Home Electronics Industry News: September 2000
NOTE: This page is an archive for previously posted news stories from September 2000 - Since most of the links are now inactive, they have been removed. However, the headlines and summaries are still posted to historically document the news headlines from the dates listed.
09/30/00
10 Ways TIVO Will change Your Life
TIVO is about to invade the UK. Check out the above aritcle on the BBC's perspective on how TIVO will change UK TV viewing.
09/29/00
SONY Introduces First Digital8 Video Walkman for Portable Applications
Jumping on the success of its Digital8 camcorder format, SONY brings two portable VCRs to the market with D8 recording/playback and direct IEEE-1394 (iLink, Firewire) capability. This move gives the D8 format more flexibility and support.
09/28/00
09/27/00
09/26/00
09/25/00
09/22/00
09/21/00
09/20/00
09/19/00
09/18/00
09/17/00
09/16/00
09/15/00
09/14/00
Its Boom Time For Thiel
09/13/00
09/12/00
09/11/00
09/10/00
09/09/00
09/08/00
Circuit City's Comp Sales Fall
09/07/00
09/06/00
09/05/00
09/03/00
09/02/00
09/01/00
For more News Stories check out my Home Electronics Industry News Archives.
The EISA (European Imaging and Sound Association) presented its award for "Home Theater Speaker of The Year" at their annual meeting in Switzerland. Canadian-based Energy Loudspeakers took the honors for its Encore home theater loudspeaker system.
Compact Disc Pressings On The Rise
Despite Napster, MP3.com, and other online music download services, the CD is still going strong, with pressings and sales on the rise.
How could this be?
HDTV, DVD Top Sampo's Return To U.S. Market
Taiwan-based Sampo, primarily known for its inexpensive TVs and portable audio players in the 80's, has returned to the U.S. market with a line of DVD players and Digital TVs.
HipZip to Lead Iomega To CE Category
With the introduction of its new Digital Audio Player (HipZip), IOMEGA begins its transition from being strictly a memory storage manufacturer to a full-fledged CE product maker.
Parasound Debuts New Architectural Loudspeakers
In-wall and ceiling loudspeakers are becoming more popular as home theater systems become more integrated in within the home living environment. In response, Parasound has introduced a new line of in-wall and ceiling speakers.
Philips Consumer Electronics Showcases Its Family Of Real Flat(tm) Picture Tube Televisions At CEDIA EXPO 2000
Taking a page from SONY's playbook, Philips showed off its version of flat-tube TVs at this year's CEDIA conference.
Microsoft Buys HDCD Developer
Looking for access to audio technology to improve its digital media products, Microsoft has purhased Pacific Microsonics, developer of HDCD, an innovative recording technology which has greatly enchanced the quality of music CDs.
TIVO Wants Your Sweet Nothings
In an effort to increase expsosure in the crowded consumer electronics market, TIVO (makers of tapeless video recorders) is sponsoring a give-away contest. The winners will get a free TIVO unit--but will still be liable for the $9.95 monthly support service.
Video Sales Surge After Summer Respite
As a result of increasing sales, factory shipments of Camcorders, VCRs, Projection TVs, DVD Players, and TV/VCR combos continue to increase as the summer draws to a close.
THX-Surround EX Now Available In THX Select Products
THX-Surround EX is beginning to make its way into more mainstream audio products, courtesy of the THX Select certification program.
Best Buy Posts Record Q2 Net
Best Buy stores, despite expenses associated with its aggressive expansion, continues to increase its profit to record levels.
CEDIA EXPO 2000
This year's CEDIA (Custom Electronic Design & Installation Association) has just wrapped up its annual conference. Highlighting this year's conference were cutting-edge product announcements in the area of Home Theater.
Mitsubishi To Recall Nearly 100,000 TVs In Japan
Bridgestone-Firestone is not the only one having recall problems. Apparently Mitsubishi has covered up a major defect in over 100,000 of its TVs for the past several years.
With a tradition in high-end loudspeakers, Thiel unviels its latest subwoofer, the SW1, with a built-in 600-watt amplifier. With a projected retail price of between $5,000 to $8,000, this new unit is not for the budget concious.
McIntosh Debuts Home Theater Gear
McIntosh, long a leader in high-end audio products, introduces its latest line of home theater components, including its first receiver in twelve years!
Fujitsu Offers Fifth Element: Plasma
Fujitsu shows its latest entries into the growing Plasma TV market with two models with HDTV and Firewire compatibility.
SONY Shows First Widescreen HDTV Monitors, Progressive Scan DVD Player
Never count SONY out with innovative products. The latest offerings from the inventor of BETA, include two HD-compatible widescreen projection sets and a Progressive Scan DVD player with SACD (Super Audio CD) playback.
EchoStar Hires Napster Lawyer To Sue DirecTV
The two major satellite TV providers, EchoStar and DirecTV, are still fighting their turf war, with EchoStar accusing DirecTV of retailer intimidation. In a strategic move EchoStar has hired David Boies, who currently represents Napster.
ReplayTV To Ship First 60-Hour Single-Drive DVR
The bar in the tapeless-video recording sweepstakes has just been raised with ReplayTV's release of model 3060, which has a maximum 60 hour recording capacity and a price tag of $799. As storage capacity of these machines gets larger and the prices go down, will the VCR finally succumb to the tapeless video recorder?
MP3.com Ordered To Pay Up To $250 Million In Music Copyright Case
Is the end near for MP3? Probably not, but a Federal Judge has just lowered the boom on MP3.com for copyright infringement in the way it distributes music from its website. For all the details on the ruling and how it may impact both the MP3 and recording industry, check out the above article from CNN.
Circuit City is treading rough waters in the retail sea with its decision to drop appliances from its products mix. Comp-store figures slump for the 2nd quarter.
CBS To Expand HDTV Broadcasting
Despite ABC's earlier announcement of curtailing HDTV broadcasting of Monday Night Football, CBS continues its committment to HDTV broadcasting with an expansion of 1080i programming.
Aiwa Introduces Dual-Tray Component CD Recorder With 4X Dubbing
Recordable CD is getting more popular all the time, and Aiwa has just brought more flexibility to the technology with a high speed dubbing unit for about $650.
Onkyo Corp Annouces Software To Upgrade Products For New DTS-ES Discrete Surround Sound Format
With new surround sound formats seeming coming on the market with great frequency, Onkyo has discovered a simple method to update the surround decoding properties in its high-end receivers, without having to replace chips or other internal components.
China Prepares Timetable For HDTV Rollout
Not only has China caught up to the U.S. in nuclear ballistic missle technology in just a few short years (courtesy of the U.S. government), but it also is in a prime position to catch up and even pass the U.S. in the implementation of HDTV.
Toshiba Offers Broad Range Of DVD-Video Players
Always in the forefront of DVD techology, Toshiba introduces its latest generation DVD players. With nine new models, there is a high performance player available for everyone.
CEA Expands DTV Definition
When is a TV a DTV (Digital TV)? When the CEA (Consumer Electronics Association) says it is. The CEA has issued a new set of definitions to better label digital TV products.
