TVs

Apps & Software
November 11, 2015
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Netflix Hack Day

Netflix Hack: Engineers get video stream running on a 1950’s era TV

By on November 11, 2015 at 7:00 PM.

Netflix Hack: Engineers get video stream running on a 1950’s era TV

It’s always cool when big tech companies hold internal hackathons. Not only does it provide a great way for employees to have some outside-the-box fun, it can sometimes result in some rather interesting breakthroughs. Facebook, for instance, has at times implemented features that were initially brainstormed and created during company-wide hackathons.

Looking to get in on the hacking fun, a team of four Netflix engineers recently worked some of their engineering magic and managed to get a video stream up and running on an ancient Philco Predicta TV from the 1950s. While the Philco company went out of business more than 50 years ago, the original Predicta form factor, complete with a swiveling screen, has long been an iconic and recognizable design.

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TV
January 1, 2015
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CES 2015 8K TVs

Forget 4K: CES 2015 will reportedly feature 8K TVs from Sony and LG

By on January 1, 2015 at 4:15 PM.

Forget 4K: CES 2015 will reportedly feature 8K TVs from Sony and LG

If the rumors are to be believed, CES 2015 is shaping up to be a TV fan’s dream come true. Digitimes reports that LG and Sony will debut a brand new slate of 8K and quantum dot televisions in January, just in case you were already bored with the 4K display in your living room. More →

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Mobile
April 20, 2012
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Samsung’s iCloud competitor may be unveiled at Galaxy event on May 3rd

By on April 20, 2012 at 4:00 PM.

Samsung’s iCloud competitor may be unveiled at Galaxy event on May 3rd

Samsung’s iCloud competitor, dubbed S-Cloud, may be unveiled at next month’s Galaxy S III announcement in London on May 3rd, a South Korean newspaper reported on Friday. The service is similar to Apple’s offering but without any limitations on the type of content users can upload. The service is also expected to have access to popular TV shows, movies and music with free and paid content that will be available across a range of Samsung devices. The amount of storage allotted to users is rumored to be “more than 5GB,” although it isn’t clear if that will be free or is there is an associated charge. Earlier rumors suggested Samsung would delay the service after having trouble developing a suitable infrastructure for the global market. According to Maeil Business, however, the company has partnered with Microsoft to support its S-Cloud service. More →

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TV
March 6, 2012
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Samsung announces pricing and release dates for 2012 HDTVs

By on March 6, 2012 at 3:55 PM.

Samsung announces pricing and release dates for 2012 HDTVs

Samsung on Tuesday announced the pricing and release dates for its 2012 lineup of LED and Plasma TVs. The company will begin shipping new HDTVs this month in the U.S., beginning with the LED 6-series and higher, and the Plasma 6-series and higher. Samsung’s fifth-generation of Smart TV’s feature improved picture quality, dual-core CPUs for faster app launching, integrated cameras and microphones, new “Smart Touch Remotes and Smart Wireless Keyboards,” a new WebKit-based browser, voice controls, gesture controls and facial recognition. “Our goal with this year’s models was to truly redefine what a TV can be while providing unprecedented choice to the consumer,” Samsung America’s Senior VP of Home Entertainment, Joe Stinziano said. “We have delivered the incredible picture quality and beautiful design that consumers have come to expect from Samsung, as well as seamless connectivity, several new ways to control the TV and exclusive services.” Read on for Samsung’s press release with launch dates and pricing.

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Legal
February 24, 2012
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Samsung to pay millions in class-action settlement over faulty TVs

By on February 24, 2012 at 4:35 PM.

Samsung to pay millions in class-action settlement over faulty TVs

A settlement has been reached in a class-action lawsuit filed against Samsung over a number of its television sets. The company is offering free repairs and up to $300 to customers who owned one of several TV models that were manufactured prior to December 31, 2008. The lawsuit alleged that a power defect caused TVs to experience a delay in turning on, making a clicking sound, cycling on and off, or simply not turning on at all. While Samsung denied the allegations, it agreed to settle to “avoid the costs and uncertainty of continued litigation.” Hit the break for a list of the models covered in the settlement. More →

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TV
February 22, 2012
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Half of all smart TVs sold aren’t even connected to the Internet

By on February 22, 2012 at 7:45 AM.

Half of all smart TVs sold aren’t even connected to the Internet

Internet-enabled televisions have become the next big thing. LG, Sony, Panasonic, Samsung and Sharp, among others, offer TV sets with apps and Wi-Fi connectivity. Just because someone has an Internet TV, however, doesn’t mean he or she it using it. “People are buying connected TVs, but they are not all using them,” said Norm Bogen, vice president for digital entertainment at research firm NPD In-Stat. According to a survey conducted by In-Stat, only 47% of all people who own an Internet-enabled TV have it connected to the Web, reports TechNewsDaily. Among those that are connected to home networks, a majority of the TV’s features go unused. “I think that people like some aspects of smart TVs,” said Paul Gagnon, the director of DisplaySearch. “Social networking and games — those are pretty lightly used. People type on laptops and mobile devices.” Gagnon explains that televisions’ ugly and cluttered user interfaces could be the reason for the lack of enthusiasm. “They’re very, very complex and unintuitive user interfaces,” he said. More →

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TV
February 8, 2012
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Samsung plans to offer low-end TV models as sales grow stronger

By on February 8, 2012 at 7:15 PM.

Samsung plans to offer low-end TV models as sales grow stronger

With Samsung’s high-end TV sales doing well, the company is now looking to launch cheaper television sets according to Reuters. Demand for lower-end TVs has been on the rise in recent months, with major South Korean retailers teaming up with local manufacturers to provide flat-screen models that are as much as 40% cheaper than Samsung sets. “As long as there’s demand, we’re open to get into that segment,” Samsung’s executive VP of visual display, Kim Hyun-suk said. “We’ve been preparing to introduce cheap models and have been studying to optimize production costs and retail prices. Those models will be ready for sale in one or two months.” Samsung is the world’s largest TV manufacturer and is aiming to sell 50 million units this year, with half of those shipments being Internet-enabled smart TVs. More →

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CES
January 9, 2012
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Live from Samsung’s CES 2012 press conference

By on January 9, 2012 at 4:55 PM.

Live from Samsung’s CES 2012 press conference

We saw a few new Samsung phones revealed during AT&T’s press conference Monday morning. Coming soon to AT&T’s smartphone lineup are the Galaxy Note and the Galaxy S II Skyrocket HD, but the South Korea-based vendor has much more in store for us at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show. Smartphones, tablets, computers, HDTVs and more will debut from Samsung this week at CES, and Monday’s press conference is where we’ll get our first live taste of what’s in store. The event is scheduled to kick off at 5:00 p.m. Eastern / 2:00 p.m. Pacific, so hit the break for all the action as it unfolds. More →

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Business
November 2, 2011
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Sony forecasts fourth consecutive annual loss as Q2 misses

By on November 2, 2011 at 8:40 AM.

Sony forecasts fourth consecutive annual loss as Q2 misses

Sony on Wednesday lowered its full-year guidance from its earlier forecast of a 60 billion yen profit to a 90 billion yen loss following second fiscal quarter earnings that missed projections. Sony was surprised by a 27 billion yen loss in its September quarter compared to a 31 billion-yen profit in the same quarter last year, prompting the struggling electronics giant to slash sales targets for annual sales targets for flat panel televisions, PCs and cameras. Sony now estimates that it will sell 20 million TVs during the current fiscal year, down from its earlier estimate of 22 million units. The company attributes the sales decline to “unfavorable foreign exchange rates and lower LCD television sales,” among other factors. Shares of Sony stock were down 6% on Tuesday ahead of the company’s earnings report, and the stock is down nearly 50% this year. More →

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Gaming
April 12, 2011
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iPad, tablets clearly disrupting PC market, survey finds

By on April 12, 2011 at 5:22 AM.

iPad, tablets clearly disrupting PC market, survey finds

A survey conducted recently by Google-owned AdMob found that tablets are eating into the quality time U.S. consumers spend with their desktop and laptop PCs — and the majority of tablet owners might not use their devices the way many pundits believe. A survey of 1,430 tablet owners in the U.S. conducted March of this year suggests that the most popular use for tablets at this point could be gaming. An overwhelming 84% of respondents said they use their tablets for playing games of some type, while 78% said they searched for information on their tablets and 74% said they used email. Another indication tablets could be as disruptive as many analysts believe is the fact that 43% of those surveyed said they use their tablets more than than their desktop or laptop computers, and 33% said they spent more time with their tablet than they spend watching television. 77% of respondents said their use of traditional computers has decreased since buying a tablet, and 28% said the tablet is now their primary computer. More →

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General
January 28, 2011
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Samsung reports Q4 earnings: revenue and income grow, profit slides

By on January 28, 2011 at 10:50 AM.

Samsung reports Q4 earnings: revenue and income grow, profit slides

Samsung on Friday reported its fourth quarter and full year 2010 earnings, highlighting revenue and net income growth but missing Wall Street’s consensus as operating profit slid for the first time in six quarters. The company posted fourth quarter revenue of 41.87 trillion won, up 7% from the same quarter in 2009, and net income was up 13% year-over-year to 3.42 trillion won. Operating profit missed the Street’s consensus, however, falling 12% year-over-year to 3.01 trillion won. Samsung reported record revenue for the full year, up 13% from 2009 to 154.63 trillion won. 2010 net income set a full-year record as well, up 65% year-over-year to 16.15 trillion won, as did full-year operating income, which came in at 17.3 trillion won. Samsung’s mobile division reported a record profit of 1.44 trillion won in the fourth quarter, up 38% year-over-year, and the company shipped 80.7 million cell phones in the quarter. Full-year shipments reached 280 million units, up 23% from 2009 and outpacing the global market. Hit the break for Samsung’s full press release. More →

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Entertainment
January 4, 2011
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One-click Netflix button coming soon to TV, Blu-ray remotes

By on January 4, 2011 at 10:21 AM.

One-click Netflix button coming soon to TV, Blu-ray remotes

As Netflix continues to barrel into living rooms across the country, the thriving company announced new agreements Tuesday that will enable one-click access to its streaming video services on compatible partner devices. The new deal will place a dedicated Netflix button, complete with the Netflix logo, on remote controls that ship with various consumer electronics including Watch Instantly-enabled televisions, Blu-ray players and set top boxes. Manufacturers on board include Panasonic, Samsung, Sharp, Sony, Toshiba, Dynex (Best Buy’s in-house brand), Haier, Memorex, Boxee, Iomega and Roku. The deal is big news for Netflix, and it stands to substantially increase brand visibility. Netflix claims that there are currently more than 250 devices on the market compatible with its streaming video service. Hit the break for Netflix’s full press release. More →

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