PurePVR

The German PC magazine PC Welt has a fair length article up that contains one reporter’s experience with testing out various PVR / DVR solutions available. In all, 8 different services were tested (including place shifting services Orb & Slingbox) and a rating was given based on the overall experience.

It probably won’t surprise most of you that TiVo came out on top (twice actually). What I did find surprising is the low rating that Dell’s XPS Gen 5 Windows Media Center Edition system received. It seemed that the reviewer had a tough time getting the system to play nicely with his TV setup which contributed to the bad score.

Although it isn’t anything in depth, it’s a great overview of some of the options available for those who are looking for a new PVR / DVR.

Technorati Tags: PVR, DVR, TiVo, Slingbox, Orb, MCE. Media+Center+Edition

For those of you who use Slingbox, you might be interested in knowing that a new version of the client software, Slingplayer, has been released.

For the uninitiated, Slingbox is a device that allows you to stream your television content over the internet. Slingplayer then receives the broadcast on the remote end and allows you to watch it. This is great for those who are on the road a lot and don’t want to miss their local TV news.

A list of changes as well as a link to download the software can be found here. Dave Zatz was also quick to point out that the new firmware updates adds encryption, which will break some 3rd party software.

Found via Zatz Not Funny

Technorati Tags: PVR, DVR, Slingbox, Place+shifting

Awhile back Slingbox was finally launched in Canada and now a few months later it is getting its launch in Europe. Reuters UK reports that the Slingbox will cost 180 pounds (~ $338 USD). They also go on to report that apparently U.S. based mobile carrier Sprint Nextel might be creating some sort of partnership with Sling Media.

If a deal between a mobile carrier and Sling goes down, it could be quite an interesting concept. Now instead of being stuck with whatever ‘multimedia’ your carrier offers, you might be able to stream your own personalized content to your phone. Of course with streaming video comes streaming data prices. Unless some sort of bulk plan can be made available at a cheap price, wide spread adoption of a new technology like this might fail.

Technorati Tags: PVR, DVR, Slingbox

One of the commonly advertised features of PVRs / DVRs is the fact that you can use time shifting technology. Time shifting enables you to pause and rewind live TV as well as record a show to watch it when you want (therefore shifting the original air time). In a similar fashion, place shifting allows you to decide where you will watch the show.

Ok, what use is this?

A common example of place shifting is the ability to watch the recorded program somewhere other than the through the PVR / DVR unit. This usually means a laptop or computer that is hooked up to the same network. This is useful if you can’t use the TV (e.g. someone else is watching something) or if you want to go sit outside in the backyard.

Not all commercial PVR / DVR solutions offer this, but there are a few that do. For example, SageTV just announced that they will be adding place shifting features to their future releases. Windows XP Media Center Edition has extenders which can be used to allow viewing and controlling through your Xbox (click here to read a recent post on The Green Button site about using an Xbox 360 as an extender). MythTV (which is a free solution) allows you to create front ends that stream the video from the main unit so that you can watch it on other PCs or an Xbox.

On top of PVR / DVR solutions that offer this functionality, there is also one mainstream device that is dedicated to this technology: Slingbox. Slingbox sits between your TV and and your input signal (wether it be regular cable or a digital cable or satellite box) while also being connected to the internet. Once connected to the internet you can actually use the Slingbox to view your programming from anywhere in the world that has a decent internet connection. This is truly ideal for people who travel alot. Slingbox is currently designed to be used with NTSC based signals, which includes the US and Canada.

Technorati Tags: PVR, DVR, SageTV, MCE, Xbox, MythTV, Slingbox, Place+Shifting