HDTV Comes to the Mac 24
konfoo writes "Elgato just announced the availability of their FireWire DTV ATSC receiver (ATSC is the USA standard for digital and high definition television), EyeTV 500, at a price of around $350. It can be used in tandem with TitanTV to get EPG data and pick shows to record. Now Mac owners too can view and record those hidef broadcasts. On a sidenote, lets hope that the broadcast flag and other efforts don't squelch cool new products such as this." We reviewed the original EyeTV USB a year and a half ago. Since then, their product line has expanded, with all other models sporting FireWire, and covering a variety of analog and digital TV sources.
scriptability (Score:5, Informative)
thumbs up to El Gato! (Score:5, Interesting)
At some point in my theoretically $-solvent future I plan to upgrade to one of the FW-based options, and the HDTV version looks pretty schweet.
That said, particular "advanced" options I'd like to see in the EyeTV software (which is fundamentally similar in interface across hardware versions) include some degree of automated commercial-marking/trimming for archived programs, either based on templates (many shows commonly feature commericals at consistent breakpoints during the broadcast, which obviously lends itself to a template-based solution), or recognition of particular image(s) (many networks use consistent "bumpers", which can be used (via image-recognition) to mark the beginning and end-points of commercials.
Given a chunk of time it's possible that I could put something like this together on my own (yay for EG using standards-based video!), but given the current success of their interface efforts, I'm confident that any set-up which they integrate would be superior to any external hack.
My Idea, mod up please :-) (Score:4, Interesting)
A user can then watch the show and mark when commercials begin and end. This information is sent to the server's database.
That data is then available to everyone who has recorded that show. They can choose to skip over previsouly defined commercials or watch the entire recorded video stream.
It would have to have a decent userbase to be useful, but I've seen worse ideas come to life. :-)
Re:My Idea, mod up please :-) (Score:2)
I hadn't really thought about the shared db issue, I think that's a good idea... there are some general issues around broadcasting/syndication that add complexity to the set-up - different edits of shows in syndication (different content edits/different commercial insertion points), determining the "start point" for the show - still, nothing that can't be overcome (once it's understood that this is a bit more complex than, say, CDDB).
g5 only (Score:2, Informative)
Re:g5 only (Score:4, Informative)
I'd really like to know how useful this box is. I'd love to watch TV on my Mac, but I'm not even sure how many "over-the-air" channels I have anymore, much less HD channels...
oh well
Re:g5 only (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:g5 only (Score:2)
Which is why the method I use [mattinen.org] with an old 266 G3 is preferable to me: the HD stream is recorded on the computer, but the TV's tuner does all the decoding work. Granted, I'm doing OTA recording, but that's what I watch so that's what I do.
Re:g5 only (Score:2)
Hopefully this thing can also handle 720p and all that?
Apple provides free HDTV recording tools at ADC (Score:5, Informative)
This presupposes you can get the hardware HDTV box from your cable company, but that's usually only a nominal fee (+$10 a month).
~jeff
Still no closed captioning (Score:5, Insightful)
Come on people. This isn't fancy technology or a proprietary format. Do your homework [robson.org] and implement it already. Closed captioning has been vaporware for too long on EyeTV.
HD PVRs (Score:2, Funny)
No cable, no satellites, no deal (Score:1)
DIY HDTV on your Mac (Score:5, Interesting)
HDTV Mac OS X for Australia (Score:2, Informative)
http://www.defyne.org/dvb/
Daryl
Already Done (Score:4, Interesting)
ATI HDTV PCI Card (Score:3, Interesting)
Eh?
Why doesn't ATI simply write some Mac OS X drivers for the HDTV Wonder [ati.com]...? After all, they know how to write video drivers - how hard could it be?
Elgato has a serious problem (Score:2)
I thought it will be cheaper and more clever to buy it instead of giving my Philips 6 head NICAM VHS to service for tuner fix, with CC in my hand from Istanbul I tried to buy it...
There is NO possible way! All their online stores, all the shop.yahoo.com search, froggle, buy.com search... I couldn't buy the damn thing. No international shipping.
Besides all, congratulations to them for releasing it for m
Re:Elgato has a serious problem (Score:2)
Re:Elgato has a serious problem (Score:1)
They were kind to respond immediately but no help. I can't believe our TR companies not interested in their distributor stuff too. So, don't misunderstand, I don't blame them.
They just have to figure a way to sell their product to "other" countries than those they listed.
Tell me a way, I buy it right now. I need that product lol. Got like 300 vhs tapes to master digitally, I am in TV business.
Re:Elgato has a serious problem (Score:2)
Well, surely you know someone from a country they *do* ship to. Have him or her buy it for you, and ship it to you.
If you have the $$$ --- (Score:1)
http://www.myus.com/