dvds

Study: Screen time bad for baby

Parents feeding their babies a steady media diet of DVDs such as Baby Einstein might want to reconsider. A new study from researchers at the University of Washington reports an unfavorable link between heavy media intake by babies less than two years old and slow language development.

In fact, the study reports that every hour infants and toddlers spend watching DVDs or TV shows such as Barney translates into a weaker score on standardized vocabulary tests than children who don't watch media. Every hour of screen time turns into six to eight words lost on the test, according to … Read more

Mustek MP80D: Portable, you say?

We looked at the MP80D's little brother, the MP70D, a few months back, and this beast is similar--but with a larger screen (8 inches to the MP70D's measly 7). It's a decent little DVD player--it does that job really quite well. Sharp picture, actually in sync with the sound, all the options you'd expect, and it's all very easy to use.

The problems arise when you try to use the integrated Freeview TV. Standing on the top floor of our new office, waving the flimsy aerial around like a glow-stick in a nightclub had Crave … Read more

Thanks for the Blu-rays, Fox. Um, now what?

To: Fox Home Entertainment From: Caroline McCarthy, Crave Re: What's with the Blu-rays?

Fox, you have been all too generous. I'm not a movie critic. I'm not a DVD reviewer. I'm not even employed as a reviewer here at CNET. But it's always a pleasant surprise when a package arrives from you guys every few weeks and there's a complimentary Blu-ray Disc inside. Today, it was an especially nice surprise when Eragon showed up in my mailbox. (I'm a "so bad it's good" fan.)

But here's my dilemma. I … Read more

Blockbuster courts rogue Netflixers...again

In the face of the juggernaut that is Netflix, lagging movie rental giant Blockbuster has tried many an incentive to convince viewers that it's no dinosaur. Since entering the online DVD rental business in 2004, Blockbuster has instituted "Total Access," a system of online-and-offline rentals geared toward Netflix users who may be disgruntled by the fact that they can't just hop in their cars and pick out movies on the fly.

This week, Blockbuster is taking a sharper jab at Netflix. With the President's Day long weekend underway, the rental company is attempting to capitalize … Read more

'Media crusher' keeps secrets safe

We have no problem with shredding pulp documents, but it's always felt wrong to break CDs and DVDs. For one thing, we've never been sure how to do it exactly. Do you use tools? If so, what kind? Breaking discs with your bare hands seems like an unnecessary risk of personal injury.

So it makes perfect sense that something like Elcom's "media crusher" would come along. Fareastgizmos reports that the crusher, which is powered by a USB connection, "takes only 5 seconds to permanently destroy" CDs and DVDs.

The device doesn't literally … Read more