DirecTv
 

I wish they could sell an HD decoder box less than $500, if they could I would switch.

-dd

New iPods (?)
 

For those of you looking to buy an iPod, Apple appears poised to introduce new models with some styling revisions from the first generation of models:

Think Secret article

Here's one artist's rendering:
http://www.thinksecret.com/archives/ipod.gif

Personally, I'm getting in line for one of these when they come out.

New iPods
 

The new iPods are cool -- but worth the extra $$? If you are a macuser (as I am), the USB2 is not so necessary, and the buttons and base are not giving much functionality -- I am thinking those exisiting 10gb and 20gb models might have a sudden price drop -- so once the new one comes out that might be a time to snap one of the old ones up.

New iPods
 

I'm taking the USB 2 aspect as something for the windows version. That is, it comes with firewire, but the cradle has an adapter plug that allows use of USB2 instead. Mac devotees will keep using firewire, and it won't clutter the ipod itself.

From what I can tell, stocks of the old 10 and 20 gb models are running down in inventory, so the price deals might not be too large. Although it can't hurt to check it out.

Pentax DigiBino - DB100
 

Anyone have a pair of these? It combines binoculars and a digital camera. Pretty cool, but I wonder if it is worth the cash. The camera is less than 1 MP. Haven't been able to locate them in a store near me to try out.

Pentax DigiBino - DB100
 

Why does everything have to be more than one thing? I have never heard of these, but I can't imagine the binocs or the camera is that good overall, if for no other reason than 1MP and the fact that good binocs are usually 8-10x, whereas a camera zoom is usually on the 3x order.

Pentax DigiBino - DB100
 

Specs from CNET:
Combines digital camera and binocular functions into one device. Binocular has 7x magnification with 280 mm lens in 35 mm format. The camera features a 1/3" progressive CCD sensor, 16 MB flash memory, 1.6" LCD, 800K effective pixel resolution.

They caught my attention when I was looking to buy a compact set of binoculars. Sometimes I just don't feel like lugging the big Nikon's around, and it would be neat to get a photograph of that hawk that hangs out at the woods by the pond.

iTunes can be hacked to permit file sharing
 

[moved to computers thread because I'm an idiot]

Murdoch buys DirecTV
 

I've had no interruptions at all, and I don't think storms will effect you much, unless your dish gets zapped.....

:)

Roxio and PressPlay
 

Roxio is acquiring PressPlay and is going to relaunch Napster (bought at fire sale prices) as a fee-based service. Thoughts as to whether it will be good competition for Apple (once they release for WinTel systems)?

aV

TiVo
 

Boo. Now Tivo plans to gather customer user data: Yahoo article.

They purportedly will only aggregate the data. For now, is my guess.

Palm Buys Handspring
 

An attempt by both companies to survive?

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmp..._handspring_dc

aV

Home Theatre Show
 

Stereophile is hosting it's annual Home Theatre Show in SF this week. All the hot new stuff will be there. If you work in SF, it's worth checking out if you like stereo/video gear - high end - it's all here.

Home Theatre Expo

— The Home Entertainment Show highlights the best of the best in home entertainment. With over 250 exhibitors, 80 demonstration rooms, an exciting live music program, and in-depth seminars, it is the largest and most comprehensive event of its kind! Learn the latest about HDTV, SACD, DVD-Audio, DVD, surround sound, two-channel audio, and more.

Thursday, June 5
The Grand Opening Concert (6–8pm) is presented by Delphi XM SkyFi and is free to everyone. The concert will illustrate the diversity of music that can be found on the XM Satellite dial. Stop in and enjoy some of the West Coast's most eclectic acts:

The Josh Jones Trio, a Latin jazz ensemble will kick off the evening. Jones' music is conga-driven and flavored with the caliente spirit of your favorite island paradise. Music like this can be found on XM Channel 75, Luna.

Free Peoples is a Bay Area–based band whose playing fuses bluegrass, folk, and jazz. The members come from various projects, most notably Billy Kreutzmann's TriChromes, Buzz, Top Four Flights, and Soulstice. Music in this genre can be found on XM Channel 14, Bluegrass Junction.

Melora Hardin will finish the evening. She's an explosive performer who harks back to the torch singers of the '30s and '40s. More music from that era can be found on XM Channel 73, Frank's Place.

TiVo Home Media Option
 

I'm getting close to getting TiVo. And the home media option is appealing. In particular, I like the idea of being able to record on one tivo and then play back (over a network) on another. Has anyone done this? Does it hog bandwidth? Also, do you have to get a second subscription for the second tivo machine to get it to work?

TiVo Home Media Option
 

Yes. Not me specifically, though --- I have the DirectTV/Tivo combo. DTV controls the hardware and hasn't enabled HMO on it yet. I look forward to it happening, if ever --- I'd like to stream MP3s from my computer through my home theater system.

Yes, according to the standalone Tivo Series II users who post on www.tivocommunity.com. If you're using a wireless ethernet adapter, apparently it can take a good deal of time to move a one-hour program from box to box --- like maybe 45 minutes, depending on recording quality.

Yes. I don't know if you also have to pay the $99 HMO fee for both boxes. If the answer is "yes," consider just getting a DirecTV combo box in each room. As cheap as the boxes and subscription are, it's probably cheaper just to pay the $4.95/mo mirroring fee and set up season passes on each.