After been dumped unceremoniously last week by numerous Hollywood movie studios, the HD DVD high-definition (HD) format is hoping more advertising will help it survive.
Toshiba has announced a bigger advertising campaign in the US to help boost the HD DVD format against Blu-ray, which is still celebrating the sudden decision by Warner Bros. and New Line Cinema to abandon HD DVD for Blu-ray.
Toshiba is also slashing prices in the US with the entry level HD-A3, HD-A30 with 1080p output and the high-end HD-A35 now priced at a bargain basement $150 (£75), $200 (£100) and $300 (£150) respectively. The company claims that it had a bumper Q4 in sales terms and now controls 50% of the HD market – something Blu-ray supporters and some market analysts might disagree with.
Yoshi Uchiyama, Group Vice President Digital A/V Group, commented: “Consumer sales this holiday season have proven that the consumer awareness of the HD DVD format has been elevated and pricing is the most critical determinant in consumers' purchase decision of the next generation HD DVD technology. The value HD DVD provides to the consumer simply cannot be ignored.”
With only two studios now supporting HD DVD and one of those, Paramount, having an opt out clause in its contract, the future for HD DVD is hazy indeed.-Margin Lynch
HD DVD blu-ray movies
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Fancy yourself as a rock star? Have you twiddled with Guitar Hero or Rock Band? Well, there’s an upgrade coming that will allow even the worst, bedroom-based rocker wannabes to rock out in true ‘live’ fashion.
A US company called Performance Design Products (PDP) is planning to unleash the "Rock Band Stage Kit" for the Rock Band game, allowing you to add interactive stage lighting and real smoke to your ‘live’ bedroom performances.
The company assures that there’s no chance of fire and it’s rumoured that the light show will be synced with your jamming. The image above appeared briefly on GameStop before it was pulled down fast but the listing remains and it’s due for launch in the US in July for around £50.
[Destructoid]
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Ever since hanging and deportation were banned as methods of dealing with society’s undesirables, the UK powers that be have been searching for a new way of dealing with the trash.
According to reports today, UK ministers think radio frequency identification (RFID) tags could be it and are drawing up plans to have prisoners surgically tagged with RFID chips under the skin. This is certainly a controversial step up from the dodgy RFID bracelets in use today.
The idea is that this kind of tagging could help create more space in UK jails and enforce community orders like home curfew via satellite. Similar tagging is already used on cats, dogs and airport luggage but this would be the first time it would be used on prisoners in the UK.
A senior Ministry of Justice source, speaking to The Independent, said: “We have wanted to take advantage of this technology for several years, because it seems a sensible solution to the problems we are facing in this area. We have looked at it and gone back to it and worried about the practicalities and the ethics, but when you look at the challenges facing the criminal justice system, it's time has come.”
More than 17,000 criminals are subject to electronic monitoring now via bracelets but almost 2,000 of them manage to evade monitoring by tampering with the devices.
No doubt this plan to tag criminals like dogs will spark some lively debate.-Martin Lynch
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Sony has taken it upon itself to create a few smaller, portable HDTVs that have been, apparently, “perfectly judged to harmonise with almost any décor”.
The new Bravia B4000 TVs are coloured in Pearly White and Glossy Mocha and come in 20in, 23in and 26in sizes. Positioned as second TVs, they feature a carry handle on the back and the wide base acts as a stand so there’s no need for separate TV stand. They sport ‘up to’ two HDMI inputs a digital TV tuner.
“With the Bravia B4000-Series we’ve introduced a fresh concept,” says Angela de Klein, Product Manager, LCD TVs, SONY TV Operations Europe. “We tend to talk about it as a Lifestyle product, but what this means to the customer is practicality and convenience. Here is a TV that looks good wherever you put it and that’s designed so you can pick it up yourself and move around easily. “
Sony claim the new TVs are eco-friendly with an auto shut-off feature that puts the TVs in standby when there’s no input signal detected. There’s no prices yet but, this is Sony we’re talking about, so expect to pay more for this particular slice of lifestyle tech.-Martin Lynch
[Sony]
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You know things are getting just a little out of hand in your life when you start seriously considering purchasing a diamond encrusted toaster.
OK, Swarovski crystals, but still not what you expect to find on your everyday bread burner. Russell Hobbs obviously feels that there’s a market for such bling appliances since it’s selling them through upmarket outlet, Nieman Marcus in the US.
It’s constructed from glass and steel and studded with over 200 Swarovski sparklers. Actual toaster features include variable browning control, an extra-lift handle and crumb tray. Those essential toaster bits probably cost just £10 of the £150 asking price. Hurry though, only 500 are being made.-Martin Lynch
[Momist]
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Editor and Contributor | Martin Lynch
Contributor | Tamlin Magee
