With Microsoft shifting Media Center to a legacy product, I too will be moving on soon. Looking back, Windows Media Center has had a good run in my house. It served my input-one well on every TV in my house for almost four years, something no other DVR has ever managed to do — I had the original HD DirecTiVo for just over two years and a couple of Series3 TiVos for about a year and a half. What’s sad is that even after four years, no other DVR manufacturer has surpassed it in my eyes, yet. I do suspect that is about to change, hence this post, but I’m not sure if it’ll be DirecTV’s new HR34 or a TiVo Elite and a couple of TiVo Previews.
What’s motivating me to change:
- A supported two-way IP control interface with documented API
- A great iPad app for DVR management and content discovery
- Remote scheduling
- Reliability
Media Center features that I can’t live without:
- An enjoyable and attractive user experience
- True whole home DVR functionality
- At least 4 tuners
- At least 1TB of disk space
- Access to premium HD content
Honestly, I’m leaning towards TiVo because although the HD UI might not ever be completed, the focus on the discovery of new content appeals to me. In addition, it means I can keep FiOS TV which I’m a fan of its package prices and superior picture quality (when compared to DirecTV). On the other hand, DirecTV works with RVU TVs, integrates DirecTV VOD and is already shipping (no Preview, no dice). At the same time I don’t care for DirecTV’s “lease” model and would prefer to just buy the hardware — at least I know what I’m getting.
It really is sad because I do think the user interface experience is superior on Media Center, but in the end dependability and new features trump it.
