Dave Zatz, Author at Zatz Not Funny!

Roku Breaks The $50 Barrier

THIS is how you bring Internet TV to the masses. In what will surely be the gadget stocking stuffer of 2011, Roku has introduced a $49.99 Roku LT model. I’ve been somewhat hard on Roku lately but, at fifty bucks (with HBO GO and YouTube on the way), all is now forgiven. In fact, anyone who … Read more

Roku Brings HBO GO To The Living Room

We’ve been pining for HBO GO on our HDTVs for some time. While we’ve seen some hacks and support is supposedly headed to Samsung devices this fall, I’ve got even better news to share with you today. As all Roku models will receive access to a dedicated HBO GO app by the end of the month. … Read more

CNET’s Sony SMP-N200 Streamer Review

There’s been a decent amount of interest in Sony’s new SMP-N200 digital media streamer – at least amongst those in the know as we’ve yet to see much marketing. Like many other players in this space, such as the recently revised WDTV Live and Apple TV, Sony’s latest iteration clocks in at the $100 price … Read more

Quad Tuning TiVo Premiere Elite Now Available

Click to enlarge. While TiVo, Inc hasn’t yet had much to say regarding availability of their new quad tuning TiVo Premiere Elite DVR, reseller WeaKnees just put a stake in the ground for October 10. While shipping dates on their web page have fluctuated these last few weeks, given the email blast above that indicates units are … Read more

Western Digital Refreshes WDTV Live Hardware

Western Digital has refreshed their WDTV Live line today and the new 1080p streamer ($100) features two notable upgrades over its WDTV Live Plus predecessor. First, WD has integrated 802.11n wireless capabilities – finally putting that competitive disadvantage to bed. Second, it inherits the richer UI as found on its big brother – the 1TB WDTV Live Hub (~$200). This iteration of the WDTV Live is bundled with the Hub’s somewhat larger remote that includes a numeric keypad. It’s not the most attractive thing, but it gets the job done on anything other than text entry and is certainly more practical than the minimalistic AppleTV remote. Also, on the hardware front, the new unit follows the industry trend of dropping component output. Regardless, the WDTV Live comes better equipped in the connectivity department than aTV or the Roku 2. The WDTV Live shares the same footprint as the prior generation model but it’s shorter and sleeker with enough heft that your HDMI cable won’t pull it off the TV stand (as it might a diminutive Roku 2).

Unloading Your Old iPhone For Cash

Click to enlarge. Thinking of unloading a prior generation iPhone, like me, ahead of the new iPhone 5? In the past I’ve turned to ebay and craigslist to recycle gadgets (for cash), but it’s become a hassle and I’ve been burned too many times (on ebay/PayPal). Leading me to an ebay consignment shop… until they … Read more

8 Months With The Verizon iPhone

With the iPhone 5 nearly upon us, it’s time to reflect the Verizon iPhone 4 variant I’ve possessed nearly 8 months. If you recall, I was one of those AT&T haters – continually plagued by dropped calls. In fact, I went so far as to declare AT&T’s service a personal liability and was quite literally first … Read more

Why Is Verizon Sweating Netflix?

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Apparently Verizon didn’t get the memo: If it’s Netflix versus cable, the MSOs have won. Verizon seems to think Netflix is some sort of competitor given recent FiOS TV customer outreach. As you can see in the photo at the bottom, for months, Verizon has run video on demand television commercials that prominently display their new release titles are available 4 weeks before Netflix DVD rentals. And today, I received the email below with a subject line that reads, “Want to know how FiOS beats Netflix?” Verizon does score a few points for calling out Netflix’s upcoming boneheaded division of services:

Netflix now makes you go to two places and pay two prices to watch movies on both streaming and DVDs.

Irrespective of Netflix’s upcoming split, for most of us, they’re just not direct competition to a cable company’s video on demand offering. There’s a sizable and growing contingent of cord cutters who utilize Netflix, amongst other services and other-the-air broadcast, to round out their entertainment options. But for those of us who subscribe to both cable and Netflix, the streaming service primarily and economically augments pay TV with a wide array of supplemental content — including back catalog movies or more obscure content and entire television seasons.