HD TiVoToGo Coming in November
More than a year after the first high-definition TiVo made its debut, customers of the original Series3 and new TiVo HD will in November receive access to the DVR's TiVoToGo and Multi-Room Viewing features. The capabilities had been disabled due to concerns about sharing copy-protected HD content.
TiVo had to obtain permission from CableLabs, which licenses the CableCARD technology used by the high-definition TiVos. The delay stemmed from CableLabs not approving TiVo's digital rights management that would protect HD recordings from being pirated. CableLabs recently certified the DTCP encryption standard, which may be what TiVo has chosen to employ.
Silverlight 1.0 Released, Linux Version Coming
Wednesday marked the final 1.0 release of Microsoft's new Silverlight platform for building interactive Web experiences à la Flash, but the big news is that Redmond will extend official support to Novell's Linux port of Silverlight.
Silverlight was first unveiled earlier this year, promising to make it easier for developers to build rich Web applications without delving into the complexities behind AJAX or suffering its limitations. This space is growing increasingly crowded with Adobe's new AIR runtime and Sun's JavaFX.
Windows Live Software Suite Due This Week
Microsoft is preparing to release a new suite of applications under the Windows Live umbrella, further upping the ante in its battle to fend up growing competition from the likes of Google and Yahoo. The effort is the next step in Microsoft's transition to software-plus-services.
While its rivals focus on Web-only applications, Microsoft sees a future where desktop programs simply interact with services on the Web. Windows Live will serve as the backbone upon which this shift relies. Desktop search will mesh with Web search, mail clients will link up with Webmail services, and photo applications will integrate online publishing and sharing.
Sony Kills ATRAC, Introduces Video Walkmans
Sony's Walkman entered a new era Thursday, as the company introduced two new models capable of playing not just audio, but also video. Sony also announced it would shutter its Connect music download service, effectively killing its ATRAC format in exchange for Windows Media.
The new high-end Walkman, Sony's NWZ-810 series, sports a 2-inch QVGA (320 by 240 pixels) LCD display, and offers up to 8 hours of battery life when playing video or 33 hours with audio. The slightly-cheaper NWZ-610 models come with a 1.8-inch screen and FM tuner.
Microsoft: XP SP3 an 'Update Roll-up'
Although Windows Vista Service Pack 1 is the big news of the day, Microsoft is concurrently preparing the third service pack for Windows XP. But SP3 won't introduce much of anything new for XP users, and will simply serve as a roll-up of already released fixes, Microsoft says.
Essentially, SP3 will provide a new baseline for the aging operating system, which was released to the public six years ago. As XP nears its end-of-life, Microsoft can ensure customers are up-to-date by telling them to upgrade to SP3, as opposed to SP2 with 85 or more additional patches. The first beta release of XP SP3 will reach testers mid-September, with final availability scheduled for the first half of 2008.
A List of What's New in Vista SP1
Now that Microsoft has set a release date for both the beta and final versions of Windows Vista Service Pack 1, the company is also offering a detailed look at what's being fixed and changed. One thing customers will not see is major changes to User Account Control, although Microsoft says it will reduce some pop-ups.
Perhaps the most notable change will not be for customers, but rather Microsoft partners. The company is including an API that third-party developers can tap into in order to work with kernel patch protection on x64 editions of Vista. This patch protection has proven to be a problem to antivirus and other security vendors.
Vista SP1 to Bring Fixes, Not Features; Due in Early 2008
In response to media coverage and pressure from partners, Microsoft finally opened up about Windows Vista Service Pack 1 Wednesday, detailing what customers should expect of the update, and setting a final release date of Q1 2008.
The gist is this: Vista SP1 will not bring major changes to the operating system, but instead deliver improvements related to reliability, security and performance. Customers will not see any major new features, and in turn, Microsoft says they should not wait for SP1 to begin deploying Vista.
Zango Drops Lawsuit Against PC Tools
Adware company Zango has voluntarily withdrawn its lawsuit against security software company PC Tools, which Zango accused of illegally removing its software from users' PCs without their express permission. The move follows a court's refusal to grant Zango a temporary restraining order.
The company had asked a court to prevent PC Tools' Spyware Doctor software from detecting and classifying Zango as potentially harmful, but a judge ruled it was "unlikely that the Plaintiff will be able to prove that the Defendant's software was unfair or deceptive."
PS3 Sales Improve, But Still Last Place
NPD Group's July numbers for game console sales have arrived, and the news is good for Sony and Nintendo. The struggling PlayStation 3 saw a 60 percent sales boost thanks to a $100 price cut on the 60GB model that is being phased out. But Nintendo still held the sales lead with its Wii.
Although the PS3 is still in last place among the next-generation consoles, Sony did gain some ground against Microsoft. The company sold 159,000 units, far surpassing June's sales of 98,500. But it was still unable to top Microsoft's Xbox 360, which sold 170,000 units - slightly lower than June's 198,400 thanks to last month's extra week in NPD's counting.
Nikon Unveils High-End Digital SLRs
Nikon on Thursday officially announced two new digital SLR camera models that target professionals and those wanting to be professionals while saving a few thousand dollars. The Nikon D3 features the first full-frame sensor on a Nikon digital camera, while the D300 bumps the D200 up to 12.3 megapixels.
The D3 replaces Nikon's previous top-of-the-line D2x, adding a new EXPEED image processor, second CompactFlash memory card slot, 12.1 megapixel full-frame sensor and ISO capability up to 6400. The 3-inch VGA LCD also offers a live view of what the camera lens is seeing, and the D3 can shoot up to 9 frames per second.
MTV Kills URGE, Joins Real on Rhapsody
MTV Networks, RealNetworks and Verizon Wireless announced a joint venture Tuesday morning, which will unite the companies' digital music offerings with Real's Rhapsody service. MTV's URGE service will be shut down, but customers can migrate over to Rhapsody.
The expanded Rhapsody music service will fall under a separate corporate branding, called "Rhapsody America," jointly owned by MTV and Real. MTV will provide music programming from its MTV, VH1 and CMT properties, while Real continues to handle the underlying architecture and music sales.
HD DVD: We're Not at War with Blu-ray
As I sat in a Washington, D.C. hotel suite earlier this month demoing and discussing the first network-enabled movie titles with the HD DVD group, one remark struck me: HD DVD says it is not at war with Blu-ray and seemingly has little concern over Sony’s format.
It’s hard to miss the ping pong game of rhetoric between the promotion groups pushing HD DVD and Blu-ray. From sales figures to exclusive deals, press releases are churned out almost daily. The so-called “format war” is Betamax and VHS redux - at least that’s what the media wants you to think.
Blu-ray Movies Outselling HD DVD 2-to-1
Although it appears to be outpacing Blu-ray in turns of actual player sales, HD DVD disc sales are struggling to keep up, with Blu-ray outselling its rival by a 2-to-1 margin in the first half of 2007, according to Home Media Research.
Total sales of discs in Sony's Blu-ray format totaled 1.6 million from January 1 through July 1, while HD DVD sales amounted to only 795,000. Movie rental company Blockbuster says Blu-ray rentals are much higher than HD DVD rentals, leading the company to choose Sony's format for the majority of its stores.
Google Starts Distributing StarOffice, Now Free
Almost two years ago, Google and Sun Microsystems held a special event to announce a multi-year partnership in which each company would distribute the other's software. Industry analysts issued a collective yawn, and not much has been heard about the agreement since - until now.
Over the weekend, Google quietly added Sun's StarOffice productivity suite -- the software that became OpenOffice.org and is now based upon it -- to Google Pack. The free collection of applications for Windows now numbers 13, and features other programs such as Skype, RealPlayer, Adobe Reader and Spyware Doctor.
Can the RAZR 2 Bring Motorola Back?
It's no secret that Motorola has been struggling in recent years since demand for its iconic RAZR phone has faded. The company posted a first quarter loss this year, and does not expect to be profitable in 2007. But Motorola is hoping to change its fortunes with the RAZR 2, which goes on sale this month.
The RAZR 2 V9 will be offered by AT&T while the CDMA V9m will be sold by Verizon, Sprint and Alltel. Because the V9 supports EVDO and HSDPA 3G networks, T-Mobile is not on the initial list of RAZR 2 carriers, but it could carry the V8 model that only supports EDGE networks.
© 1998-2025 BetaNews, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy - Cookie Policy.