Look, 1.9 seconds to change the channel is way, way too long people -- we all know that. Thankfully, the bright engineers at Thomson realize it too, and that's why they've cranked out some seriously awesome advances to their ViBE encoders. The new "fast zapping solutions" enable 50% faster high-definition channel changing, and the secret is in the fancy simultaneous compression that most users won't even notice. In essence, it allows the STB to "quickly decode and display a low resolution version of the channel and transition to displaying the full HD resolution version without disrupting viewing," and if all goes well, we could see this become the de facto way of channel surfing by 2009. Gnarly, dudes.

Alright Minneapolis, you've had your fun. Now it's time for another swath of Comcast markets to indulge in the lavish joys that only DOCSIS 3.0 can provide. For those unaware, the aforesaid technology enables 50Mbps internet to be delivered over the cable company's infrastructure, which brings it up to speed (ahem) with offerings by fiber-based carriers Verizon and AT&T. In the next few weeks, the DOCSIS 3.0-based "Extreme 50" option will bring 50Mbps down / 5Mbps up to subscribers in parts of New England, Philadelphia and New Jersey. Better still, the company announced its intentions to bring the $139.95 per month service to ten other big markets where it will reach "about 10 million homes and businesses in the next few months." Oh, and if that's just too much intarwebz for you to handle, an "Ultra" 22Mbps downstream service will be available for $62.95 per month.

[Via Reuters, image courtesy of TheRedWoodMotel]

Apparently working out the details on the Big Ten Network squabble was just the beginning, since Comcast and Fox Cable Networks recently worked out a deal to add FX HD and SPEED HD. Already live in Chicago and in Pennsylvania, Multichannel News says the rollout should pick up momentum in the fourth quarter, with both 720p channels sliding onto HD basic tiers, so there shouldn't be much question whether you'll have it or not. It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia, Wrecked and daily motorsports action in high definition will surely find a welcome place in many TV watching schedules.

After Neural-THX Surround got around 14.5 minutes in the limelight with its Super Bowl XLII showing earlier this year, the technology has remained far, far away from the press. Now, however, SPEED is vowing to integrate Neural-THX Surround professional products "for its HD programming schedule covering NASCAR, Grand Am, IndyCar, etc." For those unfamiliar with the technology, it goes a little something like this: 5.1 sound from the track is taken in, beamed over stereo channels to minimize bandwidth usage and then decoded by specially equipped receivers for "5.1 surround" in the living room. From what we can tell, the tech should be ready to roll right now, so it's up to you to snatch up an AVR in order to take advantage.

Not that we usually expect to have a need for a tow truck driver, but the Speed Channel has surprised us with its new series Wrecked, focused on a company of tow truck drivers in a Chicago suburb. Speed Channel is pumping up the original content since it launched HD, and with the success of series like Ice Truckers and the recent premiere of the logger show Ax Men, we see where they're going with it, but... tow trucks, seriously? The series' ten-episode run starts off in July.

Those who can already smell the rubber burning are probably antsy to see SPEED finally go HD in February, and while there's still a few weeks left until the channel serves up 100 hours of NASCAR coverage in high-definition, here's a few more details to tide you over. Starting on the 7th of next month, the channel will be covering the Gatorade Duel 150s, the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race, NASCAR RaceDay and loads more surrounding the 50th anniversary of the Daytona 500. Additionally, it's aiming to bring other (read: non-live events) programming to high-definition as well, and according to SPEED's senior VP of production and network operations Rick Miner, the channel will be "transitioning all of its event programming to HD" over the course of the 2008 season. Oh, and just in case that wasn't enough for you gearheads, expect an all new interactive website to launch alongside the HD network, too.

Sure, it's not quite 100Mpbs, but hey, the folks in Massachusetts and Rhode Island will probably take what they can get. Verizon has just announced that Massachusetts and Rhode Island have now joined New York, Connecticut and New Jersey as states where Verizon "has increased the maximum connection speed of both its mid-tier and top-tier FiOS Internet services." Previously, their mid-range connection topped out at 15Mbps downstream and a paltry 2Mbps upstream, while the high-end package offered just 30Mbps up and 5Mbps down. Basically no other details were given, but Verizon did state that it planned on bringing similar speed boosts to "11 other states where the service is available" during the course of this year, but didn't mention any type of price decreases from the admittedly lofty monthly charges top-tier customers currently pay. Now, how about we get FiOS to more homes before giving all the lucky ones even more bandwidth to play with next time you get the itch to upgrade, okay Verizon?

[Via GigaOM]

While Sony's certainly had its fair share of blue laser supply issues, and the current generation of HD DVD / Blu-ray burners are sluggish at best, it looks like the first step towards marginally acceptable write speeds to next generation formats has been taken. According to Nikkei, Sanyo has developed a blue laser diode which will speed up data access, and moreover, should be able to reach write speeds of "up to 6x for dual-layer discs." Similar to LG's combo unit, this diode also plays nice with both HD DVD and Blu-ray recorders, but there's no word if a hybrid writer using the laser is in our immediate future. Still, any progress towards harmony between the formats -- not to mention being able to burn a dual-layer Blu-ray disc in time for your next birthday -- is a step in the right direction, so we're expecting nothing less than a 6x burner to be hitting shelves sooner rather than later, Sanyo. [Warning: read link requires subscription]

[Via Inquirer]