IO-DATA introduces Mac TV for Japan
For the Japanese market comes the new IO-DATA Mac TV external USB tuner. This small white device features a digital tuner, an internal B-CAS slot and a USB 2.0 interface. Unfortunately there isn’t much else on this device but hey - at least it matches the Mac well enough.
[Check it out via Akihabara News]
Cannon PC shows off system with six CableCard HD tuners running on Windows Media Center
Do you have a need to record A LOT of content? You might be interested in this video clip by Cannon PC that shows off a Windows Media Center PC recording from six CableCard-enabled HD tuners. The video clip is of course a bit promotional because it shows one of their own systems handling the recording of six HD channels simultaneously while also playing back a high definition video clip. Keep in mind of course - this is NOT an incredibly hard task to accomplish. The video clip shows that the system is built around a quad core processor - that’s plenty of horsepower for Windows Media Center.
But what about the six HD tuners recording at the same time you say? Well one would assume that the six HD tuners had hardware based encoders thus relieving the CPU of any encoding duties. So.. the only left to do is to have a wickedly fast storage system which means you’ll want a nice RAID storage array with lots of fast disks. Finally.. playing back HD - well again - you’ll want a nice graphics card with hardware based decoding.
Now what is cool is how these guys have managed to get six tuners working under Windows Media Center. If you poke around on Google, you’ll figure out ways to get Media Center to see more than the normal 2 analog and 2 digital tuner limitation (hint - check out MCE Tuner Extender as an easy way to get this working).
While it’s certainly plausible for you to create a system like the demoed Cannon system - there won’t be an easy way for you to get a hold of six CableCard capable tuners. In fact, CableCard tuner cards are not sold directly to the consumer - you’ll have to buy it as part of a new system unfortunately. In any case, kudos to Cannon PC for pushing the envelope on MCE systems.
[Check it out via Ian Dixon's Blog and eHomeUpgrade]
Home Theater PC 2008 - Turning the Mac mini into a Windows Vista Media Center system
About a month ago, I posted a little commentary about a project I wanted to embark on at home. The goal was to turn my Apple Mac mini into a full fledged Windows Vista system for the sole purpose of running Windows Media Center. Why embark on this project? Reason 1: It was about time I upgraded my original home theater PC which I built back in 2005 and was starting to creak under Windows Vista (it’s still great for XP!). Reason 2: I wanted to move to a small form factor than my previous system. Although the previous HTPC looked great within my A/V rack, it was huge, heavy, and somewhat loud due to aging ball bearing fans (which I was too lazy to upgrade). Yes, it was time to downsize to a smaller form factor.
It’s actually funny that I even considered this route. I felt like I was tracing back to my earlier roots with this project. When I first got into constructing Home Theater PC (HTPC) systems years ago, I toyed with several Shuttle XPC based small form factor systems. In the end, I opted for a larger box since it looked so darn sexy in my home theater rack and had plenty of room for expansion. After a few years with a large box, I was finally ready to go small again. The question was - how small did I want to get?
Now, I could have gone the Shuttle route again (and I still might - more on that later) or I could have purchased something like the HP Pavilion Slimline PC. Ultimately, I chose the Apple Mac mini primarily because I had one handy and I wanted to see what it was like transforming it into a Vista based Media Center HTPC. Would it work well under Vista? Would I be able to do all the things I envisioned? Hopefully I’ll be able to answer these questions and then some in this writeup. The purpose of this writeup is to cover all the steps that I took to build my Apple Mac mini home theater system utilizing Windows Vista and the Windows Media Center application. Is it my final setup? Probably not but it proves it indeed is a viable, solid, and reliable solution.
Finally, I apologize ahead of time if some of you think I might have “bastardized” the Mac mini by installing Vista. I also want to give credit where credit is due - primarily to two blog postings I read before starting this prokect - one over at markwilson.it and one over at Mauricio Freitas’s website here. Let’s get started shall we?
PC Magazine reviews the HP Pavilion Slimline s3330f
PC Magazine has a review up of the HP Pavilion Slimline s3330f desktop system here on their website. The s3330f is on the high end of HP’s Slimline series and caters towards the HD video enthusiasts who require Blu-ray/HD DVD playback support as well as HDTV tuner capabilities. I’m a huge fan of the HP Slimline series primarily because I’m a happy owner of an HP Pavilion Slimline s3200n desktop (which is no longer available for purchase) myself. The Slimline desktops are well designed, fairly quiet, small and compact, and look pretty sweet too. About the only major complaint I had with my s3200n was the HP bloatware (which apparently is still there with the latest s3330f).
Features and specs of the s3330f include the following:
PC Magazine’s verdict is as follows:
With the HP Pavilion Slimline s3330f, HP improves its Slimline PC for HD video enthusiasts. At $950 (as tested), it comes with just enough to satisfy a multimedia consumer
Combining a TV tuner, and Blu-ray player into the Slimline series can only mean this desktop series just got a whole lot better.
Hauppauge! UK WinTV-NOVA-S-USB2
If you’re in an area that can receive free-to-air digital satellite TV (DVB-S), then you might be interested in the new Hauppauge! UK’s WinTV-NOVA-S-USB2 device. As you’ve probably guessed it, the WinTV-NOVA-S-USB2 is an external tuner for your PC and gives you the capability to watch, pause, and record digital satellite TV (don’t confuse this with satellite TV here in the US please). You can also add the Hauppauge! WinTV-CI, a compatible CAM and SmartCard into the picture to tune into subscription TV!
Key features include:
[Check it out via Ubergizmo]
PC Magazine reviews the HDHome and Elgato Eye TV
One of the more innovative TV tuners that I’ve seen in recent memory has been the SiliconDust HDHomeRun. This Nintendo NES-ish looking device actually contains two digital tuners inside. Now what really makes the HDHomeRun unique is the mere fact that the device connects to your network. Yup.. connect the tuners to your cable line or OTA HDTV antenna and then connect the tuner to your network via the Ethernet jack. Install some drivers on your PC or Mac and you’ll be streaming HD video from the HDHomeRun to your desktop. How cool is that? I got one of these last week and will be writing up a review of the product shortly. In the meantime, you can check out PC Magazine’s look at the HDHomeRun (in conjunction with Elgato’s EyeTV product. This is what PC Mag had to say about the product:
This network-attached HDTV tuner delivers over-the-air HD and SD programming and unscrambled cable television channels to any PC or Mac on your network. In addition, the Mac software lets you convert files so you can watch them on mobile devices like iPods, iPhones, and PSPs.
The only beef I have with the device is the lack of an analog tuner.. but then again, analog is going away in less than a year anyhow..
Pinnacle updates HD Sticks to support ClearQAM
Pinnacle Systems announced last week, the next generation versions of their PCTV HD Stick and PCTV HD Pro Stick HDTV Tuners. The new versions now support unencrypted digital cable (a.k.a. ClearQAM) channels and also feature a new tuner/demodulator with more sensitive reception of both analog and digital TV signals (including FM radio for the PCTV HD Pro Stick). Both USB sticks still support free digital HD and SD TV via over-the-air (OTA) ATSC support.
By offering ClearQAM support to the HD Stick and HD Pro Stick, cable TV subscribers will be able to plug their digital cable directly to the USB devices and receive free over-the-air digital channels.
Both models are fully certified for Windows Vista and Windows Media Center. Both tuners also come bundled with Pinnacle’s TVCenter Pro software which provides a fully featured PVR application with support for Time Shifting and recording of television shows.
Features and specs of the PCTV HD Stick include:
Features and specs for the PCTV HD Pro Stick include:
Both tuners should be available now with the HD Stick selling for $69.99 and the HD Pro Stick going for $99.99.
[Check it out via Dvice.com]
Leadtek’s blue WinFast DTV200 HU
Think external TV tuners are boring? Well check out the new Leadtek Research WinFast DTV200 HU portable hybrid “TV box.” This palm-sized device connects to your system’s USB 2.0 port and offers analog and digital TV tuner along with FM radio tuning. The DTV200 HU supports DVB-T, comes with an FM antenna as well as a 4 in 1 AV cable and remote control.
Specs include:
Elgato adds Clear QAM support to EyeTV Hybrid and EyeTV 250 Plus
Elgato has announced that both their EyeTV Hybrid TV tuner stick and the EyeTV 250 plus for the Apple Mac now support receiving unencrypted digital cable signals (Clear QAM). Both tuners already supported over-the-air HDTV as well as conventional analog TV via standard cable or antenna connections.
Features of the EyeTV Hybrid include:
Features of the EyeTV 250 plus include:
via TechFresh
Leadtek introduces the WinFast PVR2100 Worldwide Analog TV tuner card
The TV tuner market is certainly getting crowded as Leadtek has introduced their latest entry - the WinFast PVR2100. This card features worldwide analog TV reception which includes PAL, NTSC, and SECAM and includes an integrated FM radio tuner. It has a built in MPEG-2 hardware encoder which will free up your CPU for other fun duties.
Leadtek also packages their own PVR application called WinFast PVR2 which provides your usual array of time shifting functions as well as the ability to view and share Live TV on the Internet. Other features include:
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