EyeTV 250 vs EyeTV Hybrid

[MacHouse]

Any recommendations on which is the better choice? Primarily would be used for viewing ordinary cable (not digital) channels. It would be plugged into one of the new 24" iMac Intel machines most of the time with perhaps a chance that we would use it also on our 15" Powerbook G4 occasionally.

Thanks much!

 

[mulletman13]

AFAIK The 250 is a hardware encoder, while the Hybrid relies upon your CPU (therefore the PowerBook may not be able to record high quality things.)

The Hybrid would take up CPU cycles while the other would not. I'm not sure what the price difference is, but if it isn't that much I'd reccommend going with the 250.

 

[MacHouse]

250 vs Hybrid

Thanks. Does anyone have any firsthand experience using the eyeTV 250 or eyeTV hybrid on an iMac Intel?

 

[Neurorad]

Elegato EyeTV Hybrid is WORTHLESS

The Elgato EyeTV Hybrid is useless for trying to view or record HDTV in at least the Los Angeles area. Does fine with SD from a cable box, but cannot view HD feeds. The over-the-air nonsense is worthless. All local non-pay stations show up as "Encrypted". Regular SD TV is fair. I do stress the unit trying to display on a 30" monitor despite hardware that is as good as it can get (Mac Pro QUad 3.0, 6 GB Ram, ATI X1900XT video, RAID0 Raptors).

 

[nagromme]

You're blaming EyeTV (and cross-posting that same thing all over) but to be clear: are OTHER devices you have tried able to get HDTV over-the-air better than the EyeTV?

Knowing that would help judge if it's the antenna, interference, or some other issue rather than EyeTV being "worthless."

 

[Neurorad]

Hybrid

The point is, at least in the Los Angeles area, there does not appear to be ANY over-the-air HDTV that is accessible by the Elgato Hybrid. I have a powered/active antenna and live in direct site of the mountin-top location of the major broadcasting antena (Mt. Wilson). The Hybrid does see the regular non-pay/premium stations (such as KTLA), but it simply cannot display the images - it just says "Encrypted". Not necessarily the fault of the Hynrid - but still not a useful device if the advertised function is to receive these stations. The standard definition functions offer nothing new over other devices. The problem with over-the-air HDV my not be true for other locations, but people should be aware that they may not b able to view HDTV even if it exists in some form in their area. There may be other devices that can view the HDTV signal, but the specific question was if anyone had a Hybrid and I simply reported my experience. The Hybrid does not display ANY over-the-air HDTV signal where I live and thus is "worthless" if this is what you specifically bought it for. Actually, posting this info just wastes my time since I already bought one, so sorry to annoy you with my postings.

 

[markfc]

I use the eyeTV hybrid on my 20" iMac in the UK.

I cannot fault the product, picture quality is fantastic, I had to put a booster to get a decent freeview signal, but it was well worth it!

 

[nagromme]

I want an eyeTV hybrid for analog TV, and if I can get HDTV too that's great--but if not, I still want that digital capability for the future as programming increases, or in the event that I get a better antenna. I want ONE device to buy, for now and for the future. (And I'm never likely to buy premium cable content--cable is just NOT worth $1000+ per year to me)

The Hybrid does not display ANY over-the-air HDTV signal where I live and thus is "worthless" if this is what you specifically bought it for. Actually, posting this info just wastes my time since I already bought one, so sorry to annoy you with my postings.

Not annoying, I just wanted to know if you had narrowed down the problem to the EyeTV. It seems that you haven't, so this is useful to know. For all we know, as we make our own buying choices, your neighbor with a different antenna, or a different signal reflection from a nearby wall, might be using an EyeTV just fine. I haven't heard of that encryption problem before, and am curious to know what might cause that symptom. It may be that there's nothing you can do, at your location, to get HDTV from any device. Or there may be a bug in EyeTV. But L.A. is big, so even when you saying that EyeTV is worthless in L.A., that's not necessarily true. It's too general and there are too many factors involved.

In any case, thanks for sharing the info you have