It’s been a while since we’ve checked the Echo’s pulse, so today’s news that the beta invitations went out today and will be starting up in September is welcome news. With no news on the fate of SageTV and Microsoft’s indifference towards Media Center in Windows 8, it’s awesome to have a touch of hope for those of us who […]
Read moreMedia Players are a huge part of the home theater PC world these days, and there is no shortage to choose from. While we try to remain up to date with our Media Player Comparison Guide, it’s tough to keep up to date. Here’s the latest from ASUS who continue with their O!Play line of players. If you’re like me, […]
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Boasting clean lines, the right look, and solid construction for Mini-ITX based systems the Wesena ITX5 all-aluminum enclosure offers capabilities very similar to the ITX7; by removing optical drive support in a slightly lower cost ($80) package. Building a name for quality takes time and attention to feedback, so it was fantastic to examine the generational differences between the two […]
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Cooler Master has announced the Elite 120 Advanced Mini-ITX case, joining BitFenix and Fractal Design in pushing new designs geared not just at SFF and HTPC enthusiasts, but also performance enthusiasts. The Elite 120 Advanced is the latest Mini-ITX case to tout a design intended to house a full-size gaming-grade graphics card without giving up the diminutive footprint that makes mini-ITX so […]
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I’ve been a Windows Home Server user and advocate since the product’s earliest inception. Like many WHS users, I was quite torn when Microsoft dropped Drive Extender from the WHS 2011 release, but ultimately switched over. As time has gone on, WHS 2011 has felt more and more like a regression of the product, not just because of the loss […]
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Microsoft took the wraps off of Xbox Music at E3 this year. The announcement was hardly a surprise as the ill-fated Zune hardware, music store, and subscription service has been floundering for years. The only real surprise at the time was that Xbox Music would not launch until this fall, presumably because it will be a part of the Windows […]
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I have already lamented the lack of news from Google regarding Google TV during the Google I/O developer’s conference last week. Obviously I was looking in the wrong direction because at least one company saw fit to talk up Google TV during the conference: Peel. When we reviewed the Peel Universal Smart Remote for iPhone and Android, we found a universal […]
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When Intel first announced their Atom line of low power processors way back in 2008, I had visions of tiny, quiet HTPCs sipping power in my home theater stack. Unfortunately, the promise never lived up to expectations and it has been awhile since I seriously considered an Atom processor for my own HTPC, but that hasn’t stopped me from hoping […]
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Back in February, Boxee and the Consumer Electronics Association announced that they were working together to convince the FCC not to overturn rules that required cable television service providers to offer basic tier channels unencrypted. The FCC had indicated that they were open to revisiting the rules regarding unencrypted cable channels as part of a required review of rules requiring […]
Read moreMicrosoft just announced that you can download and upgrade Windows XP, Vista, or 7 to Windows 8 Pro for only $39.99 as a download or $69.99 Disc for a special time until January 31st, 2013.. This will also include a free update for “add-in” Media Center after your install is complete. Microsoft is pushing the download option and it will help create […]
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