Boxee Box gets new firmware, but still no Hulu Plus or Netflix

One month after being rolled out to the public, D-Link's OTT solution, the Boxee Box, remains without Hulu or Netflix, despite hopes that one, or both would have been added to the $200 set top box.

Boxee and D-Link did announce a firmware update (must be the season, Roku just announced one as well), that it says is generally cosmetic and aimed at improving usability by squashing an assortment of minor bugs.

Boxee/D-Link says another update will come out before the end of the year and will include major improvements to the browsers, net content/apps and more bug fixes.

This update addresses a long list of minor issues that should make the Boxee Box more stable and user friendly.

Among the improvements:

  • Added alphabetical scrollbar for local files;
  • Enhanced sorting options in browse screens (A-Z, Z-A, most popular, newest/oldest...);
  • Add Genre filter support for local files;
  • Mark movies as watched/unwatched from the Action menu; and,
  • When watching side-by-side or over/under video, the subtitles and OSD would not be visible when wearing 3D glasses. The user now has the option, under Settings, to have the user interface properly displayed when watching 3D videos.

At launch, the company said it hoped to have Hulu Plus and Netflix available to users by the end of the year.

Boxee CEO Avner Ronen told FierceOnlineVideo that he hoped Netflix, because of Boxee's relationship with the company--it's on the Web version of Boxee--would quickly be added to the Boxee Box. Hopes for Hulu coming on board soon, meanwhile, are a little less bright.

For a complete list of fixes, enhancements and improvements:
- see this post

Related articles:
Boxee Box lands sans Netflix and Hulu plus
Vudu jumps on Boxee Box in time for launch
Boxee CEO Avner Ronen on the Boxee Box and an industry revolution