Wireless keyboards with built-in pointing devices are usually pretty ugly, and Sandberg's new HTPC-oriented keyboard is no exception: sure, the dedicated Media Center Keys and 32-foot range are nice, but that two-tone color scheme is straight out of 1987. Plus, check the placement of the Media Center button -- yeah, that'll never get accidentally pressed. On the plus side, it's just £49 ($97), so you'll have plenty of scratch left over for fiber-optic lights and white shag rugs.

[Via Bios]

Intel is looking to simplify things by adding more processors. Yeah, doesn't sound all that sensible to us, ether, but stay put. Okay. Ready for some acronyms? Their just-announced EP80579 Integrated Processor features a system on a chip design that integrate the Pentium M core with a Memory Controller Hub (MCH), I/O hub (ICH) and data path acceleration engines (among other things dependent upon model). They believe these new Integrated Architecture (IA) chips will simplify consumer electronics like set-top boxes and MIDs due to their consolidated design that will reduce incompatibility issues. Intel also says portable devices will benefit from the new processors' energy efficiency. Speeds run from 600MHz on up to 1.2GHz and all sport a 256KB L2 cache. As for when this new tech will end up in your cable box or MID, no news on that just yet. In other words, don't call your provider just yet.

Engadget HD has gotten the latest on the highly anticipated update for Vista Media Center and it doesn't look good. The first release candidate made it into testers hands recently and they weren't happy to see that the most anticipated features -- support for a DirecTV HD tuner and native H.264 support -- got pushed to Windows 7. So head over to Engadget HD for more details (screen shots included).

The tried-and-true circle PC is back, this time with even more potent hardware under the hood to keep your media churnin'. First up is the VGX-TP1D, which features a white motif, 2.1GHz Core 2 Duo T8100 processor, 2GB of RAM, a 320GB hard drive, GeForce 8400M GT graphics card, integrated WiFi, a dual-layer DVD writer and HDMI / VGA outs. The black VGX-TP1DQ / B steps it up by including a 500GB hard drive and a Blu-ray burner to boot. Both units also boast four USB 2.0 ports, 4-pin FireWire, a multicard reader, TV tuner and a wireless keyboard. Look for each to land in just over a fortnight (in Japan) for ¥150,000 ($1,392) / ¥200,000 ($1,856), respectively.

[Via AkihabaraNews]

Whether this gem is as sexy as OrigenAE's LCD-equipped chassis is certainly debatable, but there's no denying at least some level of hotness here. The towering Tyr X2000 enclosure was designed to keep your gaming / HTPC components safe and net favorable glances from those privileged enough to enter your abode. The unique design enables owners to access optical / hard drives from the sides, and there's plenty of room to store those Family Guy re-runs with six hot-swappable RAID SATA bays. You'll also find a few more absurd specifications such as room for eight PCI cards, enough fans to cool a small dorm room and support for a water cooling system. Mum's the word on pricing, but c'mon, you can't look at this thing and honestly believe it'll be anything near cheap.

[Via HotHardware]

Earlier this month, ASUS introduced the "world's first HDMI 1.3a compliant audio / video enhancement combo card." Who knew numero dos was so close behind? Auzentech has just announced its very own HDMI 1.3-native PCIe audio combo card, which is built around Creative's X-Fi processor and enables PC users to easily output 7.1-channel audio with no downsampling. Essentially, the Auzen X-Fi HomeTheater 7.1 "accepts video from either an internal or external connection, mixes it with digital audio, and outputs the combined video and lossless multichannel audio via a single HDMI 1.3 port." Yep, that means Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio codecs are fully supported. The only digs? For one, pricing remains a mystery, but the real kicker is the September release -- talk about a long wait.

PCI 2.0's doubled-up speed boost was something to celebrate, but think again if you're looking for such a bump with PCI Express 3.0. The PCI SIG started eking out some details about the new standards, and as of now it looks like PCI express 3.0 will see transfers speeds of 8-gigatransfers per second, compared to 2.0's 5.0-gigatransfers per second. Channel width and transfer protocol will ultimately determine the amount of information transferred, of course, so the new standard could have some tricks up its sleeves. The good news is that PCI Express 3.0 will use the same connector and will be backwards-compatible with 2.0. PCI Express' specifications should be complete in 2009 with a rollout in 2010, so don't go stressing about your motherboard's I/O options just yet.

Your options are fairly limited when scouring the market for a twin-CableCARD HTPC, but thanks to a new partnership between Cannon PC and Microsoft, yet another rival will be jousting for your business. Here soon, the outfit will be offering its Home and Pro A/V series Media Center PCs with dual CableCARDs pre-installed, and if you're willing to wait a touch longer, a quad-CableCARD model will also be available. Oh, and if that chassis above looks strangely familiar, that's because it is: Cannon has simply grabbed OrigenAE's famed shell, painted it black and slapped its own logo up there (though we aren't complaining or anything). The pictured EX line is just one of the many families with the new functionality, so head on over to the company's website if you're interested in shelling out.

Just an update on the broadcast flag controversy: NBC has copped to an "inadvertent mistake" in flagging the broadcast of American Gladiators as content prohibited from recording, while Microsoft stated it is only following the FCC's rules, and "fully adheres to flags used by broadcasters". This conveniently ignores the fact that there is no legal requirement for Windows Vista Media Center to recognize the broadcast flag and disable recording, but it does. Errant metadata can and does happen, but for such a "feature" to be buried within one's software unknowingly is troubling. Expect to hear more from the EFF and others questioning why Media Center unnecessarily turns parts of itself off at a broadcaster's command, and rightly so. What's most disturbing, and likely to go sadly without protest is that someone out there is actually watching, and trying to record for later, American Gladiators. The more you know indeed.

[Via Techdirt]

Just like efforts to close the analog hole, our old friend the broadcast flag (don't remember what that is and how it was defeated? Take a quick trip back to 2005 with us) has reared its ugly head again. Displaying the kind of tenacity rarely seen outside of horror movie villains and potential presidential candidates, some Vista Media Center users have apparently gotten the above popup while trying to record broadcast TV from NBC. Since the FCC regulation giving the broadcast flag its power to remotely disable your recording ability was overturned, not only should it not be enabled, there's no reason the system should respond if it were. The EFF's working with the makers of the HDHomeRun to find out why this happened at all (although it's not the first time); whether it's an honest mistake somewhere or if Microsoft slipped a bit of extra DRM into its latest OS.

[Via EFF]

Not like we haven't seen PCs stuffed within the slim confines of an LCD HDTV before, but it's safe to say the market isn't exactly overrun with alternatives. Enter Digital Canvas, which looks to take a 34-, 43- or 52-inch flat-panel and outfit 'em with typical PC components. All three come standard with a 2.1GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor, 2GB of DDR2 RAM, a 120GB hard drive, WiFi module, a 1,920 x 1,080 resolution panel and a sweet string across the back for picture frame-esque hanging. Aside from needing to make absolutely sure you have a sturdy stud waiting, we'd certainly be wary about pulling the trigger via the seller's eBay store. Regardless, we're giving the design a hearty golf clap, even though the $4,777 to $7,777 price tags are a bit out of our league.

While Toshiba still hasn't announced any new HD moves since withdrawing from the format war earlier this year, its Brazilian arm may be moving on with a hybrid HTPC. Powered by a Core Duo 6300 and Vista Home Premium, Semp Toshiba's Spectra packs a TV tuner and an optical drive ready for Blu-ray and HD DVD and should be available later this month. Society Eletromercantil Paulista merged with Toshiba in 1977 and has operated as Semp Toshiba in Brazil ever since, but it might be working a little more independently of its parent company than usual on this project, unless there are more Toshiba-branded Blu-ray products on the way. We'll keep this one on rumor status pending a more official announcement (or a significant improvement in our Portuguese skills.) Check out another image after the break.

Owners of HP's older MediaSmart HDTVs, your sometime is now as Chris Lanier reports the company's posted the long-awaited Vista Media Center Extender update. The SL4278N and SL4778N model TVs should prompt for the update automatically if they're connected to the internet, and afterwards connect to your fully patched Vista Home Premium or Ultimate edition machine and access your Media Center library (DivX, Xvid, h.264, MPEG-2 and WMV of course), live TV, recorded TV or other features directly through the TV. Check out HP's support page for a full walkthrough on the process and keep your Windows Media Center remote close by.

[Via Chris Lanier, HP press release]

While Shuttle's KPC most certainly wasn't aimed at the enthusiast in the crowd, its newest XPC definitely is. The XPC G5 6801M gets going with an AMD Athlon 64 X2 4200+ processor, 2GB of DDR2 RAM, a 320GB hard drive, LG's GGC-H20L Blu-ray / HD DVD combo drive, ATI's 256MB HD 3450 graphics card, a DVB-T tuner, 25-in-1 multicard reader and 7.1-channel audio output. Moreover, you'll find gigabit Ethernet, FireWire, a slew of USB / eSATA ports, DVI / VGA out (DVI-HDMI adapter thrown in) and a bundled remote to make your life even easier. If you're digging where this is going, you can latch on to one of these boxes for €1,091 ($1,727), and if you've turned a cold shoulder to HD DVD, a BD-only unit can be had for €167 ($264) less.

[Via Bios Magazine]