What's on TV? Connections to Internet

Tech Lab

Now that football's behind us, I find it easy to leave thetelevision switched off. For real entertainment, I can just log onto YouTube and enjoy an uncensored recording of movie star ChristianBale's spectacular temper tantrum. Try doing that with your TV.

Oh, wait a minute - you can. It's getting easier by the day toconnect your TV to the Internet. For instance, the latest video-game consoles - Sony Corp.'s PlayStation 3, Nintendo Co.'s Wii, andMicrosoft Corp.'s Xbox 360 - let you hook up and download all sortsof online news and entertainment. Now TV makers are moving to cutout the middleman and make Internet access a standard feature offuture sets. Sharp Electronics Corp. makes a number of flat-panelTVs that allow direct but limited access to the Internet. I tried a$1,400 46-inch that features a built-in Ethernet port for plugginginto a home broadband router. Too bad Wi-Fi wireless access was notan option.

The Sharp TV offers a set of "widgets," mini-Internet sites thatdisplay snippets of news and weather information. Punch in a ZIPcode or city name, and the TV will warn you of the next inboundsnowstorm. You can get headlines from MSNBC and up-to-date Nasdaqstock market quotes.

Still, it's a pretty skimpy set of offerings. There's no full-fledged Web browser, so you can't visit any site you choose. Thenagain, that's not such a bad thing. Who wants to surf the Internetwith a TV remote or keep a full-size wireless keyboard under thesofa?

But then, where are the news video clips from MSNBC or anyplaceelse? There aren't any. The Sharp sets don't support Internet videoor audio - just still images and a few headlines, from adepressingly sparse collection of sources. Give Sharp credit forrushing to put Internet on its sets, but it will need to add morecontent to make the effort worthwhile.

Sony's also working on TVs with built-in Internet, but in themeantime, it's come up with the Bravia Internet Link. It's a $300box that bolts onto a variety of Sony flat-panel TV sets, andconnects to the Internet via Wi-Fi or an Ethernet wire. We tried iton a Sony 40-incher that retails for around $1,800, but the InternetLink will also work with less expensive Sony sets.

The Bravia Internet Link delivers a lot more Internet. As withthe Sharp set, you don't get a traditional Web browser and can onlyvisit a group of preselected Internet services. But Sony gives youlots to choose from. YouTube? Of course. But also Amazon.com's video-on-demand service, where you can rent thousands of TV shows andmovies for instant viewing.

And there's plenty more on tap. Watch recent episodes of showsfrom the CBS and CW TV networks, video blogs at Blip.tv, cookingvideos from the foodie website Epicurious, plus news, sports, andweather from Yahoo, including video clips of important events.

It's a shame that most of the available Internet video is instandard definition, or worse. But a few channels offer high-definition videos, at 780-pixel resolution. Sony says streamingvideos at the highest 1,080-pixel resolution would require broadbandspeeds of about 10 million bits per second, far higher than what isfound in most US households. But 780-pixel video needs a consistenttwo megabits per second. That can be a problem for DSL broadbandsubscribers, but should be well within range for the typical cablemodem user. Of course, if someone else in the house is using theInternet connection, your video quality could suffer.

In all, Bravia Internet Link provides a good online experience.But it's still far short of what it might be. There's no integrationbetween the Internet content and TV programming. You basically shutdown the telly to visit Yahoo, for instance.

What's needed is a way to watch TV and skim the Internetsimultaneously. You could get news headlines and stock quotes in acorner of the screen while watching a basketball game. Besides,millions of people blog in real time about their favorite shows.Best-selling humorist Dave Barry, for instance, writes a snideminute-by-minute commentary on every episode of the TV series "24."Today, I read along on my laptop, but I'd rather see his snarkymusings on the big screen.

Yahoo's working on just such a concept, along with TV makersSony, Vizio, Samsung, and LG. This year, it will roll out sets withbuilt-in online capability and embedded Yahoo software. The system,called Yahoo Connected TV, will feature a variety of widget programsthat will serve up Internet content in on-screen sidebars that won'tinterrupt your TV viewing.

You'll be able to visit a friend's MySpace page or see if you'retop bidder in an eBay auction. Widgets could feature content linkedto specific TV shows - Dave Barry's musings on "24," perhaps, or anautopsy how-to guide for fans of the various "CSI" detective shows.And of course, you'll have access to popular Internet videoservices.

My brief test of Yahoo Connected TV during last month's ConsumerElectronics Show has convinced me that most new TVs will be Internet-capable in a few years. Maybe the next time Christian Bale throws afit, I'll be able to enjoy it on my living room sofa, instead ofcrouching over a keyboard.

Hiawatha Bray can be reached at bray@globe.com.