 
alphapointe
Premium,MVM
join:2002-02-10
Columbia, MO
clubs: | WMP9? If it'd been me, I'd have used the DivX codec instead of WMP9, but that's just me. Wonder what kind of quality this thing's got? | |
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pcscdma
Chocobo Chocobo Random Battle
Premium
join:2004-01-14
Winterset, IA
clubs: | Re: WMP9? WMP9 has better quality than DivX. People just really hate admitting it
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I triple dog dare you to click this. | |
| | | vernalex
Premium
join:2000-10-19
Manchester, CT
| Re: WMP9? Yup. It's the best compression format. Plus it is standardized. And it has DRM, which is needed for this type of thing (otherwise companies won't buy into it).
Does anyone know the bitrate on this thing? It seems like a very good alternative to a cable company, at least once they get good programming. Right now there's only a few good 'channels'. | |
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pcscdma
Chocobo Chocobo Random Battle
Premium
join:2004-01-14
Winterset, IA
clubs:
| Re: WMP9? said by vernalex  :Does anyone know the bitrate on this thing? This page is aimed at content providers - »www.akimbo.com/provider_faq.html
It looks like 700-1500k. I think backspace.tv maxed out at 700k when it was free.
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I triple dog dare you to click this. | |
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vagabond
Truckin' Geek
join:2004-03-08
clubs: | wow! I dig the concept, but the channels look........ | |
| | | xirian
Premium
join:2003-01-26
Beacon, NY
| Re: Not very likely I'd ever use it said by GOLFnSUN :It isn't very likely that I'd ever use this service. Two reasons: I have Comcast VOD already as part of a digital tier pkg. The amount of bandwidth you'd eat up on your ISP connection could push you into their abuser category where the unpublished unknown caps could get you disconnected from internet service. Its great for those who dont watch much tv but would like some programing without paying for cable though, and not all isps cap for downloads.
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Pier-44 IRC Net | |
| 
56763D
@charter.com | And the Akimbo's selling point is .... why porn of course!  | |
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Unregistered user
@clients.speedfactory
| Re: Whats Covered? I noticed the same thing. It's a nice concept, but it looks like all the good stuff is extra. And, to be honest, even the additional premium programming is a bit sparse.
With all the old public domain movies out there, why can't they do something like a classic horror/sci-fi channel, a classic Western channel, etc? OK, I know they don't offer channels in the traditional sense, but you know what I mean. Indie films and extreme sports are all well and good, but I don't think you can build a service around them.
They also need to find a way to offer some live streams, even if the quality is lower. CNN probably won't get on board, but they might have a shot at a service like BBC World. | |
| 
totalaccess
Premium
join:2002-10-04
Elgin, TX
| Channels? Ok the idea is awesome, but the channel selection is horrid. More crap I wold never want plus no local channels, and nothing but promises. Promises are good on development but on product buy it now products I personally think that that are putting the cart before the mule.
Second , bandwidth overkill ? 700K-1.5 megabit. I would not want to give up all my bandwidth to watching TV throught my wired or wireless connection.
Just my 2 cents
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Deploying Global Solutions: »www.wirelessworlds.com | |
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superdog
I Need A Drink
Premium,MVM
join:2001-07-13
Lebanon, PA | Re: Channels? Hmmm..........., How long will it take Your provider to send You an abuse letter after You download 4 or 5 movies?. This has to crush bandwidth?:)
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»www.wavecrazy.net | |
| | |
Unregistered user
@clients.speedfactory
| Re: Channels? I agree that this will drive ISPs nuts, and I can't really blame them. If this catches on in any big way, it'll make P2P network usage look like a drop in the bucket.
Still, things like this can be beneficial because we are headed toward another bandwidth crunch, and we are going to have to deal with it. The first one was when people were mainly on dialup and were trying to load complex Web pages. The ISPs didn't care so much because the bottleneck was from them to the customer, so it didn't kill their upstream bandwidth as much as it saturated the customer's connection to the ISP. And besides, ISPs could safely oversell bandwidth with little consequences, since you couldn't click fast enough to suck up too much bandwidth. The only hogs were those who played with streaming media or were sucking down bianaries from Usenet all day long, but those were relatively rare.
When broadband came along, people at first couldn't figure out how to use all that bandwidth, so ISPs could still oversell it. Then P2P and streaming audio and video came along. Again, this was only a problem with some people, but it has really started to mushroom. Now, we're going to have a set-top box that will be used for entertainment, and it will need lots of bandwidth, not only from the home to the ISP, but also out to the Internet backbones, and ISPs are going to get squeezed hard. Sure, they cam impose caps, but what we use the Internet for is changing, and you can't stop that, nor should you. How long will it be until every house has a central computer tucked into a closet, and terminals scattered around, not to mention a connected home entertainment center? We can't keep the Internet chained to a computer, and for it to move into other areas, we'll need bandwidth, and lots of it. | |
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asdfdfdf
@xtraport.net
| Interested in more clarification on lifetime sub.. The site describes it as for the lifetime of the product.
"Only pay one fee for the life of your Akimbo Player. A product lifetime subscription to the Akimbo Service covers the life of the Akimbo Player you buy—not the life of the subscriber. The product lifetime subscription accompanies the product in case of ownership transfer."
Is this the functional lifetime of the product or the company designated life cycle of the product(i.e. until they release newer versions and decide to no longer support previous generations)?
Within this context is the hardware designed for planned obsolescence? | |
| | JPCass
join:2001-01-23
Denver, CO
| Re: Interested in more clarification on lifetime sub.. Yes, the "lifetime subscription" does arouse suspicions. Sometimes it's used by out-and-out scams, and other times it is a sign that a company's business model and financing are not solid.
"Lifetime" deals are often just a sales come-on that provide little long-term value or savings compared to any other way of paying, particularly since there may be details of what is not covered that can be changed later. It seems from other postings that there are additional fees most people would end up paying.
And it may be that the company expects that the "life" of the player that the subscription is tied to, will be relatively short. It may be replaced by better technology that most users will want to upgrade to, and if the hardware is cheap it may not last for more than about three years on average anyway. | |
| | | sat
join:2001-01-25
WA | Re: Interested in more clarification on lifetime sub.. are you sure they dont mean a subscription to the Lifetime channel? lol (sorry couldnt resist) | |
| 
Anonuser
join:2003-01-03
Milwaukee, WI
| Well Lifetime Sucks.
I was a supporter of the Akimbo, and going to be a content provider.
Got my unit last Thurstday. And today, Monday, the whole Unit took a crap on me. Things going back. No longer going to provide content, it failed its tests.
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Chris Allessi Global Datacenter | |
| innoman
-
Premium
join:2002-05-07
Raleigh, NC
clubs:
 ·VoicePulse
| This thing is actually pretty cool... There is a special going on now for $69 for the device. Service at $9.95, however, the FAQ states that there is a special running now stating you get the first 3 months for free. I am certain they don't intend to give those months free, however, I feel that a business should be very diligent when updating their policies and ensure their literature is updated as well. They charged me the first month. I emailed and pointed them to the section of the site that states that. We shall see how that goes.
I received my box yesterday and plugged it in. At first it seems kind of cheap and just tossed together. After leaving it plugged in for a while, it downloaded the newest client code and such. I am pleased so far!! The content is somewhat limited but there is plenty to watch; my only issue is that they don't have enough mainstream content really. And some of the stuff they charge for doesn't seem to be worth it.
The website states they have only tested the Linksys WUSB12 adapter with the device. I went out and bought a cheap d-link Wireless-G usb dongle. It came with a little USB extender which is kind of neat, I can put that on top of the box and see when it is using the net. (Not really that big of a deal) I plugged it in and tried to get it to recognize it... No luck. I hooked the Ethernet cable up and left it for a while. After discovering it had updated, I figured I would try the D-link dongle again. It didn't work, however, it did pop the add new hardware wizard... I though, if this will recognize new hardware on the USB port, it must be able to see a keyboard and USB key. I copied the drivers for the dlink dongle over to my usb key. I hooked up the keyboard and the dlink device and booted the box. It popped that window up and I switched the dlink device with my usbkey and pointed it to the drivers. It copied them and then I switched back to the Dlink and rebooted. The only issue was trying to accomplish all of this in the approximately 45-60 seconds it gives before booting into the software. You are limited as to what you can do with the keyboard. Regardless, it works!! I saved about $30-40 by using the dlink device.
This device offers stuff for most any background. Whatever your taste, you are bound to find s few channels you enjoy. | |
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Akimbo Broadband TV
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Not very likely I'd ever use it
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Whats Covered?