<![CDATA[Gizmodo: entertainment]]> http://tags.gizmodo.com/assets/base/img/thumbs140x140/gizmodo.com.png <![CDATA[Gizmodo: entertainment]]> http://gizmodo.com/tag/entertainment http://gizmodo.com/tag/entertainment <![CDATA[The Best Post-Cyber Monday HDTV Deals]]> The guys at HDGuru have scoured the offerings of online retailers once again to find the best post-Cyber Monday HDTV deals.

There are some decent offerings in there, including a 40-inch Samsung 1080p LCD for $609 and a Panasonic 50-inch 1080p plasma for $1095 (Buy.com). Check out HDGuru for all of the details—and you had better hurry. There was another 50-inch 1080p plasma from Panasonic going for a ridiculous $711 on the list, but that deal seems to already have expired. [HDGuru]

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<![CDATA[A Guide To Choosing The HDTV That's Right For You]]> If your holiday plans involve buying a new HDTV, HD Guru has put together a quick and dirty guide to help you avoid some of the pitfalls many consumers fall into.

You will learn important lessons like: sizing your TV to optimize resolution, whether to choose LCD vs plasma vs LED and why you don't need to spend money on a 240 Hz TV. So, make sure to check out the following link before you shop. [HDGuru]

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<![CDATA[Buffy and Hellboy Skins on Apple Products, Dual-Fanboys Ascend to Nirvana]]> Dark Horse Comics (Buffy, Hellboy) and GelaSkins (those dudes who make reusable sticky skins for iPhones, Macbooks, etc) have conceived and birthed a line of products to which all geeks will find themselves un-immune.

Hellboy, Buffy and a bunch of other Dark Horse IPs are now available in GelaSkin form (heck, there's even some Bettie Page thrown in there for good measure). iPhone skins go for $15 while 13 and 15-inch Macbook/general laptop skins cost $30.

You've likely seen the iconic art before, but that's alright. I could stare at Sarah Michelle Gellar's estranged cousin for days.
[Dark Horse via Lost at E Minor]

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<![CDATA[Blu-ray Improvements on the Horizon: Faster Loads, iPhone Connectivity and IMDB]]> What does Fox have in mind for improving the experience of Blu-rays? Actually...some really great ideas, according to SlashFilm.

The most immediate (and maybe most promising) is Live Lookup. It'll be on the Wolverine disc (you know, the same one that has the PSPgo digital copy).

Live Lookup allows you to hit a button and be linked to IMDB. Actors can be sorted by scene, allowing you to search for bikini shots of cute, female b-listers later. Check it out in the lead photo.

Load times should be diminished or even eliminated, but at a cost. Fox plans to load BD menus while you watch previews. So things may not actually get faster, but you may have more incentive to sit through all that extra promotional material that shouldn't be on a BD in the first place.

Finally, we may even control a BD player through a remote device, like an iPhone. Not only could you search for content without popping a guide up onscreen, but the BD player could stream additional content to this second, personal screen.

These are all great ideas, but hopefully more studios than just Fox will adopt them. Read more of what Fox had to say on the matter over at: [SlashFilm]

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<![CDATA[Star Trek Review]]> Star Trek: The Motion Picture isn't just a film that should be important to original series fans, but it's a film that's influenced media (Star Trek or otherwise) for the next 30 years. Here's our review.

The plot could be described in one sentence: "The new Enterprise goes out to investigate an alien being that's threatening to destroy the Earth." That's it. But how Roddenberry executed such a simple premise shows why this man was a visionary that George Lucas couldn't even dream of comparing himself to.

Since it's been years since you've last seen the movie—about 15 years for me—I'll give a short recap. Admiral Kirk comes back to take command of the Enterprise, a ship that's spent the last 18 months being retrofitted, in order to intercept a giant gas cloud that demolished three Klingon Warbirds with ease. The film spends the first half of the movie assembling the cast, showing off the Enterprise exterior, and basically letting everyone settle in to their roles. It then spends the entire second half of the movie journeying from the outer edge of the gas cloud into the center. What's there? The Voyager 6 space probe. (There's no actual Voyager 6 probe in our reality, in case you're wondering.)

Turns out V'ger (Voyager 6 with space dirt on its nameplate) was lost after it hit a black hole, which dumped it in the vicinity of a "machine planet". That planet? The Borg fucking homeworld circa 300 years ago. (The Borg aren't mentioned by name, but material deemed canon claims Roddenberry designated the species as the Borg.) The Borg fitted V'ger with "advanced" technology and sent it back to Earth to fulfill its mission of relaying information back to its creator.

Kirk manages to stop this thing by connecting V'ger with Voyager 6, recognizing that the now-sentient machine is looking for HUMANS as its creator, and tries to send the proper codes for V'ger to finish its mission instead of killing everyone on Earth. Kirk fails until the handsome Captain Decker, who was demoted to Commander because both he, Kirk and Kirk's ego couldn't fit into the same chair, merged with V'ger and created a new advanced life form. The life form explodes into another dimension and the movie ends.

So what the hell is this movie about? Quite a lot of things, but none of these plot lines or themes are satisfactorily concluded. Besides the obvious religious analogies that involve the creator and God and meeting the maker and somehow finding a purpose to life, there are a few weird subplots that all end as abruptly as V'ger does.

There was the Decker/Ilia relationship, which symbolized a man finally being able to "physically" be with a woman—the avowed celibate woman—who tormented him years before by not allowing his photon torpedoes anywhere near her docking bay. Then there's Spock's journey to find out the meaning of life, trying to decide whether he's going to go with Logic or Emotion (big L, big E). A mindmeld with a sentient machine that has the entire knowledge of the universe makes the decision for him, and it's the latter. No real explanation of this either; Spock just wakes up from swapping minds with a robot to realize that he's not one.

And of course, there's the theme of growing old and obsolete. Everyone's 10 years older than when the series ended, carrying around a little more paunch and a little less muscle. Even Kirk has been replaced by a younger, better looking version of himself. Only by strongarming his way back into the hot seat does he manage to prove that yes, he IS out of touch, and needs someone younger to save his ass repeatedly.

All of this is buried under $49 million of special effects. That's $139 million in today's money. In comparison, the similarly effects-laden Star Trek 2009 movie cost $150 million. Both were pretty good LOOKING for their time, with Star Trek 1979 spending (what seemed like) a larger percentage of the film just flying around and looking at stuff. The influence of 2001: A Space Odyssey weighs heavily on the way the movie-makers did things, even 11 years later.

But what's the point of this movie? Like I said, it was in part a big thank-you to long time fans, as evidenced by old characters popping up to say hello. Nurse (now Dr.) Chapel, played by Roddenberry's wife, who also was the voice of the computer in TNG and JJ Abram's Star Trek movie, makes a few appearances. Yeoman Rand, the blonde sexpot from the first season of the series, also pops up in order to screw up a transportation sequence and kill two people. She may hold the record for longest time without a promotion in Star Trek history.

That was half the reason. The other half was because Roddenberry had more to say, and now he had the money to say it with. Gone were the cheap purple sets and cardboard rocks of the '60s series; in are the clean, sterile lines we've seen in many "traditional" space operas of the last 30 years. You may think that the only reason why the movie eschewed the lived-in, half-assed quality of the original was because they finally had money, but you'd only be half right. They also did this for a reason; because space needs orderliness. Why? Because space is fucking scary.

The movie is littered with reasons why space is "the final frontier". Kirk rushes a jump to warp—normally an everyday occurence in the Star Trek universe—before Scotty says it's ready and creates a temporal wormhole where the ship almost eats it in a near-hit with an asteroid. The villain is a piece of technology we sent out, basically telling us that even benign actions like the search for information may come back (by way of the Borg) to shoot us up the ass. Transporting, a relatively safe way of traveling, won't just kill you, it'll turn you into a disgusting, screaming blob of tissue if there's just ONE circuit board malfunctioning. Hell, the seductively bald female Lieutenant that V'ger abducts, kills, and machine-clones was doing nothing more than just standing there. In order to combat all the chaos out there, outside your raised shields, you need to make sure your system in here runs with military precision.

The Next Generation, arguably the best iteration of Star Trek, continues the train of thought started by Star Trek: The Motion Picture. There wouldn't be that without this. No Picard, Data, Riker or Geordi without a movie that basically amounts to as a dealer test drive of the new Enterprise. No more romping around the galaxy having your way with this or that alien. It's judgement time; time to prove that Humanity actually belongs in space and is capable of handling what's out there. Encounter at Farpoint, here we come.

So go back and watch the movie again, this time on Blu-ray in the comfort of your own home. Hell, if you've put a little bit of money into your home theater it may be better than the actual theater you saw this in in 1979. But this time, watch with the knowledge of the last three decades of Star Trek with you. [Star Trek Movie Collection]

Gizmodo '79 is a week-long celebration of gadgets and geekdom 30 years ago, as the analog age gave way to the digital, and most of our favorite toys were just being born.

Iimage credit Wikipedia, Trekcore

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<![CDATA[Advertising During The Simpsons More Expensive on Hulu than TV]]> The image associated with this post is best viewed using a browser.We'll laugh at this headline in the not so distant future, but for the first time, buying a 30-second ad during a Fox broadcast of The Simpsons costs less than buying the same ad on Hulu.

Television broadcast ads during The Simpsons cost $20-$40 per thousand viewers. On the web, the rate jumps to $60.

Shows like The Simpsons and CSI are now commanding higher ad rates on Hulu and TV.com than on television. It's a byproduct viewers being twice as likely to recall web ads than TV ads, according to Neilsen. (Which I would argue is a byproduct of Hulu showing us far fewer ads.)

But before we all declare TV dead, remember that Hulu has only 37 seconds of ads per "30-minute" show while a Fox broadcast includes a whopping 9 minutes of sales pitches. So there's still technically more money in TV, which will change as soon as Hulu begins cramming 9 minutes of ads into each program.

Lots more on the story here: [Bloomberg via PCWorld]

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<![CDATA[Star Trek Review]]> Star Trek will disappoint no one.

As the lights dimmed and the familiar Star Trek Federation logo slid on screen, the emotion of all those hours of watching Next Generation reruns as a kid came sloshing back into my brain, dripping out of my eyes as tears of pure happiness. I expect that it was essentially the same emotion Star Wars fans felt during the opening credits of Episode 1, but without the massive letdown afterwards. (Ha ha, suckers.)

But yes, to answer your question, there's Kirk, there's Spock, and there's everyone you expect (even Pike!). Not all of the same mannerisms are there, but if you wanted to see the old actors you'd go watch the first six movies again. This implies that Kirk doesn't do a two-hour Shatner impression, which is, of course, good news. Instead, he plays Kirk as a intelligent, brash, but friendly youngster that has confidence oozing out of every torpedo tube. And the new Spock is more Sylar than Spock, to be honest; though the rest of the casting is essentially spot on.

So long as you go into the movie expecting a "Star Trek" movie, in that there's space and aliens and action and shooting and torpedoes and pew pew pew, you'll come out happy. The movie is targeted enough toward the mainstream in that someone with zero Trek experience would enjoy it. Director J.J. Abrams also gives enough shout outs to old time staples that trekkers will be giddy at the slight nods and fanservice that say, in essence, "thank you for supporting us all these years, now here's something you asked for."

Think of it like Casino Royale was to the James Bond franchise: fewer gadgets, more action and an incredibly pugilistic lead. And lens flares. Lots, and lots, and lots of lens flares.

Kirk's Enterprise has never looked better. These guys took the original ship, combined it with some designs of the Enterprise-B, then mashed it up with Picard's Enterprise-E and then added a dash of '60s non-Trek Sci Fi. The set design, however, is almost all touchscreen (like TNG), but with a tremendously updated UI. I'd hate to call it Apple-y, but there's lots of glass and slick white finishes. Retro this is not—you'll barely be able to equate the bridge to the original's, other than the fact that the players are all sitting in the right places. Why Bones canoodles in the bridge so much instead of where he's supposed to be is still beyond me.

And the plot? The plot makes as much sense as any other Star Trek movie. There's even a very good explanation of why this movie is the way it is, which is the most I can say about that.

This is what Star Trek needs right now. After writing on Next Generation, Ron Moore went on (about a decade later) to reimagine Battlestar Galactica, a relatively realistic show (topic-wise) that just happened to be set in space. Sci Fi fans have moved on from the utopian, and what many accused as sterile, confines of TNG to a grittier, less kempt future.

That's not to say Star Trek is now gritty—it's just more...modern. And more sexy. Like when you upgrade from a six piece KFC meal to a 12 piece bucket: you're going to get more breast and thigh.

It also doesn't have any crap about the Prime Directive or any undertones about race that TOS and TNG dealt with, but it is a very good "restart" of the franchise. With this film as the base, I cannot wait to see where the franchise goes from here.

Bonus: there's a four-issue Star Trek: Countdown comic series that prequels the movie. Though, you might want to wait until after you watch to read, since it gives away a few plot points. To tell you more would be to spoil too much. It's too much even to tell you what KIND of fans would like the comic. You can download the first one here for your iPhone.

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<![CDATA[Star Trek Mural Transforms Any Room Into Nerd Womb]]> I'm not too sure what heaven looks like, being of the mindset that it all just goes to black. But if heaven does exist, it surely looks a lot like the original Star Trek Enterprise.

The Star Trek: Bridge Full Wall Mural is a 6x10 detachable skin that can stick and restick to walls without damaging the paint job. In other words, not only can you decorate a small room without painting; you can decorate a small room to be just like the original Enterprise without painting. Priced at around $185, now only to get the missus wearing that miniskirt/go-go boot combination... [Urban Collector via DVICE]

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<![CDATA[A Brief History of Star Trek Logos]]> Finally, we've got all the Star Trek movie logos squeezed into one overtly dramatic clip. I'd argue that the original show did it best, with the new movie coming in a close second. [via /film]

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<![CDATA[The Latest Star Trek Trailer Officially Sucked Me In]]> Every new Star Trek trailer has done more to pique my interest, but this latest clip, teasing how Kirk takes the helm and boasting the most eye candy yet, has activated full-out fanboy mode. [YouTube via CrunchGear]

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<![CDATA[Total Recall Getting Total Remake?]]> Total Recall is probably my all time favorite sci-fi flick. So it's with mixed emotions that I hear Hollywood may be returning to Mars.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, producer Neal H. Moritz (The Fast and the Furious, I am Legend) is in final negotiations with Columbia to remake Total Recall (which is, of course, technically a remake of Philip K. Dick's We Can Remember It for You Wholesale).

Granted, Total Recall is nearly 20 years old at this point, but I think the movie has held up pretty well. Part of my body shudders at the thought of the equally cocky and clueless Douglas Quaid/Houser being played by anyone but Arnold Schwarzenegger, or a three-boobed alien's jubblies getting rendered in CGI.

But it's not just the incredible ensemble cast or the respectable special effects. The script, from plot twists to techie toys to dialogue, was brilliant. Just take a look at the scene in which...well...you'll remember it as you read it:

Hauser: Howdy stranger. I'm Hauser. If things haven't gone wrong, I'm talking to myself and you don't have a wet towel around your head. Now whatever your name is, get ready for the big surprise. You are not you you're "me".
Douglas Quaid: [to himself] No shit.
Hauser: For ten years, I worked for Mars intelligence, doing Cohaagen's dirty work. But then, I met someone, a woman. She taught me a few things, like I was playing for the wrong team, and other things that I didn't know about. You see...
[Points to his head]
Hauser: There's enough shit in here to fuck Cohaagen good, and here comes the hard part, old buddy, now it is all up to you.
Douglas Quaid: [displeased] Great.
Hauser: Now, let's start by getting that bug out of your head.
[shows the nose device]
Hauser: Take this out of the package, and stick it up your nose. Don't worry it's self guiding. Just shove real hard.
[Quaid takes a deep breath, and sticks the nose device up his nose]
Hauser: When you hear a crunch, you're there. Now, pull it out. Be careful, that my head too.
[Quaid screams in pain while Hauser grins, then Quaid pulls out the bug]
Hauser: This is the plan. Get your ass to Mars, and go to the Hilton Hotel and show the fake Brubaker I.D. at the front desk. Just do as I tell you. You can nail that son of a bitch that fucked you and me. I'm counting on you old buddy. Don't let me down.

That said, now I need to rewatch Total Recall this weekend before obsessively following this new version's progression. I'm counting on you, Mr. Moritz. Don't let me down. [THR via The Register]

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<![CDATA[An Important Message From the Global Entertainment Industry]]> The Pirate Bay is carrying this spot-on cartoon on what we already knew about labels and studios: Their "new media—first radio, then TV, then tapes, then video—will kill our industry!" argument is simply stupid FUD.

[The Pirate Bay]

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<![CDATA[Light Bulb Speakers Put Sound In Your Lamps]]> The more concepts I see involving speakers in light bulbs, the more I love it. So far, the latest incarnation from designer Castiglione Morelli is definitely the best of the bunch.

Like the previous version, this bulb utilizes Bluetooth to stream content to the built-in speaker. However, it also features a separate plug-in that can be attached to an iPod. So, essentially, you can stream your music throughout the house with a remote to control the action. Still, I would love to see something that could be plugged into any audio device and controlled with a separate remote. Because, outside of music, I can see this as being great way to establish a surround sound setup. Unfortunately, there is no way of knowing when and if we will ever get a real world product to play around with. [Castiglione Morelli via Crunchgear via Boing Boing Gadgets]

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<![CDATA['Funny Band' Combines Keyboards, Drums and Guitar Into One Unusable Controller]]> Sick of all those fake instruments cluttering up your living room? Try Korean-made Funny Band, which takes a guitar and shoves drums on the back and a keyboard on the front for some insane reason.

Yeah, I'm not quire sure how you're supposed to use this Rock Band ripoff, but it sure is ambitious. Oh, and you really owe it to yourself to read the press release, which is a masterclass in the art of press release writing.

Real Music, Real Play, Real Online Band Game, It's "Funny Game"

Real music game has been exhibited through G star 2008 for users who disappointed by dance game which is disguised by rhythm game. We are expecting Funny Band which put slogan "Real Music, Real Play, Real Online Band Game" will be loved by dance game to lots of users who just fall in to rhythm game.

Let's figure out the characteristic of Funny Band which is released by G Star experience session.

First of all, Funny Band is using special sound system. You can use popular songs, pop, rock, and lots of rhythm music. All of those music are separated by position of guitar, drum, keyboard, and vocal as Funny band sound source so, user can freely adjust the volume of sound. Professional musician is playing each instrument and vocal sound therefore users can listen as real and there is benefit in reserve rights so, it will receive lots of interest from publishers who are preparing rhythm game line up. Moreover, we are expecting it will be loved for participating music game. Because after now, we can share compose and editing sound which armature musician is going to do and we are going to link with UCC.

Second Characteristic is we can watch Funny Band as the first real on-line music band game.

In the past, there were several cases some of games have received favor from some users by copying music band game. However, there was no game like performing on on-line such as funny band . Especially, vocal mode, the sound is made by 3D-OZ Corp.'s original voice streaming and technology of tone recognition so everyone can have fun with high quality at karaoke.

Third, there is keynote system which has maximized the rhythm.

Key point of rhythm game is touching sense during paying the game. Funny Band is music simulation game which provides keynote system from each instrument and music book. Specially, drum and guitar, users can have illusion for playing because instruments' quality is so fantastic. Furthermore, there is a level easy, normal and hard. So when you play easy mode, users who play rhythm game for their first time can easily adjust. Also, the multi controller for conquer Europe and northern America is going to have a huge boom to users who know the touching sense in rhythm music.

Finally, there is community system that presents the factor of band.

There are lots of cases that causal games are putting 3D community space in game reason for reinforce the community factor but there is not sufficient connection so they're receiving not much attention from users. However, in case of Funny band system, it can make band in 3D world space and activate more in azit by granting band space. Also it is almost same as off-line band because of community system such as competing with other band so it can grow up so it will receive lots of affection from users.

Person from 3D-OZ Corp. said "we are going to listen various voices from users through G star experience session so the game is going to be innovated more high quality music game. Also, it is going to be a real music game that users can be participated and making together.

Moreover, Funny Band is having lots of interest from middle area users and still connecting with our dominant publisher so, if it's early then we're expecting that we can play OBT service in beginning of next year.

I… see. [Kotaku]

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<![CDATA[Straight-Up Wall Chess Makes Knocking-Over Your King More Dramatic]]> Sure, these chess sets aren't quite as neat as the vertical Tri-D chess in Star Trek, but by turning the game through 90 degrees and hanging it on the wall they do turn it into a sort of art masterpiece. That'd be assuming you play well—with my playing style it'd be more like a kid's painting disaster. Still, toppling your king from the board in resignation does get an extra kind of fatal symbolism. The choice of wood is customizable, and they cost upwards of $100. [Straightupchess via Neatorama]

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<![CDATA[The Tech Specs of HD Netflix Streaming]]> Hats off to Netflix. Without really being prompted, they've released their HD encoding/streaming specifications for the world to see. The company revealed that they originally considered a WMV3 (Windows Media Player 9) codec running at 4000kbps and 5500kbps, but opted instead for a similar Microsoft codec, the VC1AP running between 2600kbps and 3800kbps—which should provide a better experience for those of us with lower bandwidths.

While Netflix offers 24fps movies in their native frames per second, their other content peaks at 30fps. The company researched the 60fps content found on Blu-ray discs, they realized that they'd be better off reserving that sort of quality for another era. Good call.

While it's a bit unfair to compare bitrates across codecs, Vudu's premium HDX material is still the top dog in streaming, supplying encoded rates ranging between 9Mbps and 20Mbps. Then again, most of us can't watch that footage in real time. [Netflix via CNET]

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<![CDATA[Netflix Streaming Finally on TiVo]]> Netflix has revealed the receiver of its next golden ticket of content distribution partnerships, and it's TiVo! The DVR company is the latest team member of Netflix's ever expanding movie download empire, and subscribers to TiVo's Series3, HD, and HD XL sets can now stream cinema directly to their TVs. And from this screenshot, its apparent that you can browse titles instead of having to queue them up on a PC first. This is much better than the Netflix-Tivo venture they put forth over a year ago and more like our wishes for a Tivo-Netflix marriage over a year ago.

TIVO AND NETFLIX ANNOUNCE PARTNERSHIP

TO INSTANTLY STREAM MOVIES AND TV EPISODES

FROM NETFLIX DIRECTLY TO THE TV THROUGH TIVO DVRs

Deal Provides Netflix with New Content Distribution Channel, Solidifies TiVo’s Leading Position as One-Box Solution for Simple Navigation and Delivery

Of the Best Entertainment Content to the TV

ALVISO, Calif. and LOS GATOS, Calif., October 30, 2008 — TiVo Inc. (NASDAQ: TIVO), the creator of and a leader in television services for digital video recorders (DVRs) and Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX), the world's largest online movie rental service, today announced that they are teaming up to provide Netflix and TiVo® Series3, TiVo HD, and TiVo HD XL subscribers with the ability to have thousands of movies and TV episodes instantly streamed from Netflix directly to their TVs.

The two companies said they are initiating a test of the new capability today in several thousand U.S. households and expect it to be broadly available in early December, in time for the holidays. The ability to instantly watch content from Netflix on the TV via TiVo DVRs will be offered at no additional charge to customers who subscribe to both services.

The agreement provides Netflix with an important new technology partner to instantly stream a growing library of more than 12,000 choices of movies and TV episodes directly from Netflix to the TV. It also solidifies TiVo’s leading position for simple navigation and delivery of the best entertainment content to the TV.

“For Netflix and TiVo subscribers, this collaboration offers a fabulously easy way to enhance the enjoyment of watching movies in the comfort of their living rooms,” said Reed Hastings, co-founder and CEO of Netflix. “Subscribers to Netflix and TiVo are avid movie watchers and this combination gives them immediate access to all of the great content available through TiVo and the thousands of additional choices available to be streamed instantly from Netflix.”

“Joining forces with Netflix creates the ultimate video on demand service and solidifies TiVo’s leading position as the one-box solution for aggregating, searching, and delivering the best content available anywhere right to the TV,” said Tom Rogers, president and CEO of TiVo Inc. “Adding Netflix to our already vast library of content differentiates TiVo even further from any other offering in the market today.”

Integrating the Netflix streaming functionality into the TiVo experience will result in quick and easy access to a growing list of movies and TV episodes that can be watched instantly at Netflix. Movies streamed from Netflix via specified TiVo DVRs is done through a wired or wireless broadband connection and a Netflix Queue-based user interface. Members visit the Netflix Web site to add movies and TV episodes to their individual instant Queues. Those choices will automatically be displayed on subscribers’ TVs and available to watch instantly through the TiVo service. With the TiVo remote control, users will be able to browse their instant Queue, make selections right on the TV screen, and also have the ability to read synopses and rate movies. In addition, they will have the option of pausing, fast-forwarding, rewinding and re-starting whenever they wish.

For more information on how to have movies instantly streamed from Netflix via your TiVo DVR visit www.tivo.com/netflix.

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<![CDATA[This Week In Digital Streaming: Netflix Joins Vudu Edition]]> For the past several week's we've been giving you Vudu's new release movie rentals in a handy list. This week, Netflix streaming clips join the mix of our coverage (they aren't teaming with Vudu or something). Given that Netflix has just signed to share Starz content, their formerly disappointing digital library is looking better by the second. Here's all of the latest Vudu and Netflix digital content in a mega list:

NETFLIX MOVIES
National Treasure: Book of Secrets
Legend
Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story
Manhattan
Sleeper
Expelled
The Protector
Unbreakable
The Grand
Chocolat
Lost Boys: The Tribe
O Brother, Where Art Thou?
Eight Miles High
The Neighbor
The Mummy
Crimson Tide
Crimes and Misdemeanors
Body of War
Final Season
The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep
Newsies
Poor Boy's Game
The Hoax
Flash Gordon
Finding Amanda
Teen Wolf / Teen Wolf Too
Before the Rains
Major Payne
Mississipi Burning
Emma
Pulse
That Thing You Do!
Rapid Fire
The Faculty
The Cool School
Southern Comfort
Celebrity
The Watcher
Love and Death
Sudden Death
Vampire's Kiss
Dante's Peak
Tank Girl
Stardust Memories
Shadows and Fog
Damage
The Stranger
Johnny Be Good
Julia
Breakin' 2: Electric Boogaloo
Uncounted: New Math of America
Lost
Apostles of Comedy
Man's Best Friend
Battle for the Planet of the Apes
Biloxi Blues
Naked Fear
Played
Hot Tamale
Up Close & Personal
The Ballad of Lucy Whipple
Red Sun
Resistance
The Paper
American Pimp
Iron Eagle 4: On the Attack
Jesus of Nazareth
Ring of Fire: IMAX
Country Remedy
Tupac: Live at the House of Blues
Fort Worth / Colt .45 / Tall Man Riding
Jamie Foxx Presents: America's Funniest Comics: Vol. 1
The Law and Jake Wade
Finding Rin Tin Tin
On the Line
Fled
One, Two, Three
Nuns on the Run
Vikings: Journey to New World
Screamers
The Wrangler
Dying Young
The Cheyenne Social Club
American Gun
The Mean Season
Thomas and the Magic Railroad
Married to the Mob
Spirit Trap
The Young Savages
The House on Carroll Street
Fatboy Slim: Live at Brighton
Mojave Phone Booth
For the Love of a Dog
Mr. Wrong
Jack the Bear
Summer Fling
Carbon Copy
Miracle Dogs Too
Fallen Angel
The Legend of Tillamook's Gold
How I Won the War
Elmer Gantry
Shackles
Hank Williams: The Man and His Music
Camilla
Revelation
A Christmas Too Many
The Osterman Weekend
A Lobster Tale
Night of the Fox
Trouble Man
1969
A Halfway House Christmas
D12: Live in Chicago
Out of Left Field: The Making of the Chinese Baseball Team
Doctor Bull / Judge Priest
Garbo Talks
Mr. North
Git Along Little Dogies
Grindhouse: Double Feature
Outlaws of the Plains
Piranha
Gene Autry and the Mounties
Slap Shot: 25th Anniversary Edition
Trail to San Antone
The Hills of Utah
The Man from Utah / Sagebrush Trail
EL&P: Beyond the Beginning
Man Friday / Raise the Titanic
Blues Traveler: Thinnest of Air Disc 1
Red Headed Stranger
Shout at the Devil
Dinosaur Island
Play
This Is My Life
Raid on Rommel
The Incredible Shrinking Woman
Inherit the Wind
Joe and Max
Intimate Betrayal
The Man in the Iron Mask
It's Alive! / Year 2889
Tennis Anyone?
Love at Stake
Rhapsody in Bloom
Keeping Secrets
Wubbzy's Big Movie!
The Paperboy
LBJ: The Early Years
Patty Hearst
The Price of Love
Illegally Yours
The Count of Monte Cristo
Golden Gate
Poor Little Rich Girl: Barbara Hutton Story
Mentor
Savate
Operation Delta Force 5: Random Fire
Chilly Scenes of Winter
Harry Tracy
Bounty Tracker

NETFLIX TELEVISION
Heroes: Season 3
CSI: Miami: Season 6
CSI: Season 7
Swingtown: Season 1
Jericho: Season 1
Numb3rs: Season 4
CSI: NY: Season 4
Crash: Season 1
NCIS: Season 6
Super Mario Super Show!: Mario of the Deep
Friday Night Lights: Season 2
The Rifleman: Season 4
The Rifleman: Season 3
The Rifleman: Season 5
Come On, Get Happy: Partridge Family Story
Pit Pony
The Office: Season 4
The Rifleman: Season 1
The Rifleman: Season 2
30 Rock: Season 2
Mighty Machines: Tremendous Tools
Sonic Underground: Secrets of the Chaos
The Gene Autry Show: Season 1
The Gene Autry Show: Season 5
30 Rock: Season 2
Mighty Machines: Tremendous Tools
Sonic Underground: Secrets of the Chaos
The Gene Autry Show: Season 1
The Gene Autry Show: Season 5
Wizards of Waverly Place: Season 1
The Suite Life on Deck: Season 1
The Gene Autry Show: Season 4
The Suite Life of Zack & Cody: Season 1
The Gene Autry Show: Season 3
The Gene Autry Show: Season 2
The Suite Life of Zack & Cody: Season 3
The Suite Life of Zack & Cody: Season 2
Super Duper Sumos
Mustard Pancakes: The Singing King
CSI: Miami: Season 7
Numb3rs: Season 5
CSI: Season 9
CSI: Season 8
CSI: NY: Season 5
Jericho: Season 2
Wizards of Waverly Place: Season 2

VUDU HDX:
Grease
Star Trek 2: The Wrath of Khan
Robocop
Robocop 2
Rocky
Rocky 4
Species
State of Grace
Blown Away
Dances with Wolves
Henry V
The Queen
Enemy of the State
Leatherheads

VUDU HD:
Robocop
Dances with Wolves
Natural Born Killers
Lethal Weapon 2
Ghost Ship
A Streetcar Named Desire
Theatre of Blood
The Birdcage
Blown Away
Dead Man Walking
Moonstruck
Rocky
Species
Rocky 4
Sid and Nancy
Species 2
The Pebble and the Penguin
Salvador
Back to School
The Bridge at Remagen
The Nutty Professor
Children of a Lesser God
In the Heat of the Night
Cotton Comes to Harlem
Foxy Brown
The Man in the Moon
The Abominable Dr. Phibes
Marty
The Claim
She-Devil
Legally Blonde
The Russia House
Speechless
Jeepers Creepers
Best Men
No Man's Land
The Last Waltz
Valmont
State of Grace
Salaam Bombay!
Valley Girl
The Last American Virgin
Uptown Girls
Jeepers Creepers 2
The Legend of Johnny Lingo
Special Effects
Barbershop 2: Back in Business
Judgement at Nuremberg
Soul Plane
Wicker Park
Beachhead
Revenge of the Zombies
Shout at the Devil
Stone Cold Dead
Taras Bulba
TerrorVision
The Vampire Lovers
Wild in the Streets
The Call of the Wild
The Facts of Life
First Monday in October
Hard Candy
The Life Before Her Eyes
Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room
Marat / Sade
Romance and Cigarettes
The Second Face
Valentino
Vicious Lips
WarGames: The Dead Code
March of the Penguins
Absolute Power
Action Jackson
Arthur
Conspiracy Theory
Creepshow
I Confess
Lean on Me
Let's Do It Again
Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome
Stage Fright
Suspicion
Enemy of the State
Fright Night
Cliffhanger
Fly Away Home
Immortal Beloved
First Knight
Krull
Awakenings
Poetic Justice
Sniper
Dance with Me
Leatherheads
Chain Reaction
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen

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<![CDATA[Microsoft Unveils Three New Xbox Bundles (Two You Might Want)]]> Microsoft has just unveiled three new Xbox 360 bundles, each featuring Netflix advertising on the front and a free game or two inside. The Pro and Elite bundles are basically the same, each coming with Lego Indiana Jones and Kung Fu Panda. The Arcade version comes with, uh, Sega Superstar Tennis. And no hard drive, if you'd somehow forgotten that, which is especially crappy since the New Xbox Experience requires at least a 256MB memory card to work. So yeah, just avoid that Arcade system at all costs. The other two bundles aren't too bad if you're into, you know, Kung Fu Panda.


[Kotaku]

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<![CDATA[NES Bong is One Third Party Nintendo Accessory You Won't Find at Gamestop]]> Ah, video games and casual drug use. They go together like World of Warcraft and loneliness, don't they? That's why we saw a water pipe made out of an N64 controller last year, and that's why Giz reader James dedicated this past weekend into converting an old NES controller into a bong. It doesn't work, unfortunately, but I'm sure you'd be bad enough at playing after using this thing without having to try to smoke while also controlling Mega Man. Nice work, James. We like to see young people using their time constructively. Hit the jump for another picture of this masterpiece of ingenuity.


Thanks, James!

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