Friday, July 20, 2007
Thursday, July 19, 2007
Tivo Series3?
Has anyone checked out Tivo Series3?
It's HD, it'll let you view in multiple rooms, and it will let you create your own on-line streaming channel. But the thing is $800!
That's a big chunk. I think I'd wrather dump the $600 on PS3 and get BluRay, a sick gaming console, and one of the most powerful computing platforms available to normal people!
It's HD, it'll let you view in multiple rooms, and it will let you create your own on-line streaming channel. But the thing is $800!
That's a big chunk. I think I'd wrather dump the $600 on PS3 and get BluRay, a sick gaming console, and one of the most powerful computing platforms available to normal people!
Some Sales numbers after E3
I just saw this:
http://ps3.qj.net/Console-and-game-sales-the-day-after-E3/pg/49/aid/97971
Looks like PS3 may be picking up now that they're getting into a bigger market with the price drop.
If the 60gig is going away and it's benefitted from the price drop, it may make sense to buy one now. It has the Emotion engine for PS2 legacy games, and a smaller drive is easy to upgrade. Why not go for the lesser version? I think the big question is what other hardware changes are in the 80gig version? It would make sense for Sony to rev the mainboard and add some improvements, but has anyone been able to detail these yet?
http://ps3.qj.net/Console-and-game-sales-the-day-after-E3/pg/49/aid/97971
Looks like PS3 may be picking up now that they're getting into a bigger market with the price drop.
If the 60gig is going away and it's benefitted from the price drop, it may make sense to buy one now. It has the Emotion engine for PS2 legacy games, and a smaller drive is easy to upgrade. Why not go for the lesser version? I think the big question is what other hardware changes are in the 80gig version? It would make sense for Sony to rev the mainboard and add some improvements, but has anyone been able to detail these yet?
Media Center Requirements
Well, we've been talking about this home media center stuff, now lets define it.
I've added a "requirements list" to the left side of the blog page.
These were the first few things that I came up with. Jay, please add and modify as you see fit. This will certainly help with the decision making.
I've added a "requirements list" to the left side of the blog page.
These were the first few things that I came up with. Jay, please add and modify as you see fit. This will certainly help with the decision making.
Sunday, July 15, 2007
Time to lay it out there
Ok, so I've been reading the posts and all are great. I know that this blog has focused mainly on Xbox360 and PS3 because these are the commercial packages out there. For the price, you get a killer gaming system plus home media and access to online content.
But what about the non-gaming options? I like to play video games, but honestly now that I have a job and a family it's hard to find the time to game. Also, PS3 and Xbox games are like $60 at BestBuy. I'm sure there are probably deals out there, but that can get pricey fast.
I think I'm going to start trying to contribute some info on non-game console options.
Options such as computer based home systems that offer more towards customization, home automation, DVR, and centralized home media. Sure PS3 & Xbox are trying to get there too, but right now the main consumers of these units are gamers, not mom or dad looking for a way to connect everyone in the house.
Here are the options and I'm sure this list will grow:
Commercial:
Tivo Series 3
Window Media Center Edition
Apple Front Row
??Others??
Open Source:
MythTV
iTheater
I know that each of these presents their pro's and cons. With a homebrew system you now become responsible for weeding through the myriad of hardware options as well as becoming the administrator of the system. For most geeks, this is ok because the setup is part of the fun. But for someone who wants to have something that just works, the commercial options are all they really have.
I think I'm going to dig into this a little to see what the best options are out there for MythTV and others. MythTV has been around for a while, and there's a lot of good hardware out there now that's not that expensive. If a mini-itx board will power the encoding/decoding necessary for HD (forgetting the DRM /encryption issues) then I would probably be happy with that.
The potential of using my widescreen TV as my main computer monitor brings a nice feeling of home media integration. The flexibility of something more open than PS3 or X360 is appealing.
Instant weather or traffic info is great for the morning rush out the door. Hopefully, the constant family photo screensaver on my HDTV will help reduce the number of holes I need to put in my walls for picture frames. And the possibility of seeing real-time e-mail alerts, RSS feeds, or (God help us) MySpace updates only helps less technical buy into the whole project.
I think it's time to start laying out all of the options and coming up with a list of pro/con for each.
But what about the non-gaming options? I like to play video games, but honestly now that I have a job and a family it's hard to find the time to game. Also, PS3 and Xbox games are like $60 at BestBuy. I'm sure there are probably deals out there, but that can get pricey fast.
I think I'm going to start trying to contribute some info on non-game console options.
Options such as computer based home systems that offer more towards customization, home automation, DVR, and centralized home media. Sure PS3 & Xbox are trying to get there too, but right now the main consumers of these units are gamers, not mom or dad looking for a way to connect everyone in the house.
Here are the options and I'm sure this list will grow:
Commercial:
Tivo Series 3
Window Media Center Edition
Apple Front Row
??Others??
Open Source:
MythTV
iTheater
I know that each of these presents their pro's and cons. With a homebrew system you now become responsible for weeding through the myriad of hardware options as well as becoming the administrator of the system. For most geeks, this is ok because the setup is part of the fun. But for someone who wants to have something that just works, the commercial options are all they really have.
I think I'm going to dig into this a little to see what the best options are out there for MythTV and others. MythTV has been around for a while, and there's a lot of good hardware out there now that's not that expensive. If a mini-itx board will power the encoding/decoding necessary for HD (forgetting the DRM /encryption issues) then I would probably be happy with that.
The potential of using my widescreen TV as my main computer monitor brings a nice feeling of home media integration. The flexibility of something more open than PS3 or X360 is appealing.
Instant weather or traffic info is great for the morning rush out the door. Hopefully, the constant family photo screensaver on my HDTV will help reduce the number of holes I need to put in my walls for picture frames. And the possibility of seeing real-time e-mail alerts, RSS feeds, or (God help us) MySpace updates only helps less technical buy into the whole project.
I think it's time to start laying out all of the options and coming up with a list of pro/con for each.
Saturday, July 14, 2007
Bad news for the new PS3 price drop
It turns out that the only reason Sony dropped the price on the 60 GB PS3 is to phase it out. They have no plans for a two price strategy in the US market. Long story short, they stopped making 60GB PS3s and when retailers are out of them, that will be it for the $499 PS3. The only option then will be a $599 80 GB PS3.
60 GB Ps3 Discontinuation confirmed
From Kotaku.com (warning: beware of 4-letter words)
60 GB Ps3 Discontinuation confirmed
From Kotaku.com (warning: beware of 4-letter words)
Friday, July 13, 2007
Xbox 360 vs PS3...what to do
After talking with a friend who has an Xbox 360, and is an unapologetic Microsoft fanboy, I am again on the fence between the PS3 and the Xbox 360. I guess it all comes down to the pluses and minuses.
PS3 Pluses:
-Comes standard with Blu-ray
-Comes with a larger hard drive
-Can use a PSP to get your media anywhere
PS3 Minuses
-Limited game titles
Xbox Pluses:
-Online gaming superior
-More title available
-Xbox live
-Media Center interface seems better (my opinion)
Xbox 360 Minuses
-HD DVD sold as a separate accessory
-Smaller hard drive
What else can be added to this list? Also, what I want to know is why no one is talking about the media center capabilities of these machines? Probably because their are more gamers than media guys like me!
Engadget story about another PS3 price cut
Cnet.com Video of the updated PSP
Engadget interview with Peter Moore, Head of Xbox
Engadget Interview with Kaz Hirai and Jack Tretton, Presidents, Sony Computer Entertainment, Inc., and America
PS3 Pluses:
-Comes standard with Blu-ray
-Comes with a larger hard drive
-Can use a PSP to get your media anywhere
PS3 Minuses
-Limited game titles
Xbox Pluses:
-Online gaming superior
-More title available
-Xbox live
-Media Center interface seems better (my opinion)
Xbox 360 Minuses
-HD DVD sold as a separate accessory
-Smaller hard drive
What else can be added to this list? Also, what I want to know is why no one is talking about the media center capabilities of these machines? Probably because their are more gamers than media guys like me!
Engadget story about another PS3 price cut
Cnet.com Video of the updated PSP
Engadget interview with Peter Moore, Head of Xbox
Engadget Interview with Kaz Hirai and Jack Tretton, Presidents, Sony Computer Entertainment, Inc., and America
Thursday, July 12, 2007
Is PS3 the way to go for on-line movies?
DVD is dead. Blu-ray, hd-dvd, it's all a waste of time. While static media has its place, downloading movies is the way it will be done in the future. You can do it with appleTV, Comcast, FIOS, Netflix, and Xbox360. Sony will surely do it with PS3 as well.
So what does this mean for the content you can get? Sony as a content distributor may have a hard time making deals with Disney, or Paramount because they are competitors. Does this mean that Apple and Microsoft are in the right place because they are content provider neutral?
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/07/12/nmicrosoft112.xml
So what does this mean for the content you can get? Sony as a content distributor may have a hard time making deals with Disney, or Paramount because they are competitors. Does this mean that Apple and Microsoft are in the right place because they are content provider neutral?
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/07/12/nmicrosoft112.xml
Can't stream network media to PSP
So I found out today that you can only stream media to your PSP if it is physically on your PS3 hard drive. I have to think that it's a matter of time until someone figures a way to get around this. What about connecting a large external drive to your PS3 and having all your media reside there? I found this post on PS3forums.com talking about connecting external drives to the PS3.
http://www.ps3forums.com/showthread.php?t=83445
This of course brings up a few questions. The main one being, if all of my media resides on a external drive connected to the PS3, can I still access that media on my network? If my only goal is to be able to access my media anywhere with a PSP then this may be a good idea. However, I like to have all of my data organized and a traditional file server that can be accessed anywhere in my house seems like the better thing to do.
http://www.ps3forums.com/showthread.php?t=83445
This of course brings up a few questions. The main one being, if all of my media resides on a external drive connected to the PS3, can I still access that media on my network? If my only goal is to be able to access my media anywhere with a PSP then this may be a good idea. However, I like to have all of my data organized and a traditional file server that can be accessed anywhere in my house seems like the better thing to do.
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
Can I stream from a PS3 to a device other than a PSP?
Streaming to PSP is great, but now that means I need to buy a psp.
I wonder if the media streaming from the PS3 to the PSP uses a standard format? If so, then it may be possible to get that stream on something other than just a PSP.
The other thing is that a post I saw somewhere else said that the streaming is done by the PSP registering with PS-ONline and then talking to your PS3 that way. This could be a problem if you don't have a psp.
Hmmm.
I wonder if the media streaming from the PS3 to the PSP uses a standard format? If so, then it may be possible to get that stream on something other than just a PSP.
The other thing is that a post I saw somewhere else said that the streaming is done by the PSP registering with PS-ONline and then talking to your PS3 that way. This could be a problem if you don't have a psp.
Hmmm.
Let the search begin!
The search for the perfect home media center platform has begun. Let the posts be posted!
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