As a brief introduction to what this site is all about, I wanted to detail exactly how my Intel Mac Mini acts as a media hub to demonstrate what YOUR Mini can do for you!

I’ve had a couple of request lately for a chart detailing exactly how my HDTV/Mac set-up is, well, set up. So I opened up Photoshop and put this together, detailing all of the components involved in viewing and recording free(!) HD programming onto a Mac and then watching it over my home network on multiple [...]

A definitive list of apps that help my Mac Mini HTPC realize its full potential.
Plex - Amazing (and free) media manager/player that has no peer. Read my full review here.
EyeTV - The only real option for a Tivo-like experience on a Mac is thankfully well-tended by its developers at El Gato Systems. Use it to [...]

EyeTV is one of the cornerstones of my Mac home theatre system. I love the program and am eternally grateful to El Gato for continually refining and expanding the features it offers…particularly in light of the fact that there’s no real alternative for Mac users interested in an HDTV viewing/recording system.
So, based on the reality [...]

When I read about HDHomeRun being integrated into EyeTV’s software, I immediately ordered one from El Gato. I’ve been using two EyeTV 500 units to watch and record OTA HDTV programming for a while on my Mac HTPC and have been quite satisfied with the set-up. So, why the change? A few VERY compelling reasons.
1. [...]

Well, it’s been almost a year since so many EyeTV users vented their frustrations about the (de?)evolution of the EyeTV software since they first rolled out a Full Screen interface. I was one of the most vocal and a mea culpa of sorts is in order.
In particular, my furious position on the massive GUI overhaul [...]

Macworld offers a pretty thorough review of the EyeTV Hybrid. I shied away from this model due to the USB connection and the reviewer doesn’t mention the 500 (which I use x2), so it’s not entirely complete from my POV.
Regardless, it does sound awesome for folks on the road with Intel laptops…no way I’d drag [...]

Among the colossal missteps El Gato has made in recent releases sits a gift…version 2.3.2 introduces a surprisingly robust Picture-In-Picture feature.
DISCLAIMER: For some reason or another, there a lot of folks who think adding PIP means they just gained an additional tuner. They didn’t. You must have TWO EyeTV units to use PIP with two [...]

Yesterday around 6pm PST, El Gato released a new version of EyeTV’s software. Despite an avalanche of complaints from users over the major changes made in 2.3.1, El Gato ignored all of the major ones and even managed to cripple functionality a little more. Here we go:
THE GOOD
PIP - Adding Picture-In-Picture explains a lot about [...]

In my previous post, I detailed the compelling reasons why Front Row makes an excellent HD jukebox. But the one huge drawback is VLC’s weak .ts playback control. Jumping back and forward isn’t going to happen. A bookmark feature is nonexistant. Digital Output is not automatically selectable. But all three features are present and available [...]