This week, I got to spend time toying with a newly launched Video-on-Demand movie service called Vudu. To use it you connect a box to your SDTV or HDTV; it connects to an online movie library of approximately 4,000 titles, which are available for rental or purchase. They're encoded in MPEG-4 at 480p and can be upscaled by the box to 1080p. Once our PC Magazine Lead Analyst for Audio and Video, Tim Gideon, finishes reviewing the new iPods, he'll give you a thorough review of the Vudu box. In the meantime, I took a brief video so you can get a peek at the interface. Enjoy!
Looks pretty good; nice and responsive. The thing that everyone's gonna say though: Another box to put near my TV?
Also, only 480p? Forget the upscaling. If I'm investing in new hardware for video, it better do native 1080p. What's the point of a next-gen media delivery system that pumps out last-gen-quality content?
Baby steps, I guess...
Posted by:
Brian (Labs) September 6, 2007 10:43 AM
Hey,
I tried to get out of the way, LOL. I actually like the Vudu from what I see so far. The upscaling didn't look half bad, considering our set is 66 inches wide.
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September 6, 2007 12:56 AM
Everybody wave to Brian! :)
Looks pretty good; nice and responsive. The thing that everyone's gonna say though: Another box to put near my TV?
Also, only 480p? Forget the upscaling. If I'm investing in new hardware for video, it better do native 1080p. What's the point of a next-gen media delivery system that pumps out last-gen-quality content?
Baby steps, I guess...
September 6, 2007 10:43 AM
Hey,
I tried to get out of the way, LOL. I actually like the Vudu from what I see so far. The upscaling didn't look half bad, considering our set is 66 inches wide.