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Macrovision re-invents itself as Rovi, kicks off with new guide "Liquid"

by Ben Drawbaugh posted Jul 16th 2009 at 7:17AM

Liquid guide from Rovi

Hold on to your hats folks because the company that we love to hate is turning over a new leaf by kicking off its old DRM shoes and leveraging its acquisition of Gemstar in a big way. What we mean is that this is the first time in the history of Macrovision that we can remember being excited about an announcement; and boy does it make perfect sense that it comes with a new company name. Rovi's first consumer product should be available in various HDTVs next year, and among the new jazzed up looking guide you can expect a full DLNA client that is designed to be a single access point for all of your content. This includes internet sourced content like Slacker radio, YouTube XL, BLOCKBUSTER OnDemand, and CinemaNow; as well as anything you might have on your PC like pictures, music and even videos. Add in a little social networking from sites such as Flixster and we might have ourselves a new way to watch TV. No word yet on what new TVs will feature Liquid, but we'd expect to hear more at CES '10. The full release is after the jump.

Continue reading Macrovision re-invents itself as Rovi, kicks off with new guide "Liquid"

Mvix Ultio "It Plays All" HD media streamer debuts in the U.S. July 6 for $179

by Richard Lawler posted Jun 25th 2009 at 12:31PM


We'd heard rumors Mvix USA would be rolling out an upgraded 1080p capable media box to rival the earlier MvixPVR and here it is. Dubbed the Ultio, it has a list of supported codecs and containers that rivals the new Popcorn Hour C-200 in its thoroughness -- DivX® (3/4/5/6), Xvid, AVC-HD, MPEG 1/2/4, WMV-9, ASF(WMV9), MKV, DVD(IFO, VOB), ISO, MP3, WMA, AAC, OGG, FLAC, AC3 -- it's all here, with a slightly awkward Swiss Army knife-themed tagline to boot. The $169 price tag is sans-3.5-inch SATA HDD, though you can add one for $79 (500GB) $90 (1TB) or $139 (1.5TB). Of course network streaming is a part of the package, with Mvix's usual suite of Samba / UPnP / BitTorrent (mentioning compatibility with PlayOn and Tversity specifically to get all your Netflix, YouTube and other streaming sources to TV) via Ethernet or optional Wireless-N dongle. It's up for pre-orders now, take a close look at the specs and pics then get in line before they start shipping July 6.

Gallery: Mvix Ultio

mCubed's RipNAS Statement now available in Europe

by Darren Murph posted May 27th 2009 at 2:21PM


mCubed's RipNAS Statement may be unique, but it isn't apt to be widely adopted -- at least not with price points like this. Hailed as the first SSD-based CD ripping NAS device, the product is also available in a traditional HDD form, though both handle automatic ripping, NAS duties and media streaming. Within, you'll find a dual-core Atom CPU, gigabit Ethernet, a TEAC DVD drive, four USB 2.0 sockets and a fanless design. The pain? €1,795 ($2,500) for the 3TB HDD version, or €3,295 ($4,590) for the 500GB SSD model. If you're unfazed by sticker shock, you can pick yours up right now over in Europe.

Gallery: mCubed's RipNAS Statement now available in Europe

Is the future of Windows Media Center with Windows Home Server?

by Ben Drawbaugh posted May 22nd 2009 at 2:00PM

WHS and WMC
With all the bad news around Windows Media Center this week, many enthusiasts are wondering about the future of Media Center. To say that the past few years have had a few disappointments is an understatement, especially when you think back to the way CableCARD support was implemented and how poorly the Extenders have been supported. Although things look pretty grim for our preferred DVR platform, we're optimistic that things are actually about to get really good in the next year thanks to Windows 7 and some unannounced features and products. Part of the reason we think this is because over the years we've been watching Microsoft develop products that have taken years to catch on and gain dominance. But lets be honest, we're not on the inside and most of what we think will happen is based on rumors and conjecture. With that being said, we've convinced ourselves that the future of Media Center, and the key to wider adoption that we think it deserves, is with Windows Home Server.

Continue reading Is the future of Windows Media Center with Windows Home Server?

RipNAS Statement: world's first SSD-based CD ripping NAS device

by Darren Murph posted May 3rd 2009 at 4:29PM


We'll be perfectly honest with you -- the Atom-powered RipNAS definitely caught our interest when it launched with practically no major competitors back in February. Now, the RipNAS family has grown by two with the introduction of the Statement SSD and Statement HDD. We're told that the former is the world's first SSD-based CD ripping NAS device, and we've absolutely no reason to believe otherwise. The totally silent, all-silver box is based on the Windows Home Server OS and handles a cornucopia of tasks: CD ripping, media streaming and networked file storage. Internal specifications include a dual-core Atom CPU, 2GB of RAM and four USB 2.0 ports. The Statement SSD arrives in a 500GB configuration (2 x 250GB SSDs), while the Statement HDD holds 3TB by way of two 1.5TB drives; mum's the word on pricing, but don't bank on 'em being cheap.

DivX fills in the gaps and adds MKV support to Windows 7

by Ben Drawbaugh posted May 1st 2009 at 11:47AM

DivX Tech Preview

Windows 7 comes with many new under the hood enhancements that address some sore spots for Media Center fans, but we don't think any hurt as much as the lack of native codec support. The most popular file format online today is without a doubt MKV, but many don't understand that it isn't a codec at all, but instead a container. In fact it's a container that can hold just about any combination of video and audio, but most notably H.264 video and AC3 audio. Now the kicker in Windows 7 is that although it natively supports H.264 and AC3, it still can't play MKV files. Up until now enthusiasts have been installing the Haali splitter on the Windows 7 Beta, which has kinda worked. We say kinda, because for whatever reason the Haali Media Splitter exposes the H.264 stream in an MKV file as AVC1 and not H.264. What this means is that Windows doesn't realize it can decode the content natively and when you try to play one of these files on an Extender -- for example -- the video is unnecessarily transcoded. So now that you understand the problem, it appears DivX has the solution. The latest DivX Tech Preview features a Media Foundation -- the replacement for DirectShow in 7 -- component that will demux MKV files and allow the video and audio streams to be decoded with native Windows 7 codecs. Well, that's the theory anyways, we'll be following the comments closely to see how this turns out in practice.

Corel WinDVD 9 Plus Blu-ray Update Pack ready for download

by Darren Murph posted Aug 20th 2008 at 4:36PM

Ooh, goodie! A full five months after Corel released its WinDVD 9 Plus Blu-ray application, the first major update pack has arrived. The unimaginatively named WinDVD 9 Plus Blu-ray Update Pack checks in at just under 50MB and size and promises to resolve the "Enable S/PDIF Out" / "HDMI output to speaker" issues while expanding the list of compatible commercial titles and enhancing compatibility for a slew of VGA chipsets within Windows Vista / XP. There's no direct mention of BD-Live support, but for those who purchased the original, why not give the update a go and report back?

[Thanks, Tyler]

Google Media Server brings PC-based content to your TV

by Darren Murph posted Jul 2nd 2008 at 11:34AM


As Google continues to dabble in more and more areas, we suppose it's not too shocking to see it dipping its toes in the blossoming media streaming realm. Available now for Windows-based PCs (sorry, Mac / Linux users), Google Media Server "uses Google Desktop technology such as Desktop gadgets for the administration tool and Google Desktop Search to locate media files," after which it broadcasts said content onto your television via any UPnP-enabled device (you know, like a PlayStation 3). Once connected, users can easily access multimedia files stored on their PC, view Picasa web albums and play back YouTube videos. Give it a go and see how it stacks up.

[Via Yahoo / InformationWeek]

Conceptronic ships Grab 'n GO Full HD media streamer

by Darren Murph posted Jun 12th 2008 at 9:10AM

In the quickly-growing realm of media streamers, there's at least a modicum of a chance that Conceptronic's oddly titled Grab 'n GO Full HD media player has slipped from the forefront of your mind. If so, the outfit is gunning to jar your memory by announcing that it is now shipping said piece to eager consumers. The release also noted that SAMBA and NFS clients have been added, and it's pretty much ready to "stream all digital media files to a TV in Full HD 1080p resolution." Furthermore, you'll find a gigabit Ethernet jack to handle all that data, and the built-in USB port enables external storage to be added locally. Sorry, still no price.

[Thanks, KJ]

WinDVD 9 Plus Blu-ray finally supports TrueHD and DTS-HD

by Ben Drawbaugh posted Mar 18th 2008 at 6:30AM

WinDVD 9 plus Blu-ray The format that some say isn't done, just got one step closer for those with media PCs, as the latest version of WinDVD 9 Plus Blu-ray -- despite the new name, HD DVD is still supported -- finally includes support for the latest audio codecs Blu-ray has to offer. But improved audio support isn't all it has to offer, as BonusView is now supported, as well as support for the latest HD video camera codec, AVCHD. We had a chance to play around with it early, but unfortunately we weren't able to unlock TrueHD or DTS-HD -- still waiting to hear back from support. We also had a few HDCP errors despite the fact that PowerDVD plays just fine with our Radeon 2600HD video card. Either way, maybe you'll have better luck, and it'll only cost you $99 to find out -- or $69 if you are upgrading.

**Update** Thanks to support we got TrueHD and DTS-HD working by messing with the sound card settings, but the HDCP issue is still bugging us.

Niveus unveils 2TB and 4TB Storage Server devices

by Darren Murph posted Feb 15th 2008 at 7:03AM


It's been a blisteringly hot minute since Niveus saw fit to really revamp its aging Storage Server, but for whatever reason, today's the day all that changes. Yep, starting on Valentine's Day, users can grab hold of a 2TB Storage Server or 4TB Storage Server Pro, both of which include the firm's own Reflection technology for keeping data synced across multiple storage units. The duo also sports a rack-mountable design and includes automatic backup software, uPnP Media Server support, remote access via secure login, RAID 0 / 5 capabilities and a wicked high price tag. How high, you ask? Try $2,999 for the 2TB edition or $5,999 for the 4TB model. Yeah, that high.

Cyberlink unveils streaming media software: Digital Home Enabler Kit

by Darren Murph posted Jan 7th 2007 at 2:10PM

While most folks would probably take the hardware-based media streaming approach to get computer / HDD-based media onto their snazzy HD sets, Cyberlink is offering up a reasonable software-based alternative for those looking to pass media around from PC to PC (or HTPC). By installing Cyberlink's Media Server on your media-packed computer, it provides a hassle-free way to open up your files to the home network and share them easily with other connected users. Aside from allowing any UPnP-certified player to locate media across the network, it also supports multiple simultaneous users so long as each connected PC is outfitted with a copy of the firm's SoftDMA application. Although nothing here is truly revolutionary, it does offer up a fairly straightforward approach to achieving the "digital home," and you can pick this up (or download, actually) for $79.95 right now, which will include two SoftDMA licenses to get you going.

Intervideo's WinDVD 8 launched in the US

by Richard Lawler posted Nov 2nd 2006 at 2:58PM

All those looking to add Blu-ray and/or HD DVD playback to their existing PC get ready, Intervideo's WinDVD 8 is finally coming to US shelves. Already available overseas and as a pack-in with some Sony and Toshiba drives and laptops, it will finally be available as a standalone for those who bought a Blu-ray or HD DVD drive with no playback software. Set to run on Windows XP and the upcoming Vista, the Platinum edition of the software can also act as a UPnP server, streaming media to compatible devices. Out of the box its not ready for Blu-ray or HD DVD playback, an add-on HD Upgrade Pack will be necessary but no word yet on the pricing or system requirements there. The Gold edition has a price of $39.98, while the Platinum version with the media server and support for advanced HD codecs is $59.95. Look for it to show up on Intervideo's site...any minute now, and on store shelves in the next few weeks.

Initial release of Viiv Media Center PC's not to feature Digital Media Adaptor support

by Richard Lawler posted Jan 2nd 2006 at 1:54PM


Digitimes is reporting that Intel's line of Viiv media center PC's, set to launch at CES this week, will not feature support for Digital Media Adaptors. According to Alex at eHomeupgrade, this also means no Media Center Extender or Xbox 360 streaming support.

Ugh, I hope the other features Intel will unveil make up for this lack of functionality (apparently it will be added in June in a Viiv 1.5 release). We'll have all that news and more in our CES coverage later this week.

Update: Alex updated to mention he's not sure exactly what Digitimes means by the statement, which I have to agree with, it's really vague, especially since we don't know exactly what Viiv is all about yet. Like Windows Media Extender would, in my mind, be a function of the Media Center OS, so why wouldn't the PC's be able to do it, unless there is more to it than that, I guess all will be revelaed in a few days.




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