ExternalDvdWriter
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Plextor's new external DVD burner works with TVs, no computer required
Plextor's been plenty busy this week, announcing its new M3 Pro SSD and PlexEasy external DVD burner, but the company's not done unveiling new products just yet. Plextor's newest offering is another external DVD burner, the easily remembered PX-612U. Like the PlexEasy, it connects via USB and works with TVs and media streamers without needing a PC. That's possible thanks to some secret sauce called PlexTV (not to be confused with the media client), which acts as a code translator to make the PX-612U's output mimic a HDD. It'll be available the first quarter of this year, for an as-yet-unknown number of dollars.
NEC LaVie Touch hands-on (updated)
Originally scheduled for a September launch under the VersaPro type VT moniker, NEC's LaVie Touch Windows 7 tablet is finally hitting the Japanese market next week. Alas, there are still no plans on an international release for this 10.1-inch Atom Z670-powered device, but at CEATEC we were lucky enough to stumble upon it along with its DVD dock and wireless input peripherals -- all included for ¥99,960 ($1,300), which is a huge drop from the original ¥144,000 ($1,873) customizable bundle. Despite the slightly more sensible pricing, is the LaVie Touch still worth the money? Probably a stretch given the much cheaper offerings from the likes of Acer and Samsung, but regardless, kudos to NEC for keeping its tablet's weight just under 730g (1.6 pounds) while promising 10.6 hours of battery life. For comparison's sake, the Acer Iconia W500 weighs 970g (2.14 pounds) and only packs up to six hours worth of battery juice. The NEC tablet felt firm in our hands and its IPS LCD didn't disappoint, though Windows 7 on this particular unit was slightly laggy during our hands-on, so be sure to check it out in the stores first before you hand over your hard-earned yen. Update: We just found out that Yodobashi Camera has just started selling the LaVie Touch, so we went along to Akihabara to check out the final product. Alas, Windows 7 was still sluggish, whereas the AMD C-50-powered Iconia W500 in the next aisle handled pinch-to-zoom rather well, despite the less impressive LCD. %Gallery-135832%
Sony churns out external VRD-MC10 handycam-to-DVD burner
It may be gettin' better, but it ain't getting any prettier. As the proper successor to Sony's DVDirect VRD-MC5, the all-black VRD-MC10 only looks marginally better than the original, but still has way too much 80s flair for our tastes. Sporting a 2.7-inch LCD, HDMI / component / composite outputs, a multicard reader, audio / video inputs, USB connectivity and support for just about every writable DVD still on the market, this unit was designed to burn your precious Handycam footage straight to DVD without any fuss (or formal editing procedures). Additionally, it could serve as your primary DVD player in a pinch, though the lack of BD functionality makes this a lot less attractive overall. We'll see if Sony keeps its "coming soon" promise; it's listed at a shockingly high ¥44,800 ($410).[Via SonyInsider]Update: Sony pinged us to say that this model will not be replacing the MC5, and it will only play back DVDs that it creates.
