March 27, 2009

• GeekSpeaking: Convergence is here at last (somewhat)

  

  Tucked away on the bottom shelf of my HDTV entertainment center are a couple of nondescript "black boxes". Each one measures about 6" x 4" x 2". I only recently added these devices to my system, and each, in it's own way, helps to bring streaming entertainment direct from the internet to my television. 

  Devices like this did not exist until recently, and since I have always been on the cutting edge of home theater technology, I purchased these "internet delivery devices" almost as soon as they came out on the market. The one on the bottom is manufactured by the Roku company, and I got it from Netflix. It is a "Netflix Ready" or "Instant" device called the Roku Video player. One of five devices capable of streaming Netflix "Watch Instantly" movies and television shows to the TV, it is a standalone player with it's own remote, hooked up to the internet through my wireless modem, and hooked up to my HDTV with component video cables and analog audio cables. (HDMI, S-video, and optical audio connections are also on the back of the device.)

  The second unit, with the green lights, on top of the Roku player, is available through DirecTV, which has been my main television provider since it's inception. This is a LinkSys gaming adapter,. It is hooked up to the DirecTV internet site via the wireless modem, and connected to the DVR with an ehternet cable. This device enables me to get DirecTV on Demand, or VOD from DirecTV, with "over 4500 movies to choose from". Both devices can be hooked up to the internet through a router and ethernet cables. Since my computer is in the back room, I opted for wireless connection.

  I've been wating for VOD, or "video on demand" for many years. I think I first read about the idea back before computers became a household appliance. With regular television broadcasting, one is limited to watching "what's on", and even in the age of 500 channels, there is only so much "choice" available. The DVR (digital video recorder) allows one to record, as on a VCR, television shows and movies when they are broadcast, for watching later. There have been internet websites which stream movies over the computer, but total "convergence", where the television and computer systems are married, hasn't fully arrived. With the introduction of these VOD devices, however, the day when total convergence gets here seems to be a lot closer. With a VOD device, one can "stream" entertainment from the internet servers to the TV, instead of the computer. Video streaming on the internet has gotten better with faster connections and more robust technology. Now the stream can go directly to the TV without too much trouble.

  I love these devices, and the Roku unit has been named "best new electronic device" by a number of consumer groups. I've always said that when you're on the "cutting edge" you have to be prepared to bleed, however, and there are drawbacks.

  First and foremost, true convergence should be available through one device. These are "piggyback" devices which allow a "bridge" between the internet and the television. You don't need to have a computer to use them. The router takes the signal from the internet and streams it through the device to the TV. One controls the Roku with it's own remote, and the DirecTV unit is controlled through the DVR's remote. The main drawback, at this point in time, is that there is not one unit available (that I know of, anyway) which allows all media from a computer or internet connection to be streamed to the TV. There are ways to do this, but they aren't "easy". I was utilizing an S-VHS connection on my video card to the TV years ago to watch media on my Windows media player on my bigscreen, but I had to control using the computer mouse, and the computer screen went blank when the TV screen came on. This was really cumbersome. With the "internet devices" I have now, I can watch, for instance, everything Netflix has on their "Watch Instantly" section, and everything DirecTV has on their VOD section, but I have to have two devices. This could get rather unweildy if every new or existing site which streams video on the internet will use a different device! At 100 bucks a pop, these devices aren't cheap (yet).

  The neat thing about the technology is that a lot of new upgrades can be done via firmware and downloads to the unit. Recently, the Roku device added the Amazon site, so everything in their Video On Demand section can be watched on TV instead of on the internet. Of course, unlike Netflix, to which I have a subscription, Amazon charges $3.99 a rental, and $14.99 to purchase. (Purchased movies will reside digitally on your computer's hard drive, so one has to be careful when downloading movies for purchase, because of their large file size.)

  There are problems with the Roku player when it comes to "quality" of the stream. When I had T1 cable service for internet, the Netflix stream was "high quality". Now that I only have slower DSL, the stream quality is compromised. I can still stream the movie to my TV, but the image is not as sharp. Once you experience HDTV on a 60" 1080P television, you won't be able to stand watching VHS quality streams! I'm a little upset about this, because the LinkSys device streams the movies and television shows in full HD (1080P). The stream is a lot slower, and it's best to wait until fully loaded on the DVR before watching. The Netflix stream is meant to be watched almost immediately after clicking on the title, so the quality is compromised because of the speed of the internet connection.

  Hopefully, in the near future, the streams from the internet, no matter what site, will be high speed, high quality, and everything will be able to be watched from one device. It might be noted that the Xbox game player has a built in Netflix player, and there are Blu Ray DVD players available with the player as well. Tivo even manufactures a DVR which includes the Netflix player. So right now might not be the time to buy one of these devices, if you don't have 100 bucks lying around. Unless you're a hardcore tech geek like me, it might be better to adopt a "wait and see" approach to this technology.

  I am so happy the technology is here, however. I like to pick and choose my entertainment choices. That's why I've collected so many movies on Beta, VHS, laserdisc, and DVD. (And now it's BluRay as well.) I don't like to "flip channels". I hate commercials. I like the fact that when I call up a TV program on either the DirecTV or Netflix streaming device, the show streams without the commercials. Sometimes I'll find a title available, say, on Amazon. for a $3.99 rental, which is also available "free" from Netflix or DirecTV. It must be noted that one has to have a subscription to any service which streams the movies. Netflix costs about $21.00 a month. DirecTV costs about $100.00 a month including premium movie channels. (If you don't subscribe to Showtime, for example, then you can't get Showtime's VOD stream.)

  Someday, I predict, we'll even be able to stream Xanga videos over some internet streaming device to our televisions. Eventually, TVs will be manufactured with all the "bells and whistles" needed to maneuver the internet streaming sites without having to have separate devices. In the early days of "digital TV", you needed to purchase a "receiver". Now the receivers are built in. It takes time for new technology to become available cheaply to the masses, and internet streaming over the television is in it's infancy, taking it's baby steps toward full convergence.

  I've been reading about total convergence for years. Hopefully I'll live long enough to see it come to pass.

  • 10:28 am
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