Not sure if you heard, but some new operating system thingy was announced today. I know, they’re trying to keep it pretty quiet. Anyway, I think it’s called Windows 7.
Okay, only kidding – Windows 7 was indeed launched globally today, and whilst a lot of the new features will be familiar to many of you, Microsoft today announced new Internet TV functionality in Windows 7, which looks pretty cool for viewers in the US and the UK.
Let’s deal with the US first – launching today, you’ll find the following content available in Windows 7 Media Center:
CBS Audience Network: Featuring a variety of shows from CBS Primetime, Daytime, Extras, and TV Classics, including full-length episodes of current TV shows, CBS Classics TV shows, short clips, and Web originals.
· Full Zune Video Podcast Library: Thousands of hours of entertainment with full TV episodes, webisodes, clips, and videos from providers including ABC News, CBS News, CNBC, CNET TV, Comedy Central, Current TV, The Discovery Channel, Fox, G4 TV, HBO, MSNBC, NBC, Showtime, and Revision 3, along with some of the best user-generated videos on the Web. Some video podcasts are also available in HD.
· MSN and msnbc.com: Clips as well as full length episodes from TV shows such as Arrested Development, news and weather from MSNBC, editor picks and most popular videos, five day weather forecasts, news, video playlists, music videos, movie trailers and more.
· Netflix: The updated Netflix experience available in Windows 7 lets you instantly watch a growing catalogue of thousands of Movies and TV episodes from Netflix directly in Windows Media Center.
… and of course, remember this builds on a whole bunch of existing media features in Windows 7, including:
Watch Live TV on Your Windows 7 PC: By adding an inexpensive TV tuner to a Windows 7 PC, you can use Windows Media Center to watch, pause, and rewind live TV directly on your PC. There is no additional service charge to watch over-the-air channels in standard or high definition. You can also use your PC as a DVR to schedule recordings of TV shows and movies.
· Stream Digital Media from your Home PC: Never miss your favorite shows. With Windows 7 you can now access your Windows Media Center digital media even when you’re not at home by using Remote Streaming. Simply log in using your Windows Live ID to get your TV shows, movies, music, and pictures streamed to you over the internet – no matter where you are.
· Watch Recorded TV Shows on your Zune or Windows Phone: Watch your Windows Media Center recorded TV on-the-go. Just sync your recorded TV shows with your Zune digital media player or Windows Phone, and watch what you want no matter where you are.
· Access all your Personal Media in One Place: Windows Media Center brings in all digital media stored on the PC – photos, movies, music, and recorded TV shows – into one place. And new with Windows 7 you can use Home Group to access digital media in Windows Media Center from other PCs in your network.
· Digital Cable Enhancements Now Available (announced at CEDIA this September):
· New Digital Cable Advisor tool will soon be available in the “Extras” tab in Windows Media Center, making it possible for you to add a digital cable tuner with CableCARD to your PC by running a test to check whether your PC meets the basic performance requirements.
· Windows Media Center now provides support for switched digital video (SDV).
· Enjoy more portability for your digital cable TV that is marked as “copy freely” using your existing digital cable tuners.
Over in the UK, Internet TV is booming… everywhere but Windows Media Center. Until this week, when Microsoft announced a partnership with Sky to provide Internet TV content through WMC and Xbox 360. Sky’s online TV platform, Sky Player has been integrated into both Windows 7 PCs and Microsoft’s gaming console to offer a wide range of Live TV channels as well as video on demand. Up to 24 live channels are available, including Sky Movies, Sky Sports, MTV and many more – check out Sky’s website for the full list. Content is free to Sky’s multiroom and top tier subscribers (others will have to fork out £5 a month for the pleasure), and non-Sky customers can purchase a special subscription to enjoy Sky Player on their PC.
Sky Player is due at the end of the year for Windows Media Center – check out Tech Radar’s Hands On Review for more.
