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SnapStream Goes Wireless with 'Firefly' Remote
By David Worthington, BetaNews
May 6th, 2004, 10:57 PM
With the PC transforming into a veritable hub for home entertainment, SnapStream Media has cooked up a new take on the maturing concept of the universal remote.
SnapStream's Firefly PC Remote integrates with more than 80 popular digital media applications including media players, photo slides shows, as well as TV and DVD applications. To provide enlarged across-the-room viewing control, Firefly offers up what SnapStream has dubbed a "10-foot user interface."
Firefly is bundled with SnapStream's Beyond Media Basic media center software, but the package also extends support to Microsoft Windows XP Media Center Edition. Like MCE and Dell's Media Experience software, Beyond Media enables the playback and display of videos, TV, DVDs and photos.
"In the past 20 years, the PC has revolutionized the office and, today, the PC has transformed home entertainment. SnapStream’s Firefly PC remote brings us closer to combining the fun we have in the living room with the flexibility we have with a PC," said Rakesh Agrawal, President and CEO of SnapStream Media.
Firefly's RF technology is designed to work through walls with a maximum range of up to 30 feet. The remote has an ergonomic feel to fit comfortably in a user's hand. Other features include fast access buttons to launch favorite applications and Firefly's "Mouse Mode" to interact with Windows applications.
In a sign of things to come, Microsoft's secretive eHome consumer electronics division has extended the reach of Windows XP MCE to portable and set-top devices. A variety of hardware form factors will support the extender technology.
Bobsled, Microsoft's code-name for set top boxes that connect wirelessly to PCs, will be built into TVs and other display devices. A related beta program known by the moniker Xsled works with Xbox gaming consoles.
An even more telling bellwether of the Microsoft eHome strategy emerged this week with the introduction of Hewlett-Packard's Windows Home Concept at WinHEC 2004. Windows Home Concept is a desktop PC linked to an "intelligent" remote and Tablet PC. Last year at WinHEC, Microsoft and HP teamed up to show off their Athens prototype, which serves as a central console for communication, complete with integrated camera and wireless handset.
The SnapStream Firefly package retails for $49.99 USD and can be purchased online from the company. Retailers such as Electronics and Comp USA will begin receiving their first shipments of Firefly this month.
By David Worthington, BetaNews
May 6th, 2004, 10:57 PM
With the PC transforming into a veritable hub for home entertainment, SnapStream Media has cooked up a new take on the maturing concept of the universal remote.
SnapStream's Firefly PC Remote integrates with more than 80 popular digital media applications including media players, photo slides shows, as well as TV and DVD applications. To provide enlarged across-the-room viewing control, Firefly offers up what SnapStream has dubbed a "10-foot user interface."
Firefly is bundled with SnapStream's Beyond Media Basic media center software, but the package also extends support to Microsoft Windows XP Media Center Edition. Like MCE and Dell's Media Experience software, Beyond Media enables the playback and display of videos, TV, DVDs and photos.
"In the past 20 years, the PC has revolutionized the office and, today, the PC has transformed home entertainment. SnapStream’s Firefly PC remote brings us closer to combining the fun we have in the living room with the flexibility we have with a PC," said Rakesh Agrawal, President and CEO of SnapStream Media.
Firefly's RF technology is designed to work through walls with a maximum range of up to 30 feet. The remote has an ergonomic feel to fit comfortably in a user's hand. Other features include fast access buttons to launch favorite applications and Firefly's "Mouse Mode" to interact with Windows applications.
In a sign of things to come, Microsoft's secretive eHome consumer electronics division has extended the reach of Windows XP MCE to portable and set-top devices. A variety of hardware form factors will support the extender technology.
Bobsled, Microsoft's code-name for set top boxes that connect wirelessly to PCs, will be built into TVs and other display devices. A related beta program known by the moniker Xsled works with Xbox gaming consoles.
An even more telling bellwether of the Microsoft eHome strategy emerged this week with the introduction of Hewlett-Packard's Windows Home Concept at WinHEC 2004. Windows Home Concept is a desktop PC linked to an "intelligent" remote and Tablet PC. Last year at WinHEC, Microsoft and HP teamed up to show off their Athens prototype, which serves as a central console for communication, complete with integrated camera and wireless handset.
The SnapStream Firefly package retails for $49.99 USD and can be purchased online from the company. Retailers such as Electronics and Comp USA will begin receiving their first shipments of Firefly this month.