Boxee’s origins were humble: once a free-to-download media center app for computers and Apple TVs, the software evolved into a full-blown media streaming box for home theaters, and a powerful one at that (if ultimately flawed). But it was still sequestered from the main TV experience. With Boxee TV, we get one step closer to seamlessly merging the media streaming, channel surfing, and TV hoarding experiences. More »
Zeiss must be doing well in the lens business, as it hasn’t exactly been in a rush to get its Cinemizer OLED on to shelves. Still, we’re happy to say that the head-mounted display is at last slipping into retailers: Amazon partners are now carrying the regular 870 x 500 version for $749 in the US (German titling aside) and £578 in the UK. It doesn’t look to be the version with head tracking that we tried earlier this year, but you’ll still get a 3D image through HDMI 1.4 in addition to 2D through either the HDMI link or analog input. The price makes it a tempting alternative to the more advanced but costlier Sony HMZ-T2 — and for those who’d like something slightly more discreet-looking while they zone out with a good movie.
Filed under: Home Entertainment, Wearables, HD, Sony
Zeiss Cinemizer head-mounted OLED display wends its way into stores originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 15 Oct 2012 15:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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We got a peek at DirecTV’s Genie system just a few weeks ago with promises of a system that would both suggest related shows and optionally record them unbidden. It’s here, and it’s being joined by some rebranding. The company’s flagship HR34 DVR has been relabeled as the Genie and makes the new software its centerpiece, with those five tuners letting even the chronically uncommitted take new recommendations as seriously as they like. As before, simultaneous viewing is otherwise the biggest angle: there’s support for up to eight RVU-capable TVs hooked up at once, two shows playing on one TV and up to four TVs watching the same show. You’ll have to be a new subscriber to get the video recorder under the Genie moniker, although we don’t see too many existing customers dropping everything to get that symbolic distinction.
Continue reading DirecTV Genie DVR and interface launch with advice for the indecisive
Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD
DirecTV Genie DVR and interface launch with advice for the indecisive originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 11 Oct 2012 22:42:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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There’s a new Bang & Olufsen set in town. The BeoVision 11 Smart TV gives viewers access to the Web courtesy of a browser that can be navigated via remote, iPad or Android tablet. You can also check out apps like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube on the set. There’s DLNA enabled for media streaming, two USB ports, Ethernet, six HDMI sockets, six speakers and a cabinet in the back for storing your Apple TV. Aesthetically, the TV doesn’t look all too different from the BeoVision 10, though the company is calling this its “most ambitious television to date.” The 11 comes in 40-, 46- and 55-inch varieties and a slew of color options. You can pick one up (use your back) at B&O stores beginning today, priced at £4,995 (around $8,000). Stay tuned after the break for a press release and a video in which B&O’s CEO humbly calls it the best TV his company has ever made.
Continue reading Bang & Olufsen gets connected with BeoVision 11 Smart TV
Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD
Bang & Olufsen gets connected with BeoVision 11 Smart TV originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 11 Oct 2012 09:49:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Even when you’re watching TV alone, you’ve always got a friend in BuddyTV Guide — the personalized listings and remote control app. Now, in addition to content providers Netflix, iTunes and Amazon, it’s inviting another player to the viewing party: Hulu Plus. Subscribers to the service will be able to see all associated video content in the BuddyTV Guide listings, and better yet, access it directly from within the app. Intrigued, Hulu Plus patrons? Head on down to the source link, grab the relevant app and let the New Girl marathon commence.
Continue reading BuddyTV Guide app adds Hulu Plus integration
Filed under: Cellphones, Home Entertainment, Tablets, Internet, Software, HD, Mobile
BuddyTV Guide app adds Hulu Plus integration originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 10 Oct 2012 18:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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We spotted them a week ago but the new Slingbox 350 and Slingbox 500 are finally official and they’re just as weirdly designed as we expected. Both Slingboxes can stream video to your phone, tablet or computer at 1080p, with the 500 adding built-in Wi-Fi and HDMI and both Slingboxes will spice up your living room. More »
If you watch the latest promo for Bravo’s Silicon Valley reality show and think, hey these entrepreneurs failed actors are just stringing together tech buzzwords, it’s because that’s exactly what they’re doing. The video is below, for those who have been sapped of any hope at a fruitful life. More »
It’s been one of the more conspicuous omissions in the media hub space: despite Google Play being the cornerstone of Google’s content strategy, you couldn’t truly use the company’s music or movie services through Google TV without depending on content you’d already paid for elsewhere. As of a new upgrade, the ecosystem has come full circle. Viewers with Google TV boxes can at last buy or rent directly from Google Play Movies and Google Play Music, and the content will be indexed in the TV & Movies section alongside third-party video services and traditional TV. The upgrade also helps Google’s TV front end play catch-up with its mobile counterpart by adding automatic app updates and subscriptions. While device owners may have to wait a few weeks as the upgrade rolls out, the addition signals a big step forward for a platform that has normally leaned heavily on others for help.
Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD, Google
Google Play Music and Movies purchasing reaches Google TV, patches a media strategy hole originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 08 Oct 2012 14:14:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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This morning we’re jumping in with a Facebook report that’ll blow your socks off – not least of all with its 600m mobile monetization. NASA has spoken about a space station on the Moon, on the far side, in the dark. The Nokia 920 and 820 are coming to AT&T soon with an exclusive on the larger device.
Amazon’s own Cloud Drive system has been updated with brand new sharing features as well as a whole new desktop app for Mac computers. Entertainment Weekly magazine has released a limited-edition issue with an Android phone inside – of course it’s not just any phone. The Starbucks iOS app now works with Apple’s Passbook.
The iPhone ReadyCase for iPhone 5 and iPhone 4/4S has blasted past its funding goal with Swiss Army knife features intact. The app known as Camera+ has been updated to support the iPhone 5′s low-light boost mode – the first app to do such a thing! Microsoft has made one of its final moves in teaming up with Barnes & Noble with a new subsidiary called NOOK Media LLC.
If you’re a fan of 4K television panels you’re not going to like what IHS has to say about how long they’ll be around for your enjoyment. As far as best global brands go, Apple has been voted in second – that’s a five spot jump from last year. Nokia’s Stephen Elop has made it clear that HTC’s vision for the Windows Phone 8 environment is nothing compared to the company he represents: “A Step Above” you might say.
SlashGear Morning Wrap-Up: October 4th, 2012 is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
If you’re a fan of the ultra-gigantic and super-high-definition television environment that exists amongst the super-rich, then you’ll be glad to know that more 4G resolution televisions are on the way! While shipments of 4K LCD-TVs across the planet are only up to 4,000 units throughout 2012, they’ll ramp up to 2.1 million units in 2017 – that accounting for less than 1 percent of all LCD shipments in both cases. All of this information and analysis comes from IHS iSuppli (now just IHS after iSuppli joined the team fully) and leads into the most important point here: the 4k television may only be a passing fad.
A 4K television is one that has approximately 4,000 pixel resolution horizontally. A common panel being used right now is 60-inches and works with 3,840 by 2,160 resolution. As IHS notes, this size panel is fabulous if you’ve got video that makes use of it – but not a whole lot of media out there today is capable of working at such a resolution. With only “about 1.5 percent of the total television shipments of 2012″ accounting for any television at 60-inches or larger, there’s simply not a demand to allow such video to exist.
“Furthermore, for most people, the 1,080p resolution is good enough. Because of these factors, combined with the massive price tags, the market for 4K sets during the next few years will be limited to very wealthy consumers or to commercial uses.” – IHS
Furthermore, it would appear that the next big wave for giant televisions will be AMOLED – or again, so IHS analyzes – and the 4K television may just be a placeholder for companies until AMOLED becomes the technology everyone wants.
“Japanese brands are offering 4K product because they need to have a competitive alternative to the AMOLED TVs being sold by their rivals in South Korea, Samsung and LG Electronics. Meanwhile, the South Korean companies are having difficulties producing AMOLED panels, saying they will need two more years to achieve competitive volume and pricing. Therefore, the Korean brands are offering 4K sets as a transitional step until their AMOLED televisions are more widely available.” – IHS
So keep your chin up, giant television lovers, you’ve got several years left before the next tech revolution occurs – buy a 4K television now! How else are you going to watch all that media that doesn’t get that sharp anyway?
[via IHS]
IHS says 4K TVs are “transitional products” until AMOLED is widespread is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
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