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Dell Support

It doesn't have an updated (i.e.- official) spec sheet included (or a price), so we're still left to confirm increased response time claims, but this does mean that Dell has given us something concrete to drool over. Check out the pictures.

It looks like it won't be released until April 2006, which is a mere week or so away, but we've been waiting for so long that it may feel like a year.

MAY?! DID SOMEONE SAY MAY?!!? IT'S NOT COMING OUT UNTIL MAY??!

Unconfirmed rumor is now just about a done deal, as Alienware has agreed to be aquired by Dell.

http://gear.ign.com/articles/697/697699p1.html

The word is that both compaines will operate as usual, and that dreaded Dell/Alienware hybrid computer will not become a reality. I haven't seen fear like this since The White House dealt with cloning. It's a wait-and-see situation worth waiting and seeing about...

Maybe this is why they haven't released the 2407 yet, they're too busy gobbling up boutique performance companies.

Actually, I have an idea for a Dell/Alienware product; let Alienware design and build it, and let Dell put the price tag on it.

Alienware coupons anyone????

Do you know of anyone who doesn't own a television? I'm not even referring to a high-def set, just a plain old CRT with a big convex bump of a screen. It seems like an unimportant thought, and I certainly have other questions that my consciousness should be actively engaged with, but it turns out that I know five people who do not own a television of any sort. One guy never has. Ever.

I’ve dubbed them The Five. They have me preoccupied.

I was born in New York City and have spent most of my life here; along the way one inevitably crosses paths with those truly eccentric and/or pretentious souls who navigate a road decidedly different than that of the majority. More power to them. Happiness doesn’t come with a manual. Life is too short. Whether or not technology in general enhances or detracts from one’s life is, I realize, a highly individual issue. It’s a question so broad in scope that it encompasses extremes like the person who was saved because of the latest advances in microsurgical techniques, all the way to cloning, advanced weaponry, and someone who was genuinely, unabashedly giddy when the ipod nano hit the market. It’s a massive topic with an infinite number of fascinating tangents, most of which I’ll choose to ignore, because in my case, I refuse to believe that these five individuals are in any way leading a more fulfilling life because television is not in it.

Maybe they just haven’t sat in front of a 60’’ high-def showing of “Deadwood” yet. Maybe I’ll arrange that and summarily convert them before football season starts. I’ve always said that inside every non-conformist, a videophile is just dying to get out. Okay, this is the first time I’ve ever said (or typed) that, but I am going to say it more often. I promise.

HDTV is undeniably becoming more popular to the masses as manufacturers advance their ability to produce quality and quantity, retailers embrace the trend, and prices consequently drop. More pixels are leading to more payouts. The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) reports that total 2005 DTV (digital television) sales were more than 12 million units representing $17 billion USD. HD products represented 85% or $14.5 billion USD of those sales.

The rather obvious point is that sales figures support the fact that a sea change in the way we watch television is underway. Granted, many third world countries do not have the luxury of color television or even TV at all, much less the notion of high definition. Some make the point that as a technology is recognized by a society as essential, money is found to fund it. I agree. Wireless phones becoming popular in more remote regions of the globe are a somewhat relevant example, as they offer accessible communication where a certain infrastructure doesn’t exist. Now, powering a phone and a television are two very different things, and enjoying a lifestyle that allows time for viewing is an essential element, but history has shown us that mass communication always has profound effects on a society. Television certainly owns a prominent role in documenting our experiences. The first images of the Apollo space mission come to mind, among countless other milestones in our collective story appearing on the small screen. At its best, television is part of a noble equation; it is an avenue for checks and balances on the powers that be, a means of essential dissemination of vital information in times of crisis, a highly artistic medium, and an unrivaled sociological chronicle.

We’re at the start of a journey that significantly alters one prevalent experience in millions upon millions of lives. We are beginning a new way to watch television. It’s at this point that many argue that high-definition, however impressive, is essentially a new marketing technology designed to sell higher priced products and subscription services.

Although this may be part of the truth, it is an element in a larger truth, one of many that characterizes progress. More pixels, more detail, more color, and digital source signals do not sum up to a mere aesthetic improvement. High definition is not just a result of the capitalist mantra to continually desire new items because a plateau has been reached in terms of what we can currently be sold to satisfy the status quo.

When a change is made in the way we watch TV, it is a change in something that has remained largely unchanged for decades. It is more impressive, immersive experience, with more richness of color and detail. High-definition satisfies an expectation that we progress from the generations before, and expect more out of our lives. As advances in technology continually create new norms, we are right to expect that advancement should always be pursued. I’m not speaking of an irrational attachment to change, good or bad, or defective attention spans, or of mindless consumption. I’m talking about a pursuit of deeper beauty through images and stories more vividly detailed. Love, hate, ugliness, sin, virtue, transcendence, they’re all timeless, yet still open to redefinition by each successive generation.

In this case the medium is indeed the message. High definition is a both literal and symbolic. It actually is more pixels, more information, but it's also representative of our hunger for more definition in and of the world around us.

Which brings us back to The Five (their names have been omitted to protect the misinformed), whom I have mercilessly debriefed. My inquiry now focuses on The One. The One represents The Five. He is their champion. He’s left as the most worthy adversary.

He’s also the only one who would talk to me for more than five minutes. The Five are actually all friends of mine, and they know my affinity for video hardware. They wouldn’t be roped in to a debate about it. Two of them also had to get their kids to dance class and a third had a hangover. The fourth never answers his cell phone, but his membership might be revoked because there’s no philosophical reason he doesn’t have a television. His roommate has a 27’’ Sony, but he hates his roommate, who sleeps on the pull out couch in their studio apartment. They avoid each other. Hence the paucity of tube time for number four.

There’s still The One… So it begins.

I’ll call The One Slappy, because his older brother calls him that and he hates it. As you’ll see, I’m very frustrated with him, a little jealous, and extremely annoyed that he doesn’t display much passion in debating this “no TV” issue with me. The conversations take on a matter-of-fact, easygoing tone on his part. Slappy is damned unflappable, but I’ll break him down eventually.

Part II to come…

Although I want to keep the focus of tech*anovitas on video hardware, there's an interesting guide concerning removable media here:

http://www.digitalfaq.com/media/dvdmedia.htm

DigitalFAQ is a great site anyway, so by all means check it out.

It seems many people don't realize that, as with LCD panels, a relatively small number of companies actually manufacture the product. As is the way of the world, large companies outsource to the likes of MXL (Hitachi/Maxell), MCC (Mitsubishi Chemicals), and PVC (Pioneer).

Take a look at the section on fake media too.

Is The Day finally upon us? Well, no official announcement from the American Dell website, but it seems it's been announced in Japan. Check out a couple of links...

Engadget

HardForum

Furthermore, the price from JP seems to translate into roughly $1400 USD, which would definitely fit squarely under the "not good" heading. It's far from an actual price quote, so let's reserve judgement.

Check out the pic below.



The styling is improved, and by all acounts it's HDCP compliant, but thus far it doesn't seem that there are enough upgrades over the 2405 to justify a $1400 USD pricetag (even with the sales and coupons we're all anticipating using to purchase this).

My guess, however, is that it will retail for quite a bit less than $1400 USD in America. We'll soon see.