# Engadget Says The HTPC Is Done



## Guest (Jan 15, 2011)

http://www.engadget.com/2011/01/14/t...-media-center/

Looks like alot of members here were right about thinking that DTV probably thought that DTV USB tuner was just for a niche market and that is why they cancelled it. Engadget also says the HTPC is just a niche market and that the HTPC was just to complex for non geeks.

I wonder if they will make an RVU adapter card for PC's?

Microsoft is going to port Windows Media Center to Windows Embedded 7.

Microsoft says its going to make Windows 7 Embedded available to STB makers. Imagine all that on DTV HD DVR's and HD Receivers?


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## JoeTheDragon (Jul 21, 2008)

CraigerCSM said:


> http://www.engadget.com/2011/01/14/the-home-theater-pc-is-dead-long-live-windows-media-center/
> 
> Looks like alot of members here were right about thinking that DTV probably thought that DTV USB tuner was just for a niche market and that is why they cancelled it. Engadget also says the HTPC is just a niche market and that the HTPC was just to complex for non geeks.
> 
> ...


Alot of the blame goes to the cable card mess and the tru2way mess.

The cable co pulled out all the stops so they can keep you renting there boxes at $8-$16+ /m each.


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## gregjones (Sep 20, 2007)

HTPC is far from dead. Windows Media Center just isn't the focus anymore.

They focused a lot of effort on Live TV and DVR functionality. Quite honestly, dedicated DVRs are superior in a number of ways for the great majority of customers. HTPCs get most of their energy today around other content (DVD/BluRay collections online at all times), organizing movies so they can be cross-referenced by genre, director, cast, etc.

My DVR has stuff on and off of it in a few weeks. Stuff worth keeping goes onto my HTPC without commercials and in pristine quality.


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## bonscott87 (Jan 21, 2003)

There are a LOT of options out there besides WMC (SageTV for example). Plus, even if they don't include it in Win 8 or beyond, my Win 7 machine works just fine and will for many years. And there is always Linux. 

Plenty of options. 

And that Engadget article has so many inaccuracies and FUD I can't take it seriously anyway. Thousands for an HTPC? Please. Even a pre-build Dell or HP shouldn't cost more then $500 or $600 and that's the *high* end.


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## SayWhat? (Jun 7, 2009)

gregjones said:


> My DVR has stuff on and off of it in a few weeks. *Stuff worth keeping goes onto my HTPC without commercials and in pristine quality.*


How?


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## Davenlr (Sep 16, 2006)

SayWhat? said:


> How?


Hauppauge HDPVR and an editor?


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## hdtvfan0001 (Jul 28, 2004)

bonscott87 said:


> And that Engadget article has so many inaccuracies and FUD I can't take it seriously anyway. Thousands for an HTPC? Please. Even a pre-build Dell or HP shouldn't cost more then $500 or $600 and that's the *high* end.


Agree - based on a profound track record of inaccuracy, misinformation, and faulty forecasts, many predictions by Engadget of almost anything should not be taken seriously.


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## phrelin (Jan 18, 2007)

As I read the article, the thesis is the first paragraph:


> We've had a fascination with home theater PCs since the first time we saw video running on a PC -- remember Intel MMX? There's something empowering about seeing video run on a PC, and there's been a PC connected to our TV ever since. In fact, we use an HTPC now and have enjoyed its benefits for what feels like forever. But all that being said, we wouldn't offer to set one up for a friend, and we wouldn't give our mother one, ever. The problem is that while a computer geek can make an HTPC do just about anything, a typical user has a hard enough time using a PC to surf the web. There are just too many things that can go wrong, and with the exception of some very high-end models, commercial HTPCs are non-existent. HP stopped making 'em four years ago. Dell never even bothered. Nope, no matter how hard PC manufactures and Microsoft try, HTPCs simply will never go mainstream.


When I read "HP stopped making 'em four years ago" I went into a panic. What was this thing I was reading the article on????

So I had to go to Wikipedia to make sure I hadn't missed some redefinition of the term. But no, it says:


> A Home Theater PC (HTPC) or Media Center applicance is a convergence device that combines some or all the capabilities of a personal computer with a software application that supports video, photo, and music playback, and sometimes digital video recorder functionality.


So then I thought maybe the article misstated when "HP stopped making 'em." So I went to the HP store site on their top line of desktops and found this information:








Well, there went that author's credibility. Yeah, there never was a time I would set up an HTPC for anyone else, but what's he writing about. OH! I get it. Microsoft is giving up on Windows Media Center. Heck, I never used Windows Media Center.

I guess if Microsoft gives up on their Win 7 phone, that will signal the death of the smart phone for this guy!:nono:


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## BobaBird (Mar 31, 2002)

The article may have been referring to a pre-configured model. Many of the pieces that might be considered essential for an HTPC are listed on the store site as optional.


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## phrelin (Jan 18, 2007)

BobaBird said:


> The article may have been referring to a pre-configured model. Many of the pieces that might be considered essential for an HTPC are listed on the store site as optional.


Actually, right now they show three "quick ship" models with a built in HDTV tuner though they say:


> ATSC high-definition (HD) and NTSC source content varies and will depend on broadcast signal, antenna, geographic location and other factors. An external over-the-air antenna that receives UHF and VHF signals is requiredfor ATSC reception. Viewing HD content will require a compatible high-definition display. Ability to record, edit, or transfer broadcast content such as TV programming may be limited depending on the type of content. Performance issues may arise, and do not constitute defects in the product. For optimal results, HP recommends closing all other applications while recording and watching television programs.


They also say "connect your Xbox, Wii, or Playstation through the HDMI or composite inputs". These are in their TouchSmart line which is a whole different ballgame with apps and all. They say: "Browse and watch new releases with a touch of a finger. CinemaNow has more than 12,000 movies."

Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't buy one because in many ways these models aren't flexible enough for my use. But they offer them and I cannot remember a time in the past four years they did not offer HTPC models.


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## klang (Oct 14, 2003)

I think the point is they are no longer being marketed as a purpose built HTPC.


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## harsh (Jun 15, 2003)

klang said:


> I think the point is they are no longer being marketed as a purpose built HTPC.


I think it has more to do with the relative disappearance of the Home Theater Appliance.


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## phrelin (Jan 18, 2007)

I'm not quite sure what a Home Theater Appliance is, but the article is clearly about the home theater PC and the embedding of Windows Media Center:


> We've had a fascination with home theater PCs since the first time we saw video running on a PC -- remember Intel MMX?
> 
> ...No, the problem is there's no mainstream market for an HTPC, so realistically-speaking, another few billion dumped into marketing wouldn't have changed a thing (c.f. Kin). Consumer electronics have to be like an appliance, they just need to work. Even some top brass at Microsoft use a TiVo as a DVR instead of a HTPC because they just work. This all makes it easy to understand why Microsoft has re-purposed its software and lined up new partners for an embedded version of Windows 7 Media Center.


So I think it has something to do with the Home Theater Appliance replacing the Home Theater PC which, of course, gets one into the shifting world of terminology.

What HP is trying to do now is have the best of both worlds or of the current video service world - a touchscreen PC that is A/V "app" oriented and could function like a dedicated appliance. Personally, I'll stick with a HTPC and my Dish DVR's. But it's an interesting approach to the current market.

My problem with the article is that it gives too much power to Windows Media Center and really ends up saying Windows Media Center on a PC is not really dead. As one commenter noted:


> I'm sorry, the HTPC is NOT dead. First of all, even if Microsoft dropped Media Center from their Desktop Operating systems, there are PLENTY of media center solutions out there that can (and will) give Microsoft a run for their money like XBMC, SageTV, and others. And you could always run your HTPC via linux and still have a nice system with the likes of XBMC on it.
> 
> What is happening with the Windows Embedded thing IS cool. The HTPC will most likely remain a "power user" solution to digital media entertainment, I can agree with that. I certainly wouldn't call it a niche as all of these devices belong to the same "niche", the HTPC is just the most complicated of the bunch. So yes, I agree with you in the point that these new devices (which to me only validate Google TV and now Yahoo Connected TV's concept), have the best chance at enticing the average user towards the Nirvana that is the "connected home".
> 
> Enough of the shock value claims about this or that technology's death, you guys are better writers than that!....


The thing for me was that when I stopped assembling my own computers, I started using HP machines. So when he said of the HTPC "HP stopped making 'em four years ago" big red flags started waving on my less-than-a-year-old HP HTPC.:sure:

On the other hand, HP quit making TV's a few years ago though they sell other brands in their on line store.


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## brant (Jul 6, 2008)

phrelin said:


> When I read "HP stopped making 'em four years ago" I went into a panic. What was this thing I was reading the article on????


HP used to make a device called the Digital Entertainment Center; it was a set-top-box w/ DVD player running XP MCE; the rear panel looked nothing like a computer, but just like any other cable box or DVD player, as did the case for the DEC itself. It had a MFD on the front indicating what type of media you were watching/listening to. That is what your article referred to.

I've been an avid HTPC user for the past two years; I have a love hate relationship with it. I love the media center, hate the computer.

In its defense, I am a tinkerer, and as my wife likes to say; "you fix things that aren't broken, and then you break it". Guilty as charged. 

With windows media center, I see a device with huge potential that is limited by its creators in content *distribution*.

With sage, you have unlimited distribution through a very nice extender model, but limited capabilities for adding live content, and its missing a few great features that WMC offers.

Over the past few weeks, i've considered getting a dish network 922 receiver, a few roku boxes, and media streamers like the popcorn hour and giving up my HTPC as an all-in-one solution. the idea of the HTPC is great, and when everything is setup properly it can be the best experience you've ever had on TV.


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