CES 2010

Right in front, next to Dolby, in the South Hall was a new kid on the block, called XStreamHD. While they were making a big splash at the show, the service won't go live until later this year, sometime in the summer.

Their promise is to raise the standard of Full HD 1080p content that is streamed into your home. Unlike Apple TV and Vudu, as well as cable and satellite service providers, XStreamHD is not compressing content. Using a satellite system to transmit, rather than trying to squeeze more data through the already choked internet, XstremeHD can deliver Full Bandwidth 1080p with up to 7.1 channels of lossless DTS-HD Master Audio–essentially, Blu-Ray quality. Additionally, they plan to make uncompressed audio and video games available too. All I could think of is how busy they are going to be with contract negotiations.

You need their server and receiver, which will run you $399. The server comes with a Seagate 500GB drive though its upgradable to 2TB. There is also a port for adding as much memory as you desire. I wasn't too keen on them doubling dipping on the service fees. In addition to paying for your rentals and purchases, just like any other streaming service, they are charging a $10 monthly fee. The rational is that the highest possible quality deserves a little premium. I'll definitely be keeping a watchful on this new service.