Handbrake just updated to 0.9.4 which uses x264 libraries to encode faster and smaller file sizes. On my iMac Core i7 a DVD ripped 25% faster. More »
Included digital copies are still the exception rather than the norm in the Blu-ray world. Lame. You’d like to rip those discs for playback elsewhere, right? But there is something you should know first.
Only a few people remember this, but DVD Jon cracked Apple’s Fairplay DRM way back in late 2006 and offered it up for companies to purchase the tech and integrate it into their own media files. Now DVD Jon has started his own company called doubleTwist that lets people rip protected iTunes music in order to have those files play on other company’s devices, such as the Sony PSP or the Zune.
3ga has just announced the JB7 digital jukebox, which allows the user to directly rip CDs to its internal HDD, negating the use for a PC. Standard rip time is less than five minutes, and the JB7 is available in either 40GB (US$586) or 80GB (US$625) flavours. Other features include alarm clock mode, USB connectivity, 30 watts per channel amplifier, remote control and support for various music compression storage formats. Sure, the JB7 is neat, but at those extortionate prices? We think not. [Tech Digest]
TEAC’s One-Step DVD/CD Duplicator will rip your CDs, or DVDs, without the need for a connection to a PC. That is enough information for us to decide we like it; it is simple and it can copyright infringe in around 6 minutes flat, thanks to the 48x CD drive read speed / 16x DVD read speed. Nice—but don’t use it to copyright infringe, or you shall be hunted down like a dog and be made to pay like a millionaire pooch. More »
Fair use? What’s that? It’s something you’ll someday be telling your kids once existed at the rate things are going. That’s because there’s a proposed amendment to current copy protection licenses that would ban any and all DVD copying, including for fair use.
Want to rip your DVDs to a Media Center PC so you can watch movies without putting a disc in? Too bad. Anything other than watching a movie right off the disc would be against the rules, much to the chagrin of companies such as Kaleidoscope, who make media centers loaded to the gills with (perfectly legal) movies. Well, at least this has been put up to a vote twice before only to fail, so there’s hope that a third strike is imminent. –Adam Frucci
Proposed Amendment Would Ban All DVD Copying [PC Mag] More »
The only type of person who would use the iLoad by Wingspan is the person who either hates computers or doesn’t know how to use them. The device takes in your iPod, then rips CDs into digital form and loads them onto your iPod. No PC required.
Crunchgear took one for a spin, and thought it worked as advertised but was super noisy doing it. Once your music is transferred from the CD into your iPod, you can also delete tracks by title or category—again, straight from the iLoad without a PC.
Is it worth the $299 price tag? Only if you’re an anti-computer guy who still wants access to an iPod. – Jason Chen
Product Page [iLoad via Crunchgear] More »
