Hey Apple, Buy Boxee! Duh!

If you have seen Boxee, played around with it, hacked your AppleTV to use it, you already know it Rocks! If you havent, check it out!

I am NO coder, hacker or advanced terminal dude but I even got Boxee to work on my AppleTV! Click HERE

And here’s another great reason to get it: (from Boxee’s web site)

“Good news: you can now access Netflix on boxee,  get your Instant Queue and Recommendations, browse Recently Added and Most Popular, sift through the entire Netflix Watch Instantly selection by Genre and  Search.”

What the heck (cleaned it up for the kiddies) , Come on Apple, this little company is spanking you! Make them an offer and lets get all this wonderful goodness on Apple TV!

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Mac’s can Watch Instantly on Netflix….not now but soon

Mac’s can Watch Instantly on Netflix….not now but soon

But only on windows and Intel Macs, sorry Power PC Mac users.

Here’s the scoop from Netflix:

“Based on Microsoft Silverlight, New Player Features Enhanced Dynamic Streaming, First-Time Use for Macs and

Breakthrough Navigation for Fast-Forward and Rewind

LOS GATOS, Calif., October 27, 2008 – Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX), the world’s largest online movie rental service, today announced it has begun the deployment of Microsoft Silverlight to enhance the instant watching component of the Netflix service and to allow subscribers for the first time to watch movies and TV episodes instantly on their Intel-based Apple Macintosh computers. The deployment, which will initially touch a small percentage of new Netflix subscribers, is the first step in an anticipated roll-out of the new platform to all Netflix subscribers by the end of the year.

Silverlight is designed for delivery of cross-platform, cross-browser media experiences inside a Web browser. It is expected that Netflix members who watch movies and TV episodes instantly on their computers will enjoy a faster, easier connection and a more robust viewing experience with Silverlight, due to the quality built directly into the player. Among the viewing enhancements with the new player is a breakthrough in timeline navigation that vastly improves the use of fast-forwarding and rewinding. The new Netflix player takes advantage of Play Ready DRM, which is built into Silverlight, for the playback of protected content on both Windows-based PCs and on Macs. That had not been possible with previous generation technologies.

‘Silverlight with Play Ready offers a powerful and secure toolkit for delivery of dynamic streaming, which offers faster start-up, and higher quality video, adapted in real time to users’ connection speeds,’ said Netflix Chief Product Officer Neil Hunt. ‘Members who enjoy watching movies and TV episodes from the growing library of choices that can be instantly streamed at Netflix will be thrilled with this next generation improvement of access and quality, on a broader range of platforms, including Intel Macs and Firefox.’”

Check it out HERE

Mac Users get Netflix love! Download this!

According to Netflix blog:

“for all of you Mac users (of which I am one) we’ve been busy working getting a solution that will allow you to watch instantly on your Mac. So hang in there – we’ll have something for you by the end of the year.”

Wooo Hooo!

Check it out HERE!

Netflix Streaming On Xbox 360

NetFlix Xbox: Netflix Streaming On Xbox 360

Coming in the fall Xbox 360 update: Netflix! Yes, Xbox 360 owners who are also Netflix subscribers will be able to stream movies available for online streaming now straight to their consoles. You can also share your Netflix movies with friends via your Xbox Live party so you can watch stuff together, although you’ll need a Gold account. Here’s hoping you Xbox owners didn’t shell out for a Roku box, as it’s about to become useless. Oops! But still, awesome. “

(Via gizmodo )

Netflix May Team Up with Microsoft?? What, what, what!

Netflix May Team Up with Microsoft

The E3 rumors continue flooding in with certain tidbits grabbing the attention of gamers and non-gamers alike, the latest includes a possible pact between Netflix and Microsoft to distribute movies via the XBox 360. The gaming console can currently download some movies that go directly through the unit in HD, but they remain limited and pay-per-download. And we all know, pay-per-download should be exclusively limited to porn.

(Via Truemors)

Netflix-“We are keeping Profiles” stop whining!

Netflix Hears Your Laments

We whined, they backed down. Or, as Netflix’s e-mail to customers puts it:

You spoke, and we listened. We are keeping Profiles. Thank you for all the calls and emails telling us how important Profiles are.

We are sorry for any inconvenience we may have caused. We hope the next time you hear from us we will delight, and not disappoint, you.

Well done, Netflix. Not quite as well done as, um, not threatening to kill off a beloved feature with absolutely no plausible reason in the first place.But still, well done.

(Via Pogue’s Posts)

Netflix Box -Not the answer we are looking for

Hollywood Shoots Itself In The Foot Yet Again With Netflix Set-Top Box

A great read from Timothy Lee:

When I started reading CNet’s write-up of Roku’s new Netflix set-top box, I was beginning to think that the movie industry might finally be getting its act together. The price ($99) seemed reasonable, and the subscription rate (as little as $8.99/month) seemed about right. After years of missteps, I thought, maybe they were finally starting to figure out this Internet thing. Then I read this sentence: “Thanks to Hollywood’s byzantine licensing system, less than 10 percent of Netflix’s 100,000-plus library of titles is available for streaming to the Player.” Even worse, only two of Netflix’s 100 most popular movies are available for streaming. It’s almost as if Hollywood doesn’t want its customers’ business.

Apparently, three other manufacturers, including LG, are working on competing set-top boxes. They should be careful not to put all of their eggs in the Netflix basket, given that Netflix may or may not succeed in getting the studios to release more of their titles. And as we’ve said before, the last thing the video streaming market needs is yet another pointless standards battle. What’s needed is an open platform that supports free and paid downloads from a variety of different sources. Some of the Netflix boxes will reportedly include DVD or Blu-Ray drives, which is a smart move. Device makers should also be exploring more open content-delivery options, either in conjunction with existing video sites like YouTube, or developing a new, open platform where anyone can share their videos. In the long run, a lot of video business models will likely involve giving away free content, and a company that provides the set-top boxes for delivering that free content is likely to make a bunch of money. That market will grow especially fast if Hollywood continues its campaign to make its content as difficult to purchase as possible.

(Via Techdirt.)

Netflix to Sell a Device for Instantly Watching Movies!

Netflix to Sell a Device for Instantly Watching Movies on TV Sets
Netflix, which pioneered the business of offering DVD movie rentals by mail, is now offering its 8.2 million subscribers an option to watch movies easily on their televisions without involving the post office.

Netflix owns a stake in the company Roku, which makes a $99 paperback-size box for viewing films on television.
Working with a small Silicon Valley company, Netflix will begin marketing a $99 device on Tuesday that will allow customers to play thousands of movies and shows on their televisions instantly, for no charge beyond their normal subscription fee.

The size of a paperback book, the set-top box is made by Roku, a Saratoga, Calif., start-up known for its Internet music players. Netflix, based in nearby Los Gatos, owns a small stake in the company.

The device’s $99 price — less than half of the cost of an Apple TV — will most likely jolt the emerging market for equipment that brings Internet video to TVs.

But Roku still faces many of the hurdles that have stunted the appeal of previous boxes, including a limited selection of programming and competition from ever-more-sophisticated offerings from cable and satellite companies. In addition, larger companies, including Hewlett-Packard, are expected to offer their own devices in the near future.

Read Full Article HERE.

(Via NYT > Technology.)

aGEEKspot #6

Breaking News – Apple just updated their operating system Leopard to 10.5.2. It’s a big download with some nice new features. So, go get that download! Hey, it’s free (if you have Leopard that is).Hey Photogs! Aperture 2 has just been released today for the low, low price of $199 (previously$299). Upgrades from the previous version are just $99. The updated Aperture page has all the details.

News – Yahoo says “no thank you” to Microsoft’s bid. In a statement regarding the potential merger, Microsoft said it’s “unfortunate” that Yahoo “has not embraced” its proposal to combine the two companies. Microsoft also hinted that it may take the offer directly to Yahoo’s shareholders, a move that could result in a hostile takeover. (Cue the scary music – dunt, dunt, duaaahhhh).

Yahoo is reportedly in talks with both AOL and Google to try to avoid being acquired by Microsoft.Speaking of Microsoft, since they didn’t get Yahoo it looks like they had some extra $ laying around and decided to get “more” into the mobile phone biz, so they acquired Danger Inc., maker of the technology behind T-Mobile’s Sidekick. Hmmm..can’t you just see it: Ring ring..hey, buddy, your ZUNE phone is ringing?!?!

Starbucks Corp. is teaming up with AT&T Inc. and will start offering a mix of free and paid wireless Internet service in many of its U.S. coffee shops beginning this spring. Java and Wi-Fi, just like bread and Vegemite …yum!

Netflix says bye-bye to HD-DVD. Is this the final blow for HD DVD? Netflix says that, as of now, it will purchase only Blu-ray discs and will phase out HD DVD by the end of 2008 (roughly). Now I have to find a place for my HD-DVD player in the closet next to my 8-Track tape deck.

Rumor – Did you finally get that “new” 16gb iPhone? Well, the word on the street is the price for the iPhones will drop real soon (sound familiar?) and an even newer 3G version is to be released right around the corner. Also heard at the geek cooler, Apple is holding a “special event” during the last week of February…for what? Let the guessing begin.

Gadget of the week – I love digital photography, you can snap pictures like crazy and delete the ones you don’t like. For the ones you DO like or maybe even LOVE, you want a “hard copy”. A real picture, if you will, to have and to hold, to share and to give. Well a cool new mobile digital printer is coming from the original creators of pics on the go, Polaroid.Smudge proof, 2” x 3” borderless, sticky-back prints in about 60 seconds. By USB or Bluetooth. Fun for the whole family, or just me.

Tip – got dups? To get rid of those pesky duplicate songs in iTunes, just go to the View menu and choose “Show Duplicates” then a list will appear before you, do what you will….If you have any techy, geeky, nerdy, or gadgety news, reviews, tips or tricks – Let us know and we can share them with the world. Send them to: aGEEKspot at gmail dot com.