However the Aurora isn’t just cheap. There are plenty of cheap and nasty Android tablets on the market. The Aurora’s defects are either irelevant to me or can be patched in software.

Killer features:

• Hitachi IPS 5 Point multi touch display
  • As much as my mates Advent Vega is nice, you just can’t see anything easily on the device. Aside from the MVA displays in Archos’s G9 devices and OLED in Samsung’s you need the viewing angles of IPS on a tablet. It can not be fixed in a position square on to the eye like a Monitor, TV or Laptop screen easily. So TN is out of the question for me.
• 8GB of internal memory
  • I don’t want my apps and settings disapearing when I mount or swap my SD card
• Real HDMI out
  • No fancy adapaters (MHL or Apple)
  • No Fuss
• Form Factor
  • I find 9″+ tablets too big. My mates iPad 2 is too big , as is the Vega. Only the Transformer gets around this by being a Tablet/Laptop hybrid. Used my mates Tab 7.7 and was highly impressed by the form factor, I can hold it with one hand and use the other securly. The Aurora is .7″ smaller so benefits from being just right
  • Light, 40% the weight of a Vega and half the weight of the iPad 2
• Ice Cream Sandwich and the power to use it
  • 1GB of ram
  • Dual Core 1.2Ghz CPU
• Android 4.01 from day one

However your streaming service whilst a nice extra does not look like a winner against a truly competitive alternative. If you don’t get the quality up and the variety up you may find one year a mass exodus to NetFlix.

Now I really like your service at the moment so please consider these suggestions :

• Speak to the BBC find out how they make their video SD or HD look so good in the PS3 app
• Get a deal with Crunchyroll or Manga or who ever and get streaming Anime. Especially simulcast. This will get a small, but very vocal voice shouting your corner on the internet.
• Get season passes to Sporting events. Start small at first stuff that Murdock wouldn’t care about like British Rallying or Ladies Football. Again stuff where the fans will feel great loyalty for your attention to them

Fixed my problems

well my Echostar started failing to record series link shows. First it disabled series link altogether. Then I switch it off and then on. It then showed the series link icon, but then failed to record beyond the first recording.

I have tried: Factory Reset, reinitialising the drive and a firmware update.

I’ve lost all of my recordings and it’s no better.

I am less than impressed with Echostar, compared to PS3 PlayTV and even my mates sluggish TIVO this thing is slow. I can’t imagine how slow other devices are if this is considered fast.

It could be that it was second hand, but when it did series link properly it at least allowed to to just watch the shows I wanted with as little time in the interface as possible.

Firstly compared to my late 2009 Acer Liquid the Note is slick as Terry Thomas. Now I don’t have an S II or equivalent device so it might just be my muggle eyes being amazed. The stylus works great and the screen is fantastic. However it was locked in a stand, so I could neither judge the size for holding nor the  weight.  It is however extremely tempting. That 5.3″ display would make SatNaving and video playback amazing. It also uses both GPS and GLONASS the new Russian sat system. So you get double the amount sats to position you with.

In context: Just before Christmas I sold my Laptop to my Mum. I just didn’t use it, it was bulky compared to my phone and so much slower to start. I don’t like 9-10″ tablets they are just to big and too heavy. If I have to rest something on my knees why not just buy a netbook? No 7″ tablet has wowed me. The Note makes most look second rate, but I would expect that for £500+ of portable everything goodness Vs the £200 Archos 80 G9.

So it all comes down to do I want a do it all device or should I split between a Phone and a Tablet, where neither is a real beast.

For over 2 years I’ve been running PlayTV for my PS3. I unfortunately live in a low signal area and years after launch no HD or Sat HD version is on it’s way. I’ve seen my mates VM Tivo and I thought I was prepared for the massive backward step in interface PVRs have even today.

Really I am not, I have gotten used to things just happening quickly and beautifully. Why in all these years is there not a decent PVR platform that doesn’t require a PS3 or a full blown PC to run is beyond me. Seriously how slow and laggy are these boxes, no wonder people are leaving TV. The devices they use to access TV are RUBBISH.

As much I didn’t like the guy, Steve Jobs would never stand for this shit. Hell Bill Gates didn’t either and neither did Sony. Why the hell can’t Humax, Echostar or Samsung get their asses in gear and bring out a Android/Linux/WindowsEmdded/Meego box? Slap in a half decent ARM CPU, wifi and tuners and booom!

But no, it’s like they want Apple to come in and take all of their stuff.

The current consoles just about do 720p at 30fps in mainline games. We can’t even do 1080p 60fps in all but the rarest games. Adding the 3D gimmick to games makes them worse in most cases, when the power on the console isn’t doubled to compensate.

Also having watched Tron Legacy in IMAX 3D and 2D Bluray I can tell you that 3D seems to destroy a lot of detail. Most games have an element of precision in them, adding flickery/polarised glasses makes them harder to see. You loose to much to gain too little.

Also 3D is just unpopular. An unnamed competitor’s 3D hand held hasn’t sold, all of the TV manufacturers have posted losses because 3D and smart TVs haven’t sold.

The only area that had any positive response to 3D is the PC market. For two main reasons: You can just add another graphics card and get perfect 3D performance and 3D monitors double up as 120hz/120fps monitors. In both cases their are no compromises and plenty of benefits.

Also 3D isn’t 3D. The Stereoscopic effect only hooks into one of many visual indicators of depth. You can’t focus on one area, because the film camera has done the work for you and you brain can flip out trying to focus.

Saying the current implementation is true 3D is as true as a virtual controller on a touch screen, i.e. no where near the real thing.

3D as it is now is just the same gimmick we had in the 80s and 50s, a passing fad with a few niche applications.

However there are two services I like to use; Zootool and Amazon Universal Wish List.

Rather than just drag the button to the side, I copy the link text and use QuHno’s Buttonator to make Opera integrated buttons. In the screenshot above I use the Star for Zootool Lasso and the Plus Sign for Amazon. This keeps them discreet, but always accessible.