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EchoStar outs its HDT-610R Ultra Slim Box, says it's 'world's slimmest' DVR
EchoStar has come a long way since unveiling that HDS-600RS early last year, and today the company's taking the wraps off of its newest DVR, the Ultra Slim Box HDT-610R. Keeping true to its moniker, the 610R measures in at a slim 14mm thin, while weighing in at just under two pounds. Physical features aside, EchoStar's managed to stuff a 500GB hard drive inside the DVR's scrawny body, as well as a couple of USB 2.0 incisions and single Ethernet and HDMI ports. On the software end, the device is equipped with a Freeview+ HD feature that offers subscription-free access to over 50 "high quality" and four high-def channels -- though, you will have to pay a one-time fee for the service. The HDT-610R will be available for pre-order starting May 4th, with Amazon, John Lewis and Maplin being the first online vendors to have it for up for grabs. No word on pricing yet, but in the meantime all you Euro folks can gander at the PR below to soak up the rest of the deets.
Vestel shows off a prototype BitTorrent Certified TV at IFA
Far from sneaking in to the living room, Vestel had a BitTorrent Certified television on display at IFA 2011 this past week. That official stamp means it packs the usual suite of connected TV features including playing local media across the network, and it's guaranteed to work with BitTorrent approved files from the internet. There's no word on any official release for this prototype -- and we haven't been able to locate anyone who got a hands-on demo, let us know if you saw it -- but it definitely shows how BitTorrent is trying to expand its platform in a manner similar to DivX and XBMC / Boxee. Check out the press release after the break, we'll be sitting back and watching some totally legal content we just torrented.
RCA's line of portable hybrid televisions now available
RCA announced these way back at CES, and it's now finally rolled out its new line of portable "hybrid" televisions, which are able to receive both Mobile DTV and standard digital TV signals. Those include in two different 3.5-inch models that run $119 and $159 (the latter includes an FM tuner and lithium ion battery back instead of AAs), as well as a 7-inch model that will set you back $179 -- somewhat curiously, those prices are all $10 higher than those originally announced. Those looking to fully round out the package can also snag a car kit that includes a charger, remote control and monopole antenna for $129. Full press release is after the break.
LG adds 'Tweet-TV' enabled Android phone to its list of Mobile DTV prototypes
Whenever mobile digital television broadcasts finally take off LG will be ready and its latest concept design -- following the autostereoscopic 3D screen shown at CES -- is the Tweet-TV pictured above. At the National Association of Broadcasters show this week it's demonstrating the prototype Android phone with a Harris MDTV antenna that also pulls in relevant tweets and displays them over the broadcast being watched. Whether or not a dose of social networking will help MDTV succeed where others have failed remains to be seen but first we'll see if it manages to reach 40% of the US population later this year. The press release and a bigger picture follow after the break.
RCA debuts new line of portable ATSC / Mobile DTV hybrid televisions
Mobile DTV is finally making inroads stateside, and now RCA has announced a new line of portable TVs that not only take advantage of the technology, but also throw in regular digital TV reception t'boot. The four devices include: 3.5-inch Hybrid Portable Television DMT335R (including a LED backlit LCD screen and both AC power and 4 hours of playback on AA batteries for an MSRP of $109), 3.5-inch Hybrid Portable Television DMT336R (same as above, with additional FM receiver and internal Lithium Polymer battery, for an MSRP of $149); 7-inch Hybrid Portable Television DMT270R (800 x 480 LCD screen with 500:1 contrast ratio, AC power and built-in Lithium Polymer battery, and more for $169), and a car tuner receiver DMT3BR, featuring a car charger, remote control, and more, for a suggested retail price $119. Psyched? We bet you are! Check out the gallery below or the PR after the break. %Gallery-112563%
Tivit promises to bring Mobile DTV to the iPhone and other WiFi-equipped mobile devices
The Mobile DTV standard is official, sure, but the device selection at this point isn't what we'd call plentiful or even appealing -- so leave it to CES to attract a virtually unknown company with an attractive alternative. Dubbed Tivit, the pocketable box is a said to be a bit smaller and lighter than a deck of cards and claims to stream television to a number of WiFi-enabled devices, including Windows laptops, Motorola Android phones (no clue why other Android devices wouldn't be in the running here), WiFi-equipped BlackBerrys, and even iPhone 3G / third-gen iPod touch (software via related App Store download). One charge gets you three hours of reception, and while that $120 price tag isn't too terrible a fee for keeping the phone you like, when the dongle launches in Spring, it better hope the channel selection is more interesting. Press release after the break. %Gallery-81414%
LG goes nouveau nostalgic with first US Mobile DTV devices
LG just announced its first commercial products for the fledgling US Mobile DTV standard approved in October. First up is what appears to be a DTV-ified LG Lotus clamshell -- a phone first introduced in 2008 but now capable of extracting digital TV from the aether with an assist from that telescoping antenna. Also set for a CES launch is that DP570MH portable DVD player that lets viewers watch up to 4-hours of ATSC-approved Mobile DTV broadcasts before heading back for a charge. LG's also promising more ATSC Mobile DTV devices from Dell (laptops), Kenwood, and others including in-car receivers all using LG's LG2160A ATSC-M/H tuner chip. Still, mobile antennas and DVD players... how can something so new feel so retro?
Navigon 8410 GPS debuts, packed full of features for the trendy Euro jet-set
It's been a few months since Navigon ceased doing business Stateside, and already the company's back on our radar with a device that made us wish they'd stuck around these parts a while longer. The Navigon 8410 features a 5-inch touchscreen, a polished steel frame, and a righteous assortment of features, including: DVB-T digital television tuner, City3D's photo-realistic 3D mapping software (only for select cities on the continent), and a media player for all your fave tunes, flicks, and pics. Available only in Europe, we don't have a ship date for you yet, but we do know it'll cost €449 ($630). Now, if you excuse us, we were due in Bonn hours ago.[Via Engadget Spanish]
LG to demo "MPH" mobile TV system at CES
It looks like the stumbling transition over to digital television here in the US is about to get a little help from LG, which is planning on showing a new mobile digital TV system called MPH at CES. MPH, or Mobile Pedestrian Handheld, is based on an existing system called vestigial side band, or VSB, and can be retrofitted to existing digital systems, enabling a wide range of services -- even to vehicles traveling at highway speeds. LG says it spent two years and $7.4M developing the tech -- we'd say our TV habit is totally worth it.[Via MocoNews]
LG touts first converter box approved for 2008 digital changeover
The U.S. Department of Commerce has certified the first digital-analog converter box eligible for the digital television transition coupon program. LG Electronics has developed a low-cost box which will allow consumers to get broadcast signals to their older television sets using a $40 government coupon. The converter drops higher-end features like digital audio or component outputs, but includes features designed for older sets, such as RF and composite outputs, V-Chip parental controls, closed captioning, and options for 4:3- or 16:9-ratio televisions. The company plans to have production ramped up to coincide with the launch of the coupon program in early 2008, just in time for consumers to remain clueless as to what they needed a converter box for anyway.
Hands-on with the Philips PVD1075 portable DVB-T player
If you're in Europe or Asia (or anywhere that has DVB broadcasts, for that matter), and in the market for a portable DVB-T solution, we suppose you could do a lot worse than the Philips PVD1075; a sleek, skinny package which does a whole bunch of media playing. At a glance, the little guy doesn't seem like too much of a heavy hitter, and honestly, the screen didn't blow us away, but if this fits your lifestyle (and we're not sure what that lifestyle is), then perhaps you should take a much, much closer look -- like in our gallery, for instance.%Gallery-6714%
China rolls its own digital television standard
Somehow, when we weren't looking, China decided to thumb its nose at the myriad of global digital television standards. On August 18, the Standardization Administration of China approved DMB-T, its new digital television standard for the world's largest television market. No, it's not the same format that the South Koreans have chosen to adopt, called T-DMB. According to PC World India, this will become the new standard in China by August 1, 2007. Apparently the Middle Kingdom's digital television market is worth a staggering $125 billion, ($100 per person), or about $300 for each of the 400 million television set owners. Still no word on whether or not Hu Jintao has booked the Dave Matthews Band to play the launch date of DMB-T, though.[Via PC World India]
Nokia's N92 DVB-H handset in World Cup trial
Although announced way back in November, Nokia's flagship N92 DVB-H phone still isn't shipping. Of course, that hasn't kept it from making the occasional appearance at DVB-H pilots across Europe. And with Germany (and the world) now fully consumed by the World Cup, yet another German DVB-H pilot project has launched with local operators E-Plus, O2, T-Mobile, and Vodaphone pumping out that mobile digital feed. The pilot consists of 14 television channels (and six radio) broadcasting live matches and other programming to "guests" using a variety of DVB-H handsets (presumably from LG, Samsung and maybe even BenQ-Siemens), including the N92. The pilot is being held in the largest German cities and will run until August 31st, except in Munich where it ends on July 31 allowing ample time to prepare for beer drinking season. And in case you're wondering, the N92 is expected to hit Europe mid-summer for an unsubsidized price of €600 ($758); beaucoup bucks for a service offering in trial-mode everywhere 'cept Finland and maybe Italy. [Via Mobiledia]
Sony's Vaio X, now with DTCP
Sony just gave a little bump to their Vaio X living room PCs. The VGX-XL71S features an ISDB-T digital tuner, a pair of terrestrial analog tuners, up to 1.5TB of disk, a 2.8GHz Pentium D 920, nVIDIA GeForce 6200 graphics, a dual-layer DVD recorder, up to 2GB memory, and whole host of audio and video outs including HDMI. Notable here, is Sony's expanding product support for DTCP-IP allowing you to pump your TeeVee recordings around your home network packaged in a delicious DRM wrapper. Coming at the end of the month for ¥214,000 (right around $1,880) to your local tech bodega in Japan.
