Sony Unveils First BD ROM Drive

Sony Electronics has unveiled its first internal Blu-ray Disc (BD) ROM Drive, the BDU-X10S for the computer after-market. According to Sony, the BDU-X10S offers consumers an affordable option to upgrade their desktop to a Blu-ray player that can also play DVDs and CDs.

BDU-X10S comes bundled with CyberLink's PowerDVD BD Edition software for playback of commercial movie titles, recorded Blu-ray Disc home videos, DVD-ROMs, and CD-ROMs. The BD ROM Drive also supports playback of recorded Blu-ray Discs in MPEG-2 or H.264 format, standard DVD-Video discs or recorded DVDs encoded with MPEG-2 or AVCHD formats.
The internal drive allows easy transfer of data or videos through its high-speed Serial ATA (SATA) interface. Its standard 5.25-inches form factor enables easy installation in desktop PCs running Microsoft Windows Vista or Windows XP operating systems, and is an ideal replacement for an existing DVD-ROM drive. The BDU-X10S is capable of playing back commercial Blu-ray movies as well as personally-created Blu-ray content. Commercial Blu-ray movies can be viewed on computers that incorporate an HDCP-compliant graphics card offering DVI or HDMI connections, HDCP-compliant computer display, and software that supports BD-ROM playback.
Other technical specifications of the BDU-X10S include: 8x DVD ROM (Read Only), 24X CD-ROM (Read Only), Data Buffer size of 4MB, physical dimensions of 5.25 x 1.63 x 7.0-inches and installation angle supporting both vertical and horizontal. The BDU-X10S is available through Rashi Peripherals and its branches throughout India for a MRP of Rs 16,950. It comes with a one-year warranty.Source

Turok (PC) Dated

After stabbing the crap out of dinosaurs on the Xbox360 and the PS3, Turok, the dinosaur hunter is all set to invade PCs this April. The PC port (that by the way will be available from the 22nd of April) will be developed by Aspyr Studios (Stubbs the Zombie) and will not feature any sort of unique content except for mouse and keyboard support.

If you’ve missed this game on consoles you may want to try it out for the PC since it’s a pretty enjoyable albeit brainless shooter. Source

Free Web Version of Photoshop Launched

he maker of the popular photo-editing software Photoshop today launched a basic version available for free online.

San Jose, Calif.-based Adobe Systems Inc. says it hopes to boost its name recognition among a new generation of consumers who edit, store and share photos online.While Photoshop is designed for trained professionals, Adobe says Photoshop Express, which it launched in a ''beta'' test version, is easier to learn. User comments will be taken into account for future upgrades.Photoshop Express will be completely Web-based so consumers can use it with any type of computer, operating system and browser. And, once they register, users can get to their accounts from different computers.Web-based software is increasingly popular, and Adobe knows it's got to get on that train, said Kathleen Maher, an analyst at Jon Peddie Research.Many kinds of software are available for use online in a trend known as ''software as a service,'' or ''cloud computing.'' The earliest were e-mail programs, but they now include services to create and manage content and even whole operating systems. And they don't require time-consuming upgrades because they're maintained by the service provider.
Google Inc. provides a host of such services, as do Microsoft Corp. and others.
''This is the battlefield where Adobe and Microsoft and Google are going to fight some pretty big battles,'' Maher said.
Photoshop enters the online photo-management arena many years after such services first appeared. Some companies have already made a big name for themselves, like 9-year-old storage solution Shutterfly Inc., photo-editing service Picnik or image-sharing site Photobucket Inc.Adobe says providing Photoshop Express for free is part marketing and part a strategy to create up-sell opportunities. It hopes some customers will move from it to boxed software like its $99 Photoshop Elements or to a subscription-based version of Express that's in the works.Ron Glaz, a research analyst at IDC, says the move was necessary for Adobe to keep pace. Users are less likely to switch to a software they aren't familiar with, he said.''They have a whole market that they are missing out on, and they need to make sure that the market is aware there is a Photoshop solution for them. As that market grows and becomes more sophisticated, hopefully it will generate money,'' Glaz said.
''It's one of those things, if you can't beat them, join them,'' Glaz said. ''If they don't join them, the long run could be really painful.''Source

50 Cent: Blood on the Sand Announced

Remember 50 Cent: Bulletproof? Remember how much that game sucked? Yeah well apparently it sold really well so Vivendi Universal are back with a sequel called 50 Cent: Blood on the Sand.

By Blood on the Sand they don’t mean the sand of a beach resort cos that would be way too mellow for Fiddy and his band of badass thugs AKA Gggggg G unit. This time around these player haters actually find themselves stuck in a war torn unnamed Middle Eastern country after one of their concerts gets fudged. As expected tons of F Bombs, rapping, bling and terrorist killing ensue.

The game is being developed by Swordfish Studios (Cold Winter) using the Unreal 3 engine and will include a bullet time mechanic called Gangster Fire that as the name suggests will allow Fiddy to blast fools in glorious slow motion. Also expect a cover system a la Gears of War and context sensitive games a la God of War. More details to be revealed soon.Source

Nokia Renovates the 6300, Adds Wi-Fi

Nokia’s slim and classy looking 6300 has just got an upgrade. 6300i is what it’s being called and it’s going to be loaded with features that include Wi-Fi and VoIP support. Of course you may also remember the Nokia 6301 that was launched recently that also came with Wi-Fi with the addition of UMA technology. Somehow though it didn't seem like the handset caught on too strong. Oh well, three's a charm. Apart from all that the 6300i still retains the S40 OS.

The 6300i may retain the same design as its predecessor but thankfully it’s distinguishable by its Graphite Grey color that’s quite catchy. It still has a 2-inch QVGA display with a 240 x 320 pixel resolution and 16 million colors. Like the 6300 the 6300i comes with a 2 megapixel camera, Bluetooth with A2DP support, miniUSB connectivity, stereo FM radio and a 2.5mm earphone socket for the headset. It also supports external memory with microSD cards. There’s another handy feature that the handset comes preinstalled with - Nokia Maps. Though don’t get your hopes up guys it doesn’t have in-built GPS, you will have to use an external adapter. Of course the 6300i also supports GPRS and EDGE.
The Nokia 6300i will be available for about Rs. 10,914 (175 Euro) and that’s before taxes. It should be released in the second quarter of 2008. Stay Tuned.Source