Category Archives: Product Announcements

Advanced Media, Inc., manufacturer and marketer of the popular RIDATA brand of recordable CD and DVD media, electronic storage products, and digital media accessories, is adding yet another advanced product to its lineup of electronic storage media. Its new high-speed RIDATA Laser Pointer USB Drive features a USB 2.0 flash drive with a laser pointer. It is set to be shown at the upcoming 2006 International CES show.

“Our new, easy to use RIDATA thumb-sized portable USB flash drive with laser pointer enables users to securely exchange huge amounts of data between computers or notebooks with a USB port,” stated Harvey Liu, Advanced Media president. “Its plug-and-play simplicity makes connecting to any computer a snap, allowing access virtually anytime, anywhere. No power supply or external cables are required.”

The versatile USB drive also features four new useful functions:

Auto Login: This is a convenient application that automatically enters IDs and passwords from a database created on the USB Drive to Web sites. With Auto Login, users can carry all IDs and Passwords on the USB Drive.

Bookmarks: This feature saves the user’s own Web bookmarks to the device, allowing easy access to them from whatever computer that is connected to the device.

FLASH Mail: A small Email software program, that allows users to access email from the USB Drive.

Secret ZIP: Creates a Secret folder and a Zip folder. This allows users to zip a file by simply dragging the file to the ZIP folder, or a encrypted Zip file by dragging into Secret Folder.

With high storage capacity and blazing fast speeds, the handy RIDATA USB Flash Drive with laser pointer is an ideal choice to replace floppy disks, ZIP disks, and hard disks. This high-speed USB flash drive performs data transfer at a rate up to 19MB/s for read and14MB/s for write in dual-channel mode, and up to 10MB/s for read and 7MB/s for write in single-channel mode.

It supports multiple operating systems: Windows® ME, Windows® 2000, Windows® XP, Mac TM 9.x or later, Linux TM Kernel 2.4 or later (no driver needed); Windows® 98 and Windows® 98SE (driver enclosed). It also comes with a security lock (Safety Zone); is shock proof; and has power-saver functionality. An advanced software package is included.

The class II laser pointer has an average wavelength of 650nm, and will make a 0.4-inch spot from approximately 11 feet. It meets TUV, FDA, and ROSH requirements.

The RIDATA Laser Pointer USB Drve is available in 128MB, 256MB, 512MB , and1GB capacity sizes. It has an MSRP of $69.99 based on 512MB capacity.

This sounds like a great idea for a combo item. I always carry a USB flash drive, having a laser pointer handy would be a plus. I’m also intrigued by the email and bookmark utilities included on the device as I see these flash drives making it easier for users to take their settings between computers. We’ll work on getting on of these in the lab for a full once over!

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., a leader in advanced semiconductor technology, today announced that it has solidified its leadership position in the server memory market with a new 8GB product offering. Following the introduction of its
8GB Registered Dual In-line Memory Module (R-DIMM) in October, Samsung has now increased the density of its Fully Buffered Dual In-line Memory Module product line-up (FB-DIMM) to include 8GBs by adopting 80 nanometer 2Gb DDR for high-speed servers. This represents a significant leap forward in advanced server memory architecture.

OEMs that use Samsung’s high-density memory can increase the amount of installed memory and keep slots in reserve for future upgrades. Samsung memory such as the new 8GB FB-DIMM is ideal for space-constrained applications in blade and 1U servers.

The FB-DIMM architecture overcomes the previous limitation of two-to-four module capacity per channel.
A FB-DIMM system’s DRAM module content can be increased to as many as eight modules without reducing the speed. The new system can also process an increased amount of data at the same time with the advanced memory buffer (AMB) chip connecting each module in the system point to point. As a result, the server market demand for high density DRAMs is expected to increase significantly.

With Samsung’s high-density memory modules, designers can take full advantage of increased memory support in the latest server operating system to maximize performance. In addition, Samsung is offering next-generation memory solutions such as the 8GB FB-DIMM to allow servers to benefit from ultimate memory density and bandwidth.

Samsung’s complete product portfolio includes all variations of DRAM memory from DDR to DDR2, and R-DIMMs to FB-DIMMs with densities ranging from 512MB all the way to 8GBs.

For those of us with an insatiable appetite for memory, this may fulfill it for a while.

From Akihabara.

The Japanese company Seiko will release a limited edition of 500 units of their Spectrum SVRD001, the first watch in the world that uses flexible e-paper or Electrophoretic Display (EPD). The design of the watch is similar to a bracelet and the body is made of stainless steel and a black & white e-paper. The price of one of these 500 units is an extremely affordable 1900 EUR. It will weigh 134g and will be 37mm thick. It will be available worldwide in January 2006.

This may be one of the first products to come to paper that uses the e-ink technology. E-ink promises to have a high contrast surface, with a minimal power consumption. It uses electrostatically charged balls as the basis for its display.

From Popular Technology and Akihabra News.

Advanced Media, Inc., manufacturer and marketer of the popular RIDATA brand of recordable CD and DVD media, electronic storage products, and digital media accessories, is set to introduce a USB-powered digital video broadcasting-terrestrial (DVB-T) tuner. The unit allows over-the-air or broadcast digital television signals to be received by and shown on PCs, laptops, or other mobile devices such as PDAs. It will be introduced at 2006 International CES. The DVB-T standard is applicable in Europe, Taiwan, and Australia.

The company expects to have available a similar device for the American ATSC standard when ATSC-compliant Transport Streams to be transmitted via terrestrial broadcast include the necessary embedded digital compression components in the Program and System Information Protocol is available.

“Until recently, it was not possible to enjoy over-the-air digital television programming on anything other than a television set,” stated Harvey Liu, Advanced Media president. “Our USB DVB-T tuner now makes it
possible in an easy, one-step, plug-and-play device. That means anyone with a PC or laptop, among other devices, will have instant access to their favorite digital programming as well as be able to record it without needing a television.”

Its compact, easy-to-transport size (it resembles a RIDATA EZ Drive portable storage device) assures users will be able to take and use it virtually anywhere. All it takes is a simple connection to a compatible unit’s USB port.

Too bad the rest of the world will have this before us in the States. I can’t wait to have something simple like this that can tune in TV on my notebook.

It looks like Apple’s not the only game in town anymore if you’re interested in monstrous flat-panel monitors. Engadget reports that Dell’s adding a 30-inch beast to its stable, set to be released on the streets around December 21. If the pricing scheme is similar to that of its 24-inch models, look for something a few hundred smacks less than the Apple cinema display. I must confess, however, that I love me some brushed metal exterior. Drool-worthy, either way.

Mmmmm. Huge display.

Plextor today announces 2 new DVD-ReWriter drives; the company’s first portable DVD recorder drive, the PX-608U and the internal PX-755A Premium drive. Reflecting the consumer trend for highly portable and stylish units, the PX-608U comes in an attractive silver design and is one of the slimmest and lightest drives on the market – now laptop users can choose Plextor. The Premium PX-755A comes with a comprehensive package of high-end features to give the professional user full recording control.

Plextor PX-608U

As well as extending Plextor’s optical product line of internal and external DVD writers, the PX-608U complements Plextor’s latest range of stylish, silver portable hard disk drives. The high performance PX-608U is not only compact, measuring just 22.2 mm thick, but it offers double layer DVD+/- writing, multi-format DVD-RAM capability and high-speed USB 2.0 data transfer. It is capable of the following DVD speeds: 4x DVD+/-R DL; 8x DVD+/-R; 8x DVD+RW; 6x DVD-RW and 5x DVD-RAM.

Plextor PX-755A

The PX-755A, which can burn a single layer disc in about 6 minutes (and DL in about 14 minutes), is capable of the following DVD speeds: 16x DVD+/-R write; 10x DVD+R DL; 6x DVD-R DL ; 8x DVD+RW; 6x DVD-RW; 16x DVD-ROM.

These drives are from the Plextor Europe web site, and the press release is from yesterday. I think that we will see these drives in the States after the holidays. At any rate, it gives us a glimpse into what we can expect from optical drives in the next year, before Blu-Ray and HD-DVD dominate the landscape. The 608U is a USB portable drive, suitable for notebook users looking to “upgrade” from a combo drive. It is notable for DVD-RAM support (which is unusual for a Plextor drive). The 755A is a filler drive, as the 18x 760A is having quality problems and is delayed. It does stand out for 10x DVD+R DL burning, which should speed up the burn times on these large capacity discs. Just when we all thought that optical drives had maxed out, it’s great to see some more innovation. I can’t wait to hear about what the manufacturers are going to do to top this!

Nokia has added Wi-Fi 802.11g support to its 9300 smart phone.

The new device will ship as the 9300i. Like its predecessor, it’s a tri-band (900/1800/1900MHz) GSM/GPRS handset with support for EDGE data-transfer acceleration technology. It also sports the 9300’s 640 x 200, 65,536-colour display, and incorporates 80MB of RAM, expandable to 2GB using the MMC slot. It runs Nokia’s Series 80 UI on top of Symbian 7.0S.

The 9300i has Bluetooth on board, along with infra-red and USB. There’s a built-in speakerphone capable of connecting up to five parties simultaneously.

Now that every phone comes with a camera, what else is there to add to a phone that already sports a USB, infrared, and triband connections, as well as a MMC slot? Well WiFi, of course. We’ll have to wait to see the details to see what the WiFi actually adds. Surfing the net on a teeny screen- probably. Making an internet phone call wirelessly- I doubt it. I can picture the web page of hacks already to enable such money saving functionality. WiFi is the wave of the future for telephony, but it will take a while for the greedy telecoms to get on board.
From Popular Technology.
See the original press release here.

All the latest buzz in storage has been in the Blu-Ray vs. HD-DVD standard. With storage capacities of 25 GB to 50 GB, this is clearly going to be needed for the latest high definition programming. What could be better? In a word, holograms!

With storage capacities starting at 300 GB, and scaling up to 1.6 TB (that’s 1600 gigabytes), this has the potential to swallow data like a hungry shark. Thoroughput starts at 20 mb/s, and is predicted to scale to 120 mb/s.

“Holographic recording technology utilizes intersecting signal and reference laser beams to store data in a number of 3D hologram images capable of saving hundreds of data pages in a single location. One 5¼ inch-diameter optical disc can store up to 150 million pages – more than 63 times the capacity of DVD. Also, with holographic recording, a multiple of form factors, such as discs, cards, etc., and laser wavelengths (red, green, and blue) can be used.”

Once again, I will be able to back up my hard drive on one disk. I can’t wait!

Read the entire press release here.

LEGO blocks are designed to work well, and with simplicity. With a simple “click,” they just fit right, and stay. Storage company, LaCie is playing on our nostalgia. They are releasing a line of external hard drives that can be stacked with LEGO simplicity. Look carefully at the image to the left. It’s not just ordinary LEGO blocks, but rather a housing for the hard drive. Look for both desktop and mobile versions. Now, adding storage can be just a click away!

Features:
* Stackable Hard Drives in White, Red and Blue
* Spacious storage capacities of 160-500GB (Desktop) or 40-120GB (Mobile)
* Building block hard drives for the kid in everyone
* Ultra quiet operation for use in the office or living room
* No setup needed, just plug-and-play
* Backup software included

See the original press release here.

As USB flash drives are designed to fit anywhere, the real concern about losing such a diminutive device is certainly a concern. Who wants to lose their drive with all that precious data? With the large capacities, it’s like carrying around a filing cabinet with you. LG has come up with a way that their drive can email you if an unauthorized user plugs it into a computer hooked into the ‘net. This is a great feature whose time has come.

“No longer you need to panic in an even of a stolen thumbdrive. If you’ve a LG trackable flash drive, sooner or later you’ll get an email informing your precious data whereabouts. And that’s all thanks to the embedded Inspice Trace – the privacy-safe tracking software.

During initial registration, you are supposed to file with Inspice Trace your drive serial number, model and your email address. Then if someone else tries to access the drive’s data, the embedded program will send out a homing beacon (IP address, host name, etc), helping you to trace the data. For all these to work, we bet the bad guys need to decrypt your data using a Internet-enabled Windows. We weren’t so sure if the program would work on a Mac.”

From Everything USB

Here, in a Live Digitally exclusive, we’re getting a first look at the latest Video iPod fighter. Ritek is planning on introducing their new OLE 8100 at the upcoming CES this January with availability for early 2006. The unit is to be flash based, with a capacity of 1 or 2 GB. The OLE 8100 will support audio, photo, and video files.

“The addition of the OLE 8100 MP4 player to our RIDATA family is
further evidence of our commitment to provide our customers with the
latest in portable digital-oriented products,” stated Harvey Liu,
Advanced Media Inc. president. “With audio, video, and photo-viewing
capabilities, it offers users phenomenal flexibility in when and where
they enjoy their media of choice.”

MP4 is the latest compression standard developed by the Moving Picture
Experts Group (MPEG). Formally known as MPEG-4, it was designed to
store and deliver both professional-grade audio and video streams.

The RIDATA OLE 8100 supports the following formats – music: MP3,
WMA, OGG, AC3; video: AVI, MPEG-1,2, and 4, VOB, DAT; and photo: JPG,
YUV (up to 4800 x 3600), support picture preview/slide function. Video
and photos are displayed on an energy-efficient 2″ LTPS LCD panel.

It features five-mode equalization (normal, rock, jazz, classical, and
pop), three playing modes (normal, repeat one, and repeat all), and
both digital voice and line-in recording capability.

With its embedded solid-state NAND flash memory, the OLE 8100 can
perform up to one-million erase/rewrite operations. 1GB and 2GB
capacities are available. The 2GB model provides up to 3.5 hours of
video play time and over 3 hours worth of audio.

The unit supports WIN98SE/ME, WIN2000, and WINXP operating systems.
Video output to NTSC or PAL standards is by the included A/V cable.
Video output ports are RCA and S-tunnel. A/V input/output ports include
MIC in, line-in in, earphone out, and A/V out. A USB 2.0 PC interface
is also included.

The RIDATA OLE 8100 MP4 player is packaged with an earphone, USB cable,
audio output cable,
S-terminal/RCA video cable, installation CD, audio line-in cable, AC/DC
universal charger, and a user’s manual.

The compact, pocket-size unit is 2.6″ x 2.6″ x 0.75″ and weighs less
than 3 ounces. It comes with Advanced Media’s quality promise and
one-year warranty

For users (such as me) that don’t have an iPod, and have some music as WMA files, this could be a great music player. I’m also particularly intrigued by the MP4 support for video files. Maybe we don’t have to jump on the Apple bandwagon after all. One suggestion to Ritek though: they need a more memorable and enticing name for this thing!

Man, sometimes it seems like Google is releasing a new beta service each week – late last night they unveiled Google Base, a service allowing users to upload/post material from job listings and volunteer opportunities to recipes, items for sale and school course descriptions (Yes, I know…Craigslist). The material is then searchable via Google Base and potentially Google.com, Froogle and Google Local. The site does require a Google login and then presents users with the option to either post an item in one of the preset categories (at right), add one in a category you create, or search for an item using a field at the top.

CNET reports that Google execs deny that the service is a direct assault on Craigslist, but the similarities are too many to let such claims be swept under the rug. My initial reaction is that the single search field at the top of Google Base does a poor job of allowing you to narrow your search right out of the chute. In contrast to Craigslist’s preliminary filtering, Google Base makes you type in your search string and then subsequently click links on following pages to narrow the search. There are advantages, however – job searches lead to listings displayed next to their location on a Google map, and like meta job search site Indeed.com, includes listings from other sites (right now I see postings from CareerBuilder and Idealist.org).

Obviously the Google Base team believes that their interface is a great way to navigate through the site. Access to Google’s ginormous search index is a great feature, but I’m frustrated by the fact that, in the case of jobs, a lot of spam listings are showing up. Those interested in earning $6k/month by shopping and eating in their home cities should head on over.