Handy Gadgets

Trusted Reviews have published a review of the Grundig GUDSTB2000 Freeview Receiver (digital TV box). 'From a distance, this budget box from Grundig - a brand whose resurgence in the UK has been boosted recently by its involvement in Freesat - is surprisingly good-looking for such a low-cost unit. Its curved, uncluttered fascia and matte finish give it a pleasantly esoteric vibe - in fact if it weren't for the DVB logo on the front it would be hard to tell what it was. It's only when you pick it up and feel its light and plasticky bodywork that you're reminded of its budget price tag. A quick glance at the rear panel is also initially deceptive. Our eye was drawn to the USB port, which could have opened up the possibility of playing back MP3 files or viewing JPEGs, but sadly those dreaded words ‘for service use only' reared their ugly head.'

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Posted by Admin at 10:34 PM | Permalink

CNET have published a review of the Winegard RCDT09A digital to analog converter box 'Compared with the standard "black box" DTV converter design, the exterior of the RCDT09A is one of our favorites so far. The unit itself is more compact than the majority of DTV converter boxes, coming in at 5.5 inches wide by 1.75 inches high by 6.5 inches deep. The front faceplate is silver, with a strip of black across the center. There are front panel controls for power, as well as for changing channels, which is nice because that means it will work even if the remote goes missing. The included remote is decent. We loved that the large gray buttons for channel and volume are prominently placed in the middle of the clicker. We also liked the directional pad above.'

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Posted by Admin at 11:04 PM | Permalink

The Register Hardware have published a review of the Elgato EyeTV DTT Deluxe miniature TV tuner. 'TV-on-Mac specialist Elgato's latest offering has two features it hopes will win over buyers: the MacBook Air-friendly size and its inclusion of the most recent digital video recorder software. We think there's a third reason to buy: a superior aerial design. The Deluxe is tiny - smaller than any other USB TV tuner we've seen and quite a few USB Flash drives for that matter. Elgato's pitching the gadget at MacBook Air owners, who'll appreciate the fact that it fits into the skinny laptop's single USB port with room to spare.'

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Posted by Admin at 10:29 PM | Permalink

Press Release

GREENSBORO, N.C.- RF Micro Devices, Inc. (Nasdaq: RFMD), a global leader in the design and manufacture of high-performance semiconductor components, today announced the release of the S510075-33Z out-of-band tuner for use in cable set-top box and digital cable ready television applications. The S510075-33Z is designed to provide original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) with an optimum blend of performance and energy efficiency while also meeting the increasing performance requirements of cable devices.

Continue reading "RFMD(R) Releases High-Performance Out-of-Band Tuner for Cable Set-Top Box and Digital Cable Ready TV Applications" »

Posted by Admin at 11:41 PM | Permalink

CNET have published a review of the Dish Network DTVPal which is a digital to analog converter with built-in digital tuner. 'DTV converter boxes are fairly drab by nature, but the DTVPal is one of the better looking boxes we've seen. Its main attraction is its small footprint, coming in 1.3 inches high, 5.9 inches wide, and 4.2 inches deep. It has a rectangular shape with rounded corners, and the case sinks a bit in the middle, giving it a subtle wavelike appearance. There are no buttons on the front, which means you can only control the box using a remote. On the center of the unit is a single green light indicating that it's on, and the light turns off when the unit is off. The light is actually pretty bright, and unfortunately you can't disable it in the setup menu.'

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Posted by Admin at 10:31 PM | Permalink

Press Release

New Hybrid ExpressCard TV Tuner Gathers Clear QAM and H.264 Real-Time Recording Capabilities onto an Ultra-Slim Shell

MILPITAS, CA - May 19, 2008- AVerMedia® Technologies, Inc., the leading provider of digital multimedia and presentation technology announced today the release of the AVerTV Hybrid NanoExpress, the compact ExpressCard TV tuner with the ability to receive HDTV (ATSC/Unencrypted "Clear" QAM Digital Cable TV), Analog TV or FM Radio on any Windows XP or Vista laptop. The slim-fit design easily inserts completely into the ExpressCard slot, leaving no protrusion of the unit outside of the laptop. The great functionalities and stylish appearance earned it a CES 2008 Innovations Design and Engineering Award Winner in the Video Accessories category.

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Posted by Admin at 10:29 PM | Permalink

PC Magazine have published a review of the Elgato HDHomeRun network-attached HDTV tuner. ‘The HDHomeRun is similar to other TV tuners on the market in that it has two coaxial inputs that connect to TV antennas or cable television. When reception is available, the device receives free over-the-air standard-definition (SD) and high-definition (HD) broadcasts, plus unscrambled SD/HD cable television from a coaxial cable. What makes the HDHomeRun truly unique is that instead of connecting to your computer via USB or an internal PCI slot, it's the only tuner that connects to your network via Ethernet.

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Posted by Admin at 11:29 AM | Permalink

The Register Hardware have published a review of the Elgato EyeTV 250 Plus TV tuner with MPEG 2 encoder . 'The unit's front is home to an infrared receiver for the bundled remote control. It also has a port for the multi-format video input cable, which terminates in a pair of RCA stereo jacks, a yellow composite-video connector and an s-video plug. Turn the 250 Plus through 180° and you'll see a co-axial antenna socket and the unit's power feed. The 250 Plus has its own power supply because - and here's the key difference between it and the Hybrid - it has on-board MPEG encoding hardware. Connect the Hybrid to your Mac and whenever you use the accompanying EyeTV software to record either an analogue TV broadcast or what's coming in on the analogue video port, it's your Mac that has to handle the encoding work, in real time.'

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Posted by Admin at 5:13 PM | Permalink

Personal Computer World have published a review of the Compro Videomate E700 TV tuner which is a dual PCI-E DVB-T tuner card, which brings 2 high-quality main channels digital terrestrial TV watching on your desktop PC, and turns your computer into a home entertainment center by bringing digital TV viewing, power up scheduling, remote power on/off, and personal digital video recording (DVR) capabilities. 'Compro’s Videomate E700 is a dual DVB-T tuner card with power-up scheduling, SDTV / 1080i high resolution support and software that allows direct-to-disc recording. At 170mm by 70mm tall the E700 will fit a low profile media centre case using the alternate short back bracket provided. A standard co-ax socket for the aerial connection and a 2.5mm stereo jack socket for the IR remote sensor are the only external connectors.'

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Posted by Admin at 12:29 PM | Permalink

Gadgetaholic have published a review of the AVerTV Hybrid Ultra USB which is a new HD/analog TV tuner. AverMedia is no stranger to the TV tuner arena. Their latest product, AverTV Hybrid Ultra USB, seems a to have a lot going for it. It combines all the features that consumers are looking for: a HD tuner, an analog tuner, and an FM tuner all bundled in one package with the ease of use of USB. It also comes with both 32-bit and 64-bit drivers for Windows Vista. Installing the product was extremely easy. Just plug the unit into an available USB 2.0 port and put the installation CD in and click install. This would install all the drivers necessary to use the tuner with WMC.'

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Posted by Admin at 3:53 PM | Permalink