Vudu begins shipping 1TB box, updates system software

By Ed Oswald | Published March 6, 2008, 5:39 PM

Vudu pushed an update to its platform this week which would allow for users to free up hard drive space by "storing" purchased movies on the company's own servers.

Known as the "Vault," it appears to merely allow for the customer to delete the movie from the set-top box's hard drive by flagging the movie as having been previously purchased from the Vudu servers.

The function would be available for select movies and TV shows offered through Vudu, and re-downloads would incur no additional charges. If the consumer wishes to not archive the movie, they would be able to delete it -- in which case, additional charges might apply.

However, in some cases, content providers may only allow for deletion and not archiving. Both functions would be available through the My Movies menu screen.

Other enhancements would be provided with version 1.3 of the set-top box' OS, including revised sort functionality, updated TV show search functionality, a revised advance settings menu, and a new Most Watched list, ranked by popularity among Vudu users.

Vudu said it would also make available an IR receiver kit for $39 which would make the device usable with selected programmable universal remotes.

The company has also confirmed to BetaNews late this afternoon that its Vudu XL, a version of the set-top box with a 1 TB internal driver has begun shipping as of Tuesday. That option would be available for $999, over two-and-a-half times the cost of the standard $295 box.

View comments by with a score of at least

Microsoft's Ray Ozzie: 'Nobody's going to be 100% open'

The mobile apps ecosystems of the world may converge over time, led by apps being ported over across platforms, according to the Chief Software Architect.

Will Firefox beat IE9 to Direct2D rendering?

Just days after Microsoft executives gave conference attendees a peek at a new rendering technology, a Mozilla contributor revealed he's working on the same thing.

Where there's smoke: Apple warranty stance raises troubling questions

Carmi Levy | Wide Angle Zoom: Smoking can be dangerous not only for your lungs, it appears, but for your Apple hardware warranty.

The fallacy of Facebook privacy

Carmi Levy | Wide Angle Zoom: If an insurance company learns something interesting about its client through the Internet, is that snooping?

Microsoft 'worked with Apple' for Silverlight on iPhone, says Goldfarb

By not making such a big deal out of trying to stream video to the iPhone, Microsoft got a big deal out of it, revealed the Silverlight product manager.

Clicker.com cuts through the Web video chaos

In a world where homemade video and Hollywood movies travel the same pipeline, it's good to have a real search engine to cut through the clutter.

A case study in improving software: What Office 2010 can learn from Notion 3

A music composition product gambles with a complete overhaul, in an effort to make headway against two well-known competitors in a tough market.

Kindle 2 update adds battery life, native PDF reader

Amazon has pushed out an update to the Kindle 2 e-reader that lengthens battery life and adds a native PDF viewer.

Safari on iPhone gets competition from a $1 browser app

Apple likes to say it gives iPhone users a full browsing experience, but a new competitor tries to incorporate more desktop browser features.

Action Replay maker sues Microsoft for Xbox 360 'predatory technological barriers'

Third-party video game accessory maker Datel has filed an antitrust lawsuit against Microsoft over the Xbox 360's recent Dashboard update.