Smart and Friendly Announces CD Racer; New Low-Cost CD-Recorder with CD-RW ReWritability Opens up New Consumer Markets.

CHATSWORTH, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 23, 1998--

CD Racer Sets a New Standard for Price/Performance in Consumer,

Small Office and Home Office Applications

In a dramatic step that makes CD-RW products more readily available to all users in the fast-paced consumer and small office markets, Smart and Friendly, the industry's largest privately held manufacturer of CD-Recordable, CD-ROM, and optical storage technology, today introduced the CD Racer (Part No. SAF792), the lowest cost CD-Recorder with CD-RW ReWritability ever in the Smart and Friendly product line.

The new CD Racer internal offers consumers both the utility and power they demand as well as a comprehensive software suite at no additional cost.

"This product will open up a new market for CD-Recorders with CD-RW ReWritability," said Perry Solomon, president and chief executive officer of Smart and Friendly. "For the first time, consumers who had never considered CD-RW technology can now easily apply it to any number of applications including file back up, customization of music CDs, and creation of multimedia presentations."

According to Solomon, the CD Racer will redefine consumer expectations of CD-Recorders. "The CD Racer sets a new value level for CD-Recorders, and from now on, consumers are going to look differently at the affordability of CD-RW solutions," he said.

"This is a CD-RW to watch," said Toren Ajk, research analyst at Peripheral Research, Santa Barbara, CA. "CD-RW pricing is coming down, but until now, no one has come up with a really low-cost product. This one could generate interest."

According to Solomon, the CD-Racer is a reflection of Smart and Friendly's basic business philosophy: "The CD Racer underscores our company's commitment to deliver the highest-value products to our customers," said Solomon. "Our goal with the release of every product is to provide our customers with the ultimate 'out-of-box' experience."

To fulfill the company's commitment to its customers, Smart and Friendly has included a comprehensive software suite in the CD Racer featuring a number of popular software applications such as: -0-

--   Adaptec Easy CD Creator Standard Edition: Enables users to create
     music, audio, data, video or mixed-mode CDs. Easy CD Creator runs
     on Windows 95, Windows 98 and Windows NT 4.0.
--   Smart and Friendly CD Consultant: Simplifies the installation
     process. This utility gives users the ability to automatically
     install software applications they select from among those
     received with the CD-Recorder.
--   Diamond Cut Enhance/CDR: Gives users the ability to make any
     audio sound better.
--   MediaPath MediaAgent: Efficiently finds, uses, and manages CD-ROM
     resources on the network.
--   ECI Disc Inspector Pro: Ensures that discs are written properly.
--   CD-RW Blank Disc: Each CD Racer includes a Smart and Friendly
     blank CD-RW disc.

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The CD Racer Writes at 2x, ReWrites at 2x and Playsback at 24x. The product is shipping now.

Smart and Friendly products are available at leading retail outlets including American TV, Best Buy, CDW, CompUSA, ComputAbility, Damark, DataVision, Fred Meyer, Fry's Electronics, The Good Guys, Insight Direct, J&R Computer World, Micro Center, Micro Warehouse, Nationwide Computers, Nebraska Furniture Mart and PC Connection, and to resellers through D&H, Ingram Micro, Merisel, Synnex, and Tech Data.

Smart and Friendly products are available internationally through a network of in-country distributors and globally through CHS, Ingram Micro and Tech Data.

About Smart and Friendly: Smart and Friendly, Inc. is recognized as the industry's largest privately held manufacturer of CD-Recordable, CD-ReWritable, CD-ROM, and optical storage technology. The company was recently named the country's Number One Supplier to Retail of CD-Recorders and CD-ReWritable products by Personal Technology Research (PTR), publishers of the HOT Market Monitor USA.

Later, Smart and Friendly was selected by NewMedia Magazine as one of the digital media industry's most influential suppliers, and placed it on the NewMedia 500 List. Smart and Friendly President and CEO Perry Solomon was recently named to the Board of Directors of the Optical Storage Technology Association (OSTA).

For product and sales information, contact Smart and Friendly at 20520 Nordhoff Street, Chatsworth, CA 91311; http://www.smartandfriendly.com and http://www.smartandfriendly.com/promo.html

Phone [phone] or 818/772-8001, fax [phone]. Smart and Friendly also offers free technical support over a toll-free line.

Keywords: Adaptec, CD-R, CD-ROM, CD-RW, Hewlett Packard, H-P, Iomega, Jaz, Kodak, New Me dia, OSTA, Philips, Recordable, ReWritable, Ricoh, Smart and Friendly, storage, Syquest, Tracer Technology, Zip

Note: Smart and Friendly is introducing an exciting new line of CD-Recorders at Comdex. For more information, visit us in the Las Vegas Convention Center at booth L6659.

Note to Editors: CD Racer is a registered trademark of Smart and Friendly Inc. Any other product names are registered trademarks of their respective companies.