Engadget HD Podcast 115 - 12.17.2008
Other responsibilities nixed last week's show, but we're back with a long show this week to make up for it. We start out with the sad news of DirecTV "suspending development" on the HDPC-20 tuner; lots more time is spent parsing those two words than on Asus' Xonar HDMI sound card, at least. Our review of Samsung's MediaLive is mixed — plenty of promise, but it came up just a little short to get an unconditional thumbs up. Thanks to the 29-state analog shutoff test scheduled for the same day this podcast is released, a lot more of you should know if you're living on the digital cliff — let us know if you fall off unexpectedly. Lots of attention has been given to the Popcorn Hour products, and the release of the wireless adapter should make it even more appealing to those in the know. The Moxi HD DVR, however, might have a chance of breaking out of the enthusiast niche; but could it take a bite out of the product that's synonymous with "DVR," the TiVo? Maybe, but now Digeo will have to add in Netflix HD streaming capability to even up the score, too. A few bits of news this week make us think that Blu-ray is really moving out into the mainstream consciousness, if not flying off shelves into every home. VUDU is opening up to third party developers, so hopefully soon its "one trick pony" knock will be a distant memory as more content flows through the box, including YouTube HD. We wrap up with sports talk — "Top 10" lists often miss the mark in our opinion, so we give our own take on the Top 10 HD sporting events of 2008; but Ben is already planning to start off 2009 on a high note with some 3D HD BCS viewing at CES.
Get the podcast
[iTunes] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in iTunes (MP3).
[RSS] Add the Engadget HD Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator and have the show delivered automatically
[Zune]Subscribe to the Podcast directly in the Zune Marketplace
[MP3] Download the show (MP3).
Hosts: Ben Drawbaugh and Steve Kim
Producer: Trent Wolbe
Program
00:05:41 – Comments from Engadget HD Podcast 114 – 12.03.2008
00:20:26 – DirecTV "suspends development" on HDPC-20 tuner
00:31:06 – DirecTV puts away the checkbook, plans to raise rates in 2009
00:31:17 – ASUS demos Xonar HDAV1.3 HDMI Deluxe sound card
00:34:26 – Samsung MediaLive Digital Media Adapter review
00:38:41 – 29 States to participate in analog shutoff test next week
00:40:35 – Poll: Would you switch carriers if fiber came to town?
00:43:12 – Popcorn Hour's WN-100 dongle brings WiFi to your A-100, A-110 or B-110
00:44:14 – 500GB Moxi HD DVR now available, really
00:48:51 – Netflix HD streaming comes to TiVo
00:52:04 – Analyst finds DVD sales down, Blu-ray trends "encouraging"
00:53:42 – Standalone Blu-ray player sales triple over Black Friday
00:54:21 – Poll: Do you rent or buy your Blu-ray Discs?
00:57:27 – VUDU gets official with some internet content
01:00:48 – YouTube goes HD, finally!
01:02:20 – Top 10 HD sports broadcasts of 2008 — do you agree?
01:05:17 – BCS Championship game live 3D broadcast coming to CES, movie theaters