Downloading a program on Miro 1.0.

Miro 1.0 also takes up fewer system resources than either Veoh and Joost. For Windows, Miro requires 128 MB of RAM and Direct X 3.0 or higher running on Vista, XP or 2000 (it also has unofficial support for Windows 95 and 98). For Macintosh, Miro requires at least OS X 10.3 and Quicktime 7 to run. And of course, there is a Linux version with official packages for Fedora, Ubuntu, Gentoo, and Debian distributions of Linux.

I tested Miro running Windows Vista and had very few problems getting started with Miro 1.0; in fact, it ran much smoother than similar tests using Joost and Veoh. The graphical interface is easy to use and had a familiarity about it while still using cutting edge technology. Within minutes, I had added all of my favorite channels, and the latest episodes started downloading to my computer immediately. To save hard drive space, Miro only keeps a copy of every show you download for five days with the option to delete or permanently keep the show. If you choose to keep the show, the file is saved in a folder, and you can upload it to any device since Miro does not use DRM to lock shows to the software platform.

Miro 1.0's provided channels are easy to use

Even though Miro 1.0 provides an easy to use software platform, it's not perfect. Some of the shows, even ones promised as High Definition quality, were choppy and had digital noise problems in full screen mode. I also found that the search bar, a feature that connects to the major video providers like YouTube and Revver, did not find many common videos on these sites. And some of the videos that it found were not full videos; many were just clips of the original content, forcing users to go to the content providers Web site to view the rest of the video.

Overall, Miro 1.0 is certainly a step forward for open source video technology, and is a contender in the lucrative internet TV market. I found Miro's easy to use interface and content quality to be better than Veoh, but not quite as good as Joost. Even though Miro promises more content and open standards, Joost still has better content with a guarantee of quality. But Miro is in a great position to surpass Joost, and with newer versions, Miro may just take the number one spot as the place to be for internet TV. To download Miro 1.0 for free, go to getmiro.com.