Update: DIRECTV Tuner Confirmed Again
I’ve said that the DIRECTV
tuner for Media Center is coming along with such features as H.264 HD
access, in-band EPG data and PPV access all crammed into a dual tuner.
Today, DBSTalk is reporting
that the tuner, internally named HDPC20 will indeed be an external USB dual
tuner solution. It is will with your
regular DIRECTV Access Card and it works independently of a standalone STB.
Small bits of information seems to keep coming in from Earl at DBSTalk
and I’ll update this post accordingly.
Update: TGB @
CES blogger Jerold says that Microsoft might be making an announcement about
the tuner tomorrow. Stay tuned.
Update: DBSTalk has scans of the
product. Still no timeframe but this
is the DIRECTV tuner for Media Center and you will be able to take advantage of
Media Center Extender’s when paired with this tuner just like any other tuner. (Full Res pictures at DBSTalk)
There also seems to be some confustion about what software this tuner will work with. Engadget is assuming it will work with other OS's then Vista. I'd be shocked if it was open to anything but Vista Media Center (and we still don't know about CableCARD-like restrictions if any).
