Microsoft Sues TiVo. On Behalf of AT&T.

The plot thickens… After taking a pound of flesh from DISH Network (with more to come?), TiVo was looking for a repeat time shifting patent infringement performance from Verizon and AT&T. But AT&T isn’t quietly acquiescing to a licensing settlement. As Microsoft, who provides the Mediaroom DVR experience to AT&T’s U-verse customers, has just filed … Read more

The TiVo Bottle & Blanket Giveaway

As ardent fans know, TiVo had a quiet 2010 CES in the public eye — forgoing major announcements in favor of private briefings. Including a productive one of my own. And while it’s not yet time to blog what I’ve learned, I didn’t leave Vegas empty handed. One lucky ZNF reader will receive the TiVo … Read more

The Technology of 2009

Now that 2009 has come to a close, it’s time for some personal tech reflection – beyond the “boxes of the year” and my entry level HD video cam recommendation. By and large, my primary 2009 gadgetry looked quite similar to what I used regularly in 2008 (never minding some model upgrades): iPhone, Macbook, Xbox, TiVo. The two notable additions to my lineup were the Sonos S5 and Sprint’s edition of the Novatel MiFi. Although, I wouldn’t have been so dependent on that MiFi had AT&T not provided me significantly worse coverage in 2009 than in 2008.

Michael Gartenberg has put together his Best Personal Tech of 2009 for Engadget which is worth a read, as I agree with many of his selections. ;) So let’s focus on a few items he and I don’t see eye to eye on. Instead of the 27″ iMac, I’d rather single out Apple’s redesigned 21.5″ model. It has a much better price/performance/features ratio and is truly a bargain by Cupertino standards. Plus, it ships without screen issues. On the software front, Gartenberg highlights both Snow Leopard and Windows 7. Which are merely evolutionary upgrades by any measure. In fact, Snow Leopard would be called a service pack from anyone else and Microsoft’s most notable Windows 7 “feature” is not being Vista. Lastly, I’m not yet sold on any of the underpowered, novelty “pico” projector devices/functionality.

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TiVo Prepping New “Premiere” DVR?

tivo-premiere

Due to a possible shipping slip up, we may have just caught our first glimpse of the next model in TiVo’s Series3/HD line. When Patrick McCarron recently upgraded to a TiVo HD, his packaging contained a TiVo Premiere and Premiere XL setup guide. Which diagrams a back panel we’ve never seen before.

The reworked DVR is limited to a single multistream CableCARD slot (M-Card), versus the two slots found on prior HD models. Additionally, S-Video output has been dropped along with the dialup modem. All of which results in a slimmer package that should lower HD TiVo production costs.

Other than the “Premiere” branding, given my doubts we’ll see a retail tru2way TiVo anytime soon (reinforced by TiVo’s recent FCC filing), it seems like this would be an evolutionary product. However, it could still be significant if the DVR incorporates more horsepower, 3 or more tuners, and/or an updated TiVo user interface. Perhaps we’ll learn more about the hardware refresh next week from CES. (Thanks, bfdtv!)

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How’s Your Cable Company Treating You? (HD)

Being enrolled in auto-pay, I rarely see a cable bill. However, now that Dexter and Californication have come to an end for the year, I took a look at my latest statement before canceling Showtime ($16/mo) earlier this week. When I moved over the summer, from a Comcast region to Cox, I gave up several … Read more

TiVo Responds To The FCC (Cable Discriminates)

As you may have read earlier this month, the FCC went on the record in expressing their dissatisfaction with separable security CableCARD technology, related to industry openness and innovation. Something I’ve been harping on for ages. And there’s plenty of blame to go around. (Pot, meet kettle.) So the FCC has opened up the floor … Read more

BeyondTV To Power The Daily Show

Now that I’ve firmly planted a stake in the ground, declaring that we’ll regurgitate fewer press releases… let’s discuss a press release. Because Rakesh Agrawal, founder and CEO of SnapStream, is a good guy. And because I’ve been fascinated with automated business intelligence collection techniques since being collocated with a startup in that space during … Read more

Snowed In Gadgetry

As you may have heard, much of the mid-Atlantic region has been crippled by winter weather. And my neighborhood was hit with maybe 18″ of snow yesterday. So, having some indoor time on my hands, I jumped on a few gadgety projects and looked to digital media for distraction. Inspired by Mari’s netbook disaster, I … Read more