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Boxee Opens a New Door to Hulu Videos
Tweet Share on Facebook March 6, 2009 Comment (1)Boxee is proving it's hard to cut off a good Internet aggregator. The company added a new route in its viewing software to Hulu videos after Hulu had cut it off from a direct link to its movies and TV shows. Frederic Lardinois at ReadWriteWeb reports the hack works well:
...while it is billed as a workaround and not quite as pretty as Boxee's previous implementation, it actually turned out to be a very workable solution. All the shows are lined up in alphabetical order and while Boxee clearly overlays its own user interface over the Hulu flash player, you actually have to look very closely to see this.
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Digital TV Coupons Flowing Again -- Maybe We Can Help
Tweet Share on Facebook March 6, 2009 Comment (4)The digital TV coupons are flowing again, the government says. The chief overseers say there should be plenty for everyone who wants or needs one. Also, coupons that expired can be replaced, though the government isn't taking those applications yet.
The government will embark on a "search and rescue" effort to get stragglers ready for the switch to digital TV. That transition is already happening with more than a third of stations having made the change. Many others will make the switch before June 12, the new deadline for turning off analog signals.
During the debate over the delay, I was struck by how little sympathy readers of this column have for the dawdlers:
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Olympus: 12 Megapixels is Enough
Tweet Share on Facebook March 5, 2009 CommentI've noted how camera makers were moving beyond megapixels. I recently looked at five cameras with features that will help sell us new snapshooters.
Turns out that Olympus thinks 12 megapixels is enough for even high-end consumer cams, the digital SLRs that are increasingly popular. At least that's what a company exec told Stephen Shankland for his Underexposed column:
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Beatles Rock Band Videogame to Arrive in September
Tweet Share on Facebook March 5, 2009 Comment (6)The Beatles and MTV Games released details today on the Fab Four's first foray into digital music and video games. The Beatles: Rock Band will arrive Sept. 9 for the Wii, XBox 360 and PlayStation 3 consoles. The game itself will sell for $60 with optional and pricey ($100 and up) controllers modeled after instruments used by the group's members.
The release date is in time for the holiday season. It also happens to be "number nine, number nine, number nine" -- which I'm sure is just a coincidence.
Unknown is when the Beatles' music itself would finally appear for sale as digital downloads. Periodic rumors surface that have the group's Apple Corps talking to different download services. There have been occasional trademark tensions between the group and the owner of iTunes, but it would be symmetry for Apple to first strike a deal with Apple, no?
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ZillionTV Joins Fast-Moving Market for Web Video
Tweet Share on Facebook March 4, 2009 Comment (3)Another Internet TV service hit the market today -- ZillionTV. And it seems like the zillionth company promising to deliver movies and shows over broadband connections.
The technology sounds impressive. Los Angeles Times reporter Jon Healey says DVD-quality video started playing seconds after it was selected. ZillionTV also has substantial partners in a number of Hollywood studios and Visa, the credit card company.
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Palm Pre Is Huge Gamble as Other Palms Suffer
Tweet Share on Facebook March 4, 2009 Comment (16)Palm landed its Treo Pro smartphone on Sprint, the first U.S. carrier to offer a subsidy on the handset. The Treo Pro will go on sale March 15 for $200 after rebate and with contract.
Unfortunately for Palm and Sprint, the business-oriented phone is caught in the backwash of the Palm Pre. Enthusiasm for the upcoming Pre has depressed sales of other Palm models, the company said in an earnings note this week. Palm said sales won't top $90 million in a quarter that analysts had expected about $155 million. Notes Larry Dignan at the Between the Lines blog:
While a revenue drop-off was expected when Palm introduced the Pre the rate of decline is a bit stunning. When it comes to Palm’s turnaround it’s clearly going to be worse before the Pre allegedly saves the day.
He notes Palm is burning through its cash, with the good news that Palm expects the Pre to arrive as planned before July:
Add it up and it appears the Pre is an all-or-nothing proposition for Palm.
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Kindle for iPhone Creating as Much Buzz as Kindle Itself
Tweet Share on Facebook March 4, 2009 Comment (1)Excitement about Amazon's new Kindle software for the iPhone seems at risk of eclipsing the Kindle 2 announcement itself. Nobody argues that the iPhone is a better device for reading than a dedicated E-book reader. It isn't, with its smaller screen and fewer controls.
But we carry our phones everywhere, unlike the bulkier Kindle. And the iPhone is just the first mobile phone to get the software, which Amazon has said will arrive for a wide variety of handsets. Amazon has to wonder how many Kindle customers it will lose to cellphone owners.
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Roku Launches Access to Amazon Movies
Tweet Share on Facebook March 3, 2009 CommentRoku launched the access to Amazon's video-on-demand service. The set-top box links to a TV and has provided accesss to Netflix movies and TV shows. Adding Amazon is a first step in keeping the $100 Roku box ahead of other devices that have added Netflix streaming.
I'm anxious to try the Amazon streams, but my Roku hasn't gotten the updated software yet. The company says it should be there within a week.
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Asus Eee Top Looks Good for Kitchen Counters
Tweet Share on Facebook March 3, 2009 CommentAsus is readying a new touchscreen PC that looks promising for the kitchen counter. The all-in-one Asus Eee Top goes on sale soon for $600. Amazon started taking pre-orders today.
I've longed for a computer that can act as a family coordinator at the nerve center of the home. One with a touchscreen made sense, but options have been few. HP's TouchSmart line is too expensive starting at $1,200 or so, and too much with its powerful processor and built-in TV tuner. It's also too big with screen sizes of 22 inches and up.
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Apple Mac vs. Windows: The Apple Premium Is Gone
Tweet Share on Facebook March 3, 2009 Comment (14)The Mac premium has disappeared for now, at least among well-equipped consumer PCs, as Apple today revamped its desktop PC offerings. Apple has even undercut the Windows market for large-screen, all-in-one computers that stuff themselves into an LCD monitor.
Apple now offers an iMac with all its components in a 24-inch monitor at $1,500. That's less than the list price on major-maker Windows versions. Dell, for example, sells a 24-inch all-in-one for $1,600, as does Sony.
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