Map quest
Once you’re in the web browser interface you can select a number of other options too. You can activate the Wi-Fi networking from there, create lists of favourite channels, and even modify the settings for the H.264 conversion.
Channel listings on the iPad
When it comes to remote TV viewing over the Internet, a spot of port-mapping on your router is required – a process that is far from intuitive, especially since most of the help files on the PCTV website are written in German. The addition of IR Blaster support in the latest firmware update also means that from a remote location you can change channel on your Sky box at home if lined up with the IR sender and hooked up to the aux analogue AV inputs on the Broadway 2T.
iPhone viewing
A remote Wi-Fi connection on my laptop did work well and provided smoothly streaming video, although the 3G connection on my iPhone tended to stutter occasionally - as well as inducing knee-trembling fear at the thought of busting my 3G data cap to smithereens.
Streaming data rate choices
But while the web browser interface is easy to use, it only allows you to watch live TV – there are no options for recording or timeshifting programmes. The Broadway does include an additional piece of - somewhat buggy - software called TV Center that provides these features, along with an EPG as well. However, TV Center only runs on Windows PCs and there are simply no recording options provided for Macs or iOS devices.
Recording on a PC using TV Center
Verdict
The Broadway 2T is a great device for streaming live TV to an iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad. But streaming is only half of the story, and the fact that the software for recording programs only runs on Windows is a bit of an own-goal given the Broadway 2T’s very clear emphasis on iOS – a platform that has an awful lot of users that run Macs. ®
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PCTV Broadway 2T network Freeview tuner
COMMENTS
Knobbled for Home Use again
It annoys me that when I can send 1080p+ signals down a gigabit connection, that for some reason when a clever consumer product like this, is restricted to 480p for Anti-piracy reasons. The unit is capable of 1080i with the DVB-t2 channels but we not allowed to stream those, so here's a unit with composite and low res output streaming. No wonder its targeted at IOS, problem is IOS just went 1080+ video capable with the 4s and ipad2.....
Knobbled Knobbled Knobbed and a total waste of money. We want 1080i/p streaming. Not this sh*t!
Or for approximately £160 less
http://www.tvcatchup.com/
VDR and Streamdev-server
You can do the same with VDR and the streamdev-server plugin. Plus you have a video disk recorder and can even export the EPG.
Ohh and it can either scale down the video, or stream the original video stream. Even HDTV in case you wonder.
power consumption
Hi,
Power consumption varies depending on wired vs wirelss, the quality profile used, bitrate of the channel, but for typical use while streaming it's significantly below 10w.
Benefit of not having PC on
PCTV also have DistanTV Mobile for those who do have a dedicated Home Theatre PC setup (that has enough CPU power to support transcoding of MPEG-2 -> H.264 in real time), however the Broadway has the benefit of not needing to have your PC turned on all the time, you can just plug the unit in and leave it.
