Sky Go Extra saves movies on your iPad to watch on the go

The latest blockbusters are coming to your phone or tablet, as Sky lets you save movies and TV and watch them wherever you are, without Wi-Fi.

Sky is launching Sky Go Extra, an expansion of the Sky Go catch-up and on-demand service for Sky customers, the Telegraph reports. That means you can save new episodes of Girls, blockbusters like Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol, or classic James Bond films on your smart device to watch on the train, on holiday, or anywhere you haven't got Wi-Fi.

For £5 per month extra, up to four users can download stuff per account, and you can download as many movies and TV shows as you want. Each download sticks around for a month. So it's not so much of a download as it is a downloan.

Get it? Downloan! I done made up a word.

Previously, you needed a Wi-Fi connection to stream movies and TV to your computer or portable device. With movies cached on your phone or tablet, you can watch anywhere without having to pay for Wi-Fi or cut into your data allowance.

It's not clear if this will be a standalone app, or just an update to the Sky Go app, which has angered Android fans by only supporting a few Android devices.

Sky has the best line-up of new films and the pick of the latest TV shows, especially from the US on Sky Atlantic. Rivals Netflix and Lovefilm don't do downloads (although Lovefilm does do those old-school downloads you used to get, the ones that take ages to download. What were they called? Oh yeah, DVDs.)

Availability of new releases is a real sticking point for online streaming services: last week it was revealed that to watch a decent selection of recent films you need to pay for both Lovefilm and Netflix.

Sky Go Extra is coming in the next few weeks. If you want to watch the latest blockbusters, but don't want to fork out for a dish and a Sky subscription, you can get films from Sky Movies channels on a pay-as-you-go basis with Now TV, Sky's spin-off app and online streaming service.

[Source: CNET]

Sky Go Extra will let users download shows to their mobile devices for £5 a month

Being able to watch Sky TV on the go using, erm, Sky Go, is great, but streaming video away from your home router can often be costly, especially if you're on EE's basic LTE plan. Thankfully, the broadcaster is looking to launch Sky Go Extra, which, if The Telegraph is to believed, will allow up to four users to download anything from the Murdoch library straight to their mobile device. Adding such functionality to your family's viewing habits will set you back £5 a month (after a two month free trial) but that also includes unlimited access to the company's first-window movie catalog, a jewel it's paid heavily to keep out of the hands of rivals such as Netflix Lovefilm.

[Source: Engadget]

CES 2013: Samsung UN85S9 Ultra HD looks stunning

LAS VEGAS--It's been a few CESes since we've seen a "world's biggest" something, and while the UN85S9 misses out on world's biggest 4K (UHD) screen this year, it does practice a bit ofone-upmanship on the LG competition by being a whole inch bigger.

The most striking thing about the S9 is the design: this is a floor-standing television mounted on what looks like an artist's easel and the TV is designed to tilt up and down.

The S9 TV features upgraded smarts with improved voice interaction and a quad-core processor to speed things along. If you wanted gesture control on this 4K TV -- or, even more usefully, Skype integration -- then unfortunately the F8500 misses out.

Meanwhile, the Smart Hub application has been enhanced with more content -- movies, videos, and music -- and a new TV program guide. This augments Samsung’s new S-Recommendation engine, which lists suggested content in thumbnails at the bottom of the screen.

The flagship TV incorporates a quad-core processor that should assist with the speed of the Smart TV interface as well as provide grunt for picture-processing tasks such as the Frame Rate Conversion engine and the Motion Judder Canceller.

[Source: CNET - Click here to read the full story]

Sharp’s New TVs Let You Surf the Web and Watch TV at the Same Time

Sharp announced during its CES 2013 keynote that it’s introducing dual-core processors into all of its connected TVs released this year. It will also launch iOS and Android remote control applications, include built-in Wi-Fi and offer the “best apps” on the televisions. A new “split screen TV and web” feature allows you to watch TV and surf the web at the same time. In other words, you can watch the Lakers game and surf TechnoBuffalo at the same time.

The remote control feature for iOS and Android allows you to flick photos, videos, music and other features right to your TV for showing off the media to friends and family. A Netflix “second screen” feature allows you to find a phone to watch on your smartphone and then play it on your Sharp AQUOS TV immediately.

A wallpaper mode turns the television into “your home’s largest digital photo frame.” Sharp is also integrating a built-in subwoofer with Yamaha signal processing for bass and new thin designs with brushed aluminum materials for the frame around the screen.

[Source: TechnoBuffalo]

Panasonic to Introduce 32 New TV Models in 2013

Panasonic just announced that it will introduce a total of 32 new HDTVs this year, including 16 plasma TVs and 16 LED TVs. The plasma TVs will range from 42-inches to 65-inches in size, and the LED TVs will be available in 32-inches to 65-inches in size. The flagship of the LED line is the Smart Viera WT Series television, which features LG’s brand new personalization options. The Plasma flagship is a new Viera VT series device, with similar features.

All of the TVs reduce power consumption by 15% from earlier models and will meet new Energy Star 6.0 certification.

[Source: TechnoBuffalo]

Google bringing YouTube Android app pairing, updated UI to more TVs

Google updated its YouTube app for Android back in November to allow for pairing with TVs equipped with Google TV, and it looks we'll soon be seeing quite a few more sets ready to work with your smartphone or tablet. The company confirmed today that new TVs from Bang & Olufsen, LG, Panasonic and Sony will be making their debut at CES, with additional sets and set-top boxes coming from Philips, Samsung, Sharp, Toshiba, Vizio, Western Digital and others over the course of 2013. In related news, Google's announced that its new UI for YouTube on TV -- previously seen on the Wii U and PlayStation 3 -- will also be featured on those new devices, offering full 1080p videos and a fairly minimalist interface.

[Source: Engadget]

GameStick brings a new Android game console to your TV, fits inside its own controller

OUYA likely won't be the only Android-based game console in town this spring. PlayJam is going beyond its smart TV roots to build the GameStick, a TV-based system that fits into a shell not much bigger than a typical flash drive -- it's small enough that the finished version should stow inside its own Bluetooth gamepad and draw power from the HDMI port, like Roku's Streaming Stick. The Jelly Beansystem's dual-core Amlogic processor isn't as powerful as the Tegra 3 in the OUYA, but it should also lead to a slightly more tempting $79 price. PlayJam's remaining challenge is the familiar one of reaching a crowdfunding target: the company says it needs $100,000 to go through its last development hurdles and ship the production GameStick in April. If the firm makes its goal, however, the low-cost gaming world will be delightfully crowded this year.

[Source: Engadget]

Tim Cook to give first TV interview on Rock Center Dec. 6

NBC will air the first televised interview with Apple CEO Tim Cook next week on Rock Center with Brian Williams. The interview was filmed today at the Grand Central Apple Store in New York City.

The network hasn't divulged the focus of the discussion, but it will be just one of three segments on the episode which is also slated to feature a chat with The Hobbit director Peter Jackson. After filming of the interview with Cook wrapped, Rock Center's Twitter account tweeted the above photo of Williams and the Apple CEO in front of the cameras.

Cook's spot on Rock Center with Brian Williams will air next Thursday, December 6 at 10 p.m. PT / 9 p.m. CT on NBC.

[Source: TUAW]

Mitsubishi is ending rear-projection TVs, ceases production of DLP and laser models

It's time for someone over at IDC to pop the champagne, as its 2007 projectionabout the end of rear-projection TVs turned out to be only a year off, now that the last company still making them has announced it's getting out of the game. As first reported by CE Pro, Mitsubishi is finally ceding to competition from flat-panels which have grown to equally ridiculous size, and cut prices so sharply that it "can no longer sustain our business in its current form." The company's official statement is after the break, confirming that its DLP and LaserVue models are no more however "existing customer relations and parts and services departments will remain in place along with existing authorized service centers" which should be good news for current owners. There's an in-depth retrospective of the technology at the source link, looking back to Samsung's exit that left Mitsubishi alone in the segment three years ago, long after others like Sony and Hitachi fled for thinner-framed climates.

Mitsubishi also made a go of it in flat-panels, but ditched those efforts last yearand will now focus on the professional market and home-theater projectors here in the US. In recent years the tech has improved with thinner models, integrated soundbars and even larger screens available. The slowing economy may have extended RPTV's lease on life with a size bang for buck that's tough to beat, but ultimately customers opted for bright flashy flat-panel HDTVs that offer easier wall-mounting options while seeming to get bigger, lighter and cheaper every year. We're sure there are more than a few super-sized rear-projection TVs that will continue to bring the big game to basements and dens everywhere, feel free to celebrate an old friend in the comments below.

[Source: Engadget]

Sharp's first 4K 32-inch IGZO LCD is destined for Japanese workstations

We've been waiting to enjoy the promised extra detail and low power consumption of IGZO-based LCD panels for a few years now, and they're finally starting to appear. The latest on the docket is Sharp's new PN-K321 monitor, built for professional use with 4K resolution (3,840 x 2,160) plus HDMI and DisplayPort inputs, and what Sharp claims is the industry's thinnest frame at just 35mm thick. With an expected price of 450,000 yen or so (about $5,500 US) when it debuts in February 2013 it's still too pricey for our desks but if you're doing CAD work you may be able to design a budget it can fit into. We're seeing them inphones, tablets and now monitors overseas, here's hoping we'll see plenty of these high pixel density yet power-sipping panels with US release dates at CES in January.

[Source: Engadget]

Sharp unveils bright, 90-inch LCD for uncannily life-sized signage

It would be a shame if Sharp kept that giant 90-inch AQUOS TV confined to living rooms, wouldn't it? The company is inclined enough to agree that it's building an industrial version, the PN-R903, for digital signs. Its 1080p resolution and local-dimming LEDs are as familiar as a well-worn pair of shoes, but that 6-foot, 8-inch width lets Sharp claim a record for public spaces: the R903 is supposedly the first LCD sign with its technology that can display average humans at real size when tilted to a portrait view, making it an ideal fit for fashion or most anything where one-for-one scale matters. The 700cd/m2 brightness helps by keeping the picture visible in harsher lighting. If you're not quite ready for the uncanny valley, you'll be glad to know that the R903 won't ship until January 28th, when it goes on sale with open pricing. Those who'd still prefer something less imposing can buy a 60-inch PN-R603 at the same time or wait for the 70-inch PN-R703 to grace storefronts on February 25th.

[Source: Engadget]

Sharp announces first TVs with Moth-Eye technology: the AQUOS XL series

Sharp may look like it's in trouble, but that's not stopping it bringing new displays to the market, including today's announcement of the AQUOS Quattron 3D XL TV line. Behind the mouthful of acronyms, these LED-backlit LCD panels are the first to feature Sharp's Moth-Eye technology, designed to reduce glare and pump out bright colors, as well as a deep black. The company's 'four primary color' tech is partly responsible for the rich output, which squeezes a yellow sub-pixel in with the standard R, G and B. All the panels run at 1,920 x 1,080, as you'd expect, sport a 10 million to 1 contrast ratio and use five speakers to deliver audio. Prices aren't fixed, but the 46-, 52- and 80-inch models will be released inJapan on December 15th, while the 60- and 70-inch variants will come slightly earlier, on November 30th. You're going to have to be quick on launch day, though -- only 10,000 units are expected to be available in the first month.

[Source: Engadget]