The official Flash release does not come out until next week, March 18... But it was also leaked earlier today. The first thing I did after downloading and installing it (which took less than 2 min) was install the PlayOn app from the Market.
If you already have PlayOn running on your home pc or laptop (perhaps for your Android phone which it also works on), you're up and running within seconds on the Xoom.
The is supposed to allow you to stream Netflix, Hulu, and a dozen or so web-streaming sites. However, what makes it truly awesome is that you can stream ANY of the media files you have stored on your PC. I have a bunch of MKV's... they were streaming flawlessly and fluidly! So that whole video player issue is effectively solved.
This also addressed my only other nagging issue that made the iPad an aggressive alternative... the ease to find and play movies through iTunes. Being able to stream anything from your hdd over wifi or 3G helps to fill the gap in the Xoom's media capabilities imo.
There are a few glitches (none during video playback), but then again, Flash still has another week before it officially debuts anyway.
There is still 4G & sdcard to be enabled... but honestly the Xoom feels like a COMPLETE media device with the addition of Flash and ingenuity of PlayOn.
If you already have PlayOn running on your home pc or laptop (perhaps for your Android phone which it also works on), you're up and running within seconds on the Xoom.
The is supposed to allow you to stream Netflix, Hulu, and a dozen or so web-streaming sites. However, what makes it truly awesome is that you can stream ANY of the media files you have stored on your PC. I have a bunch of MKV's... they were streaming flawlessly and fluidly! So that whole video player issue is effectively solved.
This also addressed my only other nagging issue that made the iPad an aggressive alternative... the ease to find and play movies through iTunes. Being able to stream anything from your hdd over wifi or 3G helps to fill the gap in the Xoom's media capabilities imo.
There are a few glitches (none during video playback), but then again, Flash still has another week before it officially debuts anyway.
There is still 4G & sdcard to be enabled... but honestly the Xoom feels like a COMPLETE media device with the addition of Flash and ingenuity of PlayOn.