AMD today took the wraps off an HDTV tuner for Macintosh, as the new ATI TV Wonder 650 Combo USB integrates both off-the-air ATSC/HDTV broadcasts as well as analog television programming. The ATI TV Wonder 650 Combo USB for Mac transforms Mac desktops and notebooks into ultimate TV entertainment systems, with full personal video recorder functionality. With the included ATI tvPORTAL TV application for Mac, users can watch, pause or record high-definition TV. Even analog TV is brilliant, as the ATI TV Wonder 650 Combo … [Read more...]

You're a hardcore gamer. You've got a new Xbox 360 with the HDMI port. You've got a PlayStation 3 with an HDMI port. You've got a cable or satellite receiver with an HDMI port. You've got an HD-DVD player and/or Blu-ray Disc player, each with its own HDMI port. That's a whole lot of HDMI goodness, but unless your TV has the inputs in droves, you're left doing the unplug/plug shuffle every time you change what you're watching. OPPO Digital feels that pain, which is why they've unveiled a new HDMI Switch for everyone … [Read more...]

SanDisk today introduced an 8GB SD Flash Memory card, which could mean great media-transfer capabilities for PS3, Xbox 360 and PC gamers, not to mention digital-photography enthusiasts. The SanDisk Extreme III 8-GB SD High-Capacity card will be packaged with a SanDisk MicroMate USB 2.0 Reader, which means console gamers can feasibly transfer image, music and video files to their PS3 and Xbox 360 with ease. The digital-photography aspects are also encouraging, as the 8GB size will store more than 4,000 high-resolution … [Read more...]

In a move to "tap" into wider audiences GameTap announced today hightlights from its TV Fall season programming, spanning music, movies, animation and, of course, videogames. Shows will be accessible for free alongside GameTap TV's current programming, in a system that's similar to on-demand, at www.gametap.com. "As broadband continues to penetrate more households, GameTap TV is becoming accessible to a wider audience," said Ricardo Sanchez, vp of content and creative director for GameTap. "We're excited to offer … [Read more...]

SanDisk is taking Apple and its iPod head-on with its own portable video and MP3 player called the Sansa View. The flash-based Sansa View supports most popular media formats including MP3, protected and unprotected WMA, WAV, DRM-free MP3 downloads via embedded player functionality. In addition, a one-time software download of the Sansa Media Converter will quickly transcode numerous video files -- including DivX. A MP3 player at its core, the Sansa View is equipped with a backlit scroll wheel and 2.4-inch widescreen … [Read more...]

Inspired by the recent Guitar Hero craze, Mattel takes the genre a step further and sets out to actually teach gamers how to play guitar. I Can Play Guitar requires no set-up and easily plugs into your television set. The game comes with one cart containing four songs to rock out to, a strap, plug and play chords, and a sticker pack to customize your guitar's appearance. Additional carts can be purchased with songs from the American Idol series as well as the popular SpongeBob SquarePants. The concept behind I Can Play … [Read more...]

Accell today unveiled the world's smallest and first HDMI 1.3a Category 2 compatible 2-1 switch. Called the UltraAV 2-1 HDMI 1.3a Category 2 Switch, it will be shown publicly for the first time during CEDIA Expo 2007 in September. The switch, which is expected to retail for $99.99, is the first to support both the HDMI 1.3a Category 1 and Category 2 specifications. Other companies produce HDMI switches in 2-1 and 4-1 configurations, but not all of them support HDMI 1.3a Category 2, also known as HDMI 1.3 … [Read more...]