IntelCe4100
Latest
Iomega's TV with Boxee (Box) hitting Europe by 'by mid-October,' or so it says
Forgive our skepticism, but when your product has missed its original ship date by over half a year, we aren't believing anything until we see it. Or, should we say, our colleagues in Europe see it. Iomega's Olivier D'Eternod -- Head of Product Marketing for EMEA -- was recently on-hand at IBC in Amsterdam, and he was quoted over at Intel's blog as saying that the 'TV with Boxee' would be "available in Europe by mid-October." For those who can't remember last week (let alone January), here's a bit of a refresher -- the company actually demoed its own version of the Boxee Box at CES, and promised then that it'd be out in February. Since? Radio silence. If all goes as planned, though, consumers in Germany, UK, Sweden, Spain and France should see it in around four weeks, with Holland, Belgium, Ireland, Switzerland and Portugal in line behind 'em. He also hinted at a future where "access to premium content" was available, but smartly suggested that the company "bring this one to market first" before looking too far forward. Smart man.
Iomega TV with Boxee chooses function over form, packs in a hard drive to boot
Looking for a Boxee Box equivalent that fits perhaps a bit more neatly into your existing home theater shelving system? Iomega TV with Boxee lacks D-Link's style, but its more standard look'll be easy to slide inconspicuously over your set-top box. It's got the same UI, the same Intel CE4100 processor, and a similar two-sided remote with a QWERTY keyboard on the underside and a few more buttons up front (dedicated volume control, for example). It can also serve as a DLNA server / player, built-in 802.11n, and up to 2TB internal storage that acts as network storage / a personal cloud. The top-of-the-line'll run you $349.99, with 1TB and 0TB (i.e. no internal storage) options available for $299.99 and $229.99, respectively. Those are due out in February -- plenty of time for Netflix and VUDU to show their faces. %Gallery-112412% %Gallery-112413%
Acer Revo 2 with RevoPad sports Intel CE4100, Windows Media Center Embedded, and a slide-out touchpad with disappearing keys (update: more video)
Yes, you could certainly accuse us of being easily pleased, but there's just something inherently awesome about hiding a giant touchpad remote in the otherwise boring box that controls your TV. At IDF 2010, we spotted a pair of new Intel CE4100 set-top boxes from ASUS and Acer respectively, running the brand-spanking-new Windows Media Center Embedded. Both were so early in development that they relied on external USB tuners to do their thing, but the Acer Revo 2 caught our eye when we saw the ThinkPad aesthetic of the RevoPad. It slides right out of a charging cradle in the front of the box to become a mousing alternative (and houses a large volume dial on the side), but with the press of a button the surface shines light through tiny perforations and it becomes a touchscreen keyboard instead. Aside from the remote, the Revo 2's fairly well-connected to boot, sporting HDMI, Ethernet, optical and analog audio ports, and three USB ports, along with an internal hard drive of unspecified capacity and a slimline optical bay. The ASUS, meanwhile, has no drives, but an ATSC antenna, component and composite video to its name. Both boxes are slated for the first half of next year, though representatives weren't willing to talk price just yet. We're headed back for more, but in the meantime, check out video of the hardware after the break. Update: We've got an expanded video walkthrough of Windows 7 Embedded now after the break!%Gallery-102060% %Gallery-102055%
ASUS' Intel CE4100 Companion Box with Windows Media Center Embedded, there and back (to the ether) again
Seriously, blink and you might've missed it. ASUS had its own Intel CE4100-powered companion box on display running what our memory recalls was Windows Media Center Embedded. We'd love to confirm for the 5 percent of our brain that's uncertain, but by the time we went back for pickup shots of the adjacent (and awesome) Acer box, it was already gone. (Did the RevoPad scare it of that badly?) At any rate, this ASUS device has no drives, but it does boast an ATSC antenna, component and composite video. It's slated for the first half of next year, though representatives weren't willing to talk price just yet. Some more pics in the gallery below. %Gallery-102066%
Boxee Box ditches NVIDIA's Tegra 2 for Intel CE4100, pre-orders start today at $199
The wait for the Boxee Box is nearly over -- pre-orders begin today -- but before you drop a stack of change on D-Link's half-sunk cube, know that there's no longer an NVIDIA Tegra 2 under that tiny hood. At the last minute, Boxee switched to the Intel Atom CE4100, the same up-to-1.2GHz Sodaville chip powering Google TV. That's not all, as manufacturer D-Link told us our good friend Avner Ronen may not be able to keep his promise -- though the company still expects the Box to hit the streets at under $200, we're now looking at a $229 suggested retail price. What could possibly have happened to make these drastic changes? We visited Boxee in person to get an explanation, and you'll find the surprisingly simple (yet NVIDIA-damning) answer right after the break. Update: We just learned that Amazon will be selling it for $199, though the MSRP will remain $229. %Gallery-101976%
Google TV turns on at I/O: runs Android and Flash, partnered with Sony, Logitech, and Intel
As expected, Google just announced Google TV at I/O. There's four billion TV viewers worldwide, making it the biggest market in the world, and Google's after it in a big way -- it's a $70 billion ad market in the US alone, after all. According to Google, "video should be consumed on the biggest, best, and brightest screen in your house, and that's the TV." The idea is to merge the web and TV without compromising on either the web experience or the video experience, with a focus on discovery and personalization. Of course, since it's Google, the interface is search-driven, so you can just type in things like "30 Rock" or MSNBC" to find channels and content -- including upcoming content to record and content from the internet. Yeah, it's kind of like the TiVo Premiere's swivel search, but prettier -- and there's a Hulu logo on the screen, which is extremely intriguing. Google's not sharing hardware specs, but we're told Google TV devices will have WiFi, HDMI, the Intel CE4100 processor, and... some will have an IR blaster to tune your cable or satellite box, which is just sad. (Like, 1997 sad.) The input devices will all have keyboards, and you'll also be able to use Android devices as a remote, including using voice search to find content and sending content from the phone to the TV. The software is based on Android with Chrome as the browser and full Flash 10.1 support. Since it's Android, there's a version of Android Market -- any app that doesn't require phone hardware can run on Google TV. There will also be a Google TV-specific Android SDK launching in "early" 2011, along with the Android Market for Google TV. As for partners, it's just as we heard: Sony will launch Sony Internet TVs and Blu-ray players with Google TV in the fall, and Logitech will introduce a set-top box with a Harmony remote and an HD camera for video chat at some point in the future. Dish Network will also launch a Google TV box at some point, while Best Buy will promote the platform as a whole in-store. Make sure to keep up with the latest from I/O in our liveblog! %Gallery-93396%
