Starters on blocks for high-def Olympics

AS the Beijing Olympics roll around there has never been a better time for couch potato technology.

High-definition television sets are rapidly dropping in price and the point-and-shoot, watch what you want when you want capabilities of electronic programming guides are finally becoming available on personal video recorders after years of recalcitrance from the television networks.

An electronic program guide can downloaded into a PVR and it provides a week's viewing information in advance, including titles, program descriptions and timing.

Instead of messing around with timing settings as you would on an old VCR, it's just a matter of highlighting the shows you want and punching the record button. The PVR then sucks it all down to a hard drive for viewing at your leisure.

Two or more HD tuners mean one program can be watched while another is being recorded. The machines also buffer live television so it's possible to pause, wander off and return to the couch without missing a thing.

Tech Check hit the couch for some serious down time with three PVRs.

TiVo

THE TiVo digital video recorder has been around in the US since the late 1990s but it was never imported here because of Australian television channels' resistance to providing the electronic program guides that feed the unit's powerful forward programming. Now, through a deal with Channel 7, the HD version of the TiVo is here in time for the Beijing Olympics.

The big black TiVo box is not much to look at compared with the svelte and shiny IQ2 and Panasonic boxes. There are no controls on the front fascia and everything is driven through the remote. Around the back are connectors for every type of video and audio lead.

The box is no beauty, but the slick-looking and simple-to-use TiVo interface is a real pleasure to operate.

It has a seven-day EPG, comprehensive program search and parental controls for blocking out unsuitable content.

It also promises remote programming through any web browser - including one on a mobile phone - but this feature will not be available until a week after the launch. Viewers can input their own rating for content through thumbs up and down buttons on the remote.

Either an optional WiFi ($59.95) or built-in ethernet link can hook up the TiVo with a PC, allowing pictures, movies and music to be swapped back and forth. Unfortunately Australian TiVo buyers won't get these features until a after pay-for software upgrade next year.

SPECIFICATIONS
Features: Twin HD tuners, EPG, 160GB hard drive
Price: $699
Rating: 8/10

Foxtel iQ2

CABLE TV outfit Foxtel is also hoping to hitch a lift from the first high-def Olympics. It launched its HD happy iQ2 DVR box last month. The disadvantage of the iQ2 compared with the other two machines is that you are locked into a never-ending pay TV subscription. The minimum monthly iQ2 package after forking out a $299 install fee is $74.85.

The upside, apart from the extra cable content, is a seven-day EPG that tracks HD and standard definition free-to-air and Foxtel cable content. Spend a weekend with the all-you-can-watch Platinum package, and it's unlikely you will have left the couch - even to eat.

The iQ2 has a 320GB hard drive for program storage and connectors for all video/audio leads, including SCART and HDMI.

Two USB ports and an eSATA port promise future storage upgradability.

While it has four HD tuners, only two are used for normal viewing and recording, with the third held over for Foxtel's on-demand content - which includes on-demand HD movies at $6.95 a pop - and the fourth lies idle until a promised software upgrade brings it into play. Employing the fourth tuner should give the iQ2 better viewing and recording flexibility.

Like the TiVo's, the iQ2's software interface is simple and intuitive and includes PIN-enabled parental controls.

The program search feature is not as comprehensive as the TiVo's but automatic episode recording can be set with the series link feature. The unit can be controlled remotely, but only by a mobile phone connected to Telstra's Next G service.

SPECIFICATIONS
Features: Four HD tuners, 320GB hard drive, cable and free-to-air EPG
Price: $299 for install then $74.85 a month for basic content package
Rating: 8/10

Panasonic DMR BW500

THE Panasonic, although only half the height of the TiVo, crams in just about every desirable piece of high-definition viewing and storage technology on the market.

There's a seven-day EPG backed up by twin HD tuners, a 500GB hard drive and a Blu-ray disc player/recorder, and slots for USB and SD storage cards. An ethernet port promises speedy firmware updates over a broadband link. Updates can also be downloaded, slowly, via a broadcast signal.

The big advantage with the Panasonic is that recorded programs can be copied off to either Blu-ray or standard DVD discs or flash memory. The Panasonic provides jumbo recording capacity compared with the other two.

The Panasonic's hard drive is good for 72 hours of HD content, while a 50GB BD disc handles six hours and 40 minutes.

The TiVo and the iQ2 claim 30 hours of HD recording apiece. It's possible to simultaneously record one program to the hard drive and another to the Blu-ray. The Panasonic plays BD or DVD movies and records TV at the same time but there are some Blu-ray recorder compatibility problems. I tried playing back a Blu-ray disc recorded by the Panasonic on a Sony PS3 - the most popular BD player on the market - and got no joy.

SPECIFICATIONS
Features: Twin HD tuners, EPG, 500GB hard drive, Blu-ray disc player/recorder
Price: $2199
Rating: 7.5/10

CONCLUSION

YOU pays your money and takes your choice with this trio of HD TV wranglers.

The $2199 Panasonic bristles with hi-spec tech and appears to be aimed at home theatre buffs who want all their high-definition gear in one unit. The downside is a kludgy user interface and limited compatibility for Blu-ray discs recorded on the unit.

The much cheaper $699 TiVo does an excellent job of recording and managing free-to-air HD TV but won't ante up its powerful PC media sharing abilities until next year.

The Foxtel iQ2 has program recording and management capabilities almost as good as the TiVo coupled to the content smorgasbord that cable brings. But the content packages range as high as $130 a month and that is before you get into the pay-per-view movies. My pick is the Foxtel iQ2 for content coupled to ease of use, but budget reality would have me choosing the TiVo.