In case you didn’t know, satellite provider DirecTV recently updated its iPad app with the ability to stream live TV. Customers can stream a selection of channels on the iPad when connected to the same home network as the DirecTV HD DVR. Like Time Warner, DirecTV has blocked streaming access to users on jailbroken iDevices. A jailbreak patch has been released to fix the block… Companies rooted in traditional models of distribution, like DirecTV and Time Warner, get scared of the kind of people that jailbreak, mainly because anyone can record a jailbroken iDevice’s screen or possibly save streamed video for offline viewing. When trying to initiate a live TV stream from the DirecTV iPad app, users reported that a warning message was displayed saying that the device was jailbroken. The DirecTV iPad Patch can now be downloaded for free in Cydia to remedy this issue. Jailbroken DirecTV customers will then be Read More

The DirecTV app for iPad got a significant bump in capabilities today by adding live streaming to giving you essentially a portable TV you can take to any room of your house. You have to be on the same network as your DirecTV receiver, and not all channels are available. I'm not seeing the pay movie channels, or the local channels, which are all a matter of rights with the owners of those channels. I counted 38 available channels for streaming, including CNN, Fox News, National Geographic, FX, History Channel, Discovery and many more. You can watch the video in a window hovering over the program guide, or watch full screen. With my multiple tuner DVR I could be watching one channel on the iPad while someone else could be watching another channel on that same receiver, which is pretty handy. This new update also allows you to change start and Read More

By Chris Oldroyd, Wednesday, Oct 26, 2011 | DIRECTV has updated its iPad app and it now offers the ability to use your iPad as a portable TV. Before you get too excited, it can only work within the walls of your own home and does not offer any form of remote viewing access to your content. Of course it does a lot more than just in home streaming to the iPad. It also lets you search, record and control all your DIRECTV content from home or when you are away. The latest update also adds a few other new features:- Read More

Author Walter Isaacson, who interviewed Jobs extensively has this interesting passage as quoted by Razorianfly: "He very much wanted to do for television sets what he had done for computers, music players, and phones: make them simple and elegant." "'I'd like to create an integrated television set that is completely easy to use,' he told me. 'It would be seamlessly synced with all of your devices and with iCloud.' No longer would users have to fiddle with complex remotes for DVD players and cable channels. 'It will have the simplest user interface you could imagine. I finally cracked it.'" This will add to rampant speculation about Apple pursuing something beyond the Apple TV, which Jobs always referred to as a 'hobby'. I hope Apple moves ahead with it. I can't think of another consumer electronics device that would benefit more from an Apple upgrade. As it is today, handling a DVR, Read More

We said it was coming, and DirecTV for iPad has now hit the App Store. The free app is a nice addition to the DirectTV service. The app can be used as a remote, it can schedule DVR recordings, and it has an easily browsable guide for locating your favorite programs and setting preferences for the types of shows you may be interested in. The iPhone has already had a DVR scheduling app from DirecTV. The remote control part of the app requires a Wi-Fi connection. DVR control can be over Wi-Fi, 3G or the Edge network, if your iPad is so equipped. Using the app is a pleasure, but I could not load any of the sports features. For some reason the "loading" graphic appeared and spun forever. We've already seen what a great remote the iPad makes for the Sonos audio products, and the DirecTV app follows in that Read More

DirecTV has just released an iPad app that lets you browse and search their schedule (up to 2 weeks out), set recordings on the go and even check sports scores to see if the game is worth watching. Free. [iTunes] Read More