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Technology Stocks : C-Cube -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: John Rieman who wrote (27954)	1/11/1998 5:18:00 PM
From: CPAMarty	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 50808

TOSHIBA DVD TO HIT LIBRARIES virtualces.com Plus HDTV and other video news by Mark Fleischmann LAS VEGAS, January 10, 1998 -- Consumers who want to check out DVD will have a golden opportunity to do just that, literally, thanks to a "DVD Community" program that will bring players, discs, and 30-inch TVs to public libraries across the hnation. The first lucky recipient is the Richmond, Virginia Public Library. "It's critically important to expose as many people as possible to the benefits of DVD video and public libraries are a great place to generate grassroots excitement," said Steve Nickerson, VP of marketing, at a press conference last night. "By making DVD available to libraries, we're giving people the opportunity to enjoy a permanent community movie collection." Not to mention the language-learning benefit of hearing movies in various tongues. In other DVD news, Nickerson repeated the oft-quoted fact that DVD has outperformed the CD by a factor of 10 in its first 12 months of sales, selling 350,000 vs. 35,000 units. In fact, according to the Consumer Electronics Manufacturers Association, 750,000 more players are expected to slide off store shelves this year, bringing the cumulative DVD player populace to more than a million. DTV prototype shown Digital TV? Toshiba's got it, at least in Japanese prototype form. The unit on display looked OK, and -- given Toshiba's display-making prowess -- probably will look more than OK by the time it comes to market. Don't expect that to happen for awhile. While other manufacturers are rushing to bring product to store shelves -- or so it appears -- "we want to be realistic," says Toshiba's Craig Eggers. "We want to introduce product that will be fully relevant." Besides the CE/computer industry conflicts surrounding multiple display formats, there's also the question of delivery formats for data, said Eggers. (CBS, among others, has said it would like to piggyback data services onto the HDTV signal without interfering with HDTV service.) Video news "Urban home theater" is the name Toshiba's given its ultra-slim 43-inch rear projector, eight inches thinner and 30 pounds lighter than its 36-inch SuperTUBE sets. Eight hundred lines of res and component outs are among the features of this $1799 unit. Speaking of 36-inchers, the new CN36G97 is the industry's first direct-view set to include component inputs. Of course, for big screen viewing, also check out the Golden Plug-winning 71-inch TP71G90 rear projector. And look for sets enabled with "Wink" interactivity in '98. Finally, all Toshiba TVs 27 inches and up will henceforth carry the Energy Star label, which Nickerson said will save the nation more than $500 million a year in energy consumption, cutting pollution by a factor equal to a million cars. (I'm assuming the figures refer to Energy Star's overall impact, not just the effect of Toshiba TVs.) Way to go! While VCR sales decline for other manufacturers -- it's a mature category -- Toshiba's are increasing, according to Nickerson, adding that he attributes the company's success in video recorders to its longtime emphasis on home-theater-worthy stereo hi-fi models. The new line of 10 models includes four six-head hi-fis ranging from $299.95-499.95. That's list, of course, so street prices will be low enough to boggle the mind. 'Dievx' death watch While I had to leave the late-starting event to keep another appointment, my colleague Richard Sherwin of TWICE filled me in on what happened when Warren Lieberfarb of Warner Home Video -- a godlike figure in the DVD-enthusiast community -- stepped up to the mic. His words of wisdom on Divx: pay-per-view cable will kill it. Hachette's Corey Greenberg also weighed in with an opinion: "The Olson twins will not live to see 1999." This story is an E/Town original.

To: John Rieman who wrote (27954)	1/11/1998 7:58:00 PM
From: DiViT	Respond to of 50808

Cube customer.... AIWA BACK IN COMPONENT BIZ DVD, CD changers and DD a/v receivers by Stewart Wolpin LAS VEGAS, January 9, 1998 - Venerable portable audio maker Aiwa is getting back into the mainstream component business with its first-ever five-CD changer, part of a re-emphasis on home audio and home theater products. Aiwa's new commitment to home products also includes a low-cost Dolby Digital a/v receiver, a DVD player and matching a/v receiver, and a home theater in a box system when the new products become available in May. Of course, there are also newly designed portable products, with edgier cosmetics for the E/Town Golden Plug Award-winning Cross Trainer line, a Bang & Olufsen-like MD-CD boombox, and a Baygen-like crank-up radio/flashlight. The AV-D70 Dolby Digital ($600) five-channel receiver puts out 120 watts for the three front channels and 60 for the surround channels. The AV-D50 ($400) is a Dolby Digital-ready model with the same power, and the AV-D30 ($250) DD-ready is rated at 70 and 35 watts per channel. There are three "home theater in a box" packages. The HT-D550 includes the AV-D50 receiver, Aiwa's new HV-FX7000 hi-fi VCR, a powered sub and five speakers for $850; the HT-D500 ($600) deletes the VCR from the mix; and the HT-D300 ($500) substitutes the subwoofer with a pair of bass reflex front speakers, and uses the AV-D30 receiver. On the portable side, there is new everything -- boomboxes, personal CD and cassette/radios, headphone radios, and the aforementioned newly designed Cross Trainer series. The pleasant white-and-blue scheme on the Cross Trainer models has been replaced by a more Terminator-like silver-metallic blue scheme. The most distinctive feature addition to the new personal models is a circular function switch that looks like a mini-airlock door from Star Trek. The looks for the entire line of standard portables and boomboxes are similarly sci-fi influenced. The most unusual new Aiwa portable is the Dynamo crank-up radio/flashlight, similar in concept to but much smaller than the Baygen wind-up radio/flashlight model. The FR-C150 ($59.95), designed to look like a circa 1950s portable transistor radio, operates on standard batteries or an AC adapter in addition to the crank; 60 seconds of winding equals about a half hour of power to the radio, 15 minutes to the flashlight. # # #