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

To: Stoctrash who wrote (35844)	9/11/1998 12:02:00 PM
From: BillyG	Read Replies (4) \| Respond to of 50808

HP MPEG 4:2:2 broadcast server...... biz.yahoo.com

To: Stoctrash who wrote (35844)	9/11/1998 12:29:00 PM
From: DiViT	Respond to of 50808

Sony upgrade kit... The Future Is Now 10/01/98 Computer Shopper Page 273 COPYRIGHT 1998 Ziff Davis Publishing Company Copyright 1998 Information Access Company. All rights reserved. State-of-the-art hardware usually fetches a fairly hefty premium. We're happy to report, however, that that's not the case with Sony's DDU-220E/H 5X DVD-ROM Bundle, a third-generation DVD upgrade kit that sells for $349 list and features the latest incarnation of DVD-ROM: a 5x/24x drive that proved just as speedy as its numbers suggest. We had no trouble installing the drive or the decoder card, thanks to a pair of clearly written manuals. Both lack troubleshooting sections, however, so be prepared to dial Sony's toll-free support number if you run into any problems. Fortunately, the company's phone support is not only free; it's available around the clock. That alone helps justify the kit's higher price. As expected, the Sony drive turned in pack-leading scores in all the benchmark tests. Its score of 1,240 on the CD-ROM WinMark test bested the other three drives by more than 20 percent. It also completed the DVD timed-search test in 2.88 seconds--almost half the time required by most of the other drives. That's the mark of a 5x DVD speed rating; it has nothing to do with video playback, but does affect the speed at which data is found and transferred. We noticed, however, that this drive took just as long to complete the DVD game-installation test as the other drives. This is because the Sony is a CAV drive, capable of reaching 5x speed when reading the outer tracks of a disc, but slowing down to 2x on the inside tracks. Nevertheless, the Sony consistently outperformed the other drives included here. Like the decoder cards in the Creative and NewCom kits, the RealMagic Hollywood Plus (a newer, shorter version of the one included in the Cinema II Plus) handles the intensive task of scaling MPEG - 2 video. It produced fluid, flawless movie playback--the kind that makes you want to fill a bowl with popcorn and plop down in front of the PC. The RealMagic control-panel software isn't as slick as Creative's, but it does have that desirable VCR-style design. The Sony kit is the only one to include any productivity software--namely, Funk and Wagnall's Encyclopedia. You also get Activision's Zork Grand Inquisitor, a visually lush adventure game that deftly demonstrates DVD's potential. For $150 less, Creative Labs' Encore kit installs just as easily and delivers equally dazzling DVD video. But there's no beating the Sony's speed, an important consideration if you plan to use DVD software to its fullest. For stellar performance today and longer protection from obsolescence, this is the kit to buy.

To: Stoctrash who wrote (35844)	9/11/1998 12:33:00 PM
From: DiViT	Respond to of 50808

A Rousing Encore... 10/01/98 Computer Shopper Page 272 COPYRIGHT 1998 Ziff Davis Publishing Company Copyright 1998 Information Access Company. All rights reserved. If price has been the key factor keeping you away from DVD, Creative Labs' PC-DVD Encore Dxr2 is certain to please your pocketbook. The $199-estimated kit is the least expensive in this group and also one of the easiest to install. Creative's thoroughly illustrated manual walks you through each step and includes a lengthy troubleshooting section in case something goes awry. Our only complaint is that the internal audio cable that links the sound card to the decoder may not be compatible with all sound cards. The Encore combines a Panasonic 2x/20x DVD-ROM with Creative's own decoder card. Like the NewCom and Sony kits, it bypasses your graphics card and scales the MPEG - 2 video on its own, thereby producing extremely fluid playback--even on the "slow" test system. We were also pleased with the quality of full-screen video, which exhibited no visible distortions. So what's the trade-off for the Encore's low price? In a word: performance. The Encore DVD drive's score of 985 on the CD-ROM WinMark testwas the lowest of the bunch (though only by a hair). It also dragged its heels in our timed DVD search test, taking 12.2 seconds to cull through the Microsoft Encarta DVD--more than twice as long as the Smart Storage drive, the second-slowest drive in the group. Ironically, although it also brought up the rear in our timed game-installation test, it had the second-fastest showing in the CD-ROM timed-search test, requiring just 4.7 seconds. So although this may not be a speed demon, it's not an altogether slow unit, either. In addition to a slick-looking control panel, Creative serves up two DVD games as part of the Encore bundle: Claw, a side-scrolling action shooter, and Wing Commander IV, a movie-intensive space-combat game. Both games are loads of fun and provide a good taste for what DVD has to offer. The in-game movies appear larger and crisper than their CD-ROM counterparts and feature splendid Dolby stereo sound. The Encore may have the slowest DVD drive in this group, but that shouldn't dissuade you from scooping up this bargain of an upgrade kit. It's a whiz with DVD movies and performs well enough to make your old CD-ROM drive seem like a relic.

To: Stoctrash who wrote (35844)	9/11/1998 12:43:00 PM
From: DiViT	Respond to of 50808

NTT Develops Single Chip MPEG Encoder Martyn Williams, Newsbytes 09/11/98 Newsbytes News Network (c) Copyright 1998 Post-Newsweek Business Information, Inc. All rights reserved. TOKYO, JAPAN, 1998 SEP 11 (NB). Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp. (NTT) [TOKYO:9432] and its NTT Electronics Corp. subsidiary have succeeded in developing a single chip MPEG - 2 video encoder. The SuperENC chip, which NTT says is the smallest such encoder and most energy efficient, is capable of compressing standard video, in NTSC or PAL, into an MPEG - 2 compatible data stream with no additional supporting chips. NTT said high-definition video can be handled by the connection of multiple chips. The company, Japan's largest telecommunications company, expects the chip will be used in equipment such as video conferencing systems, video transmission systems and consumer applications such as recordable DVD. Sales of the chip, which has a sample price of 30,000 yen (US$227.50), will begin on September 21. Exchange rate: $1 = 131.85 yen Reported By Newsbytes News Network: newsbytes.com 01:28 CST

To: Stoctrash who wrote (35844)	9/11/1998 12:59:00 PM
From: DiViT	Respond to of 50808

C - Cube Microsys Unit Launches Broadcast Encryption Sys >CUBE 09/11/98 Dow Jones News Service (Copyright (c) 1998, Dow Jones & Company, Inc.) AMSTERDAM (Dow Jones)-- Divicom Inc., a unit of C - Cube Microsystems Inc. (CUBE), launched its Digital Video Broadcasting, or DVB-Simulcrypt, encoding solution for digital service providers. In a press release Friday, Divicom said DVB-Simulcrypt allows users to view a single broadcast on several cable receivers. Divicom developes and integrates products for digital video networking. C - Cube Microsystems provides digital video silicon systems for communications and consumer markets. (END) DOW JONES NEWS 09-11-98 11:39 AM

To: Stoctrash who wrote (35844)	9/11/1998 1:06:00 PM
From: DiViT	Respond to of 50808

Second Generation Satellite Broadcasting Transmission Chip Developed 09/10/98 Korea Times Copyright (C) 1998 Korea Times; Source: World Reporter (TM) Hyundai Electronics announced on September 9, that it developed a second-generation satellite broadcasting transmission chip. Satellite broadcasting transmission chip is a non-memory semi-conductor that is used in a set top box. It has a demodulation function whichconverts the signal used for satellite transmission into ordinary TV. Second generation product has one chip inside it with improved degree of integration and simplified circuit perimeter thus increasing competitiveness of raw materials. Hyundai Electronics has greatly improved transmission capability by satisfying the standards of Europes DVB and Americas Direct TV DSS.In satellite broadcasting transmission chip, Hyundai earned a revenue of $ 5 million and next year it will occupy a world market share of 15% with an earning of $ 20 million. Satellite broadcasting transmission chip is one of the major items of Hyundai Electronics non-memory business and it was developed for the first time in April 1996.