2002 Holiday Techno-Wish List
It's that time of year again, when we pause to think about peace on earth, good will toward men (and women), and accumulating lots of material things. If you have a digital video editor on your list, or even someone who just likes to play with high-tech toys, we've put together a group of great products that might just make that technophile in your life light up with joy on Christmas morning. Or, if you're the digi-vid cutter in your abode, do what we do -- buy some of this stuff for yourself, making sure to write it all off as a business expense come April 15th.
Sony DRU-500A DVD EverythingIt's about time somebody solved the problem of which DVD rewritable format would rule the roost. Although Sony didn't exactly solve the problem, it came up with a shotgun-style solution by giving us a $340 drive that can handle 'em all! Well, not quite -- they left out DVD-RAM -- but hey, this is close enough for us: it handles DVD, DVD+RW/+R, DVD-RW/-R, CD-R, and CD-RW. That certainly looks like an alphabet soup, but suffice to say that it can burn data onto just about any disk you throw at it. Available in internal and external trim, this king of the DVD hill can burn DVDs at 4x, and can even take care of any CD format you desire, too. Too bad there's no Mac support yet for this do-almost-all product. We have one of these in-house, so look for a full review of this versatile drive coming up soon on DigitalVideoEditing.com.
Maxtor Personal Storage 5000DVIf you're lax about backing up everything, make it easy on yourself with the new "OneTouch" backup system by Maxtor. The Personal Storage 5000DV not only serves your backup needs with a simple button push, it can store 120GB of data, and with its 9ms seek time, we tested it reading at 35MB/sec. and writing at 20MB/sec.-- more than fast enough for dual stream DV editing. The drive runs quiet and cool, looks sleek and does everything it's supposed to do, and then some. It's a bargain at $299, but if you need more space, try to find the 5000DV's big brother, the $399 5000XT, which can hold a whopping 250GB, albeit at only 5400RPM instead of the 5000DV's 7200RPM.
Bose Noise-Canceling HeadphonesBugged by noise? If your nemesis is a computer fan, a jet's turbofan, or any droning noise in between, put these $300 Bose noise-canceling headphones over your ears and revel in the sweet, sweet tranquility that is silence. Well, it's not absolute silence, but outside racket is dramatically reduced while you listen to your favorite music, or just enjoy the absence of sound. Great for those long, tedious flights, where you can sleep in heavenly peace as your gossamer-winged tin can climbs toward the heavens.
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EluminX Illuminated KeyboardSome of our intrepid testing staff here at the Midwest Test Facility sometimes like to work in near-darkness -- they say it helps them get into the dark mood sometimes required for their unflinching objectivity. For those spooky late-night typing sessions, the $100 EluminiX lighted keyboard is just the thing. Besides, it's just so spacey-looking! Thanks to its "flat panel ElectroLuminescent" technology, this sleek keyboard lights up your fingertips with its aquamarine glow. Comes in black or bone (huh?) and is for PC only.
Sony MicrovaultWe've always been a sucker for these little key ring drives ever since the first one hit the market a while back. But now Sony takes the concept to the next level with a USB 2.0 version of this handiest of handy ideas. The heftiest one holds 256MB ($200), although we wish there were a 1-gig model, but we're guessing it won't be long until higher-capacity units are available. Nevertheless, we like the fact that this little pocket storehouse transfers data at a rate that's more than 40 times faster than its old-fashioned USB 1.1 brethren, and we also dig its twenty-first century styling. Think of the possibilities -- store your Avid settings on this baby, or even scads of your favorite graphics or your own custom countdown. It's a techno-accessory that's surely to be in the pockets of stylin' digi-vid jockeys everywhere. Is that $200 price too steep? The 32MB model is only $60.
Laird CapDiv Mini Direct DV RecorderSlip this 13-ounce wonder onto your belt clip, hit the start/stop button on your vid-cam, and you're off and running, recording 4.5 hours of DV footage. Laird's CapDiv Mini Direct DV recorder (3.5-hour model is $1,295, 4.5-hour, $1,595) further miniaturizes the direct-DV concept, where you use this little 1.75 x 4 x 4.75-inch nugget to eliminate DV tape from your life. Meanwhile, back at the edit bay, Final Cut Pro or Avid Xpress DV will recognize the CapDiv as an external hard drive. Look ma, no capturing -- your footage is ready to go right away. Great for news operations. And if you still want to use tape, go right ahead -- CapDiv can record your footage while the tape serves as a backup. But we're betting you will abandon tape after experiencing this little gem -- and we're all for anything that can save a step or two.
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