Thought I’d give a little wrap-up of the SageTV news from today.
SageTV announced their next-generation, Extender/Media Player today after not having a CE extender available in their stores since June. Here’s coverage from GeekTonic and from around the web on the new HD300:
- First Look – SageTV HD300 - GeekTonic
- SageTV HD300 HD Theater Review – GeekTonic
- MissingRemote HD300 Review – Another perspective on the HD300 by Andrew Van Til of MissingRemote with a very detailed look
- SageTV Launches New HD Extender – Front Line Geek talks of the HD300 and how it may push him to move to CE Extenders in place of HTPCs
- MediaSmartServer.net’s SageTV Hd300 Coverage
- SageTV Forums – Always interesting to see the talk in the forums
I see the HD300 as yet another example of the small niche company, SageTV answering their key customers – the enthusiasts needs and wants. With the coming 3rd party UI Programs such as SageMyMovies, Project Ortus and Project Phoenix, the last few things I see missing from SageTV:
- CableCard. This is not an easy thing and may never happen for SageTV at least in the way MediaCenter has CableCard. It matters to some, but is it feasible for SageTV? We’'ll see, but it would be difficult in my opinion.
- Netflix, Amazon or other Online Streaming native. Yes, we have a great PlayOn plugin in SageTV that satisfies my current needs, but a native Netflix or other major online streaming app is something that would help SageTV get traction – especially in the standalone, media-player market. Now that we have a DRM-capable HD300 and SageTV apparently has a PlayReady license I put this much higher in the realm of possibilities. Not a word out of the SageTV folks so far though so we’ll have to wait and see.
- Mobile Placeshifting App - Placeshifting is something many non-SageTV folks don’t realize SageTV offers. It’s an awesome service that I use on occasion, but I think mobile placeshifting is where SageTV needs to go. Offer up a company-built & supported mobile streaming app for iPhone, iPad, Android and other mobile platforms and you round out the already very capable HTPC offerings.
What do you think? Is there something else you wish SageTV offered?
