Sony Music Unlimited for $1 a month

Sony has announced that PlayStation Plus subscribers will be able to add Music Unlimited Premium membership to their accounts for a limited time at $12 per year.

The PlayStation store update is due to go live later today (November 20) and represents a saving of 90 percent based on the regular price of $10 per month, while non-PlayStation Plus members can sign up for a discounted $60 yearly rate instead.

A PlayStation Plus account costs $49.99 a year, so buying Plus and Music Unlimited together makes more sense while the deal is running.

Sony boasts it has a catalog … Read more

YouTube updates Android app for one-tap sharing to Google TV

Like many consumers of online video, Timbo Drayson wanted badly to bring his favorite viral clips from his smartphone to the big screen. But doing so hasn't always been easy, particularly for Google TV owners like himself.

"I love it when the video is playing," Drayson said. "But actually trying to navigate with these remotes is a nightmare."

Fortunately, as a product manager for YouTube, Drayson is in a position to do something about it. Recently, Drayson has been working in Google's London office on a new feature for YouTube designed to make streaming … Read more

Rhapsody launches on LG, Panasonic, and Samsung TVs

Music-streaming service Rhapsody has announced it will be available on Smart TVs from LG, Panasonic, and Samsung starting today, with Sharp and Xbox available in coming months.

Although the announcement came today, the service has been available on Panasonic and LG for a few months. Samsung is new with today's announcement. A Rhapsody app has also been available on Vizio TVs for the last two years. We're not surprised that Sony's Smart TVs, which support the competing Sony Entertainment Network's music service, aren't on the list of supporting TVs.

The new app appears to be … Read more

Steam's Big Picture aims to revitalize computer gaming on TV

Move over, Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo. Valve Software today revealed a new television-friendly version of its massive Steam digital video game distribution service.

Aptly named Big Picture, the new view transforms Steam into a more polished experience for the big screen. The optional redesigned interface represents a departure from the traditional Valve design used in the Steam application for Windows and Mac, instead falling in line with the easy-to-navigate layouts commonly seen in streaming media devices. … Read more

Singapore scientists unveil multiscreen, social TV viewing experience

Scientists from Singapore's Nanyang Technological University's School of Computer Engineering have unveiled "Social Cloud TV," which is essentially a multiscreen mobile TV experience.

Developed by a research team headed by assistant professor Wen Yonggang, "Social Cloud TV" lets users chat -- using video, voice, or text -- with their friends on the platform, as well as share their content on social-networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter, and Google+.

They can access content that's stored locally, in the cloud, delivered via over-the-top (OTT) services (click here for more information on the technology) or shared using a Web browser on a smart TV or mobile device. Wen and his team developed the back-end processes -- such as a compression algorithm and media transcoding -- so that content is optimized for each device and screen size. … Read more

Roku names first Streaming Stick partners, keeps mum on exact price and release date

Back at the January Consumer Electronics Show, Roku showed off a prototype of its Streaming Stick -- a version of its streaming box miniaturized to the size of a USB drive, and designed to work with any TV equipped with an MHL (Mobile High-Definition Link) port. We thought it was cool enough to bestow it with a nomination as one of the best home theater products of the show.

The good news is that the Streaming Stick is on track for its promised 2012 release. Roku today affirmed that the product will be released "in the coming weeks." … Read more

How are you streaming? (Poll)

Streaming video, with its instant access and wide selection, has exploded over the past few years. Whether it's Netflix, which despite some recent fumbles still remains hugely popular, or other services like Hulu Plus, Amazon Instant Video, Vudu, and so on, more services and content have become available. Even better, the number of devices capable of streaming that content continues to grow.

With so many options available to stream Internet content, what's your pick?… Read more

I want my dumb TV

When it comes to smart TVs, manufacturers are basically charging money for nuthin.'

Or to put it in less dire terms, the smart TV suites included in today's TVs offer little value. That's not to say I don't enjoy Netflix, Amazon Instant, and HBO Go as much as the next broadband Internet subscriber, it's just that I can get the same great apps and content on devices as cheap as the $50 Roku LT. So why would I want to spend $100 extra or more on a TV that has these features?… Read more

From Amazon to HBO Go to YouTube: App availability on 2012 TVs compared (big chart)

"Smart TV" is even more common than ever this year among the TVs of 2012, and as always, content is king.

With that in mind we present the chart above, summarizing the various major apps available from most major TV manufacturers this year. As you can see, pretty much everything has Netflix, and the differences begin from there.

Compared with last year, the major addition to the chart is HBO Go, which is currently exclusive to Samsung TVs. It's a superb app with a wealth of content that helps makes Samsung's suite the most compelling of … Read more