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iTunes Replay launch reportedly still far off
We've heard before that Apple may be working on a service for iTunes called "Replay," sort of a Netflix Watch Instantly-style service that lets you download and stream any movies or TV shows that you've purchased from iTunes. Obviously, with the iCloud infrastructure in place (and iTunes Match already announced and on the way out), it's not too big a stretch to see that actually happening. But if such a deal is underway, the latest reports say it won't be available for a while. CNET says it has been poking around film studios about such a deal, and at least six different major studios have yet to sign agreements for a service like this. Apple has indeed been trying to chase down agreements that would allow customers to stream purchased movies any time, but those agreements aren't done deals, and they'll need to be before this thing gets off the ground. The biggest sticking point seems to be a few older agreements with HBO and streaming service UltraViolet, which allow for some exclusive periods where only those companies can host digital downloads. Apple is probably willing to pay to unlock those periods, but studios aren't in any position to make deals happen fast -- they'd rather see demand (and thus prices) go up. At any rate, if Apple does want to make iTunes Replay happen, it still has at least one tough nut to crack here. [via iPodNN]
Apple's MacBook Air duo to receive Sandy Bridge and Thunderbolt upgrade in June or July?
We've already seen Intel's Sandy Bridge processors and Thunderbolt reinvigorating the MacBook Pro line, so it's only logical for the MacBook Airs to eventually follow suit -- presumably they'll pick up Sandy Bridge's 17W mobile processors to match the current 10W and 17W Core 2 Duos. So when can we expect this to happen? Well, according to DigiTimes' sources within the supply chain, Apple may receive shipment of the refreshed Airs in late May ahead of a June or July launch -- this echoes earlier reports from Apple Insider and CNET that cited the same time frame. Additionally, DigiTimes says Quanta will continue to assemble Apple's ultra-portable laptops, with Simplo Technology and Dynapack supplying the battery packs. As always, we shall remain open-minded about such rumors, but you'll know the real deal as soon as we do within the next couple of months or so.
Microsoft hires linguist in 'App Store' dispute with Apple
CNET reports that in its fight to keep Apple from trademarking the name "App Store" for its own mobile marketplace, Microsoft has hired a linguist to testify that the phrase "app store" simply means a store that sells apps, and therefore it should not be used by Apple to talk about its own platform. You can read the whole statement online in PDF form, but basically Microsoft is trying to use every trick in the book (that book being the dictionary in this case) to keep Apple from nailing down a hold on the App Store title. This isn't the only litigation around the term -- Apple is also going after Amazon for trying to use "Appstore" to name its own marketplace. And I'll throw in one more wrinkle that doesn't seem to have occurred to the lawyers yet: I also heard an echo of "Apple" in the phrase "App Store" or even the term "apps." While it technically comes from "application," of course, I always thought it was pretty lucky for Apple that the first three letters of its name had showed up in the market that's become one of its biggest money makers. [via Mac Rumors]
MacBook Air rumored to receive June update to Sandy Bridge
The new MacBook Air models introduced in October of 2010 have been an amazing success for Apple. Not only were they cited as being responsible for a dramatic increase in Mac sales during Apple's first fiscal quarter for 2011, but the little MacBooks seem to be everywhere. At Macworld Expo last month, it was apparent that the 11.6" MacBook Air had become the de facto "Blogger's Mac," as all of the cool kids had them. Now CNET is reporting that the best are going to get even better. According to the tech news source, Apple is planning a June update to the MacBook Air that will move the line to Intel's Sandy Bridge processors. As we've discussed here at TUAW in other posts, the Sandy Bridge processors are the third generation of the Intel Core Processors (Core, Nehalem, Sandy Bridge) that currently power the majority of the Mac line. The main feature of the Sandy Bridge architecture is that the graphics processing silicon is built right onto the chip; there's no need for a secondary chip or chipset to provide that capability. This would allow the new MacBook Air models to boast much speedier gaming and multimedia graphics with no increase in cost or power usage. Apple is also rumored to have some new MacBook Pro models in the works for a March release. Those devices would be the first to benefit from the newest Intel technology.
VersionTracker.com officially 'absorbed' by CNET
Have you been to VersionTracker.com lately? If you try today, you'll be redirected to the CNET site, where you'll get a brief explanation that the venerable VersionTracker site is now a branded part of the CNET empire. VersionTracker Pro, a paid feature, will be discontinued after the current subscriptions run out. The VersionTracker newsletters will continue, but they will be rebranded as CNET products. CNET has put up a page explaining the changes. This process actually began in 2007, when CNET acquired VersionTracker, MacFixIt, and iPhone Atlas. VersionTracker goes back to 1995, when it was a Mac only site. Over time, the content expanded to include Windows software. The familiar layout of VersionTracker has been changed, and it may startle a few users. I don't think MacFixIt was improved any by the CNET takeover, and I don't have high hopes for VersionTracker, either, but I'm going to keep an open mind. CNET was acquired by CBS two years ago. Other than the irritating and frequent plugs for CBS TV, the site is still useful and continues to aggressively cover all things related to tech. If you need an alternative to VersionTracker, MacUpdate is still around, and AppFresh (based on i use this) and Logiciel are worth a look. There is also a Dashboard Widget called App Update that will check for software updates. [via Daring Fireball]
CNet review of the Panasonic TC-P65VT25, "it's the best 2D TV we've ever tested"
When it comes to TV reviews, we have to give a nod to CNet and its David Katzmaier for being one of the best around; so when he says it is the best TV he's ever tested, we officially want one. The new Panasonic VT25 line didn't rule every category though, and of course there are concerns that the black levels will prematurely degrade like last year's -- CNet intends to continuously test the VT25 to keep Panasonic honest. Now we know you're wondering about how it compares to the legendary Kuro and while it lit up the light meeter at a crazy low .004 ftl, the PRO-111FD Kuro is still the winner at .001 ftl -- interestingly the similarly speced G20 line only managed .007 ftl. Whether this difference is noticeable at home is up for debate, but Kuro still reigns king as far as the light black meter is concerned. Also of note is the fact that while LED backlit LCDs can also get down real far on the meter, the inconsistency across the screen pretty much makes it a moot point. While we're comparing to LCDs; according to CNet, the 55-inch Samsung C8000 costs about $35 less a year to operate than the 50-inch VT25, and while the anti-glare screen on the Panny is more effective at reducing reflections than the Samsung LCDs, it didn't preserve the black levels as well. It was also discovered that the 96hz mode, unique to the VT25 line, produced flicker free motion with 24p content, which is a must have for movie buffs. And what about 3D? Well just like Consumer reports and many others, CNet agrees that the VT25 is the best 3DTV yet, and although it does show some signs of ghosting on 3D content, it is noticeably less than Samsung 3DTVs.
There.com is closing
Virtual worlds have had a rocky time in the marketplace. Focusing on user-generated content, it takes a while for enough users to become active and enough market traction to be established for them to start becoming financially viable. Earlier this year marked the shutdown of Metaplace, Raph Koster's entry into the field of virtual worlds. Now another long-running part of the field is closing down, as There.com has just announced the service will be closing on March 9th. A retrospective on the game's history is available on CNET, discussing the world's status as being a competitor for Second Life without ever quite gaining the traction that its bigger cousin managed. While the environment was seen as slightly more kid-and-media friendly due to restrictions on adult-only content, the project had a difficult time turning a profit. After seven years, it's finally overwhelmed the company. The official announcement includes a number of resources for those who have invested money in There.com to regain it prior to the shutdown, with extensive buyback programs and refunds available for all participants. Our condolences to the team on this sad turn of events.
Panasonic cops to rising black levels in its plasma HDTVs, but questions still remain
Over the last several months complaints that Panasonic's plasma HDTVs experience sudden adverse changes in their black levels after a certain number of viewing hours have been piling up in an AVSForum thread, and now that behavior has been confirmed, though not very well explained, in a response the company sent to CNET today: In order to achieve the optimal picture performance throughout the life of the set, Panasonic Viera plasma HDTVs incorporate an automatic control which adjusts an internal driving voltage at predetermined intervals of operational hours. As a result of this automatic voltage adjustment, background brightness will increase from its initial value ... The newest Viera plasma HDTVs incorporate an improved automatic control which applies the voltage adjustments in smaller increments. This results in a more gradual change in the Black Level over time. Especially considering many buyers purchased their televisions specifically for those deep black levels, you can see why a TV suddenly going Sammy Sosa overnight would be upsetting. One of the reigning theories in the thread indicated by poster & calibrator D-Nice has been that this is by design, but a flaw in the settings caused the large jumps (around double the brightness, as measured by several owners light meters) instead of a much more subtle change. So what now for owners or potential buyers? Without more details about what is going on and whether or not anything can be done about it, like CNET's David Katzmeier, it's hard to see how we can continue to recommend these HDTVs for purchase without knowing what they will do months or years down the line. The ball is in Panasonic's court now, a speedy response could do a lot to assuage the concerns of current and potential owners. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Unauthorized iPhone news readers raise eyebrows
Here's an interesting little new media legal dilemma for you: apparently there are several paid apps in the iPhone App Store that bill themselves as "readers" for publications like the New York Times, CNET, and the BBC, but aren't actually licensed or official in anyway -- they're just pulling RSS feeds. That means people paying for an app like The New York Times Mobile Reader aren't actually getting an app from the Times -- and, perhaps more importantly, the Times isn't getting anything from anyone. Seems like Apple should probably just shut these apps down, but that's the interesting part: all these apps are pretty much just custom-built feed readers, and you can generally access all of the same content using Safari. Now, there's obviously a trademark issue involved here, especially if these apps are confusing people into thinking they're official, but we're curious to see how these pubs and Apple handle the situation in the next few weeks, since it's relatively uncharted territory. P.S.- Let's not even get into the fact that Apple's rated the NYT Mobile Reader app "12+" for "Infrequent / Mild Mature / Suggestive Themes." Oh, the App Store.
CEA president Shapiro talks DTV transition
With the analog shutoff safely in the rear view mirror, CEA (Consumer Electronics Association) president Gary Shapiro took some time to talk about the move to our new digital airwaves (and also looked ahead to our 3D futures). All in all, some pretty interesting reading, but he makes a great point in chiding the broadcast industry -- by waiting until the last minute to get onboard the HD bandwagon, broadcasters missed out on what could have been positive market differentiation for their services versus cable and satellite. All's well that ends well, though, and we're just gad the plug got pulled on analog (with few casualties to boot), and we'd like the CEA president should know we celebrated the move. [Via DailyWireless, image courtesy CEA]
Bill Gates reckons Natal should head to PC too
Microsoft's Bill Gates has pretty much confirmed that Xbox's Project Natal tech is heading to PC. In an interview with CNET, the Windows man said the peripheral is not just for games, but for "media consumption as a whole." He states that both the Xbox and Windows divisions have latched on to the technology.Beyond the home media applications, Gates also mentions using it in the office. He doesn't say Office use, but lower case "office." Looks like the era of Minorty Report is upon us. Now all we need are three people who look like shaved cats to lie in tubs of goo all day and we'll be set for the future.[Via Big Download]
CNET: TC-P50V10 is "Panasonic's best plasma yet"
As Pansonic's latest plasma HDTVs proceed down the review gauntlet, it appears CNET is the latest to be impressed by the TC-P50V10, between its slick design, smooth handling of 1080p/24 by way of its 96Hz image processing, deep black levels and good color reproduction. The 96Hz features plus more adjustable picture settings are some of the improvements the V10 offers over the G10, but is it enough to satisfy the Kuro faithful, or attract buyers away from LCD? It appears the reviewer was convinced, give it a read and see if you are.
CNET shoots down the Dolby ProLogic IIz in Onkyo's TX-SR607 receiver
Onkyo's $599 TX-SR607 receiver made its way through CNET's auditioning room, and it sounds to us like it holds up Onkyo's tradition of delivering solid performance at entry-level prices. Even though the receiver got dinged for its big, boxy design (which we like, by the way), additional complaints about the unit running hot strikes us as a bit unfair. Given some breathing room, the Onkyo's audio performance stacked up favorably against a Denon 3808CI. At $599, we wouldn't come down too hard on the video upscaling performance; your display might do a fine job on that task anyways. Ah, but what about that new Dolby ProLogic IIz that's supposed to raise your roof? Well, it didn't seem to work for CNET at all -- on a variety of source material and even with boosted levels fed to the height speakers, the effect fell, well, flat. We'd suggest trying out DPL IIz before jumping into the multi-channel arms race.
CNET reviews Panasonic's 720p TC-P50X1 plasma
The reviews for Panasonic's lineup of 2009 plasmas keep rolling along, and CNET recently turned its attention to the 50-inch TC-P50X1 and the 1366x768 pixels in its non-NeoPDP panel. The lack of the "near infinite" NeoPDP contrast didn't keep the set delivering great black levels and brightness uniformity, and even delivering images that subjectively held up next to 1920x1080 pixel displays. Unfortunately the P50X1 suffered some color accuracy problems (boosted greens) and a persnickety series of faint gray lines running diagonally through the screen which sounds like exactly the sort of artifact that's hard to "un-see" once spotted. Still, if you are planning to sit a good 10-feet or so from a 50-inch display, you may not see the lines or the lack of full 1080p resolution and Panasonic won't make you pay for the extra pixels; hit the link for the full review and let your own peepers decide. [Via DigitalHomeThoughts]
CNET doesn't get along with DISH's DTVPal DVR
We had pretty much put the whole "DVR" versus "PVR" thing behind us, but CNET's review of DISH Network's DTVPal DVR had us flashing back to those old arguments. Even though CNET apparently scored a "good" unit that didn't show any glitches, there were plenty of shortcomings that seem unacceptable in today's day and age, even at the low $250 price. The lack of pretty a UI isn't shocking, the dual tuners and 250GB drive are just fine, and even the spotty guide data is more about your area than the DTVPal DVR itself. But being forced to set up recordings based on channel/time combos and a lack of wishlists is really a step backwards; and when recording conflicts are hard to resolve on top of that, it makes for a tough pill to swallow. DISH is working on solving the technical issues, so we're hoping that the DTVPal DVR's "sold out" status is being used for some retooling.
Japan's online games industry steps up security
The potential for having a hacked game account clearly goes hand in hand with online games, regardless of which country you're in. Japan is taking aim at this particular issue through a rather significant partnership with Visa International, reports Nicholas Aaron Khoo for CNET Asia. The Japan Online Game Association (JOGA) has pushed for the industry-wide adoption of Verified by Visa by year's end. Verified by Visa uses SSL encryption as part of its Three-Domain (3-D) Secure platform, and it's hoped that establishing this industry standard will reduce the frequency of stolen accounts. Khoo writes, "According to JOGA, Verified by Visa has already been implemented by over 60 percent of online gaming companies in Japan -- the highest among any online retail and service provider industry categories." You can check out the full story in Khoo's "Peace of mind for Japanese gamers?" as part of his Geekonomics column at CNET Asia.[Via PlayNoEvil]
CNET tests out Gefen's EXT-WHDMI wireless HDMI extender
CNET took the Gefen EXT-WHDMI out for a spin, and came back with an overall good impression of the $800, Tzero-based solution for breaking free of HDMI cable runs (at least within a 30-foot radius). Once the automatic input switching was mastered and video sources were set to conform to the unit's 1080p/24 upper limit -- 1080p/60 is not supported -- the unit generally turned in respectable performance. Of course, comparisons to Sony's similarly priced DMX-WL1 were warranted, but neither unit scored a knockout blow. We'll let you hit the read link for the gory details, but rest assured that the Gefen unit didn't drop any frames or otherwise wreck the image quality. For the asking price, you'd expect nothing less, but there were some caveats -- we agree with CNET's bottom line of picking one up from a dealer with a good return policy in case it doesn't all work out for you; that $800 will buy extenders and a lot of cable, after all.
Denon's AVR-1909 AV receiver gets reviewed, not for the faint of heart
On the face of it, the Denon AVR-1909 receiver seems like a great unit for someone either HT beginners or casual users -- a reputable brand, rich feature set and modest $649 price put it high on the short list; good sound quality should cinch the deal. Not so fast, though -- the CNET gang ran the AVR-1909 through the gauntlet, and while the positives certainly came through (with sound quality besting the Onkyo TX-SR606), the setup and day-to-day use with the included remote left a lot to be desired. To be fair, the remote problem can be solved by using a third-party model, but the text-only black and white onscreen UI for setup is glaring in 2009. Obviously, trade-offs had to be made to hit the price point, and HT zealots like us can live with some setup difficulties for good sound, but more casual users might find this a hard pill to swallow. Hit the link for the gory details, and give this unit some hands-on time before committing.
CNET takes a shine to Vizio's java-flavored VOJ370F LCD TV
Rack another one up for Vizio, the brand that keeps finding ways to resonate with consumers in its marketing move upstream. CNET put the java-toned VOJ370F model to the test and came away quite pleased, thank you very much. Sure, the 1080p pixel count is largely empty resolution, but a rich set of inputs both behind the panel and on the side, and image adjustments scored smileys from the editors. Best of all, the unit turned in good grayscale performance and the colors stayed accurate even when the backlight was turned down. To top it all off, the Vizio fared pretty well across the board in its cagematch with similar models from Panasonic, Hitachi and Sony. Hit the link for the details, or just go ahead and pick one of these up.[Via TVSnob]
TV exclusives taking movies off of iTunes?
Has your favorite movie gone missing from iTunes or Netflix lately? The reason could be television, says CNET -- apparently a slew of movies on iTunes and Netflix's streaming service have recently fallen prey to television exclusive agreements. With the onset of Apple TV and apps like Boxee making it possible to stream Netflix, TV networks with exclusive showing agreements have made sure that while they've got a lock on a movie, we can't watch it anywhere else.Of course, as CNET notes, it's about the money (isn't it always?). If studios can make more money from the TV networks than they can from online rentals, then obviously they're going to go with television. The only problem with that, however, is that with an exclusive agreement, they'll never know, will they?And of course the other issue here is the actual definition of places like iTunes and Netflix -- obviously, retail stores aren't barred from carrying these movies, so does that mean that Netflix and iTunes are actually content channels rather than retailers? Tough issue. You have to think that it'll eventually be settled in favor of digital distribution (what consumer wouldn't want to watch a movie on their own time rather than sticking to a TV network's schedule), but until studios are convinced otherwise, exclusivity agreements will likely be the rule.[via Apple Insider]
