Boxee Box by D-Link ships Nov 10; general sales Nov 17

Boxee finally have an official release date for their Boxee Box by D-Link, with the media streaming cube shipping on November 10, 2010 to customers who pre-order it through Amazon in the US or Best Buy and Future Shop in Canada, and then November 17 through D-Link's normal distributors.  Street price is estimated at $199 (the MRSP is $229) and the Boxee Box supports Full HD 1080p and 5.1 surround sound.

Meanwhile the UK, European, Australian and New Zealand pre-orders should also start shipping "on or shortly after" November 10, according to the Boxee Blog.  The box will mark the debut of Boxee 1.0, a new version of Boxee software that will initially be available only on the Boxee Box and will later roll out to Mac, PC and Linux.

D-Link and Boxee announced last month that they were dumping NVIDIA's Tegra 2 chipset in favor of Intel's CE4100.  At the time, the team said the second-gen Tegra couldn't cope as well with H.264 HD video as it was able to with high-profile VC-1.

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Press Release:

Boxee Box by D-Link to Ship November 10

FOUNTAIN VALLEY, CA–(Marketwire – October 20, 2010) – Today, D-Link and Boxee announced the upcoming Boxee Box by D-Link will begin shipping on November 10, 2010 to customers who pre-order the Boxee Box through Amazon in the United States or Best Buy and Future Shop in Canada. The Boxee Box will be generally available through the company's vast network of retail and online distributors on November 17, 2010.

"We've seen amazing demand for the Boxee Box across all of our pre-order partners in the US and internationally," said Rod St. Michel, vice president of consumer sales at D-Link. "Consumers are looking for the right product to get their favorite TV shows and movies onto their TV from the Internet and their home network, and the Boxee Box is the friendliest, and most consumer-ready product currently available."

The award-winning Boxee Box, first unveiled in December 2009, received critical acclaim from the industry and is highly anticipated by consumers. The product is the first media device capable of playing most popular media file formats from a home network along with free and premium TV shows and movies, videos, music, and photos from the Internet, with support for full 1080p high-definition (HD) and 5.1 surround sound.

With tens-of-thousands of movies, shows and apps available*, the Boxee Box gives users unparalleled access to on-demand entertainment and newfound control over their TV:

TV on Your Schedule. Nearly 40,000 TV episodes available from your favorite networks, ready to watch any time you want.

Huge Movie Library. Enjoy a vast range of free movies and new releases in stunning HD from premium movie services.

Plays All Your Digital Stuff. Access videos, music, or pictures from your computer or home network.

Tailored to Your Couch. Internet TV should be more than just Internet on your TV. The Boxee Box and two-faced QWERTY remote are designed to transform the Internet into something you'll love watching on your HDTV from the couch.

See What Your Friends Are Watching. Follow what your Facebook and Twitter friends are watching, and share your favorites too.

Give Your Wallet a Break. Why pay for stuff you don't watch? The Boxee Box lets you watch tens-of-thousands of popular TV shows and movies — you choose what you pay for!

Try Boxee Now. Unlike other devices, interested buyers can try the Boxee Box' software for free before they buy the device. The software is available for Windows, Mac, and Linux users at Boxee's website — http://boxee.tv. Since the software's launch two years ago, Boxee has added well over one million users. When you want to shift the viewing experience from your PC to your HDTV, the Boxee Box by D-Link automatically imports your account, bringing your favorite TV shows, apps, and friends with you.

Pricing and Availability

The Boxee Box by D-Link will begin shipping on November 10, 2010 for customers who have pre-ordered from Amazon in the United States and Best Buy or Future Shop in Canada. Additionally, pre-orders taken in Australia/New Zealand and other countries across Europe will begin shortly thereafter. Pricing for the US and Canada will be $229 MSRP with an average street price at about $199. Prices may vary in other regions.

Pre-Order Links

US: http://amzn.to/boxeeboxbydlink

Canada — Best Buy: http://www.bestbuy.ca/en-CA/boxee.aspx

Canada — Future Shop: www.futureshop.ca/boxee

UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0043EV3MS/

Australia/New Zealand: www.dlink.com.au/boxeebox