streaming

With which service can you watch that movie?

So many streaming services, so little time. It's no fun starting off an evening by spending more time searching for a movie to watch than actually watching a movie. If you often find yourself paralyzed by choice with the many options available today, Can I Stream.it? can help. Whether using the Can I Stream.it? Web site, iPhone app, or Android app, the service lets you search across multiple platforms to find the movie or TV show you want.

The service tracks subscription streaming services, digital rentals, digital purchases, DVD and Blu-ray purchases and rentals, and online fare … Read more

Super Bowl XLVII: Online streaming, apps, and more

More than 100 million people are expected to tune into this year's Super Bowl on Sunday, but what if you don't have a TV? No problem.

There are dozens of ways to watch this year's game, whether it's on a computer, tablet, or mobile device. Football fans can also keep pace with scores and player stats by subscribing to specific apps.

Here's CNET's resource guide for watching Super Bowl XLVII minus a television:

Streaming

CBSSports.com will broadcast the entire game for free beginning with pregame activity at 11 a.m. ET and kickoff … Read more

Rdio rolls out six months of free streaming in 15 countries

Rdio announced today that it is offering the majority of its international customers the same deal that people get in the U.S.: six months of free music streaming.

The online music service lets users access its library of more than 18 million songs that come without ads or interruptions and can be listened to and shared across the Web, social networks, and mobile devices.

"The countries that will have free access to Rdio are the United States (where it's been free since October 2011), United Kingdom, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, … Read more

Nokia to offer paid upgrade to Lumia-only music service

A few months after jumping in to the free music streaming sector, Nokia is getting ready to give its Lumia-only service a jump-start with a premium upgrade.

Nokia Music+, an upgrade to the free Mix Radio service that Nokia launched last September, will offer Lumia owners unlimited skips and unlimited downloads, the Finnish handset maker announced in a company blog post today. The service also will offer higher-quality streams, allowing downloads at eight times the existing quality.

The new service will also offer lyrics for users' mobile devices and a Web app for home use.

"Nokia Music is great … Read more

Five ways to hack a better Netflix experience

Making the most of your monthly subscription is much more than watching as many episodes of "The Walking Dead" in one night as possible. It's about effortlessly digging up the best available flicks, so that by the end of the month, you know you got your money's worth, and then some.

Sadly, there's no magic potion that will bring "Game of Thrones" to Netflix, but there are some best practices and little-known tools that will quickly transform you into a Netflix-watching maven.

1. Bookmark InstantWatcher Netflix's clunky content interface is hardly conducive … Read more

Get PlayOn and PlayLater for life for $59.99

If you've ever thought seriously about cutting the cable-TV cord and saving yourself a big chunk of change every month, you've probably looked at PlayOn, a PC-based media server that lets you stream tons of TV content to just about any home and mobile device.

And if you love your Netflix and/or Hulu Plus subscriptions but don't always have an Internet connection for streaming their content, you need to know about PlayLater, which turns your PC into a DVR that can record those and other sources for later viewing.

All of which brings us to this … Read more

M-Go offers on-demand and UltraViolet on TVs, tablets

A new on-demand streaming video service called M-Go is coming to a TV or tablet near you and promises user-friendly features and UltraViolet support.

M-Go offers movies and TV shows on a "pay per play" or download (SD/HD) basis and will be available from January 2013 on televisions from Samsung (2012/2013 models), Vizio, and LG (coming later in April), plus Samsung tablets (now) and most Web browsers.

The service boasts content from most popular movie studios -- Paramount, Sony Pictures, Warner Bros. -- with the exception of Disney, which just signed an exclusive deal with Netflix. … Read more

Time Warner Cable, Netflix at odds over 'Super HD,' 3D

Time Warner Cable and Netflix are reportedly talking to each other about partnering on the streaming provider's content delivery network (CDN), but the cable provider isn't too pleased about the service.

Speaking to Multichannel in an interview published yesterday, a Time Warner Cable spokesperson criticized Netflix for only delivering its higher-quality high-definition service, Super HD, and 3D videos to customers whose cable providers have signed up with Netflix's Open Connect.

"While they call it Open Connect, Netflix is actually closing off access to some of its content while seeking unprecedented preferential treatment from ISPs," the … Read more

Soda Drinker sim has all the fizz, none of the calories

You can't turn around without hearing someone telling you how bad sodas are for your health. If only you could get the sensation of enjoying a cold cola without all the harmful side effects. Thank goodness for Soda Drinker Pro, a soda-drinking simulator for Mac and PC that is one of the most bizarre gaming creations in recent memory.

The experience of actually downloading Soda Drinker Pro feels a bit sketchy. You have to send in a contact form and cough up your e-mail to get the link. Then, you have to sit through a mysterious download that Google can't scan for viruses because it's too big. This goes against everything you were ever taught about downloading from the Internet. I threw caution to the wind and did it anyway.

I install Soda Drinker Pro and hit "play." I'm greeted with music that sounds like it was created on a 1985 Casio keyboard. I scramble to turn down the volume. Level 1 takes place on a beach, at least that's what it's supposed to be. The virtual environment looks like it came out of a Max Headroom fever dream.… Read more