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In a bid to spruce up its hardware, European mobile operator Orange has drafted in Movea to bring gesture controls to its new set-top box. Running the SmartMotion server, movements will be picked up by Movea’s MEMS motion-sensing remote, with gestures for volume control, web browsing and even gamepad and joystick commands. The new Livebox Play will pick up ten “contextually aware” movements, with a ‘check’ gesture aimed to avoid the frustration at selecting items on a distant screen, while there’s also a close function embedded into the TV remote. Alongside gestures, the LiveBox Play service will offer the obligatory internet, social network and VOD bells and whistles, as well as access to games and apps on your big screen. Sick of buttons? The device is available on pre-order (for now, in France) and launches next month — we’ve embedded a quick demo of the remote’s precision after the break as a quick refresher.

Continue reading Movea gesture control coming to Orange’s Livebox Play TV system, launches next month

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Source: Livebox Play (Orange France)

It’s hard to believe that the Slingbox has been around for seven years, but that only makes it harder to accept these are the first retail models that have been released since 2008. That finally changes today, though: Sling Media just introduced two new place-shifters: the Slingbox 500 and 350 (pictured). Available on October 14th for $299 and $179, respectively, these new set-top boxes replace the Solo and Pro-HD. While the 350 simply adds 1080p streaming for the same price, the 500 adds SlingProjector, a feature that lets you take photos stored on your iOS or Android device and send them to your television (video streaming will soon be supported as well). The Slingbox 500 will also soon be able to play content on USB-attached storage, but that will come in a future software update. The SlingPlayer apps get a refresh as well, adding reminders and an easier way to share your Slingbox with friends. What we set out to determine in this review — and what you’ll discover if you click through — is how big of an upgrade this really is. Is it worth chucking your old hardware for one of these boxes? What if you’re thinking of getting your first media streamer? We’ll delve into all that after the break.

Continue reading Slingbox 350 and 500 review: Sling Media finally upgrades its line of media streamers

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Slingbox 350 and 500 review: Sling Media finally upgrades its line of media streamers originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 09 Oct 2012 21:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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And then there were two. We’re talking about standalone Google TV boxes, folks, with the Vizio Co-Star recently joining Sony’s NSZ-GS7. Both feature the same version of Google’s software and come with a remote offering a full QWERTY keyboard and touchpad. But with Vizio’s model selling for just $99, it’s half the price of Sony’s entry, so you might be wondering how extensive the differences are. Now that we’ve had a chance to test both, we’re ready to weigh in. Read on to find out if that 50 percent price difference makes the Co-Star worth it.

Continue reading Vizio Co-Star review: how good a deal is this $99 Google TV box?

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Vizio Co-Star review: how good a deal is this $99 Google TV box? originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 19 Sep 2012 11:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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You may be familiar with EchoStar’s satellite-based (Dish Network) and Sling Media (Slingbox) products, but the company also manufactures set-top boxes for third-party providers, as well as free-to-air services in the UK. It’s this last grouping that’ll be able to take advantage of the Android-based device we saw today, assuming it does in fact make its way to market. The HDX-410 runs native Ice Cream Sandwich, and is available in two versions — one supports IP content and local storage exclusively, while a second can also accept terrestrial Digital Video Broadcasting (DVB) programming, letting you play back live TV shows in addition to content from a local server, pulled from the web or stored on attached media or an inserted microSD card. It connects to the web using Ethernet or WiFi, and includes USB ports on both the front and the rear, Bluetooth, HDMI out, digital audio out and a standard-definition connection. It’s also paired with a QWERTY keyboard-equipped remote manufactured by Philips with gyroscopic or directional-pad curser control, along with pinch/zoom gesture capability.

We had a chance to check out the ICS box at EchoStar’s IBC booth today, where the device was running Android 4.0.4 and an early version of the company’s hybrid app, which groups “favorited” content alongside terrestrial channels, letting you use the standard channel up/down button to navigate through stored TV shows, IP content or live programming quite seamlessly, as if all of the media was playing from the same source. It’s clearly not yet ready for primetime, but the interface was sleek and speedy — the set-top box performed very well overall. EchoStar reps were unable to confirm whether or not the HDX-410 would be coming to market at all, but they did add that the solution may be made available to third-parties in the future. Click past the break to take a closer look in our hands-on video.

Continue reading EchoStar HDX-410 set-top box runs native ICS, supports terrestrial broadcasts (hands-on video)

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EchoStar HDX-410 set-top box runs native ICS, supports terrestrial broadcasts (hands-on video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 07 Sep 2012 12:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Netflix making good on those investment promises for its UK viewers, with the streaming service set to be included in a new set-top box coming tomorrow. According to The Telegraph, the new device will link straight into Netflix services. Freesat‘s satellite TV offering launched back in 2008, with both BBC and ITV behind the project, while the new set-top box is rumored to add on-demand downloads and the ability to view programs up to eight days since they first air — catching up to similar services from BT, Virgin and Sky. We’re likely to hear more tomorrow, but Freesat’s hoping it will be enough to make Brits reconsider those wallet-thumping Sky subscriptions.

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Netflix coming to future Freesat satellite TV boxes originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 03 Sep 2012 03:20:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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