TiVo For Free
By: GNUtech


You have probably seen the adverts, TiVo and Replay TV -with more and
more clones being released every day; including one from Sony.
The "hottest thing since the VCR" is what electronics experts are saying,
now you can get the hype for a fraction of the price.

Sony's TiVo has a street price of $299 for the 30GB version which can record up to 30 hours of programming. The original Phillips TV runs about $399. Discontinued Replay TV models are floating around for the price of a dual deck HiFi VCR. 

Newsflash: 10/26 -Microsoft launching "Ultimate TV" unit similar to TiVo.

You can find a comparison between Replay TV and TiVo here:
COMPARISON

Note: There is about a $10 a month fee if you subscribe to the program
guide. This only applies to the TiVo unit.

The Hack
One advantage TiVo has is the ability for user upgrade. This isn't
supported and will void your warranty. Here is some information from
the happy hackers who figured it all out: http://www.tivofaq.com/hack/


The Software
Snapstream
Showshifter
WinVCR
Power VCR
Ligos


The Reviews
Snapstream - We didn't find the time shift function anywhere (pause live TV)
Recording is a programmatic process and it is very cumbersome to start a recording.
It has plenty of cool features if you want to stream your video over a network,
but otherwise it isn't the convenient program that would be expected.


In Conclusion
If you already have a capture card then there are plenty of cool little programs
that will fit the bill, even if you don't you can pick up a compatible card for around
$100. Certainly cheaper than a TiVo.  The TiVo is an incredibly handy device
but we would like to see a massive price drop. Until then we are going this route
ourselves and suggest that anybody with the spare hard drive space to do so as well.

MORE REVIEWS COMING AS WE FINISH UP REVIEWING THEM...