The future of TV on demand is undoubtedly live TV on any platform that you see fit. If someone wants to watch TV on their iPad, they should be able to watch anything they want at any time. Comcast today is taking the first step towards this TV watching future with their Xfinity TV app.

Their press release is a bit tough to follow, but from the looks of it, Comcast is planning for customers to be able to watch “live news, TV shows and movies in their homes whenever they want.” While I’m not sure if this means that I can only watch live TV from selected networks (sports is curiously omitted), but anything live from the app would be an improvement and a step in the right direction.

In the coming weeks though, Comcast is adding a “play now” feature to the Xfinity TV app which will add “nearly 3,000 hours of On Demand content, including popular movies and hit TV shows, either in the home or on-the-go, including anywhere there is a wireless connection.” In the near future, they have plans to add “thousands” of additional content choices to the iPad, making it a fairly comprehensive on-demand source.

Live streaming and the play now feature on our Xfinity TV app are two important pieces of our strategy to deliver any content to any device, any time, said Brian L. Roberts, Chairman & CEO of Comcast Corporation. Comcast has a series of upcoming online enhancements and app releases that are part of a much larger effort to reinvent how customers interact with their entertainment on TV, online and on mobile devices.

Be sure to pick up the Xfinity app if you are a Comcast owner (it’s free!), and have fun with the coming glut of on demand content. If anything, you’ll be happy to have the coolest TV remote on the block.

FREE!

XFINITY TV

+ Universal App – Designed for iPhone and iPad
Released: 2010-11-15 :: Category: Entertainment

[ Comcast Is Bringing Live TV To Tablets is a post from 148Apps ]

While I’ll be attending the keynote on Monday morning, at the “center of the app universe”, but we’re not going to live blog it. We’ve tried to give you live coverage of the keynotes in the past, but lets face it, others do it so much better. They take a team and just kick butt doing it. Here are a few tips on where you can follow along with the keynote live. Who does it well and who does it in ways they shouldn’t do it.

First, without a doubt, Ryan Block and gdgt cover it better than anyone else. Their servers rarely have problem with the load, and they post lots of great pictures. They must be really fast typers. [ watch it here: gdgt live ]

Other live sources include the usual spots: Engadget, MacRumors, Gizmodo(oops!), Ars Technica, TechCrunch.

Then there are other sources that give you good commentary and not just recite what is going on. One such source is Jim Dalrymple at The Loop. Watch there for some insightful thoughts.

In addition to the places above, if you really want to see or hear it or maybe even see it live, there are some pleces you can look. First, search Twitter for keynote stream or something similar and see if anyone is posting a link to a live stream of the event. While Apple doesn’t allow it, it’s impossible to stop. Someone in the audience of thousands will have a stream up on UStream, Qik, or one of the other live streaming services. Search those services to see what is popular at the moment and you’ll likely bump into one.

After the keynote is over, and we’ve had some time to digest it, we’ll be posting a summary of the announcements along with our take on them. Look for that late in the day, following the keynote.

If I can get a connection, I may post some images and notes to our Twitter stream during the event. But no guarantees on that. This should be an exciting day, let’s get going!

[ Apple Keynote Starting Soon — Where to Read About It Live is a post from 148Apps ]

The team at ALK Technologies has launched its GPS navigation app, CoPilot Live HD, for the iPad on the App Store. The app has been designed specifically for the iPad 3G’s GPS receiver and large screen to provide turn-by-turn, voice-guided navigation.

With recent news of iPad’s being fitted into car dashboards, this is particularly exciting news for those shopping for a new SatNav device for their vehicle.

Street maps are stored on the device and the app can display both 2D and 3D map views with turn instructions for the driver. The app automatically switches between portrait and landscape view and provides iPod controls from within the application, another bonus for those planning to dashboard-mount their new Apple tablet or connect it to their in-car sound system.

CoPilot Live HD offers a feature for users to plan trips offline and preview routes to find the most efficient journey before setting out.

CoPilot Live HD provides an absolutely sensational GPS navigation and planning experience on iPad 3G, said Michael Kornhauser, Managing Director at ALK Technologies. Developing for iPad was a natural step following the tremendous popularity of our CoPilot Live iPhone app. Its a really fantastic platform for navigation that allows us to fully exploit the many years of expertise we have gained from supporting tablet computers with our CoPilot Live Laptop products.

CoPilot Live HD is priced at $29.99 for unlimited use with free quarterly map updates through 2010.

Find out more here

$29.99

CoPilot Live HD North America

iPad Only App – Designed for the iPad
Released: 2010-04-30 :: Category: Navigation

[ CoPilot Live HD, turn-by-turn navigation available for iPad is a post from 148Apps ]

CoPilot Live HD for iPad 3G models has gone live. It’s only available in America and it’s designed *specifically* for the iPad 3G model (as you’ll want to get data live from the CoPilot servers as you navigate). All street maps are stored on the device though.

The HD version makes proper, PROPER use of the massive iPad screen real estate with the rather nice split screen driving mode (as illustrated above). That offers uncluttered 3D/2D maps along with clear turn instructions. And you can have the experience in portrait or landscape mode.

You will need some kind of stand or holder though. I haven’t seen many of them around yet.

Here’s a little more from the CoPilot release:

Initially launched in North America to coincide with the U.S. release of GPS-enabled iPad 3G models, detailed street-level maps are stored directly on the iPad. Customers do not need to download maps for each trip or worry about being left stranded without maps in mobile dead spots. Apps for additional regions will be launched as the iPad 3G becomes available worldwide in coming months.
More than just turn-by-turn navigation, CoPilot Live HDs powerful offline trip planning and route preview features allow travellers to plan door-to-door itineraries on their iPad before they hit the road. Users can enter multiple stops for a single journey and optimise to calculate the most efficient route. Advanced features include integral access to local search, real-time weather information, and the ability to create customised routing profiles that best suit personal preferences.

CoPilot Live HD provides an absolutely sensational GPS navigation and planning experience on iPad 3G, said Michael Kornhauser, Managing Director at ALK Technologies. Developing for iPad was a natural step following the tremendous popularity of our CoPilot Live iPhone app. Its a really fantastic platform for navigation that allows us to fully exploit the many years of expertise we have gained from supporting tablet computers with our CoPilot Live Laptop products.

CoPilot Live HD North America has been submitted to the appstore for approval, and is expected to be available to buy for iPad 3G in early May. Pricing will be the same as for the CoPilot Live iPhone app with no ongoing fees or subscriptions.

And if you’d like to admire some more screenshots, check out the CoPilot HD Flickr Gallery.