TIVO vs Comcast DVR

[Elaineofshalott2]

I am thinking of switching to Comcast does anyone have their DVR? Is it usable or should I get a TIVO instead?

 

[tydas]

The Comcast DVR works fine, the search and indexing leaves something to be desiered but ooverall its good albiet expensive after several years!

 

[Plugers]

HTPC plus cable card tuner. save the $19 a month. the tuner is <$190, so It's paid off in 10 months.

 

[frowertr]

I am thinking of switching to Comcast does anyone have their DVR? Is it usable or should I get a TIVO instead?

Tivo is lightyears ahead of the Cable Co's with their DVR's. I'd go with the Tivo. If I didn't have a homebrew PC DVR based solution I'd use Tivo.

 

[MustISO]

We've had several Tivos and now have two Comcast HD DVR's. Sure the DVR's from Comcast are not as pretty to look at (UI) and they have fewer options but they work fine for us.

 

[Elaineofshalott2]

Resurrecting my thread here. I am going to start with the comcast dvr. Are there aby existing threads you can point to with a sample build for a htpc with the cable card. I would connect the pc to the nearest tv and stram to the others via ps3.


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[TastesLikeChicken]

Resurrecting my thread here. I am going to start with the comcast dvr. Are there aby existing threads you can point to with a sample build for a htpc with the cable card.

You can start here.

I would recommend a G520 or G530 Sandy Bridge Celeron processor with an H61 motherboard, 4GB of ram, 1 or 2 TB hard drive, and an nMedia case. Those parts would run you just north of $200 and are more than adequate for a dedicated HTPC and will run a Ceton card without issue. I can state that as a fact because it's exactly the setup I use except I have a Seagate Momentus hybrid drive.

I would connect the pc to the nearest tv and stram to the others via ps3.

That's not going to work since the ps3 doesn't function as a Windows Media Center extender. You'll need an Xbox 360, or one of the older discontinued WMC extenders like the LinkSys DMA-2100, or you can wait for the Ceton Echo to be released.

 

[Elaineofshalott2]

Y
That's not going to work since the ps3 doesn't function as a Windows Media Center extender. You'll need an Xbox 360, or one of the older discontinued WMC extenders like the LinkSys DMA-2100, or you can wait for the Ceton Echo to be released.

I thought I read about software called ps3 media server that people were using. Does it not work?

Edited: Both TVs already have a PS3 but only one has an XBox

 

[TastesLikeChicken]

I thought I read about software called ps3 media server that people were using. Does it not work?

Edited: Both TVs already have a PS3 but only one has an XBox

PS3 media server will work for videos and music but not live TV from the Ceton.

 

[Elaineofshalott2]

OK Thanks. I'll have to include the cost of another extender in the cost analysis. Is the Xbox my only/best choice here or would something like a Roku work as well?

 

[TastesLikeChicken]

OK Thanks. I'll have to include the cost of another extender in the cost analysis. Is the Xbox my only/best choice here or would something like a Roku work as well?

You have to use a Media Center Extender. The Roku does not fall under that category.

The Xbox 360 is currently the only extender device currently being made. Of the extenders listed in the Wiki above, all others have been discontinued but can still be purchased used or even new from eBay and/or Amazon.

Towards the end of the year (allegedly) Ceton is releasing a new Media Center Extender called the Ceton Echo. I am really looking forward to that because we will finally have an extender that uses newer hardware and, unlike the 360, is specifically designed to be nothing else other than an extender.

 

[thedarkwolf]

You can watch recorded shows on the ps3 with ps3 media center though.

 

[TastesLikeChicken]

You can watch recorded shows on the ps3 with ps3 media center though.

It can but compared to what an extender can do it's a bit of a kludge.