Digital video recorders (DVRs) are presently the norm. Many people are able to pause live TV and watch shows hours and even days after the original broadcast date. The problem now is how to extract the programs from proprietary DVRs like the ones from Comcast, AT&T U-Verse, DirecTV and others and view them on the many portable devices now available. The El Gato EyeTV HD can easily accomplish this. The kit contains the award winning EyeTV 3 software and a box with analog component audio and video inputs. These can be connected to any modern DVR and allow for the recording of videos in HD. Component video is mostly limited to 1080i, but this good enough for most portable devices, specially since most HD broadcasts are in 720p. The software can be configured to automatically convert video to a format compatible with an Apple iPad, iPod, and many other mobile devices.
HD videoconferencing for the family room
Cisco recently announced the Umi high definition video conferencing system for the home. The system is composed of an HD camera, control station, and remote control. The camera is designed to mount atop a flat panel display. At almost $600, it is at the high end of the residential conferencing offerings. A close competitor is the Logitech Revue with an accessory camera, which together will cost about $150 less than the Umi. Cisco has a long history of producing great video and teleconferencing products. We will have to wait until it is released to see how the Umi stacks up to the competition.
Watch TV in a new way with GoogleTV
It seems that Google might again revolutionize another area of life, watching TV. The Logitech Revue will be one of the first devices to come to market with the innovative GoogleTV technology. The device connects between your TV and video source. The video source will typically be a CableTV or satellite receiver or digital video recorder. To accomplish this, the Revue has two HDMI connectors. This allows for the display of a video overlay with menus and other GoogleTV options. For example, you could be watching a football game and need to check scores of some other games. You would simply bring up Google Chrome on the Revue and go to Yahoo while still watching the game on a picture-in-picture window on the screen.
Several other content providers also signed up. Services like Netflix, Amazon, CNBC, and Pandora Radio are some of them. Users will also be available to use the Revue to access digital media locally stored like family pictures, music, and movies.
The device goes head to head with the AppleTV, with the main difference that the Revue provides seamless TV integration. Google is also working with other manufacturers like Sony to embed the software within TVs and Blu-ray players.