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JVC HD camcorder leaked, not enough fingers to plug holes

Akihabara News made a big oopsie and posted a story about JVC's forthcoming Everio GZ-HD3. Though the page was quickly pulled, camcorderinfo.com managed to snatch the photo and a few details. A JVC spokesman admitted to me that Akihabara News had signed a nondisclosure agreement for information about the product, which provided a tacit admission that the product really exists and isn't just a rumor.

According to camcorderinfo.com, the HD3 will record HD video at only 1,440x1,080 in JVC's standard MPEG-2 TS format; the GZ-HD7 offers 1,920x1,080 "FHD" video, … Read more

70-inch PC-TV has touch screen too

So you've been bitten by the touch-screen bug, unlike us, and want a combo PC-TV as well? And nothing less than a 70-inch LCD will do? My, what demanding Cravers we are.

Then feast your greedy eyes on this all-in-one beast from GPNC Korea, which supports full HDTV and has wireless Internet access--just switch from TV to PC by way of the remote. It also includes a wireless keyboard that's dwarfed by the size of this monstrous screen (check out the photo from PClaunches for a comparison).

Alas, we have no information on price or availability, but that'… Read more

Pie charts indicate Blu-ray victory over HD DVD assured

If a picture's worth a thousand words, a pie chart has to be worth at least 500. Well, Ken Pierce over at Pixel Perfect Productions has cooked up five pie charts' worth of data on why the HD DVD/Blu-ray war is over--and as James Carville would say, it's all about the content, stupid.

To give credit where credit is due, I first noticed this link in Bill Hunt's "My Two Cents" column on Digital Bits. (Sorry, the item was from a couple of days ago, but I've been on vacation). Says Hunt: "… Read more

Toshiba adds a boatload of new laptops

With all the excitement over the new color-coordinated Dell Inspiron laptops (and the groovy 13-inch XPS m1330) last week, the guys over at Toshiba must have been kicking themselves. Instead of just giving their laptop lineup a new paintjob and some upgraded processors, they've got a whole stack of new and revamped systems, emphasizing the company's commitment to the HD DVD format (which may or may not be the best long-term plan, but that's another story).

We've always liked the Qosimo line of high-end media center laptops, and the new 15.4-inch Qosimo F45 is no … Read more

Warner Bros.' dual-format disc delayed

Total HD, the Warner Bros. solution to the Blu-ray/HD DVD face off for high-def home video supremacy, won't be rolled out in late 2007 as promised at CES, a Warner Bros. official said Wednesday.

The first discs, which will feature Blu-ray on one side and HD DVD on the other, will not appear until early 2008, according to Dan Miron, the studio's vice president of sales and planning, who made the comments at an entertainment business conference in Los Angeles.

The studio didn't provide further details, other than to say that it wants to avoid confusing … Read more

Hate your cable box? Maybe you need Moxi

Digeo dropped by the CNET offices this morning to give us a demo of their upcoming HD DVR, Moxi. We first saw Moxi many a CES ago and were definitely impressed, but since then only certain areas have had access to the hardware through their cable company. Now Digeo is looking to bring Moxi directly to consumers, in two flavors: the Moxi Multi-Room HD DMR and the Moxi Home Cinema Edition HD DMR.

The Moxi Multi-Room HD DMR is for cable subscribers that want to ditch their current cable boxes and use the Moxi with a CableCard. So what does … Read more

New Panasonic cameras coming in July

Panasonic plans to announce new digital cameras and high-definition video cameras at a July 17 event in New York, according to an invitation.

The company didn't share further details. But perhaps we'll see more about the new lower-end Panasonic digital SLR geared toward consumers.

Panasonic's current DMC-L1 is a midrange SLR (single-lens reflex) model with a midrange price, but the company could use something to go up against the models from Olympus, Canon, Pentax and Nikon that cost hundreds of dollars less.

Why the Blu-ray HD-DVD combo player is stuck in neutral

Late last year, South Korea's LG announced that it planned to come out with a movie player that could handle both Blu-ray and HD-DVD discs.

The world, or at least the microcosm where I spend my working hours, hailed the move like it was the second signing of the Treaty of Westphalia. Consumers would no longer have to worry about what discs, or computers, to buy. Their movie player would be compatible with whatever they bought.

A few other companies announced plans similar to LG.

LG's player, though, hasn't exactly become an international phenomenon. Granted, only 100,… Read more

Low-Cost Sony BDP-S300 Is Shipping -- Do We Really Care?

As the new Sony BDP-S300 begins shipping on Amazon and SonyStyle for $499.99 (add $10 for shipping if you purchase it from Sony), I'm left wondering if people even care.

Now before some of you jump up and down claiming I am off-base by saying that most people really don't care about the high-def wars, hear me out.

Sony's decision to drop the price of the BDP-S300 to $500 may seem like a great concession that will spur sales, but the price is still too high for the average person to even consider buying one of … Read more

Blockbuster picks Blu-ray for movie rentals

Blu-ray is extending its early lead in the high-def video wars.

Blockbuster Inc. announced on Monday that it would rent only Blu-ray discs, and not HD DVDs, in its 1,700 company-owned stores. That's supposed to take effect by mid-July.

The company said the decision was based on Blu-ray rentals "significantly outpacing" HD DVD rentals, and added that both formats will be available through its Web site.

While the dueling formats are technically somewhat similar, Blu-ray enjoys the advantage of being backed by more film studios (Sony, 20th Century Fox, Buena Vista, and Lionsgate) vs. HD DVD, … Read more