Skip to Content

New to the Mac? Check out TUAW's Mac 101
AOL Tech

creative posts

Auzentech's HDMI 1.3 X-Fi HomeTheater still coming soon, for $249.99

by Richard Lawler posted Aug 11th 2009 at 12:38PM

Still waiting for an alternative to the ASUS Xonar HDMI 1.3 audio card? Auzentech knows your pain and promises its Creative-powered X-Fi HomeTheater 7.1 sound card is on the way in "mid-August." Rather than waiting for actual shipping hardware to lay down your cash, you can, of course, pre-order right now and know that someday bitstreamed or PCM lossless audio from your HTPC will be a reality, though an all-in-one video and audio card is still our most fervent wish. The cost? $249.99, but owners of X-Fi Prelude and X-Meridian sound cards can slash $50 from that price, hit Auzentech's site for the dirty details.

Creative's Vado HD pocket camcorder sails to Europe

by Darren Murph posted Jan 14th 2009 at 7:01AM


Creative's 720p pocket camcorder, better known as the Vado HD, has been shipping for months now here in America, but if you're parked in one of those glorious European countries, you've been missing out. As of this week, said camcorder is shipping in Europe, though Creative fails to mention how many euros / pounds it'll take to procure. Any early adopters care to share the deal they received?

Creative's Vado HD 720p pocket camcorder reviewed: toe-to-toe with Mino HD

by Darren Murph posted Dec 11th 2008 at 12:46PM


First was the netbook craze -- suddenly, everyone was cool with a miniaturized laptop. Now, the same sentiment has apparently bled over to the camcorder realm, with the Mino HD, Zi6 and Vado HD all vying for that precious space in your front left pocket. The latter, Creative's latest, was recently reviewed over at CNET, and while it'd be wonderful to find a clear cut winner, critics simply couldn't say that it was definitively superior in all ways to Flip's formidable rival. In short, the Vado HD's video quality was slightly less awesome than that of the Mino HD, but the feature set on the Creative was found to be far superior. Before pulling the trigger on either, we'd have a peek at the read link to see what aspects are most important to you.

Hands-on shots of Creative's Vado HD 720p pocket camcorder

by Darren Murph posted Dec 9th 2008 at 10:31AM


Creative's recently unleashed Vado HD 720p pocket camcorder isn't dramatically different (design wise, anyway) than its predecessor, but it's obviously what's tucked inside that counts. Still, we have to admire the subtle but meaningful updates that Creative has applied here, and while beauty will strike everyone differently, we personally like the direction the Vado HD has taken. For a few more looks, saunter on down to the read link.

Creative's Vado HD 720p pocket camcorder now on sale for $199.99

by Darren Murph posted Dec 8th 2008 at 10:07AM


It was up for pre-order late last month, but now Creative's proper successor to the Vado (that'd be the Vado HD) is finally on sale and ready to ship. For those with incredibly short memories, this 720p pocket cam boasts HDMI connectivity, 8GB of inbuilt memory for up to two hours of HD footage, a carbon black chassis, 2-inch LCD screen and an integrated USB connector for easy exporting. As for pricing, the MSRP sits at $229.99, but even Creative's own webstore is offering it for $199.99.

Creative's $200 Vado HD pocket camcorder ready for pre-order

by Thomas Ricker posted Nov 26th 2008 at 2:09AM


We've seen these Amazon "leaks" time and again. So while the December 7th date for the Vado HD might be an educated guess, the details including that $200 price tag certainly look real enough. The display still measures 2-inches, but the beefier 3.3 x 7.9 x 6.3-inch solid state camcorder now brings 8GB of storage for up to 2 hours of 720p MPEG-4 recordings -- 8 hours at VGA quality. It also ships with an HDMI cable for instant playback to your like-equipped television. Otherwise, slot the cam into your PC's (XP and Vista, only) USB port to instantly share your works to YouTube and others with the help of the cam's built-in Vado Central Software. With this, the Kodak Zi6, and Flip Mino HD, there certainly won't be any shortage of pocket HD cameras of suspect-tweener quality to choose from this holiday season.

[Via epiZENter]

Kodak's new Zi6 HD pocket video camera for the YouTube set

by Paul Miller posted Jul 10th 2008 at 12:19AM


Sure, it might shoot 720p video, but you aren't gonna catch indie filmmakers capturing the next low-budget masterpiece on Kodak's new Zi6 HD pocket video camera. The camera is Kodak's response to Pure Digital's Flip and Creative's Vado, complete with upright form factor, YouTube friendliness, simple as could be interface, a flip-out USB plug (with some surprising spring action), and, of course, totally shoddy video quality. The camera is powered by a pair of AA batteries, sports a 2.4-inch LCD, and can switch between VGA video, 30fps HD and 60fps HD. It'll sell for $180 in September, in black or pink, but there's only 128MB of memory on board -- you'll have to spring for an SD card if you want to do any substantial shooting.

Auzen X-Fi HomeTheater 7.1 HDMI sound card does bitstream output from your HTPC

by Darren Murph posted Jun 20th 2008 at 11:33AM

Earlier this month, ASUS introduced the "world's first HDMI 1.3a compliant audio / video enhancement combo card." Who knew numero dos was so close behind? Auzentech has just announced its very own HDMI 1.3-native PCIe audio combo card, which is built around Creative's X-Fi processor and enables PC users to easily output 7.1-channel audio with no downsampling. Essentially, the Auzen X-Fi HomeTheater 7.1 "accepts video from either an internal or external connection, mixes it with digital audio, and outputs the combined video and lossless multichannel audio via a single HDMI 1.3 port." Yep, that means Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio codecs are fully supported. The only digs? For one, pricing remains a mystery, but the real kicker is the September release -- talk about a long wait.

Creative Xdock HD upconverts iPod content to 720p / 1080i

by Darren Murph posted Jan 7th 2008 at 9:00PM


We've no qualms with seeing yet another iPod dock that upscales material to HD, but it seems Creative got a bit too rambunctious when penning its press release for the Xdock HD. Contrary to its claims, the aforementioned device actually isn't the first to do what it does. 'Course, it may have a point with the whole "upscaling your audio to X-Fi Xtreme Fidelity," so we'll just consider it a wash. Nevertheless, this bugger connects to your home theater system via HDMI, component or composite and relies on analog / optical outputs for audio. It also outputs an HD interface, comes with a remote and has the ability to "distribute music throughout your home to X-Fi Wireless Receivers up to 100 feet away without requiring a wireless network." Unfortunately, the Xdock HD (bundled with one X-Fi Wireless Receiver) will set you back nearly four bills, but you can look for it later this Spring if it tickles your fancy.

[Via PCMag]

Creative intros Xmod Wireless sound system

by Donald Melanson posted May 23rd 2007 at 12:03PM


Creative has already extended its X-Fi audio processing technology beyond its sound cards (most recently to iPods), but it now looks to be trying to plant the sound-boosting gear in the rest of your house, and it's hoping that its new Xmod Wireless system will be the device to do it. As with its other X-Fi products, Creative is boasting that the system will make "MP3s sound better than CDs," with no setup or configuration required. Unlike the standard standard Xmod device, however, you won't have to sit at your computer to enjoy that impressive, if somewhat questionable feat, with the main Xmod Wireless unit able to transmit tunes to up to four receivers within a 100 foot range (only one is included). You're also apparently able to use the included remote with both the transmitter and receiver to control volume, song selection, and other functions. There's no WiFi here though, just the good 'ol 2.4GHz frequency -- which would seem to open up the possibility of interference, although Creative seems confident that won't be a problem. If you want to check it out for yourself, you can snag the bundle of one transmitter and one receiver now for $200, and as many additional receivers as you like for $100 apiece.

Creative releases Xdock, i600, and i500 iPod docks

by Erik Hanson posted Apr 11th 2007 at 4:51PM

Creative Xdock Wireless for iPodsCreative continues to cater to the iPod crowd with three new lines of docking accessories for Apple's players, including two with speakers, and one for pairing with home theaters or televisions. The X-Fi Sound System i600 is a copy of Creative's Z600 for Zen Vision:M, and the Playdock i500 and TravelSound i are modifications of the Zen's Z500 and TravelSound Zen V, all three going the built-in speaker route. Finally, the Xdock Wireless, which we first saw at CES, connects wirelessly to X-Fi remote receivers. From there it's wired to powered speakers or a home theater through line out, digital audio, S-video, or composite. Now let's hope Creative will put some of that iPod accessory income to good use building the next Zen Vision player.




    AOL News

    Other Weblogs Inc. Network blogs you might be interested in:

    Joystiq
    Download Squad
    The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)
    BloggingStocks
    Joystiq Xbox
    Autoblog
    Big Download
    Fanhouse NFL Blog