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Technology Stocks : Energy Conversion Devices -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Futurist who wrote (3803)	7/8/1999 7:10:00 PM
From: Don Devlin	Respond to of 8393

FORMAT WAR LOOMS FOR REWRITABLE DVD July 8, 1999 AUDIO WEEK via NewsEdge Corporation : Drives for maverick DVD+RW format will make debut in Sept. from Hewlett-Packard, Philips and Sony, with Verbatim providing rewritable blank software. Announcement came at PC Expo in N.Y.C., where other DVD+RW developers Ricoh and Yamaha expressed support but didn't reveal product plans. Although drives are designed for PC use and 3 GB disc capacity falls well short of 4.7 GB needed for typical DVD movie, Philips executive said company is "committed" to consumer video- recording version. Senior Philips executives told reporters at Amsterdam line showing last week that they haven't wavered in plans to bring rewritable DVD-Video recorder to market next year (see separate report, this issue). Philips' DVD+RW partner Sony in past has been cool to concept of home DVD+RW deck, saying capacity beyond 4.7 GB would be needed for high-definition video. Drives will hit streets in volume in Sept. at about $700, with Philips and Sony doing manufacturing. Latter previously said output would be 10,000-20,000 monthly. Limited supply is being shipped to "strategic industry partners, " developers said. Verbatim parent Mitsubishi Chemical said it already is producing 3 GB blanks in Singapore at rate of 200,000 monthly, and will boost output as demand grows. DVD+RW's 3 GB capacity is equal to 5 CD-ROMs, good for 80 min. of MPEG-2 video or 4 hours of uncompressed CD-quality audio. Read and write speeds are up to 11 times faster than CD-R or CD- RW. Format is backward-compatible with those and can read DVD Video, DVD-ROM, CD-ROM and audio CDs -- but not DVD-RAM, DVD-R or its DVD-RW extension. Thus format battle is brewing with mutually incompatible DVD- RAM system developed by Hitachi, Matsushita, Toshiba. Latter format has sanction of industry standards body DVD Forum, which includes IBM and is self-proclaimed "originator and the sole creator of the DVD format." DVD-RAM drives for PCs already are available, with single-sided 2.6 GB or 5.2 GB double-sided blanks. Recently, Matsushita board member projected DVD-RAM drive sales at 6 million in 2000. Single-sided 4.7 GB DVD-RAM is planned for 2000 by Hitachi and Matsushita, at least for PC applications. Consumer video recorder might have to wait, though, until digital copy-protection technologies are in place. At PC Expo, Panasonic displayed DVD- RAM deck as part of video editing suite bundled with encoders for MPEG-2 video compression -- looming threat to movie industry for its ability to make high-quality copies. Encoders included RealMagic hardware card from Sigma Designs and MPEG-2 compression software from Ligos and Vitec. DVD+RW isn't on agenda for Aug. 29-30 meeting of DVD Forum in Palm Springs, Cal., although DVD-RAM, DVD-R and -RW, and upcoming DVD Audio formats are (888-333-9220, 510-639-4620, www.dvdforum["at"symbol]wwem.com). Meeting dovetails with Intel Developers Forum there Aug. 31-Sept. 2 (www.developer.intel.com/design/idf/index2.htm). Meanwhile, DVD-RAM drive for retail aftermarket arrives this month from Creative Technology. Drive carries $499 sticker, with MPEG-2 board priced separately at $129. Creative executives declined comment on source of drive, although it's said to be from Matsushita. Creative has been selling drive via Web site since March. As it makes push with DVD-RAM, Creative also is joining DVD- ROM drive derby with 6x model bundled in $249 kit with MPEG-2 board. Among others expected to have 6x drive (24x CD-ROM) by Aug. is Philips. But LG Electronics is bypassing model it had in development and moving straight to 8x, which will be sold minus board at $169, Information Systems Products Mktg. Mgr. Bennett Norell said. NEC also will sell 8x drive by fall. With 10-12x speeds possible by year-end, DVD-ROM category has earmarks of race that pushed CD-ROM to 48x and 52x even after many industry observers believed market would stop at 36x. Faster drives would emerge despite fact that maximum speed can be exploited only by PC software because most DVD movies operate at 1x, industry sources said. CD-RW drives also are picking up speed, with most vendors readying drives with 4x write and 24x maximum read at $249 and lower. New entrant is Zip drive maker Iomega, which is seeking to diversify line as it moves to stem losses that forced job cuts at plant in Roy, Utah. ZipCD, sourced from Philips, has 125 millisec. random access time and 2 MB memory buffer.

To: Futurist who wrote (3803)	7/8/1999 10:34:00 PM
From: Krowbar	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 8393

I have returned from New Albany, Indiana after going to see the Lynx electric motor, and I was impressed enough to buy stock in their private placement. If anyone is interested enough to look further into this, PM me. I think that they will soon have the motor of choice for EVs and many other applications. I personally saw an 11 H.P. stepper motor smoothly and precisely maneuver a 6', 80lb. steel beam for about 15 minutes straight with 3/8 second reversals from about 500 rpm in one direction to the same in the other direction. It was an awesome sight. There was almost no heat developed after all of this. I placed my hand on the motor before and after the demonstration. I can easily believe their 97% efficiency claim as the heat from inefficiency cannot be hidden. My feeling is that this motor will be very important to the future of EVs. Speeds of 0 - 3000 rpm can be achieved with no gearing necessary and high torque. I am now a believer. More at katech.com Del