Google Adds Priority Inbox to Gmail
Google released a new feature in our Gmail inboxes today. It’s called Priority Inbox and it’s supposed to help see what’s important right at the top. I enabled the feature on my account to test it out. It didn’t give me that many important messages but it will be a training process. I like the layout of the messages so it will be worth the investment to train. Below is a video demo of the new Priority Inbox.
Boxee Movie Libraries
Boxee added Movie Library to the Boxee Beta. It’s like the TV Show Library, allowing you to add titles to your queue for later viewing. There aren’t any major labels but there is still a lot of content on there. I’m sure this is just a start.
EZTakes
No more searching high and low for art house, independent, classic and cult films, because EZTakes specializes in bringing hard-to-find movies to you. The EZTakes library contains nearly a thousand ad-supported titles ripe for the picking that you can watch on Boxee or virtually any computer, smart phone or portable video player.IndieMoviesOnline
Since June 2009, IndieMoviesOnline has been streaming high quality independent films, documentaries, and shorts. Known for its fierce movie reviews and behind-the-scenes editorials of all the top box-office hits (and flops), IndieMoviesOnline delivers films from both mainstream talent and hot up-and-comers. With free access anywhere on the globe to hundreds of movies, there’s no excuse not to soak up these great indie flicks.MUBI*
MUBI is your online cinema, anytime, anywhere. MUBI will give you the latest buzz from Cannes or a restored masterpiece personally chosen by Martin Scorsese (he’s a member, too!). A social network that can let you find a visual gem that will definitely not be released in the local multiplex, and allows you to find a girl in Tokyo who loves Kubrick (she actually exists, her name is Yuko and she’s into Wong Kar-Wai too…).
*NB: to access MUBI on Boxee, you’ll need to pair your account first.OpenFilm
Openfilm.com is a fast-growing online community where filmmakers and film lovers around the globe discover and distribute independent film. Through its unique technology, live online chats, social network, extensive film festival database, unique member channels, and Advisory Board, which includes James Caan, Robert Duvall, Mark Rydell and Scott Caan, Openfilm unites the best elements of the film industry in one place.
Netflix Now Streaming on iPhone and iPod Touch
You can now get your Netflix fix on your iPhone or iPod touch. Netflix released a iPhone app that allows you to stream content, even over 3G. Go to the iTunes store to get it now. The app is free but you need at least the $8.99 plan to stream. Video demo below:
Netflix iPhone App Video from Netflix on Vimeo.
Video: GoogleTV Demo
The original demo Google did of Google TV didn’t go the greatest. That doesn’t mean that Google TV won’t be a great product. The demo video below shows off Google TV and the integration with Dish Network. While it would be cool to have integration with a cable/satellite provider, I’m still hoping Google TV will be the best stand alone set-top box. You can check out the demo video below.
Windows Home Server “Vail” Adds Mac Support
The new version of Windows Home Server codenamed Vail supports Mac. This is great news for people like me that use both Windows and Mac at home. I have been building how-tos since 2008 on getting the current Windows Home Server to work with Mac. You can see version 1, 2 and 3. It’s obvious by the 10s of thousands of visitors to those pages and the numerous amounts of links, even on Microsofts site, that Mac support is something people wanted out of Windows Home Server.
· MAC Support:
o Onboarding experience similar as Windows
o Managed device in dashboard
o Launchpad for the mac
o Alert viewer for the mac
o Add in provider for the mac
Time machine support is through the Launchpad were you can configure Time Machine. I’m testing things out now. I’ll post more details after I play around a bit. Vail is public beta so if you have a 64bit machine you can test it out. You need to register at connect.microsoft.com
AT&T Launched U-verse iPhone App
AT&T launched a U-verse iPhone app that allows you to manage your DVR and download and watch content. There are other DVR management apps, like DirecTV, but none have the ability to watch content on the go. It’s a nice feature if you U-verse service and doesn’t cost extra. The app is free and you can get it in the iTunes store.
Press release below:
AT&T* today announced its AT&T U-verse® Mobile App is now available on the App Store.
The U-verse Mobile app gives U-verse subscribers the ability to download and watch popular TV content on their iPhone so they can take their U-verse TV experience with them, wherever they go. AT&T is the first TV provider to offer an integrated mobile app that allows you to both manage your DVR and download and watch select shows. The app is another example of how AT&T delivers more value to U-verse TV customers with continued service enhancements and innovative apps.
U-verse Mobile replaces the popular Mobile Remote Access for iPhone app and incorporates the ability to browse the U-verse TV program guide, view program descriptions, schedule and manage your DVR recordings, while adding the ability to download available episodes over any Wi-Fi connection, and watch them in full-screen mode on your iPhone from anywhere. U-verse TV customers already enjoy the flexibility of remote DVR management. More than 100,000 U-verse TV customers use the Web and Mobile Remote Access apps every month.
“We’re making it possible for you to watch TV shows on your iPhone at no extra charge. It’s just one more valuable and innovative feature available on U-verse TV,” said David Christopher, chief marketing officer, AT&T Mobility and Consumer Markets. “Our U-verse multi-screen promise is now a reality for millions of U-verse TV customers, with content available on U-verse TV, U-verse Online, and today, U-verse Mobile. No cable provider comes close to matching the cross-platform experience we’re delivering today, and we’ll continue to add unique features that further integrate these screens.”
All U-verse TV customers can download the app to manage their DVR, and the ability to download and watch content is available for customers that subscribe to the U300 package or higher. U-verse customers can upgrade their TV packages at any time at www.att.com/u-verse. New U-verse TV customers and iPhone owners that order AT&T U-verse U300 or U450 will receive a $75 iTunes gift card.
You can browse or search a library of downloadable shows, and select which series or specific episode you want to download. The content is downloaded to iPhone over a Wi-Fi connection. All AT&T U-verse High Speed Internet customers have home Wi-Fi installed as part of their service and get access to AT&T’s U.S. Wi-Fi network at no additional cost.
The U-verse Mobile App includes TV shows from several popular networks and AT&T will continue to add more content on an ongoing basis.
U-verse Mobile is the latest way that AT&T is mobilizing everything that’s important to customers — their favorite content, apps, entertainment and social networks. AT&T today delivers the nation’s fastest mobile broadband network as well as the nation’s largest Wi-Fi network, giving customers the best combination of speed and coverage.
The U-verse Mobile App is available for free from the App Store on iPhone or at www.itunes.com/appstore/.
AT&T U-verse offers numerous features and apps that enhance your entertainment experience, including many ways that TV and wireless services work together — a benefit that cable providers don’t offer. In addition to U-verse Mobile, you can check your wireless and U-verse Voice messages from a single voice mailbox; use the YP.COM TV app to search for local business information and send the call to your home or wireless phone with the click of your remote; and more.
AT&T U-verse TV is the only 100 percent Internet Protocol-based television (IPTV) service offered by a national service provider, making AT&T U-verse one of the most dynamic and feature-rich services available today. AT&T U-verse TV ranked “Highest in Residential Television Service Satisfaction in the South and West Regions Two Years in a Row,” according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2008 and 2009 Residential Television Service Provider Satisfaction StudiesSM. For additional information on AT&T U-verse — or to find out if it’s available in your area — visit www.att.com/u-verse.
*AT&T products and services are provided or offered by subsidiaries and affiliates of AT&T Inc. under the AT&T brand and not by AT&T Inc.
