Boxee releases new alpha, adds Netflix support
Boxee pushed out an impromptu update last week for Apple TV owners, specifically to address issues with the 2.3 firmware update. Today's update is targeted at all boxee versions and adds a host of new features, including the big dog: Netflix support for US customers. Note: Netflix support is currently only in the Mac version of boxee. The boxee team is working hard to bring it to the Apple TV, but they need to work around some of the hardware limitations. They'll be posting updates on the boxee blog on their progress.
Here's the rundown:
- Netflix support for Mac users
- Improved Hulu performance and a new Hulu interface, including access to your personal Hulu queues
- Access to TheWB.com (US only unless you use a proxy)
- The Boston Globe's Big Picture blog - amazing photos from around the world
- MTVMusic - songs/artists in your collection are now linked with music videos
- New YouTube interface, improved performance and .h264 support
- Custom interfaces and improved playback for CNN, Flickr and Picasa
If you haven't tried boxee, you can go to http://boxee.tv/tuaw and get an invite. You'll need an Intel Mac running OS X 10.4 or OS X 10.5 or an Apple TV. Boxee is also available for Ubuntu 7.10 and 8.04, though I'm unsure if the team was able to implement Netflix support for Ubuntu yet.
Give it a shot and tell us what you think in the comments!
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It's a pretty awesome day to be a Netflix fan. Not only is the Watch Instantly service officially available for OS X, it's also now...
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I agree this boxee version deserves extra coverage. Plex is great (and i am having trouble deciding which i will use more often) but adding netflix and hulu is a pretty amazing step forward. i find it recognizes all my content better then plex too (except the daily show and colbert report) if boxee can just get itunes integration too, it would be pretty perfect.
You do realize that XBMC doesn't have Hulu or Netflix support right? So your comment that those two features are putting Boxee/XBMC at a more interesting place is not exactly accurate. For all of those users looking for an invite to Boxee, give Plex a try. Not only is the UI more attractive than Boxee, but many Mac-centric features have been released that deserve more coverage on a blog such as TUAW. www.plexapp.com
December 07 2008 at 11:15 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyOh, boo! This release isn't playing nice with my second display...
When I set it on 1280x720 (Full Screen #2) in the Screen tab of the Appearance settings, my main display is scrambled showing the boxee interface in the corner, and my second display goes unchanged.
Oh, well back to the previous release for me.
If any of you kind souls would like to send an invite to an Englishman Down Under, it would make my Christmas. BobinbrizauAtMeDotCom. Thank you
December 06 2008 at 4:13 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyIf anybody could get me an invite to Boxee I'll be your best friend forever!
;-)
Helps if I put my email huh:
phunkidude-at-mac-dotcom
Seriously if anybody can send me a Boxee invite, I would be very grateful.
Does anyone have a Boxee Invite they could give me?
declaration19@gmail.com
No prob... I got you Matt.
December 05 2008 at 1:05 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyThanks Brandon!!!!!!!!!!!
December 05 2008 at 1:37 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyTry 1: on changing from full-screen to windowed mode (by accident; I just hit "tab" trying to change from one login-field to the next) and back, my entire computer abruptly restarted -- I've never seen that before.
Try 2: on quitting, Boxee hung and had to be force-quit.
Try 3: spent literally 5 full minutes trying to find the actual content. It seems a bit odd to bury it all in the internet submenu of the Video tab; and the menu system more generally was very unintuitive. And then the only things that seemed worthwhile were Hulu and Netflix, which I can already access independently without much more bother. Also: why was there one random "friend" there whose stuff it kept recommending to me?
Am I missing something? I can see why this might be nice on the Apple TV or a dedicated Mini, but on my laptop, I'm missing the appeal.
i just tried to watch a movie on netflix on the instant thing, on my mac, which meets their requirements, and it doesn't work for me. it says it only works with pc. oh well. still some bugs to work out. peace.
Outside the US Boxee is pretty USELESS!!! So please stop claiming it to be the second coming of christ...
December 04 2008 at 6:34 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyBoxee, I love you.
December 04 2008 at 5:53 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyHot Apps on TUAW
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