OTHER TECH

Techno Snags

But before Intel and the equipment manufacturers pat themselves on the back, they still have a little work to do. For example, the Niveus AVX Media Center PC, which controls all of the entertainment in the family room, doesn't always work. While the family is watching a show, the picture might freeze or skip, which Chris finds "irritating." Not being tech-heads, they haven't tried to figure out the problem.

"I get impatient with the Media Center," said Max. When it freezes, he quickly abandons the connected-home paradigm for more reliable ground. "I just switch to using a single component and its own remote."

Max does video editing on his Dell Precision 360/MT PC using two flat-panel monitors.

Drew loves the ProntoPro remote. Its ability to control literally every feature on every component makes it the one thing he'd be loath to give up. On the other hand, at close to $1,000, he'd also be loath to buy one, no matter how compelling its features.

Drew also loves Rhapsody, but he's disappointed by the restrictions of the Movielink movie download service. Due to copyright concerns, a downloaded movie can only be played on the hard disk to which it was recorded. And that, Drew believes, just isn't fair. "It seems logical to me that if the file stays within the home, you should be allowed to watch it on a second TV," he said. "Until they let you share movies around the house, I'd give it up."

In fact, the devices that take up the most space in the home have had the least impact on the family. While both Drew and Chris have heard about HDTV, neither had thought about signing up for high-def programming. Like many Americans, they're using the fancy sets to watch DVDs and display their photographs. "I love the wide-screen feature of these TVs," Drew said, "an d the DVD picture quality is excellent."

While the family hadn't really been thinking about HDTV, our recent visit seemed to change that. "Max is now pushing hard for HDTV," Drew added, "and I gave him the go-ahead to look into getting it from our cable company."

Yet even without HDTV, this house is now the place to be. Like the kid who was popular because he always had the best toys, the Monty-Snodgrass home has become the focal point for the sons' friends. A few weeks ago, 40 of Max's closest ones showed up after his church youth group meeting to hang out. Despite the loud voices and high energy, Chris and Drew wouldn't have it any other way. "It gives me a good feeling that Max's friends want to come here, to our house," she said.

It looks like Intel's connected-home visionaries might be onto something big.