All PVR

I have been trying out Vuze in the last week or so. Azureus bittorent client, which is a basis of Vuze, is something I have been enjoying for a very long time now. However, their venture into legal DRM’d downloads definitely needs a more work…

As you log into Vuze, you are greeted by a nice Guide, which attempts to seamlessly integrate Top Choice/Featured titles, yet still gives you the flexibility to navigate to specific channel or choose shows that are Shorter or Longer, for example.

Only very small amount of paid content is offered right now, but I hope this changes in the future once Vuze is out of beta and big content providers become more comfortable with the service.

If you do decide to purchase or rent something, the Vuze software acquires the license for you. It also does something that it calls ‘verifying that content can play on your system’, which in my case proved to be non-sense.

The paid media that I selected was downloaded without a hitch, but when it came time to play — no such luck. The DRM’d media requires Windows Media Player and apparently the version that I had (or something) on there wasn’t compatible.

But, overall, Vuze service is recommended. Just be sure to try it first with inexpensive or free DRM’d media (most paid shows offer first episode as a Free preview) before purchasing more, to confirm that it will work on your system.

How is this PVRs related, you ask? As promised, I really see increasing convergence of digital video, whether over the Web, via Cable, over Satellite and other means. Software like Vuze gives you the choice of getting the shows You want to watch delivered to your TV, that is if your Media Center is hooked up to your TV, like mine is. I haven’t tried this personally yet, but Vuze DRM’d media should have no problems playing on Media Center PC and on Media Center Extender, such as XBox 360, for example. And last but most important, there is plenty of High Definition content, most in 720p and some even in 1080p. Just make sure your computer is powerful enough to play it back without hiccups and Enjoy!

Vuze, Media Center, Media Player, Xbox 360, Media Extenders

Today lets continue our descent into the World of Media Extenders. With ever growing collection of Digital Media, don’t you wish that you could watch those Tivo shows that recorded yesterday, while your kids are watching their favorite recordings from the day before in the other room?
Well, Media Extenders make it possible, so why not have one with every TV? Most of them operate wirelessly today, by integrating with your home network, so setup is mostly painless.
Something very important to consider, however, is the formats that are supported. Some of them are designed to only extend audio (MP3, WMA, etc.), which is excellent for that old stereo system or speakers, sitting around the house, but not for TV.
The Video ones sport a higher price tag and you have to pay attention to which video formats are supported to figure out which is best for you. I personally prefer Divx encoded videos and we will do a whole separate post to discuss various codecs (and especially to explain this confusing word).
Of course, the good old Tivo is a Media Extender as well, but I find that often Extender scenarios are vice-versa, that is, from Tivo to elsewhere in the household.
Xbox 360 is an excellent HD extender and complete solution for downloading shows directly from the Internet as well, but is one of the most expensive in the category. We enjoy it a lot, though, both as an extender and as a gaming platform.
Here is a an overview of some Media Extenders to get you started. Post in the comments your thoughts or requests for reviews of specific ones.

xbox360, media extenders, tivo

AppleTV is all over the news lately, and the thing that is pretty upsetting for me is that some people are calling it a DVR or a PVR.
In fact, it’s nothing of the kind! The main function of AppleTV is to be Media Extender of sorts, similar to long time leader XBox 360, which is great for extending all your recordings and media from your Media Center PC.
I really think AppleTV is overpriced ($299, same as Xbox 360 basic) and it really isn’t bringing anything new to the category. In fact, it can’t even stream anything directly from the Internet, although it is connected to your home network and thus to the Internet. The only thing it is designed to do is forward (after lengthy copy/sync process) media from your home Mac or PC to your AppleTV. Again, not my kind of product…
We have been enjoying XBox 360 media extender capabilities for the longest time now and it’s great, and it gives us gaming alongside the media features, plus direct download of shows and movies from the Internet (via XBox Live Marketplace).

Still, if you insist on learning more about AppleTV, here is an excellent in-depth review from the smart folks at CNet.

appleTv, media extender