Dazzle Multimedia (CUBE customer) introduces an inexpensive system that lets you produce video CDs and CD-ROMs. It takes incoming video (from a camera, videotape, etc.), encodes it into MPEG-1, and burns it onto a CD. And you can do editing. It has a re-writeable CD drive. It is based on Snazzi :-(........
This is a very cool product.
Dazzle Multimedia Announces the Only Complete Desktop Solution That Lets You Capture and Edit Digital Video and Audio and Produce Multimedia CDs
FREMONT, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 4, 1998--
Dazzle Multimedia Bundles Philips (NYSE:PHG) and TDK Products
With Snazzi to Give Customers the Power to Become Video and Audio
CD Producers for Under $600
Dazzle Multimedia (formerly LA Vision), the leading provider of affordable personal video computing products, today announced the Video CD-ReWriter, the only all-in-one multimedia solution that allows you to record and edit data and multimedia files on an erasable (rewritable) CD.
Video can be digitally captured and edited from any video source, including a camcorder, VCR, TV, or DVD player. Audio can be digitally recorded and edited from a music CD, LP or cassette.
The Video CD-ReWriter kit includes Dazzle Multimedia's Snazzi MPEG video capture card, the Philips 2xWrite, 6xRead ReWritable CD Drive, TDK Certified Plus CD-R and CD-RW disks, and all the software needed to produce multimedia CDs. When installed on a Windows 95-based PC, the user can record and edit up to 8-1/2 hours of CD-quality audio, 72 minutes of full motion video, or up to 20,000 color snapshots.
The Video CD-ReWriter allows CDs to be used like a hard drive or floppy disk to store up to 650MB of information. Hours of family video can be easily organized, edited, and written to CDs for permanent storage and easy access, and then played back on a PC or DVD player.
Custom audio CDs can be created by converting old record albums to CDs or by recording an assortment of favorite tracks from a CD collection onto one CD. These custom CDs can then be played back on any standard audio Compact Disc player. CDs can be rewritten to up to 1,000 times. The cost of an erasable CD-RW disk is about $15 and recordable CD-R disks are available for less than $1 each.
"Although recordable CD technology has been available for some time, the creation of such multimedia content is made possible through the use of Dazzle Multimedia's MPEG technology in its Snazzi card," said David Taylor, president of Dazzle Multimedia.
"And CD-ReWritable technology has become so inexpensive over the past year that bundling the Philips recordable drive with our video and audio capture products now gives the average consumer the ability to explore the world of video and audio capture, editing, and playback for under $600. A year ago, a customer would have paid over $2,000 to purchase products that provide similar capabilities."
MPEG-1 technology's advanced compression provides greatly reduced file sizes. Reduced file sizes mean video clips take up less valuable storage space and video transmitted via the Internet is of higher quality. The technology also allows captured and edited video to be played on any standard Windows 95 computer.
The Video CD-ReWriter also comes with nine software packages, including Cinax iFilm Edit for easy editing of video; Ulead Media Studio 5.0, sophisticated professional video editing software; VDOnet VDOPhone for video conferencing over the Internet; the award-winning graphics editor Adobe PhotoDeluxe 2.0 for the creation of professional-looking cards, badges, collages, calendars, posters and more; WinOnCD 3.0 for the creation of audio or video CDs compatible with CD-ROMs, Video CDs and DVD players; Just!Audio, which allows users to select their favorite music from LPs, CDs, cassettes or a microphone, digitally filter scratches and pops, then record to CD; Packet CD 2.0, which gives a CD-RW disc the qualities of a 680MB floppy disk; and finally the Snazzi Amigo control panel for recording, editing, and playing back multimedia files and snapshots as well as attaching video and photo images onto documents, presentations and e-mail messages.
"As people begin to realize the benefits of editing and storing video on their computers, our Certified Plus CD-R and CD-RW disks will provide tremendous value," said Tim Sullivan, vice president of consumer sales at TDK. "Our media gives PC video customers the quality and storage capability they need to effectively store and access their important video files."
The Dazzle Video CD-ReWriter is available now at a suggested retail price of $599.
About Snazzi
With Snazzi, a PCI add-in card, users can capture and edit TV-quality video, CD-quality audio, and high resolution snapshots and then place these pictures and movies in their favorite entertainment and business applications. Snazzi is based on the MPEG-1 industry standard which allows the highest-quality full-motion video to be captured and then played back in full screen on your PC, VideoCD, and DVD players.
Snazzi uses a friendly, five-button, on-screen software control panel called Amigo that's easier to use than the typical TV remote control. Users can preview and see recorded images instantly. Pricing for the standalone version of Snazzi is $399.
About Dazzle Multimedia
Dazzle Multimedia (formerly LA Vision) a privately-held company with headquarters in Fremont, Calif., develops and markets personal video computing products that let the mainstream user quickly and easily capture, edit, manage and communicate full motion video and still images.
The company's products, Dazzle, Snazzi, and the Video CD-ReWriter are based on the MPEG-1 standard which provides the highest-quality video and allows for seamless integration of stills and videos into popular Windows applications.
Dazzle Multimedia leverages technology from Digital Equipment Corporation (NYSE:DEC) and C-Cube (NASDAQ:CUBE).
Dazzle Multimedia is located at 45778 Northport Loop West, Fremont, CA 94538. Dazzle Multimedia can be reached at 888/436-4348, 510/360-2300, via fax at 510/360-0211, or via the Internet at www.dazzlemultimedia.com. -0- Note to Editors: Dazzle Multimedia, Snazzi and Dazzle are trademarks of Dazzle Multimedia, Inc.
--30--ms/sf* rn/sf
CONTACT:
Dazzle Multimedia
Jeff Johnstone, 510/360-2300
jeffj@dazzlemultimedia.com
or
Stirling & Karbo, Inc.
Danielle Tatman, 650/513-0977
dtatman@skco.com |
