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Singulus tests 100GB, 4K-ready Blu-ray discs
The Blu-ray Disc Association has teased that a 4K-friendly disc format is coming, but Singulus isn't willing to wait to make some announcements of its own. The German company just finished production tests of a Blu-ray disc that squeezes 100GB into three layers, making it "ideal" for 4K movies. Sounds good, doesn't it? Unfortunately, the company hasn't said much more about the technology -- we don't know if the discs have the BDA's support, whether they're compatible with existing players, or when they enter mass production. We've reached out for more details; in the meantime, we'd advise saving up for the exotic TV you'll need to watch 4K movies in any format. [Image credit: Diego Correa, Flickr]
Tech mainstays finally come together on something: littering more HD content with more DRM
Who says the big boys can't be friends? While Samsung, SanDisk, Sony, Toshiba and Panasonic would probably disagree with each other on just about everything, there are still three magical letters that can bring even the biggest rivals together: DRM. While the consortium is doing everything it can to avoid the term, there's no hiding the truth -- the temporarily-named 'Next Generation Secure Memory Initiative' is designed to protect HD content by using "unique ID (identification) technology for flash memory and robust copy protection based on public key infrastructure." Just when we thought Louis C.K. had proven that slapping DRM around something wasn't the best approach, here we go taking a few monumental steps in the wrong direction. In essence, it sounds as if they're crafting a way to distribute Blu-ray-quality material on SD cards and embedded memory (sound familiar?), and they're also hoping that this will "enable various HD content applications such as HD network download, broadcast content to-go and HD Digital Copy / Managed Copy from Blu-ray Disc." Notably, we're told that Android-based smartphones, tablets, TVs and Blu-ray products in particular can look forward to taking advantage -- in other words, Apple's going to keep doing what Apple does. If all goes well, they'll start licensing the new secure memory technology early next year, and if we had to guess, we'd say the adoption trajectory perfectly matches that of slotRadio. Good luck, folks -- you're going to need it.
Editorial: Apple's officially over the optical drive, for better or worse
I don't like it. Not one iota. But frankly, it doesn't much matter -- Apple's officially done with the optical drive, and there's no evidence more strikingly clear than the mid 2011 refresh of its Mac mini. Last year, that bantam box arrived with a $699 price tag, pep in its step and a personality that could charm even the most hardened desktop owner. This year, a $599 model showed up on my doorstep promising the same, but instead it delivered a noticeable drop in actual functionality. Pundits have argued that you could tether a USB SuperDrive to the new mini and save $20 in the process compared to last year's rig, but does relying on a cabled accessory go hand-in-hand with beauty and simplicity? No, and I've every reason to believe that Apple would agree. Despite the obvious -- that consumers would buy a mini to reduce the sheer burden of operating a convoluted desktop setup -- Apple's gone and yanked what has become a staple in both Macs and PCs alike. For years, ODDs have been standard fare, spinning CDs, DVDs, HD-DVDs (however briefly) and Blu-ray Discs, not to mention a few other formats that didn't do much to deserve a mention. Compared to most everything else in the technology universe, the tried-and-true optical drive has managed to hang around well beyond what it's creator likely had in mind, but it's pretty obvious that 2011 is to the ODD what 1998 was to the floppy drive. At least in the mind of one Steven P. Jobs.
20th Century Fox to offer digital downloads for Android devices, Blu-ray purchase required
20th Century Fox is dipping its downloading toes into the 21st century's waters, releasing movies on Android in addition to good, old-fashioned Blu-ray. According to the Financial Times, retail discs of X-Men: First Class will direct owners to a website where they can sideload a digital version of the film onto their Android device of choice. Apparently some of the suits over at Fox caught wind of how popular Android tablets are getting, and now see them as complementary, not cannibalistic (remember that industry buzz kill?) Sure, right now you shouldn't expect any Netflix-sized library of titles, but perhaps we can all agree this is a step in the right download-to-own direction. Residents of the US, UK, Germany, and France will get the first crack at downloading the films. The rest of you can just stream and wait. [Image credit via 20th Century Fox]
Blu-ray titles announced the week of December 10th, 2010
This week's batch of Blu-ray announcements was fairly light compared to the pre-holiday push of titles shared in November. Saw: The Final Chapter was the only film announced in 3D. On the 2D front, two big re-releases of famous classics were announced: the single disc edition of Blade Runner will arrive on January 4th and forgo the oodles of bonus features found on previous versions in favor of just the movie and some commentary by Ridley Scott while the 30th anniversary edition of Raging Bull will come slightly later in January and include 50 minutes of new features. Noteworthy new titles coming to Blu-ray for the first time include Steven Spielberg's A.I., which was originally developed by Stanley Kubrick in the 70s, and Steven Soderbergh's cult classic Out of Site starring George Clooney and J. Lo. That said, we know Birddemic: Shock and Terror and The Dorm That Drips Blood are really the two titles you've been hankering to watch in glorious 1080p. To view our full roundup of announcements this week by release date, read on after the break.
Blockbuster partially reaches back to the 90s, announces 3-day in store rentals with tiered pricing
Right on the heels of announcing that its on demand service was available on over 100 devices, Blockbuster has officially reduced in-store rentals periods from five to three days and established new pricing tiers. "Just arrived" Blu-rays and DVDs now cost $4.99, making them competitive with Redbox on a cost per day basis, especially when you consider the red vending machines must wait for up to 28 days later in some cases to get newer titles. Recent releases in circulation longer than six weeks cost $2.99 along with frequently rented "Top Picks," while older, and less popular titles -- think Weekend at Bernies -- have bottomed out to $0.99. According to company rep Patty Sullivan, these changes should help Blockbuster "continue to be a competitive force in the media business" and "simplify the rental experience." That sounds a lot like the same stance it took with the now dead no late fee scheme -- but who's keeping track? It also still seems expensive for frequent movie watchers compared to Netflix's basic $10 a month plan, which includes one rotating mailed disc along with unlimited streaming. So call us crazy, but somehow we don't see this move solving the company's bankruptcy woes anytime soon.
Blu-ray titles announced the week of December 3rd, 2010
If you were hoping this week's announcements might contain exciting teases of new 3D titles to watch on that holiday gift you're expecting to soon be "surprised with", unfortunately it was a 2D sweep. Movies recently in theater including Red, Stone and Buried seem like decent titles though to start the Netflix cue off right in the new year, since all will be released by the end of January. Reading that Christopher Nolan's cult classic Memento is ten years old has also left us wondering where the time went. Finally, classic movie buffs should perk up over vague details about the ultimate collector's edition Blu-ray release of Orson Welles' Citizen Kane -- thought by many to be the greatest film of all time -- which will apparently arrive sometime next year, along with Charleston Heston's Ben-Hur. To view our full roundup of announcements this week by release date, read on after the break.
Blu-ray titles announced the week of November 19th, 2010
Plenty of upcoming Blu-rays were announced over the last week -- unfortunately most aren't terribly exciting. TV fans should keep an eye out however for the first season of FX's well-received Justified, in addition to season two of Nurse Jackie and season six of Weeds. On the movie side, both Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps and the romcom Going the Distance are scheduled to be available on Blu-ray a mere three months after their theater debuts and conveniently just in time for Holiday stocking stuffing. Along those lines, if you were thinking Pamela Anderson's Barb Wire in HD would make a good thank you gift for your boss, sadly it's not releasing until February -- so go with plan B, bub. For a complete look at our roundup of announcements this week by release date, take a gander at the list after the break.
Sony Optiarc debuts 12x Blu-ray writers, makes 'em friendly with BD 3D
Not that we haven't seen a 12x Blu-ray burner before, but it'll be a cold day in the underworld before you hear us griping about a little friendly competition. Sony Optiarc has taken the cellophane off of its newest crop of half-height writers, the BD-5300S, BWU-500S and BWU-500S. These guys will soon be shipping in a variety of retail and OEM configurations, offering up Blu-ray 3D playback, 12x toasting of BD-R media (dual-layer steps down to 8x) and a copy of CyberLink's Media Suite 8 with the latter unit. The outfit's not talking dollars and cents, but you can judge the value for yourself when they start filtering out in the next few weeks.
Yamaha brings Netflix, Blockbuster and YouTube access to BD-A1000 'universal Blu-ray player'
Calling this thing a "universal Blu-ray player" seems a bit disingenuous (at least compared to models that have used that moniker in the past), but there's no question that Yamaha's latest does a good bit more than simply play back your newest Blu-ray Disc. The BD-A1000 offers 1080p playback via HDMI, component outputs, coaxial / Toslink digital audio ports, an RS-232C control socket and an Ethernet port, but unlike many BD decks, you'll also find a pair of USB ports (one on the front, one on the rear). Moreover, this guy can tune into Netflix, Blockbuster and YouTube without any fancy software hacks, and as expected, it'll handle BD-Live and BonusView content as well. Too bad that $699.95 MSRP is bound to scare just about everyone away. %Gallery-106371%
Cameron says the Avatar extended edition Blu-ray is the last 2D release left... for reals
Wondering when the Avatar Blu-ray release madness might end? Well James Cameron thankfully clarified at a recent press event that the Avatar extended edition Blu-ray on November 16th will be the last 2D, 1080p, iteration of his Blue Man Group epic before the 3D version arrives. He also slightly adjusted his previous November 3D Blu-ray release predictions made during a Wall Street Journal interview -- stating vaguely that the highly-anticipated format would instead arrive "maybe one, [or] two years out." That's much more in line with statements made by his Fox handlers (coincidence?) and now leaves Panasonic as the only party still claiming their anointed 3DTV owners will bring the Avatar 3D Blu-ray "experience" home sometime this year. Still, while we certainly don't know who at this point would fail the polygraph, we're not Na'vi enough to ignore how Panny's time line helps attract consumers to buy 3DTVs over the holiday season. As with most rumors though, only time will tell who in this debacle had the date right, so for now we'll content ourselves watching the Alien Anthology.
Sharp's ultraslim BD-AV70 Blu-ray / BDXL player hitting Japan soon for over a grand
Remember that slimmer-than-slim Blu-ray 3D / BDXL player that Sharp demonstrated at CEATEC? Looks like the world now has a ship date and price, though you aren't likely to be keen on either. The unit itself -- which measures but 35mm thick and looks eerily familiar to the slimmed-down PlayStation 2 -- will tout a Blu-ray recorder while supporting BD 3D and BDXL playback, and there's even compatibility with OTA broadcasts for those looking to toast television to blank Blu-ray media. Naturally, a contraption this awesome is going to be reserved for the Japanese market, with reports suggesting that it'll ship anywhere between mid-December to early January. The real kicker, however, is the price -- at ¥85,000 ($1,047 based on today's exchange rate), we're surmising that only a handful of individuals can afford to give this thing the time of day. And that, friends, is a modern day travesty.
TDK develops 1TB optical disc, leaves other optical storage feeling emasculated
We've heard about 1TB-sized optical discs in the past, but TDK has now revealed a 1TB monster of its own at CEATEC. Unlike existing Blu-rays which use four recording layers at most, TDK's creation features 16 layers on both sides of the disc, each capable of storing up to 32GB apiece. If you're keeping track of the optical storage arms race, that's seven more gigabytes per layer than Pioneer's 400GB and 500GB disc achievements made back in 2008. TDK's prototype also has the potential to leverage existing Blu-ray technologies, since it's made from a material already found in BDs and shares the same beam aperture. On the down side, the current version's recording layers measure 260μm -- that's more than twice as thick as its Blu-ray counterpart -- and causes aberrations in today's fat-layer-hating optical lenses. Outside of its Biggest Loser qualifications, though, TDK says "its commercialization depends on disc manufacturers." Considering the company has yet to sell the 10-layer 320GB discs revealed at CEATEC 2009, however, we're doubtful this 1TB improvement will hit stores anytime soon.
Sharp trots out AQUOS Quattron 3D HDTVs, complete with Blu-ray recorders
You should know by the inclusion of a Blu-ray recorder that these guys are reserved for the Japanese market, but what's stopping you and yours from drooling over 'em? The 52-inch LC-52LB3 and 46-inch LC-46LB3 are the latest members of the AQUOS Quattron 3D family, and aside from packing 1080p panels and integrated TV tuners, you'll also get a slot-loading Blu-ray drive that plays back BD films and can toast material on BDXL media. Not too shabby, eh? They'll be on sale halfway across the world this November, but pricing remains a mystery -- we're guessing it's one of those 'if you have to ask...' type scenarios.
Sony's blazing fast BDX-S500U Blu-ray drive tests USB 2.0's true transfer chops
Here's a lesson in actual vs. theoretical. Sony Optiarc America has announced the new BDX-S500U external USB 2.0 Blu-ray drive capable of burning single-layer BD-R discs at smoking speeds of 6x or dual-layer discs at up to 4x. If you do the math, those specs imply transfer speeds of 27Mbps for single-sided 25GB discs and total burn times of roughly 20 minutes. That's great news for folks with PCs looking to use the high-storage medium or watch 3D Blu-rays -- except for one tiny hitch. See, USB 2.0's theoretical maximum transfer speed is 60MBps, but in the real world most are lucky to get even half that rate. According to tests by Techworld, those with certain USB 3.0 chipsets can even experience USB 2.0 rates as low as 11MBps. In that light, the BDX-S500U's impressive speeds -- just like Paul Walker -- may be too fast and too furious for its computer counterparts to keep up, making it a different kind of bag of hurt for buyers. While no official pricing has been offered the drive will go on sale later this month and online retailers are already listing prices in the range of $214 to $240. For full specs and details, check out the PR after the break.
George Lucas officially announces Star Wars on Blu-ray in 2011
As rumored, all six Star Wars movies will be released together on Blu-ray in 2011 for the 35th anniversary of the release of A New Hope. George Lucas personally announced the set on stage at the Celebration V event, and showed off a deleted scene from Return of the Jedi that will be included (embedded after the break.) While the "highest picture and audio quality" and extensive special features are promised, what won't make it to Blu-ray are the original versions of the movies; Lucas told the New York Times that only the special editions will be included, since restoring the original versions in high enough quality would cost too much. No word on price, release date or any plans to release the films individually, but if you can stand living in a world where Greedo shot first then this will certainly be on next year's shopping list. [Thanks, @thunsaker]
Sharp intros first 100GB BDXL discs, Japan gets first dibs on July 30
It took a little while after the BDXL specification was finalized, but here's Sharp busting down the door to expanded storage with the first official products adhering to said spec. The new VR-100BR1 discs will use triple-layer fairy dust to squish 100GB of data inside, and Akihabara News reports that they'll be swiftly followed by quad-layer 128GB variants as well. Of course, every shiny new toy comes at a price, which in this case will be ¥5,000 per disc -- that equates to $57 and makes us wonder why we wouldn't just buy an external HDD with that cash. Perhaps because the slinky new Blu-ray media will be playable in that shiny new Sharp Blu-ray DVR you just bought? You did buy a Sharp DVR, right? Because the BD-HDW700/70 are the only models that will support these, at least for the moment.
128GB BDXL Blu-ray disc specification finalized... and fabulous!
Looks like the Blu-ray Disc Association has published the final specs for the monster BDXL disc, opening the way for manufacturers to start introducing the technology in their optical drives. Not too much here that we don't already know: aimed at institutions and folks who need to archive lots and lots of... stuff, BDXL discs are available in either triple layer 100GB (re-writable or write-once) or 128GB quad layer write-once flavors. Of course, with all these layers (or layuhs in Brooklyn) the laser in the Blu-ray drive you already own won't be able to do the trick, so start saving your change for a hardware upgrade once these things become commercially available. PR after the break.
Blu-ray Discs expand to 128GB under new BDXL spec
This probably isn't a response to the 3D onslaught or even "superbit" releases like the upcoming Avatar 2D disc, but just in case the standard 50GB Blu-ray discs were beginning to feel a bit -- how do you say... cramped? -- the Blu-ray Disc Association's rolling out a new BDXL format capable of holding up to 128GB (write-once) or 100GB (rewriteable). Before you get too excited, you should know that you'll need a new player to access these -- even a firmware update won't save the PS3 this time -- since they go up to three or four layers deep and will likely need a more powerful laser. While our home movies can be compressed just fine, corporations currently still using other mediums for archiving might appreciate the extra space, as well as the new IH-BD discs, designed with one 25GB read-only layer, and one 25GB rewritable layer on the same platter. If you're looking for a place to permanently back up that super high-res "amateur photography," take heart -- a consumer version is in the works, though it will first be aimed at markets where Blu-ray Disc recorders are popular, or available at all (read: maybe Japan, definitely not the US). No word when the new hardware will actually hit the market, but final specs are due "in the next few months." In the meantime, check out the full details after the break.
Warner Bros. will swap your antiquated DVDs for Blu-ray Discs (for a price)
In the spirit of such programs as Cash for Guns and, more recently, Cash for Clunkers, Warner Bros. has begun its "DVD2BLU" program, offering owners of its films in the antiquated DVD (a.k.a. drink coaster) format to exchange them for their proper Blu-ray Disc equivalents for a charge of $7.95 to $9.95 per film. The program's site currently lists 50 titles, with a limit of 25 disc swaps per household. You may recall that, earlier this year, Warner Bros. launched a similar program -- RED2BLU -- to let consumers exchange their HD-DVD copies of the studio's films for Blu-ray Disc versions. That's still going, and currently offers a catalog of 125 flicks to choose from with an "upgrade fee" of $4.95 per title. Yes, Warner Bros. really released (at least) 125 movies on HD-DVD. And no, we don't know what it was thinking. [Via Blu-ray.com]
