Plex has a brand new app for Windows and Mac that offers a streamlined way to download the things you want to watch and listen to offline. The feature was previously called Sync, but it's now called Downloads -- a much clearer term. Your downloads sh...
Last fall Plex started beta testing a DVR feature for its popular media server setup, and now it's making the next big step by offering live TV and DVR for all Plex Pass subscribers. They will need to bring their own tuner(s), connected to a TV anten...
More and more, we're getting our movies and TV via streaming services instead of on disc. But a certain DIY crowd still appreciates support for physical media piped through a home theater PC, and that's the group the first Ultra HD Blu-ray drive is m...
Ask any media hound about the best way to stream your your video files, and they'll probably direct you to Plex. Now, the streaming software is getting even more useful with a long-awaited feature: DVR support. Just plug an HDHomeRun tuner (with ante...
Logitech has unveiled a new keyboard that isn’t aimed at desktop users or gamers. This keyboard is called the Illuminated Living-Room Keyboard K830 and it is specifically designed to allow HTPC fans easy control over their computer when sitting on the couch.
The big feature of the keyboard is backlit keys that make it easy to control your machine in the dark. The backlight has a sensor that will change the intensity of the backlight depending on how much light is in the room. That should help the battery last longer in the rechargeable keyboard.
Logitech also built in a trackpad with dual buttons on the side to make controlling the cursor a snap. Wireless range for the keyboard is 33-feet and it ships with a small Unifying receiver for connectivity. The keyboard will ship this month for $99.99(USD).
It’s too bad there’s not a version that will work with set-top boxes and not just PCs.
The much awaited Consumer Electronics Show (CES), also known as International CES is just only a few days away from now. We have been eagerly waiting for this event since last and can’t wait anymore...
Home theatre PCs (HTPCs) have been around for more than a decade, but they remain fairly niche additions to your living room or entertainment room. This is despite the fact they’re actually more...
Give credit to the MediaPortal team for making swift progress: just a few weeks after revealing a pre-release build of MediaPortal 1.5, the group has released its finished software for download. As promised, the home theater PC client now supports CableCARD tuning for most channels outside of pay TV. The update also brings support for Windows 8.1, a directly integrated PowerScheduler++ feature and improved IPTV streaming. The only drawback is the end to Windows XP support, but we suspect that backward compatibility isn't as much of an issue these days.
We're finally half way to MediaPortal 2.0, and while version 1.5's updates are more nuts and bolts than 1.3's flashy visual overhaul, they're important nonetheless. Now let's dig in, shall we? First up, PowerScheduler++ has been integrated directly to the app, which should make it easier set up and schedule system reboots -- it adds options for remote clients, too. Next, IPTV support got a makeover and the dev team says its product should meet your needs both "now and well into the future." CableCARD users still have to deal with DRM restrictions on pay-TV channels, but most everything else -- ESPN, TNT and USA, for example -- should function without the cumbersome workarounds of days passed. None of the latest additions break version 1.4's skins or plugins, and it's even supposed to be compatible with the Windows 8.1 preview. The only bad news is if you're still rocking Windows XP, since MediaPortal is finally killing support for the OS -- but that can't affect too many people, can it?
Ceton vowed that it would release a PCI Express equivalent of its InfiniTV 6 ETH box, and it's delivering on that promise (if belatedly) by shipping the InfiniTV 6 PCIe. The adapter still lets Windows Media Center users watch or record up to six HD cable TV channels through one CableCARD, but in a form factor that slots neatly into a dedicated home theater PC. The board is in stock at Amazon and Newegg today at its expected $299 price. While that cost puts the InfiniTV PCIe at the high end of the TV tuner spectrum, it may be worthwhile for viewers who just can't afford to miss a show.
Plex has a brand new app for Windows and Mac that offers a streamlined way to download the things you want to watch and listen to offline. The feature was previously called Sync, but it's now called Downloads -- a much clearer term. Your downloads sh...
Last fall Plex started beta testing a DVR feature for its popular media server setup, and now it's making the next big step by offering live TV and DVR for all Plex Pass subscribers. They will need to bring their own tuner(s), connected to a TV anten...
More and more, we're getting our movies and TV via streaming services instead of on disc. But a certain DIY crowd still appreciates support for physical media piped through a home theater PC, and that's the group the first Ultra HD Blu-ray drive is m...
Ask any media hound about the best way to stream your your video files, and they'll probably direct you to Plex. Now, the streaming software is getting even more useful with a long-awaited feature: DVR support. Just plug an HDHomeRun tuner (with ante...
