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PSP to Recieve Television Broadcasts?

Posted by Zonk on from the magic-teeh-to-recieve-radio-broadcasts dept.

Gaming Horizons is reporting that Sony is working on an application to be used to recieve television broadcasts on laptops and, more interestingly, the PSP console via an internet connection. From the article: "The software will allow you to complete a task called "place-shifting," which is the ability to access content stored from remote locations through high-speed web links."

28 comments

  1. Alright! Go SEGA!! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    This will make the SEGA Nomad the premier portable platform. Imagine, watching an NFL Football game on the LCD screen.

    I can just see the look on my friend's faces when they see how cool my handheld gaming/TV platform is.

    Too bad about the battery life, though...

  2. media center portable by angryflute · · Score: 1

    so what the hell is the PSP NOT going to be able to do?

    1. Re:media center portable by xenocide2 · · Score: 3, Interesting

      All its really doing is playing streamed video over the internet via its wifi link. The DS could theoretically do the same, but that's beside the point, really. What matters is whether playback will be Better, or Worse, than Realmedia. My money's on Worse, simply because they have a tendency to overstate themselves (how many polygons/sec was the ps2 supposed to push?). Certainly, if you own a PSP, this sounds exciting, but the options are either you record stuff elsewhere (like tivo or mythTV) or you get it from an official source from a content server hosted by Sony or whoever is actually doing this. The bad thing here is, its up to them, not you.

      --
      I Browse at +4 Flamebait

      Open Source Sysadmin

    2. Re:media center portable by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You mean, other than stay on for more than an hour without being plugged in?

    3. Re:media center portable by TechniMyoko · · Score: 1
      (how many polygons/sec was the ps2 supposed to push?).

      75 million under certain conditions, which it does under those conditions. The same conditions 3D card maufacturers use. Next question?

  3. Big deal, my little by theREALMcCoy · · Score: 5, Insightful

    brother's Game Gear could do that back in the mid 90's. Heck my GBA can do that now!

    1. Re:Big deal, my little by Squatchman · · Score: 1

      but but but.... this is a REVOLUTIONARY INNOVATION! Sony has never done anything like this before!

    2. Re:Big deal, my little by gl4ss · · Score: 2, Interesting

      well.. actually from what it sounds it's just playing videos that you have recorded earlier, maybe through the internet.

      kinda like http://www.orb.com/ .

      --
      world was created 5 seconds before this post as it is.
  4. Sounds like the Media Center & its extender. by figleaf · · Score: 2, Informative

    PSP to Recieve Television Broadcasts

    The Xbox extender along with the Windows Media Center allows you to watch TV over wireless connections.

  5. Sony also... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    ...has a custom laptop-based studio-quality broadcast system, recently developed.

    More interesting and groundbreaking, IMHO.

  6. haha by afd8856 · · Score: 1

    Marketing speach: "placeshifting" :) aka downloading streams from the internet and displaying them on the screen. How is this revolutionary or new?

    --
    I'll do the stupid thing first and then you shy people follow...
  7. TiVo 2 Go? by Hellvetica · · Score: 3, Insightful

    This is like TiVo for people without TiVo... or for people with PCs without vid capture cards.

    You know, if some service were available that allowed me to subscribe to certain shows, and download them on demand, I might consider dropping cable. (This is where somebody replies with "What, you haven't heard of _______?")

    1. Re:TiVo 2 Go? by ElleyKitten · · Score: 1

      You know, if some service were available that allowed me to subscribe to certain shows, and download them on demand, I might consider dropping cable.

      You know, if that service existed, I might consider not pirating cable shows.

      --
      "What is Internet Explorer 7? Are you saying we can't access the normal internet?" - I love tech support. Really.
  8. Extension of an already existing (bad) product... by GoRK · · Score: 1

    Sony already is trending to this with their "LocationFree TV" products; however, outside of ideal circumstances, they have tended to be very very poor performers. I would imagine that the disparity between download/upload rates on consumer connections is mostly the problem here. The idea is great, but the implementations have been fairly lackluster so far..

  9. I Before E Except After C... by great+throwdini · · Score: 2, Informative

    Write I before E
    Except after C
    Or when it sounds like an A
    As in "neighbor" and "weigh"

    Yeah, I know there are better things to do than criticize article headlines.

    1. Re:I Before E Except After C... by filth+grinder · · Score: 1

      Write I before E
      Except after C
      Or when it sounds like an A
      As in "neighbor" and "weigh"

      You forgot to add:
      on weekends and holidays
      and all throughout May.
      You'll always be wrong
      No matter what you say!

    2. Re:I Before E Except After C... by Rico_Suave · · Score: 1

      Don't forget "weird"

  10. Re:Extension of an already existing (bad) product. by bishr · · Score: 1

    As I recall, the consensus on LocationFree TV was that it was interesting but grossly overpriced ($1500 for a 12" LCD!!). They may be using the same encoding/decoding software as LocationFree, which works passably well. If they require purchasing/using LocationFree, then this would definitely be garbage.

    More on LocationFree TV:
    http://www.engadget.com/entry/357503873618346 1/
    http://www.sonystyle.ca/view/LocationFreeTVLan ding /index.shtml?storeId=10001&langId=-1&catalogId=100 01&categoryId=47640

    And for the /. reader with a 5th grade education, the USA Today review:
    http://www.usatoday.com/tech/columnist/ed wardbaig/ 2004-12-01-baig_x.htm

  11. Did any of you not see this coming? by Virtualtaco · · Score: 1

    This is of absolutely no suprise to me. Personally anything sony says they are going to do with the psp at this point is just going to be pretty boring. Wait til after it is release and we get some seriousapps for the wifi, usb, and memory stick. Can anyone say streaming actual games?

  12. Media Center by MBCook · · Score: 3, Interesting
    Suprise Suprise. The ability to watch TV shows on a PSP that are stored on another device by accessing them over the 'net.

    That other devices wouldn't be the all in one PVR/Game machine/Blender/etc. that the PS3 (possibly only a "top end" PS3) is supposed to be would it? Use your PS3 as a PVR and watch TV on the go using your PSP?

    I can see it. Will it work? Don't know, but I wouldn't be suprised if this was the reason for the technology.

    As for those who say "My gamegear could do this 10+ years ago", this is NOT a TV tuner, it's the ability to watch shows off a PVR that are streamed through the 'net (so they aren't stored on the PSP). This has nothing to do with recieving broadcast TV with a TV tuner (although that would be cool on that nice little screen, especially HD content).

    --
    Comment forecast: Bits of genius surrounded by a sea of mediocrity.
  13. DS has better features! by ayersrj · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    The PSP can receive signals. The DS can actually broadcast them!

    1. Re:DS has better features! by MilenCent · · Score: 1

      They both can transmit wirelessly. Neither can produce television broadcasts however.

    2. Re:DS has better features! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      OP was joking about how people claim to have been able to see game images from the DS on their TVs when they held the DS close to their TV broadcast antennae on a certain channel. I've never verified it, but the rumor among some gamers is that a usable function will be unveiled that uses that "feature," assuming it truly exists and is intentional.

      Note: I don't see how it would work and NOT be intentional. But then, I don't invest much thought in rumors I haven't verified myself.

    3. Re:DS has better features! by MilenCent · · Score: 1

      Wow, I wasn't aware of that. Seems fairly unlikely actually, though, does the DS even have a video signal that exists in a form that a TV could display without conversion?

    4. Re:DS has better features! by ayersrj · · Score: 1

      Boo to people who meta-moderate threads they don't know anything about!

  14. Web link? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Please, do explain what a high-speed web link is? I want one of those...

  15. My PSP already does this ... by vrai · · Score: 1
    1. Downloaded TV episodes of choice using BitTorrent.
    2. Upload files to the PSP (see here for a tutorial).
    3. Watch on train.
    4. No profit for anyone!