Televisions
freesat iPlayer beta service imminent
It's the worst-kept secret in the history of mankind, but freesat is finally getting access to the BBC's iPlayer service. We've known for a very long time that the plan was to make on-demand TV available on freesat since the platform launched in May 2008. For this reason, all freesat receivers have had an Ethernet socket fitted to them from launch, which means existing owners will have no extra equipment to buy.
iPlayer will come to the platform from the end of November with a closed beta. It will be 'code-based', which means you'll have to apply for and be granted a beta key before you can use the service. Continue reading...
Sky+ HD party: Hangover, Harry and Hanks in hi-def
Sky is hoping its customers don't end up with a Hangover after holding a Sky+ HD party, complete with free high-definition film.
Ten thousand partymeisters get a choice of movie, from Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, The Hangover (pictured) or Angels and Demons. The parties will take place any time over the weekend of Friday 11 to Sunday 13 December. To make things go with a bang, you also get a £10 Marks and Spencer voucher. We recommend the chocolate party bake tray, although Iceland would go further. Just sayin'. Continue reading...
Win a CNET UK Editors' Choice swag bag worth £1,200!
Christmas may not be here yet, but we've been distilling the spirit of Santa Claus for months now, nurturing our pot bellies by gorging on pies and cultivating slightly off-putting beards. In order to indulge our premature festive inclinations, we're offering the chance for one reader to win a veritable smorgasbord of consumer tech. And we're not talking just any old gadgets -- what's on offer here is the cream of the crop, with all prize offerings having been awarded CNET UK's coveted Editors' Choice award.
The Humax Foxsat-HDR freesat PVR and 1080p Toshiba Regza 32RV635DB LCD TV are sure to please on the wintry evenings ahead, while the Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ6 superzoom camera, 8GB Apple iPod touch, and Asus Eee PC 1008HA Seashell netbook should provide ample distraction from the numbing sensation in your toes and fingers if you decide to venture outside. Continue reading...
LG: OLED panels to be cheaper than LCD displays by 2016
At a Japanese trade show on Thursday, an LG executive predicted that OLED panels will be cheaper than LCD ones by 2016.
Won Kim, LG's vice president of OLED sales and marketing, also indicated that the company plans to release OLED TVs of 20 inches and above in 2010, 30 inches and above in 2011, and 40 inches and above in 2012. Continue reading...
BT Tower of power: World's biggest LED screen set to light up the night
Last night, London's BT Tower went mental. Twitter posters reported that it looked like it was about to explode or take off. But don't fear. It's not the end of the great phallus of Noho -- it's just a new lighting system. You know the lovely lights that gently lit up the BT Tower in a cycle of colours? Well, those bad boys are gone, replaced by the mother of all LED screens.
The screen is wrapped around the Tower's 36th and 37th floors, 167m up. It's built to resist the elements, and wind-tunnel tests have ensured it can survive 190km gusts and kamikaze pigeon attacks. It's made of vertical strips of LEDs, with space in between so that the wind can pass through without it taking off like an insane umbrella. Continue reading...
Sky Player on Xbox 360 launch suffers technical problems
We've been waiting a while, and now Sky Player for the Xbox 360 has finally launched after technical difficulties forced Sky to pull the service yesterday. It's not clear exactly what the problems were, and Sky weren't being specific, just saying they were unexpected. As of today, however, the service is back up and running.
Sky Player offers both subscribers and non-subscribers the option to watch Sky content in a variety of places. Initially launched as a competitor to the BBC's iPlayer, the service has everything from news to sport and movies. It's one of the best commercial services we've seen, easily beating the offerings from Channel 4 and ITV in both quality and programme selection. Continue reading...
Microsoft wimps out of Family Guy Windows 7 special
We recently reported -- with eyebrows firmly raised -- that Microsoft had engaged the services of scabrous animator Seth MacFarlane to promote its shiny, happy new Windows 7 in a special edition of his hit show, Family Guy. It seemed like a hideous idea for all concerned, and the software megalith has finally seen sense. "After reviewing an early version of the variety show it became clear that the content was not a fit with the Windows brand," said a visibly relieved Microsoft representative. We can't wait for the 'content' to leak. Continue reading...
BBC HD on Freeview signals shutdown for two 'Red Button' channels
The BBC has broken the hearts of obsessive news junkies and Wimbledon fans across the country with the announcement that it's scaling back its 'Red Button' interactive service. From the end of the year, the BBC, ITV and Channel 4 will use the capacity to start broadcasting their HD channels.
The BBC currently uses this Multiplex B capacity for three video streams that carry a rolling news multi-screen service and two channels (301 and 302) that are used for extra content at major events such as Glastonbury and Wimbledon. One of these channels (302) and the news multi-screen (305) will close on Freeview. Continue reading...
Channel 4 to put entire shows on YouTube
Channel 4 and Google have signed a deal to put the station's entire catch-up service on YouTube, for free, ad-supported streaming in the UK.
Around 3,000 hours of full-length shows from Channel 4's archive will also be available to watch for free. These include Skins, Peep Show, Brass Eye, Teachers, Derren Brown and Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares. Continue reading...
Family Guy to promote Windows 7: Has product placement gone too far?
Family Guy's Stewie Griffin has always wanted to control the world. On 8 November on US TV, he's going to get his first real life chance -- Microsoft and Fox have teamed up to exploit the show's popularity to promote Windows 7.
A special edition of Family Guy, along with various other live-action performances from the show's creator Seth MacFarlane and pals, will air with the sole purpose of telling the world how awesome Microsoft's new OS is. Continue reading...
