While we love the transmission capabilities of HDMI, we loath the fact that the HDMI standard doesn't specify a locking mechanism. If you've ever wall mounted a flat screen TV or tried to stuff your receiver into too tight a rack then you're probably familiar with HDMI's weak-azz connector. Now we have what appears to be a first of its kind, magnetic HDMI connector from Torrent, Inc. -- at least its the first to pass ATC compliance testing. Called MagLoc, the magnetic connector with sliding sleeve for optimal fit is said to be 5x stronger than your typical HDMI cable connector. Of course, anyone who's familiar with the magnetic "locks" on some laptop power cords can assure you that the technology is nowhere near as strong as mechanical fasteners. Still, it's a start.

Torrent's higher spec'd SureConnect Advanced and Elite cables also feature the totally over-the-top "VeriFYI" (ugh) indicator lights to confirm the end-to-end connection. VeriFYI blinks to confirm the HDMI cable you just inserted is in fact inserted -- something you should be able to confirm with the same pair of eyes looking at the jack. Insert the other side of the cable and VeriFYI will glow steady for one minute after testing the end-to-end connection. It then repeats this semi-useful (assuming your cables are easily visible) test each time you power up your system. While MagLoc sounds promising, it appears that the cables have yet to reach retail channels. We'll let you know as soon as that changes.

[Via The Inquirer and HDMI.org]

It's been just about ten full months since Myka's BitTorrent box was formally introduced to Earthlings, but it seems like the wheels are finally turning on production way across the way in China. According to a promising update on Myka's official website, "production is in full swing," which means that boxes should start arriving to eager consumers in around four to six weeks. For those unaware, this here box pulls down torrents as you sleep and then plays 'em back nicely on your connected HDTV. Users can also load up additional media on the inbuilt 80GB, 160GB or 500GB hard drive, but first you'll need to hand over $299, $349 or $459 depending on just how capacious you like your media servers.

[Thanks, Julio]

When NIN was forced to abandon its film plans for Lights in the Sky, we thought the already-filmed parts were headed for the wrong can, but Trent Reznor has decided to break from the "take my ball and go home" attitude by putting the footage up online. Opening up a public domain wellspring for fans to create some great content, the 400GB of unedited HD data from three shows (Victoria, Portland and Sacramento) is available as a torrent. Don't fire up that download just yet -- Reznor warns that beyond the drive-crushing size of the content, this is totaly unproduced and not really the sort of thing for casual viewers seeking a finished product. For those of you with serious editing rigs and a yen for film production, clear off some space on the RAID and hit the link for torrent details.

Everyone knows you can find torrents from plenty of TV shows on the internet, but it's usually not seeded by the broadcaster. Taking a page out of mariposaHD's book, the CBC is putting a "high quality" DRM-free copy of Canada's Next Great Prime Minister online (no wonder they think HDTV has no business model) after it airs March 23. No idea yet if this is a one time thing or the start of a trend, but we applaud the Canadians for one-upping Her podcasting Majesty in getting with digital distribution. Hopefully, the reasoning behind selecting political leaders soliciting ideas for a better country via a reality TV show (and why the U.S. isn't), will also be answered.

[Thanks, Sukhminder]

OK, perhaps not so sneaky, there's a nice big BitTorrent logo right up front, but Myka seems to be quite the end-to-end solution for getting those torrents up on the big screen. The box hooks up to the internet via LAN or WiFi, includes a 80GB, 160GB or a 500GB drive for storage and runs a torrent client on Linux. Outputs include HDMI, composite, S-Video and SPDIF, and codec support is substantial. You can add storage via USB, and pull video off your computer if you're not in a downloading mood. Prices range from $299 to $459. Let's keep it legal out there, kids!

[Thanks, ARZ]

It seems appropriate that the internet's first HDTV show and the internet's first high-def network should pair up so they did. Our friends at mariposaHD have announced that you can download their shows in the iHD format via the I'M player, though they will also continue to be available via BitTorrent. Not to be confused with HD DVD's iHD, Instant Media's format is designed for viewing 720p content over the internet without requiring a high-powered machine. We considered reviewing Instant Media's HD platform when it launched a few months ago, but the high-def content was so limited and boring (think QVC + your local access channel in 720p and you've pretty much got it) we couldn't bring ourselves to watch, much less write about it at the time. Hopefully this is a sign of change for the better.

Even though there is a good amount of HDTV stations available now, we still need more content. We stumbled across HDClips.net via their high-def trailer site of Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith. The site has some forums and general news but the true gem is their torrent listings of HD clips. Currently there isn't that much on the site as they seem kind of new but we would totally recommend downloading some of the HD Demo Loops that they have. These are the loops that you will find in retail stores that make the HDTVs look so good. Our favorite one so far as been the Seven Seasons Sony loop - astounding.

No mention of resolution, although they seem to compare only to DVD so high definition is probably out of the question, but digital distribution is getting a big boost this summer when Warner joins with BitTorrent to release day-and-date with their DVDs over the internet. The bad news is that the DRM will prevent any copying to DVD.
We'll see how well this works out, as BitTorrent is still very much the Wild Wild West when it comes to content. A quick search for HD on the website brought up our good friends over at mariposaHD...and lot of HDRips. Good luck with that piracy prevention Warner.

Disclaimer: Time Warner is the parent company of this blog and Warner Bros. Entertainment

[Via Engadget]

Check this out: high definition content right from E3! A few gaming sites have this type of content out but it is part of their premium services. It would have been sweet to see these live but that's what we have HD for, right? These are all torrents so you will need a torrent manager like uTorrent in order to download them. Judging by the size of 'em they don't seem like they would be to long but any high-def is better then no high-def.

Let us know what you think. Are these PS3 game clips dramatically better then the 360s?

[via Digg]

Everyone's favorite day-and-date releasing director, Steven Soderbergh recently spoke at the Tribeca Film Festival and had some sharp words for Hollywood's current distribution model as noted in Wired. What they didn't mention was that his next project, a short film for a DVD monthly, will be distributed via BitTorrent.

Is he going to be able to redesign Hollywood from scratch one torrent at a time? We don't know but we'll keep our uTorrent client at the ready just in case.

[Via digg]

AkihabaraNews is one of our favorite sites, the best English language site I know of for tech news in the land of "gadgets we'll never see here", aka Japan. They also feature video downloads of some of these cool items, and now will be showing them off in stunning high definition.

So if you could, please stop by and check out the test clip they're distributing via BitTorrent (uTorrent is the best client out, period), and look forward to some sort of Sanyo HD surprise on January 11th.

 


I must applaud the gentlemen at mariposaHD. These innovators no, pioneers, nay, heroes are (I think) the first people to produce a show in high definition for distribution over the Internet. It must be a rough life videotaping young women frolicking in South America, and I for one salute them in their efforts to spread the joy of 1080i everywhere. If you support these young men in their endeavors please donate the two gigabytes of hard drive space necessary, download and seed the torrent. I recommend uTorrent (via DownloadSquad) as an excellent BitTorrent client.

The videos are made available free of charge, as WMVHD files in either 1080i, 720p or iPod video format. Sounds perfect for streaming to the Xbox 360, if you have Windows Media Center of course. Where did I put my list of reasons to envy Kevin cuz I need to add one more. I suspect that this show will require much more in depth coverge and hours and hours of long research, but if the guys at mariposaHD can make it, then it is my purpose and duty to view it (many times).

Read [Via digg]