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Sony brings Blu-ray discs to China

Marc Chacksfield — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 15:40:00 +0000

China is to finally savour the audiovisual delights of Blu-ray after Sony Pictures Home Entertainment agreed to start selling the format in the country.

The number of movies that will be available to the Chinese is minimal to say the least. Just 30 titles will be imported, the titles include Kung Fu Hustle, Hitch and Close Encounters Of The Third Kind.

Blu market

If the introduction of Blu-ray is successful, then the company will look into installing local production facilities in the country. Sony is the first Hollywood company to release HD movies under the Blu-ray banner in China.

Price-wise, the discs should retail, according to HDTV UK, for around 205 yuan (approximately £18).

The news of legitimate Blu-ray discs trickling into China comes after it was revealed that the Chinese black market has started stocking faux BDs.

The knock-off discs aren't exactly Blu-rays, though; they are AVCHD-quality movies burned on to a regular DVD.

Exclusive: 3 spurns the new LG Prada II handset

Gareth Beavis — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 15:29:00 +0000

The launch of LG's new Prada Phone is coming to Europe in the near future, but it won't be heading to 3, our sources have confirmed.

However, Orange will be bringing the handset to the masses, so no need to worry on that front there. Also, Phones4U has managed to bag the device before the New Year, but The Carphone Warehouse will be picking it up soon after.

Free as a bird (on contract)

It is expected Orange will offer the handset free on a £35 a month tariff, meaning that lovers of the fashion brand will be able to get their hands on the QWERTY-toting pimped-out touchscreen for not a lot of moolah.

The handset itself is a fairly standard model with some OK specs, as well as the Prada tag (you get the Fall/Winter catalogue as a wallpaper set too... swish).

3.5G connectivity, 5MP camera and DivX playback are among the best parts of the handset, and it also comes with a 'wrist accessory', made of metal and tempered glass, which can be paired with the Bluetooth to alert for incoming calls.

Which is just the touch the fashion-conscious among us have been waiting for, right?

Spider email drawing offered as bill payment

Gareth Beavis — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 14:41:00 +0000

An email from an Australian man has quickly become an internet hit after he attempted to negate his $233.95 bill by sending a picture of a spider.

Whether tongue in cheek or the ramblings of an absolute madman, this has quickly spread over the internet as a viral hit.

Check out the email in its entirety, just make sure you don't laugh out loud if you work in a quiet office:

From: Jane Gilles
Date: Wednesday 8 Oct 2008 12.19pm
To: David Thorne
Subject: Overdue account

Dear David,
Our records indicate that your account is overdue by the amount of $233.95. If you have already made this payment please contact us within the next 7 days to confirm payment has been applied to your account and is no longer outstanding.

Yours sincerely, Jane Gilles

From: David Thorne
Date: Wednesday 8 Oct 2008 12.37pm
To: Jane Gilles
Subject: Re: Overdue account

Dear Jane,
I do not have any money so am sending you this drawing I did of a spider instead. I value the drawing at $233.95 so trust that this settles the matter.

Regards, David.

From: Jane Gilles
Date: Thursday 9 Oct 2008 10.07am
To: David Thorne
Subject: Overdue account

Dear David,
Thankyou for contacting us. Unfortunately we are unable to accept drawings as payment and your account remains in arrears of $233.95. Please contact us within the next 7 days to confirm payment has been applied to your account and is no longer outstanding.

Yours sincerely, Jane Gilles

From: David Thorne
Date: Thursday 9 Oct 2008 10.32am
To: Jane Gilles
Subject: Re: Overdue account

Dear Jane,
Can I have my drawing of a spider back then please.

Regards, David.

From: Jane Gilles
Date: Thursday 9 Oct 2008 11.42am
To: David Thorne
Subject: Re: Re: Overdue account

Dear David,
You emailed the drawing to me. Do you want me to email it back to you?

Yours sincerely, Jane Gilles

From: David Thorne
Date: Thursday 9 Oct 2008 11.56am
To: Jane Gilles
Subject: Re: Re: Re: Overdue account

Dear Jane,

Yes please.

Regards, David.

From: Jane Gilles
Date: Thursday 9 Oct 2008 12.14pm
To: David Thorne
Subject: Re: Re: Re: Re: Overdue account

Attached

From: David Thorne
Date: Friday 10 Oct 2008 09.22am
To: Jane Gilles
Subject: Whose spider is that?

Dear Jane, Are you sure this drawing of a spider is the one I sent you? This spider only has seven legs and I do not feel I would have made such an elementary mistake when I drew it.

Regards, David.

From: Jane Gilles
Date: Friday 10 Oct 2008 11.03am
To: David Thorne
Subject: Re: Whose spider is that?

Dear David, Yes it is the same drawing. I copied and pasted it from the email you sent me on the 8th. David your account is still overdue by the amount of $233.95. Please make this payment as soon as possible.

Yours sincerely, Jane Gilles

From: David Thorne
Date: Friday 10 Oct 2008 11.05am
To: Jane Gilles
Subject: Automated Out of Office Response

Thankyou for contacting me. I am currently away on leave, traveling through time and will be returning last week.

Regards, David.

From: David Thorne
Date: Friday 10 Oct 2008 11.08am
To: Jane Gilles
Subject: Re: Re: Whose spider is that?

Hello, I am back and have read through your emails and accept that despite missing a leg, that drawing of a spider may indeed be the one I sent you. I realise with hindsight that it is possible you rejected the drawing of a spider due to this obvious limb ommission but did not point it out in an effort to avoid hurting my feelings. As such, I am sending you a revised drawing with the correct number of legs as full payment for any amount outstanding. I trust this will bring the matter to a conclusion.

Regards, David.

From: Jane Gilles
Date: Monday 13 Oct 2008 2.51pm
To: David Thorne
Subject: Re: Re: Re: Whose spider is that?

Dear David, As I have stated, we do not accept drawings in lei of money for accounts outstanding. We accept cheque, bank cheque, money order or cash. Please make a payment this week to avoid incurring any additional fees.

Yours sincerely, Jane Gilles

From: David Thorne
Date: Monday 13 Oct 2008 3.17pm
To: Jane Gilles
Subject: Re: Re: Re: Re: Whose spider is that?

I understand and will definately make a payment this week if I remember. As you have not accepted my second drawing as payment, please return the drawing to me as soon as possible. It was silly of me to assume I could provide you with something of completely no value whatsoever, waste your time and then attach such a large amount to it.

Regards, David.

From: Jane Gilles
Date: Tuesday 14 Oct 2008 11.18am
To: David Thorne
Subject: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Whose spider is that?

Attached

Updated: Sony movies missing from Xbox service

Marc Chacksfield — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 14:15:00 +0000

At first it was thought that Sony had gone to some drastic measures to show its distaste of Xbox's new dashboard update by taking its movies off of Netflix's streaming service – Netflix Watch Instantly. But, it seems that the reason is a licensing issue (see update below).

One of the biggest updates to the US version of the dashboard was the arrival of Netflix's movie-streaming service, but it seems that the numbers of movies available have dramatically dropped.

This is due to Columbia, a subsidiary of Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, titles not available to stream via the Xbox 360.

Gold standard

Games website Joystiq were first to point out that Columbia movies, such as Bad Boys and We Own The Night, were missing from the service.

Frustratingly, according to the website, you will only find out if a movie is available to watch via your Xbox when you line it up in your movie queue.

Netflix Watch Instantly is only available in the US to those with an Xbox Live Gold account. At the moment, the service is still a soft launch, with around 300 titles available.

UPDATE

Apparently, it's not Sony's fault for the lack of films from Columbia, but a Netflix licensing issue. Joystiq has updated its story with the following:

"As watching instantly becomes a more prominent part of the Netflix service, our goal is to have all of our streaming content licensed for all of our partner devices. We're doing well in this area, but it will take some time before we fully achieve that goal.

"Today, titles regularly come in and out of license and there is a natural ebb and flow to what we have on license at any given point in time. In the case of Xbox 360, a few hundred titles are temporarily unavailable to be streamed via the Xbox game console.

"Those titles are still available to be watched on subscribers' computers and on TVs via other partner devices, and we hope they'll be licensed for Xbox 360 shortly."

So, no toy throwing after all, then.

BlackBerry Javelin coming to UK next month

Gareth Beavis — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 14:14:00 +0000

RIM's latest phone to roll off the new handset bandwagon, the BlackBerry Javelin, has finally been spotted in the wild and we've got our hands on a pic of the handset that's set to debut at the end of this year under the guise of the Curve 8900.

We can see that the new handset comes with your standard trackball, a full QWERTY keyboard and Wi-Fi connectivity, with GPS, a 3.2MP camera.

Where's the 3G gone?

However, there's no 3G connectivity, which is surprising given that a majority of recent releases (e.g. the Bold and Storm) have had the super-fast connection.

It also sports the natty 3D icons that we've seen from the likes of the Bold, and the screen will be "the sharpest screen, for brighter, crisper icons", according to our colleagues over on T3's inside source at BlackBerry.

The rest of the specs we have to source from the usually-pretty-accurate internet rumour mill, including a 2.4in HGVA+ display and a microSD slot. The handset has actually already launched in Germany, but only now do we UK-dwellers get a proper taste of the Javelin action.

The handset is apparently due to come to the UK in late December, although official prices and launch dates have yet to be confirmed. Apparently there will be an announcement from The Carphone Warehouse this afternoon, so watch this space to find out all about it.

BBC to stream main channels on internet

Patrick Goss — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 13:50:00 +0000

The BBC will live stream BBC One and Two online from 27 November using its iPlayer service.

Several channels are already being streamed, including BBC News 24, BBC Three, BBC Four and the childrens' channels, and their success has prompted the addition of the gems in the BBC crown.

Jana Bennett, director of BBC Vision, said: "The launch of BBC One and BBC Two online completes our commitment to make our portfolio of channels available to watch on the internet.

"From 27 November licence fee payers will be able to watch BBC programmes, live, wherever they are in the UK on their computers, mobile phones and other portable devices."

Wi-fi licence?

As with any 'live' broadcast, people who want to take advantage of the new streaming medium will need to have a licence fee to watch them.

As the Register points out – regulating this would presumably be a bit of a nightmare for the licensing authorities.

As long as you have a valid TV licence you will be able to watch the streams from where ever you like - as long as it's in the UK.

Virgin Media launches 16Mb ADSL service

Patrick Goss — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 13:40:00 +0000

Virgin Media has launched a new 16Mb ADSL broadband package for those on its 'National' broadband service.

Previously, Virgin Media's non-fibre optic customers have been limited to 8Mb connections but they will now have the option to double that.

Virgin is launching the deal with a three-month trial for all ADSL customers to take advantage of for no charge.

After that period, it will cost an extra five pounds to keep the extra 8Mb of service.

In addition, the extra package can be added or removed at any time without the need for a contract.

Hi-Grade Ultinote G9700

Tech Staff — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 13:36:00 +0000

Hi-Grade's Ultinote G9700 (£2585 inc. VAT) is a big laptop, and best suited to gaming.

It's unique among many rival laptops for a couple of reasons. It's uses ATi graphics, and it's also the ﬁrst laptop we've seen to feature two high-end ATi cards.

Sensational performance

ATi's CrossFireX technology uses two Mobility Radeon HD 3870 GPUs to offer astonishing performance that wouldn't look out of place on a desktop PC. Even running Crysis – one of the most graphics-intensive games available, the Hi-Grade remained composed and provided rapid and smooth gameplay.

Like the Toshiba, the G9700 features a 17-inch Super-TFT screen. However, at 1920 x 1200 pixels, the Hi-Grade's panel features a higher resolution, making it a great choice for those wanting to watch high-definition movies.

You'll also find buttons built-in for controlling your media content, and speakers on the front of the case add to the multimedia experience.

Good keys

The keyboard on this machine is excellent, with keys that move quietly and responsively. It's also comfortable to work on, thanks to a springy typing action. A numeric keypad sits to the right, aiding data entry.

The touchpad is wide and responsive, although looks a little lost in the expansive palm rests.
The chassis weighs 4.6kg, and is the least portable machine here. The dual graphics cards mean the fans come on quite rapidly for ventilation, but this machine remained cool to the touch.

Build quality is fine, but the plastics could have been sturdier. The screen could also be held more firmly in place.

Comprehensive storage

The high price is somewhat justified by the Intel Core 2 Quad processor – a desktop chip with four cores.

Running at 2.53GHz, it offers astonishing performance. Unfortunately, our MobileMark 2007 benchmark isn't conﬁgured to take advantage of desktop chips and doesn't reveal just how good the Ultinote is at carrying out multiple tasks.

Storage space, at 600GB, is also impressive, and great for storing large media collections. Other features include a fingerprint scanner, 2-megapixel camera and a full range of ports for connecting peripherals. OpenOfﬁce is also pre-installed. Although it's a free program, it does offer you full ofﬁce functionality straight out of the box.

You'll ﬁnd the Hi-Grade Ultinote G9700 delivers the best in gaming power, comprehensive features and a comfortable interface, but casual gamers will struggle to justify the price.

Certified Internet Solutions PC5E

Alex Cox — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 13:18:00 +0000

Most people think the home PC processor game is a two-horse race.

It's AMD's clunky yet somehow competitive filly against Intel's heavily armoured rocket stallion, right?

Well, not quite. Look closely a couple of lengths behind and you'll see a plucky Shetland pony, its little legs doing ten to the dozen, somehow keeping pace with the big boys.

That's VIA, a company that has always specialised in covering those niches that the bigger boys traditionally skipped over, like x86-based platforms for embedded and low-power systems. And as we'll find out, it's been dodging the trip to the glue factory for some time.

Attractive price

There's a good reason VIA's C7 chip has been chosen for the PC5E – it's all a part of the message.

Those five 'E's – economy, ecology, evolution, ergonomics and education, fact fans – are representative of a philosophy that's meant to be part of each and every one of these machines.

Economy we can see; that £145 price tag is certainly attractive, and there's a keyboard, mouse and speakers (all hideously cheap but functional nonetheless) included for the cash.

We can see the education market being interested, since purchasing a room full of these will hit the budget only half as hard as the equivalent number of Windows machines.

Awkward ergonomics

The PC5E certainly fits some of the looser definitions of the word, but those peripherals are hardly the most wrist-friendly. The C7 processor isn't particularly quick on its heels, so the 'ease of human interaction' aspect of ergonomics doesn't count either.

It's sturdy – we played back video without any problems – yet a step behind the other more
generous platforms on offer. But it's the fifth E, ecology, where the PC5E really hits the mark.

Screwed into a no-doubt economic case – a rattly full desktop affair which leaves the elegant mini-ITX motherboard looking rather stranded – VIA's low-power C7 chip delivers some quite stunning energy efficiency figures.

You'll rarely see it drawing above 30 watts, and we clocked it at 16W idle, meaning you could effectively run a room full of these for the same power draw as one high-end gaming PC. The standby figures are literally amazing, as in under a single watt, which is another plus for the energy-conscious.

Limited performance

It's hard not to like the philosophy behind the PC5E package, but removing the rose-tinted spectacles reveals that this isn't much of a machine.

The performance really is last-generation, meant for machines of a tiny form factor to be attached to the back of a monitor, not for chunky desktop boxes with plenty of room to breathe.

Intel's Atom processor has emerged as a very serious bully to VIA's position in the low-end market because it's just as power-efficient as the C7 and offers a lot more processing power.

VIA's C7 successor, the Nano, has been spotted here and there, but doesn't seem to have been widely released – a shame, because it's stronger than Intel's platform in performance tests.

Tough upgrade options

Upgrades are a problem here, just as they are with any machine built from an embedded platform.

Unlike most desktop processors, the C7 and its ilk are surface-mounted, soldered directly to the motherboard. If you want to upgrade the PC5E you're looking at a whole new motherboard, processor, and probably new RAM too.

That's not particularly environmentally friendly, and you'll feel slightly sad that all you're keeping is a hard drive and a case that, in all likelihood, you're not particularly fond of.

Low cost system

This just isn't an upgrading machine, or a power machine, or anything worth writing home about.

The CIS PC5E is suitable for one thing: mass deployment. It's a room filler.

The C7 almost runs cool enough to be passively cooled, so the bill for air conditioning your server room isn't going to skyrocket, and as we've already seen, its low power requirements are nothing short of remarkable.

The CIS PC5E is a sensible machine well suited to current economic attitudes. Whether you choose it as your low-cost personal box really depends on whether your love for mother earth is deeper than your love for owning a computer with a powerful processor.

Exclusive: Ofcom hits back at ITV chief's criticism

Patrick Goss — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 12:56:00 +0000

Ofcom has responded to criticism by ITV Chief Operating Officer John Cresswell by insisting to TechRadar that it is forward thinking enough to cope with the modern digital era.

Cresswell, speaking at the PWC European Media Leaders conference in London, Cresswell expressed concerns over Ofcom's continued role in the broadcast industry insisting that there are times when the watchdog is regulating 'almost in retrospect'

"I think overall that is going to be unhealthy for the industry as a whole," added Creswell.

Innovation

But Ofcom has told TechRadar that it is promoting innovation and that the ongoing review into public service broadcasting is very much about looking ahead.

"Ofcom is creating a regulatory environment, with forward looking policies, to allow technology and media companies to innovate in the future," an Ofcom spokesperson told TechRadar.

"Take three of our most significant projects. We are creating a framework to promote investment in the next generation of broadband that in the future will deliver speeds of up to 100mbs.

Spectrum

"We are releasing and liberalising the use of the UK's spectrum, the very raw material that creates opportunities for new and innovative wireless technologies that are fuelling convergence.

"And we are conducting a major review of how public service broadcasting will be provided in the future, which is in tune with the pace of change of new ways that audiences are accessing content."