conversion
Latest
Eurovision successfully transmits US HD feed to Europeans
As if there wasn't enough variations of HD feeds, and the fact that NTSC and PAL just can't seem to get along, the last thing the blokes across the pond want (or need) is another complication when it comes to catching American sports on their HD sets. Thankfully, Eurovision is not only sparing everyone the trouble, it has reportedly claimed a victory in the typically messy conversion game. The global network operator has apparently transmitted HDTV coverage of NHL and NBA games shot in America to Europe, all without down-converting to NTSC in the process. The content originated in 1080i/60, and was rebroadcasted in the UK-friendly 1080i/50 format, all while keeping users on both ends thoroughly pleased. Eurovision's head of production and services, Tony Naets, proclaimed that Europeans who witnessed the converted coverage "were delighted with the results, which included the ingest of the original coverage through the resources of Eurovision Americas in Washington, the conversion from the original broadcast format to 1080i/50, and the transport of the converted signal via our dedicated transatlantic fiber to the European uplink." While quite a mouthful, we think we dig what he's saying, and as soon as Europe sends a few of its own HD soccer football feeds our way, we'll be grinning from ear to ear as well.
Eneco "developing" chip to convert excess heat directly to energy
We can smell hints of vaporware from miles away, and while Phantom has certainly personified the term in recent situations, Eneco is well on its way to joining the fray. While it's impossible to completely disregard the firm's miraculous claims just yet, we certainly aren't sold on the micro-sized "solid state energy conversion / generation chip, which will convert heat directly into electricity or alternatively refrigerate down to -200 degrees Celsius when electricity is applied." Investors from around the globe have flocked to witness this potential wonder, as its described as being able to use "thermionic energy conversion" to convert excess heat directly to usable, waste-free energy. Additionally, the uses are "nearly endless," as it could be placed on a laptop's processor to render the Li-ion cell completely unnecessary, or strapped onto a fireplace in order to generate electricity for gizmos around the house. Eneco insists that positive progress is being made towards producing an actual product (red flag?), and if all goes as planned, we could see the miracle-working chip available in "early 2008." We can't help but hand over a dash of credibility to these smart talkers, however, as the company is apparently already in cahoots with "Apple, Dell, Ford, BMW, and Boeing" to get the heavily-patented technology into their future products, but we're still taking all this in with a healthy serving of salt for now.[Via Slashdot]
Digital TV converter coupons: Who gets them and how much?
There's been a lot of concern over the upcoming digital broadcast conversion and how it will affect those who currently get TV via over-the-air broadcast and haven't upgraded to sets with digital tuners. Under the proposal recently submitted by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, only homes that do not have cable or satellite TV currently would be eligible for coupons to reduce the price of two boxes by $40 each. That might not seem fair to people who have say, one cable TV and that one TV in the basement/attic that you could always use to watch the game on Sunday if need be. Luckily if you disagree with the proposal -- which you can read in its entirety here -- they are inviting public comment.Check out the FAQ for info on how to make your voice heard, much like us they will publish your comments on the website for all to see. Sort of makes you wonder why the government doesn't just start up a blog for this kind of thing.
A trip to Mario World, without the GameBoy
Some kid, or more likely, a 30 year old man, has had his room elaborately decorated in the style of Mario World. The conversion comes complete with ceiling pipes and blocks that stick out of the wall although, as far as I can tell, they held back from placing random bottomless pits around the room.[Via BoingBoing]
TiVo Desktop 2.3 adds conversion tools, scheduled transfers
We've been waiting a long time for TiVo to get it in gear and release version 2.3 of their desktop software, and judging by the new features they've gifted us with, it's been worth the wait. Actually, it was probably inappropriate to use the term "gifted," since one of the two major enhancements -- tools to convert your recordings into portable device-friendly formats -- finds TiVo charging for software for the first time since dropping the $99 fee on the Home Media Option. Still, $25 is a small price to pay for hassle-free, integrated MPEG-4 or H.264 conversions for your iPod, PSP, or Treo, and combined with the upgrade's second major addition -- the ability to setup automatic, scheduled transfers of selected shows -- you now have a one-step option for turning last night's episode of Law & Order into this morning's subway-ride entertainment. Both the free and paid versions of the update are available immediately by following the Read link, and don't forget to also click on that Via link for some more screenshots and insight.[Via ZatzNotFunny, thanks Alex]
VisualHub - The universal video converter
VisualHub is a feature-packed and 'universal' video converter for Mac OS X from the maker of iSquint. From its website: "VisualHub bridges the gap between numerous complicated video formatting standards, and people that just want to get the job done - just what you would expect from the Mac." It boasts fast conversion from nearly every video format to iPod, PSP, DV, DVD, AVI, MP4, WMV, MPEG and Flash (what: no animated GIF?), and brags about ts three-step conversion process: click, drag, click.Fortunately, VisualHub also offers advanced features like bitrate control, frame cropping and audio quality. Xgrid is supported for those with multiple Macs on a network and CPU cycles to spare, while QuickTime Pro and other plugins need not apply.VisualHub's long list of features don't stop there, however, so check out Techspansion's product page for the full feature list and samples of its work. A demo is available, while a full license will cost you a mere $23.32 USD.[thanks Khaled!]
Rename Podner
You may remember Apple legal telling the folks who made iPodderX to change their application's name (specifically, to remove the word "iPod") and the resulting contest that produced the new moniker, "Transistr." Well, Apple is at it again.They've told the folks at Splasm Software to rename Podner, which is an application that converts your video files for iPod use quickly and easily (we took a look at Podner last October). They're currently holding a contest to find a new name, and the winner will be rewarded with a free registration code (2nd, 3rd and 4th place will get a free code, too). Good luck![Via Macworld]
iTunes 6.0.2 does automatic video conversion without Quicktime Pro
Even more newness in that almost 19MB update to iTunes 6.0.2 this week: automatic conversion of your videos to play on your iPod. Now you don't need any third party machinations or a license for Quicktime Pro to convert media for your happy little video playing iPod!The conversion is fairly slow (about the same rate as Quicktime Pro) but is really quite handy. Simply open up the Videos section in iTunes, right click on the video you want to convert in your video playlist, and choose "Convert Selection for iPod". If the video is already compatible with your iPod, iTunes will tell you that it doesn't need to be converted.Now if only I could do direct DVD to iPod inside iTunes. A girl can dream right?
Convert DivX to WMV for the 360
If you've got a collection of DivX, Quicktime or any other form of video, and want to play them on the 360 (using Windows Media Extender), you've probably been disappointed so far. Fortunately, help is at hand in the form of a plethora of video conversion tools. From open-source to professional level, there's conversion software out there that will tackle almost any codec and turn your video into the 360-happy WMV, MPEG-1 and MPEG-2 formats. HD Beat has discovered Videora Xbox360 Converter, a free piece of software designed to optimise any video for viewing on the 360.Here's hoping other ways of getting video on the 360 will be discovered for those of us without Media Center Edition PCs.[Via HDBeat; thanks, iData]
