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A Hackable Media Player For HDTV

An anonymous reader writes "Embedded Linux and an open, hacker-friendly architecture power the world's first high definition media player, the $499 Roku HD1000. The brainchild of ReplayTV inventor Anthony Wood, the device could touch off a cottage industry of third-party applications and media packs that work with its Linux-based OS and user-friendly media APIs. Out of the box, the HD1000 can stream MPEG and MPEG2, play music, loop JPEGs, and more to an HDTV -- all at the same time. Roku is selling "Art Packs" of everything from museum-quality art to hot-rod cars as memory cards that work with the device. And, the company will release a C/C++ SDK for the HD1000 before 2004. Finally, there's something to actually show on your $5,000 54-inch plasma TV or 37-inch LCD TV." (Roku is also one of the companies mentioned in an earlier posting about using hi-def displays as digital art galleries).

3 of 216 comments (clear)

  1. yeah right by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    "MUSEUM QUALITY ART"!??!

    Whiskey Tango Foxtrot.

    We all know this is going to used exclusively for porn; you aren't fooling anyone.

  2. Cool another slashdot purchase...... by MegaHamsterX · · Score: 5, Funny

    Where is the slashdot credit card with karma points for every purchase.

    I paid cash for the following, but don't think I wouldn't have used the slashdot card so I could troll more often.

    First it was the netpliance

    Then the apex dvd player that plays mp3s

    then the tivo and tivonet

    now it's a box to display hdtv stuff without a computer

    cool, but I think this has more in common with the netpliance than with the other three which are still used.

    For its price I would expect more, like something to read straight from a dvd, harddrive or something, no wait that would be useful.

  3. I'm confused by arvindn · · Score: 5, Funny

    Something doesn't add up. If linux costs $699, then how can they sell the whole thing for $499?!