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VUDU beams out v1.2 update, enables HD streaming
Merely a day after the Apple TV (take 2) update was delayed, VUDU has apparently beamed out the v1.2 update for its self-titled set-top-box. According to users who have successfully downloaded it, the new build reportedly enables HD streaming and adds a new "Instant HD" speed setting along with a "Constant Audio" setting to "fix the popping issues" that some folks are experiencing. According to NA9D over at the VUDU user forums, the update has also made 64 (give or take a few) HD titles available for viewing (all are rental only at the moment, save for the third Bourne Identity), and while some of them are said to be new releases, some supposedly go back as far as 1972. For anyone with a VUDU STB in their abode, feel free to check things out and give us an idea of available titles in comments below.[Thanks, Brian S.]
VUDU lines up studios to provide HD content
One of our biggest problems with the VUDU box is about to be resolved. We're not saying the video quality is bad now, but we think that paying $400 for a STB, just to rent movies that look as good as DVD, is a hard pill to swallow. But, now it appears VUDU is well on its way to adding real HD content -- just as it promised at CEDIA -- as it has signed agreements with the studios to get the deal done. The press release is very thin on details, so we don't know when to expect HD content or if it'll be 1080p, but we'd bet the audio will remain at Dolby Digital plus. We really like the idea of downloading movies, but the HD would have to look pretty darn good for us to live with our movies trapped in yet another STB on top of our HDTV using up one of our precious HDMI ports.
Cox initiates HD VOD rollouts with HD Movies on Demand
We knew it would just be a matter of months before Cox Communications found the means to offer up HD video-on-demand -- after all, you can't lag behind your main competitors for too long without stepping up, right? Nevertheless, the company has announced that customers in San Diego can now access "more than 20 high-definition titles" via the HD Movies on Demand channel, and the library of HD flicks should hopefully grow as time goes on. On deck to receive the HD VOD luxuries are Northern Virginia and Oklahoma City, with other unnamed markets to get tapped "later this summer." So, for those San Diegans looking for a good HD movie to soak in on Independence Day, why not give Cox's latest offering a whirl and tell us how it goes?
DirecTV readying HD VOD for July launch?
Everything's not exactly peachy in the world of DirecTV, but for those looking for even a hint of hope in regard to seeing HD video-on-demand via satellite, that time has (finally) arrived. Apparently, DirecTV is readying an HD VOD service that will initially include "more than a dozen programming services" such as Food Network and Discovery Channel. Interestingly, it looks like the satellite provider will utilize "a broadband connection to allow consumers to watch on-demand content in real time," and hinted at partnerships with a number of carriers that would be given "complete control over their own channel, including content and marketing messages." It was also stated that eventually, customers with an HD DVR and broadband internet "would have access to more than 2,000 on-demand movies," many of which in would be of the HD variety. Reportedly, the service will hit the beta stages sometime this month, and if no major hiccups are incurred, it could be rolled out to subscribers as early as July.[Via DBSTalk]
HD Movies on Marketplace? It could happen
Nothing like a nice juicy rumor to keep you going through the weekend. This week's rumor is a doozy. Originating on an obscure blog called, ahem, Shsibae, the rumor goes a little something like-a this: Microsoft will soon be offering full-length high definition movies over the 360 Marketplace. Rentals would supposedly cost $4. Buying them outright is a possibility too, though the price is undetermined. The service would launch with over 1000+ hours of available video. For the uninitiated, 1000 hours is a lot of hours.Now, the idea of downloadable movies on 360 is nothing new. In fact, we've been downloading high def clips ever since the console launched. Still, we've heard rumors of more substantial downloads for a long time. Die-hard 360 fanboys will recall the rumors of a DirecTV blade being added to the dash and another rumor of IPTV support. So, what makes this rumor different? One, Bill Gates thinks digital distribution is the future, even saying that HD DVDs and Blu-Ray will be the last generation of physical media. Two, that mysterious Video Marketplace button that was added in the Fall dash update might be more than we thought.Of course, there are plenty of reasons why it won't work, with the most obvious being the 360's 20 gig hard drive. 20 gigs just isn't enough space for a collection of HD movies and all game related data. Unless Microsoft was lying when they denied the existence of a 100 gig hard drive, or they have some sort of streaming solution planned, the 360 really isn't the best place to keep your movies.Still, from a business standpoint, it makes sense. Sony is offering similar services, and Microsoft has been quick to update the 360 in order to compete (1080p anyone?). And there is one more thing that adds credence to this obscure rumor: it's not there anymore. The rumor has been removed from Shsibae. Did MS ask them to take down the news, or did Shsibae know the internet would jump all over it? Only time will tell.[Via Joystiq]
The algebra of wows, inspired by Xbox 360 HD-DVD dancers
Clearly, the parallels to be drawn between high-definition home entertainment and in-your-face dance showdowns are too numerous to list, but Microsoft chooses to highlight some of the more obvious ones in their commercial for the Xbox 360 HD-DVD drive (embedded in the post, natch). Depicting a rhythmically isolated DVD guy facing off against six HD-DVD dancers, it's a technology comparison competely devoid of technology and filled to the brim with bodies gyrating in largely unimaginable ways. With the upscaled DVD dancers apparently disqualified from the event, HD-DVD soundly trounces plain 'ole DVD, its vibrant victory converted into a catchy and hilariously non-sensical "six times the resolution, six times the wow." Yes, really. Just how much is that, exactly? The answer is, quite sadly, after the break.[via NeoGAF]
