Smart Home Blog

XHub Media Center is one of the most popular and success alternatives to Apple’s Front Row software. Just for $24.95 it gives possibility for all Apple computers owners to turn their Macs into media center. XHub offers all usual PVR functionality: watch, paused and record live TV, playback DVD, listen music and Internet radio stations, shows pictures.

It’s fully customizable with themes and can be controlled by a Bluetooth/WiFi-enabled cell phone or PDA. It also supports remotes from Apple, ATI, Keyspan and many other manufacturers.

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Apple refreshed its Mac Mini. It’s available in two basic configurations, the first of which includes a 1.83GHz Core 2 Duo, 1GB of RAM, and an 80GB hard drive for $599, while $200 more will buy you a 2.0GHz Core 2 Duo, the same 1GB of RAM, and a 120GB hard drive. Both units come with Front Row and an Apple Remote, iLife ‘08, OS X 10.4, a DVI-to-VGA adapter, and the same cute box which I like.

Unfortunately, it’s still impossible to boot Plutohome Media Director on Mac Mini via PXE. Hope LinuxMCE will fill that gap. It’d be great to use such perfect inside and outside device as a part of Linux-based smarthome system.

[via Engadget]

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TVMax which is made by Miglia Technology brings you all the basic PVR features you would expect for a Mac including:

• Watch, pause, rewind and skip forward Live TV, timeshift on your Mac.
• Record and edit your favorite shows with a built in EPG (Electronic Program Guide).
• One click Apple iPod (writes directly to iTunes) or Sony PSP export.
• Hardware compression to MPEG-2, MPEG-4, DivX
• Convert VHS and Hi8 tapes to DVD

It seems the TVMax is good solution till the Apple iTV is not ready. Detailed review of the TVMax is available here.

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Apple is going to release iTV - a wireless video streaming set-top box in Q1 2007. It’s around half the Mac Mini height and features a built-in power supply, USB 2.0, Ethernet, 802.11 “wireless component video”, optical audio and HDMI ports, plus regular ol’ RCA stereo audio ports.

iTV will support a standart Apple remote and come with an updated version of the Front Row interface.

The iTV will half the Mac Mini height and its price’ll also half of the Mac Mini price - $299.

[via Engadget]

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