SageTV set top box for cable or satellite?

[korben_dallas]

What would you guys think about a SageTV STB?

If it were designed like a normal STB, it'd go something like this:

Pro's - direct digital capture of cable/satellite stream; dual HD/SD tuner; component/hdmi output; familiar SageTV interface

Con's - no networkability; no transport of recorded material; limited # of tuners (assuming this is a run-of-the-mill STB design)


Would you purchase such a thing, if your cable/satellite provider offered or approved it?


What if the SageTV STB's were networkable, but only among themselves & HD Extenders? An encrypted system which allowed full transport but only among SageTV STB's and HD Extenders?

[Jesse]

Hi,

I would most likely go for it if they were networkable and had usb or firewire for storage expansion. It would have to be as quiet as a stb as well.

Jesse

[sainswor99]

I think this is an interesting idea, but I think your initial concept is a very different direction than why I purchased SageTV:

1. Networking shouldn't be proprietary. I use Placeshifter to manage/watch most of my recordings on my local LAN (and occasionally the WAN), as well as a MediaMVP, but I also occasionally watch recorded TV on my Zen. If networking were locked down, I'd lose that functionality.

Networking also ties into Media Center functionality. I use Sage as a full-featured media center to listen to music, show photo slideshows etc. If Sage were limited to a proprietary networking system (closed client/server environs) then I couldn't easily add/remove files from other systems.

2. Storage expansion is a must (another reason I bought Sage instead of the cable DVR). USB and/or firewire at a minimum, but adding additional drives would be very nice as well.

3. Tuner expansions would also be cool, but I can see how simply buying another networked STB would solve that (akin to the current network encoder setup)

The obvious benefit to Sage would be the reduced support efforts; having a standardized hardware platform could be very beneficial in the long run. Perhaps an area to explore after the HD extender.

Stu

[GKusnick]

Seems to me this would negate most of the advantages of using SageTV: networkability, expandability, customizability, interoperability with PC and Internet clients. If it's just another run-of-the-mill, closed-box, set-top DVR with a Sage-branded UI, why bother? Such a thing seems unlikely to satisfy either existing Sage users (who won't like the limitations) or Tivo users (who'll find the unfamiliar Sage UI a drawback, not a plus).