Sony Readies Clie Video Recorder

Sony will put a video recorder on sale in the U.S. this month, ahead of its Japanese launch date. The device stores television programs as digital video files on Memory Stick memory cards.

The PEGA-VR100K can connect to a television antenna, cable connection, satellite receiver, conventional VCR, or camcorder and records MPEG4 standard video, Sony said on its Web site.

It records at 15 frames per second, which is half that of NTSC television signal, in one of four quality modes from "high quality" at a data rate of 384 kilobits per second at 320 pixels by 240 pixels resolution, to "long play 2" at 64 kbps and 176 pixel by 144 pixel resolution, according to a company statement.

The high-quality mode, at 320 horizontal lines, is lower quality than an NTSC television picture, which has about 480 visible horizontal lines, although users are unlikely to see any difference on a small screen such as on a PDA.

Video Playback

The recordings can be watched on Sony's UX, NZ, NX, and TG series of Clie PDAs and on a personal computer using Apple Computer's QuickTime version 6 or higher software.

Any type of Memory Stick can be used with the gadget, although smaller Memory Stick Duo cards require an adapter. Users will want to choose higher capacity cards if they want to record in the higher quality modes. A 1GB card can store between 4 hours and 17 hours of video depending on the quality mode, while a 128MB card can accommodate between 30 minutes and just over 2 hours of video.

The device was announced in Japan earlier this month but its appearance in the U.S. during September will mean users there have a chance to get their hands on it before the Japanese launch on November 1.

In the U.S. the recorder will cost $300, which is slightly more than the Japanese price of $267.