Consumer Electronics

Chinese electronics manufacturers TCL and Shinco have launched the first generation of players for China’s own newly developed high-definition video format, China Blue High Definition (CBHD), which is set to rival the existing Blu-ray disc (BD) technology and galvanize the local market. While CBHD and BD have features in common – both use a blue-violet laser to read 12cm high-capacity optical discs – the main difference is centered on price. In China, CBHD players are expected to retail for up to 40 percent less than the cost of BD players. Read More

The flood of mini notebooks and netbooks that threatens to bury us shows no sign of abating, with Samsung announcing another addition to its mini notebook lineup. Joining the recently featured N110 is the N120, which includes most of the features found on the N110 in a slightly larger form factor. Read More

When it comes to buying consumer electronics, we are factoring energy efficiency into our choices in a bid to cut our household energy consumption, a new study from the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) has found. Read More

The cooperative relationship between SanDisk and Toshiba in the development and manufacturing of advanced Flash memory is producing results with the companies announcing key technology advances at the International Solid State Circuits Conference (ISSCC) in San Francisco, California. The advances include the production of a 32-gigabit (Gb) 3-bits-per-cell (X3) memory chip that is expected to quickly enable greater capacities and reduce manufacturing costs for products ranging from memory cards to Solid State Drives (SSD). The companies also announced the fabrication of the world’s first 64Gb chip that applies 4-bit-per-cell (X4) technology without an increase in chip size, while achieving a write speed performance of 7.8MB/s. Read More

Designed to keep up when your weekend exploits get a little rough, Panasonic's new SDR-SW21 compact camcorder is dustproof, waterproof up to 6.5 feet (in both fresh and salt water) and shockproof enough to sustain a 4-foot drop. Due for release in April at a price of around the USD$400 mark, the SDR-SW21 records to SD/SDHC Memory Cards and includes a 0.6 second quick-start recording feature. Read More

Panasonic plans to unveil a networking system that can exchange data between an electric car and home devices via electrical wiring at January's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. The electric car networking prototype allows people and devices inside the home to check on an electric vehicle while it is being recharged. It will be one of several research developments on show at the HD-PLC Alliance stand in the Las Vegas Convention Center's South Hall, Panasonic says. Other prototypes will include an HD-PLC adapter for a security camera and an electrical monitoring system. Read More

ENPUTECH has announced plans to unveil its new UV sterilizer at CES (Consumer Electronics Show) in Las Vegas in January. Purelight is an environmentally-friendly device designed to sterilize germs and other bacteria in mattresses, blankets, carpets, toothbrushes, toilets and kitchen utensils. Read More

Toshiba has announced a new series of energy efficient 2.5-inch hard disk drives targeted for integration into notebook PCs, sub-notebooks, small form factor and energy star PCs, game consoles, external storage devices and consumer electronics products. Read More

It seems that high-definition, 1080p viewing has well and truly entered the mainstream - at least when it comes to the players themselves. Our question is this: if you can pick-up a Sony BDP-S300 for under USD$250, why does it still cost $40 for a movie to feed it with? Read More