Hasta La Gadget!

Home theater PC owners only just recovering from their turkey or tofu comas will have some updating to do — MediaPortal has been busy. The experimenters among us will most likely want to jump straight into the promised MediaPortal 2.0 Alpha Autumn, which carries new visual layouts and video backgrounds, a news plug-in and a party-friendly music player. New versions of remote tools like aMPdroid, MPExtended, WebMediaPortal and WifiRemote bring their own slew of upgrades, such as HTTP Live Streaming in MPExtended or a “what’s new” interface in aMPdroid. We’ll readily admit that our eye is most drawn to the yet-to-be-launched MediaPortal 1.3 beta’s addition of the Titan skin you see up above: going beyond what we saw in October, the extra-polished look goes a long way towards accommodating newcomers and the style-conscious. We’re still waiting on publicly accessible 1.3 beta code, but everything else is waiting for open-source media hubs at the included links.

Filed under: Cellphones, Home Entertainment, Software, HD

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Via: Missing Remote

Source: MediaPortal (1), (2), (3)

While HDX video has been a trademark for the Vudu service for years, when it launched streaming and Vudu-to-go downloads for PCs last year, they were limited to standard definition. That’s been corrected recently, as the service is now offering 1080p or 720p HDX video via the web. What you still won’t get on the PC unfortunately is higher quality sound as it’s still limited to stereo audio for now, and in our tests we weren’t able to access the Flash streams on a phone or tablet. Just log into the website and you should be able to try it out for yourself, however you will need adequate internet speed and an HDCP-compliant display — check out the details at the link below.

Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD

Vudu brings HDX 1080p streaming and downloadable movies to PCs originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 15 Nov 2012 22:49:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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With the official launch of Windows 8 comes the official support of premium cable content via one of the various CableCARD tuners originally designed for Windows 7 Media Center. Silicon Dust is at the front of the pack as Media Center on Windows 8 is already officially supported and the documentation is available for both the HDHomeRun Prime as well as the ATSC or QAM HDHomeRun. The only feature we noticed was not supported for now, is WMC Sync. Ceton is still working on the official driver for its InfiniTV 4, but reassures us that the Windows 7 driver “does work relatively well,” although, is unsupported — the real loss here is that there are no plans to bring the InfiniTV tuner sharing feature to Windows 8. Last up is Hauppauge, who doesn’t have a single mention of support of Windows 8 for the WinTV-DCR-2650 on its site (we reached out to them, will update once we hear back). Of course, support by Media Center and Windows 8 is one thing, but we’re really waiting for a mention that any “Windows Store Apps” that can play nicely with all this premium HD content.

Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD

The status of official CableCARD tuner support for Windows 8 originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 31 Oct 2012 20:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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MediaPortal is a rare veteran spinoff of XBMC — a testament to its fan base, but also a sign that it needs a fresh coat of paint. A new 1.3 beta might offer just what home theater PC users have been looking for to keep the front end relevant, at least in the short term. It carries a much more contemporary (and less Windows Media Center-like) skin with minor tweaks to the layout and overall interface. CableCARD support also makes its overdue appearance, although the lack of official CableLabs approval keeps the software from recognizing any copy-protected shows. Don’t fret if those additions aren’t enough, however — we’ve been given a hint as to what the long-in-development MediaPortal 2 will offer through a pair of videos. The clips are largely top-level overviews, but they allude to mobile tie-ins, events, extensions, more skin support, video backgrounds and news. With an Autumn Build of MP2 available “right around the corner” for viewers, it might not be long before we learn what those new additions are like through first-hand experience.

Continue reading MediaPortal posts new beta with new look and CableCARD, teases bigger sequel (video)

Filed under: Home Entertainment, Software, HD

MediaPortal posts new beta with new look and CableCARD, teases bigger sequel (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 18 Oct 2012 23:17:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Windows Media Center users still in shock over the indefinite hold placed on Ceton’s Q DVR / Blu-ray player finally have some good news, as the company has officially revealed the details of the Echo extender. Now ready to go on sale around Thanksgiving, the Echo Windows Media Center Extender is looking much more polished than the demo unit we saw at CES, and Ceton says the final unit is actually 72 percent smaller, or 1/4 the size of the Xbox 360’s power brick. The smaller size is not the only benefit to those looking for an alternative to the gaming console as an extender, as it claims to be 90 percent more power efficient, rated at less than 5 watts and should be much quieter to boot. In the beta period it’s lacking some features that should be ready upon release like 1080p video, web browsing, and support for MPEG-1 / WMV9 codes, with more features promised in future updates.

Like any Media Center Extender, you’ll need a properly equipped Windows 7 (or 8, once it’s released officially with the Pro Upgrade) PC to run the show and an Ethernet cable drop since there’s no WiFi, but this tiny box promises multiroom access to live and recorded TV, plus your personal media library. We’ll have to wait for some hands-on time with a beta unit to find out if it lives up to the hype, but if you’re looking to squeeze some more life out of the WMC platform this may be just the boost you’re looking for. Check out the gallery for more pics or the source links for detailed specs, while confirmed beta testers should select the third link for relevant information like a $20 price drop.

Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD

Ceton’s $179 Echo Windows Media Center Extender is ready to go on sale ‘around Thanksgiving’ originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 11 Oct 2012 05:52:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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