ReplayTV is reborn into sophisticated software for advanced DVR functionality.TiVo and its lesser-known competitor ReplayTV forever changed our television viewing habits. We've become addicted to watching programs at our own convenience, skipping through sections we don't want to see and pausing live programs when we receive an important phone call. Now ReplayTV has introduced a PC version of its defunct set-top DVR. The software is still a bit rough, and it doesn't yet support multiple tuners, but there are some big advantages to using a computer as your host platform.
The ReplayTV software requires you to install one of two video-input devices on your PC to connect to your cable box, direct cable connection, or TV antenna. The only compatible devices are Hauppauge's WinTV-PVR-150 (a PCI expansion card) and WinTV-PVR-USB2 (a USB adapter). With a direct cable or antenna connection, you can use the WinTV's built-in tuner to change the channels. The tuner's channel range is compatible with most analog cable systems and select digital cable systems. I subscribe to a hybrid analog-digital system through Time Warner Cable, and the WinTV-PVR-150 was able to access all the lower-tier analog channels but none of the upper-tier digital channels. In this situation you'll need to use your cable box as the tuner and connect its output to the WinTV. ReplayTV supplies a small IR blaster that lets the provided Hauppauge remote control change the channels on your cable box. This arrangement is a bit clunky, but it may be the only way you can integrate the software with your particular cable or satellite TV system.
Why bother with all this when you could easily install a set-top DVR from TiVo or your cable company? Well, for starters the ReplayTV software has more extensive search capabilities than are offered on set-top boxes. Also, a "Surprise Me" feature automatically records upcoming programs that include your favorite actor or director. You can search for all the shows or movies in a specific genre, view a list of "Series Premieres" or "Series Finales," or even display all the shows in alphabetical order for a specific channel.
ReplayTV is also less expensive than TiVo and many competing cable DVRs. TiVo's monthly program guide typically runs $10 to $20 a month, and my DVR from Time Warner Cable adds $4.95 a month. ReplayTV throws in the first year of the program guide for free. After that, you'll pay an annual fee of just $19.95.
Another advantage: You can increase your recording capacity more easily than with a standalone DVR, simply by upgrading your computer's hard drive or adding new drives. In addition, ReplayTV saves its recordings in a DVR-MS (.dvr-ms) Windows Media format that you can easily play on other Windows computers. Record your favorite show, copy it to your laptop, and watch it on a flight the next day.— Next: Getting Replay Running
Getting Replay Running
ReplayTV shows a lot of promise, but this early implementation is still rough around the edges. When I was using the software in the foreground and simultaneously recording a program in the background, it sometimes introduced slight pauses into the recording. Also, the software crashed occasionally. I tested a prerelease version on a two-year-old system with a 3.4-GHz Pentium 4, ATI X800 graphics card with 256MB of video RAM and 1GB of system RAM. That exceeds the minimum requirements of a 1.3-GHz processor, AGP 8X graphics card with 128MB of video RAM, and 256MB of system RAM.
The highest-quality recordings were quite good, with minimal compression artifacts. There are three recording modes: standard (1GB per hour), medium (2GB per hour), and high (3GB per hour). Of course, the better the video signal, the better your recording will be.
You do, however, need to leave your computer on to be sure it doesn't miss any scheduled recordings, according to a company representative, Windows systems that support Microsoft's OnNow Device Power Management can automatically wake up to record a program.
The current build of Replay TV software doesn't work with multiple tuners. That means you won't be able to record one program while watching or recording another, as you can with most DVR systems. ReplayTV says multicard support will be available in the future, as well as support for high-definition video. By year's end, the company expects to add the ability to stream recorded video to any networked Windows computer in the house.
ReplayTV will soon offer a free 30-day trial of the software, so you can check it out before you buy it. The catch is you'll need the hardware as well. If you already own a compatible video-input device, it's a no-brainer to try out the software. Otherwise, you'll need to weigh the advantages and potential against the tried-and-true DVR alternatives. Keep in mind that unless your current graphics card has a provision for outputting video to a TV, you'll have to use a computer screen as your primary viewing device. That may be fine for cramped living spaces, tight budgets, or occasional viewing, but it may be less than ideal for families or friends who enjoy watching television together.
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