Reprinted from a Maxell press release:

Maxell Corporation of America has extended its line of premium DVD products with the introduction of its new DVD-R and DVD-RAM High Grade Camcorder media, featuring an advanced Hardcoat Surface that protects against scratches, smudges and fingerprints. The new introduction is part of Maxell’s overall product strategy of offering premium step-up products that provide higher performance for consumers.

Compared to standard DVD camcorder discs, the new DVD-R and DVD-RAM High Grade Camcorder media provides forty times more scratch resistance for superior durability in a broad range of environments. In addition, it is twenty times more dust and smudge resistant, making it ideal for portable and active camcorder applications, where the media is repeatedly handled and exposed to the environment.

The new DVD High Grade camcorder media from Maxell also offers enhanced protection of the content, so it is safe to use under a wide variety of conditions, indoors and out. The new High Grade camcorder products also have been engineered to optimize compatibility with all new DVD camcorder hardware.

DVD-R and DVD-RAM High Grade Camcorder media joins Maxell’s industry-leading line of camcorder products, including media, batteries and accessories.

"We are extremely proud of our new DVD Camcorder High Grade media. The Maxell Hardcoat Surface offers a significantly harder, more durable disc surface that provides superior scratch, dust and smudge resistance for a longer archival life," said Peter Brinkman, Maxell’s vice president of marketing. "Consumers are embracing more sophisticated camcorder products at an accelerated rate and we expect our new DVD Camcorder High Grade product to meet their needs for the best possible media to record and save their special memories."

Manufactured by Maxell’s factory in Japan, DVD-R High Grade (single-sided) Camcorder media has a capacity of 1.4GB or up to 30 minutes of video recording time. The new DVD-RAM High Grade (single-sided) Camcorder media also has a capacity of 1.4 GB and 30 minutes of recording time. These new High Grade DVD camcorder products will be available from the March 2005 time period.

Maxell will also introduce DVD-R High Grade (double-sided) Camcorder media, and DVD-RAM High Grade (double-sided) Camcorder media. Both of these products will have a capacity of 2.8 GB and 60 minutes of video recording time. These new double-sided products will be available in the second quarter of 2005.

Reprinted from a Maxell press release:

Maxell Corporation of America has raised the bar in DVD quality with the unveiling of its new DVD High Grade Video media in the DVD-R and DVD+R formats. The new introduction is part of Maxell’s overall product strategy of offering premium step-up products that provide higher performance to consumers.

The new DVD High Grade Video media features an advanced hard-coated surface that provides forty times more scratch resistance for superior durability, insuring the enhanced quality performance for recorded home entertainment content. The new DVD High Grade Video media from Maxell also offers enhanced protection of the content in a wide variety of environments. This feature can be especially important when the media is going to be used for family entertainment in portable and in-vehicle DVD systems. The Maxell hard-coated surface provides extended archival life.

"As the DVD format becomes increasingly more a part of our lives, consumers will expect it to provide them with enhanced archival storage for their most cherished memories and recorded home entertainment programming," said Peter Brinkman, Maxell’s vice president of marketing. "Our new DVD High Grade Video media provides a significantly harder surface, providing superior scratch resistance for a longer archival life."

Manufactured by Maxell’s factory in Japan, DVD-R and DVD+R High Grade Video media has a capacity of 4.7GB or up to 120 minutes of video recording time, and features write speed of up to 16X. This product is available immediately.

Reprinted from an Optoma press release:

Optoma Technology, Inc. today announced the MovieTime DV10, a groundbreaking digital home theater projector that features ultra bright, cinema-quality projection, a built-in DVD player and high performance speakers in a stylish, compact design. At only $1,495, movie enthusiasts can now enjoy stunning and engaging video and sound in their home instantly without the complexities and price usually associated with home theater solutions. Optoma is exhibiting at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas (January 6-9, 2005), at the Optoma booth located in the South Hall section 1, #20538.

This pure digital DVD projector has the inherent advantage of having been perfectly preset from the DVD disc to the projected image, resulting in optimized DVD viewing with guaranteed color accuracy and distortion free pictures like never before. Gone are the issues of complex compatibilities, confusion about which connectors to use, challenges of cable matching, the hazards of cable lengths or cable electromagnetic shielding. This machine is preset to deliver the best DVD results from this astounding technology.

The new MovieTime digital DVD projector is designed perfectly for a wide range of home entertainment, whether it’s viewing the latest cinema titles or watching home movies with friends and family. The integrated digital DVD player, two 5-watt speakers and short throw lens make it a snap to turn any room in the house into a screening room – right out of the box. MovieTime features Digital Light Processing (DLP) technology from Texas Instruments and provides a direct digital signal from DVD to projector producing accurate color and details for a rich home theater experience. It offers HDTV compatibility for High Definition entertainment from a variety of sources and an optimized setting display for true widescreen cinema-quality performance. The DV10 also offers optical audio output, which is ideal for rich and engulfing Dolby and DTS home theater surround sound. The sound system can also be connected to an external audio system to give a full 5.1 surround sound experience.

"Cinema quality experience in the home has to this point been reserved for enthusiasts who were prepared to invest significant time and money in order to build a quality in-home solution," said Otto Kong, CEO, Optoma Technology. "The MovieTime Digital DVD projector changes the landscape by allowing, for the first time, users to instantly install a high performance home theater solution without breaking the bank. Now anyone can transform their living room into a professional-grade cinema without the hassles of extra cabling and expensive equipment."

Priced for the consumer market, MovieTime is also compatible with other sources such as gaming consoles, VCRs, and PCs. It projects an eight-foot image from less than nine feet with superb image and sound quality.

Features

Reprinted from an Imation press release:

Do you often discover your children’s sticky fingerprints and smudges on your favorite CDs? Do your friends use your new DVDs as coasters? Do you toss CDs into your briefcase or backpack on the way out the door or stack your latest music mixes on the backseat of your car? If you’re like most people, you know that everyday life can be hard on CDs and DVDs — until now. Imation Corp’s new proprietary ForceField scratch resistant coating for Imation CDs and DVDs provides a long-lasting "memory protection" layer designed to resist the rigors of everyday life: scratches, dust, smudges and everyday wear and tear that can interfere with the maximum enjoyment of music, photos and videos.

"Disc reliability and longevity are top concerns of CD and DVD users," according to Wolfgang Schlichting, research director, removable storage at IDC. "Imation’s new ForceField scratch resistant coating addresses those concerns by providing a layer of protection that resists damage, helping discs last longer."

"Say goodbye to excessive skips and playback interruptions, worrying about scratches, handling CDs and DVDs by their edges, or searching for lint-free cleansing cloths," said Tom Lally, executive director of sales and marketing, Consumer and Office Markets, Imation. "With Imation’s new ForceField scratch resistant coating, your discs — and your precious memories or valuable data — are protected against scratches, smudges and dust. This means no more worries about disc scratches or smudges that can result from slipping CDs in file folders, sliding DVDs across countertops or handling discs with your fingers."

The rigors of everyday use can render a disc unplayable, jeopardizing the life of music, photo and video memories, and other valuable files when not cared for or stored properly. But Imation’s CDs and DVDs with ForceField protection have a revolutionary scratch resistant coating that provides the following benefits over standard uncoated discs.

Imation CDs and DVDs protected by Imation’s ForceField scratch resistant coating are fully compatible with standard CD and DVD recorders and players, and will be available in assorted pack sizes of 52x CD-Rs, 8x DVD+Rs and 8x DVD-Rs. Imation discs with ForceField scratch resistant coating will be priced at a slight premium compared to standard, uncoated discs, and will begin shipping to retailers nationwide in February.

For more information on Imation CDs and DVDs protected by ForceField coating, go to http://www.imation.com/forcefield .

Reprinted from a Primera press release:

Primera Technology, Inc., the world’s leading manufacturer of CD and DVD duplicators and printers, today announced it’s now shipping the Bravo II Disc Publisher with both Mac and PC software.

Bravo II now includes Sonic’s PrimoDVD 2.1 duplication software, SureThing CD Labeler Primera Edition design software, CharisMac Engineering’s Discribe 5.2 Mastering Software and graphic design templates for Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Illustrator in every box. With Bravo II’s included software programs, users can now produce discs with a Mac and PC.

“Our renegotiated software licensing agreement allows us to provide PC and Mac software at no additional cost with Bravo II orders placed after January 1st, 2005,” said Mark D. Strobel, Primera Technology’s Vice President of Sales and Marketing. “We are pleased to pass this savings along to our customers.”

The Bravo II Disc Publisher is designed for hands-free, automated production of up to 50 CDs or DVDs per job. An advanced robotic mechanism is used to transport discs into the built-in 52x CD-R recorder or optional Pioneer combo DVD R/CD-R recorder. After recording, discs are transported to the integrated printer and printed in full-color at up to 4800 dpi print resolution.

Typical applications include businesses, churches, film and video producers, photography studios, music groups, schools as well as other companies and organizations who have a need for in-house copying and printing of CDs and DVDs. Virtually any digital information can be recorded, including audio, data, video, photos and more.

Two Bravo II models are available: