The Glade 4.0

Ok, that's an exaggeration, it doesn't change everything, but it is certainly very interesting...

If this card does what it claims to, I can finally free myself of the mega-crappy DVR hell Comcast has me tied down with. I had given up on the thought that CableLabs would ever certify a PCIe card to accept a CableCard. I got so discouraged with the situation that had completely stopped following it. Then I stumbled upon an article on ARS about the current state of HTCP, and found a reference to this card.


Ceton Infini TV 4 - Four Tuner Cable/Satellite Tuner



Unfortunately, this foils my plan to build my HTPC around the Dell Zino I found on Microsoft's site, as it has no card expansion capabilities.

Hrmm... must ponder....

Edit:
Apparently something changed at CableLabs that they are now forced to certify 3rd party system as CableCard compliant. It seems that others are joining in the fun.

http://www.ehomeupgrade.com/2010/11/29/ ... -msrp-249/

I anticipate the monthly cost of renting Mutlisream CableCards from Comcast to quadruple in the near future

I really think this sort of thing, while long overdue, is already obsolete.

We completely cancelled our cable service because an Internet connection renders it entirely useless with the lone exception of live-TV shows (which hardly anybody in my family ever watches.)

With all of our TV watching being scripted programming, cable has merely become an expense -- an expense for what is not even any longer a convenience. A quick trip to one's favorite .torrent site will get you current tv shows in high definition format often a few hours before they've even aired here (thanks, Europe,) without commercial breaks or scheduling to worry about.

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But master you in luck 'cause up your sleeves you got a brand of magic never fails...
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I don't disagree with you. I consider this a temporary hold-me-over until more of the programming I watch actually makes it to the Internet.

Hopefully soon =)

Edit:
I don't do bootleg stuff (for various reasons)

I haven't had cable in... 9 months?

HTPC + Hulu + Netflix = no live events, no sports without big painful crazy stuff, not as good in Canada, but I keep up with all the ABC, NBC, and Fox shows I want.

If CBS had their act together, I'd say Big Bang Theory and HIMYM were also on my entertainment rotation, but they don't, and sometimes even Craig Ferguson isn't worth dealing with their site.

Daily Show? Colbert? Easy to watch online... legally.

I also watch Conan O'Brien on teamcoco - have to re-embiggin it after commercials, but it's a perfectly cromulent way to watch Conan.

And if I really want something premium, there's iTunes (Walking Dead Season Pass ftw!).

I have component to computer "make-your-computer-your-DVR" technology, but I never used it enough when I had cable to get rid of DVR rental.

Cutting the cord is better and if you figure out the cost over a year or more, you could buy something beefy for your HTPC and pay it off or pay off a good portion.

All you need is a good VNC app, a notebook or netbook or iPad, set the HTPC to a static IP on your router, and make sure you've got VNC enabled on it.

Bah-zing. vnc://10.0.1.2 - enter password - and you can control what's on television... LITERALLY.

Better yet is with dynDNS and most routers, you can make it so you can VNC to your TV when you're away from home.

vnc://first.last.net (for me) gets me 'Enter your username and password' - so from work, I can move the mouse while my wife watches Daily Show and freak her out.

If you're uncertain, buy a Roku (or AppleTV) and test. The Roku, since it does Hulu Plus and gives you a free month of it, has an advantage, but Netflix is signing deals with Disney, for example, to stream Disney/ABC TV shows.

I honestly am hoping in the near future of replacing my HTPC with the AppleTV and having the HTPC be a media server, running headless, because if I VNC to it, it doesn't matter that there's no display connected to it.

Either way, $100 device which you could move to another TV in the future > card which is nearly if not entirely obsolete.

Good luck!

_________________
Once, I was a ranger
Then, I was a warlock
And a mage
And a paladin
Now, I seek to be myself

Cable? Canceled that 8 years ago because I rarely watched it. Surfing channels at hotels I still don't see a reason to resubscribe.

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The U. S. Constitution doesn't guarantee happiness, only the pursuit of it. You have to catch up with it yourself. B. Franklin

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