Hasta La Gadget!

Wonder why Motorola’s set-top-box business got bundled in with the phones? If we had to guess, it’s probably because Motorola Mobility is making a device that will wirelessly join both. Speaking at the Reuters Global Media Summit, company president Daniel Moloney said that Motorola’s working on a standalone device that will wirelessly sling video to tablets and phones in the home, and will later be integrated directly into new set-top-boxes the company rolls out. “It’s one consumer proposition that will come sooner rather than later,” he told the crowd, suggesting that the device would be available through “service providers” rather than sold off the shelf, and that said providers might charge an additional service fee for its use. Here’s hoping not. Perhaps Qualcomm finally found a buyer for that FLO TV spectrum, though?

Motorola Mobility’s mystery gadget streams video to tablets and phones originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 01 Dec 2010 19:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Texting has taken over mobile networks, and now it’s destined to overwhelm our emergency responders as well. According to Wired Epicenter, the FCC is looking to follow in the footsteps of those trailblazing Iowans and expand its 911 services to allow emergencies to be reported via text message, and while at first glance that may sound silly, we can think of some times when it could make a lot of sense. Let’s say there’s someone in the house and you don’t want them to know where you are — texting is a lot quieter than talking. Or let’s say the aliens are attacking and you don’t have time to stop running — a text is a lot quicker, too. The FCC is also apparently looking at receiving MMS and even streaming video so that you could send pictures and footage of their hugely advanced tactics. If these efforts are successful perhaps we can survive the coming trans-dimensional menace for just a little longer.

FCC looking to accept 911 texting, MMS, and even streaming video originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 23 Nov 2010 10:28:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It may not be quite the same obvious transition that Netflix made, but it looks like DVD kiosk company Redbox will soon be making a push of its own into the streaming business. That word comes straight from the CEO of parent company Coinstar, Paul Davis, who told listeners to the company’s recent earnings call that it is in “detailed negotiations with a number of highly interested parties” to launch a “Redbox-branded” streaming service sometime next year. That would seem to suggest that Redbox will be relying on a partner already established in the field rather than rolling its own service, but Davis was otherwise light on details, adding only that streaming represents a “significant opportunity” for the company. That doesn’t mean Redbox will be getting out of the kiosk business anytime soon, though — according to Davis, there’s still a “long, profitable life ahead” there.

Redbox announces plans to enter streaming business next year originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 29 Oct 2010 14:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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When CEO Reed Hastings called Netflix “primarily a streaming company that also offers DVD-by-mail,” he wasn’t messing around, as the company’s quietly made streaming-only plans a reality on US shores. Strangely enough, however, it seems the firm hasn’t quite decided how much the new plan should cost, as depending on which computer and web browser you use to navigate Netflix’s website you’ll see a different result. Our Windows desktop running Chrome was invited to sign up for the same $7.99 disc-less plan as our Canadian counterparts, while Firefox asked us to pay $8.99 for the same privilege, and in either case it’d cost us $9.99 in total if we wanted physical discs as well — while a MacBook Pro on the other side of the country was given the choice between $8.99 for streaming-only or Netflix’s previous plan of $8.99 for both. In short, there’s a chance you might get a $1 discount if you only use the company’s online service now, but if you like DVDs delivered to your door you may find yourself subsidizing those who don’t. See a picture illustrating the discrepancy right after the break.

Update: We’ve got Netflix’s entire pricing breakdown for DVD-mailer plans after the break, and unless we’re mistaken, the three cheapest tiers all cost an extra dollar now, while the more expensive plans stay the same.

[Thanks, Michael S.]

Continue reading Netflix testing $7.99 and $8.99 streaming-only plans in US right now, one is not a discount (update)

Netflix testing $7.99 and $8.99 streaming-only plans in US right now, one is not a discount (update) originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 23 Oct 2010 15:36:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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You can’t really use it for anything for two more days, as Netflix will tell you “this product is not currently available in your location,” but if you turn on your PlayStation 3, you might notice the disc-less, 1080p and 5.1 surround sound version of the instant movie streaming service is already available to download. The above install screen popped up on our console without even requiring a trip to the PlayStation Store, which suggests that 1.) Sony has decided that this is a big deal and 2.) should an evil force ever wrest control from the Japanese manufacturer, they’d have some pretty rad propaganda pushing power.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Netflix on PS3 ready to download on some consoles, service starts Oct. 18th originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 16 Oct 2010 17:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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