metal Jacket

Category 3:

• Stir of Echoes
• American Psycho
• The Devil's Rejects

Category 4:

• The Patriot
• S.W.A.T.
• Ultraviolet

Category 5:

• Chain Reaction
• Hart's War
• Omen 666
• The Last Waltz
• Flight of the Phoenix
• Species

I picked The Prestige, Superman: The Movie, American Psycho, Ultraviolet and The Last Waltz. I'm excited to watch Superman and The Last Waltz in HD with surround sound. The other DVDs will probably get re-gifted.

You can find more info at http://www.bluraysavings.com/


methodshop

Labels: dvd, games

Viacom's Paramount Pictures and DreamWorks Animation SKG announced they are abandoning Sony's HD Blu-ray format and will instead only release high definition DVDs in the competing HD DVD format. The decision is quite a reversal for Blue-ray, which had been outselling HD DVDs in the U.S. and Europe by 2 to 1 according to reports.



The format war ­ reminiscent of the fight between Betamax and VHS – has been blamed for slowing adoption of high definition discs. But it will likely continue to drag on as Sony, Disney and Fox remain in the Blue-ray camp.

Meanwhile Warner Home Video, which set high definition records this month selling over 250,000 copies of the historical epic 300, will continue to release DVDs in both formats. But hit movies like Transformers, Shrek the Third and Blades of Glory will only be availible in HD DVD when they debut this holiday season.

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Labels: dvd

No longer are our magnificent Monday night ‘Heroes’ going to be confined to merely mortal NBC TV (and SciFi Channel reruns). Our favorite Heroes and villains are coming to DVD this August with tons of bonus features.

The 7-disc set, available on DVD and HD DVD on August 28, 2007, will include the never-before-aired 73-minute premiere episode and over 50 deleted scenes.

The Heroes Season 1 DVD set is priced at $59.98 and is available for preorder on Amazon.com for $38.99 until July 24, 2007.

Here are some of the Heroes Season 1 DVD extras:

• Unaired Pilot: The Tim Kring cut with audio commentary — A full 73 uninterrupted minutes of the original, unaired, extended pilot episode, as Heroes’ creator Tim Kring first envisioned it, with a character never seen.
  
  
• The Making of “Heroes”: From concept to pop culture phenomenon, a behind-the-scenes look at the hottest new series on television.
  
  
• Special Effects: The secrets behind the eye-popping visuals that give the Heroes their amazing powers.
  
  
• The Stunts: A backstage look at the show’s hair-raising stunts.
  
  
• Mind Reader: Matt Parkman’s mind reading abilities reveal your inner Hero with a series of simple tests.
  
  
• Profile of Artist Tim Sale: A look at the Eisner Award-winning comic book artist (Spiderman, Batman, Daredevil) behind much of the Manga-influenced artwork used in the show.
  
  
• The Score: Go behind the scenes with Wendy Melvin and Lisa Coleman (of Prince’s The Revolution) as they create their ASCAP Award-winning musical score.
  
  
• Extra Scenes: 50 deleted and extended scenes.
  

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Labels: dvd, tv

Remember a band called The Rembrants? If not, don't feel bad. The Rembrants were pretty much just a one hit wonder from the 1990's. Their only hit song was "I'll Be There For You" (aka the Friends TV show theme song).

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Well, if you happen to be a fan of the classic cartoon Thundercats (1985), you might suffer a slight Rembrants flashback. Part of the DVD extras for Thundercats - Season Two, Vol. 1 is music video of the Thundercats theme song sung by The Rembrants. In case you are curious, here's a behind the scenes promotional video of the music video I found on Vmix.

Where's Mumm-Ra when you need him?


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Labels: dvd

According to bloggers and a flood of angry comments on the Internet, operations at American DVD rental service, Blockbuster Online, have come to a screeching halt. Angry customers are reporting that they have not received movies from their queues for weeks. According to one customer, repeated calls to Blockbuster customer service were fruitless and when he finally did get through, a customer service rep told him that their mail rental system was shut down.

However an official spokesperson for Blockbuster denied the existance of any problems when contacted by Ars Technica.com. "We've been continually shipping product. If a customer feels like they are not getting a movie, they should follow up with our customer service. But in terms of product being allocated and shipped, there has been no interruption."

Despite what the spokesperson says, sites like DVDRR.com have been flooded with negative comments like this one from a Blockbuster Online user named Cat: "No dvds have been shipped for over a week despite 3 open slots and 26 available titles in my queue. Emails and phone calls to customer support have not succeeded in getting this resolved, just promises that are not kept. I will be canceling and switching to Netflix."

Is it just a random coincidence that Blockbuster Online users didn't receive any DVDs last month? Or is Blockbuster being less than truthful about possible problems with their rental service? Blockbuster is engaged a tough battle against Netflix, the market leader in online rentals. Admitting to significant service interruptions might persuade users to switch to Netflix.

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Labels: dvd