New HP Products Aim for Easy Multimedia Sharing

LAS VEGAS -- Hewlett-Packard released a host of new TV, laptop PC, and digital camera models today at the Consumer Electronics Show here, underscoring the company's work to ease the sharing of videos, music, and photographs between devices and the Internet.

HP announced nine high-definition digital TV models with LCD, micro, and plasma displays. The company also presented four laptops, seven digital cameras, a digital entertainment desktop PC, and a new home movie feature on Snapfish, HP's online photo service site.

HP's flagship TV is the 37-inch Advanced Digital Media LCD TV, which is capable of showing videos or slide shows with music streamed from a PC, according to a news release. With that model, viewers can also see online photos via Snapfish in addition to listening to songs on RealNetworks' Rhapsody online music service. The television can also link to the CinemaNow and MovieLink legal movie-download Web sites.

Linux Media Hub Missing

Absent from HP's lineup was a mention of a formerly hyped product, the Linux-based HP Media Hub, announced last year at CES by former CEO Carly Fiorina. The company decided to scrap its media hub last March following Fiorina's ouster from the company, according to an HP executive quoted in today's Wall Street Journal.

Last year, HP said the device would combine the capabilities of HDTV, a digital cable set-top box, and a dual-tuner digital video recorder. The device would also be able to store and manage digital photos, music, TV, and video.

HP officials could not immediately comment early today.

New HP Camera Features

HP's digital camera line has been further integrated with its Snapfish service. Models have an on-camera button for ordering photos through Snapfish, the company said. Other features include the ability to tweak photos--such as adding borders or adjusting the color tint--using only the camera without a PC, HP said. HP also introduced a wireless camera docking station.

The Snapfish service will now accommodate digital videos from cameras and phones. Those videos are converted to a format using a Snapfish technology that makes them viewable through most Internet browsers, the company said. The service is free for the first month of use, and then costs $2.99 a month or $24.99 annually.

Media Center PC and New Tech Support Options

On the desktop, HP released the Pavilion Media Center TV m7300 Series PC that is capable of viewing, pausing, and recording TV. It is available with an optional wireless keyboard, mouse, and remote control that works up to 10 feet away, HP said. It's also Wi-Fi-capable.

HP will offer two call-in help packages. Smartfriend, described as a tech support service, comes with two options: 30 minutes of support for $59.99, or 60 minutes for $99.99. HP's PC Tune Up Service has what the company calls "trained tech mechanics" available for $99--however, the time period wasn't specified as of Wednesday. The new options fall under HP's Total Care service.

HP's four new notebooks include new versions of the Pavilion dv1000 Series Entertainment Notebook and the Pavilion dv8000 Series Notebook PC. Some versions of the dv8000 will include Microsoft's Windows XP Media Center Edition, HP said.

For more CES coverage, head to PC World's CES InfoCenter. And check out today's photo coverage of the show: PC World's CES Photo Gallery: The First 24 Hours.