Home Entertainment & Automation Services in Matthews, NC.
Home Entertainment & Automation Services in Matthews, NC.
Home audio and Video Services in Matthews, NC.  TV installation, Surround Sound, Home Entertainment Systems
Test Out Hulu’s New Subscription Service

C.I.S. - Charlotte, NC's Source For Home Technology Answers!

C.I.S. - Charlotte, NC's Source For Home Technology Answers!

Hulu has debuted its much-anticipated Hulu Plus, with an invitation-only preview of the $9.99 monthly subscription model, for access on a range of devices.

You may be a big fan of popular web video service Hulu, but are you a big fan of paying $9.99 a month for it?

The streaming service debuted its Hulu Plus upgrade, which has been in the works and rumor mill for a bit. The service is being offered for starters as an invitation-only preview.

From your reaction in a poll on Electronic House last month, the verdict is still out on whether or not you’ll bite—when asked “Is $10 too much for Hulu Plus?” 42 percent said yes, only 20 percent said no, and 38 percent said it depends on the content.

Well, for starters the content is said to be expanded catalogs of television shows, past and present, from the libraries of NBC, Fox and ABC.

That means “season ticket” access to full seasons of current hits like House, Family Guy, The Office and Grey’s Anatomy, in high-def. It also means full seasons and full series of older favorites like The X-Files, Arrested Development, Miami Vice, Quantum Leap and Ally McBeal.

The “rich library content” touts more than 120 seasons and 2,000 episodes, so Hulu Plus members should have enough to keep them busy for a while. (See “Guided Tour” video below)

Plus members will also be able to access all of those shows from multiple devices. Samsung will carry Hulu Plus as one of its Samsung Apps as the exclusive invitation preview provider for connected TVs, with availability on most of its 2010 models of 40-inches and larger. The service will also be accessible through Samsung Blu-ray players and theater systems, Apple’s iPad, iPhone 3GS and 4, and iPod Touch, and “coming soon” Sony’s PlayStation 3, TVs and Blu-ray players, Microsoft’s Xbox 360 and Vizio TVs and Blu-ray players.

Hulu answers @ C.I.S.!  For all your home automation needs!

http://www.hulu.com/watch/160617/hulu-walkthrough-what-is-hulu-plus

by Arlen Schweiger

Custom Installation Services, LLC – Charlotte ’s Home Theater & Technology Experts!

Posted in Automation, Flat Panel TV's, Home Theater, Media Rooms, Multi Room A/V, Music and Movies, News, technology | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment


Facebook, Google Maps Come to Samsung TV Apps

If you were the type of person to spend countless hours in front of a TV as it is, how much time do you kill now with the added video streaming and web access that today’s connected TVs deliver?

Or maybe you just plug away hours in front of your computer instead?

We keep getting closer and closer to a glorious combination of the two, so soon we’ll have no reason to leave the couch. Toward that end, Samsung wants to make sure you stay planted by bringing more cool services to its Samsung Apps platform, which was announced at CES this year.

Its latest two additions to the Apps lineup are a couple of cool time wasters you may have heard about—Facebook and Google Maps.

You can download the apps directly from all 2010 Samsung Blu-ray players, Blu-ray Home Theater Systems (HTIBs) and the majority of Samsung TVs with screen sizes 40 inches and bigger, the company announced.

We’re sure you’ll have a blast hosting guests for dinner parties, too, when you can pull up everyone’s Facebook pictures and then show them the aerial and street views of their houses on a big-screen TV.

And you thought staying up to date with Facebook on your tiny smartphone screen was cool.

by Arlen Schweiger

Custom Installation Services, LLC – Charlotte ’s Home Theater & Technology Experts and Your Place For Sales & Installation Of Samsung TV Products!

CIS is Charlotte NC Favorite Place to Shop For Samsung Flat Screens!

C.I.S. is Charlotte NC's Favorite Place For Sales & Installation of Samsung Flat Screens!

Samsung’s Apps store has added the popular social network site and slick map service to its Blu-ray players and connected TVs.

Posted in 3D TV, Automation, Blu-ray, Flat Panel TV's, Home Theater, Media Rooms, Multi Room A/V, News, technology | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment


Sonic Partners with RealD, DTS; CinemaNow Gets a Lot More Interesting

Charlotte Home Theater Specialists!  Call C.I.S. Today!

Charlotte Home Technology Specialists! Call C.I.S. Today!

Sonic Solutions announced new partnerships with RealD and DTS for premium streaming content.

In separate press releases, Sonic Solutions announced today two strategic partnerships that will make its online streaming services a lot more interesting.

The first announcement brought to light an alliance with RealD, a leading licenser of stereoscopic 3D technologies. The partnership is said to bring home 3D technology for both personal content capture/publication in Roxio software as well as premium studio content through RoxioNow and compatible streaming services. 

“Our next-generation 3D cinema technology is delivering a premium 3D entertainment experience,” said Michael V. Lewis, chairman and CEO of RealD. “We welcome this opportunity to join with Sonic, a leading developer of applications for personal and premium content enjoyment, to bring multi-dimensional video to life on home PCs and in consumers’ living rooms.”

In a second announcement, Sonic let fly a similar partnership with Digital Theater Systems (DTS), provider of home theater surround-sound encoding and compression technologies. The two companies plan to bring 5.1 surround sound and high-bitrate stereo sound to Sonic’s various online video streaming services, including those that are part of the CinemaNow brand, including Blockbuster and Best Buy’s upcoming streaming service.

“Best Buy is always looking to meet the needs of our customers by bringing them the best technology, products, content, and services,” said Ryan Pirozzi, director of movies for Best Buy. “Sonic’s partnership with DTS falls in line with our goal of delivering exciting solutions in home entertainment and helps provide high-quality experiences across a broad range of connected devices at a critical junction in the evolution of digital delivery.”

This combination of RealD 3D technology and DTS 5.1 surround sound may make Blockbuster and Best Buy’s CinemaNow services extremely compelling for home theater enthusiasts. Netflix’s extremely popular Watch Instantly service is currently handcuffed to 2D 720p video (with most being lower resolution SD) and stereo sound. A wide selection of 3D capable movies with DTS 5.1 surround sound would give any service a big leg up with enthusiasts. With the current state of 3D content (nearly non-existent), it might give 3D display sales a nice kick-in-the-pants as well. 

by Stephen Hopkins

Custom Installation Services, LLC – Charlotte ‘s Home Theater & Technology Experts!

Posted in 3d movies, 3D TV, Home Theater, Media Rooms, Music and Movies, News, technology | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment


Custom Installation Services, LLC | P.O. Box 132 Matthews, NC 28106 | 704-400-8701 | dmiller@cis-nc.com
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