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Series3 8.3 update brings new HD features
As much as we love the TiVo Series3, there are a few things that make us think HD was an after thought. The second update for the Series3 is rolling out, and with it is coming a few new HD features such as, HD searches and HD wishlists, but unfortunately still no HD suggestions. This update is also supposed to resolve some CableCARD FIOS problems, which are welcomed. Still no word on eSATA, MRV, or TiVoToGo, but you can't have everything -- or anything depending on your perspective. If you don't have the update just yet, you may have to wait as TiVo likes to roll this out to a limited number of users at first, in case things go wrong.
FiOS gets three new national HD channels
The FiOS fun just isn't in Florida anymore. Those three new HD stations that randomly appeared on some people's lineup are now nationwide. The addition of HGTV, Food Network, and LMN (Lifetime Movie Network) brings their HD lineup to a boastful 27 stations. While Comcast and TWC are turning off their analog streams to make theoretical room for new HD stations, and ticking off more than just a few people by doing so, Verizon is slowly but surely adding national high-def stations. Fiber-optic has quite a bit of room thanks to a totally digital stream but unfortunately, it's not available everywhere just yet.
Motorola ships CableCARD STBs
It isn't very long till the next deadline in the long road we call the digital transition. This next step will either be really big or really bad. While most people will agree that CableCARDs aren't that great, the FCC is dead set on making the concept work and starting in July cable companies will be required to only deploy CableCARD devices, that means no more built in security. It is an understatement to say that the cable companies are not happy. The irony is that they say it is because of the limited feature set of CableCARD, yet they were the one who came up with the standard in the first place. While we wait for CableCARD 2.0 or downloadable conditional access, we have to live with what we got in the meantime. The hope is that now that the cable companies are stuck with same system, they will actually be motivated to really make it work for consumers this time. With any luck this means buying a box like a TiVo Series3 won't mean: installation headaches and no VOD, any more.[Via Connected Home 2Go]
FIOS adds three new HD channels in Florida
According to Bryan Schnieder of TampaHDTV.com, FIOS in Tampa FL has added three new channels to their HD lineup. It is safe to assume that FIOS customers everywhere can expect the same three channels soon. Once again a provider adds new channels without any announcement at all and on Saturday the Food Network HD showed up on channel 840, HGTV HD on channel 841 and Lifetime Movie HD on channel 845. Of all the HD channels available today not currently carried by your provider, these are probably the most sought after. Once again Verizon keeps the heat on their competitor, in an attempt to lure customers away from their current provider.
28-percent of Americans now own an HDTV
You don't have look too awfully far to find at least a couple of pals who have made the leap to HDTV, and according a recent survey by the Consumer Electronics Association, over one-fourth of American households now sport a high-definition set. The pie chunk represents around 35 million displays in all, with more than half of 'em coming in at 40-inches or larger, and while these current figures might be satisfying, the CEA is estimating that another "16 million HDTVs will ship into the marketplace this year alone." Additionally, the survey found that just 86-percent of owners were "highly satisfied" with their purchase, while we assume the other 14-percent are still left wondering why they're watching large moving blocks instead of a legible image. Interestingly, traditional means of broadcasting weren't the only mediums getting utilized, as a substantial amount of customers were noted as actually turning to the internet to get their programming fix, which leaves us to ponder just how rapidly the broadcasting ways of days past will transform in the years to come.[Via TGDaily]
Will CableCARDs ever succeed?
In a few months (July) the latest CableCARD mandate will go into effect and all Cable companies (no not Dish or DirecTV) will be forced by the FCC to deploy Cable boxes that use CableCARDs for conditional access instead of integrated security. While consumers hope that this will give CableCARD the shot in the arm it needs, based on CableCARDs previous track record -- we will believe it when we see it. But why has CableCARD failed, why is the number of CableCARD devices available today less than when they were first introduced? Sure the delay of CableCARD 2.0 isn't helping, but again why the delays? The Cable companies want them to fail, they don't want to support them and they do everything in their power to persuade you to avoid them. They train all of their employees very well in the disadvantages and every chance they get they try to talk you out of using them. When there are any problems with them, they always blame your equipment and use it as an excuse to rent you a box. While there are many reasons why the Cable companies don't want you to use them, the FCC keeps the pressure on and in this case fighting for the consumer. Only time will tell if the FCC will be successful or if the Cable Companies will find a way to successfully avoid them for another 10 years.
Verizon rolling out G-PON technology to boost FiOS speeds
In Verizon's never-ending quest to continue bumping the bandwidth to the four or five lucky customers that actually have access to its FTTH network, the firm is planning to implement a new technology which will hopefully increase the speed of FiOS fiber-to-the-premises links "by four to eight times." Of course we jest about the amount of you oh-so-fortunate ones that can actually get ahold of such speedy luxuries, but Verizon is looking to Alcatel-Lucent to help with the forthcoming gigabit passive optical network (G-PON), which is slated to "increase the aggregate broadband speeds on Verizon's FTTP systems by four times downstream to the customer, and by eight times upstream back to the Internet." The outfit also stated that it would "continue deploying the broadband passive optical network (B-PON)" that it has been using since 2004, and took a moment to boast about "how simple" upgrading FiOS actually was. Still, the vast majority of you won't even be in the general vicinity necessary to acquire the newfangled G-PON niceties, but the soon-to-be-celebrating town of Lewisville, Texas can keep an eye on Q2 of this year, while folks in Kirklyn, Pennsylvania should have it sometime "over the summer."[Thanks, Jim V.]
Alcatel-Lucent blows past data transmission record: 25.6Tbps
Data transmission records were just made to be shattered, as we've seen the benchmark go from 2.56- to 14- and now to 25.6-terabits per second within a year (and five days, but who's counting?). The momentary record holder this time around is Alcatel-Lucent, which "successfully transmitted a world record 25.6Tbps of optical data over a single fiber strand' using 160 WDM channels. In case you were wondering, that's enough speed to send about 600 DVDs worth of information to your buddy in one single second, after which you'd likely destroy any and all functionality his / her computer previously had before the bombardment. Now, what's it cost to run one or two of these pipes to Sealand?
IBM demonstrates 160Gbps optical transceiver chipset
Innovative cooling solutions aren't the only things that IBM is showing off of late, as the firm is also demonstrating a wicked fast optical transceiver chipset at the 2007 Optical Fiber Conference. The prototype reportedly has the uncanny ability to "move information at speeds of 160Gbps," which should prove quite useful with all the streaming media we're growing more and more fond of with each passing day. IBM is apparently trying to "make optical connectivity viable for widespread use" by constructing an optical transceiver "with driver and receiver integrated circuits in current CMOS technology," and then adding in a few exotic materials to deliver a package measuring just 3.25- x 5.25-millimeters. As expected, no implementation dates were readily available, but considering that 100G Ethernet is just around the corner, we're sure IBM will have its act together in plenty of time.[Via Playfuls]
Verizon brings more FiOS goodness to Cali'
California residents: thinking about "Ditching the Dish?" Verizon's massive FiOS plans for your state just might get the magic of fiber optics to your house sooner than you thought. As of today, the service is now available to an additional 129,000 homes in 12 cities bringing the total available statewide to 350,000. Even if your front yard hasn't been torn up lately to lay new lines, that doesn't mean crews won't be coming to your home as their plans include reaching 150,000 more potential subscribers by year end. With cable being so 1990'ish and satellite throwing back memories of 2001, fiber optic is, well, cool like 2011. Low prices, high speed 'net access, widgets, and 25+ HD stations - nice.
Digital TV and loud commericals
As much as we love HD and you know how much we love HD, we hate loud commercials. No we don't watch them very often thanks to our Series3 TiVo, but on occasion we don't hit that 30 second skip button fast enough and we get blasted. Part of the problem is that the shows are usually Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound and the commercials are not. Why this causes problems for the engineers is beyond us, but lucky for us the FCC has our back. You see the FCC has rules about the volume differential between programming and the commercials and it is a little different for DTV. They say "The value of the dialnorm parameter in the AC-3 elementary bit stream shall indicate the level of average spoken dialogue within the encoded audio program. Dialogue level may be measured by means of an "A" weighted integrated measurement (LAeq)." In other words; the commercials can't be louder than the dialog, which is good cause otherwise they could compare the commercials with the volume level of the explosions during 24. If you have this problem, don't bother calling DirecTV, Dish or your cable provider -- you have to go straight to the source and call the local affiliate. You can usually find the number on their website and if they are no help, follow the link to the FCC and file a complaint.[Via AVSForum.com]
AVS Forum coverage of the Super Bowl
Today is the big day, many have ran out and bought their first HDTV in preparation, some are having parties with friends, but not everyone is a big sports fan. Don't let that stop you from enjoying the game, if your a HD geek like us, today is a good day to enjoy 10 hours of HD starting at noon, even the commercials are in HD and then discuss the production quality of all the HD goodness with other HD geeks or you may just want to find a resolve to a technical problem during the big game. While we got the basics covered of how to make sure you are watching the game in HD, some problems may be out of your hand. Either way head over to the AVS Forum threads on the particular show your having problems with to find out if it is a national issue or a problem with your local affiliate. If it is a local issue and only effecting the channel the game is on, don't waste your time calling DirecTV, Dish or even your cable company, your best bet is to call your local affiliate and report your issue -- just look up their number on their website and ask for engineering. In most cases they will be able to help you out.Read: Discuss the Road to the Super Bowl in HDRead: Discuss the Super Bowl commercials in HDRead: Discuss the Super Bowl in HDRead: Discuss the Super Bowl Halftime HD
AT&T's U-verse to go mobile with MobiTV
Some... er, most parts of the country are waiting on any flavor of that bandwidth-thirsty U-verse IPTV to get switched on, but AT&T's already looking forward to the next big thing. As American mobile carriers get to work on various mobile TV initiatives, AT&T has apparently tapped MobiTV to play a large role in their outreach to the smallest screens; or perhaps "larger role" is a more accurate way of putting it, seeing how Cingular has been offering the California-based company's streaming video service on many of its handsets for over a year now. How exactly the mobile variant of U-verse will work is unclear -- it remains to be seen whether it'll be offered only to subscribers of AT&T's in-home U-verse service or will be launched on a broader scale -- but either way, MobiTV says they'll kick it off by offering their own content and add U-verse content into the mix as time goes on. Details haven't been finalized nor have Hancocks been issued on any contracts yet, but they deal seems as good as sealed given AT&T's and MobiTV's already tight relationship. With Sprint and Verizon having both committed to delivering mobile TV via MediaFLO and T-Mobile testing a variety of technologies, Cingular has remained a bit of an enigma; it feels good to finally have some closure, though we have to shudder a bit at the thought of clogging those sweet HSDPA airwaves with IPTV.[Via MocoNews]
Who Killed TiVoToGo?
It is nearly impossible to be a HDTV fan and to boycott DRM, because DRM is embedded in almost every type of HD programming. As with all DRM it is very complicated and almost impossible to keep track of all the limitations and restrictions. Every time we turn around we learn of another form and the only HDTV without restrictions is OTA HD, which was almost locked down via the Broadcast Flag. The latest feature to fall victim to DRM is TiVoToGo on the Series3 and right around the corner are some of our favorite Vista Media Center features, like rolling your own HD DVR. While none of this is a surprise to most of us you may not know the whole story and the Electric Frontier Foundation has done a great job of laying it all out and even providing everyone with a list of things that you can do to make a difference.[Via TiVoCommunity.com]
Verizon FiOS hitting 50Mbps in more states
Sure, it's not quite 100Mpbs, but hey, the folks in Massachusetts and Rhode Island will probably take what they can get. Verizon has just announced that Massachusetts and Rhode Island have now joined New York, Connecticut and New Jersey as states where Verizon "has increased the maximum connection speed of both its mid-tier and top-tier FiOS Internet services." Previously, their mid-range connection topped out at 15Mbps downstream and a paltry 2Mbps upstream, while the high-end package offered just 30Mbps up and 5Mbps down. Basically no other details were given, but Verizon did state that it planned on bringing similar speed boosts to "11 other states where the service is available" during the course of this year, but didn't mention any type of price decreases from the admittedly lofty monthly charges top-tier customers currently pay. Now, how about we get FiOS to more homes before giving all the lucky ones even more bandwidth to play with next time you get the itch to upgrade, okay Verizon?[Via GigaOM]
Networks respond to DirecTV's call for "100 HD channels in 2007"
DirecTV claimed it would have 100 national channels by the end of this year and we collectively said... "There are 100 national HD channels?!?!" Multichannel News took a look at some of those names on DirecTV's list and found that they are actually planning on putting at least some HD programming out in the next year. A few channels, like CNN and Sci Fi already have HD programming, even if it's not aired that way. CNN Worldwide president confirmed an HDTV version of the 24 hour news channel will launch in September around the same time as Cartoon Network HD and TBS HD. A spokesman for Fox indicated that although FX and Speed don't have any announced plans for high definition, now that national distribution is assured they can ramp up aggressively. Assuming other channels follow their lead, 2007 should see a veritable explosion of high-def channels, the only question remaining is how will other companies match them (without resorting to HDLite?)... and how in the world will we keep up with the listings? Read - DirecTV HD News Sends Nets Scurrying Read - Cable rushes to HD
Niveus Media Center CableCARD Support
If there is one thing we can't wait for it's the ability to record premium HD content on our PCs. While this has evaded us until now, with Vista right around the corner and Niveus on the job, it shouldn't be long now. While there are still many questions, we learned a little more. The Niveus Digital Cable tuner will be a separate component and compatible with all their Media Centers including the latest rainier (pictured) and previous models. According to Niveus, in order to upgrade your box with CableCARD they will have to make it "New" again to comply with CableLABS requirements. You'll send in your unit for a few software upgrades including Windows Vista, which will make it "new". The add-on does support dual CableCARDS, but no word on M-Card support, which isn't a big deal considering their limited ability. As excited as we are we understand that Niveus products aren't for everyone and we look forward to checking out CableCARD compatibility for the rest of us.
Siemens AG breaks network speed record
Data speed records are falling left and right these days but there doesn't seem to be any signs of the madness letting up, with Reuters reporting today that Siemens AG has joined the party, smashing the previous record for transmission rates over a single fiber channel using "exclusively electrical means." They maxed out at a speed of 107 gigibits per second before running out of steam -- that's reportedly a full 2.5 times faster than the previous record for a single fiber channel. What's more, they did it outside of the laboratory, using an existing a 100 mile-long fiber optic route in the U.S. According to Siemens, this record is particularly significant as it will reduce the need to split signals into a number lower data-rate channels in order to avoid bottlenecks, ultimately resulting in networks that are both faster and cheaper for customers. It looks like we'll still have to wait a while before we can take advantage of the speedy new technology, however, with the first prototype products based on it still a few years away.[Via Reuters/Yahoo News]
Eurovision successfully transmits US HD feed to Europeans
As if there wasn't enough variations of HD feeds, and the fact that NTSC and PAL just can't seem to get along, the last thing the blokes across the pond want (or need) is another complication when it comes to catching American sports on their HD sets. Thankfully, Eurovision is not only sparing everyone the trouble, it has reportedly claimed a victory in the typically messy conversion game. The global network operator has apparently transmitted HDTV coverage of NHL and NBA games shot in America to Europe, all without down-converting to NTSC in the process. The content originated in 1080i/60, and was rebroadcasted in the UK-friendly 1080i/50 format, all while keeping users on both ends thoroughly pleased. Eurovision's head of production and services, Tony Naets, proclaimed that Europeans who witnessed the converted coverage "were delighted with the results, which included the ingest of the original coverage through the resources of Eurovision Americas in Washington, the conversion from the original broadcast format to 1080i/50, and the transport of the converted signal via our dedicated transatlantic fiber to the European uplink." While quite a mouthful, we think we dig what he's saying, and as soon as Europe sends a few of its own HD soccer football feeds our way, we'll be grinning from ear to ear as well.
AT&T shrugs off FTTH, says it's satisfied with copper
If you think AT&T is troubled by Verizon's direct FTTH route while the company sticks with copper, you'd apparently be mistaken. The firm's CFO, Richard Lindner, recently shrugged off concerns that AT&T would need to get on the ball with regard to implementing their own fiber optic infrastructure. While select customers are already receiving U-Verse content, it appears that the majority of AT&T's future will rely on tried and true copper wiring, at least for the time being. Lindner stated that he was "pleased with the bandwidth that they're seeing over copper," and felt that there wasn't any urgent need to "get fiber to the home." He also boasted that the company's current pipes were "producing about 25Mbps," noting that "some locations" were receiving "substantially more than that," but curiously omitted the locales receiving substantially less. As expected, industry analysts have mixed views on the outfit's hand-to-the-face approach to fiber, with many suggesting that "it would need to upgrade its network again" when more consumers start to demand even more HD channels / movies. Nevertheless, AT&T seems to be holding its own at this point, but we're not so certain the old coax can do the same for very much longer.[Via eHomeUpgrade]
