Know Your Rights: What to do when the RIAA comes calling

August 31st, 2007 by

Nilay Patel

Filed under: Features

Know Your Rights is Engadget's new technology law series, written by our own totally punk copyright attorney Nilay Patel. In it we'll try to answer some fundamental tech-law questions to help you stay out of trouble in this brave new world. Disclaimer: Although this post was written by an attorney, it is not meant as legal advice or analysis and should not be taken as such.

Preface: There's been a lot of discussion about the RIAA's, shall we say "controversial" (and we're being generous here) tactics in suing P2P users who download copyrighted content; especially this week, what with the EFF releasing its "RIAA v. The People: Four Years Later" report. But it's never been easy to find information about the nuts-and-bolts of what happens when you get that first letter from the RIAA. We're not going to get into our feelings about the RIAA and MPAA (you probably already know what we think), but since we've (read: Nilay) been involved in a couple successful defenses -- and a lot of unhappy settlements -- we thought we'd try and break down the process for you. We're not telling you how to avoid or get out of trouble with the RIAA, just how it is that trouble usually operates.

Help! I'm being sued by the RIAA!

Wow, bad luck for you. The RIAA really only sues about 6,000 people a year, mostly those who use FastTrack clients like Kazaa. Users of other networks have been sued, of course, but it's by far Kazaa users who get sued the most often, and generally those who have been unknowingly sharing files. That's a drop in the bucket compared the to estimated nine million people who use P2P software every month.

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Sony adds Bluetooth to fresh line of nav-u GPS units

August 31st, 2007 by

Paul Miller

Filed under: GPS

GPS without hands-free calling is hardly worth its weight in silicon these days, and Sony is getting in on the game in Europe with its new nav-u personal navigation devices. The 4.8-inch NV-U93T (pictured) and NV-U83 in particular are getting the new Bluetooth functionality. The U93T bests its peer with a broad selection of Europe maps, and live traffic info, the latter of which is optional with the U83. You can control either device with "Gesture Command," which allows you to scribble symbols on the screen and be presented with directions home or to the nearest gas station. If you're not quite ready to take the Bluetooth plunge, Sony also has the 4.3-inch NV-U73T and NV-U53, which both do Gesture Command, and hold the same traffic info and Europe map differentiations of big brother 4.8-inchers. All four models will be out in Europe this November, ranging from 249 to 379 Euro ($340 to $517 US).

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DirecTV HR21 Pro gets leaked

August 31st, 2007 by

Erik Hanson

Filed under: HDTV, Home Entertainment

We first stumbled upon a prototype of the DirecTV D-HR20P DVR at Electronic House Expo last year, but haven't heard anything about it since then. Now with CEDIA coming up, a promo image of what could be the next evolution in this design has been leaked, the HR21 Pro. The DVR will reportedly handle 100 hours of high-def recording and output it at 1080p over optical HDMI, but lacks any over-the-air antenna inputs, probably due to DirecTV's 100-channel rollout plan. We should see it in November, so clear out some rackmount space... you do have a rack to mount it in, right?

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At Rapleaf, your personals are public

August 31st, 2007 by

CNET News.com

The start-up aggregates social-networking profiles and, through TrustFuse, opens the possibility of selling that data to marketers.

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Sony unveils Blu-ray equipped HTP-BD2RSF HTIB system

August 31st, 2007 by

Matt Burns

Filed under: HDTV, Home Entertainment

It was only a matter of time until Blu-ray hit the home theater in a box systems. Sony is taking their HT-SF2000 HTIB, adding the BDP-S300, and throwing in the BD Spider-Man trilogy for kicks. The system is built for HDMI, as the receiver has three inputs and one out, so besides speaker wire, users aren't going to have many cables to deal with. Plus, all that HDMI allows for auto-setup, in Sony's parlance: Digital Cinema Auto Calibration. HTIB systems have never been known for their sound quality and something tells us this 1000W system is going to be exactly top-notch, but that said, if priced right, it could be a great option for some with limited budget and a need for Blu-ray. The HTP-BD2RSF is currently announce for the European market only at an unknown sum, but something tells us that Sony is going to drop sometime very similar at CEDIA next week.

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Samsung adds 225UW VoIP display to lineup

August 31st, 2007 by

Joshua Topolsky

Filed under: Displays, Networking

Samsung announced a few new items at IFA today, but one of the more interesting finds in its treasure trove of mysterious electronic goodness were two LCD displays equipped with built-in 2.0-megapixel webcams, 1680 x 1050 resolution, 10/100 ethernet ports, and four or two powered USB jacks (the 220TN and 225UW, respectively). The 220TN, which you’ve probably seen already, rocks an onboard 500MHz CPU and an embedded version of Windows XP, thus alleviating your need for a PC (even for Skype). Its new kid brother, the 225UW, can’t make that same claim, though the specs are dangerously similar (save for that pesky “look-ma-no-hands” processor action). No word on pricing or availability, but you’ll know as soon as we do.

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