Apple have recently announced the launch of their latest iPod that plays video as well as music.

This will be available initially in the US with 30 or 60 GB of storage and will be available in two colours - black and white.

This follows the highly successful iPod which sold more than 28 million since its launch in 2001.

The Future of DVD

The DVD format quickly replaced analogue video as the preferred medium for viewing movie material and has gained significant ground with the introduction of DVD recorders. However the next generation DVD format has already created tensions in the industry in what appears to be a rerun of the early VHS / Betamax competition.

Hard Disc Recorders

While DVD recorders are now more readily available they may still be reluctant to play all DVD's recorded on other machines! The pace of technological change has quickened and the converging of digital video and computer technology is resulting in another variant - DVD/hard disc recorders. Equipment now exists that combine the attributes of computer memory, to store digital video data, with the ability to transfer that data onto DVD disc for permanent storage.

An increasingly popular "hard disc" recorder is the Sky+Box enabling the viewer to pause and rewind live TV. Similar products are now available incorporating Freeview transmissions. It is conceivable that the DVD disc is just a transition before computer memory systems take hold - such as is occurring with new style iPods. For our own productions Missing Link now records straight to a mobile computer in preference to magnetic tape.

High Definition TV

One thing is certain, DVD does not provide a simple solution to the demise of video cassette recordings and not just because it adds another remote control to a households collection! It certainly provides far superior quality in both picture and sound and this is set to improve yet further with the roll out of HDTV (High Definition Television) which enables even more realistic images to be displayed in our living rooms. Under development in Japan is a "Super Hi-Vision" format for TV broadcasts which is said to be 36 times better than HDTV with a resolution of 7680x4320 pixels. Estimated availability 2015!

Missing Link DVD has its own sets of digital cameras producing true wide screen images for corporate films and videos. These are HDV ready for the new generation of LCD and plasma television screens now on the market.