Hasta La Gadget!

VUDU, the video streaming service, is giving users a new way to explore movie content with today’s latest firmware upgrade: Wikipedia is now embedded into the service. Each movie page in the VUDU user interface will now have embedded links in the film descriptions. Clicking on a film’s title, for instance, will take you to its Wikipedia page, and links within Wikipedia will also work, so you can skip from topic to topic if you are really into Wiki-surfing. Probably the best feature, however, is “Links on VUDU”, which allows you to jump right back to VUDU via Wikipedia. In other words, if you click on a Wikipedia link for Edward Scissorhands, then click on Tim Burton’s Wiki link and decide you’d like to see what movies of his are available for download or streaming on VUDU, you can easily do so with the click of a button. Recently, VUDU also embedded Rotten Tomatoes into its user interface.

It’s also worth noting that, while we said this is a “firmware upgrade”, since VUDU’s user interface is streaming and web-based, the update will be automatic for all users–there’s no need to actively upgrade anything.

Why get a separate DVR when you already have a computer? That’s the idea behind the just-released AVerTV HD DVR. This PCI Express card lets you record high-def video from your cable or satellite set-top box with two HDMI inputs. Use the included software to schedule recordings, and use the included dongle to input video from component, composite, and S-video connections, as well.

While the card records 1080i H.264 video, it does so at a 320-by-240 resolution, so it isn’t right for playing back on a big screen. The company is billing it more for use with portable devices, such as the iPod, iPhone, and PSP. Gamers can record their game sessions and post them online, and anyone can burn their recordings to DVD. The card works with Windows 7, Vista, and XP computers. Pick up the card from AVerMedia’s site for $99.

Select Samsung HDTV owners can now download widgets for streaming content from Blockbuster On Demand and Amazon Video On Demand services using the Internet@TV feature offered on LCD and Plasma HDTVs Series 650 and above and LED-backlit HDTVs Series 7000 and above.

The Blockbuster On Demand service, which provides instant access to 7,000 streaming movies, is also available on select Samsung Blu-ray Players and Blu-ray integrated Home Theater Systems after downloading a firmware upgrade. Video On Demand movie rentals are priced from $2.99 to $3.99, and purchases range in price from $7.99 for classic films to $19.99 for new releases. Amazon’s Video On Demand catalog includes over 50,000 movies and TV shows, with over 2,000 in high definition. New releases and “day after” broadcast TV shows are also available in standard and high definition.

Who wouldn’t want to buy the station charged with bringing the world the magic of 30 Rock? Comcast, apparently. The cable giant denied recent rumor that it would be purchasing NBC for $35 billion.

“While we do not normally comment on M&A rumors, the report that Comcast has a deal to purchase NBC Universal is inaccurate,” the company said in a recent statement.

It’s not a flat out denial, to be sure. It’s more of a “someone didn’t get their facts quite right,” i.e., maybe the price was actually $36 billion. According to “people close to the situation,” Comcast is “kicking the tires” over at that network.

So, what’s going on? Only Comcast and the Sheinhardt Wig Company know for certain.

Does this look like a new HDTV that’s a bit on the small side? That’s what I first thought when I  spotted it last week. The MS246H is actually a sleek new 23.5-inch LCD monitor from ASUS. Though the company announced the same model in Australia a week or so ago, its stateside debut happened at the Pepcom media event last Thursday night .

The ultra-slim LCD is only 0.65 inches wide with dual-lamp LCD panels to help with power savings (up to 40 percent, according to ASUS). The MS246H boasts a 2-millisecond response time, 250 cd/m² brightness, and a 50,000:1 contrast ratio. That’s not too shabby, all things considered, though the Acer H253H still has it beat with a standard 100,000:1 contrast ratio on top of its 2-millisecond response time. Then again, the ASUS’ promised viewing angles (170 degrees horizontally and 160 degrees vertically) are much better than the Acer’s performance.

The MS246H offers 1080p resolution over HDMI. A VGA port rounds out the feature set. No information yet on availability, but the MS246H will retail for $249.99.