Monthly Archives: July 2012

Apple, News

Apple TV quietly gets Hulu Plus app

Apple’s streaming-video box gets one of the most requested streaming-video services.

The Apple TV is one of the best streaming boxes on the market and it just got a little better.

As of this morning, Hulu Plus is now available on the Apple TV. The app showed up without fanfare, with its icon popping up next to Netflix without an announcement from Apple or a required firmware update.

Hulu Plus was one of the major missing streaming-video services on the Apple TV, which has been available on competing devices like the Roku HD, PS3, and Xbox 360 for quite some time. As is often the case on the Apple TV, the user interface eschews the standard look available on other devices, instead featuring an Apple-customized look similar to the Netflix app. The Hulu Plus app also allows you to purchase a Hulu Plus subscription ($8 a month) right on the box using your iTunes account.

The Hulu Plus app has an Apple TV-customized look, rather than the standard interface available on other devices.

The new app comes on the heels of the new AirPlay Mirroring functionality, which enables users to watch Hulu (free) — or any Flash video — on their Apple TV, as long as they have a compatible Mac running the latest Mountain Lion software.

 

History

Flash-Matic: See The World’s First Wireless Remote Control

Before the Remote app for the iPhone and the many-buttoned universal remote, there was Eugene Polley’s Flash-Matic, the world’s very first wireless remote control.

An engineer for electronics company Zenith, Polley passed away on May 20 at the age of 96. His Flash-Matic invention dates all the way back to 1955.

Take a look at the revolutionary device:

1955 - Zenith's Flashmatic Remote Control

 

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Zenith had released the Lazy Bone remote control five years prior to the Flash-Matic in 1950. While the earlier remote could turn sets on or off and change channels, it was inconveniently connected to the TV with a cable. “It turned out that consumers did not like the cable because it caused frequent tripping,”

New Products, URC

URC’s Thermostat Offers ‘Comfort Recovery’

While the THZ-100 offers five thermostat buttons, users can also enjoy two-way control of the thermostat via URC Total Control remotes, keypads, touchscreens, and third-party controllers like the iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch.

Among its features, the THZ-100 offers Intelligent Comfort Recovery, which monitors the current environment and then slowly heats or cools accordingly, with dollar-saving efficiency, until it reaches the preset. Additional features include password protection for homes or businesses where access must be limited, and optional wired remote sensors to increase efficiency and accuracy of programmed temperature adjustments.
 
“With the THZ-100, users can control the temperature of a home or business simply by picking up a remote control,” said Doug Cole, senior vice president and general manager of URC. “The automation possibilities are endless; for example, our dealers can have the drapes automatically close when the air conditioner kicks in, to help cool the building more quickly and save energy. For the ability to set the climate from anywhere, look no further than the THZ-100 coupled with the Total Control system. It does everything but control the weather.”
 
The THZ-100’s backlit two-inch color LCD is designed to be easy to read with background graphics and colors that automatically change to indicate visually whether the system is heating or cooling during transitions.
                                  
The THZ-100 is programmable via the internet via the MRX-10 Advanced Network System Controller. Like all Total Control products, the THZ-100 is programmed using URC’s Accelerator software. A mounting template, bracket and screws are included.

Apple, News

Apple’s ‘iPad mini’ rumored with 7.85″ IGZO display

The latest details claim Apple’s so-called iPad mini will be as thin as the iPad 2, according to anonymous sources who spoke with the Chinese-language site MyDrivers.com (translation, via Unwired View). The machine translation indicates that the “endurance has also been strengthened,” perhaps referring to the battery life of the rumored device.

The report also said that Apple’s smaller iPad will feature Sharp’s IGZO display technology, named for its use of indium, gallium and zinc. The new screen would be optimized to reach 330 pixels per inch, according to the latest rumor.

Finally, the new iPad is rumored to have a capacity of 8 gigabytes with a price between $249 and $299. It was said that Apple’s primary target with a smaller iPad is Google’s newly unveiled Nexus 7, as well as the Amazon Kindle Fire, both of which are available for $199.

But the Nexus 7 and Kindle Fire feature 7-inch displays, while Apple’s rumored new iPad has been said in various reports to feature a slightly larger 7.85-inch display. Rumors of a smaller iPad have lingered since Apple launched its first model in 2010.

 

Directv, Media

DirecTV Cuts 3D Programming — What Content Creators Think of the Move

Last week, DirecTV announced it was reducing the amount of 3D content aired on its n3D 24/7 channel due to “lack of content.”  To see if this story held water, I turned to the Stereoscopic 3D Professionals Worldwide Linked-in group to see what they thought was the full story behind this move. The posted comments were very insightful.  Below is a synopsis of these comments. We invite you to continue the discussion in the comment field below.

Some of you may recall that two years ago DirecTV launched the n3D 24/7 3D linear channel, as well as pay-per-view and video-on-demand 3D content services with heavy support from Panasonic. But in the DirecTV announcement, the company said, “While 3D adoption continues to grow and more programming is being developed, DirecTV has decided to move n3D to a part-time channel.”

We asked DirecTV to comment, but they did not reply to our inquiries and there is no mention of the cut back on their web site. Apparently, Consumer Reports’ James Wilcox noticed there was no programming on the n3D channel – just a note saying it would be broadcasting the summer Olympics in 3D. n3D will continue to air some content, but only on a part-time basis. The company still airs the 3net 3D channel and has now moved ESPN 3D from part-time to full-time broadcasting.