I've had a Vudu box for some time now, and have increasingly used it for on demand movies. Usually to entertain my kids, but often actually for me. I like the spontaneity of it, and the quality is good.
Recently, Vudu added 'Vudu Labs'. Its a separate environment from the movie side of things that offers access to YouTube, so-called 'On Demand' TV, Flickr, Picassa, some simple games, and most recently Pandora internet radio. In general I am very pleased with the addition of Vudu Labs. It gives me another reason to switch over to Vudu, which will invariably result in me checking out what's new in the movie choices. All of these apps have varying levels of appeal. The photo sites are only OK because I can only see photos that I've made public, which I don't want to do. The YouTube is interesting if you have the time or inclination to surf without a keyboard, which can be painful. On Demand is many podcasts in different categories. Some of the content I do enjoy and will sit and watch. The addition of Pandora is appealing because I do really like the music selection, and now I can play it on my TV in my living room.
But here is one really simple thing that's missing, and it would be best if it was tied directly into Pandora - a nice screen saver. Vudu's larger goal should be to make my TV the center of my house. A movie box is nice but is only used occassionally. Vudu Labs extends the usage with my personal photos and music. Now give me something that I can just have hanging out in the background when I have friends over. It could be beautiful license free photos, or one of those fake 'fish tank' apps. Or at minimum, allow my own personal pictures to run in a loop (in the Flickr and Picassa apps, it just runs through your photos once) while my choice of music plays in the background. I'm sure there are many other ideas to keep Vudu 'always on', but making my HD TV an ever-changing piece of art is a good start.
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