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Samsung shows off integrated TV streaming apps and DirecTV RVU... again

Richard Lawler — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 21:51:00 EST

Time Warner, Comcast, DirecTV and Verizon FiOS TV all displayed ways we could enjoy their service without a set-top box tied to our TV during CES 2011. A year later, while tablet apps have launched, living room progress is limited o DirecTV's HR34 soft launch and a limited Verizon FiOS app on Xbox 360 . So, here we are at CES 2012 with all four lined up at the Samsung booth under the N Service banner, again. Despite our disappointment over the delays, Comcast's app was slick, though limited to VOD-only just like the Xbox 360. Time Warner Cable's port of TWCable TV was similarly well appointed, although it lacked the DVR tie-ins of its Panasonic counterpart we saw earlier. The Verizon FiOS beta app was very rough around the edges, but allowed for either live TV or VOD streaming via the internet. DirecTV clearly had the best showing, but mostly because its implementation is actually shipping, and now is supported on more TVs. From what we're told, it's largely legal department, not technical concerns that are holding up the apps from launching, but until they hit Smart TVs everywhere you can peruse the pics in the gallery below.

Gallery: Samsung N-Service pay-TV streaming apps

Samsung shows off integrated TV streaming apps and DirecTV RVU... again originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 11 Jan 2012 21:51:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Verizon FiOS TV's new media server scheduled for late 2012

Ben Drawbaugh — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 15:20:00 EST

The fine folks at Verizon's Innovation Labs in Waltham, Massachusetts have posted a couple of videos of their efforts that include their vision of how Verizon plans to deliver TV to all the devices in your home, over both wired and wireless networks in HD, served off of a centralized media server. In addition to tablets, game consoles and computers, the media server will also serve content to smaller, more energy efficient thin clients at the other HDTVs in your home. Besides the obvious benefits of more content in more places, a centralized approach like this also offers the promise of being more user friendly by making the experience consistent across every screen -- no more walking to another room to schedule recordings. We're told the media server is expected to roll out late next year, but sadly, FiOS TV isn't exactly known for delivering new technologies when promised.

Verizon FiOS TV's new media server scheduled for late 2012 originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 22 Dec 2011 15:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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DirecTV's new five tuner HR34 Home Media Center DVR ready to launch December 8th?

Richard Lawler — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 17:58:00 EST

After waiting years for someone to deliver the first RVU-capable multiroom DVR setup, info leaked to SatelliteGuys indicates we only have to hold out one more week for DirecTV's HR34 DVR. While DirecTV has yet to make an official announcement, retailer info states that it will be available starting Thursday for just $99 after rebate ($399 rack rate), bringing five tuners, 1TB of storage, whole home DVR service in up to four active rooms, and more. Of course, we'll need the RVU-compatible HDTVs mentioned (Samsung D6000, D6400, and D6420 series) ~~released~~ before we can ditch the extra satellite TV boxes for good, but this is the first step. Hit the source link for more details including a full spec sheet.

DirecTV's new five tuner HR34 Home Media Center DVR ready to launch December 8th? originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 02 Dec 2011 17:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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DirecTV's five tuner, RVU-ready HR34 DVR revealed

Richard Lawler — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 00:43:00 EST

We've been waiting for more information on DirecTV's next generation multiroom DVR hub, and here it is, courtesy of the folks at DBSTalk. They've gotten an early look at the HR34 and all of its five-tuner RVU blasting capabilities and report it is just the HR24-on-steroids you'd thought it would be, with a 1TB hard drive and support for 100 Series Listings and 3 remote sessions, either RVU or whole-home DVR, at once. Of course, if we're really going to eliminate the cable / satellite box anytime soon then hardware is going to have to hit the streets, both form DirecTV and third parties like Samsung. Don't bother calling DirecTV to get one yet as they're in extremely limited release, but we'll let you know once they're widely available. In the meantime, hit the source link for a quick preview, and if you're looking for more info on the placeshifting Nomad box then you're in luck, since its product page is (finally) live on DirecTV's site.

DirecTV's five tuner, RVU-ready HR34 DVR revealed originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 10 Oct 2011 00:43:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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DirecTV is field testing RVU, will offer satellite TV without individual receivers in October

Richard Lawler — Wed, 18 May 2011 19:47:00 EST

We've been waiting since 2009 for the RVU Alliance to deliver on its promise of TV service controlled by a main server that streams content to any screen in the home without requiring any set-top boxes and it appears DirecTV is ready to make it so. A press release issued today indicates it has started field trials of the HR34 RVU server that will be the keystone in its Home Media Center, and plans to roll the service out nationwide in October. If you want to know when to start buying HDTVs like the Samsung D6000 series, it also mentions RVU certification for those and DirecTV's own C30 Home Media Clients (check out a video demo here) is expected to be finalized in June. There's been some delays but if you were also hoping that 2011 would be the year we can get rid of the cable box, the progress is looking very promising.

[Thanks, Tyler]

Continue reading DirecTV is field testing RVU, will offer satellite TV without individual receivers in October

DirecTV is field testing RVU, will offer satellite TV without individual receivers in October originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 May 2011 19:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Could this be the year we get to ditch the cable box?

Ben Drawbaugh — Sun, 09 Jan 2011 16:28:00 EST

We've been coming to CES for years looking at demos of technologies that will let us watch HDTV without a set-top box, and yet here we are years later with little choice but to find a place to put that box. The big failures have been CableCARD and then tru2way, both of which have had little impact to mainstream America. But despite all of our disappointment over the years, we came away from CES this year with the feeling that this might actually be the year. Of course, the allure of Vegas has yet to wear off, but when Time Warner Cable, Comcast, DirecTV and Verizon FiOS TV are at the same show sending almost the same message and showing demos, we have a hard time not taking our skeptical shield down a little. Sadly it wasn't exactly the same message, and if you click on through you might discover the true future of how TV will be delivered.

Gallery: Samsung demos cable TV without a box

Continue reading Could this be the year we get to ditch the cable box?

Could this be the year we get to ditch the cable box? originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 09 Jan 2011 16:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Samsung launching RVU-compatible D6000 series TVs in March

Paul Miller — Thu, 06 Jan 2011 21:01:00 EST

Remember the RVU Alliance from last year? The idea is to use standard tech like DLNA and UPnP to move live TV and DVR'd content around the home and straight to your screens, instead of having to plug a separate set-top box into every television. Well, Samsung is about to ship the first TVs in the world that support the RVU protocol, the Samsung LED D6000, LED D6400 and LED D6420. When networked with DirecTV's RVU server (the first of its kind), the TVs will display the UI and features from the DirecTV box, with ability to pause live content, share DVR storage, and record up to five shows simultaneously. No word on cost for the sets, but can you really put a price on the future?

Continue reading Samsung launching RVU-compatible D6000 series TVs in March

Samsung launching RVU-compatible D6000 series TVs in March originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 06 Jan 2011 21:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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DirecTV Q1 results are great for profits, multi-room viewing and RVU -- but not DirecTiVo

Richard Lawler — Fri, 07 May 2010 07:22:00 EST

It's not difficult to guess what's on the soundtrack around DirecTV's headquarters, with revenue and earnings results that beat analysts estimates for the first quarter. That's thanks to higher prices and increased HD and DVR revenue (DirecTiVo? Yeah right, according to the conference call, it could be pushed back until "maybe the end of this year, or maybe early next year,") while it also experienced a net increase of 100,000 subscribers over the period. Of course launching DirecTV 3D is a major focus for the rest of the year, as well as increased VOD with DirecTV Cinema, multi-room viewing (officially rolling out next week) and "connected home" initiatives. All the dirty details are in the reports and transcripts linked below, dive in as deeply as you dare.

DirecTV Q1 results are great for profits, multi-room viewing and RVU -- but not DirecTiVo originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 07 May 2010 07:22:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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DirecTV's new H24 HD receiver is one step closer to reality

Ben Drawbaugh — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 09:34:00 EST

We got a taste of DirecTV's new multi-room nirvana at CES but while we wait there is a new HD receiver. The H24 can act as both an HD satellite receiver but although it looks the same it isn't the same as HD DVR thin client via MoCA and RVU we saw at CES. Our friend Doug at DBSTalk.com had a chance to play with it and shared a first look with the world. The little guy is considerably smaller than its predecessors, is faster, and has DirecTV's flavor of MoCA called DECA (DirecTV Ethernet Coaxial Adapter) baked in -- regular MoCA isn't compatible with satellite. With coax networking built in one wire is all you need to use it as an HD receiver or to access internet enabled feature without running a CAT5 or depending on WiFi. One other item of note is that the new version of the ugly, cheesy, DirecTV remote now programs itself, useful for your mom, but not for you Harmony loving types.

**UPDATE** The H24 will not be an RVU thin client, just a new HD reciever, so we updated the post for accuracy.

DirecTV's new H24 HD receiver is one step closer to reality originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 26 Feb 2010 09:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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DirecTV's new HR24 DVR to reach customers this quarter

Ben Drawbaugh — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 10:03:00 EST

We showed you a video demo from CES that looked pretty good and apparently the new HR24 DVR and H24 thin client from DirecTV is already in production and will be reaching customers by the end of the quarter. No prices and specifics just yet, but we do know that this DVR has somewhere between three and eight tuners, and you can connect up to eight H24 clients up via coax (thanks to MoCA) and watch recordings or live TV in up to three other rooms of the house at the same time. The best part is that since there's only one server, no matter what room you're in, you get the same exact experience. We also expect to hear that both Samsung and Sony have built the RVU client directly into their new TVs, and if so, then you wouldn't even need a set-top at the TV to watch the HD DVR.

UPDATE: The above pictured DVR that sports RVU is the HMC30, not the HR24. Which is due this quarter but is much more like the HR21 except with MoCA built in.

DirecTV's new HR24 DVR to reach customers this quarter originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 26 Jan 2010 10:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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A video demo of RVU extending a DirecTV DVR to another room

Ben Drawbaugh — Sat, 09 Jan 2010 18:44:00 EST

We've been exited about the multiroom capabilities of the new RVU protocol built on top of DLNA since the alliance was announced -- DirecTV let its intentions of releasing products in 2010 known at the same time. Up until now we haven't actually been able to see it in action, but today we caught a great demo at the Entropic's booth, and it's cool. The demo showed a totally new DirecTV DVR connected to multiple TVs. The first TV was connected via HDMI and thanks to the wonders of MoCA, the others via coax. What is cool is that they all have the exact same experience and you can use it in up to 8 rooms, but only four TVs at the same time (one on the DVR, three via coax). Any TV with RVU built in -- Samsung and Sony are both a part of the RVU Alliance -- works without a set-top box, but for everything there's a small client. The new DVR obvioulsy needs more than two tuners to support all these clients but that information isn't public yet, but we were told it would be more than two tuners -- our guess is between four and eight. We were impressed and admit that this and 3D are two reasons we'll be seriously considering DirecTV as our HD provider.

Gallery: DirecTV RVU demo

Continue reading A video demo of RVU extending a DirecTV DVR to another room

A video demo of RVU extending a DirecTV DVR to another room originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 09 Jan 2010 18:44:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Broadcom and RVU alliance tout new chips and demos

Ben Drawbaugh — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 21:47:00 EST

One of the great expectations we had for CES 2010 is an honest to goodness multi-room DVR. Sure others have what they call MRV, but in reality it doesn't give the same great experience at every TV in the house. Now we've heard about the RVU Alliance's lofty goals and impressive list of founders, but lets face it, it doesn't exist until you see it for yourself. According to a few recent press releases, not only will we be able to bring you hands-on and videos of the technology in action, but Broadcom has a couple of new system on a chips (SoC) that have RVU Alliance's Remote User Interface (RUI) technology built right in -- you know the pixel perfect remote user interface technology. Stay tunned for more as we have a chance to search out the show floor for demos.

Broadcom and RVU alliance tout new chips and demos originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 05 Jan 2010 21:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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RVU Alliance gets Motorola, Pace, Thomson and others to dream the multiroom dream

Richard Lawler — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 14:22:00 EST

Chalk up a few more for the multiroom crowd, as the RVU Alliance (get familiar) has added some power names from the set-top box market to its roster as "Promoter" members. The new additions appear to set things up for compatible solutions from your cable or satellite provider arriving sooner rather than later, capable of streaming video and interfaces from set-tops to any screen in the house. Names like Motorola, Pace and Thomson have probably already graced your entertainment rack, while lesser known additions include Entropic Communications, maker of hardware for home entertainment networking, JetHead, focused on creating RVU client software, and set-top manufacturer NXP. Is hoping for a big splash at CES too much? We think not.

Filed under: Industry, Set-top boxes, Others

RVU Alliance gets Motorola, Pace, Thomson and others to dream the multiroom dream originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 04 Nov 2009 14:22:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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DirecTV's CEDIA booth was all about multi-room viewing

Ben Drawbaugh — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 13:36:00 EST

When we were walking around CEDIA this past week we noticed a thing or two that we would've missed if we just focused on reader press releases. One of those things was the emphasis DirecTV put on multi-room viewing. This is good news to us, because we think that MRV is one of the next big things in the world of HD and DVRs. Most consumers just want to be able to watch whatever they want, wherever they want, so having the exact same experience on every TV in the house is key. Specifically DirecTV was showing its vision of the future including how the next generation of DirecTV HD DVR would work. What's interesting is that although DirecTV does allow customers to download beta software for the current HD DVR that enables MRV features, that isn't what these pictures are of. The current technology also isn't using the new RVU Alliance's technology, of which DirecTV promised to deploy next year. Overall we'll be keeping a close eye on the progress, but we were disappointed to hear the booth representatives describe the system without mentioning the full experience on the thin clients.

Gallery: DirecTV's 2009 CEDIA booth

Filed under: DVRs, Media streamers, Satellite

DirecTV's CEDIA booth was all about multi-room viewing originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 14 Sep 2009 13:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The RVU Alliance picks up Verizon as a founding promoter

Ben Drawbaugh — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 13:43:00 EST

Obviously Verizon is all about delivering a whole home DVR solution, so it's no shocker that something like the RVU Alliance is right up its alley. But we are glad to see the fiber to the home provider doesn't shy away from adopting someone else's technology -- we say this because we all know how much Verizon loves, tru2way -- and ask much as we want to be able to have access to the same content in every room of our house, we're not big on the current Verizon solution. The bottom line is that we are on the same page with Verizon here are glad to hear the CTO say that Verizon wants to "lead the industry to an ever-simpler process for integrating consumer electronics." What we hope he means though, is that Verizon will be bring an RVU server to the party so we can enjoy all those HD channels on a Samsung HDTV without a STB.

Filed under: Industry, Media streamers, Fiber

The RVU Alliance picks up Verizon as a founding promoter originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 06 Sep 2009 13:43:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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DirecTV, Cisco and Samsung have whole house DVR plans with RVU alliance

Ben Drawbaugh — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 12:00:00 EST

One of our dreams is to have a true whole home DVR that allows us to watch any show we want, on any TV we want; but so far the perfect solution has eluded us. TiVo was really the first to try with its Multi-Room Viewing, but missed the mark by not giving us a single Now Playing list for the whole house or even any automatic conflict resolution between units. The FiOS HD DVR was the next disappointment because it limits us to two tuners and 160GB for the whole house -- seriously is that enough for anyone? Currently Windows Media Center offers the best solution, but it's expensive after you pay $300 a pop for a CableCARD tuner, not to mention it requires more maintenance because it is based on a PC. Needless to say we continue to look for the perfect solution, and we think that the RVU (R-vue) alliance might be just what we ordered. In addition to DirecTV, Cisco and Samsung, the chip maker Broadcom is also one of the founding members of the alliance, but it is their goals that get us excited. So excited, that we'd actually be shocked if they were actually achieved, but you'll have to click through to learn why.

Continue reading DirecTV, Cisco and Samsung have whole house DVR plans with RVU alliance

Filed under: Features, Industry, DVRs, Media streamers, Cable, Fiber, Satellite

DirecTV, Cisco and Samsung have whole house DVR plans with RVU alliance originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 19 Aug 2009 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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