I wrote previously about a new set top box device that I was looking forward to, the PopBox from Syabas. Upon it initial announcement this little box sounded like it was going to be the great new end-all device for the home theater. Well as we get closer to its imminent release, Syabas has announced [...]
Tags: home theater, htpc, netflix, popbox
Posted July 1, 2010 by vidkun under Hardware
So the majority of the parts of come in for my home theater PC build. I’m still need to get some more memory for it and some form of remote. A number of people have mentioned the Logitech diNovo Mini to use as a remote as well as a bluetooth keyboard and mouse if needed. [...]
Posted February 21, 2010 by vidkun under Hardware, Projects
Well it would appear as if set-top boxes are popping up left and right around here. The sad part is that they all only differ slightly, but none get it all correct. That said, the Mvix Ultio Pro Media Center comes pretty close from my initial impressions. It will stream your media from across the [...]
Tags: hd, media center, ultio
Posted February 13, 2010 by vidkun under Hardware
This post will be continuing on from my previous post about new projects to start the year of right. I mentioned that I would be addressing the lack of proper audio equipment for my home theater setup. In order to do so, I have locked on to purchase an Onkyo TX-SR607 A/V Receiver. That will [...]
Tags: audio, home theater, klipsch, onkyo, speakers
Posted January 20, 2010 by vidkun under Hardware
New Year With a new year comes new projects (and after Christmas specials)! I apologize for the pause in updates. We took a short, unexpected vacation to get all prepared for 2010. Hopefully everyone had a safe and wonderful holiday and took time to be with family and friends. Well, now we are settled back [...]
Tags: hdmi, home theater, htpc, intel, Linux, media, media server, vdpau, XBMC, xvba
Posted January 16, 2010 by vidkun under General, Hardware, Projects
Syabas Technology has said today that it will be shipping a new set-top box in March and is rumoured to be offered around the $130 price point. Targeting the internet streaming media arena, Syabas’ set top box, dubbed the “PopBox,” is aimed at competing with Roku’s offering and the recently announced Boxee Box by D-Link. [...]
Tags: 1080p, Boxee, home theater, Linux, media server, netflix, Roku
Posted January 4, 2010 by vidkun under Hardware
XBMC will now have the ability to decode and playback full 1080p streams with ease. And the best part about it, is that it will have full cross platform support! Previously, anyone looking to decode any 1080p streams in H.264 or VC-1 would need a nice beefy processor to do all the heavy lifting. Then [...]
Tags: 1080p, Boxee, H.264, hd, high definition, htpc, Linux, os x, vdpau, XBMC
Posted December 31, 2009 by vidkun under Hardware, Software
The world of set top devices just took a great leap forward in the evolutionary process! Patriot Memory has released their set top media player they call the “Box Office.” Although it still hasn’t reached the point of being the best all-around device for the home theater, it has taken two giant leaps toward becoming [...]
Tags: 1080p, blu-ray, dvd, hd, hd-dvd, hdmi, media, media player, media server, movie, streaming
Posted December 30, 2009 by vidkun under Hardware
I’m always interested to hear about people’s “extreme” projects, whether it be an extreme media server or some interesting computer mod. The home theater does not need to be relegated to a dry or boring niche of nothing but HD televisions, HTPC’s, and Onkyo audio receivers. Media has be stored somewhere and with the growing [...]
Tags: high definition, home cinema, home theater, htpc, media, media server, streaming
Posted December 21, 2009 by vidkun under Hardware, Projects
A few years back when blu-ray was just starting to come about, Richard Weber wrote in an article entitled “The Age of Blu-Ray” detailing some of the main benefits of blu-ray technology: “Do you remember how awesome it was when you upgraded from you old VHS tapes to DVDs? The picture was way clearer and [...]
Tags: 1080i, 1080p, blu-ray, hd, high definition, home theater, media, movie, netflix
Posted December 13, 2009 by vidkun under General, Hardware, Movies, Software