Windows HomeServer or Apple TV?
By Tim Ferguson
Published: 15 January 2007 17:15 GMT
Apple and Microsoft are among the big names battling to dominate digital home entertainment - with the Redmond behemoth launching a home server at last week's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, which its chairman Bill Gates hopes will become the back-up repository for families' digital media.
When asked which of the two companies is most likely to win the fight for the digital living room, silicon.com readers gave a surprisingly close result. Apple came out just ahead with 54 per cent of the vote compared to Redmond's 46 per cent.
When announcing the Windows HomeServer product last week, Gates said the need for a server in the home has come about following the explosion in digital content created and stored by individuals and families.
Apple recognised this opportunity back in late 2005 when it launched its iMac G5, which is designed to act as a home entertainment hub. The G5 allows users to back up and access music, DVD movies, photos and television programmes via a remote hand control.
Next up for Apple in this area is a product code-named the 'iTV' - now christened the 'Apple TV' - which is due early this year. This device will allow users to stream music or movies from a PC direct to a television.
silicon.com Retail & Leisure
Get the latest retail and leisure news straight to your inbox. Sign up for the R&L newsletter today!
Redmond's HomeServer will run on HP hardware and is due to be released in the second half of 2007.
Like the iMac G5, the HomeServer will be able to back up and play a variety of media and is controlled via a remote handset.
At the launch, Gates said: "You can get up to literally terabytes on this. We think it's a category that can explode in importance."
Its key role is to work closely with our core channel brands - primarily Sky Sports, Sky News, and Sky Bet to deliver a range of solutions for ...
You will have passion and skills that have predominantly been associated from the entertainment industry, where kids, families and movies are ...
Today their global business comprises of: film studios, television stations, theme parks, media networks and retail outlets. Our client has been ...
Agenda Setters 2009
Welcome to the ninth annual Agenda Setters poll – silicon.com's list of the top 50 most influential individuals in the technology and IT industries, from techies and CIOs to entrepreneurs and business leaders. Find out more in our latest special report.
Stories from the web...
Copyright © 2008 CBS Interactive Limited. All rights reserved. Top of page
Petra Papinniemi
Legal Eye: Ecommerce held back by outdated laws
No wonder no one's buying...
Matthew Cushen
E-tailers: Be choosy overseas
Markets are not always what they seem
Tim Ferguson
'If you look at iPlayer from a distance, it's still very web 1.0'
Q&A: Erik Huggers, director, BBC's Future, Media and Technology
Kit Burden
Legal Eye: Tech could brighten retailers' gloom
Regulation and recession loom
Matthew Cushen
Retailers: Look to emerging markets
Comment: Massive opportunities if you get the IT right
Julian Goldsmith
How Zavvi lost its Virginity
IT director Tony Johnson on the retailer's changing web strategy