To be honest, I'm unconvinced by Project Canvas. It's difficult to see
how a UK only system is going to compete in this day and age. What
does it do that a Google TV box can't do? Why would a manufacturer
make a Canvas box instead of something that they can sell in most of
the world (or even all of the world with the right components)?
All it does is remind me of the BBC Micro Vs PC Compatibles.
This is not my field and I have not been following the details of the
implementation of Canvas:
The Google TV box (Logitech Revue) is an addition to your set top box,
so it does not integrate with Free To Air TV and may be unable to access
UK catch-up content.
While it has minimum hardware specification, DVB-T2, 32Mb local storage
etc, this may be modularised commodity hardware. Revue/Boxee may be cheaper.
Canvas to a large extent is a software stack. Core, UI and Marlin DRM
will all be closed to the user. Any user HTML, Java/action script would
appear to be limited to extensions (e.g. games), or accessing internet
content (excluding UK Free to Air catchup etc). If not totally closed
like the PS3.
Commodity(ish) hardware with access to UK Free to Air TV catch up, is
much more like BT, Sky, Virgin services than Google TV (US orientated).
Even Google TV is a black box with HDMI (in/out), what I imagine the
Open Source Consortium would like (and certainly I would) is a PC with a
DVB-T2 USB tuner, allowing an open source implementation of Canvas,
which of course would cause an issue with Marlin (unauthorised and
insecure (user modifiable) clients).
Or better still a simple URI and python/perl/ruby/curl script to access
or download Canvas, Free To Air TV catchup content (including HDTV).
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