Well, 3 online TV options, one PC … but that doesn’t have the cache’ of classic sci-fi, does it?

In the continuing saga of IPTV evolution, I propose to offer a fundamental set of parameters.

These are – I submit – the “things that matter”:

1) CONTENT

“It” is king, after all. Without a decent selection of programming that people WANT to see, everything else is moot.

2) QUALITY

After all, you can get just about anything (at least temporarily) on YouTube, but the major networks and cablecos hardly consider it a threat (Viacom lawsuits notwithstanding). Unless a minimum standard of quality is met, none but the desperate (or underage) will notice.

3) INTERFACE

It all needs to be usable … passing not just the dreaded WAF test, but manageable by the kids and Uncle Fred as well. IPTV will never go mainstream until everyone can use it.

So – how do three of the current crop of products fare? Let’s take a (brief, unscientific) look, shall we?

(Hey, if you want full-blown reviews, there are plenty of sites for that.)

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How far would you go to get it?

JOOST

I finally received a beta-invite (along with half the rest of the world, I’m sure) and am starting to dig around the program. They say I can send an invitation to as many friends as I want, but honestly I am waiting on that to make sure the service is ready-for-prime-time.

At the moment, I can say that the interface is slick … perhaps too slick. I prefer a little less aero and a little more “form follows function”. Not saying it’s bad (not yet, anyway) but it could get irritating. Judging by the source (lol … pun intended) I will presume that skins & other mods will be forthcoming.

I haven’t tried any plug-ins yet, but for now the biggest “wait-and-see” is the content itself. Until it leaves beta for the real world, there is just no way to tell how much draw Joost will have. Some of the existing reviews act like there is a plethora of material already here (Si, el Guapo!) but I’m just not seeing it. Sure they have Adult Swim (and that counts for a lot) but until I see more complete episodes than I can get at the channel site itself, I remain singularly UNIMPRESSED.

So …

For 1) CONTENT, I’m giving them a D … but they are still in beta, so consider that a PROVISIONAL grade.

For 2) QUALITY, I will give them a C- … the video is no better than what I can stream elsewhere, and nowhere NEAR the quality level of something downloaded from iTunes (for $1.99) or for FREE in H-Q from AOL.

Lastly, for 3) INTERFACE I will give Joost an A for looks and a B (so far) for usability.

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You put your elbow in, you put your elbow out …

AKIMBO

I have had my eye on this for almost two years, now. Thankfully, they abandoned the ill-conceived set-top-box requirement, and you can now use the service on any PC. There are some channels and shows available for free, but most of it costs. (By the way, they are running a promo right now that gives you $25 worth of content for signing up … you can even get pr0n!)

So …

For 1) CONTENT, I’m giving them a D as well. They promote the ability to “subscribe to channels for a small monthly fee” … yet almost none of the channels you might actually WANT allow this option (example: A&E or The History Channel). If I could get EVERY SHOW that Adult Swim carries, unlimited, for a few bucks a month, I am SO IN! Otherwise, as they say on ‘the boards’: STFU.

For 2) QUALITY, I will give them a B- … the video is almost up to iTunes quality, but I am PAYING for it (so it should be just as good, right?).

Lastly, for 3) INTERFACE I will give Akimbo a B for usability. The software (powered by Roxio) is not bad, and although it may be less-slick, I would rate it higher than Joost on the simplicity factor.

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Hoping you’ll get into me …

In2TV

All I can say right now about AOL’s service is that it has to be one of the most massive marketing failures in history.

No one – I mean, really – knows about this site!

There are literally hundreds of shows there … and the great majority of the content is FREE. Most episodes are available in either an instant stream (which is still watchable at full-screen) or a *very* nice downloadable version (they call “Hi-Q”) that rivals anything from iTunes.

Everything from classic episodes of Gilligan’s Island, through 80′s fare like Growing Pains, right up to recent programs like Joey. (Hey, I didn’t say it was all stuff I would actually watch … but maybe Uncle Fred would.) There is minimal commercial interruption (Joost has ads, too) and everything works great through standard browsers. (No downloads, and no P2P intrusion.)

Did I mention that it’s FREE???

So …

For 1) CONTENT, I’m giving them a B+. The only thing really missing is an iTunes-like library of current shows & movies. But – if I’m going to *pay* for it, I can just GO to iTunes.

For 2) QUALITY, I will give them a B+ as well … videophiles will quibble, but considering the price and ease-of-use, this is fine for almost everyone.

Lastly, for 3) INTERFACE I will give In2TV an A for usability. Sure, at the moment there aren’t a lot of bells & whistles, but it’s a browser app – so anyone could come along and do add-ons for it anytime, including AOL.

Well, the bottom line is that I still await my IPTV savior … the good news is that for early-adopter digerati, there is plenty out there for free or cheap if you know where to look and don’t mind navigating half a dozen different apps, interfaces, and sites. The bad news is that Uncle Fred will have to wait just a bit longer before he tells Time-Warner to go fly a kite.

I’m outie.