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CineXPlayerHD plays just about any video format on your iPad
CineXPlayerHD is a jack-of-all-trades iPad app (US$3.99) that can play just about any video format you throw at it. This latest version, 3.0, adds playback of the popular MKV format on the iPad 2 and above. The app supports 720P HD playback, and also Dolby Digital Plus with support for 5.1 channels, and Dolby Mobile for surround on Dolby-equipped headphones. Within the app there's a way to catalog your movie collection, and to create playlists. Movies can be loaded through iTunes or they can be played back from a network drive via streaming. There is a built in web browser so you can navigate to your source files on your network. The app plays back AVI, MOV, M4V, 3GP and MP4 as well as Xvid. There is also subtitle support with the ability to drag the text to different parts of the screen. I don't have lots of different formats on hand, but the player did fine with some AVI files and some MOV files I created from DVDs. I was able to output the video to my Apple TV and everything looked fine with good sync between audio and video. The app also provides for some extra features as an in-app purchase. One for enhanced security, another to convert Xvid videos to 3D. Both plugs-ins are $0.99, but neither are required for most users. CineXPlayer is a welcome addition if you are into video, and have files that the Apple supplied video player just won't play. CineXPlayer requires an iPad running iOS 4.3 or later, and you will only get 720P playback on an iPad 2 or better. The app seems well worth the $3.99 price, and it should appeal to many who use their iPad for video playback. Check the gallery for some screen shots. %Gallery-169229%
CineXPlayer adds iPhone and iPod touch to its Xvid party list, still won't cook your popcorn
Remember how NXP Software surprised the world with its CineXPlayer iPad app just two months ago? Well, the gang is back to give our iPhone (3GS and 4) and iPod touch (3rd and 4th gen) the same dose of Xvid goodness. Like its older sibling, this $1.99 CineXPlayer utilizes the same method for easily sideloading your AVI files via iTunes (under the iDevice's Apps tab), and you'll also find a familiar-looking interface topped with an extra rotation-lock button -- much more useful than iOS' native lock that only lets you watch in portrait mode. Alas, video files other than of Xvid and DivX nature aren't currently supported, but hopefully it won't be long before the VLC iPad app gets a smaller variant as well.%Gallery-104191%
Amex Digital MP-501 media player starts shipping in teeny-tiny packages September 10
Can't wait to get your hands on Amex Digital's tiny MP-501 media player? Good news, as it's apparently sent out emails to prospective buyers indicating units will start shipping September 10. In case you need a refresher, it weighs just 250 grams and slips into any pocket easily, while still playing AVI / MKV / MPEG-4 files of various codecs and containers from USB or SD cards in resolutions as high as 1080p, for just $49, plus $20 for shipping -- assuming you can find an order form on the company website, which we couldn't. [Thanks, RDSOLO]
Is CineXPlayer for iPad struggling to deliver on its Xvid-playing promise?
We were convinced the apocalypse was nigh earlier this month after learning Apple would allow playback of lowly video formats like Xvid on the iPad via the approved CineXPlayer app. Mobiputing's review, however, indicates that the software has trouble loading anything but Xvid and DivX files, which even then often don't play. App Store reviewers appear to have had better results with it, giving it an average of four and half stars -- though close to 32 percent or 433 reviewers did only rate it as one or two. To it's credit, though, CineXPlayer does warn users that not all Xvid files may play and requests that any problems be submitted to their support contact to address. Anyone out there having similar issues? Let us know in the comments below!
iPad gets Xvid AVI video playback with CineXPlayer app on iTunes, hell freezes over
Now here's a surprise. Apple isn't exactly known to be super friendly when it comes to video compatibility, and we can sympathize to an extent. However, for some inexplicable reason, Steve's brethren decided to give this CineXPlayer app the green light for general consumption, thus finally allowing iPad users to load up their stash of Xvid AVI files -- sans conversion -- via iTunes. While this is worth a quick celebration, it's still rather absurd having to resort to underhanded apps for such basic functionality -- something that we've been able to do natively on many other tablets and PMPs for years. Let's not also assume that this free app is staying for good, so grab it while it's hot. Video instructions after the break.
Pandigital Photo Mail LED frame lets you email snaps over AT&T's wireless network
If there is such a thing as a digital photo frame specialist, Pandigital might very well be it. It should come as no surprise then, that the company has just announced a new cellular-connected product to compete with the forthcoming Vizit frame. Focused on making photo sharing as easy as possible, this new 8-inch LED-backlit display comes with an AT&T cellular connection and associated email account, making the process of getting pictures on it effortless -- and sufficiently remote to let you drop photos off with grandma without having to actually be there. The first 300 mailed snaps are free, at which point you'll have to choose between the 6-in-1 card reader or paying a per-pic charge for further emailing to the 1GB of built-in memory. Costing a cent under $150, the Photo Mail frame will be finding store shelves early this year -- skip past the break if you want to learn more.
Haier's Theater PMP sports a 3-inch touchscreen, recession-friendly price
There are PMPs in every shape and color, and while we've never been particularly fond of Haier's contributions to the segment, its latest might just find a home in that all-important lower-end of the spectrum. It packs a three-inch capacitive touchscreen of undisclosed resolution, an FM tuner, voice recorder, support for plenty of audio formats, a rather more spartan list of video formats (apparently just AVI and MPEG4), and comes in either four or eight GB sizes. Earth-shattering? No, but at prices of $89 and $99 it's a good value -- well, the bigger of the two is, anyway. Who wouldn't drop another $10 for twice the capacity?
ASUS ships $100 O!Play HDP-R1 HD media streamer
Hey, you -- yeah, you. Remember that O!Play HDP-R1 media player that ASUS teased us with back in June? Remember how you dedicated a calender to it so you could count down the days 'til its arrival? Time to stop all that madness, as said box is finally on sale and shipping right now within the US of A. For the surprisingly reasonable price of $99.99, users can utilize this very device to stream and play back an array of formats with 1080p resolution support. Heck, there's even an eSATA and Ethernet port there, just waiting for your love. So, will you show it? Or is life still worth living knowing what you've neglected?[Via Slashgear]
ASUS O!Play HDP-R1 media player won't likely get an O-face
We knew it was coming, now the ASUS O!Play is official. The HDP-R1 HD Media Player supports HD video playback in a variety of codecs including MPEG1/2/4, H.264, VC-1, and RM/RMVB in a multitude of packages including .mp4, .mov, .avi, .divx, and .mkv just to name a few. FLAC and OGG audio? Yup, no problem. The box connects to your display over HDMI or composite A/V with an option for optical digital audio for multi-channel setups. Media can be slung off a single USB 2.0/eSATA combo port, second vanilla USB 2.0 jack, or streamed over fixed Ethernet if you prefer to keep your content on the other side of the house. Sorry, no 802.11n because, you know, everyone's home is wired with Cat 5 (riiiight). No price or release date given; but it would have to be cheap and soon for us to be even remotely interested.
Perian 1.1.2 released, fixes updating
Last night, Perian was updated to version 1.1.2. If you need to extend the capabilities of QuickTime, the free Perian plugin allows QuickTime to play back all kinds of popular video formats (.AVI, .MKV, .FLV and more). It's a handy utility for anyone who watches a lot of video on their Mac. Here's a list of the bug fixes/improvements in 1.1.2: Fixed update checker never running - this version requires a manual install Enabled frame-dropping on AppleTV Fixed some frames being lost in AVCHD/.mp4 with newer versions of QuickTime Fixed another ffmpeg crash on G3s You can download the update to Perian from the project's website. You can also see the version history list on their support website.Thanks for the tip, Chris!
DivX 7 to officially support MKV
Like anyone else, we can't get enough video formats -- not -- but unlike H.264, DivX, XviD and MPEG-2 the latest rage is Matroska (aka MKV) is not a codec, but a container. It is the format which holds other formats, so you should be wondering, what's so special about it? It is special because it can hold new combinations of codecs and it is open for anyone to use. The most popular new feature is its ability to contain x.264 video, DTS audio, and at the same time subtitles in multiple languages, all in the same file. It is quickly becoming the replacement for AVI, and has the best chance of becoming the mp3 of video, than any other container has before. The problem of course is support. As usual Windows is covered, but thanks to Perian, Macs have support now too. And of course the most universal player in the world, VLC does too. But now it appears it has warranted some commercial support and the next version of DivX will play nice too. This of course doesn't mean that any hardware vendors will join in -- other than the Popcorn Hour that is -- but it's a step in the right direction.
AV International ADM9 speakers -- just add bits
Physics being what they are, speaker enclosures can't shrink the same way the associated electronics can. However, it is possible to put more functionality inside the same sized speaker box. Take, for example, the Avihifi ADM9 speakers. In each studio monitor-sized cabinet is: a 250-Watt amplified 6-inch woofer; a 100-Watt amplified 1-inch tweeter; a single-input, remote control preamp; and a Burr-Brown DAC with a USB input. Power these puppies up and supply a digital signal to the USB port, and you've got yourself a sound system. So it's compact, streamlined and probably sounds great (active speakers can sound a lot bigger than similar passive ones, and at $2,499 per pair, these better) -- but we want more! How about giving us a few more digital inputs and support for surround-sound codecs, Avihifi?[Via CyberTheater]
Inkel's portable AirwayHD tuner compresses files on its own
Granted, portable OTA tuners are a dime a dozen these days, but an interesting twist has been introduced by Korea's Inkel. The AirwayHD manages to boast a diminutive size while internalizing the process of converting OTA streams into manageable files using the H.264 codec. Reportedly, the device can compress files to one-fourth of their original size without any PC software intervention, and it should make life pretty easy for those hoping to view recorded content on their portable media player. No word on a release date just yet, but it'll only run you about ???100,000 ($106) when it eventually lands. Check out a few more pics after the break.
Tomato unveils U20 PMP for South Korea
Although South Korea is home to more than a few oddities, the oddly-named Tomato is looking to ship its latest portable media player, the U20, to Seoul and the surrounding areas. Housed in a brushed aluminum / chrome enclosure, this simple looking device boasts a two-inch LCD screen, 15 hours of battery life, USB 2.0 connectivity, and comes in at 2.99- x 1.89- x 0.47-inches in size. Additionally, you'll find a built-in microphone, a miniSD slot for extra media storage, and an ability to play nice with AVI, MP4, WMV, ASF, and MP3 files. Tomato apparently feels that these guys are ready for pickin', as you can snag the 2GB version for 89,900KRW ($96) next week, while the 1GB / 4GB variety will be landing shortly thereafter.[Via AVing]
DivX & Xvid support too good to be true
Homebrewers will want to be on the look-out once again. If fake downgraders that bricked your PSP weren't enough, apparently another piece of malicious code has hit the web: a supposed plugin for the PSP will allow your system to play AVI, DivX and Xvid files. The program, created by a programmer named "Sc00p," is in fact, littered with trojans that will attempt to infect your PC. Uncool. While it won't brick the PSP, it may be able to harm your computer.[Via DCEmu]
iOPS mimics the mini, showcases diminutive X11 PMP
You won't color us surprised to find that another Asian company has knocked off one of Apple's products, and we certainly aren't shocked that this time around it's iOPS (again). The firm's X11 is crafted from white or graphite aluminum, comes in at just 9-millimeters thick, and boasts a very, very familiar click wheel mechanism. Regardless, this PMP offers up 1/2/4GB capacities, and features a 1.3-inch color LCD, rechargeable Li-ion battery, JPEG / text viewer, FM radio tuner, built-in equalizer, USB 2.0 connectivity, and upgradeable firmware. On the audio front, it supports MP3, WMA, and OGG music files, while it plays nice with AVI, MPEG4, DivX, XviD, and WMV video files, and although we aren't certain of how much coinage this thing will require (if it actually makes it to market, that is), this looks like a very functional alternative to Apple's rendition if you get the itch to import.
Pandigital unveils 10.4-inch video-playing digital photo frame
Apparently Pandigital put up some stellar sales figures over the holidays with its foursome of video-playing digital photo frames, and now the company is raising the stakes by tossing out a 10.4-inch edition with 256MB of internal memory. The PAN10-2 features a 1,024 x 768 resolution, 350 cd/m2 brightness, 500:1 contrast ratio, and a 178-degree viewing angle. Additionally, the frame will play back MPEG 1/4 and AVI movie clips, MP3 files stored on the internal memory, and of course, roll through slideshows of your favorite galleries. You'll also get a wireless remote to control the action from afar, and if the quarter-gigabyte of built-in space isn't roomy enough for you, feel free to cram any of your SD, xD, MS, MSPro, MSDuo, CF, or MMC cards in the flash card reader for nearly limitless fun. So if you weren't able to woo your secret Santa into gifting you with a digiframe last month, you can pick up this 10.4-inch rendition for $249.99 in "mid-February."[Via PhotographyBlog]
Teclast kicks out sleek C260 do-it-all for Chinese market
Teclast is keeping things fresh with its latest style-conscious DAP / PMP / gaming handheld, the C260. Joining the growing fray of Chinese all-in-one wonders, this sexy machine boasts a 3.15- x 1.85- x 0.39-inch enclosure, 2.4-inch QVGA touchscreen, landscape layout, built-in FM radio tuner, audio input for recording, headphone jack, USB 2.0 connectivity, and eight pre-loaded equalizer functions. Aside from playing nice with MP3 / WAV on the audio side, it also reportedly supports XviD, DivX, and AVI on the video front, while displaying JPEG slideshows and simple text files on the side. Additionally, it purportedly features some sort of "gaming" functionality in case the tunes loaded on your microSD card get stale. So if you've been craving a do-it-all device that remarkably resembles LG's Chocolate handset, the 1GB C260 should be hitting the Chinese streets soon for just 399 CNY, or about $51.[Via AVing]
3Soft's Maxtombow GPS conglomerate headed for America
It seemed to start with all-in-one PMP / gaming handhelds, and now the conglomerate craze is apparently bleeding over to the GPS realm. While we've already seen the Guide Dog, which claims to handle more multitasking that we can even fathom in a portable GPS unit, 3Soft's Maxtombow isn't too far behind. Packing a bit more credibility that the aforementioned PDC gizmo, this 7-inch in-car / handheld device reportedly packs a 720 x 480 resolution LCD, built-in TV tuner, SD expansion slot, AV outputs, an FM tuner, and of course, the obligatory turn-by-turn tour guide to keep you on track. It also claims to function as an MP3 / WMA player, JPEG viewer, and even handles XviD, AVI, WMV, and MPEG1/4 on the video front. Purportedly coming in 1GB or 2GB flavors, this bad boy comes pre-packaged with a car-mounting kit to please your passengers. Recently released FCC approval documents all but confirm the prospect of an American Maxtombow, but we've heard nothing on the subject of how quickly this thing will make the trip from Korea to America, nor how much coinage it'll demand when it lands.
Smartparts adds 5.6-inch and 10.4-inch digital photo frames to lineup
Smartparts is expanding its offerings in the ever-popular digiframe market by offering two new models just in time for the holiday rush. The 12- x 10-inch option (SPDPF104) boasts a 10.6-inch 640 x 480 resolution LCD, 350cd/m2 brightness, 250:1 contrast ratio, MP3 playback, video output, and a nifty wireless remote to control the action from afar. The smaller sibling (SPDPF56E) rocks an 8- x 7-inch frame, which packs a 5.6-inch 320 x 234 resolution display, 300cd/m2 brightness, and 150:1 contrast ratio. Both units support automatic slideshows, AVI / JPEG playback, USB 2.0 ports, and a built-in flash card reader supporting SD, MMC, and MS cards, while the big brother plays nice with SM, CF, and xD flavors as well. The acrylic-framed SPDPF104 will set you back $249.99, while the wood-flanked SPDPF56E will run you just $99.99, and both are available right now.
