802.11n TiVo adapter appears

TiVo owners unhappy with the speed and bandwidth capabilities of the current AG0100 Wireless G USB network adapter will be happy to know an 802.11n version appeared in the FCC database today. The AN0100 Wireless 11n AP doesn't have a description or any images attached in the FCC filing (aside from what looks like an included Ethernet slot), but it's probable that the new adapter will better handle wireless HD streaming across a home network. The current version of the DVR adapter features support for TiViToGo, online scheduling, multi-room viewing, and photo and music playback.

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Toshiba confirms 2160p Cell Regza LED TV shipping soon

Toshiba has confirmed to Australian publication Smarthouse that the 2160p Cell LED TV will hit shelves soon in both Japan and Australia. First tipped at CES 2009, the Cell TV uses the same 64-bit Cell Broadband Engine used by the Sony Playstation 3, can record 6 HD TV channels at once to its built-in 1 TB storage unit, and includes a Blu-ray player. 2160p resolution is actually 3 times greater than 1080p, and the Cell Regza can in fact scale 1080p content to 3840 x 2160 pixels. As for a full list of specifications, Toshiba says they will be released "within days", and not surprisingly, the TV will be fairly expensive. The Cell TV will begin selling Japan in December 2009 and Australia in 2010. It will also be on display in Las Vegas at CES 2010.

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Is an Apple HDTV on the way?

Prolific Piper Jaffray senior analyst Gene Munster believes that Apple will launch a full blown HDTV with built-in digital media recording capabilities by 2011. And how will this vision play out? Munster says it'll go something like this:

• Apple will release a new Apple TV set-top box soon with a TV input a built-in DVR. This would tie in to a subscription-based service for its iTunes TV content.
• An iTunes TV Pass within the year that will leverage Apple's cable network relationships and content library. Consumers would have unlimited access to a sub-library of cable content for a flat fee of $30-$40 per month.
• An Apple TV set within two years that will be able to wirelessly sync with iPhones, iPods, and iPod Touch's.

Munster continues to go on to argue that Apple's partnership with LG to produce LCD displays and a variety of digital video recording-related patents further support an Apple TV.

Personally I'm on the fence about this one. With budget HDTV brands such as Vizio producing quality sets on the cheap, this might be a tough market for Apple to break into. Especially given its premium pricing strategy. Pioneer had the bestplasma TVs around--still do really--but pulled out of the business because the high prices it charged didn't enable it to grab enough market share.

Then again, if any company could pull off a premium pricing strategy in what is quickly becoming a commodity market, Apple would be it.

Mitsubishi DVR-BZ330 packs in 1 TB memory, Diamond HD super resolution

Mitsubishi has debuted a trio of impressive Blu-ray DVRs in Japan. The flagship DVR-BZ330 has a whopping 1 TB of built-in memory and Diamond HD chip-powered super resolution upconversion. The mid-range DVR-BZ230 has 500 GB of hard drive space but no super resolution capabilities, while the DVR-BV530 has the usual Blu-ray capabilities AND VHS playback (but no recording). Available in October, the Mitsubishi DVRs run from ¥120,000 ($1,270) for the DVR-BV530 to ¥180,000 ($1,915) for the top-of-the-line DVR-BZ330.

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Best Buy and TiVo partner up for promotional scheme

Best Buy and TiVo are forming a partnership that will result in heavy TiVo promotion in all 1100 Best Buy stores in the United States.

As part of the deal, TiVo will develop a custom version of its digital video recorder for Best Buy that will allow the electronics chain to advertise its products and services to TiVo subscribers on their TVs. Subscribers will also be able to purchase items and receive tips and advice. Best Buy will finance a move to bring TiVo's search tools and software to its own brand of home theater products, Insignia, as well.

TiVo hopes the partnership will help people realize that the set-top is more than a way to rewind and record television shows. Newer TiVo boxes have broadband connections allowing subscribers to do things like order pizzas and Netflix movies, and buy tickets for movies and events. But TiVo has had a tough time educating consumers about the new features; not a good thing considering most cable companies now offer their own DVRs.

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Digital Vision intros ultra-simple GiGo Digital TV Recorder

Digital Vision has announced the GiGo Digital TV Recorder, a simplistic DVR built to record Freeview programming to USB thumb drives in MPEG2 format. Envisioned to be placed in secondary rooms such as kitchens rather than the living room, the GiGo does without a built-in hard drive though Digital Vision says it does connect to large capacity external hard drives without issue. It has 3 USB slot, only one tuner and an electronic program guide. It isn't compatible with Freeview+, but users can watch one program while recording another. The GiGo will launch later this year for the rough equivalent of $115 and Digital Vision says it is also working on developing higher-end DVRs with internal drives and MPEG4 compatibility.

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TiVo's HD XL 150 Hour DVR Gets Reviewed

There's plenty of good things to say about TiVo's HD XL DVR. Not only does it have all the TiVo functionality many of us are quite familiar with, it's THX-certified, has a massive 1 Terabyte hard drive that'll store up to 150 hours of HD content, is fully internet-connected so you can record content from services such as Amazon Unbox and Rhapsody, and can transfer content to your PC or portable device via TiVo To Go. Rated excellent by the prolific product reviewers at CNET, the HD XL DVR only has a couple of flaws. Because it's a one-way CableCARD device, you won't be able to peruse any interactive content. Basically you can't record video-on-demand. Nor does it record anything from cable provider's using Switched Digital Video without a tuner. Other than that, no complaints. Unless you're a hardcore TV recording fanatic though, the TiVo HD DVR is probably a better choice, because for all the extras found on the HD XL you'll pay a premium-a little under $580 at Amazon.

Via CNET

Seagate's Showcase HDD: A Storage Solution For Motorola DVR's

The Seagate Showcase external HDD was designed to make sure you never lose any of your DVR'ed content again. Compatible with Motorola's eSATA HD DVR's the Showcase will have an intial storage space of 1 TB, enough to store about 200 hours of HD shows and movies or 1000 hours of standard-def content. If offers a simple plug-and-play setup using either a USB 2.0 or an eSATA connection that uses an included cable to connect directly to Motorola DVR's. The Seagate Showcase is expected to be available from Seagate's website sometime this fall.

Via Yahoo

Next-Gen Dish DVR Will Feature Slingbox, Clip And Sling, Slingcatcher, And Web Access!

The next Dish DVR will supposedly add in Slingbox capabilities, limited web access with some kind of connection to Yahoo, and even a sharing feature, Clip and Sling, that'll alllow you to send video to your friends. The new DVR will combine the Sling features with the Dish 722 box and feature a new remote with a touchpad and trigger and new user interface. Expected to have 1 TB of storage, the Dish DVR will lose half of its disk space to preloaded HD movies. The front of the unit will have no buttons whatsoever, relying on touch keys and will be backlit. We'll keep our eye out for this release, it'll be hot!

Via SatelliteGuys.US

TubeStick Hybrid TV Tuner Hits The US

If your familiar with the TubeStick hybrid TV tuner, you'll know that it was previously only compatible with DVB-T, the European broadcasting standard. But Equinux, the company behind the TubeStick has developed a tuner specifically for the US market, combining both ATSC and NTSC tuners for decoding over-the-air HDTV and SDTV signals, unencrypted cable (ClearQAM) signals, and over-the-air analog signals. The USB device for the Macintosh, can also store video from analog sources such as video cameras and game consoles with S-VHS or composite video outputs.

Packaged with the Tubestick is The Tube, software for recording and timeshifting TV shows. The software also includes TubeTalk and TubeToGo, allowing public chat and portable viewing with any internet connection respectively as long as you have .Mac or FTP support. So if you have an Intel-based Mac running on a minimum Mac OS X v10.4.10 or later, 1GB RAM, 2GB hard disk space and an available USB 2.0 port, you might like to get your hands on this handy little piece of electronic. It's available for $129 from Equinux.

Via Macworld

Mobilygen Build World's First HD Surveillance DVR

You know whenever you watch a show such as America's Most Wanted, the surveillance images of bad guys in action are so blurry and grainy you can't even tell what they're doing, never mind what they look like. That's all about to change as Mobilygen, a provider of low-power H.264 codec solutions, has announced the world's first digital video recorder with HD monitoring. Designed specifically for the surveillance industry, the new DVR uses Mobilygen's MG3500 Codec ICs to "record up to 16 channels of full D1 resolution H.264 video while streaming multiple video channels over an IP network with low latency". In bad guy terms-you're busted, because with HD video surveillance we're going to get a much, much better look at your clothing, features, face, and crime.

The MG3500 Codec IC has all the necessary features for optimal video surveillance including "image stabilization, motion detection, object tracking, scene change detection, event-triggered HD still image capture, privacy region protection, burn-in, and digital time stamps and signatures". Mobilygen's new surveillance DVR will be tagged at $9995 available in May 2008.

Via Mobilygen

ABC Looks To Fight DVR's With Mandatory Commercials

ABC Networks, its affiliates and Cox Communications are expected to announce a new video-on-demand service today that will allow viewers to watch ABC shows anytime they want. Definitely a big plus for busy fans of shows such as Desperate Housewives, who after missing one episode are completely lost for the remainder of the season. The new service is an outright attempt on the network's behalf to fight the use of digital video recorders such as the TiVo, which enables on-demand viewing of TV shows and lets you fast forward through commercials. And that's where the catch comes in.

The new service will allow you to watch your favorite ABC shows on-demand, but disables commercial fast forwarding. In exchange for your shows when you want, you'll be forced to watch commercials, although the on-demand commercials will be much shorter than what you're used to on traditional over-the-air TV.

"As network and affiliates, we both have an interest in slowing down the explosive growth of DVRs," Mr. Cole said. "This is about combating DVRs. As we developed this at every stage, there was an agreement that however we put this together, disabling the fast-forward function was key."

Via New York Times

Having Trouble With Your TiVo? Deal With It, You Don't Matter (Unless You Have A Hammer)

Going back as far as last October's TiVo software update, a small "subset" of TiVo users who use the TiVoToGo feature to transfer recorded shows to mobile devices such as their cell phones have been having all kinds of problems. Not only with the TiVoToGo feature, but also with getting TiVo to fix the problem.

TiVo's fall update changed the way recorded files were saved and since then, the Toast 8 software created by Roxio used to transfer recorded content has had all kinds of technical glitches as a result of not meshing properly with the TiVo update. The main problem has been with audio delays and skips during the playback of transferred content rendering it completely unwatchable for some users. Roxio did release an update of their own to try and solve the problem, but it wasn't a complete success and some users are still having problems...5 months later. And they're having trouble getting TiVo and Roxio to acknowledge them as valuable customers.

Continue reading: "Having Trouble With Your TiVo? Deal With It, You Don't Matter (Unless You Have A Hammer)"

Comcast's TiVo-Powered DVR Finally Ready, But Only In Boston

Comcast is finally ready to release the TiVo interface as a software upgrade for its DVR subscribers two years after initially promised...but only in Boston. Back in 2005, DirecTV stopped marketing TiVo after developing their own DVR, a big hit for TiVo. However that same year Comcast announced in a press release that they expected TiVo service to be available to the the majority of their customers by mid-to-late 2006. Definitely a lifesaver for TiVo. But it never happened and TiVo has lost hundreds of thousands of subscribers since.

Finally ready in 2008, Comcast says they drastically underestimated the difficulty of integrating TiVo into their DVR's and operating system, but the struggle finally ended thanks to the development of Tru2way software, a big focus of this year's CES conference in Las Vegas. Tru2way allows "TVs, DVRs and other consumer electronics to handle its interactive services, including video on demand", currently only provided by Comcast gear.

The partnership will run until at least 2014 and TiVo CEO Tom Rogers is excited about the possibilities of a "total integration of cable services into TiVo", even beyond Comcast. There are a few remaining issues however. Number one being the service will only initially be offered in Boston, a far cry from the promise of availability in the majority of Comcast markets two years ago. The software also has some remaining bugs though Comcast has updates planned in the coming weeks to fix the problems. And finally, the complexity of the system means subscribers have to schedule an hour long telephone call with Comcast for consumer education purposes, making us wonder: if the software upgrade is so difficult to use, will anyone use it?

Via USA Today