5 reasons HDTV might NOT boomPosted Sep 11th 2006 11:03AM by Matt Burns
Filed under: Digital TV, Homebrew, ProgrammingTVPredictions.com recently listed five reasons HDTV will succeed and now Mr. Philip Swann spouts out five reasons that it might boom. The first time around we agreed with his reasons just not in the way they were ordered, and the same thing goes for this time too. In truth we just have an issue with number one and two; flip-flop those and we are on board 100%. Price is important but there needs to be more programing. Retail salesmen can chime in when we say people are more frightened by the amount of, or lack of, programming than anything else. If a person is going to spend X amount of money on something, they expect to use it more often than not. Lack of high-def programming is more likely to signal a dip in HDTV sales than the price.
TVPredictions 5 reasons why HDTV Sales WILL NOT boom.
CNET editors' Pick slingmedia.com/us/[slingmedia.com/us/]8.3 The good: Works with PCs and Windows Mobile handhelds and cell phones; simple, straightforward setup; no host PC or monthly charges required; decent video quality; easy-to-use viewing software.The bad: No built-in wireless networking support; monopolizes the attached device; may not have necessary IR codes to fully operate your cable box; works with only Windows XP/2000 PCs and Windows Mobile devices (so far). The bottom line: If you can't live without your favorite shows, the Sling Media Slingbox is the best way to beam them to any broadband-connected PC or Windows Mobile device in the world. Read editors' review belowFrom the Manufacturer
What if you were able to watch live television wherever you go? The World Series in your cube. MSNBC breaking news at the coffeeshop. Your local news station halfway around the world. Lost in Hawaii. Emeril Live in your kitchen. Now what if we told you that you could do that without having to lug a television, a cable box, a satellite dish, or a subscription along with you? In fact, you don't need anything besides your laptop (which is attached to your hip already).
That's because back home, you have a Slingbox sitting on top of your television. The simple silver device looks suspiciously like a gigantic chocolate bar, but the technology inside is truly sweet. This award-winning gadget is a breakthrough device that enables you to watch and control your living room television programming from anywhere by turning any Internet-connected laptop or PC into a personal television. Yes, It Really Works
With a wave of a virtual magic wand, the Slingbox place-shifts the television signal from an antenna, cable box, satellite receiver, DVR, and more to your PC via the Internet, whether you're at home or 3,000 miles away. Thanks to the Slingbox, you can enjoy your home TV programming wherever you are: the office, a hotel room, your garden, even the bathroom--anywhere there is an Internet connection. You even get full control over the source, from changing channels and viewing recorded content to fast-forwarding or setting up a season pass. You truly can watch and control your television anytime, anywhere--the power is in your hands.
With a resizable window mode, full-screen mode, and the Slingbar, the SlingPlayer lets you watch your television however you want.
Our solution to viewing your own TV while on the road involves two pieces of technology. In addition to the Slingbox hardware which always remains connected to your television source, we provide you with the SlingPlayer--which is installed on any Windows-based desktop or laptop. This software program gives you 100% control over your source. It encompasses several innovative technologies, including our SlingStream optimization algorithms that automatically give you the best picture possible. You can watch your TV in full-screen or windowed mode. There's also the Slingbar mode, which docks the SlingPlayer on either side of the desktop. Your desktop will dynamically resize to fit the remaining screen space, so you can watch TV while using your computer for other functions such as surfing the Web or working on a presentation.
We're Scared of Wires, Too
The Slingbox is designed to fit seamlessly into your existing home theater setup and your PC technologies. We support literally thousands of devices, so whatever you've got, we're sure the Slingbox can handle it. Better yet, installing it is a piece of cake. We won't make you rewire the entire house, wait around for someone all morning, or purchase extra required pieces. The Setup Wizard automatically discovers and configures the Slingbox for the device that it is connected to, and it walks you through the process step by step. In just four simple steps, the Slingbox is good to go. Best Deal---------> tinyurl.com/pc5dw[tinyurl.com/pc5dw]
It's easy to connect to your Slingbox. With the free Slingbox Directory service, you can see a list of all Slingboxes on your network, and whether they're available or in use already. Scroll down the list and select yours, then hit connect.
Connect the TV source to the Slingbox.
Connect the Slingbox to the Internet.
Plug in the Slingbox power adapter.
Load the SlingPlayer software onto your PC.
You are now ready to view and control your TV programming via your Internet-connected desktop or laptop as if you were sitting in your living room, watching your TV source, and using its own remote control.
SlingMobile: Sling on the Move
In addition to watching your Slingbox via any Internet-connected PC, you can now also utilize select Smartphones and Windows Mobile products to connect to your Sling, making it possible to watch your favorite shows from airports, inside taxis, during road trips, and just about anywhere else you can get your mobile phone signal. The optional software is available on slingmedia.com[slingmedia.com] for download. It's My TV
Sling Media believes in giving you what is yours. This means that in addition to giving you your television wherever you go, the Slingbox lets you personalize the viewing experience. We have developed numerous remote control skins that look just like your real remote control. Best Deal---------> tinyurl.com/pc5dw[tinyurl.com/pc5dw] You can fine-tune the volume, brightness, contrast, hue, and other video signal settings to perfection. The Favorites Bar gives you one-click access to all of your favorite stations. You can even use any picture from yo
April CTP: "Within a Week" » The Ultimate Guide to RSS TV Torrents Published April 10th, 2006 in Software Center and Guides. Tags: Guides, RSS, Torrents. One of the newest and most exciting features of BitTorrent is RSS Torrent Feeds. Once properly configured, it lets you fully automate the procedure of finding, downloading the torrent files, and initiating the downloads to your movie folder, then finishing the download, and seeding it to a specific ratio.
In this walk-through we will be using freeware clients, services, and public trackers, to keep things simple and viable for everyone. We will be configuring µTorrent (the smallest, no-install-required client on the web!) to download the latest episodes of 24, Desperate Houswives, and LOST. neosmart.net/blog/archives/134[neosmart.net/blog/archives/134]
Get the latest version (or the latest Beta if its available and your up to it) from this page on the official µTorrent site.
Save the exe to C:\Program Files\µTorrent\ and then run it.
On the first run, it will prompt you to create shortcuts, and then ask you for your current network upload speed. Tell it what it wants to know, and then accept the settings.
We need to find out whether or not the shows we want to see have an "unofficial" TV Torrent RSS, so browse to tvrss.net/shows/[tvrss.net/shows/], and see whether Desperate Houswives, 24, and LOST are listed. They are, and you can click them for more info, and what feeds they are available on.
We will now configure µTorrent to use a RSS feed to get its show info.
First click Options | RSS. Click "Add" to enter a new feed. In the box that follows, enter "EZTV|tvrss.net/feed/eztv/[tvrss.net/feed/eztv/]" without the quotes.
Now to configure the RSS feeds, click on the "Favorites" tab, then press "Add" on the page that shows.
In the text box that pops up, enter "24" and click anywhere on that page.
For the "Filter" box, enter the words "24"
In the "Save in:" box, browse to the location you want 24 to be downloaded to.
For "Feed" select one of the feeds we configured earlier: EZTV or VTV. I recommend EZTV.
Click the button/list that says "Quality: All" and select the type of video resolution you prefer. EZTV has HR-HDTV available, VTV doesn't, so make sure you don't pick the a feed that isn't available!
We don't want to specify an episode number for 24, as soon as they come, we want them (old shows won't make this list, don't worry!).
Check the "Smart ep. filter" checkbox, and then go to "Minimum Interval" and set it to "(Match only once)"
Then set the label to "TV Shows"
Do the same for Desperate Housewives and LOST. For LOST it would look like this:
Now we will configure µTorrent to run on computer start, so that it is always checking for new episodes. µTorrent checks for new releases every 10 minutes, which should let you get downloading ASAP, provided that µTorrent is running of course!
From the main µTorrent screen, go to the Options Menu | Preferences; and there check "Start µTorrent on system startup"
Press "OK" and minimize.
Your done! So long as you don't accidently turn off µTorrent, you're all set, and you'll have the latest and the greatest of TV torrents as they come!
The doors of CEDIA 2006 are closing and vendors are packing their bags. It was a good show and now that we have seen everything CEDIA has to offer, here is the Best at CEDIA.
I've tried almost all of the Windows based solutions and I feel that GBPVR offers the best solution at a price that is hard to beat (free). I will be building a MythTV linux box soon, that should be interesting.
Screen Shots Below are selection of screenshots of GB-PVR in action. Some of these are from the core GB-PVR application, but many are from the extra skins and plugins that can be found on the wiki (
GB-PVR is a fully featured Personal Video Recorder (PVR) that allows you to schedule TV recordings and view and pause live TV. In additional to this PVR functionality, it also acts as a media center allowing you to watch movies, listen to music, view pictures and listen to FM radio.
What is GB-PVR? GB-PVR is a fully featured Personal Video Recorder (PVR), allowing you to schedule TV recordings and view and pause live TV. In additional to this PVR functionality, it also acts as a media center allowing you to watch movies, listen to music, view pictures and listen to FM radio. GB-PVR also supports specialist hardware decoders including Sigma Designs XCard, Hauppauge PVR350 and Hauppauge MediaMVP. GB-PVR also supports multiple tuners, allowing you to record more multiple channels at one time. Click here to see lots of screenshots.
GB-PVR also supports specialist hardware decoders including Sigma Designs XCard, Hauppauge PVR350 and Hauppauge MediaMVP. GB-PVR also supports multiple tuners, allowing you to record more multiple channels at one time.
Requirements:
You need to be running on Windows 2000 or Windows XP. Your machine must also have the Microsoft .NET v1.1 runtime installed. For TV Tuner cards, currently supported are:
Hauppauge PVR250, PVR250MCE, PVR350, PVR USB2, PVR150, PVR150MCE and the dual-tuner PVR500MCE
ATI Theatre 550 Pro
DVB-T and DVB-S devices with BDA drivers including:
Hauppauge Nova-S
Hauppauge Nova-T
Hauppauge Nova-T USB2
Pinnacle MediaCenter 300i
Twinhan DVB-S
Twinhan DVB-T
Dvico Fusion DVB-T
V-Box DTT-150
Blockgold GDI DVB-T
Lifeview FlyDVB-T
GO7007SB based capture devices, such as Plextor PX-M402U, Plextor PX-TV402U and Lifeview TV Walker
If you're running Windows 2000, you'll also need to install MDAC2.6 (or higher).
Review of GB-PVR This weekend, I had a little time to try GB-PVR out for the first time and it is definitely a contender for people willing to build their own PVR using a computer. You can't beat the price of free (although I recommend giving a donation to the author if you use it) and combined with the ability to support multiple capture cards and distribute throughout a house using Hauppauge MediaMVP, it's a good low cost solution. The two aspects I really like about the product is its support for the inexpensive MediaMVP, as well as the developer plug-ins that are currently available. The user interface is very mature for this type of product, and although I ran into some minor problems, it looks to be fairly stable from all that I've encountered and read in their active discussion forum. The downside for me was the video format support, as I'll mention later in the article. I used a vanilla P4 system with 512 RAM with a Hauppauge 250 capture card installed. This is my benchmark system used for testing and reviewing new products. I started with a clean Windows 2000 OS with the latest updates and drivers. I followed the very helpful GB-PVR QuickStart Guide that made setup a snap. I ran into two minor issues during installation, but nothing that was unrecoverable. First, I installed the pre-requisite technologies such as Microsoft's .Net Runtime and DirectX 9, but GB-PVR also needs the latest
chris tv Rocks tinyurl.com/napqb[tinyurl.com/napqb] We know that watching TV on our computer is no longer a new subject. When you buy a TV Tuner the kit includes the drivers, remote control, and the software to watch the TV shows with. That's great, one would think this is all you need to avoid buying a new television set (and installing it) in order to watch whatever you want whenever you want. Well, experience has taught me that this is not enough. Indeed, the kit supplies all the hardware you need. But regarding the software, things couldn't be gloomier.
The retail software fulfills the basic needs to view TV shows, but people have different needs, so here comes into action Chris TV Professional. It is produced by Chris P.C. Srl and it is a $49,95 shareware that you can try for free for a 21 day trial period.
The software meets the most pretentious needs a human being can possibly have and technology can offer. The installation runs smoothly till one point when Chris TV is asking you to select the Video and Audio Capture Source. This configuration wizard (available only in Standard and Professional version) will help you elect the Video Capture Device for Chris TV to function properly.
Another important aspect is the scanning window. Here you have three scanning options: Scan by Frequency, Scan by Channel Number, Scan by Channel Table. For the first option you have the possibility of setting the start/end frequencies; be careful with choosing the Video Standard as there are three encoding systems depending on your geographic position: PAL (phase alternation line), SECAM (sequential color with memory) and NTSC (National Television System Committee).
The standards with most spreading across the globe are PAL and NTSC. NTSC is mostly used in America, while PAL is used in most countries in Europe, Asia, Africa and Oceania. SECAM using countries are switching to PAL as analog SECAM television cannot be edited in its native analog form easily. Suffice to say that the switch is taking place for reducing the television stations costs.
If you do not know exactly what type of signal encoding is your country using, refer to Chris TV help to view a video standards list with the name of the country and the default video standard. PAL NTSC and SECAM are divided into sub categories like PAL-M/B/N..., NTSC-M SECAM -K/D/B...
In scan by frequency you also have to specify the Sound Mode (auto, stereo, dual and mono) and the Sound System for stereo channels. Now press scan button and wait.
Automatic Scan by Channel Number is much simpler. Here you just choose your country, the type of TV input (local antenna or cable), the video standard (PAL-D in Eastern Europe, PAL-B or PAL-G in Central and Western Europe, NTSC in USA, SECAM - France), the sound mode (auto, stereo, mono or dual) and press Start.
Scanning by Channel Table supposes choosing the channel table (PAL-DK in Eastern Europe, PAL-BG in Central and Western Europe, NTSC in USA), the frequency field (set the starting frequency), video standard, sound mode and sound system.
The scanning for channels is the most difficult part in setting up Chris TV. I had some problems at the beginning, but I soon discovered what I was doing wrong and the software found all the channels on my cable TV.
The features Chris TV comes with are included in the main menu. Here you can choose the viewing mode (fullscreen or some predefined window sizes). You can set the aspect ratio of the TV window. If you want to always have the TV screen in front of you can set it to always stay on top. This way you can work on your computer and watch TV.
The mosaic option allows the user to view nine channels in the TV window. In this mode the channels are perpetually changing and you can decide more quickly on what you want to watch.
The Slideshow option is similar to the mosaic one, the single difference being that in slideshow mode the TV window shows only one channel and in mosaic mode you view nine channels at once.
The schedule option allows the user to record the favorite TV shows directly on his/her hard disk. In the Scheduler window set the channel name, the time interval you want to record (date, start/end time), the name of the recorded file, and the type of the task (frequency). Another feature in scheduling your recording is that you can set Chris TV to close after the recording is over.
For the recording option you have to make the necessary recording settings in the Program Settings. Here you can choose your compression codecs (both video and audio), frame size, frame rate, video format, aspect ratio, etc. All these settings can be saved as a profile and load when you want to use them again.
Choose the teletext option to view the teletext pages of the channels. The teletext page can also be set to transparent so you can see the TV image in the background.
In the Channel Settings menu the user can make settings only for that channel. Set the name, adjust frequency, set the TV logo, and adjust the brightness, contrast, saturation, hue and volume. If you don't see the channel crystal clear you have the option of fine tuning. The same settings are available for radio stations (of course, here you have only the audio settings, don't expect to find the contrast option).
In the main menu you have the channel list option that allows you to view a list of all the TV stations Chris TV has found. If you set TV logos for the TV stations they will appear in this list (this way you can find the channel you are looking for easier).
The Good
Chris TV has all the options a TV has and it is also a PVR. The price is as low as $49, 95. The image quality is great (at least at testing I had no problems).
I used to have some problems with scanning for channels because there was a mix-up with the countries, but Chris TV Professional had this fixed.
The Teletext option increases the long list of options for the software.
The Bad
I couldn't find all the logos for my TV channels.
The Truth
The software is great. Except for the difficulties with the settings for the scanning that some of you will have, the software works smoothly.
It has all the functions a TV set has and in addition to that you can record your favorite shows. The author offers a trial period of 21 days before you decide to buy or not the product.
The limitations for the trial are as follows:
Some Video and Audio Recording Codecs are not available, like DivX or MP3, but you can use without any restriction XVid, HuffYUV, any Intel or Microsoft Codecs, DV Video Encoder and any MJPEG Codecs.
The recording is limited to 40 - 55 minutes. You can not
Mobile HDTV on your Laptop The OnAir GT from AutumnWave is the first-ever mobile HDTV device to allow on-the-go consumers to receive high definition `over-the-air' and digital cable (QAM) television broadcasts on laptops, as well as analog `over-the-air' and cable broadcasts. The OnAir GT, together with its included software, allows consumers to watch high definition television anywhere a receivable broadcast signal exists. Miniature in size, the GT model fits easily in a laptop case and is USB-powered, requiring no external power supply. Consumer feedback shows that the OnAir GT is, by far, the industry leader in the mobile HDTV space. It incorporates the latest 5th generation LG Electronics ATSC / NTSC / unencrypted QAM tuner and the nVidia PureVideo Decoder. Images 1.2.3.4.5.6.
Click the above thumbnails to view larger size Key Features HDTV (ATSC) / Analog TV (NTSC) / QAM Digital Cable Features
Supports HDTV resolutions up to 1920 x 1080 (ATSC)
Watch Digital (ATSC), Analog (NTSC), or Digital Cable (unencrypted QAM) TV
The latest 5th-generation LG Electronics tuner/demodulator offers unsurpassed metro and fringe area reception with virtually no multi-path problems
Playback Features
Pause Live TV and Timeshift using PVR features (Digital TV)
Playback HD stream files (ATSC)
Select from six speeds for fast forwarding or rewinding through recorded files
Recording Features
Schedule to record up to 80 programs
Real-time or Scheduled Recording on Digital / Analog TV
Still image capture on Digital and Analog TV (JPEG or BMP format)
Time-shift support (Digital TV)
Record while in time-shifting mode (Digital TV)
Recording during playback (allows editing / saving of previously recorded material)
D-VHS HD Stream playback and recording (Windows XP only)
Connect your VCR or Camcorder to record your favorite tapes to PC
Connect your favorite gaming console to play and record games on your PC
Audio and Video Features
Dolby Digital® 5.1 Channel support (Digital TV)
AC3 / AAC audio decoding
Stereo and multiplex sound support
SPDIF Output for Digital TV through an AAC compatible sound card (not included)
User-Friendly Features
GT easily fits into pocket, backpack or laptop case
USB Powered for maximum mobility
Remote control
Digital Signal Strength Display makes antenna pointing easy
Electronic Programming Guide (EPG) (OTA Digital TV)
Sleep timer
Zoom Navigator to select and enlarge the TV picture
Wallpaper TV View (live video or captured images as your desktop background)
Stumble Tweaks & Tricks → Discussion
TheBlackHawk
480063
The bad: No built-in wireless networking support; monopolizes the attached device; may not have necessary IR codes to fully operate your cable box; works with only Windows XP/2000 PCs and Windows Mobile devices (so far). The bottom line: If you can't live without your favorite shows, the Sling Media Slingbox is the best way to beam them to any broadband-connected PC or Windows Mobile device in the world. 
Best Deal---------> 
BlackHat
The doors of CEDIA 2006 are closing and vendors are packing their bags. It was a good show and now that we have seen everything CEDIA has to offer, here is the Best at CEDIA.
kaffeen
c3
We know that watching TV on our computer is no longer a new subject. When you buy a TV Tuner the kit includes the drivers, remote control, and the software to watch the TV shows with. That's great, one would think this is all you need to avoid buying a new television set (and installing it) in order to watch whatever you want whenever you want. Well, experience has taught me that this is not enough. Indeed, the kit supplies all the hardware you need. But regarding the software, things couldn't be gloomier. 
The OnAir GT from AutumnWave is the first-ever mobile HDTV device to allow on-the-go consumers to receive high definition `over-the-air' and digital cable (QAM) television broadcasts on laptops, as well as analog `over-the-air' and cable broadcasts. The OnAir GT, together with its included software, allows consumers to watch high definition television anywhere a receivable broadcast signal exists. Miniature in size, the GT model fits easily in a laptop case and is USB-powered, requiring no external power supply. Consumer feedback shows that the OnAir GT is, by far, the industry leader in the mobile HDTV space. It incorporates the latest 5th generation LG Electronics ATSC / NTSC / unencrypted QAM tuner and the nVidia PureVideo Decoder. Images 1.
