Software Archives - Page 42 of 53

DigitalLife Wrap-Up, Part 2

HD DVD versus Blu-ray

As I mentioned earlier, I was mostly underwhelmed by the products I saw and was disappointed in what I didn’t see. For example, where the heck were the Zen Vision W and new Archos devices? Where was the new Akimbo+Movielink?

The new PepperPad is out (v3) and I’m still left wondering if there is a market for this thing. While it’s a definite improvement over earlier models (feels solid, looks nice) at $700 I expect people to gravitate towards larger, more full-featured devices (laptop, UMPC) or portable devices (PDA, smartphone): both running as low as $400 these days. I assume I’d be more comfortable over time, but I found it awkward typing on the small keys and split keyboard.

DigitalLife Wrap-Up, Part 1

Despite Amtrak breaking down and delaying my return, I made it home safely though fatigued. I’m not sure if less vendors attended DigitalLife this year, or if less vendors I cared about were present. Overall, I wasn’t very excited about most of the tech on display (other than the Dash) and am glad I only took one day for the event.
Two products in particular appealed to me as a geeky consumer — though I question their viability in the commercial marketplace.

First up is the revamped Neuros device, known as the OSD. The Neuros OSD is primarily designed to encode video, from whatever source you choose, and save it as an unprotected MPEG-4 onto a variety of memory cards or devices (PSP, iPod). The networked device also has the ability to playback this video at up to DVD resolution. But where it gets really interesting is that the OSD is open-source (Linux) and Neuros is offering cash bounties to developers who extend the feature set. For example, an EPG and Skype integration are in the works.

SlingPlayer Pocket PC v1.1 Beta 2 Released

Go get ‘er! What’s new in SlingPlayer Mobile for Pocket PC v1.1 BETA2: Widescreen (16:9) menu option added under Display Mode (available only when connected to a Slingbox PRO, Slingbox TUNER, or Slingbox AV) Shows correct number of Inputs for the Slingbox PRO, Slingbox TUNER and Slingbox AV Interface changes: The task bar now has … Read more

Interesting News Dave Hasn’t Covered

Never enough time… Walgreens testing RedBox DVD kiosks. (Davis Freeberg) SageTV get its groove on with SlimServer. (eHomeUpgrade) Placeshifting coming to Zune? (PVRWire) Hardware support for Microsoft IPTV expands. (EngadgetHD)

Interesting News Dave Hasn’t Covered

Never enough time… Orb 2.0 public beta available. (jkOnTheRun) Dave quizzes Motorola exec on OCAP. (PVRWire) EvokeTV bites the dust. (GigaOM) Moxi picks up three DVR UI patents. (Press Release) DirecTV, HDTV, and the resolution question. (Missing Remote)

The EFF Is Angry, Wants TiVoToGo On S3

So you may have read (or experienced) that TiVoToGo, Multi-room Viewing, and external hard drive storage features are not active on the Series3. As I wrote over on Engadget, TiVo requires CableLabs (the CableCARD people) certification — and they are particularly sensitive to content owner rights. I assume TiVo submitted the S3 without these features … Read more

The 2nd Generation Slingbox Resource Page

Reviews Dave’s overview PVRWire podcast with Sling CEO and Dave PC Mag review CNET Slingbox Pro review CNET Slingbox AV review CNET Slingbox Tuner review Shopping Slingbox Pro: Amazon, NewEgg, Circuity City, Buy.com Slingbox AV: Amazon, NewEgg, Circuit City, Best Buy Slingbox Tuner: Amazon, NewEgg, Circuit City HD Connect: coming later this fall Software downloads: … Read more

Interesting News Dave Hasn’t Covered

Never enough time… Custon BeyondTV GUI created for Hauppauge media extender. (SnapStream) SageTV looks for Mac beta volunteers. (PVRWire) AT&T’s U-verse going high def soon? (EngadgetHD) Sony creates choose-your-ending TiVo ad. (Engadget)