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EchoStar is set to launch its SlingModem – a product that combines a standard Data Over Cable Service Interface Specification (DOCSIS) cable modem and a Slingbox at a Cable Show trade event in New Orleans next week. The device incorporates the place-shifting capabilities of Sling’s popular Slingbox, which allows television content to be transmitted from a consumer’s TV set to any location with an Internet connection. 

The SlingModem observes the DOCSIS 2.0 specification and can be used like a typical high-speed-data modem that connects to the Internet. Moreover, it also includes Sling Media’s proprietary video-encoding technology, which enhances traditional TV programming and makes it suitable for streaming to PCs and Internet-capable mobile devices – in one efficient housing. 

EchoStar is said to be working on other products and services for cable operators and would probably launch them this year.

Via [Crave]

Dish Network recently won enough licenses to cover the entire US, except for New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Philadelphia and Boston – and the industry has been abuzz with speculation as to what the satellite TV company plans to do with it. Now, Dish has disclosed that it would use the licenses to build a mobile TV service – but they’re in no hurry.  Picking the right technology, the right business model, and the right partner will be critical in Dish Network’s plans. Building a mobile TV network would be no joke – the company would likely spend between $500 million to $2 billion. Major decisions would take time and deliberation.

Vice Chairman Carl Vogel confirmed:

“We’re a long, long, long way from building anything out. We’re a long, long, long way from deciding who our partners will be and when, but we do think it is a valuable piece of spectrum that gives us an opportunity to have numerous strategic discussions that will provide an asset that’s additive to the business we already have.”

While a “long, long” time is certainly not what consumers want to hear, its still nice to know that it is in the works.

Via [mocoNews]

Creative has released its new Vado pocket video camera with a promise of improving on the current market of ultra-simple, thin and light video recorders. Weighing just 2.96-ounces and measuring 3.94 x 2.16 x 0.63-inches, you wouldn’t think that this video camera could give out good 640x480 quality video as well as pack in 2GB of built-in flash memory. And since it supports MPEG-4 video format, Creative has even thrown in a built-in video editing software which you can use to streamline your captured video before uploading them to YouTube, Photobucket and other video sharing sites.

Other features of this small and yet decently powerful video camera include; extremely high sensitivity to low light environment at 3.8V/lux-sec, 2-inch diagonal LCD display, 2x digital zoom, MPEG-4 AVI video format recording at 30fps and a built-in USB flexi connector which also serves as a charger. The Vado Pocket Video Cam offers support for Macs running OS X 10.4.11 or later and most modern PCs. The Vado Pocket Video Cam will be hitting the streets with a retail price of $100, and be available in pink or silver.

Product [Creative] Via [Electronista]

Portable media players with 250GB of internal storage are hard to come by, for one many people don’t really need anywhere close to that amount of storage. However, Newman has recently introduced a player that comes in a few different models with storage options ranging from 80GB up to 250GB.

The M8000 comes loaded with many nice features including 4-inch TFT screen, built-in camera, TV-Out, gaming support, a PVR and other multimedia support. It is also an HD quality portable media player and the video clarity should be really good, especially with the big 4-inch screen. The only drawback to having a portable media player with a lot of storage is that sometimes it will take a long time to turn on and to find the video you want. Hopefully that is not the case with the M8000. 

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Rumor had it that Cowon would be coming out with a 16GB model of their D2 portable media player, however, until now it was simply just a rumor. Recently, that rumor has been confirmed as Cowon has officially announced their D2 with 16GB of storage. This announcement came from one of Cowon’s main retailers, Jetmall.

So far, the price of the 16GB D2 is relatively high, considering what some other 16GB portable media players are retailing for. The D2 is set to cost $240, however, if you want to add a 16GB SDHC card to the mix, it will cost an additional $70. Basically, a 32GB D2 would round out at $310. Even then, that price is still a little bit too high for my liking. Going back to the base device, the 16GB D2 costs $240. Keep in mind the 16GB Creative Zen costs $180 and the 16GB Sansa View is $150. Of course on the flipside their are some that are retailing higher such as the 16GB Sony NWZ-A729 which is priced at $290 and the 16GB Sony NWZ-A829 for $320.

So there are a lot of portable media players under the D2’s price, yet there are also some that are over, so it’s right in the middle and ultimately should sell pretty well. If Cowon wanted their 16GB D2 to be the one of the most popular portable media players of its class, they should consider lowering the price into the ballpark of $150 - $180.

Via [AnythingButiPod]

The Zune has some reason to celebrate, and while they are still far from Apple and the iPod, they have just reached the respectable 2 million sold mark. This new level comes just about one year from when Microsoft announced they sold the first million Zune’s, and with the increased sales some increased market share comes as well. Microsoft has been (albeit small) affecting the market share of some others such as Creative, who recently saw a two-percent drop. While the Zune has still not been able to affect the iPod with any major significance, its seems to be in the game for the long haul and has only been improving since its initial launch back in November 2006.

Via [electronista]

The new Pioneer AVIC-T10 comes loaded with many nice features, unfortunately, it is set to release only in Japan for the time being. The AVIC-T10 comes with a 5.8-inch VGA touch screen, 4GB of internal memory, Bluetooth capability for hands free calling, and has HSDPA support. To use that, you have to connect your device through your phone. Additionally, it comes with a TV 1Seg tuner, has decent format support including WMA, MP3, and AAC. It also comes with many useful services including Smart Loop Traffic Congestion Information, Parking Availability Information, Gasoline Price Information, and PinPoint Weather reports. My guess is that the first service, the Smart Loop Traffic Congestion Information provides traffic updates, the Parking Space service lets you know where there are available parking spots (that’s pretty cool), the Gasoline service lets you know where the cheapest gas in the area is, and the PinPoint service updates you on the weather. The last service is called the Rendez-Vous service, which basically chooses a convenient meeting place if you want to meet with your friend. It finds out that convenient place by searching through emails sent and received by the same person. All in all, it comes with some pretty nice and unique services. No word on exact pricing at this time, but hopefully it remains relatively inexpensive.

Via [Akihabara News]

Aigo is coming up with a new PMP dubbed the Patriot MV5920 MP5 player. This latest PMP is being touted as a breakthrough device for its dual-core technology that allows HDTV playback at 720p (1280 x 720 pixels). The device also has Wi-Fi and mobile TV support aside from its 160GB hard drive capacity. It’s also categorized as an MP5 player, which is what PMPs are typically called in China.

For around $429 you’ll have this uber-cool looking piece of hardware that comes with other powerful features including a 2.0-megapixel camera, 4.3-inch color display at 16:9 (480x272 pixel) resolution, MP3 player that supports various digital music formats and an integrated DVR recording function. And yes, it’s still portable at 6.14 x 3.23 x 0.78-inches, despite its many features.

The only question left for all of us now is when will it be available in the international market?

Via PMP Today

While most of Microsoft’s Zune media events have usually been ho-hum press gatherings lately, the most recent one has sparked speculations that Microsoft could be planning to roll out a Zune-Sidekick mobile phone combo soon. This is based on an offhand comment made by Chris Stephenson, General Manager of Marketing for Zune. According to Chris, MS is currently finding ways to integrate and work with the 250-man staff of Danger. Danger, if you recall, is a consumer handset OS maker that Microsoft bought recently. And if Microsoft is working closely with them, it could mean one thing above anything else: that they are trying to add a few handset capabilities to the already multi-connectivity ready Zune. To be sure, we’ll be keeping a watchful eye over this issue, and will be here to update you with the latest news when it hits.

Via [Zune Boards]

Well it only took about 18 months but the Zune is finally making its way into Canada. Beginning June 13 Canadians will be able to grab the Zune of their choosing. Well, except for a few small details, namely the lineup is not quite as complete as it is here in the US.

There will not be any 30GB model or green models. Do our friendly neighbors to the north have something against green? Anyway, up for grabs will be the Zune 80 in black or red for $249.99, the Zune 8 in black, red or pink for $189.99 and the Zune 4 in black, red or pink for $139.99.

Via [Engadget]