InternetApps
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Vizio welcomes YouTube as part of its Internet Apps arsenal
Not long after bringing some Redmond vid-calling to your living room, Vizio's introducing another app that may just enhance your couch entertainment. Via its Twitter account, the outfit announced YouTube will now be a part of its Internet App portfolio. Though, it's worth mentioning the Tweet didn't specify if it'll support all internet-ready TV models. The Tube (as the cool kids are calling it) is joining the likes of Hulu Plus and Blockbuster On Demand as part of Vizio's entertainment offerings. We know you can't wait to make yourself cry watching Kony 2012, so be on the lookout for the Google-owned video service to hit your smart TV shortly.
Google halts development of Gears, makes room for HTML 5
Well, we've known for a while that Google was throwing considerable weight behind HTML 5, and that one of the purposes of the markup language is to do away with plug-ins for Internet apps, so it makes sense that eventually Gears would go the way of the Dodo. But so soon? Linus Upson, the man in charge of both the Chrome browser and Chrome OS engineering teams, has announced that the company is done developing the software. "We are not driving forward in any meaningful way [on Gears]," the man said in an interview with PC Magazine. "We are continuing to maintain it, so that applications will continue to work; we don't want to break anything out there." If you listen to this guy, it sounds like this was the plan, all along: "When we started the Gears project, three years ago... we did it because we couldn't get the browser vendors interested in building offline applications." He then details the mind trick: Google ships Gears, and suddenly browser vendors are "very interested in adding capabilities to build offline applications," paving the way for the capabilities in the next version of HTML. Clever, Google. In the same interview, Upson stated the company's plans to move all its apps to standards-based HTML 5 APIs. Now that it's convinced the world that it wants -- nay, needs -- rich Internet applications, we hope that the company will promise to use its powers of persuasion for good, and not for evil.
VUDU brings Pandora, Picasa and Flickr to connected HDTVs, promises more apps soon
And you thought HDTVs were made for watching TV. VUDU has today slung its (admittedly paltry) library of applications over to its television partners, making both Picasa and Flickr access possible through LG and Mitsubishi sets with integrated VUDU software. Of course, all of this was already available to those relying on one of VUDU's dedicated set-top boxes, but it's always nice to have everything wrapped up neatly within the display itself. In related news, Pandora streaming is also available on VUDU-infused Mitsubishi panels, though for whatever reason, LG has "requested that only free TV and games be available on their devices." All bummers aside, the company has asserted that even more internet apps will be released to VUDU customers in the coming months, so make sure hold 'em to their word.
