How to Use Xbox One or PC as a TV DVR

[fpostrow]

Windows Media Center is truly amazing! I have a great setup with a Ceton cablecard with 4 tuners, so it works great as a DVR, Media Player, Movie Library, photo library, music library / player, etc....

I agree but at the same time the direction MS is heading is the correct one. Why they haven't made integrating a Ceton tuner into the 1 easier is disappointing. Utilizing a 360 as an Extender connected to the 1 is also just a preposterous notion. WMC is a fantastic solution but moving forward is a good thing provided it does not require the utilization of crappy cableco provided hardware. I just won't go back there. Come on MS, either fix this by integrating network tuners into the 1guide or release a WMC app for the 1. The latter would be a worse solution but would at least not be a step backwards with new hardware.

 

[oldpueblo]

I agree but at the same time the direction MS is heading is the correct one. Why they haven't made integrating a Ceton tuner into the 1 easier is disappointing. Utilizing a 360 as an Extender connected to the 1 is also just a preposterous notion. WMC is a fantastic solution but moving forward is a good thing provided it does not require the utilization of crappy cableco provided hardware. I just won't go back there. Come on MS, either fix this by integrating network tuners into the 1guide or release a WMC app for the 1. The latter would be a worse solution but would at least not be a step backwards with new hardware.

I'd like the tuner/media functionality in the xbone as well, but I've realized that I'd have my 360 connected regardless since we still play 360 games. It auto-boots into media center and turns on and off with my xbone automatically as well. So the only downside really is needing to have a second device powered on, just like everyone else would be leaving their cable box on. So it's not bad, just not optimal. I doubt they'll do the tuner thing because that directly undermines cable companies who their trying to work closer with. The extender functionality would be the only thing they can do I bet, but why bother when so few are using media center? I think this is as good as it gets.

 

[coip]

Just an FYI, but I came across the HW-150PVR on super discount here for only $33, $13 less than what I just paid for it on Amazon.com. Not sure if that site is legitimate, but it's worth looking into if you're sitting on the fence, $33 to use OneGuide is very worth it.

 

[fpostrow]

So, after the HTPC wouldn't work with the 1 and refusing to run a 360 through the 1 just to watch TV I brought one of our Linksys DMA2200's down, plugged it into the 1 and without changing a thing live HD TV in 1080p is playing. I haven't yet had a chance to see what works and what doesn't but... holy crap this is just fantastic as it was what I had hoped would work. Now I can move the HTPC away from the TV and simplify the setup. Kudos to the MS team for making this work. I formally apologize for taking so long to attempt the setup.

Update: I played around a little more today after clearing a foot of snow off the driveway and the DMA2200 works great with the 1guide and Kinect commands but ... I may gave to roll back from 8.1 to 7 due to stability issues with the Extender functionality. Connection drops are more common with 8.1than 7 which was flawless. 360's work great with MCE on 8.1 but given that these old boxes still work and MS won't release an App for the 1, which is just stupid, I may have no choice. Hey MS, App me or I'm rolling back. K?

So, no progress on this yet as I haven't had time to roll back BUT the TWCable app on 360 was just updated with support for live Network streaming which would be another acceptable workaround for this should the app ever get to the 1. Let's hope this happens soon.

 

[fpostrow]

Update to my update above. So, after doing a little more research and setting tweaks I have been able to get the DMA2200 running with much increased stability with Windows 8.1 on my HTPC. No more regular drops of the TV signal and very good interaction with the One via Kinect commands. Saying xBox Watch ESPN changes the channel, power on and off works for the entire setup. The one piece that is missing with 8.1 and the Extenders is access to recorded TV. I'll do some more tweaking to see if this is possible or if adding Hulu+ or just waiting for the TWC app to launch on the 1 is a better solution. Anyone else? The bottom line is I don't need to have the 360 running through the xBox 1 in order to integrate TV which is fantastic. Not perfect yet but very good.

 

[josborne31]

I just recently attempted to use the HomeWorx HM150-SC to convert my cable (comes in over Coax cable) to HDMI. FYI, this doesn't work. And MediaSonic even posted this on its website.
Very frustrating. If anyone has a suggestion about how to convert Coax to HDMI, I'm all ears.