Falling prices increase demand for HDTV sets

Eric Carlisle is engaged to a woman whose birthday is within days of Valentine’s Day. So rather than flowers, chocolates or jewelry, he surprised her this year with a 42-inch plasma high-definition television for their bedroom.

The gift was a hit, and two weeks ago, the 36-year-old invested in another HDTV, this one a 61-inch rear-projection model for their Coraopolis, Pa., living room.

“Our living room is so big that a small TV would just look like a family picture,” said Carlisle, standing outside a Best Buy store. “This is the thing to do.”

Around the country, consumers like Carlisle are making 2006 a breakout year for high-definition televisions. Spurred by rapidly falling prices, this year’s sales of HDTVs have already surpassed all of last year’s by more than 30 percent, with the holiday season still to come.

So far this year, wholesale prices on HDTVs have fallen 8 percent over last year, he said, averaging $1,400 compared with $1,526 a year ago. Retail prices on televisions between 40 and 45 inches have fallen even more, dropping between a quarter and a third in just the last six months, said Paul Gagnon, director of North American TV market research for Austin, Texas-based DisplaySearch.

TVs in that size range are now sold in both plasma and liquid-crystal displays, causing manufacturers of each screen type to offer steep price cuts in the battle for dominance.

“There’s a real rush to see who can take the majority of the market the quickest,” Gagnon said.

The price on a 40-inch Sony LCD model, for example, has fallen 33 percent since it debuted in February, from about $3,000 to $2,000. Most Americans, though, are considerably more frugal. The top-selling HDTV size, said Gagnon, is 36 inches, and the cheapest fully equipped HDTVs can be had for about $550.

Self-Aware Robot Can Adapt To Environment

Cornell University researchers have created a robot capable of self-awareness, learning and adapting — all keys to the intelligence and technology needed for robots to function in adverse and changing environments. The Cornell researchers said their robot did not rely on predetermined models of movement in order to learn how to walk on its four legs.

Get That iPod Rush … From the Zune

It’s exhilarating when you first discover the way digital music players let you fly through a music collection with your thumb and carry a room full of albums in your pocket. The polish and simplicity of Apple’s iPod, and its clever marketing, brought this experience to tens of millions of people over the past five years. Microsoft’s Zune will give you that same rush.

Palm Launches Treo 680 With Content Partners

Palm on Wednesday introduced its Treo 680 smartphone amid plenty of fanfare and even more partnerships. The phone is available in four colors — crimson, copper, arctic and graphite — and retails for US$399. Cingular subscribers, however, can get the device for $199 through an exclusive deal with the nation’s largest wireless carrier.

High Definition Audio

Integrated Audio for Today and Tomorrow

Intel has worked with the industry to develop a new specification for integrated audio that is capable of delivering the features and high-end performance of an add-in audio card. Intel® High Definition Audio (Intel® HD Audio) is capable of playing back more channels at higher quality than previous integrated audio formats. In addition, Intel High Definition Audio has the technology needed to support the latest and greatest audio content. By enabling enhanced usage models, Intel High Definition Audio, available with the Intel® Express Chipsets, will also change how computer users interact with sound.

The Challenge to Find Better Audio

When AC‘97 was initially developed, users were typically listening to only music and movies with stereo sound. With the success of DVD movies encoded with Dolby* Digital and DTS* multi-channel audio formats, users have become accustomed to listening in full surround sound with anywhere from six to eight speakers. While AC‘97 technology has struggled to keep pace with all these advancements, Intel High Definition Audio is designed specifically for the high-quality multi-channel audio experiences. Newer audio and video encoding/decoding algorithms also enable a higher-quality listening experience. More and more consumers are moving their computers into the living room or family room so they can enjoy digital music or movies throughout the house on state-of-the-art multi-channel audio systems or big screen TVs. With better speakers connected to their computers, the limitations of current computer sound subsystems, whether integrated or add-in, can degrade the overall digital experience. Many consumers are also asking for the ability to play two different audio streams through their PC at the same time-perhaps classical music in the study and a movie in the living room. These demands cannot be met with previous audio solutions.

An Outstanding Audio Experience

Intel HD Audio delivers significant improvements over previous generation integrated audio and sound cards. Intel HD Audio hardware is capable of delivering the support and sound quality for up to eight channels at 192 kHz/32-bit quality, while the AC‘97 specification can only support six channels at 48 kHz/20-bit. In addition, Intel HD Audio is architected to prevent the occasional glitches or pops that other audio solutions can have by providing dedicated system bandwidth for critical audio functions.

Innovative Uses for the Digital Home

Dolby Laboratories* selected Intel HD Audio to bring Dolby-quality surround sound technologies to the PC, as part of their recently announced PC Logo Program. The combination of these technologies marks an important milestone in delivering quality digital audio to consumers. Intel HD Audio is able to support all the Dolby technologies, including the latest Dolby Pro Logic* IIx, which makes it possible to enjoy older stereo content in 7.1 channel surround sound. The Dolby PC Entertainment Experience is available exclusively on Intel-based PCs, including the Intel® Pentium® 4 Processor with Hyper-Threading (HT) Technology† or Intel® Pentium D Processor combined with the Intel® Express Chipset Family with Intel® High Definition Audio. The Express Chipset family includes:

Intel® 955X, 945G and 945P Express Chipsets Intel® 925XE and 925X Express Chipsets Intel® 915G, 915P, 915GV, 915GL, 915PL Express Chipsets Intel® 910GL Express Chipset

Consumers also want the ability to play back two different audio tracks, such as a CD and a DVD simultaneously, which can’t be done using current audio solutions. Intel HD Audio features multi-streaming capabilities that give users the ability to send two or more different audio streams to different locations at the same time, from the same PC. Send a DVD movie with 5.1 audio to a surround sound system in the living room, while you listen to digital music and surf the Web on the PC. Microsoft* has chosen Intel HD Audio as the main architecture for their new Unified Audio Architecture* (UAA), which provides one driver that will support all Intel HD Audio controllers and codecs. While the Microsoft driver is expected to support basic Intel HD Audio functions, codec vendors are expected to differentiate their solutions by offering enhanced Intel HD audio solutions. The result is high-quality PC based audio that delivers a seamless convergence of digital entertainment between the PC and consumer electronic devices. Enhanced Features Intel HD Audio also enables enhanced voice capture through the use of array microphones, giving users more accurate speech input. While other audio implementations have limited support for simple array microphones, Intel HD Audio supports larger array microphones. By increasing the size of the array microphone, users get incredibly clean input through better noise cancellation and beam forming. This produces higher-quality input to voice recognition, Voice over IP (VoIP), and other voice-driven activities. Intel HD Audio also provides improvements that support better jack retasking. The computer can sense when a device is plugged into an audio jack, determine what kind of device it is, and change the port function if the device has been plugged into the wrong port. For example, if a microphone is plugged into a speaker jack, the computer will recognize the error and can change the jack to function as a microphone jack. This is an important step in getting audio to a point where it ‘just works‘-users won‘t need to worry about getting the right device plugged into the right audio jack. The Solution for the Future Designed for “glitch-free” audio playback, multi-streaming, jack retasking, and UAA support, Intel HD Audio offers an audio solution for years to come. As one of the many new technologies introduced with the Intel® 955X, 925, 915, and 910 Express chipset family, and now the Intel® 945 Express chipset family, Intel HD Audio enhances the end-user experience and enables the convergence of digital entertainment for both PCs and Consumer Electronics (CE) products. † Hyper-Threading Technology requires a computer system with an Intel® Pentium® 4 processor supporting Hyper-Threading Technology and an HT Technology enabled chipset, BIOS and operating system. Performance will vary depending on the specific hardware and software you use. See http://www.intel.com/info/hyperthreading/ for more information including details on which processors support HT Technology. Some HD Audio functionality is dependent on actual implementation, controller, and codec. Intel® Pentium® and Pentium® D processors, and 955 Express chipsets may contain design defects or errors known as errata which may cause the product to deviate from published specifications. Current characterized errata are available on request.

Hybrid Cars

The one consumer decision most people make which impacts the greatest on the environment is the choice of car we drive.

Hybrid Cars offer drivers an innovative, efficient, and affordable option. After years of ‘on the road’ development, the new hybrids have become a practical choice for consumers.

A hybrid car features a small fuel-efficient gas engine combined with an electric motor that assists the engine when accelerating. The electric motor is powered by batteries that recharge automatically while you drive.

Smaller and more efficient engines.
Regenerative braking – the electric motor that drives the hybrid can also slow the car. In this mode, the electric motor acts as a generator and charges the batteries while the car is slowing down.
Periodic engine shut off - when a hybrid car is stopped in traffic, the engine is temporarily shut off. It restarts automatically when put back into gear.
Advanced aerodynamics – to reduce drag
Low-rolling resistance (LLR) tires - narrow, stiffer tires have less drag
Lightweight materials - increases the efficiency of hybrid cars.

These gas-electric hybrid cars are now available in North America

10 Reasons Why High Definition DVD Formats Have Already Failed

I’m not typically a doom and gloom kind of guy – really, I’m rather optimistic. But this pending format release/war is simply the most ridiculous thing I’ve seen in a long time. The hype machine is entirely enthusiast-created and since that day I realized Steve Jobs could sell a fart provided he sued a public Mac forum for talking about it before its release, I began to understand the power of public mania.

There are a number of reasons why the new high definition DVD formats have already failed and I’ll gladly go over some of them in this article. I am not a soothsayer, but I do study the industry – and at times, sit back and take assessment of what’s happening from both a consumer and manufacturer perspective.

Without any further ado, here are the reasons HD DVD and Blu-ray Disc will never turn into the dominant formats for digital media viewing:

1. Nobody likes false starts
   With the debut of HD DVD at an underwhelming 720p/1080i, coupled with a buggy interface and a transport that makes boiling water seem like a speedy event, the entrance of high definition DVD into the mainstream came out of the starting gate lame and hobbled. For Toshiba to release a player that didn’t support true HD at 1080p (even though the software does), and with no lossless audio format to accompany the video track, the high definition wave was more of a ripple. Add to this the delay of HDMI 1.3, lack of market penetration and supply, and a dearth amount of software titles and you have a very unimpressive product launch.

2. Format Wars Don’t Sell Players
   The only reason Sony’s Playstation, Microsoft’s Xbox and the Nintendo GameCube can sell so well simultaneously is because of the prevalence of excellent software titles. People want to buy the hardware just so they can play the software. This is not a format war – it is choice, just like Chevy and Ford (and just like the gaming systems, some people have one of each). The high definition DVD formats, however are really just the same source material packaged in two different wrappers- not to provide choice, mind you, but because the two camps simply are too greedy to combine forces, and not innovative enough to drive two truly separate products successfully. Take careful note – a format war is NOT competition, it is a hindrance and the bane of high definition DVDs.
3. HD DVD and Blu-ray are NOT Quantum Leaps in Technology
   Consumers came over in droves when CDs were released back in 1982. The new format offered not only a new digital media, but also a way to instantly access tracks across an entire “album”. Convenience, not technology, drove this format to almost instant consumer adoption. Fast forward a bit to 1997 when the first DVD player was released. Again, convenience, not technology, drove people to the market en masse. Unlike VHS tapes, the new DVD format was smaller, easily navigated and would not wear down over time like existing tape-based formats. Heck, the concept of a shiny plastic disc was new – and quite frankly, it was the coolest thing to hit the technological shelf since solid state technology. In comparison, the high definition DVD formats, save the color of the business side of the disc, look exactly the same… and consumer confusion will surely follow.

   What do the new high definition DVD formats offer consumers over DVD? Technology and more storage. Is this enough? Not on your life. Consumers, most of whom rarely know how to properly configure their players or home theater systems, are perfectly content with their current DVD players (and indeed some have just jumped on board to DVD in the last several years). While the potential for more extras and alternate endings exists due to increased storage on the new media, there is no compelling reason for consumers to migrate over to the new high definition DVD formats in large numbers.

4. Studios are Conservative, Greedy and Unmotivated
   Studios are so conservative in their practices as to consistently miss out on market advances – even those that can make them money (ie. Why is a computer company running the world’s most successful online music store?) The studios are not jumping on board the high definition DVD bandwagon just yet – and you can see the lack of titles to prove it. If the movie studios decided that HD DVD or Blu-ray (or both) was to be the next dominant format, it need only to flood the market with software titles and present a plan to roll back on DVD production over the next 10 years. Even though this would grant them the secure format that they seem to want (HD DVDs and Blu-ray discs promise to be much harder to rip or duplicate) there is no indication in the industry that this is taking place or even in the works. The studios are making money hand over fist with DVD they cannot seem to bring themselves to seriously initiate a new, unproven technology – even if it saves them from some other copyright headaches.

   Add to this the fact that new titles are coming out at $30 a pop (and this down from an initial $35/title) and you have a really hard sell for consumers who are used to $15 titles at Wal-mart and the large electronics chains.

5. Playstation3 Cannot Save the World
   We have consistently heard it said that the Playstation3 will “jump start” the market by flooding it with millions of gaming systems capable of handling Blu-ray Disc software. The problem with this theory is that the PS3 is not being marketed as a home theater component and, if current installations prove the rule, most will not be situated in the average consumer’s living room. The result is that the PS3 will primarily be a *gasp* gaming system. Maybe I have a more traditional group of parents in my association of friends, but, taking into account #4 above, I do not think that Blu-ray will make any major leaps forward in market penetration as a home video format – at least not anytime soon.

   History is bearing this out, as the HTPC market, though driven hard by such manufacturers as Microsoft, Dell and HP, has struggled to find a place in the living room. Nearly every gaming system of the past: PS2, Xbox, and even the legendary 3DO system have been touted as “set-top boxes” but in reality find themselves situated in more “gaming-centric” environments playing… you guessed it, games.

6. Those Who Ignore History…
   For years we’ve heard about the evils of MP3 and illegal downloading. All the while the RIAA and music industry had two formats that could have prevented any illegal copying – at least for all but the most dedicated crackers: DVD-Audio and SACD. These formats proved to be higher quality than CD, presented much enhanced copy protection schemes and were easily used as alternative formats to CD. Yet both formats failed miserably to achieve any significant market penetration. Why? Without an artificial “shove” from the record industry – which never materialized – technology alone is never enough to push a new format into the hands of consumers. In terms of convenience and ease of use, DVD-Audio and SACD offered nothing to consumers. In fact, they made listening to music more complex, since most hardware was unable to correctly decode and provide adequate bass management for the new formats.

   Could these formats have succeeded? Absolutely. If the recording industry had presented a plan to phase out CDs and the “format war” had been avoided (simply by the industry picking one format over the other) we would all be using DVD-Audio players and illegal downloadable music would be mostly confined to analogue rips or older music. Is this a stretch? Perhaps, but only because history shows us that corporate greed causes most companies to miss the long term economical gains over a short term loss of licensing revenues.

7. People Want Technology that’s 15 Minutes Ahead of Its Time
   For many people, getting into HDTV is all about the widescreen and being able to see their DVDs with more clarity than ever before. When Billy Bob comes home with his new high definition 720p display, the difference between that and his older SD TV is amazing – at least when he’s watching DVDs. You see, that’s the problem – and it’s two-fold. While most consumers are still getting into the HDTV craze, they’re already impressed. And the difference between SD TV and HDTV is more amazing than the difference between 480p DVDs and 1080i downrezzed high definition discs.

   The other side of the coin is the lack of HD content available on TV – and this is a biggie. While Billy Bob is impressed by his DVD player, he is dumbfounded by his cable TV – which actually looks worse than it did on his old set (mostly because it’s bigger). You see, nobody told Billy Bob that he’d have to get an antenna or subscribe to HD service from his cable/satellite provider. He was also not told that most of his favorite shows (Billy likes sitcoms and the Sci-Fi Channel) aren’t yet available in HD, regardless of technology or service provider. As a result, many Americans are underwhelmed or feel like they got burned by HDTV. The last thing they’re going to do is rush out and buy the next greatest thing.

8. Enthusiasts Are Getting Tired (and Smarter)
   While some home theater audio- and videophiles have the money and inclination to rush out and buy the latest and greatest toys as soon as they are available, many more are becoming more cautious. Burned by 8-track, laserdisc, SACD, and DVD-Audio (and possibly soon non-HDCP HDTV) – these war-weary consumers are going to think long and hard before jumping onto any new technological bandwagons. This leaves a shrunken market of even the bleeding-edge consumers, and that means even less sales to early-adopters.
9. A Skeptical News Media Doesn’t Help
   I’ll admit it, we’re part of the “problem” (though I’d like to think we’re saving consumers from making the next big mistake). An increasingly skeptical news media isn’t buying into the hype of HD DVD and Blu-ray, especially not after wasting millions of editorial words on DVD-Audio and SACD, only to watch the software and technology dwindle into obscurity. Even after almost 6 years, most consumers continue to proffer puzzled looks when these audio formats are mentioned. The new DVD formats are getting plenty of press, mind you, but with the Toshiba flop and lack of software, the fact that the Emperor has no clothes (at least not yet) is hard to avoid.
10. Broadband and IPTV to Compete?
    With Verizon, AOL, Time Warner and others jumping to provide HD on-demand services for the consumer it is a very likely event that high definition DVD will be something that isn’t relevant in a service-directed marketplace. Add to this Apple Computer’s recent push for video downloads and we may find that consumers are far more interested in quantity, portability, and ease of use over high quality source material. Even with respect to high definition formats, downloadable files burned to consumer-supplied media may make data high definition DVDs more significant than the retail formats. This consumer model is being readied for testing in South Carolina’s head-end for Time Warner Cable this year.

So, while I certainly hope for the best, that’s my story and I’m stickin’ to it. High definition is headed for a niche market at best, not an industry takeover.

AMD Personal Internet Communicator is no more

Microprocessor Company AMD has confirmed that they are cancelling their Personal Internet Communicator project.

AMD had launched this project with their vision of a low cost computer targeted at the developing world.

The Personal Internet Communicator device was first launched in 2004 as part of the company’s 50×15 project. The aim was to bring Internet access to half the world’s population by 2015.

The device was launched at a price of $185 and used AMD’s Geode processors. However, it was not a success and never helped AMD improve its bottom line.

The company has now confirmed that they are no longer pursuing this device’s development in a statement filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission last week.

However, the company is still engaged in a similar project named One Laptop Per Child started by MIT’s Nicholas Negroponte.

Laser TV predicted to be death of plasma

It’s being hailed by its developers as the next revolution in visual technology – a laser television that will make plasma screens obsolete.

Soon-to-be-listed Australian company Arasor International and its US partner Novalux unveiled what they claimed to be the world’s first laser television in Sydney, with a pitch that it will be half the price, twice as good, and use a quarter of the electricity of conventional plasma and LCD TVs.

Manufacturing company Arasor produces the unique optoelectronic chip central to the laser projection device being developed by Silicon Valley-based Novalux, which is being used by a number of television manufacturers.

And displayed beside a conventional 50 inch plasma TV, the Mitsubishi-built prototype does appear brighter and clearer than its “older” rival.

With a worldwide launch date scheduled for Christmas 2007, under recognisable brands like Mitsubishi and Samsung, Novalux chief executive Jean-Michel Pelaprat is so bold as to predict the death of plasma.

“If you look at any screen today, the colour content is roughly about 30-35 per cent of what the eye can see,” he said.

“But for the very first time with a laser TV we’ll be able to see 90 per cent of what the eye can see.

“All of a sudden what you see is a lifelike image on display.”

Combine that with energy efficiency, price advantage and the fact that the laser TVs will be half the weight and depth of plasma TVS, and Mr Pelaprat says “plasma is now something of the past”.

Mr Pelaprat predicted LCD TVs would come to dominate the market below 40 inches, and laser television the market above that screen size, displacing plasma.

The optoelectronic chip-laser technology won’t be confined to TVs.

The technology is also being trialled in mobile phones, where it will be used to project images onto any surface, and in home theatres and cinemas.

The unveiling of the laser TV prototype was held on the eve of Arasor’s public float on the Australian Stock Exchange next week.

Stupid Yahoo! Messenger

Apparently, you can no longer transfer files on the latest version of Yahoo! Messenger unless both the parties are using the latest version. I had to login to Gaim to transfer the file I wanted to send to a friend. Is this weird or what!