Dan Wu
Articles by Dan Wu
DirecTV @ CES - HD local channels second half 2005
With 13 total satellites already up or planned for use by 2007, DirecTV will be launching high definition local channels in the second half of 2005 in twelve markets. The first cities will be New York, Chicago, Boston, Dallas, Atlanta, Houston, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Washington DC, Detroit, and Tampa. HD locals will be transmitted with MPEG4 AVC HD transmission (the first live demo will be shown on the CES floor), but users will need a new satellite receiver to receive those MPEG4 AVC feeds and perhaps a new satellite dish (they completely dodged the new dish question).
DirecTV @ CES - DTV's own DVR
DirecTV is launching their own branded DVR ('the most-advanced DVR in the world' according to DirecTV and further putting the hurt on TiVo), which will feature 100-hour recording capability, one-touch recording, dual tuners (record two and watch a third already-recorded show), onscreen caller ID, instant replay, bookmarks, and a search function. The cache is large enough to pause and rewind live TV for up to 90 minutes and the unit will be available in mid-2005 (no price announced). The menus and item selection is instant when scrolling through them (even faster than TiVo when DTV showed the demo). This first DVR looks to be incapable of recoding HDTV and they made no mention of any new HD DVRs this year (so there may be a glimmer of hope for TiVo after all since they have the only hi-def DTV DVR). They were quite happy to stop DirecTV satellite piracy last year and didn't seem to think that it would slow subscriber growth this year (as many ex-pirates were forced to subscribe) when we asked them about it.
Dell @ CES - Dell's 20.1-inch 2005FPW widescreen LCD monitor
While it isn't exactly new, it was the first time we'd seen the Dell 2005FPW in person, and it does impress. The 20.1-inch 16:10 widescreen LCD display has a 1680x1050 WSXGA+ resolution, 4 USB 2.0 ports, a thin bezel, a 600:1 contrast ratio, 12ms response time (great for gaming), picture in picture capability, DVI, S-Video, and composite inputs, and an optional speaker sound bar that goes well with the unit. What's amazing to us is the price, as you can pick one up for around $600 with Dell discounts or coupons, so we're still smarting over paying around 15 bills for a 4:3 2001FP back in the day.
TiVo @ CES - Humax 26-inch LCD with integrated TiVo
Humax will be releasing the LT2650, a 26-inch LCD TV with an 80-hour TiVo DVR and onboard DVD recorder next quarter for $2499 MSRP. The unit will display DVDs in progressive scan, has a 16:9 aspect ratio, and an eye-pleasing black glossy bezel. It certainly looks easy to use and burn content, so we're hoping to get our hands on one as soon as possible to run it through the Engadget wringer.
TiVo @ CES - next generation devices
While we know TiVo ain't exactly doing so hot, with a lot of the cable companies opting to build their own DVRs, so TiVo is shifting focus with their Tahiti strategy (code-name), which will look to find content from broadband sources as well as regular over-the-air, satellite, and cable broadcasts. TiVo Series 2 subscribers will be able to search and access (read: buy) broadband content a la carte (movies may be $3.99 a pop from the demo shown) and the desktop software 2.0 will allow users to consolidate music, photos, and video for use on their TVs. The TiVo Desktop 2.0 looks amazingly fast, with decent playback quality on the PC from a TiVo source, but requires a password to playback (not something we exactly want to do every time we watch something). They will also be launching a high-definition digital cable ready DVR with CableCard and TiVo service built-in in 2006, which we think may be a little late and no mention was made how many tuners it will include (we hope at least two). As we reported yesterday at Bill Gates' keynote, Microsoft is partnering with TiVo for easy playback of TiVo-recorded content on Windows Mobile devices with TiVoToGo. Sonic Solutions has also partnered up and the latest version of MyDVD Studio (6.1) will let users burn TiVo programming to DVD blanks for use anywhere. Click to see more pictures of the TiVo press conference
Sony @ CES - Hands on with the Sony NW-HD3 Network Walkman
Alright, we weren't overly stoked with the NW-HD3 Network Walkman when we first heard about it a few months back—you know, it's the 20GB Sony audio player that can actually play MP3s in addition to Sony's proprietary ATRAC3 that hardly anyone uses or wants to use—but it does have one redeeming feature. It's light, and we mean iPod mini light in terms of weight (maybe even lighter than the mini's 3.6 ounces), at least that's how it felt when we compared the two side by side. It's approximately a third larger, but the same thickness as the mini, but unlike the mini's 4GB, it has 20GB of storage space. We can't say we like the buttons much (a bit small for our liking) or the interface (not as simple to use as iPod), but it did sound good when we played the 192kbps MP3 that Sony had already loaded onto the unit. (Yeah, these pics came out a bit dark, what can you do?)
Wowee Robosapien V2 and Robosapien Dinosaur
Wowee has made their hit robot bigger and badder with the Robosapien V2, ten inches taller than the original, and more mobile: now it can sit, lie down, and pick up and throw objects. They've also managed to add some features that the Sony Aibo has, including moving LED light eyes, movement tracking, and can even talk (we can't wait to hack it and make it start gangsta rapping). There's also word of the Robosapien Dinosaur, which is 23-inches long and can be set to track down a person once it detects movement. Should be available in September (?!) for one hundred bones. Click to see a full-size pic, as well as one of the Dinosaur.
Uniden 5.8GHz Bluetooth home cordless phone
Uniden's ELBT595, in addition to being just your usual cordless phone with Caller ID, speakerphone, and answering machine, pops in Bluetooth capability so you can use your landline with your favorite BT headset. It also has a USB connector with downloadable software included (what it's for we don't exactly know), but if you want to walk around your house and look like you're talking on a cellphone, then this is for you. [Thanks, Philipe]
3D wall coverings
When plain flat wallpaper just won't do next to your B&O phone and your Sony Qualia TV, you can look to the 3D wood wall application to spice up your room. Paintable in any color to match your decor, the 3D squares come in a pack of 8 irregular shapes and other 3D designs are also available.
Toshiba @ CES - CELL processors for all TVs in 2006 and more
Toshiba has announced that the mysterious CELL processor, set to be used in the Sony Playstation 3 (PS3) console, will be in all their TVs in 2006 as well. This should coincide with the PS3 launch, which may be released next year. For the DVD player market, the new Toshiba SD-6980 player will feature 720p/1080i enhancement, HDMI output, with support for both Super Audio CD (SACD) and DVD-Audio, along with slots for nine memory card formats. The unit will also display JPGs in full hi-def resolution. In the DVD recorder market, the move is towards bigger hard drives to store the content until the user offloads it to DVD blanks. There's currently a 600GB DVD recorder available in Japan, but no word was given on if we'll see that here. Toshiba also jazzed up their press conference with a custom Toshiba chopper built by the guys from Orange County Choppers (on Discovery's American Chopper show) complete with flashing LED lights.
Toshiba @ CES - Gigabeat 60GB media player
While we broke the news on the Gigabeat media player back in September, there's firm details now on cost and specs. The top of the line model will be the F60, with 60GB of storage space, which will retail for $549 ($50 less than the iPod Photo), with support for MP3 and WMA audio files, JPG viewing via the big 2.2-inch 32k color QVGA 240x320 LCD screen, and it will be controlled by a funky looking plus-shaped touch sensitive control. Each Gigabeat will come equipped with a cradle, which will have two buttons, one for the usual syncing, and one for CD Rip Recording, so one button can rip your music from your CDs and send them directly to your player. The lower end models will be the 40GB for $449, 20GB for $399, and 10GB for $299, all which should include the same LCD screen and cradle.
Toshiba @ CES - Gigashot handheld tapeless video camera
In keeping with the giga-theme, Toshiba announced the Gigashot handheld, which uses Toshiba's 0.85-inch 4GB hard drive to store up to two hours of MPEG-2 video footage and doubles as a 5 megapixel digital camera, with a 5x optical zoom and electronic image stabilizer. The Gigashot measures 1.2 by 4.125 by 2.625 inches, weighs just 10 ounces and also has a SD card slot. We'll get photos up as soon as we can.
Toshiba @ CES - SED TV
Being the number two TV manufacturer, Toshiba has to make a big move in televisions, and their push this year will be into SED (surface-conduction electron-emitter display) TVs, something that number one Sony doesn't have. The lineup will start with 50-inch screen sizes, featuring 1080 progressive support, 8600:1 contrast ratio, 1ms response speed, and one-third the power consumption of plasmas. It sounds sweet, but it'll be exclusive - 'Ferrari-priced' (we hope that doesn't mean 150 large for one) with limited distribution in 2005, then production ramping up next year. There will be a private showing at CES along with their partner Canon, which we look forward to peeping.
Toshiba @ CES - HD DVD
For its 40th anniversary of doing business in the US, Toshiba is pushing hard into HD DVD, with its first HD DVD player to be available in the fourth quarter of 2005, with a MSRP of just under a grand. It will have 720p/1080i support, HDMI, Firewire, Ethernet, Dolby Digital and DTS 5.1 decoders. Sounds cool, but we're skeptical of Yoshihide Fujii (President & CEO, Digital Media Network Company, pictured at right) stating that consumers don't need the 50GB that Blu-Ray offers, and that the 30GB of space of HD DVDs offer is more than enough, as we've always thought the more room the better. What really excites us is they are promising a terabyte (1000GB) unit with HD DVD recording in a few years, there's supposed to be a prototype of it on the CES floor.
Defective AMD CPUs on sale
Up to a million defective AMD CPUs which were set to be destroyed have been stolen and thieves have managed to get it in the marketplace in Germany and Asia. 60,000 of the stolen chips have been recovered, but there's still no word on what kind of processors may be defective, as AMD has not made a peep about it yet, but they should make some sort of official announcement today. So if you've just built a system that's not performing reliably, it may just be your AMD CPU that's at fault.
New Samsung phones @ CES: A800, P207, P777, A890, i730
We spent some quality time with five of Samsung's new cellphones at the CES Unveiled press event last night, the A800, P207, P777, A890, and their i730 Pocket PC Phone, read on for a little roundup of what we peeped there.
EleeNo EG watch
If you don't know by now, we have quite a fetish for watches here at Engadget, and the EleeNo EG strikes our fancy, as gone are the clock hands or those passe LED numerals, as graphical patterns are used to tell the time. Selling for 71 bucks, we're tempted to get one, if for no other reason than to figure out how it works (we believe that it's 3:00 o'clock and some seconds on the display now, but that's just a wild guess).
Solar-heated portable outdoor shower
A solar-powered outdoor shower capable of heating 5.5 gallons of water to a toasty 140 degrees Fahrenheit in just two hours on a sunny day? Uh, okay. The solar-powered outdoor shower is also easily transportable, too, which is good because even though the manufacturer claims it can still heat the water on hot cloudy days without direct sunshine you might want to relocate your beach party to brighter climes.
Aigo MP-P750 20GB player review
The Aigo MP-P750 personal audio player, with 20GB of storage space and WMA and WAV format support, can also record to MP3 via the built-in microphone, get FM radio stations broadcasts, and can accept SD/MMC format media cards for offloading of digital images. Hexus.net found the unit had good sound quality (when you ditch the included earbuds), but the main problem was with the unit's software which has a lame playlist editor. That and the oh my god what have they done design of the thing. Honestly, look at it! [Via DAPreview]
Battery-powered corkscrew
You could just use a old metal corkscrew to open that bottle of Montrachet 1978 (or any other fancy schmancy wine), but then why would you want to if there's a battery-powered version that can save your wrist strength for other activities? We meant playing Halo 2, get your minds out of the gutter. For 30 bones, put it over your wine or bubbly and the unit will completely uncork your bottle with one touch of the button. We think lazy drunks (redundant?) will be quite pleased, ourselves included.