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Pics of BenQ's BW1000 3-in-1 Blu-ray burner
Finalized versions of Blu-ray hardware have been popping up all over the place lately, with Panasonic revealing the simple design of its DMP-BD10 player earlier this week, and now BenQ's BW1000 three-in-one burner shows up in both internal and external flavors, courtesy of AVING. In case you hadn't heard, the BW1000, or "Trio" (please don't sue, Palm, we promise we won't get confused), can read from/write to 25GB and 50GB Blu-ray discs, dual-layer DVD±R, and of course, the reliable old CD. Write speeds for BD-R and BD-RE discs are a bit pokey at 2x (but hey, what do you expect from new tech?), with DVDs clocking in at 12x (4x for DL, 8x/6x for DVD±RW), and CDs burning at a zippy 32x (24x for CD-RWs). Nothing new as far as pricing or availability goes, so just enjoy the pics, mkay?
TDK Blu-ray media now shipping
TDK has announced the first shipments of cartridge-free Blu-ray Disc media, in both recordable and rewritable formats. Each version is available in single layer 25GB and dual layer 50GB capacities, with costs ranging from $20-60 each. The digital media leader is also currently working on quad layer 100GB and 200GB Blu-ray Disc prototypes. TDK claims there is no performance degradation after rewriting data 10,000 times, and the DURABIS hard coating grants each disc an archival life of 50 years through increased scratch, fingerprint, and light resistance. Nice for protecting your PS3 games, and Blu-ray's longevity and ability to back up entire hard drives in a single bound seem appealing.But let's not forget the recent advances in solid state Flash media (which are fast approaching 100GB capacities), as well as holographic storage. And if Microsoft has their way, the future will be on-demand. Are the format wars really coming to an end as Bill Gates has prophesized, or is the next wave just beginning?
Early HD DVD flicks to be 1080p
Early scans of the boxes from some of the first flicks to be released on HD DVD and Blu-ray Disc are starting to show up, and it looks like at least some of the first releases will ship in 1080p. DVDActive has shots of the boxes from several HD DVD movies, including "Million Dollar Baby" and "The Last Samurai," and they're listed as being in 1080p. No word yet if this is an across-the-board thing, or whether the early BD titles are also 1080p (DVDActive only has the fronts of the BD boxes). But this is sure to be good news for anyone planning to build a collection of discs; at least you won't have to toss them when you can finally buy a 1080p-capable player. Of course, that doesn't mean you won't still be chucking your discs before you have a chance to watch them in true 1080p glory. After all, there is that pesky format war going on ...[Via HD Beat]
HD-DVD & Blu-ray movie boxes unveiled, 1080p standard
DVDActive has posted the fronts and backs of several soon-to-be-released (or not so soon) Blu-ray and HD-DVD titles so you know what color boxes to look for when they hit stores. The most interesting development is that despite rumors to the contrary, all the HD-DVD movies posted state they are formatted in 1080p. Even though most of us don't have 1080p TVs yet and the initial HD-DVD players will max out at 1080i, those concerned about "future proofing" their next generation DVD collection may still have an option in HD-DVD. [Thaks for the tip SJ!]
Lionsgate delays Blu-ray movies
Just as our own Ben was lauding the release of top tier titles like Best Picture winner Crash on Blu-ray, Lionsgate turns around and delays all of it's Blu-ray releases. The movies were scheduled to be released on May 23 along with the offerings from Sony Pictures, but instead will be on hold until June when Samsung is releasing their first Blu-ray player.Confirmed Lionsgate Blu-ray titles: Lord of War, The Punisher, Devil's Rejects, Saw, T2: Judgment Day, Reservoir Dogs, Total Recall, Dune, Rambo: First Blood, See No EvilThe second wave of titles they had previously announced for June are now on hold indefinitely. This is probably to be expected after the Samsung delay became official, but it doesn't make it any easier to swallow.
TDK hard at work on 8-layer 200GB Blu-ray Disc
Since Sony, et al. hammered out the Blu-ray Disc spec, there's been speculation, theorization, and discussion of an 8-layer 200GB disc. Sony even supposedly had some working 200GB BRD demos way back in 2004. Well, now those mammoth coasters are in the works over at TDK, who apparently hope to commercialize the first presumably quad-layered dual-sided discs (or possibly octo-layered single-sided discs -- yeah, right). They're not giving it up as to when these discs could come out or how much they'll cost, but right now we're more worried about just getting our hands on some players, you know?[Via TechDigest]
Panasonic final DMP-BD10 design
Ohhhh. Ahhhh. That's what we all did around the HDBeat lair with this new Blu-Ray p0rn. This is what I4U claims to be the final design from Panasonic. We sure hope so 'cause these are nice looking. The clean lines and fancy front plate looks nice and sleek. We wish that there was a MSRP somewhere, but there isn't. All that has been said is that it is going to be under $1,500. One thing is for sure though, Panasonic has the best looking next-gen DVD player.
Panasonic shows off DMP-BD10 Blu-ray player final design
I4U got their hands on photos of what Panasonic is claiming to be the final design of their first consumer Blu-ray player, the DMP-BD10, pictured here with the company's SA-XR700 receiver. As you can see, Panny has dropped most of the external controls we saw on their prototype at CES, and implemented a cleaner look that more closely matches the design of their other home theater products. Unfortunately no new info is available concerning pricing, but hopefully we'll be able to nail down a MSRP a little less vague than "under $1,500" well in advance of this product's scheduled September release.
Sony's VAIO RC300 series with Blu-ray Disc get official
We already peeped Sony’s Blu-ray packin’ Vaio at the Tokyo Anime Fair last month. Now, Sony comes clean with some general specs around their new Vaio RC300 series machines. The line-up will feature Pentium D dual-core CPUs, S-ATA drives supporting RAID for mirroring that 2TB of supported storage, PCI Express x16 graphics, and advanced DDR memory. Yeah, these are positioned rightfully, as high-end Media Center Edition 2005 PCs sporting Sony's Giga Pocket and RC Digital Studio apps to view, schedule, and manage your recordings. No doubt, it’ll be a few months before these drop, but after yesterday’s Fujitsu Blu-ray Deskpower TX95 announcement, we guess Sony had to get official right quick like. [Thanks, Himanshu]
HD-DVD advertising campaign kicks off: "So real you can feel it"
That is the new rallying cry of the HD-DVD camp; will it be enough to move customers into stores to by players before Blu-ray comes out, or enough to make consumers care about high definition DVDs at all? Toshiba and Warner Brothers certainly hope it is. To counter, the Blu-ray supporters were considering launchnig a market campaign around the concept that HD-DVD "came first", leaving HDTV owners unsatisfied. Expect the milder tagline "step into Blu" when their media juggernaut hits the ground.They plan to start the advertising on channels that air high definition content but we haven't seen any yet, although I did catch a nice Mission Impossible trailer in HD during 24 last night. Drop us a line if/when you see the ads.[Via Adjab]
High definition DVD audio breakdown
Erik mentioned this during the podcast earlier, and I thought some of you might find it interesting. TWICE has an article up listing the various audio options that will be available on both HD-DVD and Blu-ray discs and players. All HD-DVD players must include support for two-channel Dolby True HD, 5.1 DTS HD, and 5.1/6.1 Dolby Digital Plus. Blu-ray players are required to support Dolby Digital 5.1, DTS 5.1 and 5.1 PCM.More information on the HD-DVD audio codecs is available from the DVD Forum, and info on Blu-ray codecs at Blu-ray.com. They also mention what sort of feature upgrades we can expect, at least in respect to audio second-generation HD-DVD players will add features like 7.1 analog connectors and HDMI 1.3 outputs. As much as we talk about MPEG-2 and h.264, are you taking audio options into account with your next purchase?
TDK begins shipping 25GB Blu-ray media
We're not quite sure what you can use them for at this point (other than, maybe, as coasters for when you serve the good stuff), but TDK has begun shipping blank single-layer Blu-ray discs with a 25GB capacity. The discs are available in BD-R (recordable) and BD-RE (rewritable) formats, for $19.99 and $24.99, respectively. That's per disc. Yes, we were doing the math in our heads as well: That's about 79 cents per GB for the BD-R, which does come out to a bit more than the roughly 10 cents (or less) per GB of budget DVD-Rs. But those prices are sure to come down by the time TDK begins offering these in 50-disc spindles later this year. (By then, TDK will also have dual-layer 50GB discs available, for $47.99 and $59.99.) And maybe by then you'll actually be able to use these in some kind of drive.
TDK shipping Blu-ray media, still no players
Even with Blu-ray (and HD-DVD for that matter) players still MIA on store shelves, you might be able to buy the discs somewhere. They announced today they are shipping single-sided single layer (25GB) capacity discs. You can get the write-once BD-R blanks for $19.99 apiece while the rewriteable BD-RE will run you $24.99. They also announced they will ship dual-layer 50GB blanks later this year for $47.99 or $59.99 depending on -R or -RE. The discs also include DURABIS hard coating technology to protect against scratches dust and fingerprints form damaging your valuable (25 bucks a disc, yeah thats valuable) data.Eeesh. That certainly puts a damper on the whole create-my-own-archive-of-everything-ever-known-ever project. For $25 we can buy a 50 pack of single layer DVD blanks and get cases to boot. Heres to hoping prices come down (and quick).
PlayStation VP sez PS3 will cost between 499 and 599 euro
Don't worry, that faint screaming sound you hear in the distance is just the sound of a million Sony fanboys. Looks like those rumors of steep PS3 pricing weren't so far off after all, since in a radio interview yesterday with Générations Europe, Sony Computer Entertainment Europe VP George Fornay mentioned that the PS3 will cost between €499 and €599, which is around $613 and $736 USD. He excused the price with the fact that it's a real steal for a Blu-ray playback system, but we're not so assured. Of course, Europe always gets a little screwed when it comes to console pricing, with the premium Xbox 360 going for €399 there while it rings up at a mere $399 here. If that logic holds, we might see the PS3 for $499 in the states, which happens to match up with the current buzz going around the developer community. It's always possible that Sony is just throwing out wild and crazy numbers to make us all surprised when the console hits for the regular $300 Sony price point, but it's looking less and less likely.[Via Joystiq]Read: George Fornay interviewRead: Developers say $499
Playstation 3 price: 500 euros ($600 U.S.)
That's what a few French websites are reporting, apparently stated by Sony Europe boss George Fornay in a radio interview. That would convert to roughly $613 American dollars and make the PS3 the most expensive videogame console out by quite a bit. He apparently confirmed that the Playstation was delayed to work out Blu-ray copy protection issues (that we still haven't seen a final design for the controller, system or a finished game does not appear to have been a contributing factor), and that it should launch in the range of 499 to 599 euros. He justified the high price by saying it was cheap for a platform capable of reading Blu-ray discs.With no confirmation or official announcement from Sony U.S. or Japan this is still in rumor territory, but its a little late for an April Fools. Their main competitor, the Xbox 360 Premium system, launched at 399 euros. Well, I guess we'll ask you again, is around $600 your price for PS3 Blu-ray? Personally, I'm not buying one until they announce a Bob Ross videogame.Previous Playstation 3 price news: Playstation 3: Coming to North America (and the world) in 2006 Playstation 3 price rumors: $599 for Blu-ray movies?
Has Blu-Ray been spotted in the wild?
An alert reader of ours, Wouter, stumbled across something that he thought we would find interesting: a Blu-Ray device. He was right! We have no idea what this thing is and apparently the salesman didn't want to spill the beans. Good thing he snapped these pics 'cause when he returned later, the device was gone. Well, time for some over analyzing. It definitely has the blu-ray logo up front and personal, but we are not entirely sure that it is a dedicated Blu-Ray player. There is a badge that says "HD" in the lower right indicated that it is ether "High Definition" or perhaps has a hard drive in it. This would complete the picture of a micro-ATX case if it indeed had a hard drive. It is made by Philips though. Even though this device was found in Philips own stomping ground, we have never heard of a Philips micro-ATX computer. (correct us if we are wrong) What the heck do you think it is?[More pics after the jump]UPDATE: Jason N has just informed us that the case itself comes from AOpen.
What is your price?
Our April Fools joke went over well, (sorry to everyone that fell for it), but it got us thinking. If there was a way to kill this format war early, it certainly would be to undercut the competition. Many of us have already drawn our battle line and choose a high-def camp; FYI, mine is HD DVD. Everyone has a price though. We would drop up to $350 to buy a first generation high-def optical drive, but not a cent more. What would your limit be if they really come out that cheap?
It's time to pre-order your next gen HD movies!
So we can't buy HD-DVD or Blu-Ray just yet, but we can pre-order some movies as well as the players. A reader Erik sent in a tip about one of his favorite online Movie retailers after being impressed with their selection of HD-DVD and Blu-Ray titles. If you go by the number of movies Blu-Ray is way ahead of HD-DVD by about 15 to 4. Unfortunately available titles aren't that interesting, but the prices are. If you go by these prices there isn't much difference between HD-DVD and Blu-Ray, well other than the players that is.Thanks Eric!
Samsung confirms delays for BD-P1000 Blu-ray player
Looks like Toshiba isn't the only company with last-minute jitters about the market for next-gen optical disc players. Samsung has now confirmed rumors that the company's BD-P1000, its first consumer Blu-ray disc player, will be delayed from its original ship date of May 23 to sometime in late June. According to Samsung, the $999 player is being delayed due to "testing" needs, though we certainly can't rule out the possibility that at least one of the "tests" the company is planning will be a check of the amount of BD media in the marketplace by the launch date. Samsung still says its player will be the first Blu-ray unit to hit the US market, though Sony's BDP-S1 is currently scheduled for a July ship, so Samsung had better hope the tests are finished on time.[Thanks, Jim]
Samsung Blu-ray delay official
Unfortunately the bad rumors we hipped you to earlier are all too true. Samsung's BD-P1000 will not launch on May 23, but June 25. The good news, if there really is any, is that they have added a couple features to the checklist: 1080p upconversion of DVDs (apparently only via HDMI out) Support for 11 (up from 9) memory card formats, adding Mini-SD and Memory Stick Pro Duo The official reason is to undergo further compatibility testing with Blu-ray test discs, and the price is still $999. HD-DVDs are still (probably) hitting shelves later this month, but we're not holding our breath (anymore, because the hospital said they are not resuscitating Kevin again). Hopefully this will be the last time we have to tell you when next generation DVDs aren't coming out.
