Digit 2005-04 - Clevernotions.com

product news
Matchware Mediator 8
adds multimedia tools
MatchWare has announced Mediator 8, an update to its
multimedia software that includes a new interface design,
multi-user editing, advanced spell checking, vector drawing,
an enhanced multimedia catalogue and wizards. A new
multimedia catalogue visually enhances projects by dragging-
&-dropping professional interface templates, resizable buttons,
vector based illustrations and dynamic video players, the
company claims. It runs on Windows, and costs £36 for the
Standard version, and £210 for the Professional version.
Matchware, www.matchware.com
Amapi Pro real-time 3D
tool is added by Eovia
Eovia has announced InstantViz, an add-on for its Amapi
Pro 7.5 3D modelling software. Using technology from developer
Lumiscape, InstantViz uses the power of modern graphics
cards to provide real-time photorealistic renderings of projects,
according to Eovia. As well as allowing the real-time viewing
of fully textured objects, InstantViz can also create presentations
of projects, for example for client approval, at any stage in a
project. InstantViz costs £489 plus VAT, but Eovia is offering an
introductory price of £349 plus VAT until May 31. It runs on
Windows 2000 and XP, and requires a computer with at least
a NVidia GeForce 6600 or Quadro FX 1100 graphics card.
Eovia, www.eovia.com
22 d
Wacom boosts
its tablet displays
W
acom has launched a 21-inch version of its combination graphics tablet and LCD
display, the Cintiq. The Cintiq 21UX replaces the 18-inch Cintiq 18SX – adding a larger
screen, higher resolution and support for the company’s Intuos3 tablet technology.
The unit costs £1,899 plus VAT.
The Cintiq 21UX features a 21.3-inch screen with a 1,600-x-1,200 resolution and a 24-bit
colour depth. Using the Intuos3 technology, the tablet display features an optical resolution
of 5,080dpi and 1,024 levels of pressure sensitivity. It supports the Intuos3 series of pens,
including the provided multi-tip Grip Pen. Included tips are the brush-type stroke nib and
the felt pen provides frictioned drawing. An optional Airbrush is available.
The tablet sits on a removable base that can be pivoted 180 degrees in either direction
and tilted from 10 to 60 degrees vertically. Wacom says that this allows the tablet to be
treated like a piece of paper and manoeuvred into a comfortable position before drawing
strokes.
The tablet features the same user-configurable ExpressKeys and Touch Strips as the
Intuos3 tablets. The ExpressKeys are two four-button keypads, while the Touch Strips can
be used for scrolling and zooming.
Wacom, www.wacom.com
Dell boosts its mobile workstations
Dell has announced a new range of mobile workstations for 3D artists and video editors and
compositors based on Intel’s latest Pentium M processors and the new 915PM chipset. The M20
and M70 include Pentium M processors with speeds up to 2.13GHz and 533MHz DDR2 dualchannel
memory and feature PCI Express bus architectures.
The M20 starts at £999 plus VAT and includes ISV certifications and OpenGL graphics with the
ATI Mobility FireGL V3100, which offers 64MB of graphics RAM. Lighter-weight than the M70, the
M20 starts at 2.21kg, but has a lower graphics resolution
of either 1,024-x-758 or 1,400-x-1,050. The M70 starts
at £1,189 plus VAT and includes the NVidia Quadro FX
Go1400 256MB OpenGL graphics engine and 15.4-inch
wide-aspect displays, featuring a resolution of either
1,280-x-800, 1,680-x-1,050 or 1,920-x-1,200. The weight
of the M70 starts at 3.04kg. Both the M20 and M70 will
take up to 2GB of DDR2 533MHz dual channel memory
and either 60GB 7,200rpm or 80GB 5,400rpm hard drives.
Both come equipped with Windows XP.
Dell, www.dell.com/uk