Dual record

[SJC]

I understand that this is the Tivo community and I have been a happy owner for a number of years. However I thought that some members may be interested in the Digihome PVR 80 currently on sale for £65 via Dabs.
Whilst this will never be a Tivo it does represent a cost effective back up.
I am lead to believe that the Digihome can be easily modified to record 2 programs at the same time (it is simply twin tuner as standard), does anybody know how this is done?

Stephen

[Tony Hoyle]

If I was going to go for a DVR (it isn't really a PVR) then I'd go for the PVR9200T from Humax anyway.

Not that I would... Manual recordings??? Gave that up last century.

[blindlemon]

What's a manual recording? :p:D:D

[RWILTS]

I believe that its done via a firmware upgrade (term used loosely) :D and you loose most of the epg data due to lack of memory.

[SJC]

Way Hey fellas!!
Thanks for your replies, I am not attempting to promote another machine, especially not here I just thought it may be a useful second / third option.
Incidentally the recordings are NOT manually set.

[Tony Hoyle]

Would like to see that. I doubt it though. The UK market just doesn't seem to want such a machine (or the manufacturers are unwilling to provide it).

The BBC proposed a system once that was very tivo-like and would have done the job (freeview playback). Nobody took it up and it died, apparently - there was a news release about how this christmas everyone would be buying one but they never got released.

A Freeview TiVo would be a possibility (no sky vendor lockin to worry about) but nobody's interested in that either, apparently.

We live in a backward country.

[britcub]

Actually, some Freeview Playback devices are available AIUI...

Well, according to Freeview's website (http://www.freeview.co.uk/products/dtr) they are :)

Not sure how this can be accurate though, as I thought Freeview Playback was delayed until March?

[Pete77]

Actually, some Freeview Playback devices are available AIUI...

Well, according to Freeview's website (http://www.freeview.co.uk/products/dtr) they are :)

Not sure how this can be accurate though, as I thought Freeview Playback was delayed until March?

Carey Wakefield, General Manager of the Freeview Playback project was interviewed on BBC Radio 4 You and Yours project last week. The machines branded Freeview Playback are about to arrive in droves shortly.

Listen to it at www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/youandyours/items/04/2007_03_mon.shtml

There are two phases to the project:-

Phase A - Is with the current machines that only allow you to Pause Live tv and set programs from the EPG to dual record etc as per machines that have been around for a while. Its only the introduction of the branding to denote its an HDD device that is new.

Phase B - During this year. Sees the introduction of MetaData into the EPG and the ability to set Series Links and possibly other stuff too as a basis for selecting the recordings. Also I think a digital equivalent to PDC will possibly be part of Freeview Playback ultimately, which will be a definite advantage over Tivo.

It is this latter phase that is more exciting than the current phase, which merely introduces the Freeview Playback brand for Freeview PVRs with dual tuners that have been there all along.

See www.pvruk.co.uk/freeview_playback.cfm

and

www.dtg.org.uk/news/news.php?id=1674

[Tony Hoyle]

I believe they've already altered the EPG metadata (see the toppy forums for a TAP that uses this.. sounds quite tivo like but they don't do SP priority yet..). AFAIK it's the BBC that manage this and they're on the ball with this stuff. It's done the Tivo Way (with a Series ID and Episode number) not the Sky+ way so it's got the potential to be quite good (also has things like associated programmes eg. Dr.Who would link with Dr.Who confidential and theoretically a box should automatically offer to record both if you set an SP on one).

I've never heard of any boxes that fulfill the spec though (see here (http://www.digitv-forum.co.uk/viewtopic.php?p=18477), bottom of the page) - the dtg announcement is about the time I got interested, then nothing happened for months barring an announcement that the machines would be 'available by christmas' - which came and went, so I assumed the manufacturers had bailed out as it was too hard for them.

[Pete77]

I think its just that as with Sky HD timescales slipped from the original ambitious ones suggested.

The main question though is obviously whether ITV, Channel 4 and Five will also be playing ball with the metadata for all their channels on Freeview in due course.

I imagine that the BBC will also be able to utilise this metadata on their intended HD satellite box joint venture with ITV in due course.

I think once the product is established the demand for enhanced Metadata and the appearance of more elaborate functionality is bound to follow.