Filed under: Multimedia, Software
Elgato releases the eyeTV 250
Elgato, the
makers of the popular eyeTV digital TV recording software and hardware for the Mac, today introduced the eyeTV 250.
This thing is small, as in barely-bigger-than-an-mouse small (see picture at right). With it, you can watch, pause and
rewind live TV, edit recorded shows and schedule recordings in advance. Plus, the included software will transfer your
shows to an iPod automatically.Note that the eyeTV 250 only does analog cable/antenna recording. However, it's so compact and moderately priced ($199) that I think it looks great. It's on sale now and requires a G4, G5 or Intel Core processor, 256 MB of RAM (512 MB recommended) and Mac OS 10.4 or later.
[Via PVR Blog]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Paul Dunlop said 7:35PM on 4-06-2006
The more significant feature, for me at least, is that it contains a hardware MPEG2 encoder, which is a godsend, especially for users with slightly older machines, such as myself.
If you don't need the hardware encoder, go for the EyeTV DTT, which is the same form factor, but with DVB (Digital TV) functionality, just no hardware encoder, and no aux inputs.
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ron said 7:41PM on 4-06-2006
I'm waiting for the eyeTV 550 - even though I just bought the 500.
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Joseph said 7:43PM on 4-06-2006
OMG This is perfect! The EZ wasn't good for me beucase of my little iBook but I wanted to play video games! Thank god I didn't get it! Both hardware encoder and (I guess) able to turn that option off for gaming! Wonderful!
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Tim said 9:25PM on 4-06-2006
I'm not clear on how this is different from the eyeTV 200. Is it just smaller?
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starwxrwx said 10:06PM on 4-06-2006
whats the point of no digital reception? the miglia box is this small and does DVB and costs even less?
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arkowi said 10:42PM on 4-06-2006
tim,
i belive the 200 does not do its own encoding. it releys on the machine for that.
i have a 200 and 500, both awesome.
-arkowi
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MUTE MATT said 12:29AM on 4-07-2006
I'm looking for something that will tune and record over the air HD content. I have an Intel iMac so onboard encoding isn't a must. I work on Wednesday nights. It's only so I can watch LOST when I get home.
Any ideas??
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Chris said 12:50AM on 4-07-2006
Another question... are these any good for gaming with your computer display? ie, can I hook my gamecube up to my powerbook with one of these? I hear lag is a problem with some. Thanks
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Mike Chamberlain said 1:28AM on 4-07-2006
The comment is wrong regarding analog only. El Gato lists this model as a digital subscription solution. Check the page at: http://www.elgato.com/index.php?file=products_eyetvmain2&countrytogo=33&signal=dicasu
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DukeTogo said 2:06AM on 4-07-2006
What's the difference between the EyeTV 250 and the others?
Read this:
http://faq.elgato.com/index.php/faq/more/389/
There's lots of good info at the Elgato website
http://www.elgato.com
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gills said 4:16AM on 4-07-2006
This statement is false:
"Note that the eyeTV 250 only does analog cable/antenna recording."
Check their website:
"EyeTV 250 comes with a break-out cable for S-Video and composite RCA video connections. So, EyeTV 250 is the right choice if you receive higher frequency channels, scrambled analog cable (premium) channels, digital cable, or satellite via a set-top box."
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Paul Dunlop said 5:43AM on 4-07-2006
The difference between the 250 and their other offerings is its hardware MPEG2 encoder, making it very well suited to a lot of analog-to-digital conversion tasks, as well as acting as a good TV tuner and games machine interface.
For me, for example, my dual 1.25Ghz G4 only just managed realtime MPEG2 encoding, so having an external box to do this will result in a higher quality encoder that doesn't totally kill my machine in the process. And it's the best way to hook in my XBox too.
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Jerry Zigmont said 7:16AM on 4-07-2006
Any website out there with step by step instructions on integrating a Mini as a PVR with EyeTV? I need to cut the "lifecord" on my Tivo, but still need to keep my Mac up and running...
Thanks
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consumer_q said 11:17AM on 4-07-2006
For my dense cranium:
"(optional uncompressed Game Mode)" means that there is a pass-through, allowing me the option to software encode (in DV) as well, yes?
danke
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SubGenius said 5:14PM on 4-07-2006
Mute Matt said "I'm looking for something that will tune and record over the air HD content"
Matt, I'm in the same boat with LOST and 24. I just ordered the Miglia TVMini HD.
Key Features
Watch free-to-air digital TV and free digital cable (HDTV) on your Mac
Pause, rewind and skip forward live TV
Record HDTV to your hard drive
Edit TV shows and remove commercials
Never miss your favorite show with Online TV Guide TitanTV
Export recorded TV shows to Apple iPod and Sony Playstation Portable
My only disappointment is that no one has made a PVR solution that matches the Mac mini's footprint.
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SwanSong said 10:35PM on 4-07-2006
Miglia "TVmax" DVR box for the Apple MacMini
I met with representatives of Miglia at the 2006 MacWorld Expo in SF and they were demonstrating their new TVmax DVR hardware for the Apple MacMini at the ElGato Booth using their PVR software. FYI, the Miglia TVmax DVR box is exactly the same size as the Apple MacMini and is designed to fit under the Apple MacMini. This is an analog DVR box and therefore can NOT accept HD digital content. In a follow-up email with Miglia they informed me that the Miglia TVmax DVR box will be available sometime in Q2 2006.
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