Zatz Not Funny!

Three Things I Want From Sonos

Dave Zatz — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 13:41:23 +0000

The Sonos S5 ($399) was one of my 2009 boxes of the year. With good reason. Sonos is a sophisticated but easy to implement and easy to operate whole-home audio solution. Featuring content from both our local music collections and various online sources. The S5 broke new ground in the Sonos lineup by integrating speakers into their connected receiver. Sonos is not an inexpensive solution (especially since you won’t stop with just one room), but it’s clearly the best at what it does. Yet, what’s next?

A Sonos email survey I received a few days ago alluded to several interesting expansion possibilities. As I still have a loaner unit on hand, I’ve got a few ideas….

1. Downsize
The survey item I snapped above includes a less expensive unit than the S5 that would replace an alarm clock radio option. And that was indeed my top selection on this screen. Not so much on the pricing point, but on the size and usage point. The S5 isn’t huge, but it’s physically too big for most night stands. Also, the the sound is too big for and will wasted in most bedrooms. So I’d love to see a nightstand model for the bedroom, a form factor which could also be used in the office.

2. Embrace the Android
The iPhone remote control app is quite impressive. Considering all it does, including replacing a dedicated piece of hardware and despite my little UI nav nits. However, there are plenty of folks who don’t own Apple hardware that might appreciate a Sonos app. And at my briefing last fall, Sonos did indicate additional mobile clients could be on tap for 2010. My first choice, given a probable defection from AT&T to the Sprint/Google/HTC Nexus One in the very near future, is Android support.

3. Bring the Slacker
I’ve come to prefer Slacker’s niche programming over Pandora’s acoustic similarities. Which regularly resulted in bizarre, unrelated pairings. I love the Led Zeppelin. But not when I’m in a 90s grunge kind of mood. So I’d like to see some Slacker on Sonos. And, shortly after CES, I put the two companies in touch with hopes of seeing them resolve this shortcoming. As it’s probably the #1 reason I haven’t tricked out every room with a S5. I love Sonos, but content is king. Bring it.

Ceton’s CableCARD Tuner Launch Plans Clarified

Dave Zatz — Sat, 20 Mar 2010 14:09:41 +0000

After a number of schedule adjustments and device redesigns, Ceton’s feeling pretty dang confident they’ll finally ship their first CableCARD PC tuner by May 31st. In fact, they’re now taking pre-orders of the $399 quad tuning, low profile PCI express card — rebranded as the InfiniTV 4. Not to be confused with Xfinity. Or Eyefinity.

I’ve had a few PC requirement questions come my way, and Ceton’s put a page up that sheds some light on the situation. Although, we’ll probably have to wait for some real world usage to get a better sense of what it takes to simultaneously record 4 HD streams of digital cable. And Ceton’s been in touch regarding a review unit.

However, Ben Drawbaugh (EngadgetHD) is probably better equipped to pull together a comprehensive analysis of a loaner card (already on hand). As I’m not prepared to invest the cash assembling a hardware solution until Microsoft, or partners, put out some new extenders. Not only for whole home DVR usage, but as assurance that the Windows Media Center platform hasn’t been abandoned by MS. It’s been awfully quiet…

Remote Control 12 Media Players from 1 iPhone App

Brad Linder — Sat, 20 Mar 2010 12:58:13 +0000

The iTunes App Store is filled with applications that let you control desktop media players from your phone. There are remotes for iTunes, Boxee, VLC, and other apps. And then there’s RemoteX — a single application that functions as a remote for all of those apps, plus 9 more.

RemoteX is compatible with Windows XP, Vista, or Windows 7, and requires you to download a small server utility on your PC. Then you fire up the RemoteX app on your iPhone or iPod touch, connect to your desktop (which should automatically show up in the list of servers), and choose the media player you want to handle. The remote control functions change for each app. For instance, the VLC controller has FullScreen and DVD butons, while the Winamp controller has an Equalizer and Playlist button.

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OnLive Readies Game Streaming Launch

Last 100 — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 16:41:49 +0000

OnLive, the streaming games start-up, has announced that it will begin rolling out its subscription service ($14.95 per-month plus the cost of purchasing or renting the games themselves) to customers on the 17th of June 2010 to coincide with this year’s E3 gaming conference. It will be a US-only offering, however, at least for the foreseeable future, restricted to “to early registrants throughout the 48 contiguous United States”. This is in-line with their beta test program which requires users to be within 1000 miles of one of OnLive’s data centres.

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NASDAQ & Dave Contemplate Delisting Sirius XM

Dave Zatz — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 11:35:29 +0000

Oh, the timing. Sirius XM (SIRI) has received a de-listing notice from the NASDAQ for their perpetual and non-compliant sub $1 closing bid price. Well, it just so happens I’m also considering dropping Sirius XM from my digital lineup (again) this week.

My XM annual subscription is up and I’m questioning satellite radio’s value. Don’t get me wrong, I mostly enjoy the programming. In the scheme of things, $15 or so a month isn’t a big deal. And unlike TiVo’s monthly fees, Sirius XM actually provides content. But something about the way they operate leaves me feeling nickle and dimed. Starting with the BS royalty fees. Moving on to the horrid commercial advertising (on non-music stations). Followed by the online streaming upsell… a service that used to be included. To make matters more complex for me, Sirius XM still hasn’t figured out how to actually combine Sirius & XM. My subbed car is XM. My Sonos is Sirius. Never the twain shall meet.

So how much is satellite radio worth? The poll I ran last summer had 400+ respondents, with 41% willing to pay $6-$9/month. I’d go even higher. But let’s bundle everything together in a tidy little package that includes all made up fees and online streaming. But as it stands, I’m not sure I get enough value to carry on. Especially given my daily 90 minute afternoon commute has been replaced with stress-free 10 minute drive.

Android SlingPlayer On Tap This Summer

Brad Linder — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 11:06:01 +0000

Sling Media is developing an Android version of its SlingPlayer mobile software that will let you stream live video from your home theater to your Android phone. Sling already offers SlingPlayer clients for Windows Mobile, PalmOS, BlackBerry, Symbian, and the iPhone for about $30 each. While Sling hasn’t announced Android client pricing, it seems safe to assume it will run about the same when launched this summer. In order to stream TV using the SlingPlayer, you need a Slingbox, that you plug into your home theater components. For instance, if you want to be able to stream media stored on your DVR, you can connect your DVR, allowing you to watch live or pre-recorded programs, pause, play, as well as play, pause, fast forward, or rewind. Check out a video of an early version of the application up top, courtesy of Android and Me.

This post republished from Mobiputing.

Return of the Android Set-Top Box

Dave Zatz — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 12:00:52 +0000

Just a few weeks back we heard noise of Google heading into the set-top box space. With DISH Network. At the time, it wasn’t clear if this was merely a rehashing of the upcoming DISH apps or a more significant Android set-top platform play. As it turns out, it does look like Google aims to conquer the television with a dedicated offering. And why wouldn’t they take their open source platform and ad serving business to a larger screen? Following in the footsteps of Yahoo TV, Google has also partnered with Intel and is going with the generic “Google TV.” Beyond DISH, other likely launch partners include Sony and Logitech. Although no concrete functionality, timing, or pricing has been revealed. From the NY Times:

For Google, the project is a pre-emptive move to get a foothold in the living room as more consumers start exploring ways to bring Web content to their television sets. Based on Google’s Android operating system, the TV technology runs on Intel’s Atom chips. Google has built a prototype set-top box, but the technology may be incorporated directly into TVs or other devices.

While the space is getting crowded, television-based Internet content delivery is still in its infancy compared to the mobile marketplace where we’re starting to see some real polished, mature platforms and consolidation. And as you’d expect, the incumbents are firing back. Roku’s CEO says a Google box requires an expensive chip and could run over $200, compared to their highly regarded $99 unit. However, I could easily see Google’s solution subsidized by carriers or advertising. Maybe both. It’s good to see new players and experimentation, but I’m guessing it’ll be at least 2011 before we more clearly see the path forward. Which is also about when I expect the cable industry to start opening up.

Replacing the CableCARD Regime

Dave Zatz — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 12:23:43 +0000

For about a year, and as directed by Congress, the FCC has been working on their (our) National Broadband Plan. With the goal of ensuring access while maximizing usage and potential. Whatever that may mean. But hopefully does not include Chatroulette. As you might imagine of a government report, the newly released National Broadband Plan covers a lot of territory. So instead of reading each of the 376 pages, take a look at DSLReports for some consumer-centric highlights. You might also want to hit Engadget for a few corporate responses. However, given our general focus here, I wanted to address the cable-co…

Section 4.13 discusses the current CableCARD landscape and associated challenges. Specifically, they address the SDV hurt fest, pricing obfuscation, “installation” hoop jumping, and CableCARD certification burden. And the FCC would like to see this all cleaned up by the fall. This year. It’s certainly a goal we can get behind. But, yeah, good luck with that.

Section 4.12 proposes more open access to a cable operator’s programming and services. In fact, they’re backing the “gateway” concept, suggested by TiVo and others in the CE space, opening the cable-co’s network to all manner of devices. Which certainly sounds more appealing than mandated cable-co UIs pushed down via tru2way (not long for this world?). Here’s what the FCC would like to see from a gateway device by 12/31/12:

Should use open, published standards for discovering, signaling, authenticating and communicating with retail devices.
Should allow retail devices to access all MVPD content and services to which a customer has subscribed and to display the content and services without restrictions or requirements on the device’s user interface or functions and without degradation in quality (e.g., due to transcoding).
Should not require restrictive licensing, disclosure or certification. Any criterion should apply equally to retail and operator-supplied devices. Any intellectual property should be available to all parties at a low cost and on reasonable and non-discriminatory terms.
Should pass video content through to retail devices with existing copy protection flags from the MVPD.

Of course, THE cable industry doesn’t quite see eye to eye on all points. As they’ve got a business to protect. And seem to suggest that IPTV and satellite television services should be held to similar standards. (Agreed.) We can also thank the NCTA for the title of this post. As it’s a direct quote. I don’t have a problem specifically with CardCARD technology but, as implemented, this ineffective regime needs to be overthrown.