New Technology Reviews!.: director

Star Wars Blu-rays first to offer THX Media Director tech

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The Star Wars Saga Blu-ray boxset, out on September 12, will be the first software release to feature THX's new Media Director 'smart content' technology.</div>
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Media Director enables your home entertainment hardware to automatically choose the most appropriate audio and video playback settings – meaning you'll always get what the director intended.</div>
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The technology works by having metadata encoded into the software, be it a Blu-ray, console game or CD. However, it requires Media Director-enabled hardware to work – a Blu-ray player or TV for instance – and at present no such technology exists.</div>
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Giveth and taketh away</h4>
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That could change in the coming year, though. THX has announced at the CEDIA 2011 Expo that it has signed up electronics experts Analog Devices, Sigma Designs and Silicon Image to its cause, making it easier for products to be developed.</div>
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So buyers of the Star Wars package can consider themselves futureproofed – and more Media Director-certified discs will appear in the coming months.</div>
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THX's Senior Vice President Rick Dean told TechRadar the thinking behind his company's innovation.</div>
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With Media Director, says Dean, 'You would always see the depth of contrast and intensity of colour which are part of the artistic intent, the emotional impact that is programmed into the look and feel of any movie. It would be like having the director personally tune your TV.'</div>
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Star Wars Blu-rays first to offer THX Media Director tech

The Star Wars Saga Blu-ray boxset, out on September 12, will be the first software release to feature THX's new Media Director ...

Mint "busy developing an iPad App"

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Apple fans who are still looking for a replacement for Quicken or Quicken Essentials on the Mac might want to hold out for the Mint iPad app. The company has been hounded by iPad users for quite some time to make a native app, and TUAW reader Steve C. pointed out that the company has admitted that they're working on a "brand new experience for the iPad."</div>
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In the note above, found on Mint's GetSatisfaction support forum, Mint Customer Advocacy Director Stephen Mann notes that they can't confirm any dates yet and are asking Mint users to "please hold on for just a little while longer."</div>
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Mint's free iPhone app has been extremely popular with users, with a 4.5-star rating for the current version on the App Store. The company is part of Intuit, and its web-based app is known for excellent budgeting and automatic categorization functions.</div>
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Mint "busy developing an iPad App"

Apple fans who are still looking for a replacement for Quicken or Quicken Essentials on the Mac might want to hold out for the Mint iPa...