WhereverTV Set-Top Box Launched - Over 2,000 Channels of International Programming

As streaming set-top boxes continue to hit the markets, we're glad to see some boxes that link to free content starting to arrive. Recently the WhereverTV Receiver was debuted at the SINO Consumer Electronics show in Qingdao, China. The box streams channels from the Wherever.TV website. According to BetaNews.com:

Content that can be watched on Wherever.tv, which consists of simulcasted regional stations and broadband-exclusive TV channels, can be watched through the WhereverTV receiver with just a high speed connection and a television.

The $199 receiver is similar to the Neuros OSD digital archiving box in both design and onboard hardware, but offers WhereverTV's exclusive Global Interactive Program Guide (IPG) to manage and browse the thousands of channels the service handles. No additional fees are incurred for usage, and the unit offers a simple way to access content from 94 countries in 43 languages on any television. Premium content can also be accessed in real time, at an additional cost to the user.

Pretty cool! With all of the content Wherever.TV offers, $199 isn't too bad for the WhereverTV receiver. We'll try to get a box and let you know what we think.

At BetaNews.com

Website: Wherever.tv

WhereverTv Receiver at Amazon.com

Google Media Server - Easily Stream PC to your TV

Looking for an easy to use software to stream your PC to your TV? As long as you have a UPnP-enabled device, you might want to try out Google Media Server. According to Google:

Google Media Server is a Windows application that aims to bridge the gap between Google and your TV. It uses Google Desktop technology such as Desktop gadgets for the administration tool and Google Desktop Search to locate media files. All you need is a PC running Google Desktop and a UPnP-enabled device (e.g. a PlayStation 3). At the touch of a button, you can then:

• Access videos, music, and photos stored on your PC
• View Picasa Web Albums
• Play your favorite YouTube videos

We'll give Google Media Server a shot and let you know what we think. If you're currently using it, drop us a comment and let us know what you think.

At GoogleDesktop.com

TiVo Announces New Channels for TiVo Video Downloads

We ran across this interesting bit of information at TiVoCommunity.com. TiVo has added several new channels to it's TiVoCast service. The channels are free and available to broadband-connected Series2 and Series3 units. Here is the list and a brief description:

• City By City (launched 6/23) has been added to the Lifestyle category of the Video Download service. An On Networks channel, City By City is "a travel show with a twist, your virtual little black book for the swankiest cities across Europe." This show will publish on Mondays along with the other five series from On Networks.
• MediaBytes with Shelly Palmer (launched 6/16) is found under the News and Technology categories. MediaBytes is "News you can use about technology, media and entertainment." This channel will be published Monday through Friday.
• Golf Tips (launched 5/29) was added to the How-To category of Video Downloads. An On Networks property, Golf Tips "is a show that will make your drive longer, your putts more accurate, and your game better." Every Monday.
• Vogue.TV (launched 5/29) has been added to the Lifestyle category of the Video Download service. Vogue.TV takes you behind the scenes of fashion, beauty, and culture and gives you up-to-the-minute trend reports and more. Vogue.TV will be publishing on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
• Budget Health Nut (launched 5/21) from On Networks is found in the Lifestyle category: "Don't let modest funds get in the way of gourmet taste. Instead, learn how to shop, cook and eat on a budget with culinary cheapskate, Joe Dias." Every Monday.
• Cocktails on the Fly (launched 5/21) from On Networks is also under Lifestyle: "Alberta Straub (a.k.a Miss Flighty); is known for turning fresh homemade ingredients into wildly sexy, exuberant drinks." Every Monday.
• ON Dating (launched 5/21) from On Networks is another one under Lifestyle: "Online dating is the fastest growing social phenomenon on the Internet, and something celebrity dating coach Andrea Syrtash knows all about." Every Monday.
• Zipidee Action Sports (launched 5/15) has been added to the Fitness category of Video Downloads. Zipidee brings us "cutting edge BMX, skateboarding, surfing, mountain biking, snowboarding, and more! Visit zipidee.com/tivo for the full-length videos!" Every Wednesday.
• beYOU.tv (launched 5/15) now appears under the Fitness category of Video Downloads. BeYOU.tv "brings you informational and inspirational video to help you attain all of your fitness, health and wellness goals." Every Wednesday.
• Zen Living (launched 5/7) from On Networks, under Lifestyle, is all about incorporating a balanced lifestyle through the connection of food, exercise, spirituality, and medicine, blending old world philosophies with the convenience of contemporary advances to improve well-being. Every Monday.

If you're not familiar with TiVoCast, here are a few FAQs from Tivo:

• What is TiVoCast?
• TiVoCast is an exciting feature from TiVo that lets you easily download TV programming to your TiVo box via your broadband Internet connection. The programs will appear in your Now Playing List, just like regular television recordings.

• How Does TiVoCast Work?
• TiVoCast downloads are available to all current TiVo® service subscribers with a TiVo® Series2, HD or Series3 HD DVR connected to their home network and a broadband Internet connection, at no additional charge.

More FAQs

At TiVoCommunity.com

Visit the TiVoCast Website

TiVo at Amazon

ZvBox Finally Available for Preorder at Amazon.com

The ZvBox was supposed to be released in June but it now appears the new release date is July 31, 2008 (My birthday, so I guess it's an Omen!). So what makes the ZvBox different than devices like the Apple TV, Slingbox, Vudu, etc? For starters, the ZvBox uses your coax cable to stream PC content to all of your TVs in the house. According to Gizmodo:

• The box itself converts the video from the PC's VGA port into a high-def channel and sends it out to your home's coax cable network.
• A PC app acts as a launcher for all the good PC-based internet video clients, like Hulu, Joost and even Microsoft's own Media Center.
• The remote controls not just your TV, but the app on the PC too, giving you decent control over the otherwise PC-locked experience.

The article also states what the ZvBox really does:

As soon as you connect your VGA out to the ZvBox and connect that to the coax network in your house, it scopes out the channels occupied by your cable box, and picks one that's not. Any TV with an ATSC tuner will see the ZeeVee stream as a high-def channel, and display it as such via the coax input most cable and satellite customers have generally forgotten about.

You put the ATSC tuner to use, your coax cable gets new life, and you get an easy way to toggle from your other cable content to your PC's video bidness.

Even though the ZvBox is a bit pricey at around $500, this is one of the powerful media streamers on the market. So if you're an early adopter when it comes to streaming media, you may want to preorder your Zvbox now!

Via Gizmodo.com and Preorder at Amazon.com

Hauppauge HD-PVR Finally Shipping

We had reported earlier that Hauppauge was working on releasing a very cool HD-PVR for the home. Well the time has come and they have officially started shipping the them. You can cruise over to their site to read more about it, buy it directly from them or head over to Amazon to get it.

This will be the first DVR on the market that will allow you to record your HD content on a separate box. It uses the 'analog hole' to grab content off of the component output on your digital receiver and converts it to the H.264 format. This is a very cool way to record content off of your HD tuner without having to use the mostly craptastic systems that are out there( I'm looking at your Comcast ). Go check out Brent Evans sweet site Geek Tonic for the full skinny. He has one in the mail and on the way to his house. He has been following this product of a long time and has a ton of information on it. If you are interested in getting the HD-PVR from Hauppauge jump over to Geek Tonic and read all he has to say and then head over to Amazon and throw one in your cart. If anyone has already ordered one we would love to hear about your setup and why you went this route. We are really excited for this unit to hit the market and we'll be sure to post again once some reviews start flooding in.

via Geek Tonic

Available at Amazon.

The TubeStick Hybrid from Equinux: Perfect TV Receiver For Your Mac

Equinux has been around for awhile and they make all kinds of products for your Mac, but the one that most people reading this blog will recognize is the TubeStick. This little USB stick will allow you to receive TV right on your computer. These are some of the smallest TV tuners on the market and they are known not only for their quality, but their very snappy design. Their latest addition to the TubeStick line is the new TubeStick Hybrid. This new TV tuner will allow you to receive "digital over-the-air HDTV (ATSC), digital (QAM), and analog cable TV (NTSC)" all the while being so small that you won't have to sacrifice any other of your ports on computer. It also ships with an external antenna to allow you better reception for the over the air channels. Using their software you can record your favorite shows to your computer for viewing at a latter date. For only $129 this is a great deal. You can read the rest of the details here, but from what we have read it looks like a homerun of a product.

via engadget

SlingCatcher Delayed: Hoping for 2008 release

It looks like the very anticipated release of the SlingCatcher is still many months off. This was first debuted in 2007 and has constantly been pushed back. This will be Sling's first device to include an internal hard drive( hence the catcher part of the name ) and has had many Sling enthusiasts very excited. With delay after delay this news wasn't all that unexpected or anything, we are just hoping that it actually sees the light of day. We have been playing around with both the Sling products and the Hava products and it is nice that they are both competing against each other. Hava doesn't have an internal hard drive, but they make use of a file cache system to allow you to record shows to your PC's hard drive. We were hoping to be able to get our hands on one of these by now, but it looks like we will have to wait till, "sometime later this year". When we find out any more info about the launch date we will post an update. Stay tuned.

via engadet

New Hava Player for Nokia Tablets - Mobile TV Here We Come

We have been big fans of the Hava streaming products for some time now. Sure the Slingbox's are great products, but having only one device in a space doesn't foster innovation. We have loved that Hava has come out with very competitive products and have challenged Sling every step of the way. The one area that Hava really hasn't gone has been the handheld market. Sling has software that will playback TV on a bunch of different handhelds and that is one of the big draws for many people. Well it was just unveiled that Hava has a very sweet Nokia Tablet TV streaming client. The Nokia tables are really cool devices. We have the N770 and love how we can carry around a small computer with us wherever we go. Now that Hava has made a client for it, it becomes a portable TV player! Get a 'net connection anywhere in the world and start watching your home TV. From the article over at Engadget they said that the quality was pretty good which is all you can hope for in such a small device. We can't wait for this to go live and test it out. Having a nice handheld TV is something that the geek in us can't wait for. Once this is actually released you can bet we will be grabbing it and trying it out. Stay tuned.

via engadget

TVMini HD Express Lets You Enjoy Your TV on Your Mac

The TVMini HD Express is a cool little product that we just stumbled upon. This little device hooks up to your cable feed and will let you enjoy TV via your Mac. With all the features you have come to expect from a PVR like pause, rewind and record, the TVMini seems like a sweet little product for the Mac readers out there. With the built in record function you can record all of your favorite shows to your mac to watch whenever you have time. Devices like these are becoming more common as companies realize that people want to be able to take their TV on the road with them. The TVMini will save in a format that will let you play it back via iTunes so you will not need to install any other software other then the basic Tube software that it ships with. With its small size we can see this become a very popular device for people that use their Mac as their primary TV interface. My brother-in-law( hi Clint ) has a similar setup where he has a LCD mounted on the wall hooked up to his Mac Mini. He then watches all of his TV via iTunes. So a device like this would be perfect for his setup since it would allow him to schedule recordings and not have to buy everything from iTunes. It seems like it is only available in the UK, but we will keep digging.

Hands On With The HAVA Titanium HD WIFI Place-Shifting Streamer Part 1

We have had the HAVA Titanium HD WIFI device in the office for awhile now and we wanted to report back with our thoughts. We have had the HAVA Wireless HD as our main TV-Streamer for a few months and while we have enjoyed it a ton it just never felt as polished as some of its mature competitors. Well now with the Titanium HD we feel that they have broken through their beginning stage and should be considered a serious option for anyone looking to get a place-shifting device for their home. One of the main issues we had with the Wireless HD was it dropped frames a lot so that in our office we sometimes had an issue with streaming over a wireless hop. There would be some jerkiness and a non-smooth stream. The Titanium HD seems to have fixed all of this and the best part is that from the way it was designed it will be getting a lot better,

Continue reading: "Hands On With The HAVA Titanium HD WIFI Place-Shifting Streamer Part 1"

Apple TV Take 2 - HD Movie Rentals with the Apple TV

The new update for Apple TV is out, and now you can download and rent a movie in HD (high definition). We thought we'd go through the update for all you Apple TV owners, and then see how easy it is to rent a movie in HD on the Apple TV.

Continue reading: "Apple TV Take 2 - HD Movie Rentals with the Apple TV"

HAVA Titanium HD WIFI Unboxing

We just received our fancy new HAVA Titanium HD WIFI TV streaming device and we couldn't be more excited. We had reviewed the Monsoon Multimedia HAVA Wireless HD awhile back and it truly made us believers in the TV placeshifting idea. We really didn't get the allure of placeshifting until we tried the Hava. We were blown away at how cool it was to not only watch your TV from anywhere, but also control it as well. We have been converts ever since. Well the good people over at Monsoon have just sent us a HAVA Titanium HD to demo. We are very excited to tear threw this one, but as always we want to start out with the fun unboxing photo shoot. So check it out after the break to see it in all its glory.

Continue reading: "HAVA Titanium HD WIFI Unboxing"

Slingbox Pro Hands On Review

We just got the Slingbox Pro in house today and in just under 20 minutes we were totally blown away. We have reviewed this product in the past and we have tested out the Monsoon Hava product so we thought we knew what to expect. From the minute we fired up the software we were amazed at not just how easy the setup was, but how easy it was to set up the remote streaming.

With the Hava we spent a long time trying to configure our router and their software to allow us to stream our TV, but we never really got it to work. With the Slingbox Pro we had it streaming over the Internet in a matter of minutes and we never once needed to mess with our router. It seems the people over at Sling have really put together a well thought out easy to use software package that just works. You don't need to fight it, you just follow the instructions and you have it running the way you want.

Continue reading: "Slingbox Pro Hands On Review"

SageTV HD Media Extender Details Trickle Out

SageTV, makers of the very cool Media Center replacement software is coming out with what looks to be a HD media extender to help you push your media all over your house. It is outfitted with all sorts of options when it comes to video, just check it out:

• HDMI
• component
• S-Video
• composite

This is a sweet line up of options with the highlight being HDMI of course. Now you can enjoy all your HD media streamed throughout your house with no lose in quality. SageTV has been in the home media market for a long time now and they have constantly improved their software and recently with the edition of hardware devices they are really making the push to position their media systems as the full solution for all of your needs. We will be sure to keep an eye on this and update you when a release date is known.

via engadget