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Sep 10

Roku hits FCC with XD S player to complement its upcoming XD line

Posted in: media streamer, MediaStreamer, Today's Chili

Roku clearly isn’t taking the new Apple TV lying down. After passing the Roku XD and Netgear Roku XD through the FCC a week or so ago, it’s back for more with the Roku XD S. There are still plenty of plugs in the back, including HDMI, USB, Ethernet, component video, composite video, optical audio, and Ethernet, and the 802.11n a/b/g/n WiFi makes its requisite appearance as well. Since we don’t know too much about the XD line yet, we’re not sure set the XD S apart, but prior experience in the CE space suggests that “S” stands for “small” or perhaps “scintillating.”

Roku hits FCC with XD S player to complement its upcoming XD line originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 10 Sep 2010 21:06:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Wireless Goodness | source FCC | Email this | Comments

Sep 03

Plex announces partnership with LG, pledges to beat Boxee Box and Apple TV for free

Posted in: blu-ray, hdtv, LG, media streamer, MediaStreamer, netflix, partnership, Today's Chili

Plex announces paternship with LG, pledges to beat Boxee Box and Apple TV for free

We’re excited about the Boxee Box, and the new-look Apple TV is intriguing, but no single box is as good as a box that doesn’t exist yet does the same stuff. Confused? Sit down, let us explain. That’s the point Plex is making in announcing its new partnership with LG, which will integrate Plex software into its 2011 Netcast HDTVs and Blu-ray players. Plex enables the same sort of functionality as those smart little boxes mentioned above, letting you serve content from a machine running OS X and push it to your TV or to a mobile device (iPhone and iPad right now, Android coming). Plex also supports all the major online streamers, like Netflix, Hulu, and even the BBC iPlayer. Lack of PC support is something of a bummer, but a Windows version is said to be coming, so even your beige box can soon get in on the box-free fun.

Continue reading Plex announces partnership with LG, pledges to beat Boxee Box and Apple TV for free

Plex announces partnership with LG, pledges to beat Boxee Box and Apple TV for free originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 03 Sep 2010 07:26:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | source Plex | Email this | Comments

Sep 02

Roku XD and Netgear Roku XD Player hit the FCC

Posted in: media streamer, MediaStreamer, netflix, Today's Chili

Well, well, what’s this? Looks like Roku has some bigger plans for hitting back at the $99 Apple TV than just price cuts of its own: a Roku XD and a Netgear Roku XD Player just hit the FCC. That’s right, Netgear — Roku’s expanding its platform to third parties. We don’t know if these two devices are standalones or designed to work together, but we’re guessing they’re standalones; the Netgear unit might blend in some of the Digital Entertainer line’s support for local playback and services like PlayOn, YouTube, and CinemaNow. Of course, the big question is going to be price, since if these are substantially more than the Apple TV’s $99 they’re going to have to offer some major features, but we should be finding out what’s up soon enough: the confidentiality on these docs lifts October 23.

Roku XD and Netgear Roku XD Player hit the FCC originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 02 Sep 2010 19:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Wireless Goodness | source Roku XD Player, Roku XD | Email this | Comments

Aug 30

Roku lowers prices across the board: HD box now $69, $99 HD-XR to get 1080p support

Posted in: media streamer, MediaStreamer, netflix, sd, streamer, Today's Chili

Looks like Roku’s going aggressive on price with its lineup of streamers in response to Sony’s new $130 Netbox streamer, the upcoming Google TV launch, and rumors that we’ll see that rumored $99 iOS-based Apple TV arrive on Wednesday. The SD box is down to $59 from $79, the standard HD is now $69 from $99, and the HD-XR with dual-band 802.11n and soon-to-be-enabled USB playback support is now $99 from $129. The HD-XR is also due to get 1080p streaming support later this year; it’ll be focused on USB playback at first since most of the streaming channels are 720p right now.

Those prices are definitely getting close to impulse-buy territory, especially since a Roku is now one of the cheapest ways to get Netflix and Amazon VOD on a TV, along with other channels like MLB and UFC. In fact, Roku says its goal is to put three streamers in every house — one next to every TV in the average American home. We applaud the ambition, but we’ve got a feeling this entire market is about get turned upside down once Apple and Google launch their initiatives.

Roku lowers prices across the board: HD box now $69, $99 HD-XR to get 1080p support originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 30 Aug 2010 23:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Aug 30

Digital Cowboy announces Xtreamer Pro NAS / media streamer

Posted in: media streamer, MediaStreamer, nas, Today's Chili

Your media streamer options aren’t exactly limited these days, but if you’re looking for one that will also double as a NAS (and prefer to get your gear from Japan), you might want to consider Digital Cowboy’s latest addition to its Movie Cowboy line: the Xtreamer Pro. This one packs the same dual 3.5-inch hard drives as the company’s previous DC-MCNAS1 model (not included), but adds an HDMI port to directly connect to your TV, and what appears to be a whole new interface to let you access the wide variety of media the device supports. No word on any plans for a release over here, but you can look for this one to be available in Japan next month for ¥22,000, or about $260.

Update: Apparently this Digital Cowboy is a rebadge of the Xtreamer Pro announced in Europe back in February.

Digital Cowboy announces Xtreamer Pro NAS / media streamer originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 30 Aug 2010 04:46:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Akihabara | source Digital Cowboy | Email this | Comments

Aug 28

With Imation Link 5112 WUSB A/V streamer, KerliGirl13 can finally have her own TV show

Posted in: media streamer, MediaStreamer, stream, streaming, Today's Chili

Unlike lots of other media streaming devices we’ve seen, this one is pretty straightforward: the USB dongle plugs into your PC or Mac, the receiver plugs into your TV’s HDMI input, and what you sees and hears (on your computer) is what you gets (on the TV). The Wireless USB connection will stream video up to 720p and still images up to 1080p, as well as stereo sound. Available now from Amazon and whatnot for $150. PR after the break.

Continue reading With Imation Link 5112 WUSB A/V streamer, KerliGirl13 can finally have her own TV show

With Imation Link 5112 WUSB A/V streamer, KerliGirl13 can finally have her own TV show originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 28 Aug 2010 11:15:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Aug 19

Monsoon Vulkano do-it-all media box starts shipping, gets unboxed

Posted in: GoogleTv, hulu, ios, media streamer, MediaStreamer, netflix, now shipping, NowShipping, ship, ships, streamer, Today's Chili, unboxing, video, YouTube

Looking for one box to rule them all? If so, you must have glossed right over Monsoon’s Vulkano launch, but lucky for you, there’s a reminder coming in the form of a ‘now shipping’ proclamation. Just weeks after the $379 mega-box — which aims to replace all of those other STBs under your television — went up for pre-order, the earliest of adopters have started to receive their devices. We’re still waiting on a proper critique, but if you’re yearning to have a glance at what the future of media looks like, give those links below a look. Just kidding about that last part, by the way.

[Thanks, Dan]

Monsoon Vulkano do-it-all media box starts shipping, gets unboxed originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 19 Aug 2010 12:52:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Zatz Not Funny | source Uneasy Silence | Email this | Comments

Aug 08

WD’s Elements Play media streamers bring internal HDDs at a presumably good price

Posted in: hard drive, HardDrive, media streamer, MediaStreamer, Today's Chili

Western Digital has quietly revealed the Elements Play on their site, which combines pared-down playback features of the WD TV series with up to 2TB of internal storage right out of the box. It’s about time, considering competitor LaCie has offered integrated drives in its LaCinema line for more than a year, though we wish WD would have included the Netflix streaming capabilities of the WD TV Live Plus here — or any streaming at all, for that matter. If an unconnected box with 1080p playback via HDMI and fabulous codec support (including Monkey’s Audio!) is appealing to you though, then this latest offering might be worth your while — especially if it’s priced in line with its “value conscious” featureset, a fact we haven’t been able to verify. To be competitive, it’ll have to cost below LaCie’s LaCinema Classic HD, which throws in UPnP / DLNA server support on top of similar features for as little as $229. If you’re curious, find the user’s manual (including a full codec list) at our more coverage link.

[Thanks, Steve]

WD’s Elements Play media streamers bring internal HDDs at a presumably good price originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 09 Aug 2010 01:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Electric Echoes | source Western Digital (1), (2) | Email this | Comments

Jul 28

Grace Digital’s Tuner Wireless Radio & Media Player adds internet radio to existing stereos

Posted in: media player, media streamer, MediaPlayer, MediaStreamer, now available, NowAvailable, on sale, OnSale, radio, Today's Chili

So, we’ve two main issues here. One, who in their right mind would pay $219.99 for a device that still requires a dedicated stereo in order to play back the internet radio streams that Grace Digital’s Tuner Wireless Radio & Media Player delivers? And secondly, who would want to put up with Grace Digital’s thoroughly lackluster UI? If you can’t grok the grumbling, the aforementioned company now has a slender new component it’d love to stick on your shelf, with the device shown above able to stream WiFi radio content from 30,000 stations, Pandora, iheartradio, Sirius, Live365, MP3tunes and a smattering of other sources. It can be wired up via Ethernet or used over 802.11g, with composite, Toslink and coaxial digital audio outputs around back. There’s a 4-line backlit LCD for displaying not nearly enough metadata at once, and there’s even a remote thrown in for those looking to build out their collection. It’s available now if you’re feeling the itch, though we’d suggest you get that checked out before blindly indulging.

Continue reading Grace Digital’s Tuner Wireless Radio & Media Player adds internet radio to existing stereos

Grace Digital’s Tuner Wireless Radio & Media Player adds internet radio to existing stereos originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:54:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | source Grace Digital Audio | Email this | Comments

Jul 27

Monsoon Vulkano all-in-one DVR/placeshifting/media streaming box ready for preorder, ships August 10

Posted in: GoogleTv, hulu, ios, media streamer, MediaStreamer, netflix, streamer, Today's Chili, video, YouTube

Monsoon — after taking advantage of a few delays since our initial hands-on by adjusting the name and pricing — is finally ready to show off the followup to its HAVA line of placeshifting media streamers, the Vulkano. Integrating a video processor and local storage into its slim frame, the Vulkano accepts HD video over its analog inputs for recording and live streaming to other devices (PC, Mac, iPhone/iPad, Blackberry and Android players will be available at launch, with a Symbian version on the way) or it can convert recordings locally for them to be downloaded over WiFi or 3G and stored on those devices for offline viewing. Remote scheduling and channel changing functionality (controlling connected set-top boxes via IR blaster) isn’t a shocking new feature, but this goes a step further by bringing internet videos to your TV (YouTube, local UPnP devices) Boxee and Popbox style, and other big names like Hulu, Netflix, Google TV, Amazon Yahoo! Widgets and a full HTML browser are promised to show up in firmware updates soon. Believers can hit the site to preorder now, with units ranging from the $279 Vulkano with 8GB of SD card storage, up to a $379 Vulkano Pro with 1TB eSATA HDD included and other sizes planned in between. Check after the break for a press release with more details, and our hands on video from CES.

Gallery: Monsoon Vulkano