WatchHDTV.net

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WatchHDTV is a free program to watch, timeshift, and record OTA HDTV with any Windows XP compatible HDTV Tuner card.  WatchHDTV is the main program for viewing and recording HDTV.  WatchHDTV Play is a file player to play any recordings made by WatchHDTV.  WatchHDTV Scheduler is the scheduler and silent recorder for WatchHDTV.  For ATI HDTV Wonder users, plug-ins are also included to use with the Remote Wonder.
 
 
Main Features-
  • Timeshifting-  Timeshift, pause, and replay live HDTV.  Skip forward and backwards in set intervals.  Ability to change channel while timeshifting to another channel without disrupting current channel.
  • Recording-  Record any channel live and can also schedule live recordings.
  • Silent Recording-  Ability to record silently, meaning without any windows or visible program running, saving the recording for later viewing.  CPU Usage is generally less than 10%, enabling your computer to be used for other tasks, including playing games with minimal CPU loss.
  • Multiple Tuner Support-  Can be used with more than one tuner by creating separate folders for each tuner and each WatchHDTV install.  Can watch/record/timeshift live with one tuner and silent record with another.  Can record silently with mutiple tuners at the same time.
  • Scheduler-  Schedule events to watch live, record live, timeshift, and silent record.  Can schedule one-time, daily and weekly events.
  • Full HD(1080i/720p) and AC3(Dolby Digital 5.1) recording

 

Benefits-

  • Small Size-  WatchHDTV, WatchHDTV Play, and WatchHDTV Scheduler are less than 500KB per program
  • Low CPU Usage-  less CPU intensive than other programs, leaving your computer with plenty of power to use for other tasks
  • Low RAM Usage-  uses less RAM than other programs, with initial RAM usage around 20MB for WatchHDTV(in comparison ATI MMC and DVICO FusionHDTV programs use anywhere from 50-100MB)
  • Built for Stability and Reliability-  Development of WatchHDTV was started due to instability and unreliability of ATI MMC and DVICO FusionHDTV software.  The primary goal for any release is to maintain stability and reliability.
  • Best of all- It's FREE!

 

Missing Features/Possible Future Development-

  • Integrated electronic program guide(EPG) like TitanTV
  • Closed Captioning
  • MCE-style interface
  • support for other file formats(.dvr-ms and .ts-transport streams- are the current formats)

System Requirements:
Windows XP required for Recording/Timeshifting(SP2 highly recommended)
Windows 2000 and MCE is unofficially supported- certain usage may work, but nothing is guaranteed.
HDTV Tuner Cards-  With version 1.960, all present and future compatible BDA HDTV tuners are now supported
Initially supported cards:
   ATI HDTV Wonder
   DVICO FusionHDTV series
   AverMedia A180
   VBox Tuners(150,151, USB)
   KWorld ATSC 110
   Artec USB T14A
   AutumnWave OnAir GT
   FujiPlus USB FD-USB728
   KWorld ATSC 310U
   ATI TV Wonder 650
   Hauppauge WinTV HVR-950
   Pinnacle PCTV HD Pro
   Geniatech U6010A USB
   Hauppauge WinTV HVR-1600
   ADS Instant HDTV
   HP/Hauppauge Expresscard HDTV
(Only HDTV Wonder, FusionHDTV 2, Hauppauge HVR950, and Geniatech U6010A are officially tested)- any Windows XP HDTV Tuner with BDA compatible drivers can be supported with a simple update
All other system requirements are similar to those stated by each tuner