http://www.ecoustics.com/latest/articles Latest articles, updated every five minutes http://www.ecoustics.com/pcw/howto/150578 Add external storage to your TiVo, beef up your Xbox 360, rip DVDs to your media player, play your iTunes purchases on any device, and use your standard cable remote to skip commercials. Thu, 04 Sep 2008 01:00:00 -0400 http://www.ecoustics.com/tl/22606/ These days, TiVo has become a generic term for any DVR on the market, and for good reason. They paved the way for the rest of the industry, innovating unique features like trick play and pausing live TV. Similar to other innovators and leaders in their respective industries such as Xerox or Kleenex, TiVo has been adopted into the American lexicon. But just because someone may call any DVR a TiVo, it doesn't mean that there isn't a long way to go before it could even come close to the real thing. You see, while cable and satellite providers have been satisfied to only provide their customers with the rudimentary features that TiVo perfected eight years ago, TiVo themselves have never stopped innovating. Aside from simply recording programs you want to watch --which, as far as I'm concerned, TiVo does better than anybody using Wishlists, Swivel Search and Suggestions-- there are many other features on a TiVo that generic DVRs simply don't have, and probably never will. Sure, you can watch Pay-Per-View on a cable DVR, but how many allow you to rent movies from the extensive Amazon Unbox library? None. Or how about: playing your MP3 collection, browsing through... Tue, 27 May 2008 16:29:10 -0400 http://www.ecoustics.com/dt/talk/248 We covered the launch of the Netflix Player recently and were not particularly excited about the offering, and those that posted their response after the piece were less than excited as well. AppleTV which came from a company that appeared to be unable to find a flop, turned out to be one, and I’ve been using the Vudu product which works at least as well as the AppleTV does but I? wonder if I would abandon my Netflix subscription for it.At the same time I’ve done a deep dive with Microsoft’s IPTV platform which is sold to DSL providers who then subsidize it and resell it to consumers as part of their compet... Thu, 22 May 2008 03:00:00 -0400 http://forum.ecoustics.com/bbs/messages/34579/459435.html Sat, 08 Mar 2008 13:58:00 -0500 http://www.ecoustics.com/tl/18973/ Are you getting the most out of your gadgets? With so many products and information out there, it's hard to keep up with the useful items that any average person would buy. Sure, there are plenty of products for owners of specific devices (i.e., seemingly millions of iPod accessories), but what about those that are applicable to most any device that you happen to own? That's the criteria for this list: it has to be something that's not only useful to most people, but is also relevant regardless of the brand name or type of gadget. It was a hard list to come up with, but here are my top 5 picks: 1. Hold on to your Gadgets. I used to constantly drop my cell phone, iPod, and other gadgetry. As a result, they're badly scratched up and difficult to use. Then, I discovered eGrips . Attaching eGrips to your devices is a great way to keep your gadget from escaping your slippery hand while holding it, and keeps your device in its place when you set it down. I've used eGrips since they were first introduced a couple of years ago. They're inexpensive (~$10) and they have generic ones ... Tue, 11 Sep 2007 16:21:00 -0400 http://www.ecoustics.com/dt/talk/196 Coming July 1 is a long-awaited revolution in the deployment of cable boxes. For the first time, subscribers will have a chance to replace rented converter-descramblers with purchased ones. However, some are questioning whether this will save consumers money—or actually inflate cable bills. Before we get to the juicy stuff, some background: Congress mandated as long ago as 1996 that consumers be able to buy our own cable boxes. That will require an “integration ban.” In other words, the security features have to be pried loose from the box itself. The mechanism for this is the CableCARD. It’s in limited deployment, but cable companies hate it. No, I’m serious; they... Sun, 24 Jun 2007 03:00:00 -0400 http://www.ecoustics.com/tl/18406/ From HD cables to HD discs to HD audio, discover how to get a deeper high-definition experience. When building (or adapting) a home theater for high-definition viewing, it’s best to start with the basics. In this case, the TV is the first thing that needs to be taken care of and, to be blunt, the bigger the screen the better... Tue, 22 May 2007 16:34:56 -0400 http://forum.ecoustics.com/bbs/messages/34579/354824.html Mon, 14 May 2007 06:41:00 -0400 http://www.ecoustics.com/dt/feature/76 A few days ago, I bought and reviewed one of Apple's brand new, ultra-popular Apple TV entertainment systems. I wrote an exhaustive nine page review (yes, 9 pages!) and found plenty of positive things to say about the Apple TV. I also made sure to point out the negatives so as to not give a biased or intentionally one-sided report.There were two major issues I had with the Apple TV when I first tested it. Primary was somewhat disappointing picture quality when using HDMI cables. This was probably the most baffling because HDMI is considered superior to component cables; compon... Wed, 28 Mar 2007 02:00:00 -0400 http://www.ecoustics.com/dt/feature/71 Wouldn’t the world be a better wireless place if we could enjoy high definition audio and video without cluttering the home media room with yards of cable? It certainly would be nice to be able to relax and not stare at the rat’s nest sitting behind your television. One upcoming wireless solution which hopes to bring this home entertainment dream to reality is called WHDI and is being offered by a company named Amimon.WHDI, which stands for Wireless High Definition Interface, is seen by Amimon co-founder and vice president of marketing and business development Noam Geri as being a dream come true for those wanting to enjoy the next threshold in home entertainment pleasure.“A void until ... Fri, 05 Jan 2007 03:00:00 -0500 http://www.ecoustics.com/tl/15363/ With Digital Video Recorders (DVRs) becoming a required piece of consumer electronics in many households, we figured it was time to recommend a few accessories to help you get the most enjoyment out of your DVR. The first two DVR accessories listed are really more of a requirement for anything above just basic usage and include a satellite or cable feed and the proper audio and video components. The final accessories really take you a step beyond your basic setup and enhance your DVR experience. As always, feel free to post your thoughts in the discussion area. Tue, 24 Oct 2006 13:36:07 -0400 http://www.ecoustics.com/dt/talk/149 With everyone focused on the incredibly expensive acquisition of YouTube by Google, attention once again drifted away from the Apple connection to Google and what may be the big long term plan jointly being executed by both companies. So let’s take a moment to lay it out.The Next Generation of TVTV started out being between the networks and the user and was for the most part advertising driven. With the advent of cable we began paying not only for the transport of the media but some of the media as well. This move to cable has been a mixed blessing at best. While we certainly get more content, and sometimes even better content, our cost for TV has gone up dramatically because we are n... Wed, 11 Oct 2006 03:00:00 -0400 http://www.ecoustics.com/tl/14452/ When HDTV comes in and all the channels change, how do we get ordinary TV over an antenna without exorbant charges from a cable or Direct TV service? Mon, 25 Sep 2006 16:50:01 -0400 http://www.ecoustics.com/pcw/howto/127129 Rev up Web access, zap annoying ads, and fix overloaded right-click menus. Mon, 25 Sep 2006 04:00:00 -0400 http://www.ecoustics.com/tl/14879/ I have a 61" Hitachi Ultravision, circa 2000. The electricity went off the other day, and when it came back on, my television works as good as before except I do not receive any UHF channels. I have an outside antenna that is connected with a 75-ohm coaxial cable. On my Sharp LCD television, the UHF channels are working very well. Both are connected to the same antenna. I would like to know what I need to do to receive the UHF channels again. Wed, 30 Aug 2006 17:56:36 -0400 http://www.ecoustics.com/tl/14278/ I recently tried to upgrade my audio on my satellite box by switching to an optical audio connection. However, I couldn't seem to get it to work. The cord that I used was rather long, so I wound it up with a twist tie so the cord wasn't all over my floor. In diagnosing the problem, I tried unwinding the cable and it worked fine! Why does winding up a cable cause it not to work right? Wed, 07 Jun 2006 16:52:40 -0400 http://www.ecoustics.com/tl/14102/ Let's face it. The transition to HDTV has been a painful and confusing one. It's bad enough that there are now 10 different types of TV technologies available in the market, but what's worse is that display makers, content providers, set-top box manufacturers, and the entire PC industry has been pushing several completely different ways of connecting high definition components since the launch of the first HDTV products in 1998. What's the end result? There are now millions of high definition products in the market, and they all have different plugs on the back. Wed, 03 May 2006 15:17:09 -0400 http://forum.ecoustics.com/bbs/messages/34579/207261.html Sat, 11 Mar 2006 13:45:00 -0500 http://www.ecoustics.com/tl/13384/ My mother has a Sylvania SSC192 TV/VCR combo. I bought her a DVD player for her birthday, and I can't help her connect it over the phone. Her TV/VCR unit only has a place for the white and yellow connectors, but not the red. Plus, her remote does not have a button to switch from TV to video. Help please!!! Wed, 08 Feb 2006 12:23:33 -0500 http://www.ecoustics.com/pcw/howto/124154 Viiv explained; 200 mbps over cable; and USB without wires. Mon, 30 Jan 2006 04:00:00 -0500 http://www.ecoustics.com/tl/13265/ I've finally moved my phone service into the 21st century. I couldn't help it. Of course, if you compare the $25/mo unlimited plan to my existing equivalent $90/mo SBC plan (to be fair, I'm also redesigning the need for a $20/mo fax line out of my life) also made the choice pretty easy. They even threw in a $200 phone and a free month's service for signing up at the show.So, now I'm up on Vonage, and I thought I'd share some a little about my experience in the last week...First of all, the free phone is the Uniden UIP1869V VoIP phone system. It's one of these phone deals that allows you to add on 5.8GHz wireless headsets all day long, and only use one (in this case) network connection. I like the form-factor of the handheld unit, and it does a fair job of synching up (via USB cable) with Outlook contacts, etc. The big drawback is that the base of the silly thing is corded. How dumb is that! I can't remember the last corded phone I purchased. But no big deal, it ended up down in my command center being a gateway for my ... Tue, 24 Jan 2006 22:50:07 -0500 http://www.ecoustics.com/pcw/howto/123866 Want to go wireless? We have some advice for you. Fri, 09 Dec 2005 03:00:00 -0500 http://forum.ecoustics.com/bbs/messages/34579/172634.html Thu, 03 Nov 2005 05:10:00 -0500 http://www.ecoustics.com/tl/12322/ DVI (Digital Visual Interface) is the newer digital connector that is quickly replacing VGA connections for hooking up your average flat panel monitor to your PC. Projectors, HDTV's and other digital equipment are also making use of this new connection. However, the prospect of just going out and picking up a new DVI cable for... Fri, 14 Oct 2005 18:00:19 -0400 http://www.ecoustics.com/tl/12104/ I have a new E815 Motorola phone. I can't seem to find any software that allows me to back it up to my computer - this software was available for the old V710 (terrible phone), and the cable is the same. The local Verizon people said they weren't going to make it avaible since... Wed, 14 Sep 2005 12:38:42 -0400