SiliconDust HDHomeRun Prime 3-Line Digital CableCard HDTV Tuner w/ Gigabit Ethernet (HDHR3-CC) $155 (expired)

Quote from etherplasma : i thought about getting into the whole tuner thing but it seems too difficult to setup.

It's not.

Quote from etherplasma : i just use a simple setup with a direct connection of a cable line to a cable modem going directly to my pc. everytime i look into these, i hear about going to get a cable card. wireless, routers, having to call them and activate things. haha, that's usually when i stop looking... i'm not the type that likes complications. i want to buy something and just install it in a simple way and it works.

You called them to install cable didn't you? They will come and install the cable card in the device... In fact most of them insist upon it.

If setting up a lan at home is your idea of complicated then yes, do NOT get this or a wireless printer, or an iPad, or a laptop, or a smartphone...

Sounds to me more like you need to get some tech savvy friends.

Seriously. No pain no gain. The amount of effort required to have a lifetime of cost effective flexible DVRing is negligible. One thing I will advise though is go with a combination wired/wireless network. Wire your computer, LAN tuner, and media center extenter (ie Xbox 360) to the router. The router should have wireless capability so you can use the data feature on your cell phone with it when you are at home and you can also use laptops and tablet computers. Make sure you enable security on the wireless side of things... unless you want to be a broadband hotspot for your block.

All I can say is research, research, research. Then have a tech savvy friend help you plan and hook it up. Literally for me it was no more than a couple of hours total. My advice it to get the LAN set up FIRST. Only when all that is up and running should you buy the LAN tuner and call the cable company. Have your tech savvy friend around the the cable guy shows up. The "install" is actually not hard. If your cable outlets have a good signal all the installer does is stick the card into a slot on the LAN Tuner. That's it. He then has to call the cable company and "pair" the tuner to your device. They are used to doing this on TIVOs and sometimes freak out if it's not a TIVO. Do some research before hand and you and your tech savvy friend can calm the cable guys nerves.

Are there any recommended extenders out there that are less expensive than the $199 XBox360?

Quote from ccannon : Are there any recommended extenders out there that are less expensive than the $199 XBox360?

no.

Quote from supahfly112 : I don't think so but keep in mind...(as far as I know) the PS3 is not wireless N. I don't believe so.

Yes, that is true. I have him setup with an N gaming adapter that connects to the PS3 with a network cable

Quote from alicia454 : Unfortunately, it does not have DVR capabilties, like the more expensive HDHR3-6CC-3X2 model, so you have to leave a computer on 24/7 to record. For me, all I want is a simple and cheap DVR with an ATSC tuner, without subscription, so that I can record my favorite over-the-air shows manually, like I did 30 years ago with a VCR. I don't need a program guide, and can simply set the timer manually with a show's channel, date, and time. Why is this 30 year old capability so expensive > $400 these days?

I agree. I think Tivo scared the competition away. And Google tv and the similar are failures because lack of over the air support.I luckily got a tivo premiere plus lifetime at a good price. But next one i might get is this one...

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Magnavo...r/15080509

Quote from JoeSmith2010 : Yes, that is true. I have him setup with an N gaming adapter that connects to the PS3 with a network cable

I couldn't stream 1080i content reliably from two rooms over with a wireless N network. SD worked okay. I was mighty pissed when I got everything set up and I got stutter while streaming the video. I don't. Know wireless N could work in some setups but do not be surprised if it doesn't

Quote from magnovox00 : I agree. I think Tivo scared the competition away. And Google tv and the similar are failures because lack of over the air support.I luckily got a tivo premiere plus lifetime at a good price. But next one i might get is this one... http://www.walmart.com/ip/Magnavo...r/15080509

$100 internal dual tuner card gets you OTA. That's what I'm using. Easily expand storage. If it breaks in 3 years you are out $100. Just pop in another one. If your TIVO breaks? So much for your "lifetime" subscription.

If you don't want to hassle with the media center TV, LAN, Tuner, and Xbox 360 thing get a Tivo. If you want to save some money and have a lot more flexibility get this device or similar.

I currently do not have cable but will eventually get it back one of these days. My question is could I use this w/o having the cablecard and just be able to get the OTA clear qam channels that comcast is suppose to supply?

Quote from ccannon : Are there any recommended extenders out there that are less expensive than the $199 XBox360?

Quote from dealmeister3000 : no.

Agreed, there isn't. The ONLY less expensive manner would be to find a deal on a new or used laptop that could support the same functions as a HTPC and be under $200, which is very unlikely. Or, a cheap desktop build, but that is more bulk.

I have an older HP 17" laptop that I don't use as much, so since it has HDMI out, Im going to replace my xbox with that as the HTPC for another TV.

Quote from EK100 : The homerun device can be accessed by any pc at will without a dedicated 'media server'. If you use an extender, it will need to tie itself to a specific PC which is enough hassle to change that you may want to consider that PC as your media server. Otherwise if you are going the HTPC route, then you don't need a dedicated Media Server although there would be advantages to consider one as such if you can network it ot the HDHR locally with a switch or something over wire to avoid going over wireless or your overall network for your recordings. But then depending on the DRM restrictions, you have to play it off that PC or an Extender tied to that PC.

You don't have to have a dedicated media center machine. You do have to have a pc with a media center type of software running on it. You can still use the pc for other purposes. An extender is used on a tv to connect to windows 7 media center. I assume the same for the other media center softwares. An extender is typically an xbox 360 console. but some companies did make other extenders (linksys). You don't have to have a TV to use homerun. You can watch tv from a pc that is not dedicated or even running the media center software. You have three tuners so if you have three devices(tvs,pcs) watching live tv then you are out of available tuners.

Quote from ccannon : Are there any recommended extenders out there that are less expensive than the $199 XBox360?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/HP-Media-...20c4eda7e2

These are discontinued but work well with 7MC. I have two I use personally.

Quote from oscar2k23 : I currently have Comcast, will I have to continue paying the $9 HD fee if I get this device? or will this device get the HD channels automatically without paying for HD?

I didn't have to anymore when I switched to this setup.

Quote from dealmeister3000 : It's not. You called them to install cable didn't you? They will come and install the cable card in the device... In fact most of them insist upon it. If setting up a lan at home is your idea of complicated then yes, do NOT get this or a wireless printer, or an iPad, or a laptop, or a smartphone... Sounds to me more like you need to get some tech savvy friends. Seriously. No pain no gain. The amount of effort required to have a lifetime of cost effective flexible DVRing is negligible. One thing I will advise though is go with a combination wired/wireless network. Wire your computer, LAN tuner, and media center extenter (ie Xbox 360) to the router. The router should have wireless capability so you can use the data feature on your cell phone with it when you are at home and you can also use laptops and tablet computers. Make sure you enable security on the wireless side of things... unless you want to be a broadband hotspot for your block. All I can say is research, research, research. Then have a tech savvy friend help you plan and hook it up. Literally for me it was no more than a couple of hours total. My advice it to get the LAN set up FIRST. Only when all that is up and running should you buy the LAN tuner and call the cable company. Have your tech savvy friend around the the cable guy shows up. The "install" is actually not hard. If your cable outlets have a good signal all the installer does is stick the card into a slot on the LAN Tuner. That's it. He then has to call the cable company and "pair" the tuner to your device. They are used to doing this on TIVOs and sometimes freak out if it's not a TIVO. Do some research before hand and you and your tech savvy friend can calm the cable guys nerves.

hehe i'm very tech savvy, just extremely anti-social.
by complications, i mean dealing with people.
complications arise for me when i need to call people (reason why i dont have a phone) or have people come over (to install things), etc.

if it was a case of just me installing everything there would be no issue.

thanks for your help though. hehe.

if i really want to watch something i cant find on dvd/bluray i can usually find it somewhere else, so it's not a huge deal or anything.

Quote from davinci73 : i'd be all over this if it took over the air signal.

it does, just need an antenna with a coax output. I have it and it works with clear QAM (no cable card operation) and ATSC (OTA) should be fine too.

Quote from ccannon : Are there any recommended extenders out there that are less expensive than the $199 XBox360?

The $150 XBOX refurb that was on newegg recently, or the $140 XBOX that at Target on Black Friday. As well as under $100 Media center extenders on ebay.

Or just wait for ceton to release echo, however, there is no pricing info, yet.

Quote from EK100 : I have a laptop that failed the digital advisor test because of its screen, believe it or not. I hooked up a monitor to it, passed the test, unhooked, and since then I've had no issues.

The laptop screen connection must have not passed HDCP test, or resolution was off.