Boxee TV Update Adds Vudu 3D Content And DLNA Streaming From Computers And Mobile Devices

Boxee TV has a new firmware update making its way out to its connected set-top boxes this week, which includes a number of big improvements including the addition of DLNA streaming. Spotted by GigaOM, the update also adds 3D streaming of content from Vudu, the video streaming service from Walmart, and changes to its TV guide and notification settings.

Boxee TV is the follow-up to Boxee’s original hardware, the Boxee Box. That first-gen device actually had DLNA streaming while the Boxee TV shipped without it. The addition of DLNA means that the Boxee TV can now play back media over a local network from a computer or drive running DLNA server software, and can also play content from select Android devices and from a number of iOS apps. Photos, video and music can all be shared via the DLNA streaming protocol. It’s like a non-Apple-specific version of AirPlay, and it’s a very handy addition to Boxee TV that considerably increases its general usefulness.

The Boxee TV also now gets on-device DVR management, which is a big improvement over the old system where you can to schedule recordings via a website on a separate computer. In other words, this whole update seems to have been about ironing out the kinks and making sure the Boxee TV fully delivered on the generally good impressions it received when it launched late last year.

If you’re in the market for a set-top streaming device, the update makes Boxee TV a good option for consumers who might be looking at either an Apple TV or the new Roku 3, but who want a DLNA-capable device to handle streaming of their own media collection. Like both of those devices, the Boxee TV retails for $99.