ATI All-In-Wonder Versus Tivo
Let's say you are ready for a new computer and you are also ready to get a Digital Video Recorder (DVR). Why not combine the two by getting a new computer with an ATI All-In-Wonder video card?
Or perhaps you just got a new computer and you are wondering what to do with the old computer. You have a family Tivo but could really use a personal one. Why not add an All-In-Wonder card to your old computer and turn it into your personal DVR?
This review should give you an idea of whether Tivo is better for your needs or an ATI All-In-Wonder is the way to go.
Introduction
Our family has a Tivo (http://www.tivo.com). It is superb. It is excellent. It really improves the TV watching experience.
But the Tivo does have it's weaknesses. First, there is the user interface. If you've ever tried to type "La Femme Nikita" by using up/down/left/right arrow keys on a remote control to move a cursor to "L" followed by "Enter", then using up/down/left/right arrow keys to move a cursor to "A" followed by "Enter", etc. you know how tedious that can be.
Also, using up/down/left/right keys on a remote control for menu selection is so 80's. A mouse is much better technology.
The All-In-Wonder, using computer mouse and keyboard, has an immediate edge.
Next, there is the "open systems" issue. Tivo is a closed system (ironic that the Tivo, built with Linux, would be "closed" while the All-In-Wonder running under Windows would be considered the "open" system). You cannot easily modify or add to the Tivo. Actually, there are hackers out there (http://www.tivofaq.com/hack/) who have figured out how to do things like add an Ethernet card or bigger hard drive, but it is certainly not easy to do.
As you can see from the Hacking Tivo website, there are many people who do not want to use a dialup modem to get TV listings and would prefer using their DSL or cable modem. In addition, some people think it should be easier to upgrade or expand their system by just adding a bigger hard drive.
Using an always on Internet connection, instead of a dialup modem, is a huge deal and perhaps a showstopper for some people. What about people that cannot have their phone line tied up and have to keep the line open? What about people who have cancelled their home phone service and just use cellular? What about people in the boonies who don't have a local Tivo number to call? Are they supposed to dial long distance every day for new listings?
Next, there is the issue of price. You can get a good Tivo for about $400 but in addition expect to pay $9.95 / month or $200 lifetime for TV listings. Advantage: All-In-Wonder has free TV listings.
Finally, there is the screen size issue. My computer display is set for 1280 x 1024 so I can show lots of pixels and get a ton of information on the screen. The Tivo looks to show stuff at about 320 x 240. In practice what that means is that when I look at TV listings with the All-In-Wonder I see 4 or 5 times as much information which translates to less scrolling and paging and a more enjoyable experience. Advantage: All-In-Wonder.
Installation
The Tivo installation is fairly painless, but takes a while. Tivo easily handled the issue of dialing an area code before the number. The initial phone call to download the TV listings took about 2 hours. Each nightly call for new listings takes much less time and can be scheduled at 3 AM or some other convenient time.
The selection of TV service could be a problem for some people. If you have different types of service in your area code, you will be guessing to match your service with what Tivo has listed. For example, we have analog cable, digital cable, cable upgrade, and digital converter in our area. I guessed wrong the first time and had to start over. (All-In-Wonder has the right idea on this. They list 3 channels (ABC 50, ABC 5, ABC 17) and have you select which system has those channels on those numbers.)
All-In-Wonder installation could be a problem. The initial install did not work for my system and I had to download new drivers before it would work. Also, the DVD player never did install properly for me (I don't care, I'm not interested in watching DVDs, I have a real DVD player for that).
The Good
Tivo does exactly what you would expect from a quality DVR. It allows you to select shows to record from the TV listings, rewind and pause live TV, give a list of shows recorded and available to watch, etc. Plus it does a lot more.
The Season Pass manager is great. You select a show and it will record it anytime it is shown. You never have to set up weekly recording. Plus, if the show changes time, Tivo will find it and record it on it's new day and time.
I like the capability to record first run only. That way it will not record reruns but will catch every new show and have it available for viewing.
Conflict resolution works well. If I try to schedule "Son of the Beach" to record but it conflicts with the scheduled recording of "Emeril Live!" that my wife has selected, Tivo warns me and asks me which one to record. Now you know why I want a personal DVR.
I like that Tivo saves the program description along with the show. So before I watch the show I recorded, I can read the description and skip it if it doesn't sound interesting or I've seen it before. Of course, it doesn't always work. (Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Buffy slays demons and saves the world. Hey, she does that every show!).
The Bad
Please pardon me if I start foaming at the mouth while writing about the All-In-Wonder here.
With the All-In-Wonder, downloading the initial week of TV listings was no problem. Surprisingly, it took about an hour with the fast cable modem. Maybe the GuidePlus website was busy.
The next week getting the new listings was a problem. I could never get a connection to the GuidePlus server even after trying 4 or 5 times over the period of a day. Worse, while the GuidePlus software was running, I could not get any kind of an Internet connection. No IE, no email. Even if I just started the GuidePlus software and didn't download the TV listings, I still could not get an Internet connection with IE.
Perhaps a hardware conflict?
I noticed that the GuidePlus software has a small TV display screen so you can watch TV while looking at the TV listings in the rest of the screen. Initially, before I download the first weeks listings, that small TV window is blank. Maybe displaying the TV picture eats up all the PCI bandwidth (yes, I got the PCI All-In-Wonder rather than the AGP version) and there is nothing left for the network card?
Whatever the problem, while there is TV playing, I get no Internet connection.
For week 2, I find that I can uninstall the GuidePlus software, then reinstall it, then download the TV listings. So having done that, it's time to press on.
What is missing on the All-In-Wonder? No Season Pass and no pause/rewind live TV. Bummer.
Managing recorded shows is not convenient. When you select something to record, you are asked for a filename. The default file name is rather cryptic and consists of the channel, show name, date and time concatenated. The All-In-Wonder does not save any show description with the recording so I guess you're supposed to remember it.
After watching a recorded show, the file player software just stops. If you want to delete it, you have to remember what you just watched and then use Windows Explorer to go delete the file. The Tivo asks if you want to delete something after you finish viewing it which is nice.
In addition, the All-In-Wonder does not shut off the TV window after a timed recording. Come back hours later and you can see the TV playing on the channel it previously was recording.
The GuidePlus TV listings are not as descriptive as the Tivo listings. Most of the shows will just list the title and if you select details all you get is the date, time, and channel. With the Tivo, most every show has a one or two sentence description of that particular episode. Maybe it's worth $9.95 / month for the Tivo listings.
Now for the really bad stuff.
There is no way to schedule TV listing downloads with the All-In-Wonder. It has to be manually started once a week for new listings.
There is a file size limitation of 2 GB with fat32 which is 1 hour and 10 minutes at best resolution. So I can't record the 2 hour Bonzai movie on Friday night while I'm out on a hot date. Grrrr.
Programmers have worked around Windows limitations for decades. Would it have been so difficult for the ATI programmers to create software to automatically split long shows into two or more files and keep recording? I guess so.
The All-In-Wonder saves a recording into a temporary file and when the recording completes copies the file to where you wanted it. It takes 5 minutes to copy the file and during those 5 minutes you can't record anything else. What that means is that if a show ends at 9 P.M. and a show starts at 9 P.M. and you want to record both, then you miss the first 5 minutes of the later show.
Wait, it gets worse.
Often times some channels will run marathons. I set the All-In-Wonder to record 5 consecutive Highlander Raven shows on Sci-Fi while I was at work. When I came home, the first, third, and fifth shows were recorded. Evidently, that 5 minutes it takes to copy the file caused it to miss the timed recording of the second and forth episodes.
Perhaps I could manually set it up to record 5 consecutive hours? No can do. Remember the 1 hour 10 minute fat32 limit?
The Ugly (Conclusions)
Tivo is a much better DVR than the All-In-Wonder.
To say I'm surprised is an understatement. Amazed and shocked is more like it.
The All-In-Wonder has some huge natural advantages: open system, better user interface, etc. But they squandered those advantages and created a substandard product. Tivo kicks the ATI All-In-Wonder in the backside when it could (should?) be the other way around.
Sigh.
Let's say you are ready for a new computer and you are also ready to get a Digital Video Recorder (DVR). Why not combine the two by getting a new computer with an ATI All-In-Wonder video card?
Or perhaps you just got a new computer and you are wondering what to do with the old computer. You have a family Tivo but could really use a personal one. Why not add an All-In-Wonder card to your old computer and turn it into your personal DVR?
This review should give you an idea of whether Tivo is better for your needs or an ATI All-In-Wonder is the way to go.
Introduction
Our family has a Tivo (http://www.tivo.com). It is superb. It is excellent. It really improves the TV watching experience.
But the Tivo does have it's weaknesses. First, there is the user interface. If you've ever tried to type "La Femme Nikita" by using up/down/left/right arrow keys on a remote control to move a cursor to "L" followed by "Enter", then using up/down/left/right arrow keys to move a cursor to "A" followed by "Enter", etc. you know how tedious that can be.
Also, using up/down/left/right keys on a remote control for menu selection is so 80's. A mouse is much better technology.
The All-In-Wonder, using computer mouse and keyboard, has an immediate edge.
Next, there is the "open systems" issue. Tivo is a closed system (ironic that the Tivo, built with Linux, would be "closed" while the All-In-Wonder running under Windows would be considered the "open" system). You cannot easily modify or add to the Tivo. Actually, there are hackers out there (http://www.tivofaq.com/hack/) who have figured out how to do things like add an Ethernet card or bigger hard drive, but it is certainly not easy to do.
As you can see from the Hacking Tivo website, there are many people who do not want to use a dialup modem to get TV listings and would prefer using their DSL or cable modem. In addition, some people think it should be easier to upgrade or expand their system by just adding a bigger hard drive.
Using an always on Internet connection, instead of a dialup modem, is a huge deal and perhaps a showstopper for some people. What about people that cannot have their phone line tied up and have to keep the line open? What about people who have cancelled their home phone service and just use cellular? What about people in the boonies who don't have a local Tivo number to call? Are they supposed to dial long distance every day for new listings?
Next, there is the issue of price. You can get a good Tivo for about $400 but in addition expect to pay $9.95 / month or $200 lifetime for TV listings. Advantage: All-In-Wonder has free TV listings.
Finally, there is the screen size issue. My computer display is set for 1280 x 1024 so I can show lots of pixels and get a ton of information on the screen. The Tivo looks to show stuff at about 320 x 240. In practice what that means is that when I look at TV listings with the All-In-Wonder I see 4 or 5 times as much information which translates to less scrolling and paging and a more enjoyable experience. Advantage: All-In-Wonder.
Installation
The Tivo installation is fairly painless, but takes a while. Tivo easily handled the issue of dialing an area code before the number. The initial phone call to download the TV listings took about 2 hours. Each nightly call for new listings takes much less time and can be scheduled at 3 AM or some other convenient time.
The selection of TV service could be a problem for some people. If you have different types of service in your area code, you will be guessing to match your service with what Tivo has listed. For example, we have analog cable, digital cable, cable upgrade, and digital converter in our area. I guessed wrong the first time and had to start over. (All-In-Wonder has the right idea on this. They list 3 channels (ABC 50, ABC 5, ABC 17) and have you select which system has those channels on those numbers.)
All-In-Wonder installation could be a problem. The initial install did not work for my system and I had to download new drivers before it would work. Also, the DVD player never did install properly for me (I don't care, I'm not interested in watching DVDs, I have a real DVD player for that).
The Good
Tivo does exactly what you would expect from a quality DVR. It allows you to select shows to record from the TV listings, rewind and pause live TV, give a list of shows recorded and available to watch, etc. Plus it does a lot more.
The Season Pass manager is great. You select a show and it will record it anytime it is shown. You never have to set up weekly recording. Plus, if the show changes time, Tivo will find it and record it on it's new day and time.
I like the capability to record first run only. That way it will not record reruns but will catch every new show and have it available for viewing.
Conflict resolution works well. If I try to schedule "Son of the Beach" to record but it conflicts with the scheduled recording of "Emeril Live!" that my wife has selected, Tivo warns me and asks me which one to record. Now you know why I want a personal DVR.
I like that Tivo saves the program description along with the show. So before I watch the show I recorded, I can read the description and skip it if it doesn't sound interesting or I've seen it before. Of course, it doesn't always work. (Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Buffy slays demons and saves the world. Hey, she does that every show!).
The Bad
Please pardon me if I start foaming at the mouth while writing about the All-In-Wonder here.
With the All-In-Wonder, downloading the initial week of TV listings was no problem. Surprisingly, it took about an hour with the fast cable modem. Maybe the GuidePlus website was busy.
The next week getting the new listings was a problem. I could never get a connection to the GuidePlus server even after trying 4 or 5 times over the period of a day. Worse, while the GuidePlus software was running, I could not get any kind of an Internet connection. No IE, no email. Even if I just started the GuidePlus software and didn't download the TV listings, I still could not get an Internet connection with IE.
Perhaps a hardware conflict?
I noticed that the GuidePlus software has a small TV display screen so you can watch TV while looking at the TV listings in the rest of the screen. Initially, before I download the first weeks listings, that small TV window is blank. Maybe displaying the TV picture eats up all the PCI bandwidth (yes, I got the PCI All-In-Wonder rather than the AGP version) and there is nothing left for the network card?
Whatever the problem, while there is TV playing, I get no Internet connection.
For week 2, I find that I can uninstall the GuidePlus software, then reinstall it, then download the TV listings. So having done that, it's time to press on.
What is missing on the All-In-Wonder? No Season Pass and no pause/rewind live TV. Bummer.
Managing recorded shows is not convenient. When you select something to record, you are asked for a filename. The default file name is rather cryptic and consists of the channel, show name, date and time concatenated. The All-In-Wonder does not save any show description with the recording so I guess you're supposed to remember it.
After watching a recorded show, the file player software just stops. If you want to delete it, you have to remember what you just watched and then use Windows Explorer to go delete the file. The Tivo asks if you want to delete something after you finish viewing it which is nice.
In addition, the All-In-Wonder does not shut off the TV window after a timed recording. Come back hours later and you can see the TV playing on the channel it previously was recording.
The GuidePlus TV listings are not as descriptive as the Tivo listings. Most of the shows will just list the title and if you select details all you get is the date, time, and channel. With the Tivo, most every show has a one or two sentence description of that particular episode. Maybe it's worth $9.95 / month for the Tivo listings.
Now for the really bad stuff.
There is no way to schedule TV listing downloads with the All-In-Wonder. It has to be manually started once a week for new listings.
There is a file size limitation of 2 GB with fat32 which is 1 hour and 10 minutes at best resolution. So I can't record the 2 hour Bonzai movie on Friday night while I'm out on a hot date. Grrrr.
Programmers have worked around Windows limitations for decades. Would it have been so difficult for the ATI programmers to create software to automatically split long shows into two or more files and keep recording? I guess so.
The All-In-Wonder saves a recording into a temporary file and when the recording completes copies the file to where you wanted it. It takes 5 minutes to copy the file and during those 5 minutes you can't record anything else. What that means is that if a show ends at 9 P.M. and a show starts at 9 P.M. and you want to record both, then you miss the first 5 minutes of the later show.
Wait, it gets worse.
Often times some channels will run marathons. I set the All-In-Wonder to record 5 consecutive Highlander Raven shows on Sci-Fi while I was at work. When I came home, the first, third, and fifth shows were recorded. Evidently, that 5 minutes it takes to copy the file caused it to miss the timed recording of the second and forth episodes.
Perhaps I could manually set it up to record 5 consecutive hours? No can do. Remember the 1 hour 10 minute fat32 limit?
The Ugly (Conclusions)
Tivo is a much better DVR than the All-In-Wonder.
To say I'm surprised is an understatement. Amazed and shocked is more like it.
The All-In-Wonder has some huge natural advantages: open system, better user interface, etc. But they squandered those advantages and created a substandard product. Tivo kicks the ATI All-In-Wonder in the backside when it could (should?) be the other way around.
Sigh.
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram