Litl working on a settop box with smartphone-like remote, not scared of Google
You've got to hand it to Litl -- even after the Webbook failed to impress, the startup is still trudging though the gadget trenches. And there's no doubt that the new settop box it's tinkering with sounds interesting: like the Webbook, it will run Litl's very own Linux OS, and will be based on a browser and web apps -- in fact, the company is launching an SDK for the Flash-based HTPC tomorrow at the Flash and the City conference. The most interesting thing to us is the cute little touchscreen remote, which will apparently let you control the UI from the couch with multitouch gestures. Sounds pretty snazzy to us, but you'll have to wait until early 2011 to get one of these in your living room. Litl's CEO John Chuang wouldn't share much on the hardware front, but we know it's powered by some sort of x86 processor, and will have HDMI and composite-out to connect to your HDTV, as well as Ethernet / WiFi connection options. We're hoping by then that there will be some Android-based settop boxes on the market, but that doesn't worry Litl -- Chuang claims it'll be a dead-simple consumer product. No word on the name of this thing, but there's obviously time to decide on that. Hit the break for the press release, and the gallery below for some early designs of the device. %Gallery-92983%
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Litl to Launch Flash-Based Web-Connected TV Product
Releases Software Development Kit (SDK) to Flash Community
Boston – May 11, 2010 – At the upcoming Flash and the City (flashandthecity.com) developers conference, litl (litl.com) will reveal plans for a new web-connected TV product slated for launch in early 2011 and extend the reach of its intuitive software platform by releasing an Adobe® Flash® 10.1-based software development kit (SDK).
"We are taking the simple, intuitive experience that we developed for the webbook and bringing it to the family room TV," said Chuck Freedman, litl's chief channel evangelist. "Until now, applications for TVs and set-top boxes have consisted of little more than widgets. Our platform changes everything by enabling feature-rich, Flash-based apps without the complexity of a desktop environment."
Launched in November, the litl webbook is an Internet computer for the home. It runs litl OS, an operating system with a revolutionary user interface designed to make computing simple and enjoyable. The company's planned web-connected TV device will also run litl OS.
"We believe that our platform's use of Flash will be the best and easiest way for developers to deliver great content and applications to the TV," said Freedman. "And with the launch of our SDK, we are enabling over one million developers in the Flash community to monetize their work by building new apps or porting their existing apps to our store."
Supporting Adobe Flash Player 10.1, the litl SDK includes a code library, simulator, code samples, and documentation. The SDK will continue to advance in coming months with new APIs, including accelerometer movement, video chat, trackpad gestures, and microphone input that will allow open development of gaming, communication, entertainment and other experiences.
With the litl webbook, users can access web content through custom Flash applications that transform web content to make it more useful and entertaining. Applications custom-designed by litl and currently available to users include Facebook, The Weather Channel, Flickr, Shutterfly, and BakeSpace. With the release of the litl SDK, users will benefit from a much larger selection of applications created by independent developers and partners.
To learn more and get started, developers can visit developer.litl.com to apply for the SDK's private beta package. At the Flash and the City conference in New York from May 14-16, representatives from litl will be on hand to introduce the SDK, share rollout plans, and help developers get started.
About litl
Based in Boston, litl was founded to make technology easy to use. The company's devices run litl OS, an operating system that allows quick connectivity to the web with a user interface that is simple and intuitive. We invite you to learn more at litl.com.
