Next in my iRecommend series is something free (as in beer). I’ve been using Boxee in private alpha for two months now. Boxee turns my Mac Mini and HDTV into a home theater powerhouse without the fuss of many alternate platforms out there.

When I launch Boxee, my Mac Mini transforms into a remote-friendly media center with access to all of my movies, pictures and music without the need for a keyboard or mouse. The content available isn’t limited to just my own digital media. Boxee’s slick interface alows you to play movies and music from many of the popoular online companies like Hulu, CBS, MTV and even….drum role please…Netflix. Yes, if you are a Netflix subscriber (and why aren’t you at a measly $9.95 per month) you can stream any of their 12,000+ titles through Boxee on your TV.

“Look Ma, no computer!”

Before the purists chime in, yes, I know that there are other devices that stream Netflix to your TV without a computer. But Boxee does so much more. Think of Boxee as modern-day “rabbit ears” that are capable of tuning into lots of TV “stations” on the Internet for free! (note: if you are younger than 25, you probably don’t know what rabbit ears are anyway, I apologize for the inconvenience).

But wait, there’s more! In addition to Boxee’s media features, it adds social networking to it’s already impressive line up. Now you can easily share and recommend what you are watching to your friends without leaving the comfort of your couch. Your viewing and listening habits are only shared with those that you have “friended” through the boxee.tv web interface. This of course, is an optional feature that can be disabled in the Boxee settings.

Consumers are quickly embracing on-demand programming on the Internet. Boxee not only makes that easier, but it converges social networking and TV which is the future of consumer entertainment. Enjoy!

This the first post in a new series that I’m calling iRecommend (rss). These posts will have their own category (and therefore a unique RSS feed). The inspiration for this stems from a few of my friends who told me that they would subscribe to an RSS feed of stuff that I thought was kewl. This “stuff” may be software or hardware. It might also be music, books, movies or TV (but book recommendations are very unlikely since I rarely read anymore – sad, i know).

My first installment in this series is an iPhone game called Rolando (App Store link). This was a highly anticipated title that was announced around the time that the iPhone SDK was announced last March. It was finally released last month and it certainly lives up to the hype.

I’m not planning to provide a full review of items in these posts, but the gameplay is simple and uses the iPhone accelerometer effectively. If you are new to iPhone gaming, this title is a great example of the “input via movement” that the iPhone accelerometer provides.

The story isn’t complex, yet fun and you can play this game in short spurts, which is a must these days for me. I don’t have time to immerse myself in a 75-hour game. There are people who like those titles, but I’m not one of them. I want to get into a game, get out when I’m interrupted and resume when I’m ready.

The price is $9.99 which is on the high side for iPhone applications, but it’s a relative steal when you compare that to the price of games on other mobile consoles like the Nintendo DS and Sony PSP. Plus, this game is every bit as good (if not better).