Expert Lancer - Gadgets,Phones,Tech News,Cameras » hdtv

Adobe to Abandon Flash on Connected TVs, Too

Thu, 10 Nov 2011 14:17:37 +0000

After Wednseday’s announcement that Adobe will cease support for its Flash Mobile Player comes another bombshell: the company will also stop supporting Flash on digital home devices, such as HDTVs. “Adobe will continue to support existing licensees who are planning on supporting Flash Player for web browsing on digital home devices and are using the Flash Player Porting Kit to do so. However we believe the right approach to deliver content on televisions is through applications, not a web browsing experience, and we will continue to encourage the device and content publishing community down that path,” said Adobe in a statement to GigaOm . The key word here is “applications.” Adobe won’t bother with unifying the fragmented TV app market, instead letting developers create native apps for each platform, preferably (for Adobe) using AIR framework. This is another blow for Google TV which, frankly, doesn’t need any more bad news. The lack of browser-based Flash probably won’t be a deal-breaker for Google’s Android-based connected TV platform, but Google TV devices have already been selling poorly , and now Google has to figure out how to go on without Flash. In retrospect, this blog post from Adobe, detailing Flash support for Google TV , looks rather sad. “The digital home is a huge step for Flash and it represents an amazing new screen for developers and content creators to bring rich interactive content to the TV,” said Adobe at the time. It wasn’t meant to be. More About: adobe , Flash , HDTV , TV For more Mobile coverage: Follow Mashable Mobile on Twitter Become a Fan on Facebook Subscribe to the Mobile channel Download our free apps for Android , Mac , iPhone and iPad

Go here to read the rest:
Adobe to Abandon Flash on Connected TVs, Too

Biscotti Is a Lifetime of HD Video Conferencing for $199

Wed, 09 Nov 2011 22:12:39 +0000

Biscotti TV Phone on an HDTV Click here to view this gallery. Your next video conferencing solution could be Biscotti. No, not the crescent-shaped cookie, but a $199 device that’s shaped like a Biscotti and is officially called “Biscotti TV Phone.” It sits atop your HDTV and lets you make HD video calls to anyone with another Biscotti or on the Google Gmail network. Biscotti, Inc., which was founded in 2008, unveiled the sleek, black new TV phone Tuesday night at the Consumer Electronics Association CES Unveiled NY show. It was just one of a number of new gadgets arriving this year and early next. Biscotti is not the first HDTV video conferencing solution. Most notably, Cisco (with UMI ) and Google and Logitech (with Google TV and the Revue) have made the leap. Yet none have been particularly successful . Some think these products were simply too complicated. Biscotti, on the other hand, is more or less plug-and-play. The device connects to your HDTV via an HDMI cable. Unlike most other HD devices, Biscotti actually has you run your cable box connection through the device. So the back sports both HDMI-in and HDMI-out ports. Biscotti conducts the video calls over the Internet, which means you’ll need Wi-Fi to use it—there’s no wired, Ethernet option. Once you’ve created a Biscotti account, you can call anyone on the Biscotti network anywhere in the world. It also works with all Gmail accounts, but does not support Skype. Video calls can be conducted with Gmail Chat-enabled PCs, phones, and, of course, similarly equipped TVs. Because you feed your cable box through the device, Biscotti TV Phone can place an incoming call alert overlay on top of what you’re watching. This eliminates the need to use the input switch on your HDTV. There is a remote, but if you set up auto-answer, you never have to use it. Biscotti can even use “Consumer Electronics Control” CEC to turn on the TV (if the device is CEC-enabled) when a call comes in and turn it off if no one is there to answer. It does keep track of missed calls. The $199 fee covers the cost of the device and all calls. Overall, Biscotti’s goal is to make video calling as easy as possible and in the brief demo we saw, it looked quite straightforward. At 720p, the image quality was acceptable and the wide-angle lens worked well in a large room (you can digitally zoom and pan, as well). The interface offers only a few choices, keeping the process simple and obvious. That simplicity could help Biscotti succeed where others have failed this holiday season. To be fair, the Logitech review camera is cheaper (by $50), but you have to buy Logitech’s Google TV box to use it. Cisco’s UMI is $100 more for a 720p device and you have to pay for the UMI service: $9.95 a month or $99 a year. Biscotti is pay once, use forever—or at least as long as Biscotti lasts. Biscotti ships on Nov. 21. What do you think? Do you want a Biscotti TV Phone or might you buy one for one of your less digitally included relatives? Let us know in the comments below. More About: Biscotti , gchat , gmail , HDTV , video conferencing

More:
Biscotti Is a Lifetime of HD Video Conferencing for $199

Google+ Badges Make it Simple for Users to Connect With Brands

Wed, 09 Nov 2011 21:41:54 +0000

Google has unveiled Google+ Badges for brand pages, a widget that lets brands promote their presence on Google’s social network. Google+ Badges are similar in form and function to Facebook ‘s Like Box social plugin. The easily embeddable widget lets users either +1 a webpage or add that page to their Google+ circles. The widget also displays the faces of other users who have +1ed the webpage. It doesn’t have Facebook’s ability to display your friends’ faces first, though. The launch of Google+ Badges coincides with Monday’s launch of Google+ Brand Pages , finally giving businesses the ability to create a presence on Google’s growing social network. The Google+ Badge has a few other tricks. “The Google+ badge also contains a snippet of code that connects your website to your Google+ page,” the company said in an email to developers. “In addition to helping us better index your Google+ page, this snippet will help you show more personal recommendations around the web by linking your +1’s on sites, your Google+ page, search and display ads.” Google also revealed that the badge is a requirement for inclusion in Google Direct Connect , a feature that makes it possible for users to find a Google+ Page from Google Search. Users type in the “+” operator, followed by the name of a brand participating in Direct Connect. The search result will lead users directly to the company’s Google+ brand page. The widget was a necessary component for Google+, given the success of its Facebook counterpart. While it doesn’t have the same benefits Facebook enjoys with Open Graph , the Google+ Badge gets the job done. Google still has a long, uphill battle to convince both brands and users that its social network is an ideal place to do business. 1. Angry Birds The popular game welcomes Google+ followers with an excited “Ca-caww!” Click here to view this gallery. More About: Google , Google+ , trending For more Business coverage: Follow Mashable Business on Twitter Become a Fan on Facebook Subscribe to the Business channel Download our free apps for Android , Mac , iPhone and iPad

View post:
Google+ Badges Make it Simple for Users to Connect With Brands

This 47" Refurbished LG LED HDTV Is Your I-Hope-This-TV-Works Deal of the Day [Dealzmodo]

Wed, 02 Nov 2011 19:00:00 +0000

I like the new-car smell of electronics more than the new-car smell of cars. Why anyone would want to buy something refurbished is beyond me. It’s a crapshoot. A russian roulette of fried circuit boards and non-working wires. Spin and shoot and leave it up to fate. Seriously, you have no Idea what you might get. Refurbished could mean scratches! Dents! Or… IT MIGHT NOT EVEN WORK. More »

View original post here:
This 47" Refurbished LG LED HDTV Is Your I-Hope-This-TV-Works Deal of the Day [Dealzmodo]

Sony’s First Ever 4K Home Theater Projector Shoots Super Resolution for Super Cash [Projectors]

Thu, 08 Sep 2011 16:48:17 +0000

4K video might be our inevitable future, but for now it’s prohibitively expensive and rarely available. Sony’s taking care of the latter part with its new VPL-VW1000ES projector—four times the resolution of 1080p (!) for mega, mega bucks. More »

See the rest here:
Sony’s First Ever 4K Home Theater Projector Shoots Super Resolution for Super Cash [Projectors]

What the NYPD’s Impressive Counter Terrorism Unit Actually Does [911]

Thu, 08 Sep 2011 16:40:00 +0000

Reuters just published a photo essay of the NYPD’s Counter Terrorism Unit. The unit is loaded with heavy weapons, Big Brother-esque technology and a determination to prevent something like 9/11 from happening again. More »

Excerpt from:
What the NYPD’s Impressive Counter Terrorism Unit Actually Does [911]

Hands On: Sony’s HMZ-T1 Is an Amazing OLED 3DTV. That You Wear On Your Head. [3dTv]

Wed, 31 Aug 2011 15:00:00 +0000

Sony’s new 720p OLED 3DTV with 5.1 virtual surround has a 150-inch screen-equivalent and costs $800. But it weighs less than a pound. That’s because it’s worn on your face. It looks crazynerdo; you’re going to want one. More »

Read the original:
Hands On: Sony’s HMZ-T1 Is an Amazing OLED 3DTV. That You Wear On Your Head. [3dTv]

47" LG 1080p 120Hz 3D HDTV Is the Boob Tube Deal of the Day [Dealzmodo]

Fri, 26 Aug 2011 19:00:00 +0000

Black and white TVs begat Color TVs begat big screen TVs begat HDTVs begat flat screen TVs begat 1080p HDTVs begat 120Hz TVs begat 3D TVs. TVs for everybody! And everybody loves the boob tube, everybody wants their fill of mindless entertainment, everybody needs to have the biggest and baddest TV on the block. So it’s become this status symbol for your home, the measuring stick on who’s best. Buying this 47″ LG 1080p 120Hz 3D HDTV Blu-ray player bundle for only 900 bucks will give you a pretty big stick. -CC Top Deals • 47″ LG 47LW5300 LED 1080p 120Hz 3D HDTV w/ 3D Blu-ray player and 4 3D Glasses for $900 (normally $1200 {Savings of $300 / 25% off}) More »

Go here to see the original:
47" LG 1080p 120Hz 3D HDTV Is the Boob Tube Deal of the Day [Dealzmodo]

Amazon’s Tablet May Cost "Hundreds" Less Than the iPad [Amazon]

Fri, 26 Aug 2011 18:50:37 +0000

According to the New York Post , when Amazon releases its tablet in the next few months, they’re not just going to be cost competitive. They’re going to be cost kamikaze. More »

See the original post here:
Amazon’s Tablet May Cost "Hundreds" Less Than the iPad [Amazon]

Tivo Premiere Elite, Coming “This Fall”

Thu, 11 Aug 2011 21:49:41 +0000

It looks like Tivo is set to introduce Tivo Premiere Elite, its latest (and greatest) Tivo set top box. It would be an all digital device, which means that analog cable channels won’t be supported. Actually, it’s faster to enumerate what would work with it: Digital Cable (via CableCards + decoder), or Verizon’s FiOS. As I said, analog cable, ATSC, satellite and AT&T U-Verse won’t be supported. The specifications are interesting: there are four digital tuners, 2TB of storage (about 300hrs of HD recording, versus 150hrs for the premiere XL), THX sound, 1080p video output. The Tivo Premiere Elite is also compatible with control systems from RTI, Creston and Control4. Of course, all the partners such as Netflix, Hulu and more are also in the box. The release date could be as early as September. At this point, there is no official word on pricing, but enthusiasts expect this to cost around $500, at most. That would be $200 more than the Tivo XL. What do you think? [F CC filing + slides ] Tivo Premiere Elite, Coming “This Fall” , By Ubergizmo . Top Stories : Samsung Infuse 4G Review , Panasonic GF3 Review ,

Continued here:
Tivo Premiere Elite, Coming “This Fall”