orbs

Science-fiction/fantasy publishing company Tor Books dropped a big bomb on the e-book world today by announcing plans to abolish DRM on its entire collection of e-books in early July.

The shift will most likely appear seamless to consumers, as an official blog post on the Tor Web site mentions that DRM-free titles will sell at the same retailers that currently sell Tor's books, and will additionally appear on DRM-free-only e-book stores. The Macmillan-owned company also publishes titles under Forge, Orb, Starscape, and Tor Teen. … Read more

People who just can't work in Windows 8 without the classic start button may want to check out a free app called Start8.

Designed by the folks at Stardock, Start8 tries to merge the convenience of the start button with the functionality of the new Metro environment. As such, it moves beyond the standard start menu with some unique features of its own.

You can download Start8 from its dedicated Web page and install it in the current beta, aka Consumer Preview, edition of Windows 8. Installation is quick and simple. After the app is installed, you'll see … Read more

Back at CES 2011, Orb announced a $20 Blu-ray disc to come in February that would add streaming-media functionality to older Blu-ray players. After several delays, the company has finally released a Blu-ray disc that will work exclusively with the PS3, with the generic Blu-ray player version still "coming soon."

We're familiar with Orb's products from the Orb TV and Orb MP-1, and we took the PS3 disc for full hands-on spin over the weekend.

Right off the bat, the appeal of Orb's software on the PS3 isn't quite as clear as it is on an older Blu-ray player. The PS3 already has several excellent built-in streaming media services, including Netflix, Hulu Plus, Vudu, and MLB.TV, without any need to use a disc-based workaround. However, there are still holes in the PS3's streaming offerings and Orb's software can add high-profile services such as free Hulu content (no need for a Hulu Plus subscription), Amazon Instant, and Pandora. … Read more

For this week's giveaway, we've got an interesting little streaming media device called the Orb TV, which works with your home computer, smartphone, and Wi-Fi network to stream music, photos, and video from your personal collection or Internet services (e.g. Hulu, Sirius Radio, ESPN3).

While we were a little disappointed in the Orb's video quality, editor Jeff Bakalar thought it was easy to set up and worked as advertised. To get a better idea how Orb TV works, check out the Orb's "How it works" page here.

Normally, Orb TV would cost you … Read more

LAS VEGAS--Recently Orb has been jumping into the hardware business with the Orb MP-1 music streamer and Orb TV video streamer, but the company's announcement today is back on the software side.

Orb is releasing its media-streaming software on a disc designed to be used by Blu-ray players. Simply pop the disc into the Blu-ray player and you'll gain access to the Orb software. The disc is compatible with virtually every Blu-ray player that has a network connection, as it uses the BD-Java standard.

As with other Orb products, you'll need a smartphone and a computer running … Read more

Orb TV is aiming to succeed where Google TV and Boxee have stumbled.

The new video-streaming product from Orb Networks aims to let users watch a wide variety of streaming video on their big-screen TVs. That sounds like a wide variety of Internet TV products that we've seen introduced this fall. The difference with Orb TV is that it should be able to deliver unfettered access to a wide variety of online video sites, including TV network sites (Hulu, ABC.com, NBC.com, CBS.com, and so forth) that have since been blocked when accessing from the built-in Flash-enabled Web browsers found on Google TV products, Boxee, and the PlayStation 3.

What's the catch? There are two, right off the bat. The Orb TV doesn't offer HD video, and it requires users to run the Orbcaster server software on a Mac or Windows PC elsewhere on their home network. That software streams the Web video to the Orb TV, which displays it on the television to which it's connected (via composite or component AV cables). In other words, you'll need to keep the PC running whenever you're watching the Orb TV.… Read more

Imagine, if you will, that Tetris had a younger brother who was always getting into trouble. On this particular day, he managed to inject himself full of adrenaline, high-five Bejeweled, and ran off to start his own thing. This is Ponk.

The gameplay seems overwhelming at first: glowing orbs dropping with asteroid tails at a fairly steady rate. But once you get the hang of it, Ponk becomes a fascinatingly addictive challenge.

Unlike a lot of touch-screen games, Ponk requires a lot of touch. Players can move those little orbs all over the screen in order to create sets of … Read more

Even in 2010, streaming your digital music from a connected PC is generally either complicated or expensive. Orb's new MP-1 streamer is looking to hit the best of both worlds by offering up simple audio streaming for just $70.

Although the company's graphic says you only need three devices for the system to work, to access your digital music collection, you really need four: the Orb MP-1, a home audio device to connect it to (like a tabletop radio or anything else with a minijack input), an Orb controller (there's an iPhone app; Android support coming), and … Read more

Jasmine France joins us as we cover a slew of unreadable watches, clocks and bulletproof watch winding safes. She also shows off her insane ability to read the faces of watches that no one else can decipher.

Samsung claims its watch is world's slimmest

LG Watch Phone clears FCC

Turning a Power Mac G3 into a wall clock (Thanks, Nicholas!)

Pong clock (Thanks, Jon!)

Continue Time clock

Digital black-and-white clock is a milestone in minimalism

The Twilight Watch… Read more