TiVo's Wireless G USB network adapter has been out and about since late 2005, so to say an 802.11n version is past due would be understating things dramatically. At long last, it seems as if high-speed network access is coming to the heralded DVR, with an AN0100 802.11n AP recently splashing down at the FCC. There's no instruction manual or indication of whether this is the device we've been waiting for in order to stream networked media to the TV through one's TiVo, but why else would the outfit bother with tossing out a new dongle with support for higher throughput? We know, we're letting ourselves get a bit too optimistic here -- but c'mon, can you really blame us?

Wow, where've you been, Orb? It's been a full year since we heard anything from the once-adored media streaming outfit, and while it's been streaming out content to iPhones for quite some time, those relying on Macs to do it have been left in the damp night air. Until now, that is. Orb for Macintosh has finally hit the streets, bringing with it OS X 10.5 and 10.6 compatibility that enables any and all media from iTunes to be sent out over the internet and consumed on any outside device with access to the web. We're talking laptops, UMPCs, smartphones and even that ancient PC your grandmother still uses with Windows ME. There's no mention of any DRM restrictions, and it'll even allow you to stream live TV if you can manage to connect a tuner card to your Apple. Oh, and did we mention that Orb is completely free? Hit the download link below to get your weekend started off right.

Read - Download Orb
Read - Press release

Microsoft's Xbox 360 may call itself the only console to stream Netflix, but all that could be changing -- and soon. As Netflix continues to pull in new subscribers (and cash flow) like it's no big deal, the company is apparently looking to spread its wings even further by integrating its wildly popular Watch Instantly feature into "a device already owned by a large number of consumers." Naturally, the most fitting candidates for that would be Sony's PlayStation 3 or Nintendo's Wii, though the company has yet to come forward with anything concrete. Just so know you, Netflix credits the Xbox 360's streaming integration as the main reason some 2.4 million customers have signed up since late 2008, so it's more than apparent that it loves the game console. Any bets for when this will go down, or are you just plugging your ears in order to avoid potential disappointment?

[Via Joystiq]

Eying a Popcorn Hour device, are you? We know Patriot isn't exactly the first name you think of when pondering your next media streamer, but the $129.99 price tag affixed to the black box shown above definitely piqued our interest. Like most of its rivals, this one features a 2.5-inch HDD slot (though you'll need to bring your own drive, obviously), a trio of USB sockets, 10/100 Ethernet for content streaming, UPnP support, a rather decent file support list and a bundled remote. There's also an optional USB WiFi adapter for those not keen on running 80 feet of Ethernet cabling through their den, and while the GUI won't revolutionize your life, it certainly ain't bad given the low barrier to entry. Too bad it's still stuck in that painful-to-watch "pre-order" stage, huh?

[Via thegadgetsite]

Sure, your heart may be aflutter with thoughts of gaming cloud services like OnLive and OTOY, but quietly making its debut this week is Spawn Labs with its "Bring Your Own console" HD-720 video game streamer, due out this November for $199.95. In a nutshell, the device works as a Slingbox for your Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PS2, or GameCube and lets you play those consoles over the internet on your Windows PC (a Mac client is said to be in the works). The AV cables -- component or composite, no HDMI at this point -- are connected and can be then passed through to a TV as normal. A USB connection is used to sync up the controller, and there's also an IR signal for turning the connected system(s) on and off. On the computer, you can log the Spawn Labs website and play either your own system or jump onto one of your friends' systems for some faux-local co-op or to be a spectator.

We had a chance to take a look at the streamer and talk with some of the minds behind it at TechCrunch 50 to fill in some of the missing details. In a fairly controlled environment -- the device hooked up via ethernet to a private router on the show floor -- we were able to competently play Soul Calibur IV with what we were told was around 100ms audio / video and 5ms controller lag. Under ideal situations, it streams 720p / 30 frames per second in H.264 video with AAC-LC audio, but that can automatically downscale when the connection slows -- should we decide we're too lazy to make it from our bedroom to the couch to play Halo (an all too frequent scenario), it'll clearly work fine over a local network, but it's gonna be how well it works across that internet that's the real deal-breaker, and we weren't able to test that. Cross-continent play isn't recommended, but you can have spectators from all over the world and it won't at all affect your latency. Any PC controller can work and be custom-mapped, including just keyboard and mouse, although if you're wanting to use a PS3 pad you'll have to find the drivers for it yourself. The game window itself has buttons along the bottom for pulling up the system's specific guide menu or recording the video for upload to YouTube. What's impressive to us is that it's said to work with any computer that can handle a 720p video stream, and so far in the labs they've apparently got it working well on an ION-based netbook -- but we didn't get to see that for ourselves, so we'll hold applause until we can put it through its paces ourselves. See a video demonstration for yourself after the break.

LG's WiFi-enabled, DivX-friendly BD390 Blu-ray player has been shipping here in the States since May, but not until now have you really had a reason to pick one up. Here at CEDIA, VUDU is taking one step further away from its standalone movie set-top-box by announcing that the aforementioned deck will become the first of its kind to tap into VUDU's growing library of on-demand film rentals. Of course, adding VUDU to this player was a natural move given the built-in Ethernet port, though users will have to wait until the end of this month to suck down the free update. In case you're wondering, the VUDU interface on LG's player will be the same as the one found on the company's own hardware (not to mention a few LG HDTVs), and the $399 price point will remain the same even after the new functionality is added.

Not sure if you've noticed, but CEDIA has just kicked off down in the ATL. One of the first to introduce something genuinely fresh is Sherwood (of all companies), with its R-904N NetBoxx pulling double duty as a 7.1-channel AV receiver and an internet media portal. For starters, the compact set-top-box looks nothing like a typical AVR, but you'll still find 700 total watts of amplification, three HDMI 1.3 inputs, one Toslink input, a pair of coaxial audio inputs and support for Dolby Volume, Dolby TruHD and DTS-HD Master high-resolution audio formats. Once you're done hooking up your music makers, feel free to shove an Ethernet cable in there and witness its ability to pull down material from PlayOn (Hulu, Netflix, CBS, CNN, ESPN, Amazon, etc.), CinemaNow, YouTube and SHOUTcast. There's also a USB socket for loading up media locally, and at just 17- x 10- x 2.5-inches, it shouldn't take up too much room underneath your current HDTV. It'll set you back $649.95 when it ships later this month, and you can feel free to dig even deeper in the full release just past the break.

Questionable longevity or no, Blockbuster's taking some strides to get itself firmly into the video on demand business, and this latest announcement will go a long way with that. The company announced that it's integrating its OnDemand service into Samsung HDTVs, home theater systems, and Blu-ray players starting Fall 2009. Better still, those with LED HDTVs series 7000 or above, LCD / Plasmas series 650 or above, and select 2009 Blu-ray players / theater systems can get the service later via firmware update. It's still got a ways to go if it wants to catch up to Netflix, but every little bit helps, right?

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.

It's been ages (okay, months) since we first got our hands on the QNAP NMP1000 network media player, and it's a good long while past its supposed shipping date. But, shipping it is (finally), now hitting Japanese stores according to Akihabara News. Initially we were only told that the thing would cost "somewhere under $10,000," and we're glad to say it's way under: ¥45,000, or about $470. For that you get an HDMI 1.3-toting HD media streamer, which sports room for a 3.5-inch HDD, a gigabit Ethernet port, and the ability to not only stream media but also to act as a NAS, meaning this one didn't fall far from the 'ol family tree. Still no word on a US release, but hopefully that'll be well under $10,000 as well. Soothing demonstration video to tide you over after the break.

Conceptronic has been doing a fairly admirable job with promoting itself as a serious player in the crowded media streamer market, and while its atypically designed Grab 'n Go was certainly worth a look at CES, it's the Yuixx that could really launch it into the next level. Shown over at Computex, this HD media streamer was loaded with broad format compatibility, Intel's fledgling CE 3100 media processor and support for Yahoo! widgets, TV tuning, a "Firefox-based" web browser, a 3.5-inch internal hard drive, WiFi and Ethernet. We're told that three variants will be made available for those looking for a more stripped-down version, and while an exact release date has yet to be set, an autumn introduction and a price range of around €250 ($354) to €450 ($638) is expected. Peek the read link for a few looks at the sleek user interface.

Wait, what's this? ASUS diving head first into the HD media streamer game? Based on images and details acquired by Hardware, we'd say chances are looking pretty good. Reportedly, the aforementioned outfit will showcase its very own media player at Computex next week in Taiwan, and our expectations are already fairly lofty. The O!Play (codename HDP-R1) is said to be a fair bit quicker than competing models, and the file compatibility list is also worthy of laud. Port wise, this one's packing eSATA, USB, HDMI, stereo audio jacks, optical digital audio, Ethernet and an AC port. If all goes well, we could see this little bugger in European stores by July, with a price tag pegged at €119 ($168). Unfortunately, it doesn't seem as if that price nets you an internal HDD, but we'll find out for sure soon enough.

[Via The Inquirer]

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.

Media Center Extenders -- remember those? Yeah, those things were all the rage at CEDIA 2008, and right around four hours after the show closed up, you and the whole world forgot about 'em. Honestly, the concept and execution was flawed from the start. These standalone boxes provided exactly what media loving consumers didn't want: yet another set-top-box crowding their space. Furthermore, most were priced at or above the cost of an Xbox 360, which -- lo and behold -- could be used as an MCE as well as a darn good gaming console. See the holes in this plan yet? Furthermore, most of 'em, particularly those that relied on WiFi, were utterly unreliable and offered disappointing streams. High prices plus lackluster results yields low demand, who woulda thunk it?

Essentially, manufacturers were hoping that those with loads of media on Windows-based PCs would jump at the chance to get all of that material on their HDTV with the addition of one little box. And in theory, at least, that does sound somewhat attractive. Unfortunately, only a few of these were announced in Denver, and almost all of them suffered from inexcusable delays. By the time they hit the market, all of the buzz generated at the trade show was extinguished, and early reviews were less than positive. It didn't take long to see prices begin to plummet, all while fence sitting companies realized that avoiding this niche would likely be most beneficial to their longevity.

Today, we're seeing Linksys' DMA2100 and DMA2200 listed as "Discontinued" at a number of legitimate e-tailers, and while D-Link's DSM-750 and HP's MediaSmart Connect seem to be hanging around at near-full price, we can't say the same for Samsung's discounted MediaLive Digital Media Adapter. Heck, Niveus Media doesn't even list its Media Center Extender - EDGE as a product on its website anymore. It shouldn't be any real shock that hardly any other companies have jumped in since these first few, and we're having serious doubts about the future of the dedicated MCE. Are you getting the same vibes? Do you think these things could thrive at the right price? Let us know in the poll and comments below!

[Via GeekTonic]

Update: Turns out HP is axing its MediaSmart HDTV / Connect lines as well. It's full statement sent to us is after the break.

The world needs another set-top-box like it needs another Kim Jong-Il, but we'll do our best to stifle the sighs and present to you the ZyXEL DMA-2500. This well-specced box streams in material up to 1080p from any networked storage device, is DLNA 1.5 certified and supports more formats than it would be healthy for us to list. The outfit also claims that it'll handle material laced in DRM, but the vagueness of it all has us skeptical. At any rate, users can also indulge in internet TV and online radio, and there's an S-Video, composite and HDMI port to get it onto your television. Finally, the unit even includes a USB port which can presumably be used for adding local storage or a USB WiFi adapter. It's filtering out now across the pond for the somewhat hard-to-swallow price of €223 ($296).

[Via HDTVInfo]