Digital Media Bytes

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smartthings-watch

SmartThings iOS app adds Apple Watch capabilities
The fact that this update is coming to the iOS app for Apple Watch “further highlights SmartThings and Samsung’s commitment to an open platform,” The team behind SmartThings have released the SmartThings iOS app version 1.7.3 with Apple Watch integration.

Cable Cozies Up to TiVo & OTT
What a difference a few years makes. Former upstart TiVo was shunned by the cable industry for the better part of a decade, and Netflix has often ranked as enemy number one both for producing scads of Internet traffic, and for offering a competitive service to cable’s video-on-demand (VoD). Fast forward to today, however, and the cable industry has decided to mend fences all around.

Apple TV Remote Expected to Add Touch Pad in Redesign
The touch pad can be used for scrolling around and there will also be two physical buttons, the person said. The remote’s thicker size is comparable to the remote control for Amazon’s wireless speaker, the Echo, the person added.

Comast unveils Xfinity Share
Through Comcast’s new Xfinity Share app, X1 customers can live stream or send photos and recorded videos to their TV, or to the TV of another X1 customer, as well as live stream and share content to mobile phones.

3 thoughts on “Digital Media Bytes”

  1. Bout time Apple came with a better remote. Hopefully this one uses bluetooth instead of IR like all previous remotes by Apple. And hope it works with IMAC/mac mini for those of us who have a HTPC.

  2. IR is simple and reliable, bluetooth and other wireless tech they can keep. Roku are you listening?

  3. Yeah, the Apple TV remote is one of the worst ever. It’s the equivalent of Apple’s hockey puck mouse.

    IR has advantages if using a universal remote, but it’s way less capable – you won’t be doing voice, touch, or ear buds over IR. Also, IR requires line of sight. Bluetooth would be more interoperable for other Apple products, but may not be the best RF protocol for a remote. Many have been going with the Zigbee remote standard lately. I believe Fire TV is Bluetooth, but many cable/satellite boxes and now TiVo are using Zigbee.

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