Bring on the CableCards!!

[toekramp]

Announced today:

www.engadgethd.com/2009/09/09/...d-from-oem-requirement

 

[Pliablemoose]

I saw that too, great move by M$...

 

[sdifox]

Great news indeed.

 

[toekramp]

so what does this mean with my DirecTV card? Will I be able to plug into a cablecard tuner?

 

[nsafreak]

DirecTV doesn't use a CableCARD they use a smartcard while it is similar technology it is different than the standardized CableCARD. Both Dish & DirecTV have been working on ways for folks to get their satellite receivers integrated with Windows Media Center but nothing has been released yet to my knowledge.

 

[darkswordsman17]

Good news. Has the state of CableCARD with the cable companies themselves gotten any better?

 

[Quasmo]

Fucking. Finally.

 

[imported_Mike]

This is good as it will bring down the price, but pci and external cable card adapters have been available for a long time now.

 

[sdifox]

Originally posted by: Mike
This is good as it will bring down the price, but pci and external cable card adapters have been available for a long time now.

For a while it looked like you had to get a complete solution or no CableCard for you.

 

[erwos]

Huge news, I agree. Makes me WAY more likely to build an HTPC box, and maybe replace the TiVo.

 

[s44]

Finally, the HTPC is viable again.

Now if somebody would just release a cheap vidcard with proper PAP implementation...

 

[imported_Mike]

Originally posted by: sdifox

Originally posted by: Mike
This is good as it will bring down the price, but pci and external cable card adapters have been available for a long time now.

For a while it looked like you had to get a complete solution or no CableCard for you.

When cable cards first came out? The ATI solutions have been available to the public for over a year now.

 

[TastesLikeChicken]

Sweet. Now we just need one of these:

http://www.engadgethd.com/tag/SDV/

Originally posted by: Mike

Originally posted by: sdifox

Originally posted by: Mike
This is good as it will bring down the price, but pci and external cable card adapters have been available for a long time now.

For a while it looked like you had to get a complete solution or no CableCard for you.

When cable cards first came out? The ATI solutions have been available to the public for over a year now.

Without requiring the BIOS hack?

 

[imported_Mike]

Originally posted by: TastesLikeChicken
Sweet. Now we just need one of these:

http://www.engadgethd.com/tag/SDV/

Originally posted by: Mike

Originally posted by: sdifox

Originally posted by: Mike
This is good as it will bring down the price, but pci and external cable card adapters have been available for a long time now.

For a while it looked like you had to get a complete solution or no CableCard for you.

When cable cards first came out? The ATI solutions have been available to the public for over a year now.

Without requiring the BIOS hack?

Yes

 

[TastesLikeChicken]

Originally posted by: Mike

Originally posted by: TastesLikeChicken
Sweet. Now we just need one of these:

http://www.engadgethd.com/tag/SDV/

Originally posted by: Mike

Originally posted by: sdifox

Originally posted by: Mike
This is good as it will bring down the price, but pci and external cable card adapters have been available for a long time now.

For a while it looked like you had to get a complete solution or no CableCard for you.

When cable cards first came out? The ATI solutions have been available to the public for over a year now.

Without requiring the BIOS hack?

Yes

Seems strange that that would be possible since CableLabs just agreed to lift the restriction, afaik. I've seen that people have been able to purchase the ATi tuners for a while now but you still may or may not have to do the BIOS hack, depending on what m/b you use.

Regardless, I'll wait for the Centon unit. A multi-streaming device is far preferable to having 2 - 4 ATi devices in an HTPC.

 

[sdifox]

double poste

 

[sdifox]

Originally posted by: Mike

Originally posted by: sdifox

Originally posted by: Mike
This is good as it will bring down the price, but pci and external cable card adapters have been available for a long time now.

For a while it looked like you had to get a complete solution or no CableCard for you.

When cable cards first came out? The ATI solutions have been available to the public for over a year now.

That was when they were still on the original plan, which was subscribers just need to get a cable card from them and end of story. Then they realised if they restricted it, they can make more money.

Now MS gives them the finger. We'll see what the cable providers do.

 

[imported_Mike]

Cable providers never restricted the use of cable cards. Just like in the past, you can rent a cable card from your cable provider per month per card.

 

[TastesLikeChicken]

Originally posted by: Mike
Cable providers never restricted the use of cable cards. Just like in the past, you can rent a cable card from your cable provider per month per card.

The cable cards were never restricted. The use of a cable card tuner was, however. You could not just match up an ATi tuner to any system. Previously only turnkey systems could be purchased from authorized resellers and the systems had a special BIOS entry that was required to allow a cable card tuner to be used on that system only. The system resellers also had to pay a rather hefty fee to CableLabs to permit them to build the systems in the first place.

CableLabs was always the one preventing DIYers from building their own systems with cable card tuners. About a year ago someone figured out how to hack the BIOS to include the necessary code so some were circumventing the restriction. Now CableLabs has relented, for whatever reason, and killed the requirement to tie a cable card tuner to a specific system. Whether that was due to pressure from MS or from a fear of seeing cable card tuners die off from because of the draconian restrictions, I don't care. It will now be possible to replace a cable box with a DIY HTPC and that's a great thing.

 

[Pliablemoose]

The pending scrambling of all but local/basic tier digital channels likely prompted this, it would have meant the end of the DIY HTPC for all intents & purposes.

 

[erwos]

Originally posted by: Mike

Originally posted by: TastesLikeChicken
Without requiring the BIOS hack?

Yes

Um, no. Not sure where you're getting your info from, but it's wrong - CableCard tuners have been very tightly controlled until now.

I am SO thinking an Ion HTPC box now. Maybe when they've got proper 7.1 sound output.

 

[zerogear]

http://www.cetoncorp.com/ProductsWMC.php

That thing looks awesome with the new open(er) CableCard. Will have to wait for it.

 

[imported_Mike]

Originally posted by: erwos

Originally posted by: Mike

Originally posted by: TastesLikeChicken
Without requiring the BIOS hack?

Yes

Um, no. Not sure where you're getting your info from, but it's wrong - CableCard tuners have been very tightly controlled until now.

I am SO thinking an Ion HTPC box now. Maybe when they've got proper 7.1 sound output.

They've been available for well over a year now without the bios hack. This is to the public, by themselves.

 

[erwos]

Originally posted by: Mike
They've been available for well over a year now without the bios hack. This is to the public, by themselves.

Is it _really available_ if you can buy it but can't actually use it? Seriously, man, you know what we're talking about, or should.

 

[Shawn]

Originally posted by: erwos

Originally posted by: Mike

Originally posted by: TastesLikeChicken
Without requiring the BIOS hack?

Yes

Um, no. Not sure where you're getting your info from, but it's wrong - CableCard tuners have been very tightly controlled until now.

I am SO thinking an Ion HTPC box now. Maybe when they've got proper 7.1 sound output.

Actually he is correct. The hack uses the same method used to trick Vista and W7 into thinking it's an OEM pc and activate. It loads before windows and gives the OS false bios information.