I have a couple of posts that are almost done, but I have to sit at my desktop computer to finish them. For one there’s audio work to do, for the other there’s scanning. But right now I’m neither there nor in my usual 11-12 weeknight spot on the porch, I’m downstairs in front of the projector screen. The Daily Show is playing in the corner while I type this. I never had a use for picture-in-picture, the most oversold feature in TV’s of a bygone age, but being able to browse the web while having TV in the corner, while sitting on the couch ten feet from a 65-inch image, is surprisingly better than having a netbook in my lap and having to look up at a regular TV. For a web TV player I prefer the Roku, but it is neat having the Logitech Revue combine online video with cable TV and web browsing.
Tag: google tv
IPTV STB Wars
Having committed myself to Roku as my IPTV hardware of choice, it’s interesting to watch the thrashing that’s going on with the other players in this market. From my viewpoint, I see Apple TV as being an on-target hit, and Google TV as being a misfire. Look at the remote on this Sony Blu-ray with Google TV!
My feeling is that the whole point of having IPTV is to get away from computer keyboards, sit back, and relax. Who ever feels relaxed when sitting at their laptop or desktop? Or, for that matter, when they’re texting on a phone?
For $400, this Sony unit seems to be a bargain compared to Logitech’s Revue for $300, with its much larger keyboard, but without a Blu-ray player. My Logitech Squeezebox Radio is an excellent product, and having seen for myself Sony’s comparatively poor implementation of Netflix streaming, I wonder how its performance will compare to the Logitech Revue? But it’s an academic question for me, because of my two Roku units. Michael Hiltzik at the Los Angeles Times is also a Roku fan, and he has some insight into what Roku CEO Anthony Wood is thinking these days.