Video delivered directly to your TV screen over high-speed internet through a dedicated set-top box. A few devices have been providing niche video this way, but new entrants like Sony and Apple could bring more mainstream offerings into play.
Why Now?
With broadband connections in most homes and the explosion of interest in homemade video, the times is ripe to move new viewing options from the sit-and-click- computer to the turn on, tune in, zone out TV environment.
How You’ll Benefit
The only thing better than TV is more TV. Cable can send only so many channels down the wire before it starts jamming up like traffic on your way to work. But, like the Web itself, Internet TV options are virtually limitless. An all-Christopher Walken channel? No problem.
The Web-Ready TV
Starting this summer, Sony will deliver free internet video through an optional box mounted on the back of it’s high-end Bravia sets. Announced pickings are slim — mostly video from AOL, Yahoo and Grouper, plus the movie trailers and music videos — but the entertainment giant could expand it’s offerings if the service is a hit. Although the adapter has no storage, Sony says the box can stream HD content live without hiccups.
The Everything Box
Diego, a software supplier for cable boxes, unveils its own device later this year, combining high-def cable TV with broadband programming. The box has a digital video recorder (DVR) and can play back CDs, DVDs, music files and photos, and it connects to the receivers over component cables to stream HD video from one set to the other.
The iTunes Connection
Apple TV doesn’t completely free you from your computer, but it brings a huge source of popular TV shows and movies — the iTunes store — to your living room. think of the box as a pipelinepumping your iTunes library (Mac or Pc; music, photos and video) to your TV. Apple has been characteristically secretive about the final features, but we know it will give you the option of connecting to your computer by Ethernet or next-gen 802.11n Wi-Fi, will buffer content on its internal 40-gigabyte hard drive rather than stream it (for smoother playback), and will support high-definition video.
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