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SageTV’s HD Theater: Good Performance, Confusing Menus
I like a lot of things about the new SageTV HD Theater, a set-top box that lets you view computer- and Internet-based content on your TV. But if it had access to more sources of Internet content and was a little easier to use, I’d like it a whole lot more.
SageTV’s $200 HD Theater connects to your home network via Ethernet (so if your TV and router are not in the same room, you’ll need a long cord or a set of powerline network extenders), and then to your TV via HDMI, S-Video, or composite A/V cables.
Like its predecessor, the HD Media Extender, the HD Theater lets you use your TV to play back audio, video and photos stored on a computer running SageTV’s Media Center software. The HD Theater adds the ability to play back content without connecting to a computer; on its own, it can play back a limited amount of Internet-based content, such as videos from YouTube and Google Video, and various news, weather and sports clips. Performance is good — and HD clips look stellar — but the selection is very limited.
Also new in the HD Theater is the ability to play back content from computers that are not running the $80 SageTV software (a $250 package includes the HD Theater and the Media Center app). You can browse your local network for content or connect USB storage devices directly to the HD Theater. The process of navigating through all the devices on a network isn’t difficult, exactly, but it would be easier if the on-screen menus were more clearly labeled. For example, to scan your network for files, you select “Configure Media Center Import Directories.” Why not just label it “find video files on your network”? Read more of this story
NFL Mobile Live Doesn’t Earn Any Extra Points
I had a hard time watching Thursday’s NFL game, and not just because the Indianapolis Colts won. While their comeback was tough to take for this New England Patriots fan, it was not as difficult as trying to watch the game on a cell phone using Sprint’s NFL Mobile Live application. (Actually, that’s not true: I’d rather watch an NFL game on a cell phone than see a Manning brother win.)
NFL Mobile Live on the LG Lotus
NFL Mobile Live, which was rolled out to Sprint subscribers earlier this fall, allows users of compatible Sprint phones to listen to audio broadcasts of all NFL games and watch video broadcasts of all games that are shown on the NFL Network. It’s free if you have a Sprint data plan (but 3 cents per KB of data if you don’t). And it’s a good thing that it’s free, because the performance of the app is too hit-or-miss to make it worth paying for.
I tested NFL Mobile Live on the Samsung Instinct and LG Lotus. It shows you the same broadcast you’d see as if you were watching the game on TV — NFL Network announcers and all — though the broadcast was delayed by a few seconds. Audio quality was excellent on both phones, plenty loud enough and very clear.
SlingCatcher Mostly Impresses
I’ve come to terms with the fact that there is no such thing as the perfect set-top box. But I’m happy to report that Sling Media’s SlingCatcher comes closer than most.
The $300 SlingCatcher connects to your TV and plays back video files from various sources, including your PC, a USB drive, or one of Sling Media’s Slingboxes. Setting it up is simple: Connect it to your TV (via HDMI, composite, component, or S-Video), connect it to your network via Ethernet, and plug it in. If your TV is not in the same room as your router, you’ll want a set of Sling Links: These extend the reach of your network over your powerlines. They’re simple to use (and a much better option that snaking a 100-meter Ethernet cord throughout your house), but they start at $80.
Where some set-top boxes link to your PC and let you access the video files remotely, the SlingCatcher takes a different tactic. You install an app called SlingProjector onto any PC on the same network (Windows only, so Mac users are out of luck), which displays any active video content on your PC onto your TV. Read more of this story
How to Build the Perfect Set-Top Box
It’s the holidays — a time to give, right? Right. Which is why I’m making a list of what I’d like someone to give me this year. This isn’t a gift guide (I’ve already written one of those), but more of a fantasy. I’m making a list of all the features I’d like to see in the perfect set-top box.
What does the perfect set-top box do, you ask? A little bit of everything: It’s a DVR that records my favorite shows. It’s a media extender that lets me watch the video content I have stored on my PC. In a true fantasy world, it also replaces my cable box (but still lets me access my cable provider’s On Demand library) and plays back Blu-ray Discs.
Remember, this is a fantasy. I know that it’s not possible to get everything I want; some of the technology is simply not ready. But some of these features should already be options, such as the first item on my list:
EASY SET-UP/NETWORK CONNECTIONS: It shouldn’t take four days, a box of power tools, and repeated calls to tech support to install anything — never mind a gadget that I’m going to use to watch TV. Read more of this story
Gifts for the (New) TV Lovers in Your Life
What goes hand-in-hand with gaudy lights, fake snow, and endless holiday music? Shopping lists, of course. Here are a few items I’m thinking about giving — and a few more I’d like to receive — this year.
TiVo HD XL: I know TiVo’s subscriber numbers are tanking, but I still love my TiVo DVR. My trusty old Series 2 TiVo is incompatible with my new HDTV, so it’s gathering dust. I’d love to upgrade to the TiVo HD XL. It costs $600, but also needs TiVo service ($13 a month or $300 for a lifetime, though now might not be the time to invest in the company’s lifetime service). But let’s pretend money is no object. The XL in “HD XL” refers to the DVR’s giant hard drive, which will let you store 150 hours of HD programming; the HD XL also supports CableCards (so you can ditch the cable box if your provider lets you), and allows you to record two channels at once. Plus, you can use the TiVo HD XL to watch the movies and shows from your Netflix Instant Watching queue on your TV. Speaking of Netflix…
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What’s the Big Deal With BD-Live?
Is BD-Live the way to salvage the future of DVDs? According to an article in today’s Wall Street Journal, studios are hoping the technology, which adds interactive features like chat and trivia games to Blu-ray movies, will boost sagging DVD sales. A big test of that strategy will come this week, when Warner Home Video releases its first BD-Live movie, The Dark Knight.
Warner Bros. is heavily promoting The Dark Knight’s interactive features, suggesting that viewers, for example, “send invitations for screenings at a specified time and chat with each other as the movie plays.”
While the studio is using BD-Live features to promote The Dark Knight, BD-Live backers are undoubtedly hoping that the sheer popularity of The Dark Knight turns the spotlight to the capabilities of the technology itself.
And BD-Live, it seems, could use a boost. Read more of this story
TiVo on a PC? Not So Fast
I love my TiVo DVR, so I had high expectations for Nero’s LiquidTV | TiVo PC, a combination of hardware and software that brings the features of a TiVo DVR to a PC. But after testing out a newly updated version of the product, I’m a bit disappointed, as it suffers from a few glitches that make me hesitate to recommend it.
LiquidTV | TiVo PC is available in two versions: A $200 package that includes both hardware and software, or a $100 software-only version. I tested the $200 version, which includes a TV tuner (with antenna), the excellent TiVo remote control, and an IR blaster that allows the remote to work with your PC or a set-top box. Both versions include the LiquidTV | TiVo software client for your PC and a 1-year subscription to the TiVo service.
Kiwi Set-Top Box: A Step Back
Using Behind The Set’s new Kiwi device was a bit nostalgic for me. This small box, which lets you surf the Internet on your TV, reminds me of Microsoft’s MSN TV — a device that was big news when it launched several years ago. Today, MSN TV has largely been rendered obsolete by fancier media extenders and media center PCs. Sadly, I think the same may be true of the Kiwi, which has barely gotten off the ground.
Behind the Set is an eight-month-old, privately funded company, and it’s offering the Kiwi on its web site for $100, or the company’s Amazon.com store for $120. The small black box connects to your TV via included RCA composite A/V cables, and to your home network via Ethernet or wirelessly (using a $20 USB adapter that is included in the Amazon package).
I initially thought the Kiwi’s wireless connectivity was its strong point — until I tried it out. The device had no problem finding my wireless network, but it refused to accept my passphrase. I was forced to enter it multiple times — a painstaking process in itself, considering all of the Kiwi’s data entry is done using a remote control and a series of on-screen keyboards that border on nonsensical. The company’s tech support eventually led me through a way to bypass the error.
Sling.com: Almost Must-See TV
If you own a Slingbox, you’re going to love Sling.com. Sling Media’s site — now in private beta, but launching to the public on Nov. 24 — offers a new, web-based way to watch the content from your Slingbox-connected TV. But Sling.com does more than that: It also serves as a repository for a wide variety of Internet videos — short clips, full-length films and TV shows. If you don’t own one of Sling Media’s place-shifting devices, you may not be as enamored with Sling.com — not yet, anyway.
A Slingbox connects to your TV and your home network, and lets you watch and control your TV on any Internet-connected computer. Previously, you needed the SlingPlayer app installed on any PC that you wanted to use to watch the TV, but not anymore. Sling.com offers many of the same features through its Live TV feature, and it does so without requiring the installation of any software beyond a small plug-in.
It’s Official: Pure Digital Launches the Flip Mino HD
We heard it was coming, and now it’s here: Today, Flip officially takes the wraps off of its new Flip Mino HD. The $229.95 camcorder retains the compact Flip design, but adds the ability to capture up to one hour of high-definition video.
Video quality isn’t the only thing that gets an upgrade: The Mino HD will come with the FlipShare software, which gets a new name and some new features. It allows you to organize, edit and upload videos to YouTube, MySpace, or AOL Video, and share them via e-mail. You can also use it to add music and title and credit sequences to your videos. Pure Digital (the company behind the Flip) says the new software features an easier-to-use drag-and-drop interface and is compatible with both Mac and PC. Read more of this story
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