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Slimmer 5.25-inch internal optical drive gets wolf-whistled at Computex
Fatty internal optical drives have so far been content to sit back and watch their external cousins do all the figure-slimming push-ups. But this low-profile 5.25-inch slot-loader clearly got bored of being XXL. It was spotted eating carrot sticks and taking up significantly less than its allotted bay space inside an Antec Solo II chasis at Computex. According to AnandTech, it represents a new industry standard that will start hitting the market by the end of the year -- along with new cases designed to hold it. Slot-loaders may not appeal to everyone, but if you're in the market to buy or build a small form factor PC then this baby might just turn your head.
Blu-ray recordable drive for Macs
Is it time to finally put your HD mountain biking documentary on Blu-ray? Apple upgrade vendor MCE Technologies announced availability of a totally Mac-compatible Blu-ray recordable drive for Mac Pro and Power Mac.The $499 (internal) drive is compatible with Mac OS X 10.5.2 and later, requiring no special drivers for burning -- just install it in your Mac Pro or Power Mac bay, pop in blank Blu-ray media, and you're ready to roll. The drive does both single-layer (6X BD-R or 2X BD-RE) and dual-layer (4X BD-R, 2X BD-RE) burning for capacities of 25GB or 50GB respectively. That's up to 50,000 photos, 12,500 music tracks, or 4 hours of HD video.There's a $599 version bundled with Roxio Toast 9 and the Toast BD//HD Plugin, as well as an external drive with FireWire and USB 2.0 ports for $749.To write professional Blu-ray discs that can play on set-top Blu-ray players or Sony PS3, you'll need Adobe Premiere Pro CS3 Encore along with Adobe Premiere Pro CS3 or Final Cut Pro. Basic Blu-ray movies can be burned with Roxio Toast 9 and the BD/HD Plugin.[via The Mac Observer]
Sony aiming for sub-$200 Blu-ray PC reader in early 2008
Looks like it's not just the HD DVD camp that's talkin' lower prices, as now we're hearing that Sony has plans to unveil a Blu-ray reading (sorry, no burning capabilities of any kind on this one) optical drive early next year for around two Benjamins. All that was according to Bob DeMoulin, Sony's marketing manager, branded optical storage, who also stated that "a Blu-ray player at a sub-$200 price point becomes real attractive to the consumer." Of note, he also hinted at a possible external flavor of said drive, but apparently, there's been no final decision made on that just yet.
BenQ reveals price, release window for BW1000 Blu-ray burner
So we finally got some solid release deets on BenQ's anticipated BW1000 3-in-1 Blu-ray burner (also known as the "Trio): it'll be coming out in late August, and set you back 799 euros, or a little over $1,000. As you'll recall, that grand is buying you an internal drive that writes to BD-R discs at 2x speed, to DVDs between 4x and 12x, and to CDs at 32x speed, while obviously playing back Blu-ray content at full 1,920 x 1,080 resolution as well. You're also getting the usual suite of features designed to dampen vibration and ensure data integrity, which will come in especially handy for folks who can't afford to be wasting those initially-expensive next-gen discs. Keep in mind, though, that this model won't be the only option available to you by the time it hits stores, so make sure to check out the supported formats and features on competing units from Pioneer, Samsung, Panasonic and Philips before you lay down all that cash.[Via Yahoo]
