Get a Slingbox Pro for just $160 – shipped

Buy.com is having a sale on the Slingbox Pro, dropping it to $159.99 with free shipping. This is a savings of $90 off of the $249.99 MSRP.

A tip of the hat to Erica Ogg at CNET News.com.

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Audio Watermarking with AACS for HD DVD and BD

The studios aren’t going to give up without a fight. AACS (Advanced Access Contend System), used on both HD DVD and BD, has been repeatedly cracked in recent months. Blu-ray also has BD+ and ROM Mark protection, but the studios keep looking for more ways to protect their content.

Now audio watermarking technology from Verance Corp. is available for studios to use in conjunction with AACS. Audio watermarking embeds an inaudible signal in the sountrack which the player can then check. If the stream is missing or incorrect, the player would refuse to play the content. This addition to AACS was approved back in 2006, but it is just being made available now. Universal Studios, Sony Pictures, and Microsoft have signed up to use it.

This doesn’t really do anything to prevent DRM cracks and copies of discs, as a copy of a disc would also include a perfect copy of the embedded audio signal. This technology is really aimed at bootleg releases produced by unauthorized copies of theatrical prints – high level, organized piracy. Such bootlegs are often made from camcorder recordings of theatrical performances, but they can also be made from authorized film to video transfers at the high end.

Picked up from Blu-ray.com.

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SlingPlayer Mobile for Palm OS Review – and a giveaway!

The content I promised in my earlier post is up – A Review of SlingPlayer Mobile for Palm OS. And it is packed full of screen shots of just about every screen in the software.

But that’s not all – TiVo Lovers is giving away one free license for SlingPlayer Mobile for Palm OS – a USD$29.99 value. (OK, so the key works in Windows Mobile too, if you must. ;-) ) All you need to do is make a comment on this entry over the next week, through next Monday, July 9th. Sometime next Tuesday, the 10th, I’ll randomly select a winner to receive a registration code. You need to make sure you use a valid email address when commenting so that I can contact you if you win.

Good luck! And I hope you enjoy the review.

EDIT: The winner has been selected.

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SlingPlayer Mobile for Palm OS goes gold! Release 1.0 is out!

Sling Media has just announced the release of SlingPlayer Mobile 1.0 for Palm OS (1.0.0.16, actually). The final release is officially supported on the Palm Treo 700p and 755p using 3G networks. However, it also runs on the Palm Treo 650 and 680 using EDGE networks, providing the connection is solid, and on the Palm T|X and LifeDrive using WiFi. In general, it should work on any Palm running the Garnet OS (5.4) with a sufficient network connection. The software includes a free 30-day trial, so you can try before you buy, to make sure it will satisfy you.

There were also some last minute changes since the second public beta, based on feedback from the testers:

  • A battery indicator was added – this had strong demand.
  • The Favorites bar now makes *all* remote control functions available for use as a favorite.
  • The keyboard shortcuts were revised and expanded.
  • Remote control layout was revised for better DVR use.

The software is available for USD$29.99 or CAD$34.99 And, as I said, the downloads come with a 30-day trial, so you can try it before buying the license. If you have a Slingbox and a (somewhat recent) Palm OS device, you should definitely check this out.

I will have some more content relating to this up shortly. Stay tuned.

EDIT: And the content is up – a review of the SlingPlayer Mobile for PalmOS software.

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Amazon and Microsoft bring HD DVD to CustomFlix DVD on Demand

Microsoft has partnered with Amazon to bring HD DVD support to the latter’s CustomFlix DVD on Demand program. This is designed to lower the barriers for independent film makers looking to release their creations on HD media. I’m a Blu-ray pusher myself, but credit where credit is due, this seems like a nice program. (If the Blu-ray camp is smart they’ll scramble to help Amazon add BD as an option too, IMHO.)

The press release:
Continue reading

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