My Netflix Instant queue is long. Very, very long. And because I’m not a quitter, I’m determined to watch every last bit of it. Attacking it from my iPhone actually gives me a fighting chance. More »
We knew this was coming and here it is: the Netflix application, heretofore reserved only for iPad users, has trickled down to iPhone and iPod touch devices. Version 1.1.0 makes the TV show and movie streaming app universal — so long as your universe is known as iOS — and looks to massively expand the available audience for Netflix’s mobile effort. What are you waiting for, go get it already.
[Thanks, Michael A.]
Continue reading Netflix adds iPhone and iPod touch compatibility in latest app version
Netflix adds iPhone and iPod touch compatibility in latest app version originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 26 Aug 2010 04:48:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Universal’s added a new wrinkle to persuade people to buy Get Him to the Greek on Blu-ray — throw in a copy of an entirely different movie. Sure, during the MTV Video Music Awards we imagined not having to watch Russell Brand was a feature that should be included more often, but we didn’t expect to see it tucked in among these other Blu-ray exclusive extras — karaoke, the Pocket BLU iPhone remote control app, social BLU access, Mobile-To-Go support for taking bonus content with you and keyboard support. Anyone who buys the flick between September 28 and March 31, 2011 can also gain access to one of the following movies streamed to the player over BD-Live or directly to their mobile phone: Uncle Buck, Dazed & Confused or Life (Eddie Murphy & Martin Lawrence, not David Attenborough.) The flicks are notable not only because they appear to have been randomly chosen, but also since they’re not available on Blu-ray yet. Unlike The Office, there’s no promise of HD resolution here so the quality is still in question, but really, what Blu-ray release couldn’t use an extra dose of John Candy? Check out all the details and extras in the press release after the break.
Continue reading Get Him to the Greek Blu-ray includes a free streaming copy — of a different movie
Get Him to the Greek Blu-ray includes a free streaming copy — of a different movie originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 24 Aug 2010 19:20:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Dish Network subscribers, get ready to join the 21st century. Your content provider of choice is said to be peeling the “beta” stickers from its DishOnline.com service this week, opening up online and on-demand streaming of content to its subscribers. At least 15 channels will be streaming live over the internets, including all the major networks and extras like Syfy and Comedy Central, though selection appears to be somewhat limited at this time. The site will also provide remote DVR scheduling and let SlingLoaded users stream recorded content straight from their device — which, of course, they could already do. The service goes live sometime within the next few days, and of course will only be available to Dish subscribers, you lucky people you.
Dish Network launching DishOnline.com this week, streaming ‘several cable networks’ to subscribers originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 23 Aug 2010 10:57:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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It’s hardly as small as Thomson’s A1, but it just might be the most diminutive media player in existence to actually handle 1080p without breaking too serious a sweat. Measuring just 175- x 128- x 15mm and weighing 250 grams, this pocket sized player can accept a multitude of film formats from a connected USB storage device or an SD card; once the media’s flowing, it can output content as high as 1080p over HDMI, and there’s also a composite video / audio output and mini-USB port ’round back. The MP-501 is equipped with an ARM Cortex-A8 processor and the ability to play nice with nearly every file under the sun that’s stripped of DRM, and best of all, it’s purportedly priced at just $49. Did you just stumble upon your next laptop case compartment filler? Yes, yes you did.
Amex Digital claims ‘world’s smallest 1080p media player’ with MP-501 originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 Aug 2010 09:38:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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For whatever reason, iTunes tagging never really has taken off. One could chalk it up to soft marketing or just a limited number of supported devices and stations, but either way, it seems that consumers have far more efficient ways to find music they like than to hear ’em on the radio, tag ’em, and download ’em later. Over in the UK, though, Pure is going ahead with a full-on competitor, as FlowSongs offers select Pure Digital radios (Avanti Flow, the Evoke Flow, the Oasis Flow, the Siesta Flow and the Sensia) to connect with the 7digital network in order to mark songs, purchase them for around £1 each and then have them streamed via one’s Lounge account and to as many compatible Pure radios as you’d like. Songs that are found via DAB, FM or internet stations can be tagged, and all downloads are completely free of DRM. Better still, the “vast majority” of tracks will be encoded at 320kbps, though you will have to stomach a minor £2.99 yearly fee in order to pay for the Shazam portion of the service. It’s all slated to go live on Monday across the pond, and you can give those links below a visit if you’re thirsty for more.
Pure’s FlowSongs to rival iTunes tagging, won’t be limited to select stations originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 13 Aug 2010 08:36:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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TiVo users, even with boxes provided by their cable company in the case of RCN and Comcast, have so far had to make a compromise: Choose their cable company’s video on-demand offerings, or bring their own DVR and access online video from sources like Amazon and Netflix — but that’s no longer the case. Cox and TiVo have reached an agreement — sound familiar? — that will see allow retail CableCARD equipped TiVo Premiere DVRs to access Cox’s VOD, as well as all that over the top internet video we’ve come to love. The SeaChange powered VOD will work similarly to RCN’s, but we’re waiting to see if this can give the new universal search an extra source to pull from as well. The deal also means Cox will cross promote the TiVo in its own marketing, and provide free installs for units purchased at Best Buy and other outlets including the TiVo website.
The only bad news here? While TiVo plans to start testing later this year, it won’t see a wide rollout (in “all major markets”) until 2011. Check out the press release for all the details before calling your cable company, why should Cox customers get to choose between two different modernized, integrated set-top box platforms while the rest of us are stuck with interfaces and access rules that have been around since before the X-Games?
Cox to offer retail TiVo Premiere DVRs next year, first with cable VOD & Amazon, Netflix access originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 12 Aug 2010 00:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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You might remember that we broke news of an updated Apple TV headed to market just a few months ago. If your brain isn’t working right, let us jog it: a trusted Engadget source asserted that the gang in Cupertino would be releasing a $99 version of the set top box, similarly sized and packed with internals akin to that of the iPhone 4 (A4 CPU, 16GB of flash storage), and will introduce new iTunes streaming services the box could take advantage of. Well we’ve gotten a little more info on the project, and it’s not all good. Apparently the box won’t be capable of handling (or enabled to handle) 1080i or 1080p video. Instead it will only push out 720p clips. The word — and cause for much internal debate, we’re told — is that this has something to do with the A4’s inability to crank on higher resolution content, but we don’t see how that’s possible considering the iPhone 3GS could play back full HD video. Furthermore, the device will be getting apps and presumably an App Store entry, though it’s unclear if there will be cross-pollination between iPad and iPhone / iPod touch offerings and new Apple TV applications.
Oh, and there’s one more thing — Apple will be officially changing the name of the device to iTV, abandoning the current moniker in favor of something a little more in line with its current iOfferings. Interestingly, that was the name of the Apple TV when it was originally announced by the company, so it appears Steve and friends aren’t so much moving forward as going back to their innocent, untainted roots. Regardless of which direction the company is heading in name-wise, we can likely expect a full reveal sometime in the Fall… so hang tight.
Update: To clear up any confusion, the loss of 1080p is in reference to the previous information we had (linked above, and here) about the new Apple TV — not in reference to the current Apple TV.
Exclusive: Upcoming Apple TV loses 1080p playback, gains apps… and will be renamed iTV originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 11 Aug 2010 15:56:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Hit a Sam’s Club on a weekend afternoon and you’ll notice not everyone is there to stock up on raisin bran and Fruit Loops. Some come to sample the wares; running to toaster ovens staffed by kind old ladies and tearing freshly warmed Hot Pockets from their arthritic hands. Soon shoppers will have another thing to pilfer: the internet. Sam’s Club is working with AT&T to add free WiFi to all its stores by November, allowing shoppers to tell their Facebook friends how many bulk packs of toilet paper they can stuff in those giant shopping carts. The store will also enable connectivity for its IPTVs so that customers can sample Pandora on the like before deciding which set to take home. No word on whether stores will feature associates pulling WiFi access codes out of toaster ovens in batches of 10 at a time, but we sure hope so — that kind of thing just adds to the fun of the hunt.
Sam’s Club soon offering free WiFi in all US locations originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 11 Aug 2010 09:49:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Netflix streaming queue starting to look a little stale? It’s working on that, and has signed a deal that brings EPIX’s library of movies to Watch Instantly — just not that instantly. If you’re not familiar with EPIX, allow us to refresh you, it’s a network launched last year by Paramount, MGM and Lionsgate that brings their movies home (though often unfortunately cropped and zoomed to 16×9) through a linear channel, video on-demand or internet streaming. Under this new agreement, movies from those studios can come to Netflix 90 days after they debut on the premium pay-tv and subscription VOD services. While that means streamers won’t get access to Iron Man 2, The Expendables, or Dinner for Shmucks anywhere near day-and-date with their DVD or Blu-ray releases, those kinds of high profile flicks will show up and stick around with greater regularity than we’ve been used to. The companies haven’t released further details, but rumors reported by the L.A. Times suggest licensing costs could reach $1 billion over the next 5 years. The first movies covered by the new deal arrive September 1, likely with flicks from the Star Trek, James Bond and Indiana Jones series (hopefully not Kingdom of the Crystal Skull) among them.
Update: Analyst Dan Rayburn claims on Business of Video that Netflix won’t be getting any EPIX movies in HD, so we asked Netflix VP of Corporate Communications Steve Swasey whether we could expect HD streaming movies with Movie Parties or if they would have Starz-like restrictions. The answer? “HD over time and no restrictions on Party Viewing.” Take from that what you will.
Netflix, EPIX deal is official; Paramount, MGM and Lionsgate movies start streaming September 1 originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 10 Aug 2010 08:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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