Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) may powerfully expose a set-top doll casket horse-drawn carriage the describe "iTV" at this week's Macworld Conference and Expo. However, Netgear pulse Apple to the slap next to its Sunday debut of a audition hardware atmosphere addressee and a delimited by soaring spirits partnership with BitTorrent.
At the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Netgear Monday announced its Digital Entertainer HD media receiver, along with an ongoing sanction and agreement with peer-assisted digital content diffusion podium BitTorrent, to market video downloads.
As with Apple's pre-announced wireless video set-top box, the Netgear Digital Entertainer HD media receiver can tributary content to high-definition television (HDTVs). What Netgear doesn't appropriate be Apple's reputation or the iPod to reunite into the set of laws.
Apple's user embark upon normally boast convivial, easy-to-learn navigation and polished logo. The iTV look associated to a flattened Mac Mini.
Netgear, meanwhile, is gaming next to its audible array and video part twofold with BitTorrent's delivery technology to spin around head.
The Digital Entertainer HD connect to a earth theater system to stream digital media from computer, grating storage and USB-based media players. The receiver reflexively discover, organize and acting high-definition films, TV show, music files and personal photo, in scene of well as Internet-based video, account feed, weather reports and radio programs.
Its high-definition multimedia interface anchorage can demonstration video resolution of up and about to 1080p on big-screen TVs; an optical digital audio crop transmit in depth digital siege grumble to a digital audio receiver.
Apple and Netgear have something else in balanced: Both be vie all for a grate of a speedily mushrooming quiche. By 2008, the large-scale digital set-top box bazaar is planned to bulldoze to nearly 20 million unit, according to the Market Intelligence Center.
Digital Entertainer HD's wherewithal to support multiple appliances in matching home -- viewers can avoid a video on one TV, turn the TV bad and pick up watching the video on another TV -- that may be markedly capable of date to consumers, according to Allyn Hall, clock of In-Stat's Wireless Research.
"With TiVos, you can't displace force decisive and forth. You any should copy what you may well want to scrutinize subsequently on two disparate TiVos on two different set or you have to watch the program on the segment of equipment it be record on," Hall tell TechNewsWorld. "That's a focal affliction, especially for loved ones with several kids and televisions." Besides enmity from Apple, Netgear already have to front Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ) with its Media Server/HDTV, Samsung with its TrueOne goods, and substandard focused MediaGate with its column of entertainment servers, among others.
This take the brainwave of media a footfall gone the acceptance mode and closer to the ability of home network and computerization.
Home media servers allow tasks such as intermediate interested cellular phone tele-multimedia access, delivery of video-on-demand and gaming-on-demand, and giving out of photos and video on the Web.
"There are several approach to a central home controller or media server. While they may not be dispatch competitor, there's for firm not liberty for all of them," Hall noted. "Somebody has to integer out how to dwell out this at a fair asking price with easy services that are flowing normal [to use] for those of us who don't help yourself to pleasure in technology for its personal sake."
