Hasta La Gadget!

Neuros has earned significant kudos with techies for its hackable OSD media player / recorder and its commitment to open source software. It’s no surprise then to see the company reaching out to its loyal community for input on what should be found in the third generation of the device. Yes, technically the OSD 2 isn’t even out of the developer kit stage yet, but Neuros is planning well ahead of time, with the 3.0 model unlikely to be seen for another 18 months. Founder Joe Born has confirmed a continuing partnership with Texas Instruments on an ARM-based unit, which should be able to play and record at 1080p / 60 with support for all the relevant formats and containers. There’ll be a minimum of 2GB DDR3 RAM, as well as a HTML5- and Flash-compliant browser, but the rest of the specs are up to you — if there’s some killer feature you simply must have, hit the read link and let Neuros know.

[Via Slashgear]

Filed under: HDTV, Home Entertainment

Neuros OSD 3 in development, makers want your input originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 29 Jul 2009 11:22:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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After a quick test run on Entone’s IPTV boxes, VUDU has now done the deed with a big time player. In a joint announcement today with LG, the outfit is announcing its first major foray into STB-less movie streaming. LG’s Netflix-friendly LH50 line of connected HDTVs will act as the hosts, with VUDU’s tried and true high-def streaming service acting as the highly anticipated guest. The outfit’s next generation movie platform will enable owners of the 47LH50, 50PS80, 60PS80 and 42LH50 to buy or rent HD and HDX (1080p) films on demand through a refreshed user interface that promises no stutters or buffering waits. The new VUDU also brings along instant fast forward and rewind as well as instant start for all movie qualities, and as before, there’s no monthly fee associated with the service. Eager to dive on in? It’ll be made available for everyone (existing owners included) starting next month, and just so you know, we definitely don’t envision LG being the last TV maker to slip under VUDU’s covers. The full release is after the break.

Update: From the sounds of Vudu’s solo PR, the LG sets are just the first off the line, so we’d expect a few more manufacturers to partner up soon.

Continue reading VUDU ditches the box, integrates into LG’s LH50 NetCast HDTVs

Filed under: HDTV, Home Entertainment

VUDU ditches the box, integrates into LG’s LH50 NetCast HDTVs originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 29 Jul 2009 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It seems that Brando can’t go a month without bringing out yet another slightly-improved domicile for your orphaned SATA HDDs. Following in the footsteps of the very recent Multimedia Dock, the latest unit adds H.264 decoding to the already present DivX, Xvid and MPEG-4, while output graduates to full 1080p. Featuring HDMI and a plethora of supported media formats, the humble docking station has certainly grown up, but is it enough to compete with standalone media players? Input flexibility would suggest so — the new device accepts 2.5-inch and 3.5-inch hard drives, alongside USB flash memory, SD, MMC, and MS cards — but alas, Brando loses the plot at the final hurdle, asking for an astronomical $199. With prettier alternatives available at half the price, this is unlikely to sell like hotcakes, but Brando’s breakneck refresh cycle give us the feeling it won’t be long before we see that perfect do-it-all dock.

Filed under: Peripherals, Storage

Brando HD Media Player Docking Station does multi-format 1080p originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 27 Jul 2009 15:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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With Panasonic recently announcing a 240GB camcorder, Canon has deemed this a good time to juice up the storage on its own product line with a pair of updated models. Both the HF 21 and the new flagship HF S11 double their predecessors‘ integrated memory to 64GB, with the latter also adding in a new night shooting mode and more advanced image stabilization to the mix. The expanded storage will allow up to five and a half hours of recording at the top quality settings, which pales in comparison to the 30+ hours you can get from Panasonic’s HDD-equipped beast. Other major specs, like the DIGIC DV III image processor, Full HD CMOS sensors, AVCHD format and SDHC expandability, have been left untouched. You can expect Japanese availability in early August, with the US and Europe probably joining in on the fun just as soon as the territory-specific VIXIA and Legria labels have been slapped on.

[Via Camcorder Info]

Filed under: Digital Cameras

Canon HF S11 and HF 21 AVCHD camcorders flash more memory in Japanese debut originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 16 Jul 2009 05:52:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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What do we have here then? An OEM netbook, looking remarkably like a recent ASUS iteration, has come to our attention with some bold claims in tow. Spec’d with a 1.6GHz VIA Nano processor and S3 Chrome 9 graphics, this promises to be one of the most potent netbooks yet and backs up that claim with up to 4GB of memory and 500GB of storage. The major attraction of all this extra juice is full 1080p video playback, which is somewhat confounded by the 1024 x 600 resolution and 10.1-inch screen, but can be pumped out to an external display via HDMI. Expect this to be rebadged and hitting store shelves some time soonish, at which point we may consider the distinction between netbooks and laptops entirely academic.

[Via liliputing]

Filed under: Laptops

F88 netbook stands out with HD playback, VIA Nano originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 10 Jul 2009 06:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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