
Time Machine vs Arq vs Duplicati vs Cloudberry Backup.In the end, it proves to be a good low-cost DVR and media playback solution for those who don’t want to pay for TV. For now though, we gave it a 7/10, with the potential of being closer to a 7.5-8 if those variables were attended to. To be fair, once again, it only happen a few times. As far as we know, that could be as simple as a firmware upgrade. Maybe a slightly better range on the remote and fix the few glitches in video we saw (with our without using the DVR functions). We even played some anime (a geek necessity) and music videos from a thumb drive.
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It records in HD, puts out 5.1 sound, amplifies your signal and we didn’t see any loss of channels between that and our placebo TV sitting next to it. It isn’t the best of the best, but it does pull it’s weight in cost and then some. It does however work right from where you would normally sit, and that’s all that matters in the end. Truly something made in China (the company itself is based in Canada), and will not work from clear across the room. It comes with a basic remote of no bells or whistles. The remote also wasn’t much to be excited about. That makes the HomeWorx a feasible option. Are you willing to spend $150, or is less than $50 more within the budget? Good luck finding something better within the price range. In fact, we would recommend the TiVo over this any day, but it comes down to price. If you want something better, you are looking at around $150 (ie, TiVo Roamio is a great device). It does do pretty well for how little it costs though. Nothing too fancy that is going to make you want to sit it next to an expensive vase or statue in your living room. The device itself looks pretty cheap and simple. It wasn’t enough to ruin a show, but enough to note that the electronics inside were not top shelf at all. At the moments we experienced the glitch, the TV next to it did just fine. To make sure this wasn’t a signal issue coming from the antenna, another TV was next to it in-line with the splitter and cable plugged directly into the TV (no external tuner). However, a few times it looked like the video would glitch a little (which obviously shows in the recording). The recorded image was clear and audio seemed just fine. It does mostly what it says as it records very well. Also something to keep in mind is that it does not come with an HDMI cable. There is no optical out, so if you want 5.1 sound, you have to use HDMI. On the back, you will find an RF out (coax for pass through), HDMI out, and RCA out. Even better, the same USB port can be used for media playback of movies and images you place on your drive. You can pause, fast forward and rewind through all of your content. It supports up to 64GB on a thumb drive and up to 2TB using an external hard drive, so that you can watch your shows at your own leisure. Of course, how many channels you actually receive depends on where you live, the strength of their broadcast, the distance between you and their broadcast source and the antenna you are using. Not a bad deal for something you don’t have to pay monthly for, especially when 1/4 of those channels come in as HD. Throwing this in the mix means you now have the ability to record anything you want on those 68-72 channels. Locally here, any time we test something using OTA, we typically get 68-72 channels because of the antenna we use for testing. One of the most unique benefits is the ability to attach a USB thumb drive or external hard drive to record your favorite TV shows, turning it into an OTA DVR device. On top of that, it is capable of passing 5.1 digital sound to your receiver as well (assuming it’s in-line and you are using it as your switching source). So if the antenna you use isn’t quite strong enough, this will help a little in the mix. One benefit of this (for everyone) is that it also acts as a powered amplifier. It allows you to receive these channels if your TV doesn’t have a digital tuner (although almost every TV available now does), and function as your faux cable box (tuner), while passing the signal (up to 1080p) to your TV via HDMI. This is a channel box and DVR solution for those who make use of the OTA world. Now it’s time to highlight it again thanks to the HomeWorx HW180STB HDTV Digital Converter Box by Mediasonic. We have spoke about this before in writing about how you can ditch these expensive providers and make use of what’s floating around in the air for free.
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All of your local channels plus a handful more you may have never even heard are waiting for you and don’t cost you a monthly cent. Paid TV isn’t your only option, no matter what the providers tell you. However, people always seem to forget about OTA (over the air). So many TV solutions to choose from between cable, dsl and satellite providers.
