As data backup and media servers become more prevalent, they also become more complicated, with ever more devices to sync and ways to store information. Today, Iomega released a new NAS appliance that can serve as both a backup device and a media server with a view to streamlining the setup process for home or small business users, while implementing a few features that are more commonly seen in larger-scale networked servers.

The newest iteration of Iomega's NAS appliance line, the dual-drive StorCenter ix2-200, has many of the features that you'd want to see in a media server or a backup target. As a backup device, the StorCenter can be set up as a Time Machine target for Macs and for remote access, so that the user can manage and upload or download files from anywhere with an Internet connection. It has three USB ports that allow direct interaction with other devices, such as external drives or a printer (the unit can act as a print server).

Iomega's put quite a few other bells and whistles into this NAS. The unit can stream media to Xbox 360 & PS3 consoles, and to many iTunes-compatible music devices. It's also Bluetooth-capable, allowing a smart phone to sync with it, but this requires the separate purchase of a USB-Bluetooth dongle. The StorCenter is VMware-certified as an iSCSI and NFS storage device, supports direct streaming from up to five Axis network cameras, and can even serve as a BitTorrent client.

One of the more interesting features for backup use is the device-to-device replication. The StorCenter can be set up to perform any number of "copy jobs" to sync data automatically to and froms various devices and files at scheduled intervals. It also has a QuikTransfer button on its front, to which you can attach any number of copy jobs that will be performed automatically when pressed, rather than having to wait for scheduled maintenance. For example, if you regularly import videos to your computer and want them backed up, synced to the computer upstairs, and put on another external hard drive you carry with you, you can plug the drive into the StorCenter, press the copy button, and voila! It's all done at once! (Of course, you have to set it up that way first. It's a button, not a mind-reader.)

Got a fancy new Mac with some flavor of DisplayPort connector and a shiny new copy of OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard installed? If you do and you also happen to hook said Mac up to an HDTV via an HDMI adapter, then head on over to System Preferences to check out the latest uncovered Snow Leopard nugget of awesomeness.

Three new resolution options are now available for your HDTV-viewing experience: 720p, 1080i, and 1080p. This should be good news for anyone rocking the HTMac set-up, or even for anyone who wants to check it out and may not be fully-versed with some of the issues.

We've tried to reproduce the above using a DVI -> VGA adapter and have thus far found bupkis. We're not sure if this works with DVI -> HDMI either, but we do know it works with DisplayPort -> HDMI. Check it out for yourself and let us know your results.

Thanks to Jay for sending this in via Twitter.

The Mac mini has always been the perfect form factor for a media center appliance (often called a Home Theater PC/HTPC). It's extremely small, almost completely silent and it can easily blend into an existing electronics shelf - or be hidden away completely.

The lack of a refresh (and rumors that the line was going to be discontinued), coupled with technical specs that didn't justify the price-point, have led many would-be HTPCers to write off the Mac mini as an option because they assume it is just too expensive.

However, as more and more content moves online and people become accustomed to getting their media from a computer, the idea of a HTPC is starting to make sense to more and more families. Taking off where netbooks left off, nettops are starting to enter the marketplace. These low-priced machines are diminutive, low-powered and connect easily to a television set. There's just one problem. Although nettops are pretty good at playing back regular video content, they absolutely choke when it comes to Flash, Silverlight or any other streaming content.

Still, when you look at the numbers, nettops aren't much more inexpensive than a Mac mini. You get what you pay for, too: the mini is much more powerful and can actually be used as a workhorse computer.

Thanks to updated hardware and a much-improved graphics chipset, the current revision really hits the sweet-spot for the ultimate HTPC.

Although many of us have longed for Apple to release an official media center product that brings the Mac mini and the Apple TV together, the current Mac mini is more than capable of serving as that product right now.

Now that Apple has allowed the purchase/rental of some high-definition films via iTunes, the media content options for the Mac mini match that of the Apple TV and then some.

Last month, Robert wrote about his experience transforming his "Switcher-Dad's" mini into a nice Mac media center.

In mid-June, my fiance and I bought a 2009 Mac mini (the 1GB 2.0GHz model). For the last few months, I've been testing hardware, accessories and lots and lots of software to make it into the best HTPC around. My goal was simple: my Mac mini needed to work with my existing surround sound setup and it needed to seamlessly connect to the FreeNAS media server where several terabytes of audio and video files reside. It needed to connect and work with our other Macs -- as well as our Windows 7 machines -- and it needed to be silent and simple, with an interface that a visitor or guest could easily suss out.

Read on for tips and tricks to get the most out of your machine's hardware and software, as we transform a 2009 Mac mini into the ultimate HTPC!

Part I: the hardware side

Part II: the software side

We've made no secret of our love for the Boxee media center. Its lovable interface works great from 2ft. to 20ft. and covers just about everything an HTPC should on both the Apple TV and Mac mini. Now, after weeks of being in review, the folks over at the Boxee blog have finally announced the availability of the Boxee remote app (iTunes link). It's extremely affordable for everything it does (it's Free) and is available immediately. If you've lost your Apple remote, or for whatever reason don't have (or want) one, Boxee's remote app is a pure gem. Check it out now and then give Boxee some suggestions on how they can improve it.

We've covered the Boxee social-networking media center application before, including the recent release that runs on the Apple TV. Now yet another alpha has been released that adds a long sought-after feature: internet flash video playback for "Hulu, CBS, Comedy Central and MySpaceTV." Other updates include improvement to UI performance as well as the ability to add your own RSS feeds manually, including those containing audio and video payloads (i.e. podcasts). This naturally opens the door to considerably more content for your Boxee device, whether it be a Mac, Apple TV, or even, perish the thought, an Ubuntu Linux machine.

Unfortunately, Boxee remains invitation-only. However, you may register at the Boxee site to receive a future invitation.

I have to say, as much as everyone whined about the lack of an iPhone SDK, I am nothing but impressed at how far people are bending over backwards to provide functionality to the iPhone. Yes it makes you wonder how much we could do if there was an SDK, but on the other hand, developers are really showing us just how much can be done with just a browser.

Take, for example, the Xbox Media Center iPhone Remote. If you're still using your old Xbox as a media center, Tom Robinson has devised a setup that will let you actually log in to your Xbox from your iPhone, essentially using the iPhone as a very expensive (but very functional) remote control. Basically, you FTP the code onto your Xbox (or just install it over the web), and then login to the Xbox's IP from MobileSafari, and you can use it to browse media, view information on playing media, and even use transport and audio controls. Wild.

My only question is how secure this is-- without having used it, it seems like all you need to get full access to the Xbox is the IP address. There may be something in the code that confines access to a local network, but if you can install this script from the web, it seems like you could also log in to control an Xbox from afar after it's been installed. At any rate, it's a really interesting idea, and just another example of how creative people are getting in developing functionality on the iPhone.

Thanks, Dave!

The Mac media center market is heating up lately, with a healthy collection of competitors to Apple's Front Row offering unique features and different UI experiences. This is great news for anyone who wants to turn an older Mac into a media center, or if Front Row simply doesn't float your boat. CenterStage, while still very much in alpha and under heavy development (they're always looking for more developers to lend a handy, by the way), is a promising open source media center that brings a strong style, some exclusive features and the promise of an impressive UI down the road.

For now, CenterStage covers the meat of what a media center needs to be pretty well: it can play movies, music and your photos; nothing too much to write home about there. CenterStage can already do interesting things like play TV shows recorded with EyeTV, but highlights from the planned features list, however, is what might peak more of your interest:

• Bonjour support is coming to allow access to the media of other machines on the network, which will include viewing photos and slideshows from other computers (take that, Apple TV)
• Subtitle support for playing movies
• Live TV viewing
• Live and scheduled TV recording
• Game support - playing CD-ROM, Flash and emulation games

For now, CenterStage has released a significant v0.6.2 update which the team calls the "most fully functional release to date." For the future, however, the CenterStage crew have also produced a slick video of what the interface will eventually become, with demonstrations of browsing the library and a few other choice features.

Like I said though, CenterStage is still very much an alpha product so if you give it a spin, definitely treat it as such. Still, the project seems to be progressing nicely and it will be great to see the day when it is a formidable competitor to the likes of Front Row and equinux's MediaCentral.

Loop Rumors is reporting on a patent Apple has filed with the US Patent and Trademark Office entitled, "Multi-media center for computing systems." In short, the filing describes a "media-player with remote control capabilities" that is used to control several media devices, and even share data with those devices.

Perhaps the iPod will grow to include this capability, or maybe even the iPhone. It's also possible that the Apple Remote as we know it today may become more powerful, but it would certainly be more fun to control television with the iPhone. Heck, if my Newton can do it, the iPhone should be a cinch.

Thanks, Chris!

While you're waiting for the Apple TV to ship any day now, MacNN has some interesting snippets of analysis on the device from Piper Jaffray's senior analyst, Gene Munster. Of note, there are a surprising estimate of 118 million 'active' iTunes users compared to Windows Media Center's 12 million users. That's one heck of a lead Apple has, especially for technically being later to the 'media center' game. Still, while some may view the Apple TV as an expensive piece of the Apple entertainment pie, Munster's analysis brings an interesting perspective to the table that's certainly worth a read if you're still on the fence.

iTheater is an open source media center app for Mac OS X which we've blogged before. While I hear it's definitely still rough around the edges, the project has launched both a new site and a version bump to 0.1.2a - both sporting all-new UIs. Various bug fixes and other additions have made it into this updated version, but if you think it's still lacking in features (after all, it's a 0.1.2 alpha), you're in luck! They're also looking for developers to join the team and lend a hand.

[via MacMerc]

"Where's the zapper?!"

A time old phrase uttered countless times in countless living rooms across the world, usually accompanied by an expletive or two. Now that Apple has standardized Front Row and bundled a remote with nearly its whole range, Mac mini, MacBook and MacBook Pro owners are also screaming out for their lost "thingy", "zapper" and "remote control". iMac owners are in the clear: they've got a nice little magnetic section on the side of their machine that the Apple remote will elegantly stick to. Mac mini, MacBook and MacBook Pro owners aren't so fortunate. Apple's forgot to give us non-iMac owners a place to stash our remote! The MacBook, with its magnetic lid, offers a semi-viable solution. The remote will happily stick to the left and right corners at the top of the screen where the lid magnets are. It looks pretty stupid though.

One solution that Apple could use, for the MacBook Pro at least, is to adapt the Apple remote so that it will fit inside the laptop's ExpressCard slot. That would allow users to store the remote out of the way while the machine was closed (our less than elegant solution shown above doesn't tackle that problem). Have any TUAW readers come up with a way to keep the Apple remote with their Mac when they're not using it? Guides for Velcro mods, tractor beam construction manuals and levitation how-tos are welcome!

Honestly: I'm always down for some competition; it keeps (some) companies innovating and (hopefully) on their toes. But wow... if you're going to openly take on a device like Apple's beautiful and simple 6-button Remote, it might be a good idea to make sure you're firing on all cylinders.

Check out this video at CNET of Don McDonald, Intel's VP and general manager of their digital home group, demoing a voice-activated remote for Windows Media Center. Mr. McDonald brags that the remote has absolutely no buttons, but forgets to mention it has almost no functionality either. Watch, as he tries not once, not twice, not thrice - but a whopping four times (with some serious lag on his last attempt) to ask the remote "what time is Family Guy on TV." Also, note how much they trust the abilities of their 'zero button remote'... with all the buttons it actually contains.

I'd say you and your team earned an A for effort Don, but you might have to whip out those tablet PCs and get back to the drawing board on the voice-activation bit. Just be careful the next time you try using it to dictate your product design notes.

[via digg]

When the mini was announced, about the only person NOT thinking "media center Mac" was Bill Gates. I immediately bought one, and I bought the then-new El Gato EyeTV with that ATI logo on it (the full name escapes me). That El Gato box is ugly, gets hot, and didn't really do what I wanted... So now El Gato has a new version of their baseline TV input device out, and this time it has a remote! So, between a big hard drive, the El Gato EyeTV EZ, and a Mac mini Core Duo, you finally have a nearly-perfect Mac-based media center. And to help you set it all up, there's Chris Hamady's excellent page on his Media Center Macintosh Project. Great. So what the heck am I going to do with my old rig?

Chris sets up his EZ with the mini, and it works great, in no small part because of that nifty remote (curse you El Gato!). He adds a big honkin' hard drive for all that sweet, sweet pep. Then he rips his DVD's using Handbrake, so his collection is accessible using Front Row. To top it all off, he puts XP on there (complete with some security measures). I guess he can use his Windows boot for watching those nifty CNN videos...

Mac mini owners, listen up. Peter Burrows at BusinessWeek Online is looking for Mac mini owners. Specifically, he wants to hear from people who are using Intel-based minis as living room media centers. Do you have a setup that fits the bill? You can either leave him a comment here, or send an email to: peter_burrows@businessweek.com. Have fun!

Thanks, Todd!