Elgato EyeTV HD DVR for HD Cable and Satellite TV for Macintosh (10021040)

by Elgato

• Captures premium television content in full HD from cable and satellite receivers
• Records in pristine H.264 format for a crystal clear digital picture
• Includes an infrared remote and channel changer cable (IR blaster) for automatic control of the set top box.
• Comes with EyeTV 3 software for Mac; cables for component, composite (RCA), S-Video and stereo audio

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 2.6 x 7.9 x 9.2 inches ; 1.4 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 2.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B003MVYTBU
• Item model number: 10021040
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (82 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,683 in Electronics (See Top 100 in Electronics)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: May 20, 2010

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

EyeTV HD - The Ultimate Mac DVR for Premium Cable or Satellite TV

Watch, edit and enjoy cable and satellite television in high-definition with EyeTV HD, a full-featured DVR for your Mac. EyeTV HD is the only solution that gives you full access to all your premium content by connecting your Mac directly to your cable or satellite receiver. EyeTV HD comes with an infrared remote and channel changer cable ('IR blaster') for automatic control of the receiver.

Highlights

• Captures premium television content in full HD from cable and satellite receivers
• Records in pristine H.264 format for a crystal clear digital picture
• Features a unique dual-format capture mode for fast playback on an iPhone and iPad
• Includes an infrared remote and channel changer cable (IR blaster) for automatic control of the receiver

Superb quality digital TV recordings

EyeTV HD records in the pristine H.264 format for a crystal clear, high-definition digital picture.The H.264 format delivers beautiful image quality and a superb compression ratio, which produces smaller file size when compared to MPEG-2 recordings. H.264 can match the best possible MPEG-2 quality at up to half the data rate.

Unique dual-format capture mode

EyeTV HD has a unique dual-format capture mode that enables you to record in the iPad and iPhone formats at the same time. This feature enables super-fast exports to iTunes from EyeTV, and facilitates the streaming of live and recorded TV to an iPhone or iPad using the optional EyeTV app

Easy Setup

EyeTV HD is easy to setup and use; simply connect the EyeTV HD to the outputs of your cable or satellite receiver with the included component cables, and to your Mac via USB. Then position the included infrared channel changer cable nearby. The EyeTV software setup assistant takes you through a simple configuration process and in just a few minutes you'll be enjoying all your premium content like never before.

watch

Watch, pause, and rewind live television on your Mac at your desk or from the comfort of your couch. Sit at your desk and navigate the resizable window with a mouse, or go full screen and stretch out on the couch with the included remote control. EyeTV’s gorgeous on-screen menus makes it easy to channel surf and move through the Program Guide and menus in the comfort of your living room.

record

EyeTV features a comprehensive built-in program guide, with detailed listings provided by TV Guide*.

You can easily record any show with one click. Even set up automatic schedules record your favorite series, or create Smart Schedules to record just the shows you like.

*includes one year of free service with optional renewal for only US $19.95 per year.

edit

Use EyeTV’s built-in Editor to remove unwanted content from your recording, or to crop the beginning and end of the show. The Editor also enables you to create one or more short clips from a longer recording and save the clips individually as new EyeTV recordings.

enjoy

With one click you can add your recordings to your iTunes library for syncing with your iPhone, iPad and more. Take your recordings wherever you go. Watch your recordings on your big-screen television with an Apple TV. Build up your iTunes library with all your favorites. EyeTV can even handle the exporting automatically when recordings finish, so it doesn't take any clicks at all.

EyeTV on your iPhone and iPad

The EyeTV HD also works with the optional EyeTV app for the iPhone and iPad (available at the iTunes App Store). With the EyeTV app, you can stream live or recorded TV wherever you have a WiFi or 3G connection; around the corner at the coffee shop or around the world.

How the EyeTV HD hooks up

Click here for a larger image

EyeTV HD comes with

Click here for a larger image

System Requirements

• Macintosh 2.26 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor or better
• Mac OS X v10.5.8 or later
• 2 GB RAM
• Built-in USB 2.0 port
• Cable or satellite receiver with analog video and audio outputs (component output required for HD)
• Internet connection required to download Program Guide data

Technical Specifications

• Input formats: 480i, 480p, 576i, 576p, 720p, and 1080i video signals
• Video capture format: H.264 Main Profile, up to 15 Mbps VBR, 1920x1080 pixels at 30 fps max
• Audio capture format: AAC-LC, stereo, 160 Kbps, 48 kHz
• Video inputs: Component (YPbPr), Composite and S-Video
• Audio inputs: RCA stereo audio
• Set top box control: via included IR remote control emitter

Product Description

EyeTV HD is the only solution that gives you full access to all your premium content by connecting your Mac directly to your cable or satellite receiver. EyeTV HD comes with an infrared remote and channel changer cable (“IR blaster”) for automatic control of the receiver. EyeTV HD also features a unique dual-format capture mode that records in the iPad and iPhone formats at the same time. This feature supports super-fast exports to iTunes from EyeTV, and facilitates the streaming of live and recorded TV to an iPhone or iPad using the optional EyeTV app.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

91 of 97 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Elgato EyeTV HD turns your Mac into a DVR, streams to iPhone June 7, 2010

By L. Abate

This review taken verbatim from my tech column... Overall, great product but requires some computing horsepower to really shine.

Last week, Elgato announced a new TV tuner/DVR solution for the Mac. It is called the EyeTV HD and pulls 720p HD cable content right from your cable box. The device was born out of the need to get television shows and movies out of the living room and on to the multitude of devices people are using to get their daily fix.

After one week of using the EyeTV HD, I have come to the conclusion that for Mac users, there is no better way to move content from cable box to computer. Initial setup time is less than 15 minutes and is very straightforward. As soon as the cables are connected and software installed, the little guy can be put to work recording content to your computer's hard drive. By using an IR blaster to control the cable box, cannels can be switched by the EyeTV software, thus enabling scheduled recording- just like a standard DVR. The programming guide is powered by TVGuide and matched up accurately with my FiOS on-screen listings. This service is subscription based ($19.99/year) but Elgato includes one free year with hardware purchases.

Programs can be recorded manually, or by adding them to the record schedule. The EyeTV HD works just like a stand-alone DVR, but only one program can be recorded at a time. Content is stored in a proprietary EyeTV format that weighs in at about 5GB per hour- small hard drives need not apply. To set up a recording, all it takes is a click on the record icon located beneath the show listing, the EyeTV software does the rest.

Once recorded, content is converted for playback on the iPhone, iPad, or both. In addition, recordings can be exported to all the popular formats, including DivX, Windows Media, and native H.264. The converted content is also automatically added into iTunes, complete with title, description, cast, rating, and more. This makes searching for specific shows or moves extremely easy and I found it to be a nice touch. Want to edit the recordings before sending them to you mobile device? That can be done within the EyeTV app as well. Users can trim out commercials and split up long recordings with a few clicks of the mouse. The process is very intuitive and also nondestructive, as original recordings are kept alongside the edited copies.

In addition to functioning as a DVR, the device can also stream both live and recorded programs to an iPhone using the optional EyeTV app ($4.99). My experience streaming over WiFi was flawless. Content streamed from a 2.66GHz MacBook Pro to an iPhone 3GS looked as if it were being played locally. Viewing over 3G also worked well, though video would frequently re-buffer, especially in congested areas. Current 3G speeds are not really designed to stream high quality video, but as the faster networks come into use, apps like this will really begin to shine.

Overall, the EyeTV HD works as advertised. The video quality is high, the conversion process works without a hitch, and the video editing is simple. One thing to keep in mind is the reality that you will need to have the HD set-top box near your computer for this all to work. Component video cables can easily be found in 10-foot lengths, but beyond that, the risk for signal quality loss comes into play. Bottom line, Mac users serious about their television will not be disappointed with Elgato's latest offering.

The good:
- TV lovers' dream come true, only limited by the size of your hard drive
- Setup instructions are clear, takes less than 15 minutes
- Captures high quality 720p HD
- Quickly converts video to iPhone and iPad friendly formats, about 5 minutes per half-hour of video
- Editing is very easy
- Can also record from S-video and composite video with included adapter
- Ability to stream to iPhone over Wi-Fi and 3G (see below video for demo)

The bad:
- Core 2 Duo Mac required, very processor intensive to run
- Cable/Satellite box needs to be located near the EyeTV HD and computer
- Annual subscription to TVGuide required after first year, $19.99
- Decreased productivity levels resulting from 500 channels of television on computer and in pocket

38 of 39 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Not Too Bad. July 9, 2010

By davey b.

Have this hooked up to an intel Mac Mini that meets the minumum cpu speed specification. I'm learning more about this product and have updated this review three times. Overall very happy with the product, this should not be considered a negative review, although I talk about the areas I am having problems.

The product provides an excellent picture up to 1080i and de-interlaces the output realtime. I used a higher quality component cable than the one that came with the unit, and was able to improve the DVR picture slightly but perceptibly. Could not find my cable box (Mediacom in California, Pace DC700X HD) listed, but was able to snoop around and found settings designed for another set top that worked without too much effort. TVGuide had a couple of the HD channels mis-scheduled or mislabeled for my cable provider. El Gato contacted TVGuide for me and had the schedule repaired. TVGuide was slow (took over a month) but El Gato was very responsive with keeping me updated and letting me know when the guide was fixed. Meanwhile the EyeTV software had the scheduling flexibility to work around the inconvenient annoying problems with the schedule guide once I understood them.

The remote that comes with the unit initially had a serious problem but el gato fixed it with a SW update. The supplied remote still seems to be a bit weak and highly directionally sensitive at about 18 ft. I prefer my apple remotes that came with my computers as they work better and control the EyeTV software adequately. These are $20 from Apple. Some important common functions however on Apple's remote require you to hold down a button, and if you forget you will get sent into FrontRow, Apple's bundled multimedia player software.

Overall the product is not idiot-proof, as other family members might get lost at times using the product. I found the pause, rewind and FF in live HD TV to be very smooth and useable. Programming the software to record favorite shows or movies is very easy. Watching Live streaming TV on the IPad in the house over WiFi worked well as long as the software was not trying to perform other tasks at the same time. I found the streaming HD video to the ipad a bit soft and not completely up the the capabilities of the ipad display. I actually transcode all my video to H264 and then stream it the the "Air Video" app on my ipad ($2.99 from inMethod avail on iTunes). Also found that the EyeTV software is multitasking, but does not use good judgement when scheduling tasks. The software would start tasks in the background (like exporting video for iTunes/iPod) when I was watching or streaming Live/Recorded TV, and the live/recorded video would become too jerky to watch (remember I have the slowest computer supported). One time when away for a week the system recorded a string of movies. At a specific point something went wrong and the video/audio began skipping and the sound was not synchronized - don't know what caused it. This would have gotten fixed if I had been home checking on things, but once it occurred it did not self correct and destroyed about 10 scheduled recordings. So the system needs to be monitored a bit. Some families use DVRs exclusively when watching live TV. I will do that comfortably with this product, but other family members will prefer direct interaction with my cable box, foregoing the benefits of DVR. This is a bit of a problem, because they will end up changing the channel in the middle of a recording. Ideally if I were really serious, I would get another cable box exclusively for DVR.

Been eyeing a mac DVR purchase for years, and El Gato has now produced a product that I will buy. I have the ability to record all 200 channels coming out of my cable box including premium HD content. I am using the product to record 1080i video, then edit the endpoints of the recording, and export to 720p for TV and iPad. It produces a 5Mbps 720p that works on both the iPad and the TV. I move these recordings to iTunes. This process requires quite a bit of interaction with the software and I wish it was a bit more automated. Tried a FW800 drive and EyeTV Turbo H264 to offload some I/O / Processing related to exports. Transcodes video faster but does not release CPU for streaming video. Still exploring the capabilities, querks and limitations of the product, but overall very happy.

Wish List: EyeTV software should provide option to manually pause exports as well as automatically pause all exports / edits while recording / watching / or streaming video. Exports should also pause when the EyeTV software is quit, and resume then the software is restarted. This will add the fifth star.

27 of 28 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Wish I got this years ago August 17, 2010

By Malcolm Murphy

Amazon Verified Purchase

The EyeTV HD is an outstanding little product.

I purchased the EyeTV HD after waiting patiently for several years for DirecTV to offer their DirecTV2PC service to Mac users. After using EyeTV, I realized that I wouldn't want DirecTV2PC even if it were available. EyeTV's DVR software is far better than TiVo or DirecTV DVR, granted that's mainly because it can be controlled with a keyboard and mouse, but also because of additional features like custom channel lists and advanced searching.

I originally thought I wouldn't be able to use the EyeTV HD as my computer was slightly slower than the product's minimum system requirements (2.26GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, I have a 2.16GHz). I contacted Elgato asking if it would still work, and received a prompt response explaining that I may not be able to use progressive deinterlacing, which is indeed the case (unless I have absolutely nothing else running). The motion-adaptive deinterlacing works just fine, though.

My only complaint is that the only audio in is stereo RCA, and does not support digital audio. I'd also like to see a dual tuner model, although I'd need a new competur before then.

I was skeptical of using component video (HDMI is not possible because of copy protection). I use a Samsung P2770HD display, so I can switch between EyeTV and my DirecTV reciever (HDMI direct to display), and EyeTV actually looks better.

This product does everything I need it to and more. Bottom line: EyeTV HD is a great product and value.