Hasta La Gadget!

Welcome to 2013, and with CES nearly upon us, we have returned with a new podcast episode to wrap up all the pre-show releases and get ready for what’s to come. All the new LG 4K, OLED and laser projector stuff? It’s in here, and Samsung’s display teases too. We’ll even discuss Ben’s DirecTV Genie DVR review and the odds of whether the rumored pay-for-only-the-channels-you-want Intel “virtual cable” service launches soon (probably not). The next time you hear from us we’ll be coming live from Las Vegas, right now you can press play for our official preview episode.

Hosts: Ben Drawbaugh (@bjdraw), Richard Lawler (@rjcc)

Producer: James Trew (@itstrew)

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Continue reading Engadget HD Podcast 330 – 1.3.2013

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The busy developers behind the Plex media server / client system have rung in 2013 with a slew of updates, this time targeting the company’s native Windows 8 app, the Plex/Web interface and also the server software itself. On Windows 8, it’s added audio/subtitle stream selection, universal search (seen above), some UI tweaks and more. On the web access front it’s sporting retina-ready graphics, the ability to upload custom posters and some Flash video player fixes, among other tweaks. Finally, to make all this go (you’ll need to update it to connect to the new Windows 8 app, as our own Sean Cooper found out) the media server gains a series of fixes, plus a speed boost on some DLNA streaming, searching for music by album and the necessary backend fixes to support Plex/Web’s poster upload feature. More improvements are promised later this year, for now just hit the source link for the full list of changes, or check for an update on your platform of choice.

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Source: Plex, Plex Forums, Get Plex

This week we say goodbye to 2012, and after the New Year’s Eve festivities tonight we welcome not only college football bowl games and pro football playoffs, but also the return of many of our regularly scheduled TV shows. EHD podcast fave Justified also makes an appearance this week as seaosn three comes to Blu-ray. Portlandia fans should be ready to put a bird on it, and all those who’ve remained Downton Abbey spoiler free can check out the series’ return Sunday night. Look below for the highlights this week, followed after the break by our weekly listing of what to look out for in TV, Blu-ray and videogames.

Looper
This time travel flick stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Bruce Willis playing a hitman that suddenly has the inconvenience of having both his present and future self existing at once, to the dismay of his employers. As with all movies that put time travel at their center it quickly gets more complicated, but there are some decent special effects scenes that make it well worth checking out in HD.
($19.99 on Amazon)

College Football
Bowls and bowls and bowls. While we’re still awaiting the championship game, there are several big time games scattered throughout the week, plus a bevy of smaller bowls to keep things interesting. Check after the break for the dates, times and teams, and don’t skip over the college football championship that will be played this week as Sam Houston State and North Dakota State vie for the FCS (aka DI-AA) crown

Over/Under
This USA show wasn’t picked up for a series, but its two hour pilot will air Friday night. Its plot follows a fallen day trader / degenerate gambler that starts a high-end booking business. We highlight it because fans of Breaking Bad (and, we guess, Revolution, if it has fans) might want to check out Giancarlo Esposito popping up in a supporting role.
(USA, January 4th, 10PM)

Continue reading Must See HDTV (December 31st – January 6th)

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DirecTV announced today that it will raise its prices effected February 7, 2013, with the average customer’s bill going up about 4.5 percent. The card shown above displays the new rates (hit the source link to see them all) which it claims are up less than cable competitor’s price hikes, and are pushed by programming costs that have gone up eight percent. The last time we noted an increase in prices, DirecTV had just added a slew of HD channels. This time, it comes after a year that’s seen a number of DVR upgrades, more new channels, a lower price for Sunday Ticket, the launch DirecTV Everywhere features and, of course, a battle over programming costs with Viacom. We predicted that last bit would be reflected sooner or later in a pricing adjustment and it appears the time has come. So tell us DirecTV customers, are the new features, and keeping all those channels worth an increase to you, or are you thinking of moving on?

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Source: DirecTV

Even though most of us are enjoying a holiday break and our favorite TV shows are too, there’s still a few things worth checking out this week. Look below for the highlights this week, followed after the break by our weekly listing of what to look out for in TV, Blu-ray and videogames.

The Room
Touted as “one of the worst films ever made,” Tommy Wiseau’s The Room is one of the few movies being released on Blu-ray this week. Whether you consider it as an intentional comedy or one of the most poorly crafted efforts at a drama of all time, it is not a movie you should watch…unless you love bad movies. Check out the trailer after the break for a taste, the full HD experience (according to an interview, the filmmaker shot it entirely both in film and digitally in HD because he couldn’t make a decision) will cost more than thirty bucks.
($31.99 on Amazon)

Bowl Games
You name it, there’s a bowl sponsored by it. If your college football team hasn’t played in a bowl yet, there’s a good chance they will this week, and it will be on ESPN, check the listings below for the list of games and times. Of course, until the BCS games start these matchups don’t have a lot of pull, but if you just want to see your favorite team one more time, these will have to do.

Continue reading Must See HDTV (December 25th – 30th)

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