After 16 years, Sega has finally designed a sequel to one of its most beloved game characters. Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode 1 will be available for Wii, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. It will have 2D graphics with 3D visuals. In an interview with GameSpot, Sega brand manager Ken Balough said that the game will be available this summer by download.
Netflix will soon be accessible to PlayStation 3 owners. Xbox 360 users, Roku owners and some Internet connected TVs already have the capability. The streaming service will be free to PS3 users who have a subscription starting at $8.99, as opposed to Xbox 360 owners, who must pay $50.00 a year and join the Xbox Live "Gold" club.
Recent word hits us that Wii will also have the capability. Users need a Netflix Instant Streaming Disc at a price of $9.99. In both cases, a broadband connection is needed.
Microsoft has finally decided on a date for its Xbox 360 Live update. As of Aug. 11, you will be able to receive Netflix Movie Parties, Games on Demand and the Avatar Marketplace. They will soon add HD movie streaming, and online access to Facebook, Zune Marketplace and other sites.
Those of you in the UK and Irish Republic will be happy to learn that Sky, teamed with Microsoft, will soon be offering film, sports and TV on the Xbox 360. Sky's channels will be available sometime this fall although no specifics have yet to be released. No extra equipment is required for those who are already Sky subscribers and content will be similar to the PC and Mac service.
Actiontec has a entire line of MegaPlug kits guaranteed to make your home networking easier. Their
AV Powerline Networking Kit is a simple solution and uses home electrical lines to create a 200Mbps network. The
AV Powerline Gaming Kit does the same for your Xbox 360, Playstation 3 or Nintendo Wii. The
85 Mbps Ethernet Adapter Twin-Pack can link your computers, install a networked printer or be used as a connection for another device to your network. Finally, who couldn't use some extra ports? Their
85 Mbps 4-Port Hub is an inexpensive way to connect DSL modems, gateways, or broadband routers with a single Ethernet port.
Microsoft and Netflix has announced that more than a million Xbox Live Gold members downloaded the Watch Instantly application since it was launched in November and have viewed about 1.5 billion minutes of TV and movies. Their streaming library is already up to 12,000 titles with more HD being added. The press release also states that Video Marketplace downloads have grown 174 % from December 2008 to January 2009. We don't know if the deal that Amazon has with a less expensive subscription to Xbox Live Gold helped those figures but it certainly didn't hurt.
What better way to start the week than with a super deal. For $38.99 you can have 13 months of Xbox 360 Live Gold, a service that usually goes for $50.00 for a year. This means you get multi-player games online, voice/video chat, and of course the Xbox 360 Video Markeplace with movies (including Netflix if you have that,) TV shows and music videos. Better take advantage of this one now before they decide to retract the generous offer.
Netflix Streaming HD Content Coming to Xbox 360 Tomorrow
Not too long ago, we told you that Netflix would be providing some "Instant Que" content in HD to the Roku Netflix Player. Well it looks like Xbox 360 owners have lucked out and get HD content first. According to the Netflix press release:
LOS GATOS, Calif., Nov 18, 2008 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ -- Netflix, Inc. , the world's largest online movie rental service, today announced that Netflix members can have thousands of movies and TV episodes instantly streamed to the TV via the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system when the New Xbox Experience premieres nationwide tomorrow. Adding to a growing number of Netflix-ready devices, the Xbox 360 is the only game and entertainment console that lets users instantly watch movies and TV episodes streamed from Netflix to the TV. There is no additional monthly fee for Netflix members who are also Xbox LIVE Gold members.
Netflix members simply add movies and TV episodes from a growing library of more than 12,000 choices to their instant Queues at the Netflix Web site. Those choices are automatically displayed on the TV screen via the Xbox 360 and, once selected, will begin playing in as little as 30 seconds.
"This is an important and exciting moment for Netflix and Xbox," said Netflix Chief Marketing Officer Leslie Kilgore. "We believe the New Xbox Experience -- with thousands of choices available to be streamed instantly from Netflix as one of its key enhancements -- offers consumers a great at-home entertainment option and provides terrific value as a holiday gift idea."
Netflix also said it is taking the first step in instantly streaming movies and TV episodes in high definition with the introduction of approximately 300 HD choices that will play with standard definition audio via the Xbox 360. The company said it intends to increase the number of HD choices available and will eventually add multi-channel audio. Classic, adventure, musical, foreign and comedy movies now available to watch instantly in high definition include "La Vie en Rose," "Flawless" and "Heroes."
All Netflix members can rent from over 100,000 titles on DVD. They can instantly watch movies and TV episodes from a growing library of choices on their PCs and Intel-based Macintosh computers, as well as on their TVs via one of the Internet connected Netflix ready devices sold by Netflix partners.
About Netflix, Inc.
Netflix, Inc. is the world's largest online movie rental service, with more than eight million subscribers. For one low monthly price, Netflix members can get DVDs delivered to their homes and can instantly watch movies and TV episodes streamed to their TVs, PCs and Macs, all in unlimited amounts. Members can choose from over 100,000 DVD titles and a growing library of more than 12,000 choices that can be watched instantly. There are never any due dates or late fees. DVDs are delivered free to members by first class mail, with a postage-paid return envelope, from 55 distribution centers. More than 95 percent of Netflix members live in areas that generally receive shipments in one business day. Netflix is also partnering with leading consumer electronics companies to offer a range of devices that can instantly stream movies and TV episodes to members' TVs from Netflix. For more information, visit http://www.netflix.com/.
Netflix HD content goes live for Xbox 360 owners tomorrow, so be on the lookout.
Review: Earforce X4 Xbox 360 Wireless Surround Sound Headset
We here at NAV are huge wireless headphone fans. One thing we've noticed is that most standard wireless headphones just don't cut it when gaming. We've been eyeing the Earforce X4 Xbox 360 Wireless Surround Sound Headset ever since it came out and now Gizmodo has a decent review. The review states:
It should be noted that these "surround sound" headphones are really transposing a 5.1 channel signal into two stereo speakers, but the results are excellent all the same. In Call of Duty 4, I could track a helicopter's proximity to me perfectly (with exception of just behind my head). And in Project Gotham Racing 4, cars whizzed by ears with aggressive speed.
As for the chatting, it's a complete pleasure in the X4s. Not only do both sides of the conversation benefit from improved audio clarity, but you hear your own voice mixed in with the game audio. This audio loop is to help keep you from shouting, and I think it works in practice. Plus, the mic's wire is supported by a pliable but durable metal skin--it feels 100x better than the stock 360 headset mic, like production-level gear.
$200 seems like a lot to drop on a pair of wireless headphones but if you take your gaming seriously, you might want to start saving your nickels.
You can also check out this video on the Earforce X4:
Microsoft and Netflix Announce Streaming Partnership for Xbox 360
It seems that just a few months ago there was a lot of buzz that Netflix was going to have a tough time surviving in today's marketplace. Since the buzz started we've seen Neflix creatively adapt and look at other opportunities besides just DVDs. Their partnership with Roku was brilliant and now Netflix and Microsoft have teamed up to allow Xbox Live Gold members to stream Netflix content over their Xbox 360 at no extra cost.
According to TVSnob:
The partnership was announced yesterday at the E3 gaming conference and will bring over 10, 000 TV shows and movies to members when it launches. Combining the new Netflix offerings with other Xbox Live content means the Xbox 360 will be home to more content than any other "connected" device on the market at the moment.
Now might be a great time to take advantage of the Xbox 360 price drop we told you about yesterday.
Microsoft Cuts Xbox 360 Pro Price - Unveils 60GB Xbox 360
A few weeks ago we told you Microsoft was going to drop the price of the Xbox 360 Pro. Well they also threw us a curveball by releasing a 60GB model. According to PCWorld:
We knew a price cut for Microsoft's mid-grade Xbox 360 was imminent, but who knew it'd be such a tempest in a teapot? Instead of a permanent price drop on its "Premium" 20GB $350 model, it turns out that Microsoft's merely discounting that model and selling it for $300 "while supplies last."
In its place, the company says it'll sell a new 60GB version for $350, identical to the 20GB version except for the 40GB bump.
So the big question is do you go after the $50 price break for the 20GB model or spend an extra $50 and get the 60GB model? Don't you hate tough decisions? Leave us a comment and let us know what your big decision will be.
TVersity Finally Launches Version 1.0 of Media Streaming Service
TVersity has finally come out of beta after several years and has launched as Release Candidate 1. If your're not familiar with TVersity, it's free software that allows you to stream media from your PC to multiple devices. While there are quite a few pieces of media streaming software out there, TVersity is a Truly loaded product. According to the TVersity website:
Play Internet audio, image and video streams and RSS/RDF/ATOM/OPML
feeds and podcasts on your TV, Stereo and other connected devices
The media server streams media from the Internet and delivers it to
connected devices via HTTP, the only protocol supported by those devices
The only truly universal media server (including support for the
Apple iPhone, Sony PSP, the Sony PS3, the Xbox 360, the Nintendo Wii, The
Nokia 770/N800 and many more devices)
Use the same server for home and mobile networked devices (with multimedia
capabilities) whether they support UPnP AV / DLNA or just have a web browser
or an RSS/Podcast Reader
Enter your own Internet URLs or select from the bundled Audio and
Video Guides
The media server is bundled with hundreds of TV stations from all over the
world and thousands of radio stations
Play your ENTIRE media collection on your connected
devices
Finally almost any content that plays in Windows Media Player can be
played on any of the supported devices disregarding their codec limitations
Automatic Real-time Seamless Transcoding
Let the Media Server automatically detect when a given media needs to be
transcoded for playback on your media player
Very fast browsing of your media library with unprecedented speed
for huge libraries (up to 100,000 items and more)
You can see the full (and very long) list of features here. At the great price of free, you got no reason to not give the software a try.
How To: Turn Your Xbox 360 into a Streaming Netflix Player
Looking for another way to get the most out of your Xbox 360? Well, if you're a Netflix subscriber you can stream "Watch Now" content over your Xbox 360. What makes this possible is a neat little add-in for Microsoft Windows Vista Media Center called vmcNetflix. Lifehacker.com has put together a nice tutorial on how to install vmcNetflix to your Xbox 360 and gives a rundown on what vmcNetflix does:
With vmcNetflix, you can watch, browse, and queue movies to your Netflix Watch Instantly queue all from your Xbox 360 or Vista Media Center. A highlight of the list of growing features listed on the vmcNetflix site include:
Stream WatchNow movies directly to the Media Center player.
Download WatchNow movies to a "Watch Later" gallery.
Support for Vista Extenders on both x86 and x64 platforms.
Support for Netflix Instant Queue.
Support for Episode listings.
Search for movies by keyword.
Browse DVD and WatchNow movies by genres.
Sort Gallery by Title, Year, or Star Rating.
View your queue, history, and recommendations.
Add, remove, move movies in your queue.
Supports DVD/Movie Parental Controls
Here's a nice little video from HackingNetflix.com that gives you more information about vmcNetflix:
Overall Lifehacker did a great job with the tutorial, so be sure to check out the link below if you want the complete details to stream Netflix over your Xbox 360.
First Hand Account of Xbox Media Streaming Experience
One of the things we are constantly talking about is how media streaming has yet to hit the masses. There are a ton of options out there, but it seems that the market hasn't really taken off just yet. We keep reading articles predicting that this is the year of streaming and whatnot. Well we have seen how well the AppleTV has done and it is clear that mainstream America is not ready for media streaming.
One area that has made some serious inroads into getting your average person into streaming media has been the newest generations of game consoles. They all have the ability to stream media from your local network with some being better then others. The Xbox 360 seems to be the best of the lot so far in dealing with getting your media onto your TV. A great piece of software that people have been using to stream their content to the 360 is a software product called Connect360. This has proven to be one of the better solutions to using the Xbox as your main media streamer.
We stumbled across a very interesting post about one persons dealings with taking the plunge and making their 360 their main streaming device. They provide a great first hand account of what you can expect if you decide to use your 360 as your media streaming device of choice. It is a very well written article and one that we think can help people to get a better grasp of what they have in store for them if they decide to go that route. You can check it out here.
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Sonic Resurrected After 16 Years
