At the Consumer Electronics Show Monday, Samsung showed that it is putting a lot of effort behind its smart TV lineup. Samsung’s next generation of smart TVs will include voice, gesture and facial recognition features that should improve the viewing experience for consumers and enable even smarter applications to emerge.

With its latest Smart TV platform update, Samsung plans to enable “smart interaction,” which will add voice and gesture control, as well as facial recognition to apps developed for its connected TVs. That will enable viewers to turn the TV on and off, open and navigate apps and search for content without picking up a remote control. The system will support between 20 and 30 different languages, using unidirectional array microphones to isolate voice commands and a built-in camera to recognize user movement. The system’s facial recognition software will also be able to differentiate between members of a household, giving them access to personalized profiles, preferences and apps based upon their previous activity.

It’s all very Kinect-like in the way that Samsung describes it, and points to a future where remote controls disappear and consumers interact with their TVs in a potentially more natural fashion. Of course, Microsoft is only one proponent of voice and gesture control that Samsung may have to contend with — rumors of an HDTV set from Apple that is controlled by the company’s Siri voice recognition software shows that others may also soon jump on board.

The big advantage that Samsung will have over Microsoft Kinect is that it’s opening up its APIs to enable developers to take advantage of these features. While Microsoft has increased the number of apps that run on its Xbox Live platform — including those which take advantage of its Kinect capabilities — it still falls well behind Samsung in the variety of applications available. Samsung has about 1,400 TV apps available worldwide, with users expected to download some 20 million apps in January 2012.

That app volume comes in part from an open SDK and APIs that are available to developers. That enables pretty much anyone to develop rich content experiences on its platform and take advantage of features like the ability to sync up companion mobile applications with whatever’s happening on-screen. With the introduction of its smart interactions capabilities, Samsung will enable developers to use gesture and voice control, as well as facial recognition in the next generation of their TV apps.

Meanwhile, Microsoft is still largely taking a walled-garden approach to its Xbox Live and Kinect apps — which could improve the quality of those that make it on the platform, but also limits the ability of third-party developers to reach its customers. Unless that changes sometime soon, Microsoft could find itself falling behind as new Kinect-like capabilities are added to other connected device platforms, like Samsung’s Smart TV or even Apple’s iTV.

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T-Mobile unveiled a new 4G tablet on Tuesday with the introduction of the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus arriving in T-Mobile stores on Nov. 16. The Plus designation helps differentiate this 7-inch Galaxy Tab from last year’s model as the newer version includes a faster processor and support for Google Android 3.2; a software platform meant for tablets, not smartphones. The slate’s 0 price tag with contract can be spread out over 20 months with customers paying 9.99 down and each month to purchase the hardware.

I bought the original Galaxy Tab on T-Mobile’s network last December and enjoy both the form factor and the mobility provided by the integrated 3G radio. The look of this new model is very similar to the 7-inch tablet I use, but here are some of the improvements and carry-over features:

• 1.2 GHz dual-core processor instead of a 1 GHz single core
• 21 Mbps HSPA+ / 4G support; my Tab only has a 7.2 Mbps radio for 3G speeds
• Android 3.2 (Honeycomb) instead of Android 2.3 (Gingerbread)
• 16 GB of internal storage with a microSD expansion slot
• 1024 x 600 resolution, capacitive touch 7-inch display
• 3 megapixel rear camera (with 720p video capture added) and 2 megapixel front camera
• An infrared sensor for use as a universal consumer electronics remote control

Aside from the faster mobile broadband radio and dual-core chip, much of the new Galaxy Tab mimics the old one. They’re welcome improvements, of course, and although there’s no guarantee of a software upgrade to Android 4.0, or Ice Cream Sandwich, the hardware appears capable of supporting one.

One other available “feature” that wasn’t available when I bought my Galaxy Tab is the payment plan. I paid 0 — a sale price — with contract for my Tab. T-Mobile is trying to lure potential buyers by reducing the up-front cost of the hardware; something it’s done before with smartphones and is now trying with higher priced tablets. For 9.99 at the point of sale — and a mail-in rebate — consumers can leave the store with a new Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus. The remaining cost is made up over the life of the contract with added to each monthly bill for 20 months. This is in addition to the monthly data service, which starts at .99.

A payment plan may generate some sales, but it convinces me more than ever that tablets shouldn’t be sold on contract. While I opted to buy a Wi-Fi version of the iPad, Apple got this aspect right with its 3G models. The problem for competing tablets is that without contracts, the devices are simply priced too high from a consumer’s perspective. Apple doesn’t seem to have that problem given that a 3G iPad starts at 9, mainly because the perceived experience brought from the iPad.

That has little to do with the Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus since this isn’t what I’d call a direct competitor to the iPad for most people. But it illustrates the challenge that carriers face in the tablet market: consumers often choose a device first and a network second. Unless consumers plan to use their tablet as much as their primary computing device, a monthly data commitment and cost isn’t appealing.

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There are plenty of WiFi-connected remote control apps for tablets, dongles for IR control and even an IR blaster built into Vizio’s tablet, but here’s a Motorola slab purpose-built for the coffee table. The Verge has received several pics of the Motorola Corvair (and its packaging), a “dedicated controller for the connected” …something, which is apparently in testing with unnamed cable companies right now. It’s a 6-inch tablet running Android 2.3, that the box shows working as a remote control and apparently mirroring its display on the TV screen. Other notes indicate it’s optimized for low cost, packs a healthy 4,000mAh battery, and can communicate with other devices via IR or Zigbee’s RF4CE spec (where’s Android@Home?). That would line it up perfectly to tie in with home automation systems like the one Motorola and Verizon just launched, as well as potentially provide a sweet platform for content discovery. The only downside? Unless Moto goes against type, this will probably never see retail and we’ll have to wait on our cable company to figure out a way to charge extra for one and slap their own ugly software on it — here’s hoping that’s not the case.

Motorola Corvair 6-inch Android 2.3 tablet outed, destined for the home automation set? originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 05 Nov 2011 16:57:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Offering to play matchmaker between your high-end camera and smartphone, XEquals has extended support for its BlueSLR remote control beyond iOS. Yes, Blackberry and Android users can now download their respective app and pair this Bluetooth dongle to their (still Nikon-only) DSLR. The compatible dongle and free app will land later this month, but before you lay down the requisite 9, it’s worth checking that both your camera and phone models are supported. As it stands, compatible Android phones are limited to some HTC or Samsung models. While Android support is likely to expand in the future, there’s no word on a Pre 3 version.

Continue reading BlueSLR dongle arrives for BlackBerry and (some) Android phones

BlueSLR dongle arrives for BlackBerry and (some) Android phones originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 17 Oct 2011 15:07:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Cablevision took a major step into the future back in April when it opened up its full channel lineup for viewing on the tablet with Optimum for iPad, and now it’s bringing that experience to other iOS devices. The new app, simply called Optimum, runs alongside the original and works on iPhones or iPod Touches, bringing the same controversial ability to stream live TV or play back video on-demand — provided the viewer is still at home. That tether to your service address takes most of the shine off of viewing on mobile devices, but we won’t argue too much about adding extra screens for no additional charge. The iPhone app launches at versino 2.0, sharing features with the newly updated iPad app including the ability to work as a remote control for the cable box and schedule DVR recordings remotely. Hit the source link below to grab either app from iTunes or check out the press release after the break.

Continue reading Cablevision’s Optimum app hits 2.0, brings cable TV streaming to iPhone, iPod Touch

Cablevision’s Optimum app hits 2.0, brings cable TV streaming to iPhone, iPod Touch originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 09 Aug 2011 10:52:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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