Siemens reports today that they are one step closer to having IPTV available for more than 75 U.S. regional operators. They also project that IPTV revenues could reach $17 Billion by 2010. Their report claims they not only plan on expanding IPTV-ware but they also are working to further their VoIP technology and the IP Multimedia systems. According to their report we are just another step closer to the fully networked and integrated home. “For example, Siemens' smart home vision includes the use of a mobile device, from a remote location, to activate and set a DVR to record a show or even to turn off a stove or operate other home appliances.”

Posted by Libby at 04:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Looking to upgrade from the generic factory speakers your computer came with? Not sure how to get the most sound for your buck? Here are some sweet reviews on today's hottest computer sound systems.

Posted by Libby at 09:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Steve's article regarding the fireproof safe homenetworking back up solution stirred things up quite a bit (make sure to check out our iPod shuffle contest for the best alternative solution). However, it would make sense that with all this hype our page rank would increase (or at least gain some tranction) but that is yet to be the case. Which led me to investigate why this is the case. I subsequently stumbled upon a great article that helps explain a lot of what is going on when it comes to determining Google page rank. Check it out at:webworkshop . Be sure to keep us posted if you know of any other tidbits when it comes to page ranks.

Posted by Libby at 04:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

An interesting discussion took place the other day and seems to be the buzz of the moment, is the VHS tape dead, for real? Is it going to go the way of the 8-track and the doh-doh bird? A few weeks ago some of the Pure staff went to Digital Life where Tivo was having a promotion where you could turn in a VHS tape and get a free Tivo. I’ve heard other ads such as this on the radio and now it looks like we might be yet another step closer. According to cNet.com VHS rentals are only 31.5% of Blockbuster rentals this year and that is continually declining over the course of the year. Tivo’s most recent marketing campaign is “The Death of the VCR” and they are doing everything they can to push the VCR off the shelves to make more room for their recorders. However, it is also possible that VHS could become the new retro. I don’t know how many people thought records were completely dead (many of today’s youth has never even listened to a record) but the record has lived on – due to DJ’s using them to spin and simply because people like the feel and sound a record produces. Also, there is a bit of an underground market when it comes to VHS and VCRs. While many classics are being converted to DVD format, some of the original files are yet to be converted – and that may never happen. Plus, the cost of VHS tape’s is still quite a significant bit cheaper than DVDs, so the likelihood is, until the DVD price comes down to a comparable level with VHS and if all VHS tapes were converted to DVD then we might see the death of VHS. Until then, sales might slow down, but I highly doubt they will come to a stand still.

Posted by Libby at 12:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

When you buy a new home or build your own there are many more steps than their used to be. One of the most important, in my mind, is building your home and taking care to install the perfect network for your needs as you go. This is certainly not an easy process but taking the time to set everything up, prior to completion of the house (or prior moving into a new home) can save you a life-time of hassles. Tom Higgins (of Tom's Hardware) recently completed the build-out of a brand new house and has now documented how they installed the perfect network to meet each of their needs. You can read up on networking your new place at: How To: Diary of a New Home Network– Part 1

Posted by Libby at 09:54 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I've been part of the effort to make home networking take off for the last seven years and I've seen many technologies come and go. In this posting, I want to take a trip down memory lane and talk about the physical home networking technologies from the past, where we are today, and what I think looks promising for the future. This issue, I will start with wireless.

Wireless
I started into Home Networking as part of the "Anywhere in the Home" Initiative at Intel back in 1998. Back then there were various efforts to solve the "barriers to entry" for Home Networking. When people talked about Broadband, they were talking about ISDN and DSL was just coming onto the stage.

Continue reading "A History of Home Networking Technologies (pt.1 wireless)" »

Posted by Andrew at 02:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBacks (0)

Posted by Libby at 01:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

In today’s marketing world it seems nothing we ever have it fast enough. Marketing campaigns for almost everything I can think of have to do with having the fastest modem, the fastest internet connection, and the fastest and widest-ranging Wireless network. Which always makes me wonder, how fast is fast enough for me, and what I need to do in my home. Do I need to spend a fortune or, for example, will a standard wireless router do the trick. Lucky for me, and many of you, Craig Ellison with PC Mag has done an excellent job at breaking out what it means when Wireless routers are categorized as Fast/Faster/Fastest. Not only does he define each of these in understandable terms, he uses visual depictions to make things all that much easier to understand. You can check the article out at: Unwired for Speed, I very much recommend it.

Posted by Libby at 09:29 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

1. Fireproof vs. Media Safes
2. Operating Temperature of the Hard Disks
3. Scheduling File Replication Options
4. My General Lack of Intelligence :)

Continue reading "Updated: Fireproof Safe Backup" »

Posted by Steve at 08:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

Everyone wants the latest and greatest, it is just human nature. And as technology becomes more advanced Keeping up with the Jones’ of the new millennium is getting harder and harder for the average consumer. According to the US census bureau, for 2004 the average median house-hold income is $44,473. In reality, when you figure in mortgage/rent, daily expenses, etc you are not left with much for disposable income. And in an age where technology is advancing every day, we all find the need to want the next hot item. I know when the Nano came out I couldn’t wait to get my hands on one, and then a few short weeks later the video iPod came out and now I want that too. This is why I went to a few of my product guru’s here at Pure and got a couple of recommendations for getting the greatest deals on home-networking products. The first thing they recommended was to visit Price Watch and determine what the reasonable going-rate for the toys I want are. Then, they recommended to head over to BensBargains.net where you can find some great deals on the hottest gear, from routers to keyboards. What I really liked about this site is it takes care of price comparing and shopping around. It will tell you which retailer has the best discounts or the largest rebates and everything is pretty up to date. One frustration when by new gear for my home is finding a deal, then seeing that it expired a week ago. This is a great way to avoidthose hassles and now I don't have to wade through all the junk out there and can find the deals with ease.

Posted by Libby at 12:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBacks (0)

As an amateur photographer, I take a lot of pictures. Recently, I completely converted to digital photography because now digital cameras and photo printers produce high quality results. Before digital, I archived my photos as negatives or slides. Today, all of my precious photos are stored digitally on my hard disk. Like most people, I don't have the time to insert writable CD's or DVD's to backup these photos on a regular basis. I tried an online cloud backup service Connected DataProtector but over time I had to bump up my plan to $279.95 per year. I needed a better solution that met my requirements: Automatic nightly backups (no user intervention required) Backed up digital photos and critical documents from every PC on my network Recovery from disasters such as a hard disk crash or a fire Fixed cost solution (I didn't have to pay more for additional bandwidth or digital assets) The solution was to purchase a fireproof safe with an internal power strip and host a network attached storage (NAS) device in the safe. Using HomePlug Powerline (Ethernet over powerline), I connected the NAS device in my fireproof safe to my home network. I then created nightly backup jobs to copy modified files from the PC's in my home network to the NAS device in my fireproof safe. The big ticket item is the fireproof safe which I had already planned to buy.

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Continue reading "Fireproof Safe Backup" »

Posted by Steve at 04:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (28) | TrackBacks (1)

Networked Music
For years my family has been buying CDs and we are horrible at keeping them organized. And now we have too many to keep in one place! My 13 and 10 year old daughters are also getting into music-which is great-but they are even worse at keeping CD’s organized and unscratched. The move to digital music was something we all wanted to do in order to better manage and make the CDs last. So began the trials and exploration. Our goals were simple, 1) Start buying digital music, 2) Listen to it where and when we want, 3) Back it up.

Continue reading "Spreading Digital Music in My Home" »

Posted by Tim - CEO at 04:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

We’ve all seen the situation in the movies. Someone is driving through a city and the advertisements are personalized as each car drives by. Then, as he/she makes their way home, they are able to tap into their home network and maybe they start cooking dinner or draw a warm bath, from their car, so that it is precisely ready when they get home. To many people, this seems to be a distant reality that probably won’t come true, at least not in their lifetime. Or so they think. A journalist in New Zealand recently reported on visiting the Panasonic laboratories in Tokyo.

Continue reading "Virtual homes to be our reality?" »

Posted by Libby at 10:50 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

D-Link recently posted the specs on the DI-634 Wireless 108G MIMO Router. This router totally rocks. The guys at D-Link have combined cutting edge MIMO support with their packet prioritization engine to create a smokin' fast router. The packet prioritization engine was first shipped in their gaming router which won a bunch of editor's choice awards for its performance and cool industrial design. At Pure Networks we worked with D-Link on this router to improve the user experience of setting up the router. The DI-634M includes a Quick Router Setup Wizard written by Pure Networks which guides the user through the process of configuring a PC and router to use a broadband connection. Months of design and usability testing went into producing this wizard.

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Continue reading "D-Link DI-634M Wireless 108G MIMO Router" »

Posted by Steve at 08:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The Pure Networks team just released Network Magic version 2.0 for online download. For those of you unfamiliar with Network Magic, it eliminates the hassles of setting up, managing and protecting home networks and gives consumers ultimate control of their home network. Download it today from NetworkMagic.com and check it out!

Continue reading "Network Magic 2.0 Released!" »

Posted by Steve at 09:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

A Florida man was recently arrested for using a wireless network that wasn't his.  Apparently he was sitting in his Chevy Blazer in a residential neighborhood poking around nearby wireless networks.  None of us has ever done that right?  Sure.  Remember the last time you visited Grandma's house and were just dying to get on the Internet?  What's the harm of "borrowing" a little Internet access from her more tech-savvy neighbors?  Well, this lawsuit may make all of us think twice next time.

Continue reading "Man Arrested for Squatting Wi-Fi" »

Posted by Libby at 03:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

You love your wireless home network, but there are certain places in your house where the coverage is really poor or nonexistent.  What many people don't know is that the placement of your wireless router in your house, and the angling of the antennas on your router can have a big effect on the wireless coverage that you will experience.   Now you can create a quick homemade antenna to increase wireless network coverage in your home.  It's cheap, easy and it works!  One of the most popular sites for these homemade wireless router antennas is http://new.freeantennas.com.  They provide step-by-step instructions on how to build a homemade wireless router like the one pictured.

Posted by Libby at 03:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Cities all over the country are jumping on the “WI-FI” band-wagon. The latest corporation to join in the hype might just be none other than Google themselves. According to cNet.com, Google is bidding to provide wireless service to San Francisco and thus opening up wireless technology to hundreds of thousands of residents.

Continue reading "Wireless Nation?" »

Posted by Libby at 02:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Continue reading "Skype Freedom" »

Posted by Libby at 02:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

www.NetworkGarage.com was created to bring you straightforward home networking news, reviews, advice and more. We at Pure Networks love home networking and all the enhancements and fun things it can bring to our lives, but we think it is still too hard and difficult. The Pure Networks team is here to help you navigate through those difficulties and also bring you the latest news on home networking gear, home networking services, wireless networking, routers, wireless devices and more!

Posted by Steve at 03:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)