It’s time to put that credit card back in your wallet, if you’re thinking about buying an HD capable nettop to function as your living room’s HTPC. Shuttle has just announced that they will be debuting the Shuttle Barebone XS35 Mini-PC, featuring Intel’s Atom D510 1.6Ghz dual core processor and NVIDIA GT218 (ION 2) graphics, at CeBIT 2010 (release date: Q2 2010). Besides the impressive processor and graphic components, the XS35 is a remarkable 1.3-inches (3.3cm) thick and offers room for a 2.5-inch hard drive and an optical slimline drive. Other niceties include: 5 x USB ports, multi-card reader, HDMI, VESA mounting interface, and passive (fanless) cooling. MORE »

It was just last month at CES when Skype announced its partnerships with LG Electronics and Panasonic to deliever Skype-enabled TVs to the market. Today Samsung is announcing that all Samsung LED 7000 and 8000 series HDTVs will be Skype-enabled as well. While TVs may be “Skype-enabled”, all current models require the purchase of a FREETALK TV Camera — available soon through the Skype Shop. Worth noting: the TV webcam has ambient and directional microphones built-in, so you don’t have to shout from the couch, and it encodes video in H.264. I’m waiting for the day when webams are built right into the bezel of all HDTV sets, but then I start thinking about George Orwell’s book, 1984 (pic from the movie adaptation), and wonder if that’s such a good idea. MORE »

Quick update for Apple TV owners who heart Boxee. You can now update your Boxee Alpha release to the latest Boxee Beta via ATV’s Installer/Launcher, according to Boxee Blog today. However, if you’ve never installed Boxee using ATV USB Creator, download atvusb-creator from the project page and then follow these instructions to get Boxee up and running — just don’t tell Steve J. that you went AWOL from his walled garden, ’cause he might not like it.

Originally I was going to write up a post on Crestron’s Home Automation iPad App (supposedly one of the first for the device, according to CE Pro), but then I noticed from the rendering that it’s just the iPhone / iPod touch version scaled up by Apple’s iPad — though I could be wrong (no additional iPad app screenshots or demo video were available). I know people are excited for the retail launch of the iPad, but I think app developers need some new terminology for better transparency right from the get-go. For one, I would suggest calling any iPhone / iPod touch app that plays nice with the iPad as “iPad Compatible” and native apps as “Designed for iPad”. The reason I say this is because Apple has included some nifty UI features exclusive to the iPad that takes advantage of the larger screen size like drop-down / pop-over menus, sidebar controls, dual page views, etc. In fact, you can get a glimpse of what I’m talking about on Apple’s iPad feature page or just look at the iWork suite for iPad or NY Times’ iPad app. These apps were designed for the iPad, and leverage lots of the new functionality. So going forward app developers, reporters, and bloggers, please make the distinction clear. Thanks! (By the way, this is the same advice I would give to Android app developers targeting both handsets and the new crop of tablet devices.)

UPDATE: The Creston app is iPad “compatible”, according to Creston’s own Apple product page.  It states: “Both apps [Creston Mobile, Creston Mobile Pro] are compatible with the original iPhone, iPhone 3G, iPod touch and iPad.” [Demo]

Looks like MSI has just raised the all-in-one PC bar, nudging Apple’s iMac and HP’s TouchSmart 600 PC aside. According to the company’s press release (attached below), MSI will showcase its latest Wind Top creation, the 22-inch AE2280 and the 24-inch AE2420, at CeBIT 2010. No word on availability just yet, but the preview specs will leave most PC enthusiasts drooling. Product highlights: 3D capable display (for 3D TV/Games/Movies), 24-inch 120Hz LED, multi-touch support, i3/i5/i7 Intel Core processor options, premium 10-watt speakers. More details should be revealed at the show next month. I’m guessing folks are hoping to hear that Blu-ray is included on this Windows 7 Media Center PC. MORE »

I can’t understand why this wireless HTPC keyboard hasn’t received more attention! Originally introduced by Cideko late last year, a new, co-branded version of the Cideko Air Keyboard will be sold by MSI this Spring, according to Cideko’s news announcement (pics of the MSI branded product available here). However, you buy the original Cideko Air Keyboard from Amazon.com TODAY for $89.99. Product highlights: 50 meter wireless range, compatibility with Windows / Mac / Linux, QWERTY keyboard, multimedia keys, left/right mouse buttons, and the best part… a gyro mouse that lets users move the cursor on-screen with simple wrist motions. I also dig that it’s similar in size and design to a game consoler controller. Check the demo video below and see if you don’t come away impressed. MORE »

Today Boxee is announcing the availability of a new internet content app powered by Redux, an online community where users promote the best photos, videos, and links found online and associate them to user-created niche channels. Some of the popular channels on Redux include: 110% Awesomeness, Best Music Videos Ever, Art, WTF?, Fail Moments, Top Gear videos. But what’s great about having a Redux application on Boxee, is that it allows Boxee users, especially those using Boxee on their TV, to discover and view/rate highly-rated, crowd-sourced content at the press of a button. In addition, the new Redux app offers up two viewing modes for your enjoyment: Standard and TV (fullscreen — shown below). MORE »

The New York Times is reporting that both Walmart and VUDU have been informing Hollywood studios and CE manufactures of the deal today. While it hasn’t been officially announced (UPDATE: It’s official! Press release attached below), the acquisition is big news for the industry. As many of you know already, VUDU is a three year old internet movie streaming service who competes directly with Amazon On Demand, Blockbuster, Cinema Now, and Netflix. While VUDU may be the smallest of the bunch in terms of users, VUDU offers the best quality video experience, delievering content at 1080p HD with Dolby Digital Plus 5.1 surround sound, and has the largest number of supported net-connected HDTVs right up there with Netflix. What’s more, VUDU recently added an Apps feature (pictured above) with video channels/services that competes, some might say, directly with Yahoo! TV Widgets and to an extent, Boxee. All in all, a smart move on Walmart’s part to make a bigger impact with their movie business and, perhaps, even their retail business through a custom Walmart store channel in the future. MORE »

Don’t like Android? Can’t stand the iPad? You’re in luck! On March 3rd you’ll be able to order DigitalRise’s new X9 multi-touch tablet PC powered by Windows 7. The X9 offers a 10.2-inch (1024×600) touchscreen, Intel Atom N270 1.6Ghz processor, 2GB of RAM, 160GB hard drive, 1.3MP webcam, 3G via SIM, 802.11g Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS, 3 x USB 2.0 ports, and a 4-in-1 memory card reader. Price: $799 @ ChinaGrabber.com. However, if you can’t wait ’til then, or you don’t need multi-touch, you can pick up the original Digitalrise S1 touch tablet — with essentially the same specs — for $659.99 today. Below is a video demo of the DigitalRise X9 in action. [via] MORE »

I just stumbled on this little beauty while looking for an Ubuntu ultra-thin laptop. What you’re seeing here is System76’s answer to all the other Intel Atom N330 / NVIDIA ION powered nettops like the ASRock ION 330HT, ASUS EeeBox PC, Acer Aspire REVO, etc. However, what’s sets the Meerkat ION Nettop apart from the rest of the crowd is that it’s hardware configurable (customize it during checkout), pre-loaded with Ubuntu (the most popular Linux OS — Boxee / XBMC / MythTV / Hulu Desktop ready), and starts at $359 with a hard drive, 802.11n Wi-Fi, Gigabit Ethernet, HDMI, and more. MORE »