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Google TV Next Month, Boxee In November

Posted by samzenpus on from the surf-and-search dept.

itwbennett writes "In a WSJ interview, Intel CEO Paul Otellini said that 'Google TV starts shipping this month.' Although, as blogger Peter Smith notes, 'Exactly which devices he means isn't clear. Sony TVs and the Logitech Revue will be the first out so if he is referring to a finished consumer project, he's referring to one or the other of those, but as CNET points out, he might be referring to product shipping to retail rather than being on sale to consumers this month. Either way, it looks like you'll be able to have Google TV in your living room by sometime in October at the latest.' What, if anything does this mean for the Boxee Box, which is still due in November? 'If Google is out there first, and puts marketing muscle behind Google TV (and of course they're including it built into some televisions) it might be hard for Boxee to find its niche,' says Smith. 'Particularly with that bizarre form factor that won't fit anywhere.'"

6 of 132 comments (clear)

  1. Re:I want google TV in my TV by WrongSizeGlass · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I don't want anyone's 'TV stuff' to be IN my TV. I want the option of buying any TV, TV related hardware and TV services I want separately. Bundling seems like a nice feature when it's not available from anyone but when you can only get TV-X with company-Y's TV stuff then the complaints will start streaming in.

    Game console resellers are notorious for screwing customers with 'bundling' and I'd hate to see it end up *inside* the TV hardware so I'm forced to use it if I want that particular product.

  2. XBMC - Now! by luckytroll · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I dont see the point of either of these "services" when we already have a decent and open solution that solves most of the issues I had with "TV" - advertising contaminating my content.

    XBMC with a few plugins (Which is basically what Boxee is) and a well stocked media library from the torrents/usenet gives me all the television I could want, all the web content I can chew - and NO fscking adverts!

    What are Google and Boxee except that, plus advertising put back in? What value can they possibly insert that would make it worth my while to get screaming mad ad annoying ads again? None.

    1. Re:XBMC - Now! by Jon_S · · Score: 4, Insightful

      What are Google and Boxee except that, plus advertising put back in?

      Maybe the fact that they provide content legally as opposed to illegally from torrents/usenet? Debate all you want whether US Copyright laws make sense, but downloading from torrents/usenet is still illegal. Boxee provides a great way to watch TV on my own schedule, and at least currently with much much fewer commercials.

    2. Re:XBMC - Now! by 0100010001010011 · · Score: 4, Informative

      WRONG. Downloading is NOT ILLEGAL. No one has ever been sued for downloading a single thing. You are not breaking copyright laws by downloading.

      Uploading, such as in torrents, is illegal. You are the one breaking copyright because you don't have the right to distribute the work.

      Semantics, yes. But there is a difference.

      I can't wait for the Boxee Box just because it'll be a prepackaged XBMC box. I'm really hoping D-Link is good with releasing the drivers and such.

      SickBeard + SABnzbd + Server in the closet ... It's like having my own Awesome 12.5TB PVR. I'm so far behind on most shows I don't really care if I watch them the night they come out. The automation is amazing. Much better than the manual or RSS only feed I was doing earlier.

  3. Thank GOD by mayberry42 · · Score: 5, Funny

    'If Google is out there first, and puts marketing muscle behind Google TV (and of course they're including it built into some televisions) it might be hard for Boxee to find its niche

    See, may people complain about Google being evil corporate overlords, but I say - you go Google! I mean, do you really want to see this on your TV!?

  4. Another product that is mostly USA-only by Yvan256 · · Score: 4, Informative

    I just viewed their video (www.google.com/tv/) and frankly, it's just a fancy DVR+Web browser box. The so-called online content is via the channel websites which means it's still limited to the USA. You still need, in a way, to have cable or satellite for Google TV to be of any use, otherwise it's just a browser box for your TV (which I don't mind since it's WebKit, meaning it's not yet another weird browser to take into account).

    AppleTV, on the other hand, bypasses the cable and satellite companies (the TV side, anyway) and gives you the opportunity to get only the shows and movies you want. I'm not crazy about the rental pricing, but for some people even at those prices it's cheaper than a monthly bill depending on how many shows you watch.

    But for a lot of people, it's still "option 3", driving around in their Pontiac Torrent to get their content.

    I just wish media companies would stop with this region-locked and country-based contracts nonsense and go with worldwide releases already. They don't need local distribution networks anymore.