I was so surprised that I even double checked with WD’s PR rep, who confirmed that Pandora, along with YouTube and Flickr, all work with the WD box. That alone – if it really does work – makes this box worth checking out.

Here’s a list of features for the box:

* Full-HD 1080p video playback and navigation with the included remote control and crisp, animated navigation menus;
* Play a wide variety of file formats including support for a wide variety of the most popular file formats with no need to spend time transcoding;
* Play videos, music and photos from the Internet on your big screen TV and discover new music with Pandora Internet radio or listen to thousands of radio stations via Live365 Internet radio;
* Ethernet port for wired or WiFi connection to access files anywhere on the network to play movies, music, and photos from any PC or drive on a home network;
* Turns a USB drive into an HD media player and plays content from most popular USB drives, and digital cameras, camcorders, and portable media players that can be recognized as mass storage devices;
* Unlimited media collection, just add more USB drives for more space;
* Two USB ports for seamless media playback from multiple USB drives and ability to access them simultaneously while a media library feature collects the content on all the drives into one list sorted by media type;
* Transfer files by copying, moving or deleting files stored on a USB drive, a network drive, camcorder, or a camera to the attached USB drive using the on-screen menus;
* Picture Transfer Protocol support to show photos and movies directly from digital camera or video camera and or any digital imaging device that supports Picture Transfer Protocol;
* Advanced navigation options including thumbnail and list views, media library and search;
* Photo viewing to create custom slide shows, zoom and pan and search;
* Movie viewing with fast-forward, rewind, pause, zoom and pan, view subtitles, and search;
* Music playback with fast-forward, rewind, pause, shuffle, repeat and search;
* File copying between USB devices;
* HDMI® 1.3 port, composite video and component video output for the highest quality HDTV or home theater;
* SPDIF digital output that sends digital signals to your AV receiver for the best surround sound experience; and,
* Ultra-compact design to fit easily into a home entertainment center.

The box costs $199 and works with both PCs and Macs. The question now is whether potential Pandora access is enough to convince you to purchase?

[WD]

In case you’ve never heard of RT, it’s kind of the be-all, end-all of movie review sites, which compiles dozens of reviews per movie to come up with a sort of meta-score, which, more times than not, is in the right ballpark. Vudu’s movie selection interface is now littered with tomatoes: tomatoes with the combined “Tomatometer” score at each film’s selection screen, tomatoes with individual review excerpts in each film’s selection screen, tomatoes, tomatoes, tomatoes tomatoes.
Both upgrades will just sorta happen: LG BD390 users should expect an upgrade prompt any time now, and all Vudu users should keep an eye out for the new ratings system. [Vudu]

That’s not to say that ZillionTV is drastically more versatile than any number of existing set-top arrangements. It does, however, look attractively simple. Here’s what it is, in a nutshell: a set-top box that streams free content, a la Hulu, except directly to your TV. After a $US100 setup fee, it’s mostly advertising-supported—again, like Hulu. The company claims a wide range of content partnerships, which is clearly necessary to compete in this field.

But it’s not just ad-supported TV that Zillions is focused on, as paid content will be available as well. They hope to offer up premium TV and film content for individual purchase or rental, though your payment won’t net you an actual file—the system is entirely stream-based.

If all this sounds familiar, that’s because none of it is distinctly new. ZillionTV hasn’t created something that anyone with some time and a Boxee install couldn’t patch together themselves—but it might be able to provide it in a simpler, more accessible package. The company is promising lots of features, including a motion-sensing remote (by the whizzes at Hillcrest) instant-on streaming on anything better than a 1.5mbps connection, that will make the system attractive as a do-it-all set-top box, but until we have more than promises and renders, we’ll have to reserve full judgment.

For what it’s worth, Jon Healey at the LAT has tried the system, and found it impressive. He does—and this is crucial—note that ZillionTV might be having some issues securing rights to all the content it wants, but again, we’ll have to wait and see. [ZillionTV]

SCEA’s John Kohler explained:

We’ve concentrated most of our efforts on our download service, both rentals and downloads of movies and TV shows. Our efforts will continue to be there, because our customers want to own the content…[In regards to the Netflix streaming on NXE,] there are certainly some positives for the Xbox 360. But there’s also some confusion. It goes further into the argument of “owning the content” [versus renting or accessing it].

Yeah, that almost makes a lot of sense. Except, Sony, you let people rent movies through the PlayStation Store—movies that no longer play after an arbitrary period of time. That’s somehow less confusing that streaming? Really? [GamePro via PS3Fanboy]

AU:US only, if any of you were confused why Netflix wasn’t showing up on your Aussie TiVo…

LIGHTS, CAMERA, ACTION! MOVIES AND TV EPISODES
FROM NETFLIX DIRECTLY TO THE TV THROUGH TIVO DVRs AVAILABLE TODAY

Just in Time for the Holidays, Offering Brings Budget Conscious Entertainment to Consumers

ALVISO, Calif. – December 8, 2008 — After announcing a groundbreaking partnership in October with Netflix Inc., TiVo Inc. (NASDAQ: TIVO), the creator of and a leader in television services for digital video recorders (DVRs), today announced that subscribers to both Netflix and TiVo® Series3, TiVo HD, or TiVo HD XL can now access thousands of movies and TV episodes instantly streamed from Netflix directly to their TVs.

The service is being offered at no additional charge to customers who subscribe to both services. This morning subscribers can browse through an expanding library of more than 12,000 movies and TV episodes at www.netflix.com, add them to their Netflix instant Queue, and then watch them on TV with just a click of the TiVo remote. The library includes titles from every genre, with a modest selection of HD content available as well. Both standard and HD titles are expected to grow in the weeks and months ahead.

“With so much talk focusing on the economy these days, this partnership makes more sense than ever because it brings people more movies at home, offering substantially more entertainment options than cable or satellite,” said Tara Maitra, GM and Vice President of Content Services at TiVo Inc. “TiVo offers consumers everything they need from just one box. Not only great content from Netflix, but also movies from The Walt Disney Studios and Amazon, music from Rhapsody, videos from YouTube and even pictures from Picasa Web Albums and Photobucket. And that’s all in addition to TiVo’s core functionality that made us a favourite in the first place. It adds up to a one-of-a-kind value.”

“Netflix offers an unbeatable combination of convenience, selection, and value, which now extends to TiVo customers,” said Netflix Chief Marketing Officer Leslie Kilgore. This partnership is a win-win-win for Netflix, TiVo, and consumers alike.”

Movies are streamed from Netflix through TiVo DVRs via wired or wireless broadband connection and a Netflix Queue-based user interface. Members visit the Netflix Web site to add movies and TV episodes to their individual instant Queues. Those choices will automatically be displayed on subscribers’ TVs and are available to watch instantly through the TiVo service. With the TiVo remote control users can browse their instant Queue, make selections right on the TV screen, as well as read synopses and rate movies. In addition, they have the option of pausing, fast-forwarding, rewinding and re-starting whenever they wish.

For more information on how to have movies instantly streamed from Netflix via your TiVo DVR visit www.tivo.com/netflix

Roku engineers have acknowledged the problem, and are said to be looking into it. At this point they a directing blame at Netflix claiming that recent changes to the content distribution network (CDN) may have contributed to the problem, but the lack of complaints on other Netflix compatible devices like the Xbox 360 and the Samsung BD-P2500 / BD-2550 Blu-ray players make this defence unlikely.

Apparently, the problem is serious enough that some are experiencing quality drops of 50% or more with extremely low connection speeds. Just how widespread this problem is remains to be seen, so I have to ask: if you own a Roku, have you noticed any quality issues lately? [Roku Forum via Wired]

With the Neuros.TV interface, the Link does something simple but spectacular. Instead of pushing you through a clumsy series of web portals, it gives you a simple, unified interface for browsing online video content. With out-of-the-box support for nearly any video codec (courtesy of mPlayer and VLC, mainly), a solid interface and an included wireless keyboard/controller, it’s a capable machine. At $US299 (or $US249 without the keyboard), it’ll be tough to take on the $US229 Apple TV, which in addition to having an included local hard drive and access to iTunes, supports most of Neuros.TV’s features though Boxee. Spec sheet below. [Neuros via Zatz]

Technical specifications

* 1080p H.264 video playback
* HDMI (max resolution 1920×1200, 1080p) output
* High-definition 6-channel Audio output
* Optical S/PDIF audio output
* Gigabit Ethernet
* 802.11 g/b WiFi, up to 54Mbps
* Lots of USB 2.0 High-speed Ports (6 external ones today)
* Housing: 300mm x 90mm x 326mm (11.8″ x 3.5″ x 12.8″)
* Noise: under 27dB
* Controller: 2.4 GHz wireless keyboard trackball controller
* Software:
o Seamless integration with Neuros.TV, a free service that lets you organize and watch Internet TV on your TV
o Neuros distribution of Ubuntu 8.10
o Open-source video players (MPlayer, VLC, Xine). A comprehensive list of formats, containers and media can be found on the above websites.

While Netflix offers 24fps movies in their native frames per second, their other content peaks at 30fps. The company researched the 60fps content found on Blu-ray discs, they realised that they’d be better off reserving that sort of quality for another era. Good call.

While it’s a bit unfair to compare bitrates across codecs, Vudu’s premium HDX material is still the top dog in streaming, supplying encoded rates ranging between 9Mbps and 20Mbps. Then again, most of us can’t watch that footage in real time. [Netflix via CNET]

Dramatic teasing aside, this update isn’t all good news. Whether because of the Roku box’s limited horsepower or a desire to cater to a wider range of broadband speeds, Roku’s version of Netflix HD will be one of a “substantially lower bitrate,” which doesn’t sound great when considered against the Xbox’s higher quality, good-but-not-great HD streaming performance. I’ll hold judgment until we can test it for ourselves — a good decoder or postprocessing filter could do wonders for a sludgy picture. Or not. [Roku Forum via Hacking Netflix]

TIVO AND NETFLIX ANNOUNCE PARTNERSHIP

TO INSTANTLY STREAM MOVIES AND TV EPISODES

FROM NETFLIX DIRECTLY TO THE TV THROUGH TIVO DVRs

Deal Provides Netflix with New Content Distribution Channel, Solidifies TiVo’s Leading Position as One-Box Solution for Simple Navigation and Delivery

Of the Best Entertainment Content to the TV

ALVISO, Calif. and LOS GATOS, Calif., October 30, 2008 — TiVo Inc. (NASDAQ: TIVO), the creator of and a leader in television services for digital video recorders (DVRs) and Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX), the world’s largest online movie rental service, today announced that they are teaming up to provide Netflix and TiVo® Series3, TiVo HD, and TiVo HD XL subscribers with the ability to have thousands of movies and TV episodes instantly streamed from Netflix directly to their TVs.

The two companies said they are initiating a test of the new capability today in several thousand U.S. households and expect it to be broadly available in early December, in time for the holidays. The ability to instantly watch content from Netflix on the TV via TiVo DVRs will be offered at no additional charge to customers who subscribe to both services.

The agreement provides Netflix with an important new technology partner to instantly stream a growing library of more than 12,000 choices of movies and TV episodes directly from Netflix to the TV. It also solidifies TiVo’s leading position for simple navigation and delivery of the best entertainment content to the TV.

“For Netflix and TiVo subscribers, this collaboration offers a fabulously easy way to enhance the enjoyment of watching movies in the comfort of their living rooms,” said Reed Hastings, co-founder and CEO of Netflix. “Subscribers to Netflix and TiVo are avid movie watchers and this combination gives them immediate access to all of the great content available through TiVo and the thousands of additional choices available to be streamed instantly from Netflix.”

“Joining forces with Netflix creates the ultimate video on demand service and solidifies TiVo’s leading position as the one-box solution for aggregating, searching, and delivering the best content available anywhere right to the TV,” said Tom Rogers, president and CEO of TiVo Inc. “Adding Netflix to our already vast library of content differentiates TiVo even further from any other offering in the market today.”

Integrating the Netflix streaming functionality into the TiVo experience will result in quick and easy access to a growing list of movies and TV episodes that can be watched instantly at Netflix. Movies streamed from Netflix via specified TiVo DVRs is done through a wired or wireless broadband connection and a Netflix Queue-based user interface. Members visit the Netflix Web site to add movies and TV episodes to their individual instant Queues. Those choices will automatically be displayed on subscribers’ TVs and available to watch instantly through the TiVo service. With the TiVo remote control, users will be able to browse their instant Queue, make selections right on the TV screen, and also have the ability to read synopses and rate movies. In addition, they will have the option of pausing, fast-forwarding, rewinding and re-starting whenever they wish.

For more information on how to have movies instantly streamed from Netflix via your TiVo DVR visit www.tivo.com/netflix.