Engadget HD Podcast 193 - 05.18.2010

Netflix's newly launched HD streaming on PCs takes the first slot this week along with some healthy Lost debate (spoilers!), before we investigate several other internet video announcements from Hulu, FiOS and Comcast. Next up is ESPN 3D on comcast and Panasonic's latest news including a new Blu-ray 3D promotion. We'll check out DirecTV's Whole Home DVR launch before digging into CableCARD and HTPC news and finish up with a quick glance at Happauge's software update and how impressed we are -- or aren't -- with Kaleidascape's latest Blu-ray players.

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Hosts: Ben Drawbaugh, Richard Lawler

Producer: Trent Wolbe

Program
00:00:57 - Netflix stealth launches HD streaming to PC and Mac
00:01:30 - Netflix turns on HD indicator, queue for PC (including WMC) & Mac Watch Instantly streamers
00:21:44 - Hulu says HTML5 'doesn't yet meet all of our customers' needs'
00:25:44 - Time Warner and Verizon bring TBS, TNT content to FiOS TV Online
00:29:53 - Comcast's HD VOD selections continue to approach infinity, or at least 3,000
00:32:17 - Comcast Xfinity iPad remote app changes channels and invites friends to watch RHONY
00:38:05 - ESPN 3D will be on Comcast in time for the 2010 World Cup
00:41:25 - Panasonic sweetens the 3DTV deal with Coraline, Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs 3D Blu-rays
00:46:30 - Panasonic shows its stuff at The Cable Show including a remote user interface
00:49:17 - DirecTV takes Whole Home DVR service nationwide
00:57:05 - Windows 7 Embedded doesn't support CableCARD, yet
01:01:09 - HDHomeRun CableCARD will feature three tuners in time for the holidays
01:07:36 - Poll: What type of HTPC do you use?
01:11:30 - Hauppage WinTV gets WiFi streaming for iPhone, iPad, iPod touch
01:13:13 - Kaleidescape outs M300 and M500 Blu-ray players, copiers



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[10nisman94 Posted May 18th 2010 3:41PM]

Boy do I have a few questions for your buddies at Verizon! Are the Cisco DVR's still in the pipe (even after the motorola 7232 announcement)? And can I get in on the external expansion trials with those new motorolas? I live in north pinellas so I could drive over to the SHE to pic them up. :-)

Also, could we get a confirmation on the hybrid ip/QAM switch, and the timeline for the MPEG 4 switch?

Thanks for reading!

[devron Posted May 18th 2010 8:43PM]

Richard was so right about Lost that I'm reconsidering the fact that I liked Avatar.

[Darren Pillans Posted May 19th 2010 1:36AM]

@devron

It's funny you say that. I too thought Richard was being nit-picky about Avatar. But when I started watching the first 20 minutes of it at home, after having seeing it once and loving it in 3D Imax, the acting and exposition dialogue was so bad and painful to sit through, I've yet to watch the rest of it.

[Darren Pillans Posted May 19th 2010 1:44AM]

Folks, I'm a little frustrated.

I have pretty good knowledge about TVs, Blu-ray and DVD, but when it comes to a HTPC, I wouldn't know where to begin. The posts under the HTPC poll might as well have been written in a different language.

How do I learn about all this stuff?

What would a HTPC give me that a PS3 wouldn't?

[devron Posted May 19th 2010 1:47AM]

Also - still having problems with the Engadget HD podcast via the iPhone UStream app. Anybody else having problems?? (I work until the time that it airs and it's a nice treat when I'm riding the bus home - I live in NYC.) The Engadget classic podcast works fine. This one never shows up.

[JoseROrtiz Posted May 19th 2010 6:20AM]

RE: Ceton Tuner availability, I got a call from Zones yesterday. They wanted to confirm my order. After she confirmed my shipping address and payment info, she said it was scheduled to ship on time...kind of. Although Ceton said they would ship out on 5/31, they failed to realize that day is memorial day, so according to the Zones rep that called me, the tuner will actually ship out on 6/1.

[SpongeBobPistolPants Posted May 20th 2010 3:53PM]

PSA - the LostCast ended at 20:10 and the HDpodcast begins shortly there after. maybe you guys could include that in the show notes next time...

[RichardLawler Posted May 22nd 2010 12:39PM]

@SpongeBobPistolPants You mean the words in the post?

[dishbreak Posted May 24th 2010 4:41AM]

Ben, Richard,

After hearing Nilay's story of woe on the Endgadget podcast, and breaking my head open trying to get the inscrutable Xbox 360 codes to work on a microcontroller, I'm convinced that IR has no place in the modern home theater. Too many protocols, too many ways for things to go wrong--and the lack of state-awareness is frustrating.

What do you think? Will we ever truly be rid of IR? Or will the Nilay Patels of the world continue lose their adolescence to IR blasters?