Ceton Echo Talk - Expected Release, November @ $179

[jedimaster109]

If the Echo boots in a reasonable amount of time, I'll be a happy camper. The biggest problem I have with the Linksys and HP extenders is the boot time. Mine take about 60 seconds to boot into Media Center. If the Echo boots in 15 seconds or less, I'll be ecstatic.

Throw in Netflix, Hulu, HDMI-CEC, WOL, and IP control... and I'll be in heaven.

I'm guessing it will work like the apple tv, where it just sleeps and can be instant on in a few seconds. Either way REALLY looking forward to this!

[cdcellular]

The echo also has gigabit lan, xbox does not. I'm hoping to stream some uncompressed blu ray rips without issue.

[newfiend]

Well it should make a few people happy that are against the noise of an Xbox.. Although I have a newer slim and it doesn't make enough sound to ever bother me. If it plays .mkv's and has WOL, I'll be very happy. Can't stand the Linksys with no WOL.. That's my biggest compliant about the Linksys extenders.

Sent from my SGH-i937 using Board Express

[STC]

^^ Overall I'm looking for a direct replacement to DMA2100 extenders. I'm fed up with the temperamental and sluggish behavior the DMAs present. I want a menu that pings and a power up that zings!

[I should ™ that ]

[lithium630]

I'm mostly looking for fast menus, Netflix/Hulu support, MKV and DTS.

[adam1991]

Echo tech specs:


Outputs: HDMI, Optical Digital Cable, Composite Audio/Video, 2x USB 2.0
Network: 10/100/1000 Mbps Ethernet, MoCA, DHCP or Static IP Address
Standards: TCP/IP, UPnP AV 1.0, USB 2.0
Media Streaming Protocol: HTTP, RSTP
Audio Formats: AIFF, MP3, WMA, WAV, Playlists: M3U, PLS, WPL
Photo Formats: BMP, GIF, JPEG, PNG, TIFF
Movie/Video Formats: AVI, DVR-MS, DVR-MS HD, H.264, MPEG-1, MPEG-2, MPEG-4, VC-1, WMV9, WTV
Digital Rights Management: Windows Media Player 11, WMDRM-11
Power: TBA
Dimensions & Weight: TBA
1-year limited warranty

[STC]

^^ I do believe these specs which have been around for a while are deliberately under spec'd for now.

I also believe that you're going to get a fully fledged extender out of the box, but the golden nugget features will be locked to that of a marriage with a Ceton Q

[adam1991]

If we're lucky, they'll be locked to a Ceton-equipped solution--be it the Q or a Ceton-equipped HTPC.

Those who went with a non-Ceton solution? Let 'em eat cake.

[kingwr]

Those who went with a non-Ceton solution? Let 'em eat cake.

That's assuming that Ceton's only desired market are cable subscribers that otherwise have their tuners or a Q. Remember that there are a large number of folks out there that get their TV from sources other than cable. They aren't necessarily using Ceton's competitors -- its just that Ceton doesn't offer anything in that space. If they wish for the Echo to be in the same space, then so be it, but it's just a loss of revenue for them.

[newfiend]

Oh and one more minor suggestion for the echo.. Regular updates .. Support the product past launch and add more features or codec support where necessary. Linksys really dropped the ball there..

Sent from my SGH-i937 using Board Express

[wanabefree]

If we're lucky, they'll be locked to a Ceton-equipped solution--be it the Q or a Ceton-equipped HTPC.

Those who went with a non-Ceton solution? Let 'em eat cake.

That would suck Big time !

Why would they do that anyways as it is supposed to work as a WMC extender and WMC supports many other tuner solutions like the HDHR-Prime which I just happen to use and love. Ceton Q for that matter should work with the same . I would not support a Ceton Only solution it . I like Choices and not Monopolies. I will be coming over from SageTV not because I love WMC but because I want a support device where I can expect future development.

[amador]

I wonder how many features Ceton can include on an extender without the Q? what limitations does MS put on an extender?

[MSattler]

I wonder how many features Ceton can include on an extender without the Q? what limitations does MS put on an extender?

So I will be in the BETA, however I'm hoping that that Ceton somehow allows us to use TMT 5.0/Mediabrowser via some sort of license enabler. Without MediaBrowser and TMT 5.0 support it's not going to be of any use to me. The kid's room's right now have a AMD PC so they can watch Live TV, BluRay, and DVD ripped from the network.

So if it doesn't happen, isn't it possible to created our own embedded images?

Thanks!

[MSattler]

After doing some more reading, I am confused. The Echo is not running Windows 7 embedded is it? It's just getting the equivalent of an RDP session/login to the Main Windows 7 HTPC. If that is the case, don't we run into the traditional issue of the PlugIn's such as MediaBrowser, and TMT 5.0 having to be.... "Extender Aware" and work on the extender itself?

Just wondering now how realistic it is to expect full BR playback on the Echo's. Even if it required a Q, I'd be all in on a Q and 3 extenders to start.

-Marcus

[bobbob]

well obviously no-one outside of the US will have any interest if it is required to be locked to a Ceton HTPC or other Ceton equipment, so i doubt that

[adam1991]

everyone, go back and read--I was commenting on STC's comment:

I also believe that You're going to get a fully fledged extender out of the box, but the golden nugget features will be locked to that of a marriage with a Ceton Q

I was commenting *specifically* on the "golden nugget features", not the MS standard extender functionality itself.

Let the golden nugget features appear for Ceton-equipped HTPC environments, not just the Q itself.

[Diverge]

Let the golden nugget features appear for Ceton-equipped HTPC environments, not just the Q itself.

Call me a pessimist, but I don't see that happening - at least not until they recoup all the money spent on R&D for both the Q and Echo, and make some profits. Those features, whatever they are, will be selling points. Also w/ the Q they control the whole OS w/ all the same hardware vs. the HTPC crowd with all the different hardware and software they use, and the compatibility problems that arise. So there should be less support tickets for problems, which equals less money spent on troubleshooting, exchanging tuners, ect.

[barnabas1969]

Well it should make a few people happy that are against the noise of an Xbox.. Although I have a newer slim and it doesn't make enough sound to ever bother me. If it plays .mkv's and has WOL, I'll be very happy. Can't stand the Linksys with no WOL.. That's my biggest compliant about the Linksys extenders.

Sent from my SGH-i937 using Board Express

The lack of WOL on the HP and Linksys extenders is one of the reasons why I shut them down all the way instead of putting them in standby. This is why mine take about 60 seconds to boot up. They only "phone home" on a cold boot, and I use that outbound internet connection to trigger a WOL that gets sent by my router to wake the HTPC.

[JAJ]

I don't have a ceton tuner(yet), I have a hauppage 2250 and I was selected for the beta.

[cnewsgrp]

Those who went with a non-Ceton solution? Let 'em eat cake.

That would be death wish for Ceton. Ceton is not exactly Apple to be able to dictate these terms. It should remember that's its customer base is extremely small. If Ceton and SD went on this path then it would be choking already small market. The way to go IMO would be to be flexible/open at this time and get more customers.