Here’s a quick way to find out which of your Recorded TV files are protected.

Instructions

Open Your Recorded TV library  in Windows Explorer. This library may include files from multiple locations if you’ve added folders to your TV library through Media Center. Display the files in Detail view. Right-click any column heading, and then click More on the shortcut menu.

In the pop-up window, scroll through the list of file details and select Protected. Click OK to apply the change.

You may need to scroll to the right to see the Protected flag, which appears as a column of Yes/No values. Click the column heading to sort by the Protected flag and see all your protected shows together.

With all the protected shows sorted together, it should be easy to select and copy the unprotected shows to your new HTPC. Now clear your calendar to watch all of those copy protected shows before completely retiring your old Media Center.

Let’s not even bother with what was announced two weeks ago as it probably just makes the situation more confusing. Instead, let’s get to the point. For consumer PCs there are essentially two versions of Windows 8. The first is Windows 8, which is the basic version, and is most similar to Windows 7 Home Premium. The other version is Windows 8 Pro. In order to run Windows Media Center within Windows 8 you need to have Windows 8 Pro, but that isn’t enough, and the Pro version doesn’t need to be the version you start with at all. There are two paths to get to Windows 8 Media Center.

Path 1 : Start with Windows 8 Pro

If the computer that you want to use Windows Media Center on already has Windows 8 Pro then all you need is an add-on pack. This was discussed in the April 16th post, and pondered in greater detail by our own Jon Deutsch. The major detail released for this path is the name of the add-on pack. It will be called the Windows 8 Media Center Pack. Purchase and install this add-on and your Windows 8 Pro computer will now have Windows Media Center.

Path 2 : Start with Windows 8

This is the path that we didn’t know about before. One of the big concerns previously was that most consumer PCs would come with this version of Windows and those users wouldn’t have an easy path to getting Windows Media Center. Microsoft has created a path though, and it’s very similar to the one laid out for Pro users. If you have Windows 8 you’ll need to purchase and install a software add-on pack. This pack is called the Windows 8 Pro Pack. Once you’ve done this you will not only have Media Center on your computer, but you’ll also have all of the features of Windows 8 Pro. To put it plainly, you will purchase one add-on pack that upgrades your computer to Windows 8 Pro and includes the Windows 8 Media Center Pack.

How and How Much?

So the next question you might be wondering is how to obtain these add-on packs, and how much are they going to cost you. The first answer is actually pretty simple. From within Windows, in the Control Panel, there will be a section called Add Features to Windows 8. If you go to that section you’ll be able to purchase the add-on pack that you’re looking for. This will be a very similar process to the Windows Anytime Upgrade that was present in Windows 7. So how much will it cost? That we still don’t know, but who would we be not to speculate? When the add-on pack concept was first announced with regards to Windows 8 Pro it was described as “economical”. To us, that sounds like a price less than $50. We hope it will be somewhere in the range of $9.99 to $19.99 though. That’s of course if you’re simply looking to add Windows Media Center to Windows 8 Pro. We have to assume that the Windows 8 Pro Pack, the one required for standard Windows 8 users, will cost significantly more. Often times in the past there has been about a $100 premium to upgrade between versions, so it wouldn’t be outside the realm of possibility to see the Windows 8 Pro Pack come in around $99-$149. This is one area where Microsoft could radically change from their previous model. For all we know Windows 8 might only cost $29.99 and Windows 8 Pro might only be $49.99. As with everything else related to Windows 8 though, we won’t know for sure until it’s announced officially by Microsoft.

Conclusion

Hopefully the options are a little more clear to you if, like us, you’re considering the upgrade to Windows 8 and you still want to have Windows Media Center. It should be noted, but we’ll break these details down in a separate post, that some features, such as the ability to watch DVDs, will only be available if you have upgraded to Windows 8 with Media Center. So while some of us are still upset about having to pay extra for something that was included with Windows 7, at least we understand our options for getting there now.

Most believed that the apps would only work alongside Ceton’s Q DVR, but in today’s announcement they stated that they will work with any Windows 7 Media Center! They will also be releasing the companion apps into beta soon. The apps are being developed for Windows Phone 7, iOS, and Android. You can register for the beta today, and selection for the beta will happen on or before May 25th. When signing up for the app beta you’ll also have the ability to sign up to beta test the forthcoming Ceton Extender.

The beta process for the Ceton Extender will involve paying the MSRP for the box, which has yet to be announced. You’ll receive the box ahead of everyone else, and while it will be final hardware it will come pre-installed with beta software. At the end of the beta you’ll keep the extender and be updated to the final software. So while you’ll still be paying the same amount for the Ceton Extender that regular customers will, you’ll be getting your hands on it a lot earlier, and you’ll have a hand in improving it. The beta selection for the extender will be on or before July 15th. To clarify, when you sign up for the beta of the companion apps you’ll have the option of expressing interest in participating in the beta for the extender. You won’t be under any commitment to purchase one.

We’ll have the guys from Ceton on Entertainment 2.0 this week to discuss today’s announcement. You can listen in live at 8pm Eastern on our live show page. Feel free to leave your questions for Ceton in the comments on this post.

To signup for the beta head on over to http://beta.cetoncorp.com.

Ceton Companion App Features:

• Multiple platforms
• iPhone (iOS 4.1+)
• Android (2.2+)
• Windows Phone 7 (Mango)
• Works on any Windows 7 HTPC
• Browse all of your Media Center libraries
• Videos
• Music
• Photos
• Movies
• Start playback of content on multiple devices
• Manage and schedule recordings
• Rich meta data for movies and television
• Browse premieres of upcoming television shows
• Universally search movies, TV, guide, and more
• A whole lot more!

Instructions

Turn on SkyDrive photo uploading. First, you’ll want to enable SkyDrive photo uploads on your Windows Phone. In the Pictures app, tap More (…), then tap Settings. Scroll down and turn on Automatically upload to SkyDrive. Note that if you don’t want location information for your pictures uploaded to SkyDrive, you can turn off Keep location info on uploaded pictures.

This SkyDrive setting will only apply to pictures you take after turning it on. Pictures already in your camera roll will not get uploaded to SkyDrive.

Install SkyDrive on Media Center. On your Windows Media Center PC, download and install SkyDrive for Windows while you’re logged in to your PC with the account you use for Media Center.

Add the Camera Roll to your Library. If the SkyDrive folder doesn’t open automatically after you complete the installation, open Windows Explorer and select the SkyDrive folder (it should be in your Favorites). Right-click the SkyDrive camera roll folder, point to Include in Library in the shortcut menu, then click Pictures.

That’s all there is to it! Take a few photographs with your phone to test it out. Then open Media Center, go to the Picture Library, and enjoy your photographs. As you take pictures on your Windows Phone, they’ll sync automatically to your Media Center PC and appear in your Picture Library.

]]> http://thedigitalmediazone.com/2012/04/28/media-center-quick-tip-%e2%80%93-syncing-your-windows-phone-camera-roll-to-media-center/feed/ 1 http://thedigitalmediazone.com/2012/04/27/using-a-tivo-slide-remote-with-windows-media-center/ http://thedigitalmediazone.com/2012/04/27/using-a-tivo-slide-remote-with-windows-media-center/#comments Fri, 27 Apr 2012 19:00:46 +0000 Mark Terborg http://thedigitalmediazone.com/?p=11901 Wouldn’t the TiVo sliding keyboard remote be great if you could use it with Windows Media Center? Well now you can have all of that keyboard goodness and still use the best DVR on the planet: Windows Media Center. Let us show you, step-by-step, how to configure this keyboard + remote with Media Center.

One benefit is obvious: it has a built in keyboard. There are many other benefits and even some drawbacks to using a TiVo Slide remote with Media Center, so we’ll cover those first.

One benefit of using a TiVo Slide Remote with Media Center is obvious...it has a built in keyboard!

Advantages

• Bluetooth. No need to point the remote towards the TV when pressing buttons (except power and volume, unless you blast the volume codes with an IR Blaster)
• Speed. Compared to my old Logitech Harmony 650,  the TiVo Slide is extremely fast. There is pretty much no lag between button presses unlike the Harmony’s pause between IR blasts.
• Keyboard. This one is obvious. Any time you need to type something in to either search for something or jump down the list of recordings, movies, etc., you can just start typing it in instead of pretending you are using a cell phone from the 90s.
• Reprogramming buttons is very flexible using the step-by-step guide below.
• Good Range. The range is approximately 30 feet.
• Buttons are pretty well laid out and you should be able to distinguish them without looking.
• Buttons are back-lit when it is dark and you press a button.
• Price. At the time of writing this article, the TiVo Slide remote is around $40 on Amazon.

Disadvantages

If you’re an HBO subscriber, and your provider will authenticate you to access HBO GO online at hbogo.com, you can now watch HBO GO through PlayOn. This may help alleviate some of the concern some cable customers have had accessing HBO GO on the big screen, since many connected TVs, boxes, and game consoles support PlayOn or DLNA in one form or another. MediaMall, the makers of PlayOn, state that HBO GO is available for free to PlayOn Lite users for a “limited time,” suggesting that continued use will eventually require a paid subscription to PlayOn Premium.

Another interesting update is PlayOn’s My Media feature, which lets you stream content from your own local or network folders through PlayOn. This feature has been in beta for quite some time now, and it gives users a way of viewing their own videos on devices that otherwise don’t natively support DLNA, like Roku boxes.

Source: Media Mall Press Release

I know you’ve been patient. I know you’ve been, at times, frustrated. I know you aren’t asking for much.  So I’m going to wager that some of you may be a tad peeved over Microsoft’s recent announcement that, starting with Windows 8, Media Center will be a pay-for add-on — and limited to Windows 8 Professional licenses.

Don’t be.

In fact, I argue that this is the best outcome for Media Center from a pure commercial perspective. As I mentioned in my wildly optimistic editorial on the same topic, giving Media Center its own product code gives us — the consumers — an opportunity to voice our support the only way that free market capitalism recognizes: the all-mighty dollar (insert your local currency of choice, it’ll all end up being converted to dollars in the end, though).

Now, in that same editorial, I was working off of the (inaccurate) rumor that there would be a specific version of Windows 8 dedicated to Media Center. While that would have been good, the official news that Media Center will be part of an add-on media pack for Windows 8 Pro is even better. I submit that this actually reinforces the positive perspective I advocated in my prior post — that Microsoft is specifically targeting Windows Media Center at the professional market, while allowing Xbox to take care of the needs of the mass consumer market.

To me, on the face of it, this not only makes perfect sense from a marketing/segmentation perspective. but Media Center users will soon get to directly express interest and support for a professional-grade media management system by paying for it — just like Xbox Live users express their interest by paying for services that they desire.  With enough support, Microsoft will have no choice but to regain interest in the best professional-grade media center system available today.

So, Media Center users, fans, and critics alike — I implore you to embrace Microsoft’s new marketing strategy… for our own good.  Yes, paying for something that we’ve been using gratis for years may be a bitter pill to swallow. But swallow it anyway.  It’ll be in service of our collective, enlightened best interest.

Do you think an unexpected surge in Windows 8 Pro media add-on pack purchases in six months’ time would raise some eyebrows in Redmond?  I do.

PS – To hear more about all the potentially wonderful things that could sprout from this new Media Center marketing strategy, please take a listen to this Entertainment 2.0 podcast that Josh & Richard invited me to participate in on April 3, 2012.

Betting on a Better User Experience

The digerati, tech media and pundits will all gleefully admit that ‘nobody has figured out the home entertainment interface yet’ when discussing, for instance, the latest update to AppleTV, or GoogleTV.  Of course, they’re wrong.  Hovering under the radar for years is Windows Media Center, which absolutely nails the home entertainment graphical user interface (GUI).  And, no, not just for tech-geeks; women, men and children alike can grasp — and even enjoy — Media Center’s GUI.  It’s so good, in fact, that Microsoft is betting the farm on the new “Metro” UI design, which is derivative of Windows Media Center’s groundbreaking design introduced nearly a decade ago.

So why are we talking about GUIs?  Because if you’re a company that’s not Apple and you beat Apple in the GUI game for a potentially huge consumer market, you know you have something special.  And that something special needs to be packaged for various audiences to fulfill various needs and desires in the market.  To date, I’d argue that this marketing and packaging element has been severely lacking.

Perhaps a brief look at the history of Media Center marketing and packaging might teach us lessons around prior failures, and provide us with clues that could lead to a brighter future:

Marketing Media Center – Take 1

The first three versions of Media Center were marketed as distinct editions of Windows — Windows XP Media Center Edition.  This approach had the advantage of creating a unique edition (a.k.a. “SKU”) that Microsoft could market, sell and track uptake on.  The name of the OS in these cases indicated that this was specifically for Media Center PCs, and some OEMs even went and designed special encasements for this edition of Windows.  Unfortunately, the OEM-only license model severely limited power users from easily purchasing and getting support for this version of Windows.  The strategy was clearly that of Microsoft-to-OEM to ensure a solid user experience… not so different than Apple’s tight integration model it’s famous for today.

Marketing Media Center – Take 2

Starting with Windows Vista and extending through Windows 7, Microsoft’s marketing and segmentation strategy for Media Center has been largely laughable.  Included in the Windows Vista and 7 Home Premium and Ultimate editions, hopes were high that simply including Media Center “for free” in mainstream versions of the Operating System would somehow substantially increase the install base of this magnificent software. Of course, this couldn’t be further from reality. People don’t buy PC OS’s for Media Center functionality, so by combining the two, Microsoft actually diminished Media Center’s value by devaluing it as “free,” and hiding it in a huge PC Operating System that is primarily designed to, well, operate a PC.  Yes, this approach did get Media Center into people’s homes at a far more rapid rate in theory, but the fallout has been almost catastrophic: Steven Sinofsky himself essentially scolded the Media Center community by telling us that merely 6% of Windows installations who have Media Center have ever used it.  Talk about being set up for failure.

Marketing Media Center – Take 3

The conventional wisdom is that due to Sinofsky’s remarks like the above in conjunction with Microsoft’s huge push to get Media Center-like functionality in the newly Metro-fied Xbox 360 experience, Windows Media Center may not have such a bright future. Perhaps. However, the “ProfessionalWMC” SKU rumor can paint a more optimistic future.

With Media Center Edition possibly returning to the mix, this could lead to a targeted, two-tiered home entertainment marketing strategy for late 2012 and beyond:

Tier 1: Consumer media consumption.

Packaged within the Xbox ecosystem for the masses.  Fully set-top box driven, linked to Xbox Live services and its recurring revenue model, complete with a centrally controlled, curated content experience that Microsoft is increasingly investing in.  In two-to-three years, the next generation Xbox may finally live up to its “XBox” moniker where it’s a box that truly does “x” — where “x” is whatever you want it to do, ranging from music, video, movies and games.

Tier 2: Professional media consumption.

Packaged for A/V installers and professionals, as well as OEMs as “Windows 8 Professional – Media Center Edition”.  PC-driven, creating flexibility and customizations required to serve the needs of high-end home A/V systems, professional multimedia installations, and other applications that require specific experiences tailored for more discerning clientele.

While “Take 3” looks a lot like “Take 1” from the Media Center perspective, the big difference between then and now is the recent evolution of Xbox.  With Xbox media delivery services picking up steam in the mass market, it does become clear that Media Center is for more advanced configurers and installers, and for more discerning and demanding users.

Importantly, if Media Center is once again limited to a single edition of Windows 8, Microsoft will have the ability to consider bundling higher-end A/V services into the package and pass those costs along to the licensee. This kind of packaging and segmentation makes a lot of sense because the people who desire Media Center services such as Blu-ray playback and high-end audio decoding will be more than happy to pay extra for a no-compromise media-focused operating system.

This segmented, two-tiered future may very well not be on the horizon, but it should be.   As a Media Center enthusiast and optimist, I for one hope that this recent rumor is a hint of a future where Media Center becomes the high-end offering in Microsoft’s expansive, multi-pronged suite  of digital media management offerings.

The physical dimensions of the remote are now smaller. The new remote is about half as thick, and about an inch shorter with a smooth glossy flat face. Unfortunately, the backlight has been removed. While the buttons are still rubber, they have been improved with a tactile click similar to an arcade button. The response to pressing a button can be both felt and heard. The new remote now takes a pair of AAA batteries, instead of the AA batteries of the old remote.

Several buttons have been removed from the new remote. The Open/Close, Title, Clear, Stop, TV, and “Green” buttons have all been completely removed. The Play and Pause buttons have been combined into a single button.

The removal of the TV button greatly simplifies the remote. It is no longer possible to accidentally change the channels on the TV, or power the TV off because the TV button was lit orange instead of green. It also means that somebody with a green/red color blindness will not have as much trouble turning on the TV and the Xbox.

Guide, Live TV, and Input buttons have been added to the remote. In truth, the Guide and Live TV buttons are just duplicates of the Y and A buttons. The two can be used interchangeably both inside Media Center and in the Xbox dashboard. The Input button used to be a function of the TV button but can now be used at any time to toggle the input of the TV.

The new locations of the buttons makes it easier to use the remote without looking. Playback control is located at the top of the remote with two horizontal rows of buttons. The directional pad is surrounded by the Guide, Record, Info, Live TV, and Back buttons. The new arrangement makes it easy to pull up the guide, select a program, record it, and then return to the previous task.

The volume, channel, and Mute buttons remain in the same place. The number pad remains the same, and T9 text input is still possible even though it is not labeled. A Last button does not seem to have any useful function in Media Center or in the Xbox dashboard.

Despite Microsoft’s complete lack of mention for Media Center in the remote’s documentation, this new remote makes using an Xbox as an extender much easier. The loss of the backlight is mitigated by the fact that the remote is so easy to use without looking at it, and sacrificing the “green” button for Media Center makes the overall experience more intuitive and consistent.

There’s been a lot of speculation and debate about Microsoft’s move to eliminate the green button, but in some ways, that decision improves the remote.

First off, the green button was a questionable universal start point. The logo, while familiar to Media Center users, is not widely recognized when compared to the common symbols for Play, Pause, and Stop. The color green can be difficult for someone with a color vision deficiency, and the green button on the old remote was tiny and reflective, so it could be hard to recognize in shape, color, and function.

With fewer feature-specific commands on the remote, users can expect a more consistent experience across features and services on the Xbox. Whether it’s a music service, a social app, or a video on demand service, hitting the back button several times will get you back to the main screen.  It also eliminates possibility of hitting the Green button by mistake and jumping out of the Xbox Dashboard into Media Center.

By eliminating the green button, Microsoft also limits the commands they need to support in the future. For example, if Media Center were to get Kinect support through the Xbox, the Green button wouldn’t have to be implemented. With fewer Kinect commands represented as distinct gestures, there’s less chance of misinterpreting users’ gestures and intent.

Microsoft has also moved the Back button from the more common upper-left corner of the direction pad to the bottom right corner. This change also makes sense to me. Upper left is where the eye goes to start reading something, and the lower right is where it ends and the page needs to be turned. And with the button on the lower right, a right-handed thumb has to bend and retreat in order to press it. This requires more thought and intentional movement.

My bottom line: While I can understand how Microsoft’s decision to change the Xbox remote might annoy some people, I highly recommend the new Xbox 360 Media Remote to anyone using an Xbox as a Media Center Extender.

The removal of the Start button in Windows 8 and the removal of the Green button might speak to a larger philosophical change at Microsoft. On Entertainment 2.0, Richard has suggested that removing the Start button from Windows 8 will mean training manuals and classes will have to be retooled in the corporate environment. Arguably, it’s better to make changes to Media Center while the user base is relatively small. Perhaps the elimination of the Green button might be a signal that Microsoft expects Media Center to grow!

Amulet Devices’ Kinect for Media Center app only uses two postures and voice commands to control the interface. Just raise an arm like you have the answer to a third grade math question and speak a command like selecting a song. This app uses haar cascades technology to recognize the body motion so the user can be sitting on a couch or lying on the floor. Unlike most Xbox Kinect games, the user doesn’t need to stand to use Amulet’s new software.

Check out their video below and download their free app from the Amulet Devices Website.

Developing for WMC is an Atrocity

You should congratulate Netflix, MyMovies and MediaBrowser for having successfully developed WMC UIs that work and look beautiful. Anyone who has seen MCML or looked at how many different files it takes just a get a basic WMC plugin knows that developing for this platform is a disaster at best. Eight different files using unique, unfriendly XML and .NET variant code are all it takes to make a WMC app with a button our two. Documentation for developers is relatively non-existent. This is why you don’t see lots of apps for Media Center, why it take forever to update the apps that are out there and why Media Center has not flourished like we all hoped it would.

Clearly no one on the Media Center team was listening when Balmer said “Developers! Developers! Developers!” You can have an Android app up on the entire Android platform with a single XML file and a Java file. WinRT is what all Media Center apps should be based on. HTML, JavaScipt, C#, C++, Silverlight. Done. Programmers, n00b and veteran, can understand and learn these languages easily. File structure is greatly simplified. As seen in the developer preview, Visual Studio 11 will have great WinRT UI WYSIWYG tools for Metro UI development. WinRT removes or lessens the barrier to developing great home theater applications, thus we could finally get the home theater support and app market we Microsoft fanatics all want and deserve.

Metro UI is WMC 2.0

The hubs and tiles of the Metro UI Windows 8 start screen respond to remote commands much like in Windows Media Center. Hubs and tiles are easily customizeable through a couple clicks of the mouse in the sub-menus of the Metro UI. There is no need to start a separate application when Windows starts, it is Windows already.

Today, Windows Media Center is pretty much uncustomiseable. If you install any new plugins, usually a new strip is created and eventually the whole system gets cluttered up. Yes, you can use Media Center Studio, an unsupported, crashy WYSIWIG editor for WMC. But that is for us hardcore Media Center fanatics, not the average Joe.

The Windows 8 Browser

You can have nearly the entire Internet at the buttons of your TV remote. Just hit the IE tile and up pops the Metro Internet Explorer. Now you can manage your streaming services, check your email or Twitter account, or pop up a YouTube video. The Win8 browser has its limits though. No support for plugins (not even Silverlight) will prohibit you from watching Netflix, VUDU or Amazon. Not to feer, that is what WinRT is for!

The Windows Store

Windows Media Center lacks a centralized location for managing, discovering and updating plugins. Yes, there is the Extras Gallery, but no one puts their apps there. Yes, the Digital Lifestyle had the right idea with their Made for Media Center app store, but it does not come pre-installed, it has no payment system for developers, and it is rarely updated. The Windows Store in Windows 8 comes pre-installed and provides a full-featured app store supported by Microsoft. This is where you will get your Netflix app and Your VUDU app and your Amazon Instant Video app and your MyMovies app. This is where you will get your à la carte movies and TV from Microsoft once they kill Zune.

Browsing Local and Network Media

Music, Videos, and Pictures are all represented as hubs in the Win8 Metro UI. However, we all know that MediaBrowser and MyMovies have much prettier UIs. There is no reason why they can’t build WinRT hubs that look beautiful and function in similar ways. If they could hack together MCML to build their rich interfaces, then doing an even better job with HTML, JavaScript and C# should be no problem.

Skype Integration

In 2011, Microsoft bought Skype in an attempt to either block others from gobbling it up or to gain some serious brand recognition in the teleconferencing market. Either way, it is inevitable that a robust Skype app will appear in the Windows Store on Windows 8. While there is a WMC plugin for Skype, a free native Windows application has to give the user a better experience.

Streaming Services

Streaming services are a primary function of home theater PCs. Netflix is already built into Windows Media Center. But what about VUDU, Amazon Instant Video, Hulu, YouTube, iTunes and the soon-to-be Redbox/Verizon service? For that stuff, you either have to go through a browser or hack WMC to display an icon for a separate app that works with a streaming service. Ridiculous. Why not just replicate their HTML/JavaScript code from their websites into WinRT apps? Done. But why didn’t these companies make apps for Media Center? See my first point.

Angry Birds

You know Windows 8 is going to have Angry Birds. Playing Angry Birds on your TV with a remote is reason enough to go to Win8, right?  Can’t wait for an Angry Birds app? Play Angry Birds in the Win8 browser. But in all seriousness, gaming on a Win8 HTPC becomes easier because there is no blasting in and out of Media Center to get to games. There is no hack-job customizing needed. The tile just appears when you install the game.  Performance is not degraded because Media Center is still running in the background.

Calling All Developers

There are a few things that need to happen in order for the Metro UI to be properly used as a home theater interface. Whether Microsoft makes these improvements or a third party developer does, these need to happen:

• The Live TV, Guide and Recorded TV functionality needs to be replicated into a WinRT Hub. This would not take the Media Center crew at Microsoft much time to make this transition. The code is there; it just needs to be retweaked for WinRT.
• Adjust the on-screen keyboard to support a remote control.
• Native support for DVD and Blu-ray. While this is a pipe dream, this is critical to a sustainable, low maintenance HTPC configuration.
• A “Home Theater” mode for the Win8 Start screen. This reworks the hubs and tiles for media and TV viewing. Really, you would only need three hubs: TV, Streaming and Gaming.

In the end this is how we are going to get the HTPC interface we have always dreamed of. Think WinRT, not WMC.

Brad has included an advanced audio feature that deciphers between audio from the Media Center and audio from the user so audio commands cannot be interfered with.  Audio and gesture commands also can be temporarily disabled until the user opts to turn them on again.  There are a couple limiting factors to Kinect for Windows Media Center.  It does not work through extenders like Xbox360 and the Media Center add-in will only work with Kinect for Windows due to a Microsoft constraint.  While months of repetitive arm movements and screaming at the TV may drive you to see the masseuse more often, it really is good to see developers using new technology like Kinect for Windows to enhance our experience with Windows Media Center.

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

This week the National Cable & Telecommunications Association (NCTA) released a regulatory filing to the FCC detailing the deployment of CableCARD to consumer devices from the top five cable companies. Details were included from Cablevision, Charter Communications, Comcast, Cox Communications, and Time Warner Cable, although the report provided summary data of the top 10 companies. According to the report “over 554,000 CableCARDs deployed for use in retail devices by the ten largest incumbent cable operators.” Of course the NCTA, who has fought against the CableCARD rules from their initial drafting, was very quick to point out that since the CableCARD rules have gone into effect those same ten companies have “deployed more than 32,000,000 operator-supplied set-top boxes with CableCARDs.”

Fortunately, not everything written in the document’s 13 pages was pure rhetoric. There was also a lot of interesting data about how many CableCARDs have been deployed, how many of them were installed by technicians vs. the customers doing self installs, and how many truck rolls (service calls resulting in a technician being sent to the customer’s house) were required in the first 30 days to get a CableCARD deployment operational.

Comcast is the largest cable company in the country, so it makes sense that they would have the most consumer CableCARD systems deployed. Of the companies that reported the self install rate, Comcast fits right in the middle. The number they reported, 29%, is about what I would have expected. It’s not a tiny number, but it’s sufficiently large given that a consumer who did enough research to decide to buy/build their own set-top-box or home theater PC, is probably also reasonably comfortable installing their own gadgets too. The number of truck rolls required also points out some interesting data. Cablevision customers and technicians appear to be doing the best job of getting things working on the first effort where Charter obviously has some work to do! The other interesting piece of data here is Cablevision’s self install percentage. Did 57% of their CableCARD customers really do their own installations? If so, then our respect goes out to those 22,000 customers who, not only installed on their own, where pretty successful at getting it all working.

The first thing you’ll probably notice in this chart is that it’s supposed to show data per quarter, but it only has data for quarters two and four. Unfortunately, the NCTA isn’t very consistent with their FCC filings. In fact, Q4 isn’t even technically accurate as the data actually covers September through December of 2011. Putting all that aside, the numbers themselves are interesting. In four of the top five companies CableCARD subscribers grew. In two cases, Cablevision and Cox, the growth was even at a pretty significant percentage. Comcast, on the other hand, dropped more than 36,000 CableCARD subscribers. We don’t have Comcast’s fourth quarter subscriber numbers yet, because they aren’t releasing those details until February 15th. Since we don’t know if Comcast lost video customers for the quarter, the only other assumption that we could make is that many of these CableCARD customers switched to Comcast’s newer Xfinity DVRs.

The last chart just shows the number of CableCARDs deployed as a percentage of the company’s total subscribers. Even given the large percent of Comcast customers who switched from using CableCARD in a consumer device, they are still out in front. If Cablevision continues the rate of growth from Q4 into 2012 they will very quickly overtake Comcast.

So despite the cable industry’s ongoing assault against CableCARD, in favor of their own locked-down boxes, I think it’s safe to say that CableCARD is doing well. While we know that home-built home theater PCs don’t make up the majority of these CableCARD installs, we certainly hope to see more people building Windows 7 Media Center boxes equipped with any one of the many CableCARD tuners currently available. We’re also excited to see Ceton going up against Tivo directly with their Q Entertainment Platform.

Souce: NCTA

The “Q”

Ceton’s “Q” is a DVR set-top box that packs tons of features into a nice, stackable form factor. Think Windows Media Center on steroids. But don’t call it that—OEMs building entertainment devices on Windows Embedded are quick to point out that it’s not Media Center. We won’t get into that debate here, but just know that it builds on everything that’s great about Media Center, and the experience is very, very similar.

As you might expect, the “Q” is a CableCARD box, and it’s designed to be your home media hub. The “Q” connects to your network through Ethernet or with a MoCa adaptor. With six tuners, a 2TB hard drive, and a slot-drive Blu-ray player, it’s easy to see how it could ably host and deliver content throughout the household.

The “Q” will come loaded with the features you’d expect in Media Center plus a number of extras. While you won’t be able to install your own add-ins like you might on a Media Center PC, Ceton’s talking about an API and marketplace that we’d imagine might show Microsoft how the Extras Gallery should have been done all along.

Ceton's custom skin persists throughout the interface

They’re also talking about content services—none in particular, but anything would be an improvement over Media Center, since Netflix and CinemaNow are really the only decent options there. More importantly, they plan to integrate an aggregated, universal search feature that will allow you to discover and access content across sources and providers [See Universal Search, below].

The “Q”’s interface comes stylized—skinned, if you will—and it’s customizable. You’ll be able to choose a look that best suits your tastes, including (thankfully) the standard blue aura we’ve all come to recognize.

Ceton says the device will support a wide range of media formats, which we hope means they’ll be including codecs for formats, like .mkv, that aren’t natively supported by Windows Media.

The “Echo”

The "Echo" has a nice, small form factor

Ceton describes the “Echo” as a next generation Media Center Extender. It’s been years since we’ve seen anyone offering extenders to the market, but this device finally gives Media Center households an alternative to the Xbox as a second-room device.

If you already run Media Center in your home, the sleek “Echo” box will deliver all the features you’d expect to see on any Media Center Extender. Paired with the “Q”, it takes on even greater functionality to support the additional capabilities of Ceton’s box, including the ability to customize the look and feel, independent of the appearance of the “Q”’s interface.

You could argue that the handful of first- and second-generation Media Center Extenders failed for two reasons: price and performance. Ceton claims to have addressed both of those problems. The “Echo” boxes we saw were very responsive, both as a Media Center Extender and when paired with the “Q”. As for price, we’ll have to wait and see, but Ceton states they’ll come to market with a “much more attractive price point.”

The “Q Companion”

With tablets and smart phones finding their way into many homes and living rooms, device manufacturers have learned that these second screens provide a rich opportunity for discovering, managing, and controlling media. Ceton plans to take full advantage of this, planning apps for Android, iOS, and Windows phones and tablets.

The "Q Companion" app lets you discover content visually

At their technology preview, Ceton showed prototype apps on Windows Phone and a Windows 8 tablet. They demonstrated features like browsing for movies and shows, searching for content, viewing detailed program information, scheduling recordings, managing your recording priorities, selecting content from online services, and watching movie trailers. Ceton intends to offer these features and more, including the ability to control TV playback.

The idea is that your mobile or tablet device allows you to manage your media hub without disturbing the on-screen experience. And certainly the benefits of using a keyboard and quickly perusing content visually is much more immersive and productive than fumbling through menus and lists with your remote. Outside the home, these apps will give you access to schedule recordings and manage your content remotely.

Universal Search

While add-ins for online content services offer access to vast media libraries, the fragmented experience that individual services’ apps create is frustrating and confusing to consumers. Which service has what content? WHO CARES and why should anyone care? This is a problem plaguing so-called smart TVs with apps, and it’s an issue I’ve personally claimed is one of the biggest issues facing TV usability today.

TiVo has the best provider-independent search and browse capability to date, but throw your own media into the mix—recorded shows and movies, music, and videos—and finding or discovering content gets even more convoluted. Nobody’s solved this problem. Until now.

Ceton plans to introduce a “universal search” solution that aggregates content across services and sources. Browsing and searching for content will yield results from everywhere—online, on TV, or on your set top box. You won’t have to know or care where the media resides. If it’s in your collection, in the program guide, or available through one of their online partners that you subscribe to, it will be included in the results. Select a video, and you’ll be watching it without opening any service’s app and or wading through their menus.

Later This Year

Ceton isn’t talking specifics about timing, price, or services, but they are saying we should expect to see these devices later this year. We often joke that “later this year” is CES code for next year, but we’re optimistic that that won’t be the case here.

From a hardware perspective, Ceton’s devices look pretty close to production ready. We noted that the main set top box lighting was too bright for a home theater environment, but that’s something they intend to correct. Overall, these devices are well-designed and solidly manufactured.

As for the software, they’ve set a very high bar for themselves. Their demos showcased a limited set of capabilities, but from the list of features they rattled off, there’s a whole lot of custom software they need to build and test. We’re talking about content applications, aggregation services, customization tools, and mobile apps for six different devices on three platforms. That’s a whole lot of software engineering!

The most likely candidate for the first product to market would be the “Echo” extender. Because it’s a full-blown Media Center Extender, it can stand on its own without the “Q” platform. Ceton already has retail distribution channels in place to get the product on shelves, both virtual and physical, and that could give them an opportunity to meet an immediate need for Media Center users who don’t want an Xbox in the bedroom.

The timing on the rest of the platform will likely depend on their engineering backlog, CableLabs certification (if necessary), and content partnership deals.

Whether you want to call this Media Center or not, one thing is certain: Ceton has demonstrated a family of entertainment devices that promise to fill a need that many households have today. This multi-room media center hub has the potential to popularize and improve upon one of the best home media platforms available.

Related

Read our original post from CES.

Listen to our interview with Ceton’s Chief Marketing Officer.

Watch this and other videos on our YouTube channel.

Be sure to check all of our CES coverage at The Digital Media Zone.

Download the interview or listen, below.

Be sure to check all of our CES coverage at The Digital Media Zone.