Even with falling hardware prices, the expense and yet to be finalised format war rages on with DVD writing technology deterring many a consumer. DVD+R/RW appear to be making headway gradually with both format flexibility and hardware integration into next generation platforms.

MACROMEDIA E-LEARNING STUDIO

A fully digital multitrack audio production suite for under $2,500

It turns out that Microsoft [I]is[/I] bringing out Windows XP Media Center Edition in Australia, but until such time as it materialises -- and Microsoft Australia is being very sketchy on the dates -- those of us looking to integrate our PC media files with our televisions and hi-fi systems have to turn to bridging solutions.

Our pick of the low-cost office suites has had a much-needed overhaul, and now battles Microsoft in terms of features, not just price.

Hitachi DZ-MV100E

Easy to set up and administer; has all the advantages which Linux offers.

As the iPod continues to be enhanced, and storage capacity increased, we had a look at the latest from Apple.

Recognising that the Linux desktop market is only going to grow, and that there's money to made in the corporate arena, Sun's Java Desktop 2003 is squarely aimed at companies looking for a cheap, easy, and compatible alternative to Microsoft's (often expensive) dominance.

Norman Virus Control is a very unobtrusive anti-virus program that sits in your system tray and performs much like Norton AntiVirus from Symantec. It scans all incoming emails, new files, removable media and downloaded files from the internet as a matter of course without any user interaction.

The Nikon Coolpix 5400 is the descendent of the Coolpix 5000. In the revamp, it has gained a new 1/1.8in CCD and 4x optical zoom but also loses a couple of useful features, like the LCD status panel and RAW file mode. True, there is a TIFF option, but this is a backwards move in our view.

The JNC has a reasonable range of features, including FM radio and voice recording, although no capacity for storage expansion. It can be also used as removable storage, for any file type. The software includes a simple tool to format the device, a firmware upgrade utility and RealOne Player Gold. There is no support for playlists, however, unless created within the player itself.

The widest format support, plus flawless wireless streaming, put this among the best network players we’ve seen so far

The 20-30GB Nomad Jukebox Zen NX is Creative's latest hard disk-based MP3/WMA player; an evolution of predecessor, the Zen. The model we reviewed was a 20GB unit, which equates to around 667 hours of 64Kbps WMA encoding, or 333 hours of 128Kbps MP3 encoding.

Once you get past the Taurus extremely small form factor and use it, its best feature becomes apparent: its ease of use.

With solid-state media still expensive and offering limited capacity, MP3 players with hard disks seem like the perfect solution.

The Targa TMU-401 MP3 player, whilst a little light in on-board storage, outperformed devices with larger storage capacities.

The name LiveMotion comes from its ability to bring compositions to life as animations; these are then output as QuickTime movies..

Digital photography has made enormous strides in recent years, and as a result, the technology is being incorporated into affordable consumer products.

As a portable music player the E-Sounds is a performer of the highest calibre across all styles.