How’s this for a slice of fried gold? A 42″ LCD TV with a full 1080p HD picture and an integrated PC featuring an Intel Core2Duo E8400 processor, 4 GB of RAM, 1 TB hard drive, Blu-ray / DVD combo drive, integrated PVR and a 64-bit version of Windows Vista Home Premium. No, Dr. Frankenstein isn’t doing more crazy experiments - it’s Silicon Mountain this time. The TV / PC combo manufacturer has just announced a pair of additions to its line of all-in-one LCDs that finally packs some specs worth lusting over. Seriously, this thing is a beast. The new sets start at a very reasonable $1,600 and climb to $2,800 when specced out as described above. We also have word that Silicon Mountain may be working on another version that includes a hair drier, back massager and a kitchen sink, but that model isn’t due until next holiday season.

Read

Ok, ok… Let’s not get too excited just yet. It still might be a bit early to reach any real conclusions about laser televisions and how desirable they will be once they hit the market en masse. How will lower-end models fare compared to higher-end models? How will size vs. cost pan out? How high will the early adopter tax be? There are plenty more questions that still need to be answered but in the meantime, above is a nice little taste of things to come. Two gadget-loving Texans have pitted the upcoming Mitsubishi LaserVue laser TV against Pioneer’s 60-inch Kuro plasma and yes, things got hot and heavy. The focus of this preliminary match up was color and the laser box had a strong showing. The second pair of images above highlights how vivid the colors are displayed on the LaserVue, particularly the red range. In certain other ranges however, the difference is negligible. The post also notes the tremendous benfits of laser in terms of power consumption, with the LaserVue sipping 135 watts compared to the Kuro’s 524 watts. It’s not all gravy however, as the post also highlights viewing angle as a big advantage of the plasma display - even going as far as to liken the LaserVue’s viewing angle to a DLP set. We can’t wait for the battle between laser and plasma to heat up even more - in the end, more competition means prices drop and consumers win.

[Via Gadget Lab]

Read

While we sincerely doubt this to be the push Roku needs to become more, how should we put this, significant - Roku owners and potential buyers alike just got some great news. The Roku Netflix player, a $99 set top box packing that allows you stream Netflix downloads to your TV, has three announcements of varied interest coming down the pipe in the near future. First and foremost, HD. Roku will gain access to the entirety of Netflix’s HD library by the end of the year, though it is unclear exactly what kind of speeds we’ll see in terms of downloads. Next up, a sexy new 720p user interface that will obviously be capable of displaying more titles at a time. Lastly, a bit of a mystery to keep things exciting. Roku has stated the upcoming new release will also “include another major new feature that you’ll have to wait a bit longer to learn about.” Roku’s Netflix box already has optical and HDMI connections ready and waiting to feed Netflix’s HD content to your flat panel, so this news shouldn’t be much of a surprise. Let’s just hope the updates come sooner rather than later so Roku’s Netflix Player might make it to a few tech savvy holiday shopping lists.

[Via Giz]

Read

The Netflix federation has been expanding at record pace as of late. Following their recent announcement of Watch Instantly streaming video support for the Mac platform, the company has revealed further plans for world domination. Netflix has revealed a partnership with DVR purveyors, TiVo, that should bring Netflix streaming to set-top boxes across the country. Under the recently announced deal, anyone with a a TiVo Series 3, HD, or HD XL set and an active Netflix account can begin streaming high quality film content to their home television. The catalog seems to be limited to the Watch Instantly queue, but it’s still a damn good thing for anyone looking to make their television viewing experience a tad more exciting. Initially, they’re rolling this out to a couple thousand beta testing users, but everyone can look for the update to hit your box come early December. Merry Christmas!

Read

Call it a sign of the economic times or call it gift from Santa, but it looks like this holiday season will be the perfect time to finally pick up that LCD or plasma set you’ve had your eye on - as long as your house isn’t in foreclosure by then. According to Paul Gagnon, Director of North American TV market research at DisplaySearch, this holiday season will see some pretty attractive price cuts on flat panel TVs of all sizes. Here are his predictions:

• 19-inch high definition LCD: $199
• 32-inch HD LCD: $399-$499
• 40-inch 1080p LCD: $799-$999
• 42-inch HD plasma: $599-$699
• 50-inch HD plasma: $899-$999

There is no question that this holiday shopping season will be among the worst in recent history for retailers nation-wide. As such, it stands to reason that we’ll be seeing discounted pricing all over the place. Even still, $200 for an LCD perfect for any kitchen? $900 for a 50-incher? Those prices will nearly put retail stores on par with current shady-shop internet prices - and they’ll even come with a warranty. Gagnon predicts that shoppers will likely seek out good picture quality in more stripped down models as opposed to high-end name brands, and is looking at discount stores such as Wal-Mart and Costco as the retailers of choice for many.

Read

First is was hilarious. The Mac, Justin Long, all cool and hip with his witty retorts and his, umm, jeans. The PC, John Hodgman, all dorky with his thick glasses and his ties. Oh lordy that PC, how silly he was with all of his dumb ideas and his inferior OS. After a while, Microsoft decided to respond to the commercials with a run of its own. “I’m a PC”, responding to “I’m a Mac”, highlighted the tremendous reach of the Windows OS and the millions of people in all walks of life who use Windows. Ok, super. Can we move on now? Oh no - now a fresh crop of two new Mac ads have started running, attacking Microsoft for not saying the word Vista in its commercials in the “The V Word”, and claiming that Microsoft is spending all its money on advertising as opposed to fixing Vista in “Bean Counter”. Umm, prior to Microsoft’s current ad run did any computer company advertise on TV even 10% as much as Apple? Regardless, it’s getting dirty out there folks - we haven’t seen a smear campaign like this since, well, Obama and McCain. The bottom line is that the whole thing is getting old. Sure, fanboys will still snicker at Justin Long and all of his snappy zingers but you don’t need to sell fanboys now do you Apple? You need to sell the rest of the market and stagnant ads with a dude who was funnier when he was getting pelted in the marbles with dodgeballs might not cut it anymore. So Apple, it will behoove you to know that we’re kind of over it. It was witty, it was effective and it’s time to move on. It might be best to get rolling with a new campaign before Justin Long becomes the next Aflac duck or Geico gecko - you know, so hated that people actually vow never to give those companies a single dollar as a result. Hit the jump for the other zany new “I’m a Mac” ad.

Read

On October 13, President Bush signed a highly controversial anti-piracy law. The dictator President has put into effect a law that will appoint an intellectual property czar (yeah folks, you heard it right) that will report directly to the President (again, you heard that right) on how to keep hax0rz from illegally obtaining copyrighted materials. The targets are primarily music, movies, and TV, but you can bet this will be leaking over to other stuff with copyrights. The bill was, of course, backed by none other than the RIAA and MPAA (our favorite institutions!). Say good-bye to the phrase “DRM Free” everyone. Apparently, counterfeiting and piracy costs the U.S. $250 billion annually… that’s a lotta billions for free tunes and movies. Any devices used in piracy may have to be forfeited to Big Brother, lest “firemen” come into your house and burn down your gadgets Fahrenheit 450 style.

Read

Read

The Samsung Mirage, er… Eternity or whatever they end up calling it has been spotted in the wild. Looks like a pretty nice touch screen so far, much like the Omnia. Whether Samsung is trying to confuse everyone with all the numbers, or the constant change in names (if the names have actually been decided upon), one thing is for sure - all you Samsung fans out there have a lot to look forward to! It seems this phone will be a direct competitor to the LG Vu that AT&T is currently carrying as the A867 will have MediaFLO support. Other specs include a 3MP camera, 16GB expandable storage (perfect for the 16GB microSD cards SanDisk just busted out with a while back), AGPS, and a 3.5mm headset jack so you can use most of your favorite headphones for this bad boy. Look for it next month where it will likely run about $150 with contract and maybe a mail-in-rebate. We’ve also heard rumors that the LG Vu was in fact about to be end-of-lifed, so get ready for some turf wars.

Read

Last night, Apple updated iTunes to version 8.0.1 and addressed some issues with its latest music portal release. At the same time it quietly snuck in an update for Apple TV that adds some nice new functionality to Apple’s set top offering. No it doesn’t stream Netflix like the BD300 or feed you pr0n like the Vudu box, but Apple has beefed up its offering quite a bit with a few key additions. First off, version 2.2 of Apple TV software now allows users to purchase and download High Definition TV shows directly from the box UI. Prior to this software version Apple TV users had to line up such content from within iTunes. The other major change is the addition of Apple’s Genius recommendation support. While a song is playing or while on the Now Playing screen, holding down the menu button on the Apple TV remote will allow users to “Start Genius” and make use of Apple’s new recommendation engine. Beyond that, the Apple TV update also includes various fixes and tweaks that address prior issues and add some shine to various areas of the UI.

Read

Have you really not jumped into the set top box game yet? Remember how you made fun of your parents until they ditched their VCR and bought a DVD player - well we’re getting pretty close to the point in time where people are going to be laughing at you in the same way. For those of you who have been teetering, Vudu may have just given you the push you needed. From now until December 31 of this year, customers who purchase a new Vudu box from Best Buy ($300) will receive a $200 credit to be used on Vudu content. Of course there are a few stipulations, most notably is the fact that the credit must be used within four months and that it cannot be used on adult content. In other words, the box is now a very affordable $100 until the end of the year. What’s more, Vudu has just announced the addition of 1080p HD content so all you High Definition fiends out there will have something to chew on. As of now there are about 65 1080p titles to choose from but Vudu will be adding more titles moving forward. In fact, all new movies that become available in 720p will also be available in 1080p from now on. What’s more, 1080p content will be priced  exactly the same as Vudu’s current HD content (720p downloads are between $4 and $6). These two new announcements might just be what Vudu needed to get bumped right up to the top of your holiday list.

Read

Two short weeks since the Slingbox PRO-HD and Slingcatcher were first made available for pre-order, the PRO-HD box is now alive and shipping. It’s probably safe to say that after a delay or two, the team made sure that it got this puppy out the door ASAP. For $299 ($329 for our Canadian buddies) you can be streaming 720p or 1080i high definition goodness to just about anywhere your little heart desires. The Slingbox PRO-HD also features an integrated digital tuner and plenty of inputs to accommodate your DVR, digital cable, satellite receiver and DVD player. The release also coincides with a major software revision for Windows XP and Vista users. SlingPlayer 2.0 includes plenty of updates and new features, not the least of which is much needed live video buffer that allows viewers to pause, rewind and fast forward live streams a la DVR. There is also a great new guide feature that provides a built-in programming guide outside the player window, allowing you to easily browse program schedules as you stream. Today is a big day for our pals at Sling Media and with these major updates and the PRO-HD release out of the way, hopefully we’ll see things kick into high gear on the mobile front.

Read

File this one under irony. It turns out that metadata within the creative copy images from it’s latest “I’m a PC” campaign has bitten Microsoft in the, umm, butt. A Flickr user has done some digging and discovered much of the creative content from Microsoft’s “I’m a PC” website was created on a Mac using Adobe’s CS3 software suite. No, Microsoft Expression Studio apparently came nowhere near the campaign nor did a PC. Ouch. The best part about this story… Once LuisDS began revealing this to the public, Microsoft quickly scrubbed the files and removed the telling metadata from the photos. Did we mention that processing the files on a PC to scrub them more than tripled some of the file sizes? Oh Microsoft; you know every last inch of these new campaigns will be put under the microscope! Mistakes like this are not only going to be widely covered, they’re going to be detrimental to Microsoft’s efforts.

Additionally, Crispin Porter, the ad agency that created the Microsoft ads, switched out copy from their website last night. Before, on their jobs page it read, “Did you dream of harnessing telekinetic power as a child? Did you stare at your Transformers lunchbox for hours on end in a desperate attempt to invoke even the slightest fit of movement? Did you wise up, get a Mac and a lifetime subscription to Adobe, and send your lunchbox on an exploratory mission to the Martian poles or the strip club down the street? If so, do you think you could send us your portfolio?”

The new version? “Did you dream of harnessing telekinetic power as a child? Did you stare at your Transformers lunchbox for hours on end in a desperate attempt to invoke even the slightest fit of movement? Did you wise up, get a water-cooled PC tricked out with Vista and a lifetime subscription to Adobe, and send your lunchbox on an exploratory mission to the Martian poles or the strip club down the street? If so, do you think you could send us your portfolio?”

If you happen to work at an ad agency that actually does use PCs, there might be a pretty big contract up for grabs out of Redmond next week…

Read

Are there any super-smart readers out there that can tell us why that out of all the devices the production team at FOX had to choose from, they chose a Motorola Sidekick Slide to use in this season’s Prison Break? Like seriously, they couldn’t have picked anything better? For those of you not insanely addicted to PB, the Slide was used as a home brew device with a hard drive made to copy and store electronic data from all sorts of stuff– ATMs, phone calls, banking information, and even Scylla. It certainly wasn’t done as product placement from T-Mobile (read: discontinued). Maybe Scofield isn’t as smart as we thought…

Woh, woh! Hold on there killer! It’s not like the image above suggests that’s what WE would watch if RIM and TiVo built a streaming application… We’re just saying, you know? If you happen to have a TiVo hard drive full of old episodes of a certain show you enjoy, whatever that may be, this would enable you to watch them on the go. Ok good, we’re clear then. It’s easy to get ahead of yourself when you hear that RIM and TiVo have announced a partnership, but Sling Media and HAVA shouldn’t be shaking in their boots just yet. The initial announcement only covers an integration that would let BlackBerry-rocking TiVo users remotely view program guides and schedule recordings. Ok, that’s cool. Some might say however, that Jim’s statement alludes to the fact that we can expect a bit more as this new partnership evolves:

As the BlackBerry smartphone continues its evolution as a modern lifestyle device, the importance of home entertainment integration will continue to grow and TiVo will be the key in providing consumers with greater flexibility in accessing television content.

Being able to schedule your box to record the next few episodes of Entourage while on the go is hardly “accessing television content,” so we’d like to think that Balsillie was pretty clear with his intentions. Now that the Bold gives us some 3G love, there’s no reason that someone shouldn’t provide a solid TV streaming app for BlackBerry!

Read

…and right on schedule! Umm, right? Yes people, the Slingbox PRO-HD and Slingcather are now officially available for pre-order from amazon.com and direct from Sling Media. With Hava picking up steam, we’ve been waiting for our buddies over at Sling Media to make good on some of the updated goodies we have been waiting for. It might not have happened as quickly as some would have liked but at least we now know it won’t be long before these puppies are shipping. For those who need a 60-second refresher course, here we go: The Slingbox PRO-HD is the first box from Sling Media that will allow you to stream full 1080i High Definition video from your home to, well, anywhere. It is also the first model to sport an integrated digital tuner (ATSC OTA and clear QAM are supported). The Slingcatcher on the other hand, is a different direction for the company. It is designed to bring content to a television as opposed to sending television content to the internet. Hook this puppy up to your set and you can view video files from a USB flash drive, stream video and other content from your PC to your TV and it even lets you catch another Slingbox’s stream so you can Sling from TV to TV with no middle man. There’s some more good news as well. Those of you who have been jonesing for some HD-streaming love will be happy to learn that the Slingbox PRO-HD is available for $299, the same price as the Slingcatcher, rather than the $399 price point that Sling Media had been announced. Solid.

Read

Come on Blockbuster, all the cool kids are doing it. Almost a year since announcing the acquisition of video download service Movielink, it looks like Blockbuster is finally getting ready to round out its portfolio with a download service of its own. No there still isn’t anything new with regards to the Blockbuster set top box many have been eagerly awaiting, but we’ll get there. In the meantime word on the street is that Blockbuster downloads should go live some time next month. A handful of Total Access members are currently beta testing the new service and so far it looks like everything is in order. Blockbuster will offer movie and TV show downloads for both rental and for purchase, though the number of available titles at the time of launch is still unknown. Whether or not the rental portion of the service will come with added fees attached is also still up in the air but we have to wage a guess that at least the upper-tier subscribers will have access at no charge. In light of the fact that Netflix and Microsoft’s partnership to stream content to Xbox 360 will be available soon enough, Blockbuster is going to have to do everything it can to make its new digital offering appealing.

Read

Tivo owners will be happy to learn that starting today and continuing over the next few weeks, TiVo will be rolling out a new version of their software. And as the post title and video above would suggest, version 9.4 of TiVo’s software brings with it a healthy dose of YouTube love. That’s right people, YouTube on your TiVo. No, YouTube videos aren’t going to look overly spectacular on your 60″ plasma screen, but at least you don’t have to get off the couch anymore every time you want to rewatch that Wii hula-hoop girl video. You’ll need a newer Series3 model to enjoy YouTube however, as the YouTube integration marks the first time that TiVo is using a codec other than MPEG-2 (they’re indeed using H.264) and older models don’t support additional codecs. As for other new goodies in the latest software version, at the end of the video above you can get a quick look at the new SDV Tuning Adapter support as well as the presence of TCP Remote support.

Read

As the economy continues to decline and unemployment rates continue to rise, now is a tough time for everyone. Particularly tough perhaps, if a big part of your business involves selling luxury items like HDTVs. In times of economic crisis people most often forgo big ticket items such as plasma and LCD TVs and opt to spend their money on, say, food and fuel. If you’re not one of the unlucky Americans hit hard by the current state of the union however, you might as well take advantage of some serious and wide-spread price dropping. The HDTV price cuts are manufacturer-instigated in most cases so the result will impact retailers across the country. While these new prices at major retailers still might not be the lowest you’ll find on the internet, it’s safe to assume eventually the price drops will be reflected in non-brick and mortar pricing as well. If things like a warranty and knowing for a fact that you won’t be screwed by some shady fly by night website, we say stick to the major shops and enjoy these cuts that bring most price points down to at least near-internet levels. Hit the read link to check out the full list of price drops, which includes 30 different HDTV models. The new pricing ranges from $100 off to $500 off; even up to $700 off taking a few new Best Buy sales into account.

[Via Unplggd]

Read

In the quest to reign the world of home entertainment streaming, partnering with Microsoft to provide your movie download service on Xbox 360 is definitely a good move. In fact, it’s a safe bet that a good percentage of potential set top box owners are already packing an Xbox 360 and for these guys you’re practically a shoo in. Netflix, of course, is the lucky winner here. Showcased at a Microsoft roundtable event held yesterday, Netflix’s Xbox 360 streaming service was actually quite impressive. Movies and TV episodes added to the Netflix queue (this still has to be done on a PC for now) become available on the Xbox 360 almost instantly and playback is controlled with the same familiar navigational elements used during DVD and video playback. As Netflix continues to expand its streamable library beyond the 10,000 movies and TV episodes already present, this partnership with Microsoft is going to help their service tremendously. Once it launches, the Netflix on Xbox 360 service will require a Gold level Xbox-Live subscription.

Read

What could possibly be better than your 52 inch Sony XBR5 TV? The XBR6, XBR7, and XBR8, of course! If there was any doubt about Sony’s seriousness with the XBR line, we can safely put that to rest right now. We’ve just got a hold of the product roadmap for this year, in addition to full spec sheets on the XBR6, XBR7 and the XBR8. The XBR6 and XBR7 lineup isn’t the most interesting compared to the current models, with modest upgrades like DLNA compliance, TV Guide IPG, "Enhanced" XMB interface, and now BRAVIA Sync capability. Also they sport four HDMI ports instead of three while still keeping both component inputs. There’s also a PC input as well, but it looks like the TVs shed the standard RCA inputs. Then again, will we really miss them?

Here’s where the XBR8 gets really exciting though — TRILUMINOS RGB LED backlight! Yes! That’s what we’re talkin’ about, folks. In addition to the LED backlighting, Sony has thrown in their "Advanced Contrast Enhancer PRO", the new BRAVIA Engine 2 PRO, and all of the other features the XBR6 and XBR7 have. Excited yet? We’re foaming at the mouth. Now you may ask, BG, when can we buy one? Here’s where the roadmap comes into play:

There are a bunch of XBR models coming soon, and that also includes a 32" model as well as a 37" one, too. It looks like we’ll see the KDL-32XBR6 around the middle of May and the KDL-37XBR6 around the middle of July. Also, the KDL-46XBR8 will be launching in August. In September and October, the rest of the other models are set to be released. These include the KDL-40XBR6, KDL-46XBR6, KDL-52XBR6, KDL-40XBR7, KDL-70XBR7, and finally the KDL-52XBR8. Hit the jump for the full spec sheets and roadmap!

Thanks, Al!

It has been a few weeks since Hulu became available to the general public and so far the internet video service has been met with open arms. Often times when a service leaves private beta and sees a huge amount of popularity, development can become stagnant for a while. Hulu however, appears to be the real deal. Sharing, social networking and life-blogging is all the rage with the kids these days and the Hulu folk are embracing it. Sharing via email and video embedding are nothing new with the online video provider, but just this morning Hulu has announced some new enhanced functionality that makes it very simple for users to share Hulu videos with a variety of popular social sites. A new Share button to the left of Hulu’s video player UI will pop up a sharing screen. Users can then select all or part of a video and instantly share it with popular sites like Facebook, MySpace, Digg, StumbleUpon and a few others. Pretty cool if you’re into that sort of thing. Many Hulu videos are time sensitive though; in other words they are only up on the site for a predetermined amount of time before being pulled. We wonder what will happen to the shares once a video is dropped - replaced by an ad block? Hulu has also jazzed up its RSS feeds a bit by allowing video embedding. This way, users can watch Hulu clips right from within their feed reader of choice. Bravo Hulu, keep it coming.

Read

It looks like Blockbuster is taking swings in the set-top box on deck circle as they prepare to make an announcement this month. According to Reuters, Blockbuster’s next big move will be the addition of a set-top box solution that will allow them to stream video content directly to televisions. Of course just as with Total Access, Blockbuster is in catch-up mode with any offering it might be preparing to announce. If Blockbuster can manage to bring its box to market before Netflix however, it might be able to make quite an impact. Total Access is not experiencing anywhere near the success that Netflix is, but those customers who do use Total Access are often happy to pay the extra few dollars per month for the ability to exchange mailed DVDs for free in-store rentals. The addition of a streaming service could cause plenty of current Netflix customers to jump ship, especially considering the fact that the Netflix download service is hardly what customers were hoping for at this point. If Reuters is correct we could see an offering from Blockbuster later this month, well ahead of the predicted launch of Netflix’s set-top product. Will this mean trouble for Netflix? Are both Netflix and Blockbuster getting ahead of themselves when considering the fact that AppleTV hardly lived up to the hype? Only time will tell if the general public is ready for set-top boxes or if we have a ways to go before download-to-TV services become part of the mainstream.

Read

Online video, television and movie addicts alike are rejoicing this morning as Hulu has officially announced that its private beta blanket will be lifted tomorrow, as predicted. The service will become open to the public, initially in the US only, and what began as an NBC / Fox depot has announced hoards of additional content partners. Unfortunately the massive amount of hype surrounding the service of late has resulted in traffic surges that Hulu just couldn’t handle this morning. Now on top of everything else that the well-funded start up has to do in order to prepare for tomorrow, it must determine how to better-accommodate the tsunami of visitors already hitting the site prior to its launch. Assuming all is in ordered come tomorrow, those who have snickered and sneered at limited content will surely be silenced. Why? Well let’s have a look at the list of content partners that Hulu has wrangled:

FOX, NBC Universal, MGM, Sony Pictures Television, Warner Bros. Television Group, Access Hollywood, AST Dew Tour, BNET, Bravo, Broadway Video, CenterStaging, Chic.tv, Chiller, CHOW, CNET, Comedy Time, E! Entertainment Television, ExerciseTV, FEARnet, Ford Models, Fox Atomic, Fox Movie Channel, Fox Reality, Fox Searchlight, Fox Sports, Fox TV Studios, Fuel TV, FX Networks, G4TV, Gamespot, Gamespy, Hidden Universe, IGN, Image Entertainment, Lionsgate, LX.TV, MEN7, Mojo, Movieola, My Network TV, National Geographic Channel, National Geographic Digital Shorts, NBA, NBC Sports, NBCU TV, NHL, Oxygen, Paley Media, Red Bull, Reveille, Salient Media, SciFi Channel, Shout! Factory, Sleuth Channel, SpaceRip, Speed, Sundance Channel, Taste TV, The Fight Network, The Golf Channel, The Onion, The Style Network, Thought Equity, TV Guide, TVG, Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, Twentieth Century Fox Television, Twentieth Television, Universal Pictures, USA Network, Versus, Vuguru, WatchMojo, Wine Library TV and World Wrestling Entertainment®

Tremendous. We’re now more excited about this service than ever. In private beta, Hulu has seen over 5 million viewers in the past 30 days alone. Congrats to CEO Jason Kilar and the rest of the team at Hulu; they could very well have a game-changer on their hands.

Via NewTeeVee

Read

Could the world finally gets a taste of hulu this coming week? Might NBC and Fox’s baby finally leave private beta? Do you care? Those who have sampled hulu to date seem to have mixed feelings with regards to the service and analyst opinions are just as varied. If you somehow haven’t read about it until now, hulu is a site that provides clips and full episodes of numerous NBC and Fox television shows. Currently hulu is in private beta but Silicon Alley Insider Senior Editor Michael Learmonth seems to believe that all signs point to a public release this week. Evidence sited includes an enormous feature in the just-released issue of Fortune and a scheduled analyst briefing that will take place on Monday. Hulu is slated for a Q2 release and with three weeks left in March it certainly makes sense. As for us, we kind of like the site. It’s nice to be able to catch a wide variety of shows without having to dig around the internet or bother with torrents and whatnot. Video quality is good, not great, full screen mode is available and the episode selection is hit or miss. Some shows are very well-represented on hulu while others might have only four or five episodes at any given time. There are also a variety of shows listed in the hulu directory that just link to outside sites, which is a bit odd and annoying as they almost always have lower-quality offerings. Learmonth’s article also includes a great quote from Quincy Smith as to why CBS isn’t on board at this point: "If the Web is just another way to watch TV, I think I’m going to slit my wrists."

Read

Panasonic recently announced its latest mobile handset, the Viera P905i. Carrying the same moniker as Panasonic’s line of plasma and LCD televisions, you can guess what the focus of this bad boy is going to be. Yup, TV. The P905i packs a massive display, a remarkable contrast ratio and a playback rate of 30 frames per second. Let’s have a look at the available specs:

• 3.5" 262k color widescreen display at 854 x 480 resolution
• 30 fps playback
• 4,000:1 contrast ratio
• Streaming mobile TV support
• HSDPA connectivity
• 2 megapixel camera with autofocus and image stabilizer
• TV and audio out ports
• SDHC memory card slot

What a roller coaster ride, huh? Huge widescreen display with great resolution, 30 fps playback and a sick 4,000:1 contrast ratio! 262k colors. Autofocus camera with image stabilization! 2 megapixels. No word yet on dimensions, battery size, pricing or which streaming TV formats the P905i will support; not that it matters. Initially available in Japan only, we’ll have quite a while before Panasonic’s first Veria-branded handset makes its way to Europe orthe US of course, if it ever does make the jump.

[Via ubergizmo]

Read

We’ve already looked at the iTunes movie rental service alongside Netflix’s streaming offering. Side by side, it appears that the two video services are in completely separate leagues. Netflix offers unlimited streaming from its library of over 6,000 titles absolutely free of charge to all of its unlimited mail order subscribers. Apple on the other hand, charges between $3 and $5 for a single online rental that can only be watched for 24 hours from first play. Even so, we all know that the iTunes service will fare well as a result of hype, simplicity and marketing. During 2008 however, Netflix is rumored to have a few tricks up its sleeve that could potentially put a nice bump in Apple’s road. Firstly, there are multiple instances of Netflix confirming that it plans to attack Mac incompatibility issues head on. The current lack of available Mac-compatible DRM protection has been the source of the hold-up as Apple, of course, does not license their DRM solution. Microsoft’s cross-platform DRM encoding is already in beta however, and you can expect Netflix to be an early adopter. To complete the circle, Netflix will also be adding a set top box to their catalog that will allow Netflix-streamed content to be played on TV sets. With all this in store from the leader in mail order movie rentals, can we expect them to dominate the video download arena as well? They might not be as shiny as Apple or Amazon but they certainly seem to be positioned to provide a real competing service.

Read

Anorexia isn’t just a problem with models and teenage girls these days. Apparently the epidemic is spreading throughout the electronics world, and spreading fast. Apple, Toshiba, and others are vying to produce the world’s thinnest laptop, the title belt for the world’s thinnest mobile phone is always changing hands, and the television game is no different. Sharp has now claimed the prize, temporarily no doubt, with the announcement of its new line of AQUOS X LCD TVs. With a profile of 3.44cm and some fairly impressive specs, these sets are pretty hot. Beyond the dimensions, a contrast ratio of 15,000:1, 12-bit BDE and full 1080p should make for a terrific viewing experience. The largest model squeezes a 46-inch display into the ultra-thin frame and weighs in at a mere 38 pounds, yet it still thinks it’s fat when it looks in the mirror. Isn’t Sharp cheating a bit though? While this LCD TV is currently the thinnest of its kind, the tuner and I/O connections are actually housed in a separate external box. Whatever, it’s still one of the sleekest sets we’ve seen and gear freaks with a good amount of expendable income won’t have to salivate for very long; in Japan at least. Available in 37-inch ($3,290), 42-inch ($4,050) and 46-inch models ($4,510), the AQUOS X line is set to hit the streets of Japan in March. No word yet on availability or pricing in other regions. In related news, a jealous Snejana Onopka is reportedly purging twice as much since the AQUOS X’s announcement…

[Via SlipperyBrick]

Read

SlingPlayer Mobile for BlackBerry was finally announced formally prior to CES after having been passed around the rumor mill since September. Add the BB version to their already existing support for Windows Mobile, Palm OS and Symbian and they have all the bases covered, right? Ahhh, that’s right; OS X mobile. An iPhone / iPod Touch app has also been rumored to be in Sling Media’s pipeline for quite some time. It looks like the rumors can almost be elevated to "confirmed" status as ElectricPig.tv is claiming to have spoken to a higher-up at Sling Media. They quote their source as recently stating, "iPhone and iPod touch are OS X devices, and we can write OS X apps with our eyes closed. It’s coming." Further support comes from the report that Sling Media is among the developers in receipt of an early iPhone SDK tasting from Apple. Lack of 3G support on the iPhone will be a limitation of course, but iPhone 1 compatibility will mean a much shorter wait for iPhone 2 compatibility. Here’s the thing though…we’re pretty positive Sling Media did not in fact get an early look at the Apple iPhone SDK, and after talking to one of our sources at Sling, they’re just "poking around with the idea."

[Via Mac Rumors]

Read

Are you noticing a trend here? The CES trade show is about many things, but gigantic televisions are certainly at the forefront of most big manufacturer’s offerings. While Pioneer can’t quite compete on the size scale with the likes of Panasonic and Sharp, the company is working to make a play on the luxury screen market. They’ve branded a luxury division under the name Kuro, and seem to be churning out some pretty attractive high-end TVs. They had a prototype TV on display here today, and it’s a beautiful product. It’s a 50" screen designed to sit in your living room or entertainment center. The TV itself is insanely thin, and picture quality is nothing short of stunning. The Pioneer reps were coy about whether or not there were plans to launch commercial production, but we think they’d have a winner on their hands if they decided to make this one available. Remember this concept TV is totally different from the Kuro that’s offered now. The black levels are simply unbelievable on the concept, even better than the commerically available Kuros in stores.

Click on over to our Pioneer Kuro concept TV gallery!