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Digeo To Ship Full-Featured Linux-based PVR
Gentu writes "Paul Allen, co-founder of Microsoft, has embraced Linux in his latest product offering, Moxi. Moxi is a PVR system from Digeo with some additional cool features, like wireless ethernet support, internet/router/firewall/gateway capabilities, DVD playback and more media functionality in general. OSNews has the article, screenshots and more information. "
Sold. I -love- my TiVo, but the lack of HDTV functionality is going to kill them if they don't rectify the situation quick. Several people I've talked to about getting TiVo are reluctant not because they have HDTV now, but because they want to be "ready" for it in the future. They don't want to invest in a technology that's near a dead-end.
Moxi will be available via cable providers or other Premium TV companies, and the hardware will be custom for each one of them.
IMO, that will be the biggest problem for them. Standalone TiVo is ubiquitous. It can be used with just about any source... anyone's cable box... any satellite system.
Of course, 90% of consumers (maybe more) are sheep. It might work out well for Moxi since the hardware will be coming from "their cable company" and not some third party. Do you think most cable consumers have any clue who makes their cable box and what features is has? To them this thing will be just another cable box with some cool stuff.
-S
--- What parts of "shall make no law", "shall not be infringed", and "shall not be violated" don't you understand?
I hope this thing is expandable, it would be cool then to have it be the wireless hub as well, serving out connections to laptops, etc around the house.
It will be interesting to see if they're as liberal is TiVo with the hacks though.
The article states that the unit will have MSN Messenger built in. This might be a stupid question, but how will they get a licensed MSN Messenger on the Linux box? Doesn't that mean Microsoft will have to create a Linux port?
Confucious says: Man who runs behind car gets exhausted.
// jeku.com
Moxi looks awesome. One of Digeo's partners is Scientific Atlanta. TimeWarner's digital cable boxes (most of them) are built by this company. In fact, the new "DVR" that TimeWarner is releasing soon is Scientific Atlanta's Explorer 8000. And from what I've read, it sucks (right now).
Which leads me to ask, why doesn't TimeWarner wait for ScientificAtlanta's Moxi-based device? I mean, TW is pushing HD in several markets, and yet the Explorer 8000 doesn't even support HD (even though the literature says it does... check the wiring diagrams, no HD).
Hopefully they will offer Moxi soon. I love my TiVo, but a sweet device like Moxi, integrated with my digital cable service, combined with HD support equals TV HEAVEN.
"And like that
I was loving it right up to the point where they explain that these will be available through the cable companies and enhanced tv providers. This means that it will be rented by and owned by companies that control what shows can be recorded, and can prosecute anyone caught 'tampering' with the device in any way.
If I could simply buy the hardware, great! But they know that they will make a more steady stream of money offering essentially a tivo like cable box to cable companies who can rent them to customers for $20/mo or more, who will gladly pay for them rather than $400 or more for a Tivo.
It's a great business idea, and I see them putting Tivo out of business in the larger markets. Tivo (and other pvr companies) will have to maneuver furiously to maintain their current customer base, nevermind a growing base.
But all is not so happy in geek land. You won't be able to record shows, or even pause shows, that providers don't want you to - and eventually that'll be most movies, lots of first run shows, etc. Skipping commercials may be disallowed at the providers descretion.
It's essentially a bid to take back TV, while providing customers with a facade of extra functionality. I bet they'll win, since eventually service providers will be required to use such devices if they want to carry certian premium channels - though that's a while away, it's coming.
-Adam
Hell, it won "Best of Show" at CES in January and they still haven't shipped a product. Their claim to having a deal with Dish Network also turned out to be completely bogus. Then, they nearly went bankrupt, fired their founder/CEO and got sold to Digeo.
Don't get me wrong. The stuff Moxi demo'd at CES in January was incredible and if they can pull off even a fraction of it, they'll eat TiVo for lunch (assuming TiVo doesn't respond with similar features). However, their kitchen-sink approach is hugely ambitious and it'll be tough for them to ship all the cool stuff they demo'd at CES, such as wireless distribution. That, coupled with the fact that they're selling boxes only through cable companies and other TV service providers, rather than as standalone devices, will probably keep the feature set minimized.
So don't hold your breath about getting everything they're capable of delivering.