The Intersection Of PC And TV

Larry Magid Weighs The Pros And Cons Of Watching Internet Video On A PC

(CBS)  I'm writing this column from my living room couch on a Hewlett-Packard Pavilion Slimline PC that's connected to my 52-inch high-definition TV. I didn't put the PC in my living room to use Microsoft Word but to find out if the PC with Windows Vista Home Premium Edition can anchor a home entertainment system. The answer is a qualified yes.

The TV that's plugged into the PC is the same TV that, at various times this year, has been connected to an Apple TV, a Roku Netflix Player and a variety of Internet-connected gaming consoles.

To its credit, the PC pretty much did all of the things that those other boxes do. Like the Apple TV, it was able to show movies, TV shows and podcasts via the Windows version of Apple iTunes. It was able to stream the same movies that I enjoyed when using the Roku Netflix player and, of course, it brought me the same video and audio content as Microsoft's Xbox 360, which can be used as a media extender to bring PC content to the TV.

But the PC had advantages over those stand-alone boxes. For example, I was able to watch news clips at CBSNews.com as well as a high-definition stream of "Lost" at ABC.com. I also watched YouTube videos (which you can do on Apple TV) and plenty of other Internet content. Because it was a PC with a large hard drive, I was able to access all of my MP3 music files as well as my photo collection and personal videos. And, of course, I could surf the Web and access my e-mail and other applications.

There's nothing new about using a PC as a media player. Microsoft and several PC companies introduced the Windows XP Media Center Edition in 2002. But back then it was used primarily to watch DVDs, view photos and watch and record TV via the PC's built-in tuner. Even before those XP Media Center computers came out, there already were better ways to record and watch TV, such as the TiVo and ReplayTV.

What's different now is that we are no longer tethered to our cable or satellite provider for video content. There is now an abundant supply of online TV shows, commercial movies and user-supplied video fueling demand for all sorts of devices that bring Internet content to TVs.

But as versatile as the PC may be, it does have its challenges. To begin with, it's hard to get a PC to blend in with living room decor. I did the best I could by putting it behind the door of my TV stand, which hid the box and most of the wires. But even though the HP came with a TV-style remote control, I still had to perch the keyboard and mouse on the coffee table and place the PC's infrared adapter where it would be in line of sight to the wireless keyboard and mouse. That put them in the line of sight of my wife, who complained about having even more ugly pieces of electronics sitting in plain view.

Of course, I could spend $1,600 to $3,000 for one of those stylish round Sony Vaio Home Theater PCs that look as if they were designed to be placed in front of people rather than being stuck under a desk or hidden behind a door. Unlike the HP I tested, the Sony comes with a radio connected (RF) keyboard with a built-in trackpad. It doesn't require a dongle to receive the signal and, because the trackpad is built into the keyboard, you don't have to roll the mouse over the coffee table. Yet, it's still a Windows PC, which means it can get infected with malware, crash and subject people to all the other annoyances that PC users must contend with.

At the end of the day, despite the tremendous versatility of the PC, when it comes to watching Internet video, I'm not convinced its advantages outweigh its complexities when compared with devices like the Netflix Player, Apple TV or TiVo.

[ncgmcpherson]

I use a very aged HP Pavillion. It''s ugly, but even the wife loves true video on demand from the internet. As high speed internet continues to improve beyond cable providers I think we''ll see PC makers begin making a concerted effort to make "pretty" multimedia PCs that folks are not ashamed to have in their living rooms.

[Syndicate]

"it''s hard to get a PC to blend in with living room decor"

I use a Shuttle XPC Glamor as my box. As far as PCs go it is beautiful. No need to hide it. Its the size of about half your stereo receiver. It also includes a HDMI jack if you use the built in video. I upgraded so I could play guitar hero. It also includes a SPDIF output for your home theater. You can get blue toothed keyboards and mice for very little. This would hide any receiver. I use standard old windows XP to do everything. I use I-Tunes and have been downloading every music video I can find. You tube looks horrible on it because of the compression and some I tunes videos look pretty bad too due to the lack of resolution. but over all I LOVE MY MEDIA PC.