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EchoStar HDX-410 set-top box runs native ICS, supports terrestrial broadcasts (hands-on video)
You may be familiar with EchoStar's satellite-based (Dish Network) and Sling Media (Slingbox) products, but the company also manufactures set-top boxes for third-party providers, as well as free-to-air services in the UK. It's this last grouping that'll be able to take advantage of the Android-based device we saw today, assuming it does in fact make its way to market. The HDX-410 runs native Ice Cream Sandwich, and is available in two versions -- one supports IP content and local storage exclusively, while a second can also accept terrestrial Digital Video Broadcasting (DVB) programming, letting you play back live TV shows in addition to content from a local server, pulled from the web or stored on attached media or an inserted microSD card. It connects to the web using Ethernet or WiFi, and includes USB ports on both the front and the rear, Bluetooth, HDMI out, digital audio out and a standard-definition connection. It's also paired with a QWERTY keyboard-equipped remote manufactured by Philips with gyroscopic or directional-pad curser control, along with pinch/zoom gesture capability. We had a chance to check out the ICS box at EchoStar's IBC booth today, where the device was running Android 4.0.4 and an early version of the company's hybrid app, which groups "favorited" content alongside terrestrial channels, letting you use the standard channel up/down button to navigate through stored TV shows, IP content or live programming quite seamlessly, as if all of the media was playing from the same source. It's clearly not yet ready for primetime, but the interface was sleek and speedy -- the set-top box performed very well overall. EchoStar reps were unable to confirm whether or not the HDX-410 would be coming to market at all, but they did add that the solution may be made available to third-parties in the future. Click past the break to take a closer look in our hands-on video.%Gallery-164692%
Roku players add Dish international TV channels, become that much more exotic
Roku has already been turning its players into TV hubs, but it's been focused on US programming -- not so hot if you're an immigrant hoping to catch up on affairs back in the homeland. Dish is aiming to remedy that by offering its Dishworld service as an avenue for the media hub: owners can subscribe to over 50 channels without having to spring for a satellite package. The focus is heaviest on south Asia, with Bangladesh, India and Pakistan getting the most service -- including a few cricket channels for good measure. Arab channels like Al Jazeera and Brazilian channels like TV Globo Internacional join the fray as well. Roku 2 and Roku LT viewers living in the US can already subscribe to Dish's service in tiers that start at $20 a month, though Roku HD owners will have to sit tight until the summer to practice their Hindi.
Comcast fires back over Xfinity TV on Xbox 360, says no way, no how it's violating net neutrality
Complaints by Netflix's Reed Hastings and a handful of politicians must have rankled Comcast CTO Tony Werner, as he just posted a particularly detailed explanation of why Comcast believes the Xfinity TV app on the Xbox 360 isn't violating net neutrality. We'd previously heard the argument that the Xfinity app's traffic is simply being routed through Comcast's internal network and isn't the same as the Internet data of Netflix, but Werner now contends that the Differentiated Services Code Point (DSCP) tags that some think are breaking FCC rules by favoring Xfinity video are really just necessary switches. They're not prioritizing traffic, they're setting it aside, the claim goes. Of course, Hastings and others believe that setting Xfinity video aside is prioritizing, and Comcast's point of view sidesteps the practical reality that watching Netflix, Amazon Instant Video or iTunes will lead you closer to that ever-present 250GB cap while Xfinity doesn't. The FCC during its rulemaking warned against special private services being used as end-runs around neutrality concerns; it's up to the agency to decide whether or not that's true here, or whether Comcast is just offering its usual service in a new way.
Xbox 360 IPTV to be shown at The Connected Home show in Europe
During his keynote at Europe's The Connected Home Show, Microsoft TV's Ed Graczyk will showcase the Xbox 360's impending IPTV capabilities, first revealed at the Consumer Electronics Show this year. Though the press release would have you believe that Graczyk, whose official long-winded job title is Worldwide Director of Marketing and Communications, will "showcase what happens when next-generation television is combined with next-generation gaming in a unique, new service delivered by your broadband provider," we aren't expecting much more than IPTV and possibly some DVR functions. Wonderland has provided an analysis of the fluff-tacular press release.We can only hope Graczyk does reveal DVR capabilities and simulates them by pausing mid-speech and pantomiming the rewind feature. Evird drah regral a gnilaever tuoba woh?The Connected Home Show, part of the IPTV World Forum, will be held March 5-7 in Olympia, London.See Also:Hands-on: IPTV on Xbox 360%Gallery-1136%
Xbox 360 hits 10.4 million, announces IPTV
Microsoft is expected to announce Sunday night that it has sold 10.4 million Xbox 360 units, actually making good on their promise to surpass 10 million by the end of 2006, according to San Jose Mercury News' Dean Takahashi. In addition, Robbie Bach and Bill Gates are to announce that Xbox 360 will be able to act as a set-top box for Internet Protocol Television (IPTV).As the video marketplace is doing surprisingly well, surpassing other video-on-demand services, offering television as well sounds like a natural progression. However, we're not looking forward to leaving a heat-loving console on continuously, nor does a 20GB HDD sound ideal for any DVR features including in IPTV. Perhaps the announcement will coincide with a new Xbox 360 model and larger HDD?Bach and Gates are expected to make the announcement at the Consumer Electronics Show Sunday night. Official NPD figures for console hardware sales should be revealed January 11.[Update: The article has been taken down. It was dated for January 7; was it leaked a bit too early? Also, many are opining in the comments that the 10.4 million figure is "shipped" and not "sold." We'll know the wording chosen by Microsoft on Sunday and the official NPD numbers within the week. Update: The article is back up with only minor (i.e. typographical) revisions.]
Democracy 0.9.2
I am a fan of Democracy, the video podcast client from Participatory Culture which is free and open source. That is why I am more than happy to recommend everyone upgrade to version 0.9.2 of the beta. I am assured that many bugs are squashed, less memory is used, and the UI is snappier.I am not a fan, however, of no release notes. What's up with that? I can't find a single place on Democracy's website that lists all the changes in this version. That's not cool.
