HDTV brainstorming

[desh]

So I'm starting to think about getting an HDTV. The way this sort of thing usually works for me, that probably means that I'll actually get one around June. Here are random thoughts. Happy to hear opinions from those of you that know this stuff.

I think I want a TV between 37" and 42". That way, it won't be any smaller vertically than my existing old-school 27" CRT. I also know I want 1080p and 120/600 Hz. Specs like that should be available for close to $500 in a few months, I have a feeling, if they're not already. I'm not sure what other numbers matter.

I need to buy a stand. And a universal remote. I don't know anything about universal remotes these days, except that they're uber-fancy and cost a lot more than I'd expect them to. (Apparently you can spend $200 on a remote??)

And I need some sort of DVR setup. As far as I can tell, the options are:

System	Pro	Con
Tivo	Really easy to set up and use	I hate monthly fees, and lifetime subscription is $400. So much less control (No auto commercial skip? I've had that in my standard-def DVR since 2003! No place-shifting either?)
Windows-based computer with Media Center and CableCARD (either roll-your-own, which recently got easier, or buying prefab system)	More control than TiVo, no monthly fees	Ugh, Windows. Ugh, CableCARD. Edit: Less "ugh" on CableCARD, but ugh, prefab systems, and ugh, all roll-your-own CableCARD options are also $250 and are sold out everywhere.
MythTV	Tons of control, costs whatever I want, no monthly fees	Uber-complicated, might never be completely smooth UI (i.e. usable by roommate), requires separate $250 box to do cable in HD
added from comments: Cable company's DVR	Free up-front	"Dumb as a post", not much storage, costs even more per month than TiVo

I'd like to do it all for about $1200. Should be doable. Just want to make sure I do it right.

And I need to be smart about spending around $8, not around $80, for cables and stuff.

Comments

[shamanix.livejournal.com]

MythTV is insanely cool, if a bit difficult. Downside of Tivo is yeah... $400 for a "lifetime" subscription. How long will you have a Tivo? What happens down the road when your set takes a dump?

IMO, PC hardware is way more reliable than a Tivo.

Windows Media Center has come a long, long way, but it's still not THAT great.

If you want an alternative to MythTV, you might look into XBMC, which used to be a frontend for hacked X-Boxen but evolved into its own personal media center. I've no idea how advanced they've become, but it's a potential alternative IF they've added recording live TV, etc. Don't think so, but hey, worth looking into for randomness.

[desh]

Thanks! Very helpful.

Do you only use MythTV with a broadcast signal and downloaded content? I'm wondering if the cable-based options are really as crappy as they seem.

[shamanix.livejournal.com]

Honestly, not sure. I've just done enough reading to know that if you're going to drop $400 on a lifetime Tivo subscription plus another $2-300 for the HD unit, you may as well build a half-assed PC with HDMI out to do the same job better. :)

[malerin.livejournal.com]

re DVR, it's probably worth checking to see if your cable company offers one. it may not have the cool geek allure or whatever you're looking for of a tivo or making your own DVR, but it works, and i've found the AT&T and DirecTV DVRs I've used more than adequate.

[desh]

Hmm. How much does it cost per month? In my mind that's sort of like TiVo-lite, with less power for less money, and the same drawbacks. And it's the cheapest up-front cost of all the options, which is nice, but I'm so allergic to monthly fees that I wonder if I'd rather pay several hundred dollars or more up-front. (Amortized over 4-5 years, after all...)

[malerin.livejournal.com]

Really depends on your company. I believe Comcast's was like $10 a month or so? maybe more with HD And don't forget that with a tivo, there's a monthly fee (~$13 I think) AND an up front purchase. the lifetime fee always seemed sort of like a sucker's bet, as it's so much, and for the product's lifetime, not for your lifetime.

Anyway, the best thing is probably to figure out what features you actually need and go from there. me, I just want to tape my shows, so the basic is good enough - the tivo's automatic recording of things you might like was nice, but I never had time to watch them. :)

[shamanix.livejournal.com]

Seconded here. If you just want a basic DVR and you have Comcast, while it isn't "designed" for HD recording, you can sock away a good 20 hours of HD content on the thing.

[fweebles.livejournal.com]

We ended up buying our Satellite company's DVR and it's crap. I mean, it WORKS, it records the shows in HD, and all that, but it's dumb as a post.

MythTV will do stuff like:

Record all new episodes of this show.
Find them anywhere on the dial at any time.
Find old episodes of this show, but not if I've already taped them once before.
Tape these four shows, and figure out which channels to record from to minimize conflicts.

When you set a recording on our current DVR, it does it for a certain time period. If the show isn't on next week because it's a holiday or there's a ball game, too bad, it's taping it anyway. If you've already seen it before, too bad, taping it anyway. If two things are on at the same time, too bad, you have to cancel one completely (including all future recordings!), it won't figure out to delay taping the second showing until it's on an hour later on a different station.

So...yeah. MythTV is a pain in the ass and HD support is still really in in its infancy, but even though we dropped 500+ bucks on the HD PVR, I'm probably still going to build an HD MythTV at some point in the future. Probably once I figure out what the major HD pitfalls are and when I can come up with money to throw at it.

[shamanix.livejournal.com]

Single biggest HD pitfall - Monster Cable. :)

[msschein.livejournal.com]

Pity you can't use your current DVR with HDTV. That thing is awesome.

[desh]

Yeah, it really is. I'm convinced it's the best standard-def DVR ever made. It's almost awesome enough to consider trying it on a big TV, except that from everything I hear, once you have high-def, you can never go back. And I also hear that standard-def content on a high-def TV looks even shittier than anything else.

[smarriveurr.livejournal.com]

I can add little to this discussion, but I can tell you, having seen non-HD content on my friend's big HDTV, it does look shockingly poor.

[outcastspice.livejournal.com]

we have an awesome logitech remote that's programmable, i do recommend it if you're going to buy one anyways. we have the 'harmony 550'.

[(Anonymous)]

The Logitech Harmony One is generally considered the best universal remote out there. Of course it's $200 and I refuse to spend that on a remote. I've decided I'm happy with my 4 remotes and if you can't figure out how to use all of them, then I don't want you using my equipment anyway.

Something else to consider is that you probably want 2 tuners. I have enough conflicts where I need to juggle around my recordings with 2 tuners myself. If you're sharing this device with a roommate you almost certainly need the ability to record 2 shows or watch one and record one. Remember, if you want to watch a sports game while recording a show on another channel that's two tuners right there.

So if you build your own you require 2 cable card tuners or 2 cable boxes and 2 of those $250 boxes.

[desh]

Thanks. I actually thought of that after I wrote this post. I definitely want two tuners, but I think I can live with one cable and one OTA. But definitely an advantage of a tivo/cablecard setup is that I can do two cable tuners more cheaply.

[(Anonymous)]

Something else to be aware of, the broadcast channels are sent unencrypted in HD by Comcast. So as long as you get a QAM tuner you can receive the OTA channels without needing an actual antenna. This isn't something Comcast will tell you, but it's an FCC requirement and my dad has been getting HD this way for the past 2 years without any problems.

[desh]

Also, apparently around 3 months from now the market for cable card tuners will include devices that have multiple tuners running off of one cablecard. Makes that option a lot more tempting.