How to remove iTunes DRM copy-protection and burn iTunes movie to DVD?

How to remove iTunes DRM copy-protection and burn iTunes movie to DVD?

Many friends ask me how to burn iTunes movies to DVD, so that they can enjoy their movies on large screen TV. For computer newbie, I will recommend them to get an Apple TV; it can connect your iTunes library to TV, the only thing you need to do is to sync movies from iTunes to Apple TV box. An Apple TV costs $299, if you think this is beyond your budget, you can use software to do that same thing, which is a lot cheaper.
Now, let me explain the details. Because movies and TV shows purchased from iTunes store have DRM copy-protection, you have to remove the DRM protection before burning them to DVDs for playback on your home DVD player.

What you need are: Aimersoft DVD Creator & Aimersoft Media Converter. You can download them from:
http://www.aimersoft.com/dvd-creator.html#114

http://www.aimersoft.com/drm-media-converter.html#114

Part1. How to remove DRM copy-protect from iTunes purchased movie or TV shows?
Step1. Download and install Aimersoft Media Converter, just follow the installation wizard, this software will install several high-speed dubbings to speed up the conversion, when you see the pop up warning messages, just click “Keep on going” to finish the installation, which may take a few minutes.

Step2. Then run the Media Converter, click “Add” button to load your iTunes purchased movies or TV shows, the default directory is My Document\My Music\iTunes\iTunes Music
In the “Convert Video to” drop down list, select “WMV”, then click “Start” to begin the conversion. If you don't know where the converted videos are saved, you can click “Browse” to locate the files on your computer.

Tips: this software can also remove DRM from purchased music and audio books; it also works for other online stores such as Zune, Amazon, etc.

Part2. How to burn DRM-free iTunes video to DVD?
Step1. After you remove the DRM copy-protection from iTunes purchased movies, download Aimersoft DVD Creator and install it. (Note, you need a DVD Burner to burn DVD, so make sure your DVD Drive has DVD+RW or DVD-RW symbol)

Step2. Run Aimersoft DVD Creator, click “Load Video” button to import your DRM-free videos, and then drag the videos to the storyboard. If you want to burn videos to dual-layer DVD (DVD-9), at the bottom of the interface, select “DVD-R 9.0G”, you can also customize video quality there. And the used disc space is shown on the disc space bar underneath the storyboard.

Step3. If you just want to burn the video to DVD without adding any special effects, just click the “Burn” tab. Here you will see the following options:
“Burn to”: you can burn the video to DVD or create an ISO file on your hard drive.
“Drive”:If your computer has multiple DVD burners, you can select any of them.
“TV Standard”: NTSC is 30 fps. It’s used in USA, Canada and Japan. PAL is 25 fps and it’s used in Europe and Asia.
After the above steps, put a blank DVD disk into your drive and click “Start” to burn your movie.

Tip. You can use this software to add special effects to your videos and also create a DVD menu so you can use DVD remote control to control the playback.

Google launches free music download service in China

Google, in conjunction with over 15 record labels, has announced the launch of a free online music download service that will allow anyone in mainland China to download over 1.1 million tracks for free.

The service has music from Chinese labels, Warner Music Group Corp., EMI Group Ltd., Sony Music Entertainment and Universal Music, as well as 14 independent labels and the service will be limited to those using an IP address showing they are in mainland China.

"This is the first really serious attempt to start monetizing online music in China," said Lachie Rutherford, president of Warner Music Asia and regional head of the IFPI.

China has been the poster child for music piracy, with some Chinese music acts admitting to no longer recording because piracy has made the business unprofitable.

Kai-Fu Lee, Google's president for Greater China, says that 84 percent of the Chinese population uses search engines to search for music. "With today's offering, we complete the puzzle and offer a complete set of services that are fully integrated," he added.

China currently has over 300 million Internet users.

via afterdawn

Apple to host WWDC in early June

Apple has set the dates for its annual Worldwide Developers Conference, to be held once again in San Francisco during June.

The company will host about 5,000 engineers in San Francisco's Moscone West convention center the week of June 8 through June 12, it confirmed Thursday. Some Apple developers were starting to get nervous that Apple had yet to confirm the dates in order for them to make travel plans.

Apple did not post any explicit information about whether there would be the usual opening keynote at WWDC this year, except for an offhand reference to the "WWDC Keynote Session" in a site section regarding attendance policies. Last year's event saw CEO Steve Jobs unveil the iPhone 3G, but this year, Jobs is supposed to be on medical leave through the end of June, which would likely preclude him from hosting the show.

That is, unless he plans to return early. It's hard to imagine that Apple would host a WWDC without plans for some sort of media event, which this year has been expected to focus on a combination of a new iPhone and the iPhone OS 3.0 software, as well as Mac OS X Snow Leopard, expected to arrive in thenext few months.

A call to Apple representatives seeking more information about the keynote was not immediately returned.

Skype coming to the iPhone

Skype, the Internet calling service owned by eBay, is expected to announce an application for the iPhone at next week's wireless CTIA tradeshow in Las Vegas, according to tech blogger Om Malik of GigaOM.

Skype is keeping mum on the announcement and has declined to comment on the rumors. But the company is hosting a press conference Tuesday afternoon in Las Vegas the day before the show kicks off. And it's likely the news will be announced there.


Skype admitted earlier this year that it's working on an application for the iPhone. Scott Durchslag, the company's chief operating officer, said at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in January that an iPhone version of the software client would be coming to Apple's App Store.

"We have to make sure the call quality is there and the application works really well before we can announce the software for any device," he said in an interview after the company's press conference. "But we will have something for the iPhone as soon as it's perfect."

Skype sees mobile as the next major growth area for its business. Not only does it expect its more than 405 million registered users to take their Skype experience, which offers free and low-cost calling, with them on-the-go, but the company also believes they will be able to reach new users via mobile devices. By putting the peer-to-peer service, which uses the Internet to carry voice traffic, it becomes very convenient to use. The regular Skype service runs on a computer and requires either a special phone or a headset and microphone to make and receive phone calls.

In the U.S. most cell phone plans include domestic long distance calling as part of a bundle of minutes, so the Skype service isn't really that appealing. But for subscribers calling outside the U.S., rates can be as much as a $2 a minute if cell phone users don't subscribe to a special monthly plan for making international calls. This makes the Skype mobile client most appealing to users who want to make inexpensive international calls, but don't want to be tied to their computers.

A software version of Skype already exists for Windows Mobile phones. Nokia also plans to embed some of its phones with Skype clients. And Skype has worked with a company called iSkoot to develop a special Skype phone that is sold by the cell phone operator Hutchison 3 U.K. A Skype-lite version of the client is also available on some Java phones.

Now, iPhone users will get to use Skype, too. But before iPhone users get too excited, there's probably a big catch. The new Skype app for the iPhone will likely be restricted to Wi-Fi networks only, as Apple has done to other third party services like Fring, which offers access to Skype.

If this is the case, it will be a huge limitation to the usefulness of the service. While other mobile phone users can use the Skype service anywhere they can a cell phone signal, iPhone users will be restricted to only using it where they can access Wi-Fi. Most people access Wi-Fi home or in the office, where they're likely to be near a computer anyway.


[via: news.cnet]

YouTube for Mobile (Windows Mobile) 2.2 (Free)

YouTube for Mobile is a simple, fairly fast, and well-designed application for a variety of Windows Mobile and Symbian phones that supports both landscape and portrait views. You'll search for videos through the search bar at the top of the screen, or through Top Rated, Most Viewed, or Most Recent categories. The results are displayed in a horizontal ticker, where you'll view a thumbnail image from each video and read the blurb and ratings below. In the Menu options, you'll find a shortcut key to return to the Home page, a shortcut to search for videos related to your current pick, and tips tucked away in a help menu.

YouTube videos loaded quickly in our tests and played in landscape mode. You can tap to call up the Back button and controls to pause, skip, and adjust the volume; otherwise the video will play full screen. Note that playback quality will vary by device and your connection strength. YouTube's videos will chew through data, so having a monthly data subscription is strongly recommended before downloading the application. So long as that applies to you, any YouTube fan with find YouTube's mobile application an easy way to get a quick video fix--although the community aspect and saving favorites are missing from the mobile version.

Download

BlackBerry Niagara To Spark Smartphone Showdown

Just in time to take on the Palm Pre and whatever new iPhone model Apple dreams up this summer, word is the latest must-have BlackBerry smartphone will hit in May.

The long-rumored BlackBerry Niagara doesn't have an exact release data or pricing model, but The Street this week quoted analysts who said the Niagara will land on Verizon Wireless' network in just about two months.

The BlackBerry Niagara is expected to build on the success built by Research In Motion's popular line of BlackBerry Curve devices. The Niagara is expected to be bigger than the Curve but smaller than the BlackBerry Bold, while featuring the same 480 x 320 screen as the Bold, which is exclusive to AT&T in the U.S. Also similar to the Bold, Niagara is expected to run the same 624MHz CPU processor.

In addition, Niagara is expected to run BlackBerry OS 4.6. It will feature a full QWERTY keyboard, EV-DO Rev. A, a GPS, a 3.2-megapixel camera and BES 5.0 support.

Not only would a May release for Niagara reinvigorate Verizon's BlackBerry lineup, which has been start-stop lately with the touch-screen BlackBerry Storm, but it would also give BlackBerry and Verizon a solid smartphone release around the same time competitors gear up to get new devices on the market.

Palm and Sprint have partnered to launch the Palm Pre sometime in the first half of this year. Despite reporting massive third-quarter losses, Palm is hoping the Sprint-exclusive Pre will be its smartphone salvation and pull it out of slumping smartphone sales.

And the industry is also abuzz with speculation that Apple will drop a new iPhone come June or July. While Apple has not yet said the awaited follow-up to last year's Apple iPhone 3G is on the horizon, industry watchers speculate that Apple's unveiling of iPhone OS update 3.0 is a signal that a new iPhone is imminent, with AT&T maintaining the exclusive carrier rights on the iPhone in the U.S.

The Pre, iPhone and Niagara all hitting around the same time will make for a spring and summer showdown between three of the major carriers and three of the top device makers. While no dates are set in stone, it's already gearing up to be a wild smartphone season. If all goes as speculated, the industry could be in for a heated competition that began last year when the Apple iPhone 3G, the Google Android T-Mobile G1 and the BlackBerry Storm squared off in the clash of the touch-screen titans.



Relevent link:
How to put DVD and Video on Blackberry ?

BlackBerry Niagara 9630 Photo

Digital retailers cut prices to lure CD buyers

Online MP3 outlets try big bargains to hook new customers



As the music industry watches in horror while physical CD sales tumble and digital sales fail to bridge the gap, online MP3 retailers are trying to stem the bleeding with an age-old technique: slashing prices.

Some new releases are being priced at a mere $3.99 for a limited time on Amazon MP3, including last week's top-selling album in both platforms, U2's "No Line on the Horizon"; the company offers some full album downloads for 99 cents. Apple's iTunes store runs spotlight specials for as little as $4.99. And subscription-based service Rhapsody routinely has deals for $6.99.

On average, a regularly priced full album digital download costs about $10.

Online retailers are keeping tight-lipped about these bargain-basement prices, usually available for anywhere from a day to several weeks, but industry analysts say the reason behind them is simple: to attract new customers, particularly the vast majority of people who aren't in the habit of downloading music.

[via boston]

Bluetooth to be released in iPod touch 2G

Stereo Bluetooth audio is coming to the iPod Touch, said Apple's Greg Joswiak at Tuesday's iPhone OS 3.0 preview event . The added Bluetooth functionality will come by way of the OS 3.0 upgrade, due out this summer. While iPod Touch owners clearly win from the addition of Bluetooth support (a $9.95 upgrade fee is required), they may be a little peeved to learn that the second-generation iPod Touch hardware has probably supported Bluetooth all along.

A Broadcom BCM4325 chip revealed in iFixit's teardown of the second-generation iPod Touch back in September of 2008 was originally thought to be used strictly for the device's wireless Nike+ support. It turns out the chip is most likely capable of full-fledged Bluetooth audio and data transmission, but has been purposefully left dormant by Apple. After being unlocked by the OS 3.0 upgrade, the iPod Touch (second-generation only) should be capable of Bluetooth features such as A2DP, wireless accessory control (including gaming), and peer-to-peer connections.

In the end, adding Bluetooth functionality to the iPod Touch is worth every penny of the $9.95 OS upgrade, and makes the device more competitive against iPod alternatives such as the Samsung P2 (soon to be the P3) and the Cowon S9. Still, existing Touch owners must feel a little burned that Apple purposely withheld the feature up until now.

(via cnet)

Apps Hit 800 Million Downloads

iPhone apps have been downloaded 800 million times, and there are now more than 25,000 apps in the iTunes store. Apple is detailing some of the new features in the next version of the iPhone OS in a press conference going on live right now. The new OS, iPhone 3.0, will support 1,000 APIs. Apple seems to be giving a lot of extra love to paid apps, which will gain the ability to sell additional levels, subscriptions, virtual goods, or extra content from right within the app.

The new APIs will also support peer-to peer applications via Bluetooth, which will be great for head-to-head games. Maps will be able to be embedded directly into the apps, and apps can now talk to accessories such as an FM transmitter or a blood pressure monitor. But Apple is not opening up background processing, which would allow more than one app to be running at once—a feature already common on Android and other phones. Apple says it takes up too much battery life.

More at techcrunch

iPod Shuffle stuffed with DRM, says EFF

Despite their recent action to remove DRM from the music they sell through iTunes, Apple continues to add more DRM to their hardware, says the EFF, with the latest example being the new iPod Shuffle.

For the new model, Apple has moved the volume and control buttons to the headphones themselves, leaving nothing on the actual hardware unit.

According to the EFF, any third-party headphone maker will not have an easy task making headphones for the Shuffle however as they will need to use an "Apple authentication chip" for the headphones to even work with the device.

Headphone makers could, normally, reverse engineer the interface but the chip makes it illegal to do so and any company found doing it will have the DMCA thrown at them.

A review at iLounge summarizes the DRM:

"This is, in short, a nightmare scenario for long-time iPod fans: are we entering a world in which Apple controls and taxes literally every piece of the iPod purchase from headphones to chargers, jacking up their prices, forcing customers to re-purchase things they already own, while making only marginal improvements in their functionality? It’s a shame, and one that consumers should feel empowered to fight."

iPhone is ready to work for Facebook

Facebook is letting users of its flourishing social-networking community play together on the road by using Apple's popular iPhone and iPod Touch mobile devices.

Facebook senior platform manager Dave Morin revealed the news Saturday while flanked by an array of hip social software makers at a panel talk at South By Southwest (SXSW) Interactive Festival in Austin, Texas.

via google

YouTube Downloader Also Converts Video--For Free

Download videos from Web sites such as YouTube and convert them to many formats--including those for iPods.

You just want to download videos from YouTube. Well, and to convert the videos to watch on your iPod or cell phone. Or maybe to another video type. That means you want freebie YouTube Downloader. It runs as a small applet and is exceedingly simple to use. Copy the URL of the YouTube video into it (you'll find the URL on the upper right-hand side of the video page in YouTube), then tell the program to do its work. You'll be able to choose your destination folder and name of the downloaded video.

Conversion is similarly easy. Choose the downloaded file you want to convert, then choose the download format and click OK, and the work is done. You can convert to many different formats, including for the iPod, iPhone, cell phones, PlayStation Portable, as well as common PC formats including MPEG and Windows Media (.wmv). Given that all this is free, what's not to like?


Note that when you install this software, by default it will install the Yahoo Toolbar and make Yahoo your default search engine. If you don't want that to happen, make sure to uncheck the boxes before installation.

Apple's third generation software for iPhone

What might Apple have in store for the third release of its iPhone software?

The company plans to hold one of its trademark special events Tuesday at its headquarters in Cupertino, Calif., to show off "an advance preview of what we're building" for the iPhone 3.0 software release, according to an invitation distributed Thursday. The event will come just a little more than a year after the iPhone 2.0 software event laid out Apple's policies for getting third-party applications onto the iPhone, as well as business-friendly features.


More news at news.cnet

BlackBerry Storm Contrls real F1 car

And now, the best use of a BlackBerry Storm I have seen to date: Lewis Hamilton, the British Formula One driver, appears in a YouTube video controlling his F1 car remotely with Research in Motion's touchscreen smartphone.

Here's the backstory: A couple of Vodafone subscribers in the UK hacked a BlackBerry Storm to race a toy R/C F1 car around a homemade track. That's what appears in the first minute or so of the video. The Storm's built-in accelerometer lets them steer the car by tiling the phone back and forth, while acceleration and braking is controlled with buttons on the phone's touch screen, according to Autoblog.

Once word got out and Team McLaren heard about it, they invited the fellows to the McLaren Mercedes garage, where they adapted the control system to a real F1 car. "Hilarity ensues when Hamilton himself takes the car out on the track, sans driver, and does a lap behind the wheel of the Blackberry Storm," the report said. (Video after the break.)

via gearlog

Apple releases iTunes 8.1 update

Apple updated its iTunes music jukebox and device-management software to version 8.1 on Wednesday, adding support for the new line of iPod shuffles released earlier in the day, and adding several other new features, most notably adding Genius Sidebar support for movies and television shows.


Apple first introduced Genius in September 2008 as a way for users to create playlists and find new music based on what they are already listening to. Now that functionality is available for movies and TV shows as well, according to Apple. The Genius Sidebar will find relevant videos much the same way it finds music. When you click on a movie, iTunes will recommend new content that you may like from the iTunes Store. (We were unable to verify this feature for ourselves, though it's possible this feature will be enabled via a server-based Genius update at a later time.)

In iTunes 8.1, the Party Shuffle feature introduced in April 2004 has been rechristened iTunes DJ. While this feature has been around for some time, Apple added some new functionality specifically designed for iPod touch and iPhone users.


More at Macworld

The newest Apple's iPod Shuffle

Apple Inc. introduced a new iPod Shuffle that is about half the size of its previous model but with the capacity to play twice as many songs, as the company tries to re-energize its iPod business.

Apple New Apple iPod Shuffle

The new $79 four-gigabyte device will play as many as 1,000 songs, the same as the first iPod, which sold for $399 in 2001. The new model will allow users to switch between multiple playlists, which wasn't possible with previous models.

It also includes a new voice feature that announces songs and playlists in 14 languages. One of the key differences from the previous Shuffle is that all of the controls are now on the earphone cord rather than on the device.

[via: online.wsj]

U2 360 Tour Presented by BlackBerry, Revolutionary Production Design Revealed

LOS ANGELES, March 9 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- U2.com today confirms that the U2 360 Tour will open at the Nou Camp Stadium in Barcelona on 30th June. The U2 360 Tour is sponsored by BlackBerry® and is the band's first stadium outing since the Vertigo Tour 05/06 and follows the release of their acclaimed album, No Line On The Horizon. Their 12th studio album, No Line On The Horizon is already number 1 in the UK, Ireland, France, Germany, Belgium, Finland, Japan and the Czech Republic with further chart positions to be announced this week.



More at yahoo news

Apple's iTunes Store Challenged By Rogue Developers

A developer has launched the Cydia Store, an unauthorized alternative online market for iPhone applications. At least two other developers have similar plans.

Apple's iTunes Store, the only Apple-approved source for iPhone applications, is getting some competition.

Jay Freeman, the developer behind the Cydia app that allows software not approved by Apple to be installed on the iPhone, has launched the Cydia Store, an unauthorized alternative online market for iPhone applications.

According to Freeman's Twitter feed, a new Cydia release was to be posted Friday night with one app for sale and more coming next week. He said further details will be included in the Cydia download.

The Wall Street Journal reports that two other developers are also planning online stores to sell iPhone applications that haven't been approved by Apple. One plans a store called Rock Your Phone for iPhone to help make jailbreaking -- the process of installing code that undoes Apple's software lock on the iPhone -- and installing apps not approved by Apple easier. The other plans an online store specializing in adult applications.

Apple maintains tight control over the applications that are available through the iTunes Store for the iPhone. And while many developers accept Apple's oversight and the market has validated it, some chafe at the company's restrictions.

Until a few months ago, iPhone developers couldn't even discuss iPhone coding publicly due to the restrictive non-disclosure agreement they had to accept to use the iPhone Software Development Kit. And developers continue to have applications rejected for things like ridiculing public figures, censorship that wouldn't be tolerated in print or other traditional media.

Freeman insists Cydia is not about pirating applications. He says it's for applications that Apple would never approve. "The Cydia Store is about providing a simpler billing channel to buy the already commercial applications in Cydia, like Snapture," said Freeman via Twitter.

The kinds of applications Apple is willing to approve for sale in its iTunes Store have been changing, perhaps due to pressure from dissident developers like Freeman. In December, Apple started allowing novelty applications, such as the Pull My Finger flatulence simulator, to be sold. It had previously rejected such apps citing their lack of utility.

Apple hasn't yet responded legally to stop Freeman and the Cydia Store, but in comments filed last year with the U.S. Copyright Office, the company asked the government agency not to grant a copyright law exemption so iPhones can be legally jailbroken. Such an exemption, Apple argues, represents "an attack on Apple's particular business choices with respect to the design of the iPhone mobile computing platform and the strategy for delivering applications software for the iPhone through the iPhone App Store."

As long as there's money to be made in iPhone apps, Apple can expect that attack to continue.

via informationweek

Top 5 Things We Want in the PSP-4000

Additional rumors have surfaced from Eurogamer since the initial rumblings of a PSP-version 2, or PSP-4000. The new iteration will get rid of the battery draining and much reviled UMD drive and feature a compact, sliding screen.

The screen will be the same as the one currently found in the PSP-3000. If true, this will be disappointing news given the fact that the PSP-3000 suffers from interlacing problems that lead to image ghosting in 2-D games. Hopefully the PSP-4000 can address these problems while maintaining the brightness and clarity of the current screens.

The sliding screen is an interesting notion that got us thinking about what other cool new features Sony can add to make the PSP-4000 the ultimate killer portable:

1) QWERTY Keyboard -- If Sony can integrate a QWERTY keyboard beneath the screen like in popular texting phones, the handheld can become a attractive platform for the internet addict in all of us. We can use it for chatting-on-the-go by updating Twitter, instant messengers, or MySpace accounts, or in online multiplayer games (like Resistance: Retribution or Monster Hunters; and make it a viable system for fanboy dream ports like Phantasy Star Online, World of Warcraft, or Final Fantasy Online).

Searching and surfing the internet would also be so much easier. Inputting redemption codes or credit card info in the PSN store or typing things (like character names) during game play would be speedier. Of course, this also depends on improving the PSP's wi-fi capabilities, because as it stands now, internet surfing on the PSP is slow as molasses.

2) Second Analog Nub -- Hopefully, Sony can also add a second analog nub that gamers and developers have been clamoring for since the PSP's inception. Think about it -- finally, a proper interface for twin-stick shooters and FPS. The control scheme for games like Resistance: Retribution, Stardust Portable, and Me & My Katamari would have been so much better with another nub, it's practically a disservice to have it any other way.

3) Bluetooth Support -- We love handheld systems for a reason: portability. If we're playing an online multiplayer game and want to voice-chat with squad members, the last thing we want are headphone wires dangling in the way of the action. The PS3 has Bluetooth, so we know it can be done.

4) Flash 9 and DIVX Support -- Again, we don't understand why the PS3 and PSP development teams dislike each other so much that they'd cut off communication. The PS3 has had divx and Flash 9 support for a while now, why not the PSP? The two teams should really work on synergizing their development efforts.

5) Extended Battery Pack -- Can we finally get an extended battery pack that's not the PSP-phat size? On road-trips, we hate the anxiety of guessing whether or not there's enough juice to make it through a movie. We want a battery pack that actually fits flush in the PSP-slim without having to buy a bulky replacement cover. It just doesn't feel right and doesn't fit well in carrying cases.

* Bonus Wish: On-board Flash Memory -- It'd be great if the system has on-board memory. Flash memory is dirt cheap nowadays and is a great hard-drive solution. How about slapping some memory into there? Having a large internal memory cache will speed up internet surfing and the loading of game assets. This is extreme wishful thinking since Sony likes to sell these little proprietary things called Memory Sticks.

via pspworld

10 years celebration for Sony PS2

Sony's PlayStation 2 launched in Japan nine years ago today, ultimately going on to sell over 140 million consoles and, now, entering its tenth year on the market.

Japan's launch of the PlayStation 2 brought with it a half-dozen generation changing games, even if most were largely forgettable. The launch line up on March 4, 2000 consisted of Street Fighter EX3, Kessen, Ridge Racer V, Eternal Ring, DrumMania and Stepping Selection.

Even with a relatively meager list of software, Japanese gamers snapped up close to a million units of the console on its first day of availability.




via kotaku

BlackBerry Niagara 9630 Photo

Photos of the unreleased BlackBerry 9630 aka Niagara have leaked.
The BlackBerry 9630 is a CDMA full-QWERTY BlackBerry and as you can see in the photo (middle one is the 9630) is more compact than a BlackBerry Bold.
The BlackBerry 9630 is said to be available on Verizon and is supposed to be a World Edition. Other rumored features include h GSM/GPRS/EDGE/HSPA and CDMA 1xRTT/EV-DO Rev. A connectivity and a 3.2MP camera.
Apparently WiFi is missing from the BlackBerry 9630


Relevent link: How to put DVD and Video on Blackberry ?

BlackBerry App Store Gets a Name: BlackBerry App World

The upcoming application storefront for BlackBerry handhelds now has a name: BlackBerry App World.

A Research in Motion spokeswoman also said that later today, BlackBerry fans will be able to sign up to be notified when BlackBerry App World goes live. The signup sheet will be at www.blackberry.com/appworld and should be live by 7 p.m. PST.

At the same time, the spokeswoman said, RIM will be relaunching its BlackBerry developers site.

BlackBerry App World is RIM's attempt to emulate some of the iPhone's phenomenal success with consumers, who can choose from thousands of applications in the iPhone apps store on iTunes. Similarly, Microsoft has announced plans for a Windows Marketplace for Mobile app storefront that will be exposed in Windows Mobile 6.5, the next version of its handheld platform.

via pcworld

iPhone charger interface burned

Last Saturday, Italy iPhone users Tim Colbourne found that after charging 3 hours, the charger base of iPhone 3G sparkled and lead to interface burned , and Tim also found some Swedish mobile phone users encountered the similar situation.

How to free download and burn Youtube video to DVD disc ?

How to free download Youtube video ?

1. With free online flv converter such as http://vixy.net when you find your favorite youtube video, just copy the video URL (like this format http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sdUUx5FdySs ) to the input box, choose the output format, and then click start. When the conversion finished, you will get the video download link, just download to your computer.

2. With Firefox + videodownloader, if you’re using Firefox browser, just install a plug-in named videodownloader, and then you will see a small icon in the bottom right, when you watch youtube video, double click it, and then you will get the flv download link.

3. With free Youtube downloader & player
http://www.flash-on-tv.com/free-youtube-downloader.html



How to burn Youtube video to DVD disc ?


As regular DVD burner software doesn't support Youtube video format (FLV), you have to find a program that can burn common video such as WMV (Windows Media Player), MP4 (iTunes), FLV (Youtube), etc to DVD disc. DVD Creator is one of the few DVD burner software that can get the job done. And this app can also burn MKV, AVI and M2TS and other HD video to DVD with real DVD menus. Here are a few steps about how to use this software:

Step 1: Download this DVD Creator, install it and start operation;
Meanwhile, you can insert DVD +R (DVD-R, DVD+RW or DVD-RW)

Step2: Run DVD Creator, add video files or load files which you want to convert;

One Way: Click the “Load files” to add video files;

Another way: Choose “Load video” option under the “file” drop-down menu, and you can add files as you want, too.

Step 3: Display the loaded file and choose the video you want to convert

Details:

After the video file has been loaded, it will appear in the main interface, then drag and drop the selected video files to the storyboard below to organize a slideshow at the bottom of the main interface.

The used disc space is shown on the disc space bar underneath the storyboard

you can choose the size of burning DVD in your decision,” DVD-R4.5G AND DVD-R9.0G”,up to your choice, if you want to burn DVD movies to dual-layer DVD (DVD-9), at the bottom of the interface, just select “DVD-R 9.0G”, Vise versa.

Also you can customize the output video quality here, “Low video quality, High video quality and Highest video quality”, which depends on your choice;

If you just want to burn video to DVD without adding any special effects, of course you just need to click the “Burn” button to begin the conversion process.

When you are clicking the” Burn” button, here are some options for you as follows:

Burn to: you can burn your DVD to DVD, DVD Folder, or ISO file as you will; and then you should choose where you want to save the burning DVD files; next choose the TV Standard “NTSC or PLA”
Explanation: “NTSC” is 30 fps, which is used in USA, Canada and Japan. “PAL “is 25 fps, which is used in Europe and Asia. At last, choose the aspect ratio: 4:3 or 16:9

After above steps, now click the “Start” button to begin conversion.

Tips: if your video and the subtitle are separated into two files, this software may allow you to plug-in the subtitles for MKV files. Ok, just follow the steps below;
1. Drag the loaded video to the storyboard.
2. Click the video, you may see the button “edit selected video file”.
3. Then click the button, a box that offers settings for the subtitle will appear. (you may also crop and trip your favorite parts off the video here.)

More details you can visit here

Chinese media player offers native 720p playback

Although they are certainly not the first company to do so, China-based Gemei had launched their latest portable media player, dubbed the HD-660, which allows for native 720p HD playback on its 4.3-inch widescreen display.

The player sports a 480x272 resolution and can hold TransFlash memory cards up to 32GB. For audio, the player supports MP3, WMA, AAC and FLAC and for video the player supports RM, RMVB, AVI, FLV and MPEG video files. JPG, PNG and bitmap are supported photo formats.

The source adds that a "remote control is bundled with the HD-660, as is a video cable that allows it to connect to TVs and play back its content that way. The 2,000mA lithium-ion battery's life is rated at six hours when playing videos. A USB 2.0 interface is used to connect with Windows 2000, XP or Vista operating systems, along with Mac OS X. Speakers are built-in, and there is an FM radio tuner with recording functionality."

The player is so far only available in China with a cheap price tag of about $88 USD.

PSP remove UMD in the next generation ?

Sony PSP marketing director John Koller has responded to the widespread rumors that a PSP 2 is in the works that would strip out the UMD drive and add dual analog pads.

Koller would not deny or confirm the rumors but did hint that digital downloads were becoming very important and that UMD might be removed.

"[I] can’t comment either way, but I will reiterate that the digital [download] component is very important to us," Koller says. "We’ve been making a concerted effort to really over-emphasize the ability for publishers to publish on the [PlayStation Network]. Fits our view of the world. Eventually the digital distribution arm will have some leverage. I think consumers right now are choosing some tangible benefits of the disc. But we saw how that movie ended with music. And we know there are certainly some benefits to promoting that part of it now."

There have been no new hardware kits sent to developers, noted Koller.