Notebook computers are ubiquitous these days. It’s not uncommon to see someone typing away & navigating the web on a laptop in their living room, while comfortably lounging on the couch. Many of my friends do this on a daily basis, making their living room their personal base of operations.

If you’re a Google TV owner, you have probably wondered if it is possible to easily share & send links, websites & web pages to your Google TV from your Windows laptop. After all, if you’ve got a huge HDTV staring back at you from a living room wall, why watch that new YouTube video on the small screen? Well now you don’t have to!

Google TV has a very under-publicized feature aptly dubbed Chrome to TV, which allows you to send website URL’s to your Google TV from the Chrome browser, with just one click. If you’re familiar with the Chrome to Phone browser extension, then you’re halfway there, as Chrome to TV uses that same mechanism.

Enable Chrome to TV on your Google TV

From your Google TV device, press the home button, click All Apps, navigate down to the “Settings” app & click it, navigate down to “Input device” and click it. Navigate down to the “Chrome to TV” as shown below and click it.

Chrome to TV welcome screen

After clicking the Chrome to TV input device, you’ll be greeted with the Chrome to TV welcome screen, which describes the feature as shown below. Click Next to continue.

Select a Google account for use with Chrome to TV

This next screen asks you to confirm or select the Google account that you’d like to use with Chrome to TV. I’ve blotted out my account name in the image below for privacy/security.

Chrome to TV link action preference selection

The next Chrome to TV setup screen asks you if you’d like to have links launch automatically after they’re sent to your Google TV or if you’d prefer to manually launch them. I prefer to auto-launch the links, but you can experiment with both options to see what you like best.

Complete your setup of Chrome to TV

That’s it, click the Finish button as shown below to complete your Chrome to TV setup!

Install the Chrome to Phone extension on your Windows PC

As the completion screen is so kind to inform you, you must now install the Chrome to Phone extension on your Windows laptop. If the link in the previous sentence doesn’t work, just go to the Chrome Web Store and search for “Chrome to Phone” to find the extension.

Start sharing & sending web pages from your Windows PC to Google TV with Chrome to TV

After you install the Chrome to Phone browser extension, you’ll see a small icon in the top right corner of the Chrome browser that consists of a yellow arrow pointing to the right along with a little phone. Click that icon and it will prompt you to login with a Google account. Make sure to login with the same Google account that you used in the Chrome to TV setup. Once logged in, you can now begin sending web pages, links and URL’s to your Google TV from your Windows PC! Any time that you want to send a link to your Google TV, simply click the Chrome to Phone icon, as shown in the screenshot below.

Web page links will automatically launch on your Google TV

If you’ve configured Chrome to TV to automatically launch links, the web page will automatically show up on your Google TV with no further action required, as shown below.

Enjoy using Chrome to TV!

Share & send web pages from an Apple MacBook or ChromeBook to Google TV with Chrome to TV

An astute reader would probably notice that the above instructions don’t require the Windows Operating System whatsoever. As long as you have the Chrome browser, you can easily send links to your Google TV, whether you’re using an Apple MacBook, a ChromeBook or any other OS that the Chrome browser is available on!

The instructions listed in this article were created utilizing a Sony NSX46GT1 46″ HDTV Google TV device with firmware (Android) version 3.1 and build number 2011111402_AAV_ORSC.2011111411323.

These pieces of legislation are particularly insidious. Crafted by the entertainment industry in an attempt to combat piracy, what they would actually do if signed into law would be to give the Government and private corporations a channel to censor the Internet.

These putrid acts would also have many other unintended consequences if signed into law, such as stifling US technological innovations, instilling a state of fear in all websites across the web (who could easily be banned for “linking” to copyright infringing content), putting huge burdens (both technical and monetary) on ISP’s in order to comply with blacklisting, damaging the Domain Name System and much more. Watch the video below to learn more.

PROTECT IP / SOPA Breaks The Internet from Fight for the Future on Vimeo.

We strongly oppose SOPA, PIPA and any other legislation that would give anyone the power to censor the Internet any way, shape or form. If you value the freedom of information and the current experience of the web, PLEASE contact both your Senators and your House Representative today and urge them to oppose these acts and any other similar legislation.

For maximum effect, we recommend that you call, email, fax and write a snail mail letter (yes all of those) to your representatives in Congress. The more contact they receive, the more likely they will be to side with their constituents. Ask all of your friends and family to join in and TAKE ACTION, as the fate of the free Internet is at stake.

Call your House rep
Email all your reps (both your House Rep & Senators) through EFF, Google or DownsizeDC
Find your representative to snail mail or fax a letter
Find your Senators to snail mail or fax a letter

In the run up to this year’s CES Expo, a new teaser video has been posted declaring Google TV to be all new for 2012.

If you remember, we were looking forward to Google TV’s release, but when it came it was underwhelming. The remote was unwieldy, and the menus were less than intuitive.

On top of those problems, content providers were blocking the devices so the promising features were damaged.

Here’s hoping Google learned from their mistakes, made a few new content-providing friends, and is finally releasing a product worth buying.

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During the Great Format Wars of 2007, some Outsiders kept their distance from the fray by declaring all physical media a lost cause. In spite of their valiant efforts, Blu-ray Disc sales have grown considerably, and the format is picking up the slack where DVD has left.

But the rag-tag bunch of insurgents would not give up, and now Netflix, Hulu, YouTube, iTunes, HBO Go and other mercenaries have kept their fight up and streaming video has become ubiquitous. Netflix instant-only subscribers far outnumber disc-only subscribers.

Given all that, nothing comes close to the director’s original intention of a cinematic experience like Blu-ray Disc does. Academy Award-winning director Ridley Scott even wrote an article for the Huffington Post arguing this point:

Blu-ray disc, of which I’ve been a supporter since its inception, is the closest we’ve come to replicating the best theatrical viewing experience I’ve ever seen. It allows us to present in a person’s living room films in their original form with proper colors, aspect ratio, sound quality, and, perhaps most importantly, startling clarity.

The problem with an argument like this is that it is directed at the geeks like me who care about quality over convenience. The people who have massive screens at home who can really make use of the higher definition video, and powerful speaker setups capable of delivering the audiophile-quality Blu-ray Disc provides.

The mass market consumer buys eggs at Walmart because it’s more convenient. They order clothes on Amazon without ever trying it on to avoid going to the store. And for years have complained about DVDs presented in their original theatrical aspect ratio, which lead to the horrific pan-and-scan copies that lopped off the sides of the picture.

Even more damning, the younger generation are watching more video on portable 3″ screens than on larger televisions or computer screens. At that size, high-definition really doesn’t matter.

Ridley Scott argues that, “Technology will need to make many more huge leaps before one can ever view films with the level of picture and sound quality many film lovers demand without having to slide a disc into a player, especially with the technical requirements of today’s 3D movies.” The important part of that sentence is “film lovers.” There are film lovers, and then there are casual film consumers. There is the guy who watched The Tree of Life four times in his local indie theater, and then the girl who stayed up all night to watch the latest Twilight regurgitation.

Personally, I spend more time streaming video from Netflix on my computer than I do in front of my TV with a Blu-ray Disc. This is borne out of practically though, as I can’t really blast my surround sound system while my kids are asleep. What I prefer is the high-definition quality and emotional impact of Blu-ray Disc, but what the reality I’ve come to is compromise happens where the rubber meets the road.

And in the end, I feel like going out to the Imax last weekend to see Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol was the best compromise of all. Big screen. Big sound. Kids at home asleep.

Yesterday I was easily able to redeem a coupon code for this promotion and I now “own” a digital copy of the film “Horrible Bosses”. Each day, you’ll be able to choose a free movie from a selection of approximately 8 films in their “showcase”, which will change daily.

Best Buy describes the promo by saying “Happy Holidays to you and your family from Best Buy & CinemaNow. There’s an advantage to being a Facebook fan – We are gifting our fans a complimentary movie each day for 8 days! Click here for today’s code to choose from 8 different titles for download.”

To get in on the free movie goodness, you’ll need to Like the Best Buy page on Facebook and then go to the “8 Days of Movies” app to get a new promo code each day, redeemable for one free movie in their showcase selection, while supplies last.

After you grab your promo code, head over to the CinemaNow offer page, select a movie, “Buy” it in SD, enter your promo code and enjoy your free flick!

Note: The free movie promo code for today (11/30) is not yet live as of the publishing of this post. Keep checking the Facebook page until it shows today’s free movie code.

Just in time for the holiday shopping season, Roku is offering a limited edition “Purple box” for only $49.99. The Roku LT offers the same features as the Roku 2 HD, except without Bluetooth nor expandable memory slot.

With more than 300 streaming channels including Netflix, Hulu Plus, Amazon Instant Video, Pandora, EPIX, Crackle, Disney and HBO GO, Roku is considered one of the best choices for streaming video players. The Roku LT streams 720p high-definition video and features built-in wireless.



The Roku LT will be available from Roku.com, Amazon.com and in retail stores.

Earlier this month, Dish Network and Blockbuster released Blockbuster Movie Pass. This service allows for streaming movies and TV shows directly through the DishOnline.com. Additionally, DVDs and games will be delivered through the mail.

If you have Dish Network, Blockbuster Movie Pass will cost an additional $10 per month. This includes unlimited streaming, and one-disc-at-a-time delivery. The comparable Netflix service will cost $15.98. Upgrades with two and three discs at a time will be $15 and $20 respectively.

Blockbuster claims the available movies and TV shows are over 130,000, with 34,000 available for streaming. This is compared to Netflix with 31,700 streaming titles, and over 100,000 DVDs.

One advantage Blockbuster always had over Netflix was the ability to return movies to a Blockbuster store, where you pick up a new rental while your next by-mail delivery immediately ships. Blockbuster also rents games, which Netflix hasn’t gotten into yet.

Dish Network purchased Blockbuster out of bankruptcy earlier this year for $320 million.

The most promising content ownership solution from the owners of properties has finally arrived. On October 11, Warner Home Video released Horrible Bosses on Blu-ray Disc and DVD with UltraViolet enabled. Warner is committed to including UltraViolet on all upcoming releases, including Green Lantern, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2, and Shameless: The Complete First Season.

Sony has also announced the upcoming releases of The Smurfs and Friends With Benefits will be UltraViolet enabled.

Every major studio except Disney is on board with the technology, and there is massive support on the hardware manufacturer side as well. The Digital Entertainment Content Ecosystem (DECE) group of companies is hoping to challenge the streaming or renting concept we’ve all embraced for one of true content ownership.

Best Buy and Walmart are both interested in selling UltraViolet hardware.

How it works

UltraViolet logos will be located on compatible Blu-ray Discs and DVDs, and inside there will be a redemption code. The user will set up an account at UVVU.com and enter the codes. The content will then be available for use on up to ten devices (PCs, HDTVs, BD players, mobile devices, etc). Up to six people may be registered on each account with access to the content.

Eventually, UltraViolet content will be available for purchase as digital-only, but this may be burned to disc by the end user.

The caveat

Until UltraViolet-enabled hardware becomes available, owners of Horrible Bosses (and other future Warner Bros. UltraViolet content) will only be able to watch the digital copy at Flixster.com. Hardware support should follow in early 2012.