Snapstream vs. Tivo Series 3 HD

[bcpower]

Let's go Snapstream. Tivo HD is out. Don't make me go buy one of those. It uses 2 cable cards as I'm sure you're aware. Now that we know it's possible.... Time to pony up the competition.

[Fonceur]

Originally Posted by bcpower

It uses 2 cable cards as I'm sure you're aware. Now that we know it's possible....

Can't have cablecard on a PC that is not cablelab certified... Which means VISTA (whenever it is release), a capture card that support the cablecard in a brand new certified PC by some OEM with deep pocket (i.e. DELL, HP, etc.) to pay the $15k (or was it $150k) certification and finally, a cable provider that will actually accept to put the cable card in something else than a TV... So it's not for tomorrow...

[bcpower]

The cable company won't care what it goes into. That's why they offer a cable card. The card is the CPE line of demarcation. It's like a BellSouth T1 smart jack. They don't care what you plug into it, they're not responsible for anything past the smart jack.

$15,000 or $150,000. Pocket change to any company that offers a Tivo 3 competitive product. Second place in the world [or even the nation] ain't too shabby.

[btvfreak]

Originally Posted by bcpower

The cable company won't care what it goes into. That's why they offer a cable card.

They offer CableCARDs because they are mandated to by the FCC. That is it. They'd much rather sell/rent you their cable box because they can charge a higher fee plus it has the ability for PPV (more $ for them). Current CableCARDs only have 1 way communication (from the cable co), which means no PPV or VOD.

I have a TiVo Series3 because I hate my Comcast DVR, and I really want premium HD, which cannot be had OTA. I still use BTV daily. The 2 tuners on the Series3 isn't enough for me, especially with the new season of shows going on. My extra 3 OTA HD tuners and 4 analog tuners in my BTV server definitely help with that.

[bcpower]

Ya. All these good new series' all on at the same time. Between my Fiance and me, we could never have enough tuners. Hence, the medusa attraction. Then I got a plasma and my DTV box has been sidelined for over a year. I simply can't survive without my HD locals and HD Sports. And forget satellite. They're terrible and don't offer HD locals in Palm Beach County, FL.

I just don't get the OTA HD antenna. That's like buying a Nextel. I thought CB radios were obsolete. I'll give up TV altogether before I fumble with rabbit ears again.

[bcpower]

BTW - I see you use the Harmony remote. Does that thing really utilize EVERY single feature of all your remotes? (Menus, specialty features, etc)

[cncb]

Originally Posted by bcpower

I just don't get the OTA HD antenna. That's like buying a Nextel. I thought CB radios were obsolete. I'll give up TV altogether before I fumble with rabbit ears again.

Free HD programming is what you "get". Put an antenna in your attic and there will be no "fumbling" necessary...

[cfaslave]

And the reason QAM is worthwhile is the fact there are QAM cards out there ready to be supported by SS & others (I can think of one in particilar that might be very promising SEE HERE).

Many of us have access to unprotected HDTV, QAM channels above and beyond what is available Over the Air. No box required. Getting Cablecard support would be a much more difficult and costly process I would think. I would take either, but if QAM is possible sooner, thats what I would pull for first.

Brent

[bcpower]

My HD package costs $5.00 per month. I'm not so cheap as to mess with antennas in my attic and worry about interferrence, directioning and such.

[cfaslave]

Originally Posted by bcpower

My HD package costs $5.00 per month. I'm not so cheap as to mess with antennas in my attic and worry about interferrence, directioning and such.

I might be . Its important to note that OTA is available now and QAM and Cablecard are not. That is why many of us are using OTA right now.

[rugby]

I don't subscribe to any paid tv services, I get all my channels in HD via an antenna on my roof. My total cost for tv is $0/month.

[bcpower]

But my point is that you're resorting to inferrior technology (terrestrial based signaling) so that you can use Snapstream or any other PVR software package for that matter. So when all is said and done, you spend +/- $1,000 on a PVR that does less out of the box and requires more setup than the HD DVR you can get from your cable provider for a few bucks per month.

[cfaslave]

Originally Posted by bcpower

But my point is that you're resorting to inferrior technology (terrestrial based signaling) so that you can use Snapstream or any other PVR software package for that matter. So when all is said and done, you spend +/- $1,000 on a PVR that does less out of the box and requires more setup than the HD DVR you can get from your cable provider for a few bucks per month.

I understand your point, but for me, I would prefer to have a feature-rich BTV box with an antennae (for me its in the attic and requires no additional tweaking, moving etc after original setup) than use an inferior cable pvr box that doesn't provide the HTPC features I want. I can get every channel I want plus play music, saved movies & videos, watch online video content, view NFL & Hockey scores and on and on. This does require I pay up front to get the proper setup, but the point wasn't to have a cable box that will save shows on that box never to be archived or marked for commercials etc etc.

Would I prefer to have QAM and/or Cablecard? YES.
If I had it to do all over again, would I just rent a cable PVR from my cable company so it will run just by pluggin it in? NO WAY.

The new TIVO's sound nice and all, but they aren't that cheap and they just don't do what I want them to. Not to mention the fact that you are at the mercy of the network as to whether you can fast forward etc.

[rugby]

Originally Posted by bcpower

But my point is that you're resorting to inferrior technology (terrestrial based signaling) so that you can use Snapstream or any other PVR software package for that matter. So when all is said and done, you spend +/- $1,000 on a PVR that does less out of the box and requires more setup than the HD DVR you can get from your cable provider for a few bucks per month.

How is my signal inferior to overly-compressed "digital" cable or satellite? The PC was already paid for except for the tuners, and BTV. For about $200 I got a PVR with a great interface, reasonable stability, and I cut $80/month from my tv bill. I don't watch football except for the Colts on sunday which I usually get in HD. I mostly watch network television which I get in perfect quality HD.

[Fonceur]

Originally Posted by bcpower

But my point is that you're resorting to inferrior technology (terrestrial based signaling)

Except that this inferior technology allows you acces to the full HDTV bit rate transmitted by the local channel, while with cable and Satellite receivers, you often get a lower bit rate/resolution so that they can squeeze in more channels at less cost... Ever heard of the "HD lite"?