Ok, this is somewhat of an offbeat post for me but stumbled uppon this and thought it was really cool. I don't use a HTPC (Home Thrater PC) at home right now mostly because sich a solution would only make sense for me if my TV provider (DirecTV in my case) didn't provide me a HD DVR. And to get coverage throughout the house, I would essentially need a PC (or maybe just an Xbox360) for each TV I wished to connect. Can get expensive real quick. In the best of worlds, I would have a single HD DVR in the house, which may not even be physically connected to a television, and then each television would pull content from the DVR.
The new Extender for Windows Media Center was launched last week and from what I am seeing, it is definetly a step in the right direction (you can get general details here: http://www.microsoft.com/windows/products/winfamily/mediacenterextender/default.mspx). I've listed below some of the main partnenrs and the components they are releasing. The offerings come mostly in various flavors of network ready set-top boxes. But I have to admit I really love the offering by HP where they essentially included the technology directly inside of their new 1080i LCD TV's. I have to admit I am really tempted considering that my current 50" plasma, at ~5 years old, is starting to show its age...
HP MediaSmart TV
HP SL4278N HP 42" 1080p MediaSmart LCD HDTVHP SL4778N 47" LCD HDTV 1080p MediaSmartHP SLC3760N 37" ADVANCED DIGITAL LCD HDTV
D-Link DSM-750
Niveus Media Extender
Linksys Media Center Extender