Hulu Desktop App Rolls Out; Boxee Who?
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Hulu Labs revealed just why they were so determined to keep Hulu off of Boxee. So they wouldn’t have any competition when they released their own media player! Isn’t there a fair business law against that?
Introducing the Hulu Desktop player! A stand-alone player (that requires flash to be installed… again…) that allows you to watch Hulu shows without launching that pesky browser! The player is geared towards media center users, allowing ‘easy’ navigation via a remote control or keyboard. The player is available on both Windows and OS X.
Hulu has posted a video demonstrating the new program.
The desktop app plays video just like the site itself. We still get to watch the same one single commercial instead, and we still get to watch a clock count down the 30 seconds before we get back to the show.
First impressions? It definitely needs some more work. Right now the entire player is powered by Flash, and it brings along all the bugs with it. The player adds support for remote and keyboard controls, rather sloppily. Trying to rewind or fast forward causes long pauses and very unstable playback for a short bit. The player has aslo crashed twice on me while jumping from one video to another.
As for appearance? Navigation is alright, but the UI is butt ugly. Nothing but gray and solid black as a background, with the exception of the preview pic.
The developers didn’t even bother to edit the right click menu, so right click is basically useless here.
4 Comments
Hulu Desktop Rolls Out; Boxee Who? « ebay technik, money
May 28th, 2009
at 2:16pm
[...] See the original post here: Hulu Desktop Rolls Out; Boxee Who? [...]
Chris Ronk
May 29th, 2009
at 4:55am
This is all fine and good but I just can’t sit at my computer for hours watching streaming content.
If they can make an app that works with my IP enabled BlueRay player like Netflix; I’m there.
the oracle
May 29th, 2009
at 8:32pm
I just installed and uninstalled within 30 minutes, as the non-removable bars and the stupidly implemented system that really doesn’t like full screen play was too much for me to take.
Who do these people think they are fooling? Does anyone expect to watch television episodes with a bar in the upper left quadrant of the screen that will not go away?
This must be why the commercials talk about our brains, and them turning to mush - the problem is, your brain must already be mush if you tolerate the way this stuff is presented.
disappointed
June 3rd, 2009
at 2:58am
brilliant! kill an existing installed base(boxee users) and try to establish a new base of users.
really? seriously?
Hulu should have put their developers to work getting Hulu to play/display in the various open source media players out there; Boxee, MythTV, etc.
That would have put them right into an existing technical user base. Useful for ironing out bugs.
and since they are giving away their player, what does it matter that boxee et al are free(as in beer)?
Their brains must already be mush