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DRA audio coding technology gains BDA approval
Remember that funky DRA audio format we mentioned way back in July of last year? Yeah, somehow that just got approved by the BDA. While we're sure the likes of DTS and Dolby won't be up all night fearing for tomorrow, there actually is another audio format in the Blu-ray town. Over in Beijing, the Blu-ray Disc Association, China Hualu Group and Digital Rise Technology have gathered together to announce that the DRA digital audio coding technology has been approved for inclusion in the BD-ROM 2.3 specification as an "optional audio codec." The folks involved seem pretty stoked, but seriously, what are the chances any mainstream Blu-ray Disc ships this year (or ever, really) with a DRA soundtrack? Anyone placing bets?
UWB is dead! Long live... UWB!
Wait, let us get this straight. UWB is dead, but it's... not? According to a melancholy release issued today by the soon-to-shutter WiMedia Alliance, said entity has reached technology transfer arrangements to shuffle its ultra-wideband workings to groups within Bluetooth SIG and Wireless USB. After that process is complete, the WiMedia Alliance will -- in its words -- "cease operations." According to WiMedia president Stephen Wood, it has "reached a point in specification development and product availability where it is more efficient for the related industry groups to oversee future specification development in-house." It's tough to say whether this move will add yet another nail in ultra-wideband's coffin or act as the spark it has been longing for since its introduction, but we're cautiously hoping for the latter to prove true. Alright new management, time to see what you're made of!
Poll: Have you seen a movie in 3D?
Considering that we just gave away 25 pairs of tickets to a 3D screening, we're expecting some serious responses to this one. With 3D doing its best to come storming back into relevancy, we've seen studio after studio commit to pumping out flicks in 3D. All the while, cinemas have been transitioning just as quickly, giving viewers the option to catch new films in 3D so long as they're kosher with rockin' the shades. So, have you checked out a theater screening in 3D? How was it? Do you plan to go again? Avoid 3D at all costs? %Poll-27376%
Fast & Furious to be first major theatrical release with D-BOX
When you're on, you're on. After notching its best ever quarter in terms of sales, D-BOX has just landed yet another huge win. Universal Pictures' Fast & Furious -- which is slated to ignite a new generation of street racers who compete for gas money rather than pink slips -- will be the first major theatrical feature release with the company's Motion Code technology written in. 'Til now, Motion Code had been mostly restricted to at-home films and video games, but now moviegoers who can find a D-BOX-equipped cinema can enjoy this film while feeling all the vibrations and rumbles as the engines rev and the egos flair. Something tells us this kind of occurrence will only get more and more common.
Engadget HD Giveaway: South Park Season 12 Blu-ray / DVD packs!
We've been anticipating South Park's Blu-ray debut for months, and now that the moment has finally arrived, we're delighted to be able to give away a couple of those very sets that have pranced around in your mind all winter. We've got two Complete Twelfth Season Blu-ray sets as well as two DVD sets (with Digital Copy), and the editions will be given away at random (though feel free to shout out your format of preference when commenting). Be sure and look past the break for the full release copy, complete with details on bonus features and the like. Oh, and be certain to tune into Comedy Central HD on March 11th to catch the premier of Season 13 in glorious high-definition. All's that required to enter this here contest is a comment below, but be sure to read very, very carefully the fine print below before you do so. Cool? Cool.Special thanks to Comedy Central Home Entertainment for the discs!The rules: Leave a comment below. Any comment will do, though we'd prefer to hear who you think killed Kenny. You may only enter this specific giveaway once. If you enter this giveaway more than once you'll be automatically disqualified, etc. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.) If you enter more than once, only activate one comment. This is pretty self explanatory. Just be careful and you'll be fine. Contest is open to anyone in the 48 continental US States, 18 or older! Sorry, we don't make this rule (we hate excluding anyone), so be mad at our lawyers and contest laws if you have to be mad. Winner will be chosen randomly. Four (4) winners will receive one (1) South Park: The Complete Twelfth Season in either Blu-ray or DVD form (selection is at random). Approximate MSRP value is $49.99 (DVD) / $69.99 (Blu-ray). Entries can be submitted until Thursday, March 12th, 11:59AM ET. Good luck! Full rules can be found here.
Sony Optiarc Europe lets loose 24x AD-7240S DVD burner
While we're not totally in agreement with Sony Optiarc Europe's claim that its AD-7240S DVD burner (AD-7220 A/S pictured) is the first on the planet to achieve a 24x burn rate, we won't deny the awesomeness. Inappropriately hailed as a "speed miracle," the drive features the company's Auto Strategy Technology in order to ensure perfect burns every time. You should also know that it'll toast blank CDs at up to 48x and dual-layer DVD-Rs at 12x. Nah, it's no Blu-ray burner, but it's not like you can even afford that kind of optical media, anyway.[Via TG Daily]
Warner Bros. plans to support CBHD, the format war is back on -- at least in China
It seems appropriate that after striking the fatal blow in the war between HD DVD and Blu-ray, Warner is the first to break rank and ally itself with the China Blue HD team. Ready to enter the ordinary Chinese consumer's family, according to Managing Director Tony Vaughan, the Harry Potter series, Speed Racer and others will launch for 50-70 yuan ($7.30 - $10.22) per disc. Excuse us while we pick our jaws up from the floor, but with at least one Hollywood studio in pocket and 1999 yuan ($292) players on the way the son of HD DVD looks remarkably closer to a real Blu-ray competitor (and less like the destined for the scrap heap reject we predicted) than ever. With DVD sales shrinking and Blu-ray not quite ready to pick up the slack, how long until another studio decides the Chinese market has enough potential to publish movies on CBHD? [Disclosure: Engadget is part of the Time Warner family][Via Format War Central]
Sensio secures key US patent for its 3D technology
Sensio sure is racking up the support of late, first being deemed an official (albeit optional) 3D standard by the DVD Forum, and now nabbing a crucial US patent on its way to three-dee domination. The patent reportedly covers the distribution and formatting technology of stereoscopic contents on different 2D or 3D screens, which is a method that the company has developed and marketed for years. Nicholas Routhier, the company's president and CEO, proudly noted that "with this patent in hand and the recently announced developments, we believe that we have significantly increased our chances to become the 3D distribution standard for the consumer market." Of course, Panasonic would likely love to argue that very point, so we'd go ahead and get prepared for yet another format war just in case these two really do drop the gloves.
Skate 2 enables red/blue 3D mode via cheat code
Sony showed off some slick 3D gaming setups at CES last month, but since you probably don't have two PS3s, a special copy of Gran Turismo 5 and a 3D display just laying around, Skate 2 is the closest thing available right now. Punch in "strangeloops" under the Extras section of the main menu and you'll be in anaglyph 3D mode (you did hang on to your Sobe 3D glasses, right? Doh! as noted by commenters below, those glasses are amber instead of red and won't give the slight 3D effect desired with this cheat) We're sure many are shocked that EA didn't try to slip this in as paid DLC instead of providing a free cheat code, once you've recovered check out a YouTube demo embedded after the break.[Via TeamXbox]
Sony and RealD link up for 4K 3D cinema, our eyes weep for joy
Whoa, Nelly. This is getting serious. As 3D looks to infest each and every cinema it can, Sony has just inked a potentially ginormous agreement with 3D guru RealD that will provide "3D digital cinema systems that combine a single Sony 4K projector and its new 3D dual lens adapter with RealD technology." In other words, you could soon be seeing 3D cinema through a 4K projector, which just might lead to your head exploding from visual overload. The agreement makes mention of a "specially designed optical filter tuned for the projector, resulting in the ability to deliver crisp 3D images to screens up to 55 feet in width." Also, the relationship makes it possible for existing 2D installations to be upgraded with 3D capabilities, and honestly, even we're excited about 2K of 3D resolution per eye.
More studios move towards Blu-ray / DVD combo packs
It's sort of odd to hear about this now, but for whatever reason, it seems that some studios are looking to bundle traditional DVDs with Blu-ray Discs in order to broaden appeal and gently ease people into consuming BDs. As you very well know, this tactic was heavily used during the HD DVD era, but it's definitely not as prominent with Blu-ray... yet, anyway. Reportedly, 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment along with Lionsgate and MGM Home Entertainment are all prepping rather large releases in the Blu-ray / DVD 2-disc form, with Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment -- who is credited with pioneering the practice last fall -- hoping to release about seven of the bundles throughout 2009. Fox is even taking things a step further by tossing in Digital Copy on top of a BD and a DVD with Marley & Me. Mary Daily, the studio's executive VP of marketing for North America, noted that it's simply looking to become "flexible to adapt to the changing [habits]" of the consumer. Honestly, we love the idea of tossing a DVD in at little to no extra cost; there's hardly a better way to convince people to try Blu-ray Discs than to include one with the purchase of their DVD, if you will.[Image courtesy of Porhomme]
CEA study finds interest growing in 3D
Believe it or not, marketing goes a long way. According to a new joint study conducted by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) and the Entertainment and Technology Center at the University of Southern California, interest in 3D (at least in America) is on the rise. The research found that within the past 12 months, nearly 41 million US adults have reported seeing a 3D movie in theaters, and of those, around 40 percent admitted that they'd prefer to watch a movie in 3D versus 2D. We're struggling to determine whether to focus on the fact that over half would actually prefer the 2D version, or whether it's a good thing that the pro-3D crowd is as high as 40 percent. At any rate, the study also found that 16 percent of consumers are interested in watching 3D movies or TV shows within their home, while 14 percent are interested in playing 3D video games. Ready for the most amazing statistic? Over half of those polled said that having to wear special glasses or hold their heads still while watching a 3D TV program would have "no impact on them purchasing a 3D set for their home." Hmm.[Image courtesy of TheAge]
SCTE considering a 3D over cable standard
In another small step along the road to proper 3D at home, the Society of Cable Telecommunications Engineers announced its standards program is looking into 3D content delivery over cable networks. Apparently planning to "consider" work already under way by SMPTE, CEA and others, the SCTE's 3D over Cable project is mostly committed to figuring out how existing standards might need to change to support 3D. There's no way to know if this will even lead to an additional standard, but you can believe the cable giants want their say in how 3D at home develops and whether they're ready to jump on the bandwagon.
Cinedigm, Sony link up to bring 3D HD to 10,000 cinema projectors
For those of you that enjoyed the NBA All-Star circus in 3D this weekend, you'll soon be able to indulge in similar events in far more places. Cinedigm has announced today a partnership with Sony Pictures Releasing Corporation that will bring Live 3D HD capabilities to upwards of 10,000 digital cinema projection system across the US. Make no mistake -- companies can force consumers to pay attention if enough money and marketing is poured into something, and we get the feeling that these 3D events in cinemas aren't going away anytime soon. In fact, Cinedigm ultimately hopes to showcase spectacles such as the Super Bowl and the Olympic Games via its 3D HD technology, and with support like this, we don't see any reason why it won't be able to.
Coinstar buys out Redbox, will test higher Blu-ray rental prices
Redbox, the company made famous by its red movie rental kiosks, has been completely bought out by its majority owner: Coinstar. The announcement was made during the outfit's Q4 earnings call, and it's expected that the buyout was made in order for Coinstar to wallow alone in the windfall profits that are expected over the next few years. Speaking of profits, we're also being told that Redbox will start testing higher rental prices for BDs, much like Netflix has done, but obviously on a per-rental basis. There's been no word yet on just how high they'll push the Blu-ray rates above the standard $1, but you know you'll just suck it up and pay it. Not like you're reverting to DVD now, right?[Via ZatzNotFunny]Read - BuyoutRead - Increase in BD prices
S3 crams DisplayPort, HDMI and DVI onto $70 Chrome 540 GTX
While the future seems bright for DisplayPort, it's still tough to find a GPU out there with a DisplayPort socket -- and the search becomes increasingly difficult when hunting one down that's affordable. Enter S3, who is expanding its Chrome 500 series with the Chrome 540 GTX. Hailed as the "world's most connected high-def card," this PCI Express card boasts 256MB of GDDR3 memory, compatibility with DirectX 10.1 and OpenGL 3.0, support for Blu-ray playback and a trifecta of interfaces: DVI, HDMI and DisplayPort. The best part? It comes bundled with WinDVD 8 for BD playback and can be procured today for the low, low price of $69.95.
Metropolitan Opera makes its HD productions free to select K-12 schools
You just know that if times are tough for consumer electronics, they're really bleak for public schools. With that in mind, we're calling out the bright spot that is The Metropolitan Opera's "HD Live in Schools" program that since January 10th has been making its movie theater productions (in HD, naturally) of Met performances free to students, parents and teachers across 18 schools in 13 states. Better still, The Met plans on expanding the program to 180 schools across the US. Now we know that it's not every K-12 schooler that will appreciate opera, but the opportunity to take in some premium HD content for free is pretty sweet if you ask us; any students that get turned on to HD, opera or music in general are bonus. If nothing else, this has got to beat writing a report on what makes the A-B-B-A song form so darn catchy, right?
TZero closes up shop, UWB all but dead
It's been a slow, painful death, but it's about time to just pull the white sheet over ultra-wideband and let the wireless standard rest in peace. After Intel pulled its support for UWB and proponent WiQuest shut down late last year, all that the format really had left was TZero. After successfully surviving some legal issues, we thought the company was good to go in fighting a hopeless battle against wireless HD upstart AMIMON. Now, it seems that WHDI (that's AMIMON's magic) is free to take the market by storm, but only time will tell if wireless HD is even remotely close to mainstream. In one sense, we're sad to see competition die, but on the other hand, it's always good to see fruitless format wars fade away. Don't be too down on yourself, TZero -- it's not like anyone really had high expectations for you or anything.
Universal, Fox and Summit close VOD-DVD release gap
About two months after a Lionsgate executive spoke out about the phenomenon of day-and-date DVD / VOD releases, and merely days after we heard that digital distribution wasn't expected to overtake packaged media in the near term comes this. Universal, Fox and Summit have all pledged to close or eliminate entirely the gap between when a title is shipped on DVD and when it's available in on-demand form via iTunes or programming providers. At least with some titles, that is. The move is supposedly being made in order to take advantage of the growing thirst for instant gratification when it comes to films, and rather than getting left behind, these three are choosing to adapt to changing customer desires. Not surprisingly, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment is still sticking to a 30 day (or so) delay before it releases a title to VOD, but considering its Q4 figures, it might want to consider hopping on the bandwagon.
Reminder: win Valentine's Day tickets for NBA All-Star Weekend in 3D!
Still undecided on Valentine's Day plans? Bad news, Fred -- because every event worth its salt is already booked up by now. Don't panic just yet, though, because we've got 25 pairs of tickets (courtesy of Cinedigm) for this weekend's NBA All-Star Weekend in 3D to giveaway. If you and your lover would love to go, hit up the read link for all the official details including a way to see if it's showing near you. If so, enter your name over there and cross your fingers for a Cupid miracle.
