tv

Quickly view Google Play purchase history on Android

When setting up a new device, it's nice to go back and make sure you've downloaded all of your purchased apps (or any purchased content for that matter), but Google's Play store app doesn't make it easy for this to happen at the moment. Currently your download history contains both free and paid apps, with no way to separate the two.

My Purchases is a free Android app that allows users to view their entire Google Play purchase history with just a few taps, as first reported by Droid Life.

After you install the free or … Read more

Intel closing in on pay-TV service, company reports

Bloomberg posted an interesting tidbit this afternoon, suggesting that Intel is negotiating with a clutch of content providers in connection with a planned online pay-TV service. Given how we're talking about Intel -- yes, that Intel, chip king extraordinaire -- this would make for quite the headline, should it come to pass. Apparently, the sides have reached general agreement on the contours of the proposed service; although, some details remain unresolved.

The content suppliers named in the piece include Time Warner, NBC Universal, and Viacom. Sources tell Bloomberg that Intel is also about to open talks with News Corp., … Read more

How to watch YouTube videos on Roku

Of the 750-plus channels Roku has to offer, there's one big guy missing from the pack: YouTube.

Considering its front-and-center presence on other platforms -- like Apple TV and Samsung Smart TVs -- its conspicuous absence might seem odd. But, Roku's CEO offers a logical explanation, noting that "YouTube insists on using HTML5 for its UI," and seemingly refuses to build a Roku-specific app.

YouTube's absence hurts so bad that even third-party developers have created channels almost exclusively designed to stream YouTube, only to be pulled days or weeks later.

As of this writing, there … Read more

How to disconnect an Apple TV remote from a MacBook

There are gaps in my TV consumption history. Of the big TV dramas in recent memory, for example, I have watched "Lost" and "The Sopranos" in their entirety, but I have caught only a half a season of "Mad Men," only three-plus seasons of "The Wire," and nary an episode of "Breaking Bad."

For the singular purpose of watching Walter White's meth adventures on a big screen, this week I purchased an Apple TV. From what I've heard about this show, it merits being Netflixed on an HDTV … Read more

Intel testing TV service with employees in three markets

Intel employees will be the first users to test the company's new TV service, as the semiconductor giant preps for a rollout later this year.

Eric Free, vice president and general manager for content and services at Intel Media, told CNET today that Intel is conducting closed trials of its product with Intel employees in three West Coast markets.

He didn't provide many other details but predicted that 2013 will be the breakout year for OTT, or over-the-top, video -- services such as Hulu that deliver video over the Internet, eschewing cable providers and satellite services.

"There … Read more

Talk on Twitter corresponds to higher TV ratings

This is a classic "which came first, the chicken or the egg" scenario: more talk on Twitter and higher TV ratings, or is it quality TV and more talk on Twitter?

Whatever the case, market research firm Nielsen has discovered that there is a correlation -- but not necessarily causation -- between Twitter and live TV ratings.

Using data from analytics platform SocialGuide, Nielsen found that 32 million unique people tweeted about TV in the U.S. in 2012. This may have led to Twitter being one of the top three variables aligned with TV ratings. The other … Read more

Samsung 4K TV? It'll cost you $40K

NEW YORK--Want a Samsung 4K TV? Well, it will cost you. $40,000, to be exact.

The Korean electronics giant today talked up new features of its 2013 lineup during an event in New York. We also now have information about pricing and availability for Samsung's other TVs, including its LED 8000-series and its plasma 8500-series TV sets. (Check out the handy chart for LED and plasma TVs below). Many of those products are already popping up at online and brick-and-mortar retailers.

Samsung also said it has added three new apps to its smart TV portfolio -- Fox, Spotify, … Read more

Stand and deliver: BDI home theater furniture

I bought a BDI stand for my TV 10 years ago, and it still looks great. That says a lot about BDI's quality -- I'm constantly swapping out gear, and the stand is good as new. They no longer make the mostly glass unit I own, but their range of new models is huge.

Most of BDI's current designs feature medium-density fiberboard (MDF) construction, with gorgeous, real hardwood veneers. MDF is better than solid wood in these types of cabinets, real wood shelves bow or warp when heavy gear is placed on them for long periods of … Read more

Mobile devices overtake TVs in the bedroom

What are wired people around the world doing in the living room and bedroom? Consuming content on their mobile devices, according to Motorola Mobility's Fourth Annual Media Engagement Barometer. Consumers globally are watching 25 hours of TV and film programming per week on average, up from 15 hours in 2011.

Fifty percent of respondents said they watch programming on their TVs in the living room, while 40 percent use their smartphones or tablets instead, the study found. The Motorola Mobility (owned by Google) survey of 9,500 consumers in 17 countries found that among the 36 percent of respondents … Read more