Floppyhead – Digital Media and Streaming

Over the last two years, Silicondust has been attempting to migrate away from Windows Media Center. Protected content playback was available on Android TV using the HDHomerun app. They tried to get the DVR portion moving with Kickstarter project. The DVR worked fine but did not support protected content, like HBO.

Over the weekend on their forum, Silicondust announced the following:

The approvals and certificates for handling protected content came through. The first platform to support protected channels (Live TV) will be the XBox One. Android TV platforms won’t be far behind.

Windows 10 Desktop support will officially enter beta with the next major update of Windows 10 (not far off).

This is great news for the slow moving project.

In about a month, the next version of Windows 8 will be released as a beta to the public.   This version is expected to include Windows Media Center, which was missing from previous iterations of the software.

With the new Metro UI, I am hoping Microsoft finally kills Media Center. Doing so would break down the development walls that surround Media Center.  Right now, there is no compelling reason to develop software for the Media Center Platform in Windows 7.  The Metro UI in Windows 8 could change that.

Microsoft should just provide tuner/DVR support in the Metro UI along with a television guide.  Everything else should be filled in by third party developers.  Take Media Browser, the great plugin for Windows Media Center that helps manage a movie collection.  If a Metro version of Media Browser is released, who needs a plugin for Media Center?

The Metro UI seems like it could still work as a 10 foot interface.  The Xbox 360 is a perfect example of this.  The only question I have is how does the Metro-fied version of Xbox Live fit into the overall media center experience?  It is not clear if the Xbox Live interface is actually the new Media Center interface.  Once again though, tuner/DVR capabilities need to be added.

The Metro UI is clearly being developed as a tablet interface.  Windows 8 is aiming to make Windows based tablets relevant. Television could actually end up being the killer app for tablets. No one, not even Apple, has perfected television on tablets.  Windows 8 has that potential.

My HDHomerun Prime arrived in the mail last week.  I pre-ordered in May and once the tuner hit the streats, it took about 3 weeks for Neweeg to send me one. 

If you are going to use Windows Media Center as your DVR, a cablecard tuner is a “must have.” Over the last 10 months, I have been using a Ceton cablecard tuner in my main HTPC.  The tuner worked well, except for a hiccup trying to make it network accessible.  I actually had to send my card back to Ceton.  In fairness, the networking process was stull a beta at the time. 

I have made the switch to the Prime because I have three computers I use to watch TV, all connected to a wired network.  One is connected to my Epson projector and serves as my main media center.  The other is my desktop I use as a general computer with a 24 inch Dell monitor.  The last computer I have is a nettop connected to my Toshiba 42 inch LCD in my den.  The nettop is primarily used as a streaming box since it cannot support the size of a tuner. 

HDHomerum Prime Set-up

The Prime, which is almost the same size as the original HdHomerun QAM tuner (see picture to the right), was setup without a hitch, especially since my cablecard had already been activated by Verizon (note: Verizon does not tie your card to a specific device so you can smply switch it to a new tuner).  The setup process involved installing the Silicondust HDHomerun software and then setting up the tuner in media center.  Simple. 

Pros and Cons

The only issue I have run into is the fact that my Dell monitor does not support HDCP. 

The advantages of the HDHomerun Prime include:

1) One cablecard can be used for 3 seperate streams to three different locations.

2) Smaller computer cases can be used without worrying about the size of the tuner.

3) Ipad 2 support through Elgato.  Unfortunately I have the original ipad.  No dice.

4) You are not reliant on one media center to be always on. 

5) Low power consumption at less than 10 watts.

If the network capacibility of the Prime does not interest you, a cheaper option is the upcoming Happauge cablecard tuner that has two tuners (compared to 3 for the Prime) and costs about $140.

About 2 months ago, I finally received a Ceton digital cable tuner card.  I used to own an ATI DCT but Verizon updated some Fios security setting  rendering that tuner card useless.  Since ATI no longer supports their DCT, I was out of luck until my Ceton Card arrived in November.

Everything was great with with the Ceton card until yesterday.  Installation was a snap, since my CableCard had already been activated.  Overall, I have been very pleased with my purchase.  Yesterday, however, was the first glitch with the card.

As it turns out, I was not able to record the Super Bowl.  Luckily I was actually watching the game so it ended up not being a big deal. Heading over to thegreenbutton.com, it seemed I was not the only with the problem.  Apparently, the latest version of the firmware for the Ceton tuner has issues reading some of the “broadcast flags.” For now, the only solution is to request the beta firmware, which I just did about 5 minutes ago.  Hopefully, this fixes the issue.

The NHL has become a real trend setter for watching sports online.  Through NHL GameCenter Live you can watch up to 40 games a week in HD.  Pretty impressive.   GameCenter ia available on a lot of platforms including Boxee, PS3, and Roku.  Today the NHL announced one more way to catch a game: the iPad.

From NHL.com

The NHL on Wednesday officially announced the availability NHL GameCenter Live for the iPad. The service is available through Apple iTunes, and existing NHL GameCenter Live broadband subscribers can access the application on the iPad at no additional charge by logging in with their broadband credentials.

Fans already using NHL GameCenter or NHL GameCenter Premium can access an in-app upgrade to NHL GameCenterLive, and those who already have purchased NHL GameCenter Premium will pay a discounted price.

GameCenter LIve has two drawbacks. First of all, you can not watch games broadcast in your area.  No Capitals game for me since I live in the DC area.  Second, it is expensive, costing around $20 a month.  Of course if you are a big hockey fan living outside the city of the team your are rooting for, GameCenter might be right for you.

Netflix has a great plugin for Windows Media Center.  In my opinion it is th best interface for Netflix’s Watch Instantly catalog.  The onlt drawback is it can be difficult to browse for a movie without being overwhelmed.

Netflix really needs to add a “Most Popular” view in their Watch Instantly interface.  It would help me wade through all the crap that is in their streaming catalog.  Luckily a website, Instantwatcher.com, fills that niche for now.

Instantwatcher is a fairly simplistic website.  It provides lists of movies available for streaming through Netflix.  You can sort movies by Most Popular, New & Noteworthy, or even Expiring. If you find yourself wtaching more and more streaming movies and show through Netflix, take a look at Instantwatcher.com to see what you have been missing.

A new version of the popular video conversion tool, Handbrake, was released recently.  While there was a slew of additions and fixes, the most notable new feature is the support for Blu-ray folder structure. No decryption support is provided so you still need AnyDVD HD.  This new feature basically can streamline your Blu-ray ripping process, albeit it still is a lossy process.  For now, I still think MakeMKV is a better bet for Blu-ray conversion to MKV since it preserves file quality.

Some of the notable new features are as follows:

• BluRay disc structure support. (No decryption support)
• Updated Libraries (x264, ffmpeg)
• SSA Subtitle support. (Including burn-in)MP3 audio now supported in MP4 files (Note: Limited Player compatibility)
• VOBSUB subtitle now supported in MP4 files (Note: Limited Player compatibility)
• Updated Presets for newer devices and better quality
• AC3 encoding support.
• Many Bug Fixes and other small improvements
• Improved DVD Main Feature detection (when using dvdnav)
• Universal audio downmix support (all audio types can be downmixed)
• Point*to*Point encoding (second or frame start and end times)
• Peak framerate option (Capped VFR)

It seems like Boxee is making a push to be relevant in the set-top world. We all know that  content is king when it comes to internet video.  With that in mind, Boxee announced today that they signed an agreement with CBS.  From EngadgetHD:

The New York Times is reporting that the company has inked a deal with CBS for selling episodes through the software platform. As you know, the aforementioned network has traditionally tread carefully in the digital distro arena, while this is the first such deal between Boxee and a television network.

While I think it is great to see the advancement in Boxee, I am little leary of paying for network television shows on the internet.  Isn’t that what a DVR is for? I do not think this announcement at the end of the day is a game changer, rather it is just another means for people to watch television.

Last week I installed Boxee on my desktop computer.  I just wanted to check it out and see how it compares to Media Center.  Overall, I liked it. Clean interface that was fairly intuitive.  Here are some positives:

1. Easy set-up though the need for a password was kind of odd.
2. Easy way to find online video of shows
3. Tight Vudu integration which makes downloading or renting movies fairly easy.
4. Simple interface
5. Price is right – Free!
6. Apps and repositories allow for more content to easily be accessed.

I also had a couple of nitpicks as well:

1. Finding network shares turned out to be cumbersome.  Plus it takes Boxee several minutes to scan your files. I had a hard time figuring out if it was working.
2. Fullscreen only.  You can’t run it in a window.

If you want to see what Boxee has to offer, I highly recommend just downloading the free software and running it on any computer.  Of course, you can buy the Boxee unit for $200 if you like. 

About 6 months ago I purchased a Zotac Zbox to serve as a secondary htpc.  I have a fairly large movie library and I wanted to access that library and stream Netflix to my 40 inch LCD I have in my den.  Instead of buying a media streamer like the Roku, I wanted the full media center experience, preferably something that used little power while idling and could still run 1080p movies.

An Ion based nettop seemed like an obvious choice.  I started to research the different brands and price points.  I settled on the Zotac Zboxmainly becuase it was the cheapest nettop I could find.

While at first glance, the Zbox looks like a great HTPC, it has some major flaws (like all nettops.  Here are the dealbreakers for me:

1. Too noisy.  The fan is surprising loud.
2. Runs hot. Very hot.
3. Sluggish Media Center responsiveness
4. Lack of integrated IR receiver

After trying it out for 6 months, I have decided to put the unit on Ebay and get something alittle more powerful and alittle less noisy.  One thing I cannot stand with the unit is that the Windows Media Center menus are really slow on the Zbox, Media Browser especially.  The system hangs on my large movie library and can take almost 10 seconds to start up Media Browser.  This does not seem like a big deal but those 10 seconds are enough to hinder the movie watching experience. The unit does get bogged down if you accidentally leave a movie running while navigating to another menu item.

If you are looking for a small form factor HTPC, the Zotac Zbox is not right for you.  The system performance is too sluggish, noisy, and runs hot.

Before I sell it, I might give Boxee a try and see how it performs.