Creative Labs Blazes Onto the Desktop With the Latest PC-DVD Entertainment Solutions

Creative® PC-DVD™ Encore 6X Dxr™3 Turns PCs Into High-Performance Entertainment Machines

MILPITAS, CA - March 31, 1999 - Expanding its line of award-winning PC-DVD solutions, Creative Labs, Inc. (NASDAQ: CREAF), the world's leading provider of multimedia products for the PC, today announced the shipment of its new Creative® PC-DVD™ Encore 6X Dxr™3 upgrade kit and the stand-alone Blaster DVD-ROM 6X drive. The Creative PC-DVD Encore 6X Dxr3 is designed for PC users who want to experience the ultimate in PC-DVD technology and performance.

PC-DVD Encore 6X Dxr3 features Creative's latest decoder card, the successor to the award-winning Dxr2 decoder card. Video quality has been significantly enhanced with this revision, and coupled with the PC-DVD 6X drive offers the ultimate PC-DVD solution. PC-DVD Encore 6X addresses multiple segments of the PC market with the latest DVD technology, including the entertainment enthusiast, home PC user and PC gamer. PC-DVD Encore 6X Dxr3 delivers enormous storage capacity (up to 17 gigabytes of data), enhanced full-motion, full-screen video plus Dolby Digital (AC-3) audio.

"PC-DVD Encore 6X Dxr3 is the latest offering in Creative's award-winning line of PC-DVD Encore solutions," said Chris Kukshtel, senior brand manager at Creative. "With Encore's new Dxr3 card, consumers will experience sharper, cinema-quality DVD video, plus, awesome audio for movies and games."

Creative PC-DVD Encore 6x Dxr3 - Advanced Video with Faster Access

Creative's PC-DVD Encore 6x Dxr3 kit ships with everything needed to experience the latest in PC-DVD technology - the new Dxr3 DVD decoder card, the PC-DVD 6X drive and three interactive DVD software titles.

Creative Dxr3 Decoder Card - Improved Image Quality

The next-generation Creative Dxr3 decoder card delivers impeccable image quality and provides better processing of color video at high resolutions. The decoder card features DynamicXtended Resolution™ (Dxr3) picture enhancement technology for playback of high-definition video with smoother full-screen video images. Dxr3's advanced architecture elevates video quality to the next level featuring:

• 6-tap filtering and scaling techniques virtually eliminate "combing" effects or artifacts that may appear around quickly moving objects, providing sharp, crisp and clean video images that deliver sharper, more vibrant video
• advanced video color processing that fully utilizes the on-board 24-bit DAC, giving users sharper video and clearer imaging
• Windows® resolutions of up to 1600x1200 at 85Hz, a significant increase from the Dxr2's 1280x1024 resolution
• connections directly to a TV with S-Video or Composite outputs

PC-DVD Audio Options

The Dxr3 offers multiple options for DVD audio - Dolby Digital, Dolby Surround, Dolby Pro Logic or stereo. When combined with Creative's Desktop Theater 5.1 or a Dolby Digital receiver, PC-DVD Encore 6X Dxr3 produces an immersive, six channel entertainment experience that will thrill die-hard gamers and movie enthusiasts. The Dxr3 card can also be connected to Dolby Surround and Dolby Pro Logic receivers for an alternate multi-channel configuration. Users can also connect Dxr3 to their Sound Blaster™ audio card for great stereo sound.

Creative PC-DVD 6X Drive

Included in PC-DVD Encore 6X and sold as a stand-alone in the Blaster DVD-ROM 6X, is the PC-DVD 6X drive, with a maximum transfer rate of 8.1MB/second (6x) for DVD-ROM data and 24X for CD-ROM data. The average access times of 120 ms (CD) and 180 ms (DVD), combined with a 512KB integrated buffer memory makes getting data off a disk a breeze. The PC-DVD 6X drive supports DVD-ROM, DVD-R, CD-Audio, CD-I, CD Extra, CD-ROM, CD-ROM/XA, Photo CD®, CD-RW, and DVD-Video.

Interactive DVD Titles Take Advantage of PC-DVD Technology

To help users experience the wonderful world of DVD, PC-DVD Encore 6X includes three interactive DVD titles:

• Riven: The Sequel to Myst, normally available on four CDs, is offered on a single DVD disk along with "The Making of Riven" DVD movie.
• The National Geographic 1990s DVD includes every picture, every advertisement, and every page from the 1990s issues of National Geographic. All the articles have been indexed for easy searching, and each page is printable. PC-DVD Encore 6X customers can upgrade to the Complete 109 Years of National Geographic from Creative's web site at www.creativelabs.com .
• Encyclopedias have finally come into their own with the Compton's Interactive DVD Encyclopedia - featuring 38,000 articles, an atlas, a dictionary, a thesaurus, and more. Compton also features DVD videos to help illustrate educational topics.

When the PC-DVD user wants to relax and watch a DVD movie, the Creative PC-DVD Player is there to control every aspect of DVD video, from fast forward and rewind to language selection and multiple angle control.

Blaster® DVD-ROM 6X

Available also in a stand-alone package is Creative's Blaster DVD-ROM 6X. Creative's Blaster DVD-ROM 6X is for Pentium owners and multimedia/technology enthusiasts who want to take advantage of the enormous capacity of DVD (up to 17gigabytes), replace their legacy PC-DVD drive, or wish to replace their CD-ROM drive. Blaster DVD-ROM 6X integrates 6X DVD-ROM technology with high-speed 24X CD-ROM data transfer.

Price & Availability

Creative's PC-DVD Encore 6X Dxr3 kit is available now at the suggested retail price of US$249.99. Blaster DVD ROM 6X is also available now at the suggested retail price of US$149.99.

Creative Technology Ltd. develops, manufactures and markets a wide array of advanced multimedia solutions for the PC, entertainment, education, music and productivity tools markets. Creative's products are marketed through the OEM, systems integrator and retail channels under a variety of trademarks, including the "Blaster" family name. With the new Sound Blaster® PCI standard, Creative has produced a solution that utilizes a combination of hardware and software for near-perfect compatibility with existing DOS and Windows titles. Creative's corporate headquarters and primary manufacturing are based in Singapore, with sales, distribution and research and development being carried out through an extensive, global network of subsidiaries located in North America, Europe, Asia and Africa.

This announcement relates to products whose launch are in the United States of America. The product names, contents, prices and availability may differ elsewhere in the world according to the local factors and requirements.

Sound Blaster and Blaster are registered trademarks and PC-DVD, DynamicXtended Resolution and Dxr3 are trademarks of Creative Technology Ltd., in the United States and/or other countries. All other products mentioned herein are trademarks of their respective owners and are hereby recognized as such.