Features

TC tuner

The most obvious omission from the Mac mini is a TV tuner. There may be a reason for this. Apple is on its way to becoming a major distribution channel for TV programmes delivered over the Internet. It almost certainly sees IP-based delivery as the future of TV, which will one day replace traditional linear broadcasting over airwaves, cable and satellite.

However, that's still some way off. For now, if you want to watch and record TV on a Mac mini, you'll need a TV tuner. Three companies - Elgato, Miglia and Formac - make TV tuners. All three have their own software for viewing and recording TV, and Miglia also uses Elgato's Eye TV software for its TV Mini.

Elgato's EyeTV hardware can connect to terrestrial, cable or satellite TV systems and hooks up to your Mac using FireWire. If you want to watch and record cable or satellite on your Mac, you should opt for the relevant EyeTV - 310 for satellite and 610 for cable.

If you want to watch and record digital terrestrial TV, you have a few more options. Miglia's TV Mini, Elgato's EyeTV for DTT, and Formac's Watchandgo USB all connect to your Mac using USB 2. The Miglia and Elgato devices use identical antennae and the same software, EyeTV 2 (see Reviews, 3 February 2006, p37). The Watchandgo uses a more powerful antennae and Formac's own software. All the devices allow you to watch live TV, pause it, record it and schedule recordings using either your Mac's keyboard and mouse or a supplied remote control. EyeTV 2 uses information from www.tvtv.co.uk for its programme guide and you need to pay an annual subscription of £15 for this service, although you get one free year when you buy the tuner. The Watchandgo gets its TV guide from the freeview, over-the-air guide and doesn't need a subscription.

In our tests, the Watchandgo was the only device that could pick up a signal in the MacUser office - a notorious reception black spot - although not on every channel. However, the price to be paid for that is a 13 x 19cm aerial. If you live in an area that has good reception, you may be better going for either the EyeTV for DTT or TV Mini. The EyeTV for DTT comes in the form of a matchbox-sized box with cable and antennae, whereas the TV mini looks like a slightly overweight iPod shuffle and can plug straight into a USB port. Our preference in terms of software is for EyeTV 2, as it allows iTunes-like playlists to be set up and has a powerful search facility for researching the programme guide. It also has one-click encoding for iPod video. Both applications allow you to edit clips and to de-interlace the TV signal on the fly for smoother viewing.

If you're not concerned about digital TV and just want to watch and record the five analogue terrestrial channels, Miglia's Evolution TV provides another option. It performs video encoding in the box rather than relying on your Mac.

The EyeTV software is now available as a Universal Binary for native performance on Intel-based Macs - Miglia's Universal Binary edition is imminent.

	1 TV tuner accessories