A comparison of PS3 and 360 as media players

[patsu]

Did you try out other tricks ? Or call their customer service ? [sniggle]

 

[AzBat]

Microsoft posted a video called The Future of the Living Room. Gives some insight into their new dashboard update & what they have planned for enterainment on the Xbox...

http://blogs.technet.com/b/microsoft_blog/archive/2011/08/17/the-future-of-the-living-room.aspx

Also here's more hands on with the new media capabilities...

http://venturebeat.com/2011/08/18/microsoft-nui-xbox-360/

Tommy McClain

 

[NavNucST3]

When do we get the updated ESPN? I'm waiting to see Real Madrid lose...again...to Barcelona

 

[AzBat]

When do we get the updated ESPN? I'm waiting to see Real Madrid lose...again...to Barcelona

I assume with the updated dashboard, but that might mean after the start of the college football season. I've heard rumors that the beta dashboard might be coming at the start of September. Hopefully we get it then.

Tommy McClain

 

[NavNucST3]

I assume with the updated dashboard, but that might mean after the start of the college football season. I've heard rumors that the beta dashboard might be coming at the start of September. Hopefully we get it then.

Tommy McClain

Why did I have it in my head that it was coming in August? EDIT: http://majornelson.com/2011/07/28/espn-update-coming-in-august/

 

[AzBat]

Why did I have it in my head that it was coming in August? EDIT: http://majornelson.com/2011/07/28/espn-update-coming-in-august/

My bad. I remember that now. So it looks like they're rolling it out before the dashboard update. That's exciting.

Tommy McClain

 

[just_some_gamer]

New BBC iPlayer for PS3

As an aside -

The new BBC iPlayer for PS3 is utter rubbish.
Unresponsive, clunky, unintuitive – horrible to navigate, hard work to bloody even exit the thing.
Granted – the playback quality once you finally get what you want seems to be a wee bit better, but its such hard work getting there that you’ll have given up and thrown down the controller… then headed to watch your programme on the laptop or PC.
Awful.
Who tested it?!

 

[Shifty Geezer]

I shared exactly the same sentiments when I first tried it, but the second time I realised it was designed distinct from the console experience. It doesn't recognised any controls beyond the 4 directions and an action (X). Once you understand that, it's not too bad. The Beeb really should tailor each player to the device, and in the case of PS3 should have implemented controls exactly as the default player, but I suppose that's asking too much work.

I don't think the new version is bad, just very different (apart from being slow, as you say, which might be Sony's fault for a crappy browser architecture?).

 

[NavNucST3]

My bad. I remember that now. So it looks like they're rolling it out before the dashboard update. That's exciting.

Tommy McClain

ESPN v2 is now available!

EDIT: This is even better than the previews.

 

[patsu]

I shared exactly the same sentiments when I first tried it, but the second time I realised it was designed distinct from the console experience. It doesn't recognised any controls beyond the 4 directions and an action (X). Once you understand that, it's not too bad. The Beeb really should tailor each player to the device, and in the case of PS3 should have implemented controls exactly as the default player, but I suppose that's asking too much work.

I don't think the new version is bad, just very different (apart from being slow, as you say, which might be Sony's fault for a crappy browser architecture?).

Is the same UI shared for all devices ?

I haven't checked out Vudu and Hulu Plus on other devices. They seem to work well on PS3.

The keyboard input should accept tabbing though. Right now, it ignores TAB (Doesn't skip to the next field). So I have to pick up the controller and then go back to my full-sized keyboard again.

The NHL and MLB apps are actually more interesting since they also display calendar of events, scoreboards in addition to the TV programming.

 

[Shifty Geezer]

It should be when the update is rolled out for all devices. the new deisign makes sense as an interface for an internet enabled TV. Launching first on PS3, I suppose it just met with a lot more preconceptions, but that's that largest single unfied CE device that uses iPlayer AFAIK. The only larger source of use is PCs that, obviously, want the PC centered interface.

 

[Shifty Geezer]

Sony have a shocking attack of Common Sense and are rebranding their Qriocity services to Sony Entertainment Network. Although I do wonder if that means they have lost traction with 3rd parties? Qriocity would fit in with any manufacturer's device, and promised device-independent content, but if they are naming it outright a Sony service, won't it be less appealing on rival's hardware?

 

[patsu]

Some reports say that a few existing services such as MLB, Hulu Plus, are lumped under the Sony Network Entertainment umbrella (as partner services). So they may not need to all use Qriocity.

Next step for Qriocity is probably Online Pass, and Blu-ray digital copy.

 

[patsu]

Oops, catching up on news. Looks like the limited streaming scheme is a glitch:
http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/s..._of_Simultaneous_Streaming_and_Star_Trek/7605

Customers are up in arms, but Netflix says the offending changes are a glitch in the system.
Folks are getting pissed. Netflix has made some very unwelcome changes in the last few months and now some members aren't able to stream to multiple devices at once. Even worse, depending on your love of sci-fi, the entire first season of 'Star Trek: The Next Generation' has just up and disappeared.

Netflix says that these aren't new policies or issues with contracts, but glitches in the system caused by the recent Latin America expansion. According to communications VP Steve Swasey, "No Netflix member is limited to less than two concurrent streams. A few Netflix members have heard differently from us, which is an error that we are correcting."

...

EDIT: Glitch is said to be caused by the recent Latin American expansion...

Netflix lands in Brazil, 43 other Latin American countries within the week:
http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/05/netflix-lands-in-brazil-43-other-latin-american-countries-withi/

Netflix promised our friends in Central and South America would soon be able to enjoy the pleasures of Watch Instantly. Starting today with Brazil, and with 43 other Latin American countries to follow before September 12th, the pioneering streaming video service is making good on that promise. Customers in the land of Carnival can enjoy a free one-month trial, after which a subscription will run BR$14.99 a month. The roll out will be staggered over the coming days, with most areas getting a price point equivalent to $7.99 in American currency and some having both English and Spanish language options.

...

Perhaps South American console gamers will have NetFlix streaming soon ?

 

[AzBat]

Policy isn't really new. Plus, the enforcement seems to be in error...

"No Netflix member is limited to less than two concurrent streams," Netflix spokesman Steve Swasey told Techland in an e-mail. "A few Netflix members have heard differently from us, which is an error that we are correcting."

http://www.tmcnet.com/topics/articl...treaming-one-netflix-account-will-cost-ya.htm

Move along, nothing to see here.

Tommy McClain

 

[patsu]

Another rumor about Blu-ray coming to 360:
http://sillegamer.com/?p=3750

According to the rumor section of the August 2011 edition of the Xbox 360 Mag Italy, Microsoft is supposedly gearing up to release an external Blu-ray drive for their highly successful Xbox 360 console.
If proven to to factually correct, the enticing addition of a Blu-ray drive could be a direct measure to counter the PS3′s rising momentum – following the highly publicized price cut announced by Sony at Gamescom 2011.

An interesting selection of rumors have surfaced over the years relating to the possible introduction of an add-on Blu-ray drive for Xbox 360, with SmartHouse previously reporting that Microsoft intended to release both an external Blu-ray drive and also a fully-fledged, Blu-ray-enabled console.

 

[patsu]

Yes, the main trap Sony need to avoid is the Not Invented Here syndrome. Since they have been rather open so far on PS3, this has not been an issue. e.g., They partner with Omnifone to offer Music Unlimited, but also offer competing video services on PS3.

The other problem is user experience integration, which they are not as successful. PS3 and PSP use SenseMe to categorize music. Unfortunately it only works on Music Unlimited.

GoogleTV's search can deal with multiple sources. Microsoft is also looking into auto classification of movies:
http://venturebeat.com/2011/09/08/jinnis-movie-genome-may-be-headed-for-the-xbox/

Microsoft has just licensed semantic video discovery technology from Israeli startup Jinni to help you find the perfect movie.

At the heart of Jinni is a movie genome comparable to Pandora’s music genome, which categorizes video content and provides recommendations. Microsoft did not specify how the software will be used but it’s likely to be deployed to boost video services on the XBox gaming console which already allows access to Netflix. Jinni was previously selected as a partner for Google TV.

...

At the heart of Jinni is a movie genome similar to Pandora’s music genome that categorizes video content using 2,200 different parameters or “genes” covering mood, style, setting, atmosphere, etc. Jinni uses a combination of natural language processing and sentiment analysis to derive the genes from reviews and other information available online about a particular movie. A minimum of 4 reviews is required to analyze a title and even long-tail titles have typically been reviewed many more times. This method means that a title can be indexed even if it has never been watched by a Jinni user.The recommendation system learns your “movie personality” based on ratings you give to search results and expects to give high-quality personalized recommendations after 10-20 ratings.

The combination of algorithms used to extract the genes, determine their relevance and use them in recommendations is Jinni’s golden egg and a closely guarded secret. This is not an easy problem given the subtleties of language and meaning (“Is dark humour the same as irreverent humour?” “What is the distinction between assassin, serial killer and slasher?”) not to mention the unstructured nature of the online data which is used.

 

[RudeCurve]

The other problem is user experience integration, which they are not as successful. PS3 and PSP use SenseMe to categorize music. Unfortunately it only works on Music Unlimited.

I don't understand what you mean, I've been using SenseMe to cateorize my own music collection without MU for about a year now. One thing I don't like about SenseMe is the fact the EQ presets don't work while using SenseMe which is kinda stupid. I hope SONY releases a firmware update that fixes this.

 

[patsu]

I don't understand what you mean, I've been using SenseMe to cateorize my own music collection without MU for about a year now. One thing I don't like about SenseMe is the fact the EQ presets don't work while using SenseMe which is kinda stupid. I hope SONY releases a firmware update that fixes this.

I meant SenseMe and its further incarnation should be a platform wide service instead of limiting to just Sony's own media services. But that also depends on whether other contents providers are willing to give Sony their catalog.

At this moment, SenseMe only applies to HDD contents and Music Unlimited. From user perspective, it should also apply to other music services (VidZone ?), and even movie services. Information management is a big thing considering Sony's open-arm approach. ^_^

 

[Shifty Geezer]

Sony business talk moved here.