Player

Update 5:30 p.m. PDT: Microsoft plans to announce the second generation of Zune digital music players on Tuesday, according to a source close to the company.

Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates is supposed to take part in the formal announcement of the new music player, the Web site BetaNews reported on Monday. A source with knowledge of the announcement confirmed the report when contacted by CNET News.com.

The upcoming player, which will be available in November, will be the first Zune to feature flash-based memory, BetaNews reported.

The site also said Zune's flash-based players will measure 3 … Read more

The SlingPlayer for Symbian S60 phones is out of beta and now available for sale. The software allows a selection of Nokia phones (the E65, N75, and N95 in the U.S., and the E65, N73, and 6120 elsewhere) to stream TV from the full range of Slingbox models. Previously, the Symbian software was only available pre-installed on models sold by British wireless provider 3. Furthermore, the new standalone software delivers full-screen playback and Wi-Fi streaming not available on that previous edition.

The Symbian software will be available on Sling Media's Web site soon. It will cost $30 in … Read more

We just have to say it: The Sony NWZ-A810 is a pretty slick player. Of course, getting rid of SonicStage was a major help--you can now use all the new Walkmans with WMA jukeboxes--but the A810 shines in many areas besides software support, as well. It offers a fantastic display, a sleek design and interface, and a stellar rated battery life--plus, it's one of the few players that sounds great right out of the box, thanks to the inclusion of Sony's rather great MDR-EX082 headphones. Users looking for the whole package (sans radio) will be pleased. For all … Read more

Ah, the wonders of modern technology--and the hyperspeed of the global marketplace. At the beginning of the year, people were writing almost incredulously about an MP3 player the size of a credit card from an Israeli company called Walletex. Then it went on sale at $150 for a 2GB model.

Now, only a few short months later, a competing 2GB card-sized player is being offered for just $42 by Hong Kong-based Brando, the ultimate purveyor in products of the lowest common denominator. Speaking of which, as items like this continue to plummet in price, we'll be happy to wait--just … Read more

Creative has announced the new MuVo T100, a screen-less device with an attached USB connector. The design of this MP3 player looks like a Zen Stone which has undergone rack torture. It shares the same set of buttons laid out in a circular format but is longer and doesn't require a separate mini-USB cable.

This basic player comes in 2GB and 4GB versions and will cost S$89 and S$149, respectively. The colors available are black, pink, white and blue. Expect to see it in stores at the end of October worldwide.

(Source: Crave Asia)

FixMyMovie is a new service that takes your pixelated digital video clips and does its best to fix them. The technology stems from MotionDSP's processing technology, which is similar to what's used in government intelligence operations to improve those dark and grainy security films--like you see in movies.

The entire process is fairly straightforward: Just upload and tag a supported movie file, and the service will crunch it on its servers. You get a note by e-mail when it's done. Once it's finished you can preview the first 10 seconds of the enhanced version, as well as compare before and after results live, by pressing the "compare" button. What's even cooler is a stills mode that lets you compare the before and after with an easy-to-use slider that follows your mouse. Whatever's on the left of the slider is the old, with the new on the right.

To grab the improved film, there are download options for multiple formats, including iPod-formatted H.264, Adobe Flash, and Windows Media. You can also grab quick embed code to stick it in any blog, which I've done after the break.

I tried out the service on several video clips this morning and got improved results on every single one of them. The most dramatic improvement of all was with text, which managed to turn almost unreadable pixelated words into legible sentences. Just be wary, though: The service can only handle clips up to 352x288 in resolution, which means the VGA videos from your digital camera aren't going to cut it. Older cameras, on the other hand, are fine.

FixMyMovie is launching in beta at this morning's DEMOfall conference in San Diego with $25 worth of free processing for everyone while still in its beta period. Eventually, FixMyMovie plans to charge users for the option to enhance video and still images, which can also be captured manually by users within the Flash player. I can see this service being hugely popular, as everyone wants better looking video clips, and ways to improve older, lower resolution clips.

Update: It's worth noting you need the latest beta of Adobe Flash 9 to view videos on the service (which makes the neat, live before and after feature possible). You can pick it up here, or just get a feel for what it can do with the screenshot below.… Read more

Stationing a waterproof TV outside has got to be the height of impracticality. Not only do you have to deal with the long-term effects of the elements, but you'd always need to reposition it (or yourself) to avoid the glare.

But a splashproof portable DVD player, now that's a different story. We're still not convinced of the need to watch video outdoors unless you have a private beach in Malibu or Maui, but at least you can take this player inside with you when it rains. The "DVD Zabady" also plays MP4 clips and MP3s … Read more

Contrary to popular belief, Hello Kitty isn't the only animal that's trying to infiltrate all segments of human life. Penguins--or "gwins," as fellow Craver Caroline McCarthy affectionately refers to them--are a close second.

The latest example is the "iBird 1000" (aka the "Singing Chick"), a Chinese-made MP3 player that has OLED screen, FM tuner, voice recorder and integrated speaker. But as Technabob rightly notes, the headphone-wearing penguin's most distinguishing features are its LED-blinking eyes, moving beak and, of course, its red bow tie.

Josh's iTunes Album Art Grabber is a pretty good resource for those of us who like getting their album art from one place. It's not perfect, but it's simple in both form and function, despite being tied to the iTunes Store at the same time it helps users free themselves from it.

… Read more