Dave Zatz I didn’t originally report the Cisco eyeing TiVo rumors of last week. The story struck me as pure speculation without any concrete sources cited. Had the writer not listed Nintendo as a possible acquisition target, I might have been able to evaluate the proposition more seriously. Trust me, Nintendo won’t be bought by an American … Read more
Several weeks ago Thomas Hawk reported on a method to improve your odds when dealing with backordered Netflix movies. It goes like this… you only fill your queue with out-of-stock DVDs and presumably Netflix has no choice but to fulfill your request. Nice theory… but in reality we haven’t gotten a new movie in several … Read more
In case you weren’t aware, a few months back my Engadget handlers let me out of the basement research department to write the occasional tutorial. This week’s how-to describes streaming any audio through your TiVo, such as Sirius, XM, or your locked down iTunes. While the hack isn’t new, it isn’t well publicized so I … Read more
Microsoft has submitted a patent application encompassing the construction of an electronic program guide (EPG) from a variety of sources. For example, the DVR might grab guide info from multiple feeds and then compare it to scannable channels and build a lineup grid based on the results. Doesn’t sound much different than most other modern … Read more
If you recall, MovieBeam was a Disney service similar to Akimbo offering pay-per-view rentals of downloaded movies via leased set-top boxes. After testing the service in a few markets, Disney shut it down and later spun off the company. Most, including myself, figured it was gone for good despite comments that service would be relaunched … Read more
Echostar plans to expand DISH Network bandwidth with Wednesday’s launch of satellite X. Adding an extra satellite doesn’t really impress me, but I am intrigued by the launch details. As with DirecTV and XM, Echostar has enlisted Sea Launch’s Odyssey platform — a vessel that motors out to sea for launch. Sea Launch will be … Read more
Wired is out with their annual Vaporware Awards. As with last year, TiVo has made the list… this time placing tenth for failing to deliver a stand-alone HD model and a Mac version of TiVoToGo. While it’s true they didn’t surface in 2005, I’m hopeful we’ll see both in 2006. Wired says: High-def TiVo and … Read more
TiVo has released their annual Super Bowl analysis compiled from an “anonymous” sampling of data from 10,000 boxes. On average, TiVo viewers hit rewind, replay, or pause more than 100 times during the broadcast. Two of Pittsburgh’s touchdowns were replayed more than four times each and Ameriquest topped the most replayed commercials. Many of the … Read more