Floppyhead – Digital Media and Streaming | Archive

Weekly Round-up

26. June 2007

Here is my latest installment of my weekly round-up. EngadgetHD this week had a great series on CableCard 2.0 this past week. It sounds like it could be the beginning of the end for Vista Media Center. CableCard 2.0 Is Ready Here are some other articles I either worked on or read: Slinglink Powerline Adapters […]

Over the Air HD Broadcasts | Snapstream Gets Rid of Cable

23. June 2007

4 Comments

I frequently talk about how over the air high definition broadcasts of network TV are free. A media center is a great way to watch these broadcasts. Not only can you ditch your cable company, but you can record anything you want in high definition. All you need is an antenna and a tuner. The […]

Sony VGX-XL3 Media Center Stuck in a Corner

21. June 2007

2 Comments

A couple of weeks ago I went in search of the VAIO Digital Living System VGX-XL3 at the Sony Style store at Tyson’s Corner in Virginia. I wanted to to see if they were selling Sony’s CableCard offering. It took me a while but I found it stuck in a corner, dwarfed by a 70 […]

Rip HD-DVD and Blu-ray discs to a hard drive

20. June 2007

22 Comments

The goal of any media center user should be to store as much content as possible digitally. The release of the next generation of DVDs, known as HD-DVD or Blu-ray, was supposed to allow a “legal” way to copy your movies to a hard drive (referred as Managed Copy). Managed Copy is not expected to […]

HD-DVD vs Blu-ray Format War Survival Guide

19. June 2007

1 Comment

Most consumers have not made the plunge of purchasing the next generation of high definition DVDs, either Blu-ray or HD-DVD. With prices of Blu-ray and HD-DVD drives dropping all the time, it is becoming more tempting to take the leap to HD. However, the competing formats have muddied the water. I have no idea who […]

Web TV Week in Review

15. June 2007

3 Comments

Sometime I think I focus too much on CableCards and Vista Media Center. So, I have decided to start doing a weekly round-up of stories, videos, and blog posts that I find interesting. Every week I plan on highlighting not only news stories involving digital media but also cool things to watch online. This week’s […]

Watchmusichere.com | Cinemanow Re-launches Music Video Store

14. June 2007

5 Comments

Cinemanow, the online movie store, has re-launched its music video store called Watchmusichere.com. For the time being, the Warner Music Group is the only content provider available, offering over 1,600 music videos. All music videos will be available for purchase on a download-to-own basis for $1.99 in the WMA format. After July 21, additional WMG […]

Drobo | Protect Your Digital Media

13. June 2007

3 Comments

Data storage is one of the most important aspects of a media center. Storage is also one of the most expensive portions of a media center, especially if you are trying to store high definition content. One solution to the storage problem is Drobo, the world’s first data robot. Drobo combines up to four hard […]

Review: Rocketfish’s Universal Wireless Rear Speaker Kit

12. June 2007

70 Comments

Home theater surround sound systems are a great way to enhance watching movies and television at home. The only drawback to such a system is the mess of wires connecting the rear speakers to the AV receiver. For the hardcore audiophile, this means fishing wires through existing walls. Not everyone can be so adventurous though. […]

Broadcom Media Center PC Solutions Offer Cheap HD Playback

10. June 2007

3 Comments

Cheap media center PCs capable are needed to drive mainstream adoption. Broadcom has announced new media PC solutions that enable playback of high definition (HD) video content for low end computer systems. Broadcom hardware will reduce the CPU utilization required to playback HD-DVD and Blu-ray movies. From the press release: By lowering CPU utilization, and […]

Archive | June, 2007