Enter to Win: Roomate HTPC from VidaBox!

[dpristin]

Htpc

I have no reservations about purchasing a HTPC. I'm waiting for more HD content to become available.

 

[dbeistel]

No reservations in buying, in the process of building a house and theater room may concider Vidia box.

 

[jzac]

reasons...

Never bought one because of $$$$! Besides, I couldn't justify the use of it to spend that big bucks.... Also, lack of product support, free software updates, compatibility, effectiveness...etc are all factors that never led to buying one. Send me a freebee to test, and I'll let you know more!

 

[dabish]

REmote media HTPC

I would like to see hard drive of the larger catagory installed in these media PC's.

 

[wilkenboy]

#1: Price. Lets do the math:

1) Decent DVD/CD player: $150-300
2) DVR with dual-HD channel record capability, single channel watch: free, but $12 a month with my VZ FIOS service- $144 a year
3) Good scaler: $500

Total: $800

Average HTPC price: $1500

I know that with an HTPC you also get the capability to store your media to harddrive, also if you configure it right you can get a decent gaming PC). The problem is those aren't killer apps for me (although very attractive, not worth the extra cash).

If I had a lot more money to throw at a home theater the HTPC would DEFINETLY be on the list, but with a budget for speakers, projector, AVR of around $4000 (which is already a LOT to most folks) the additional $1500 is just untenable.

Now, if this component could do all of the above for around $800... I'd be there. And that's just a matter of time.



#2) Worries about integration: I really don't want a crippled device that does not integrate well from a usability with the rest of my system. The fundamental requirement here is that I should be able to access all functions without using a keyboard/mouse or need to get up off my lazy butt to fiddle plugs, buttons, etc. Basically it need to act like a consumer device, but convert to a PC when I want it to (for gaming)

When those two things are completely fixed, I'M IN. HTPC is the future.

~Josh

 

[talannar]

I have my computer, and I have my wife's laptop. I have a DVD player, and a DVR. I don't really feel the need to pay out and build a new computer specifically for my home theater at this time.

Does it appeal to me? Absolutely! Just not for the cost right now.

 

[brivnov]

MY first post

The main reason I have stayed away from HTPCs is general lack of support. To get one up and running with either Media Center or Pluto like application is relatively simple. Maintaining it is another thing all together. I have often thought about just purchasing one of these systems from a dealer, but the concern of maintenance still looms. I would love to have a working one for all of the great features they have.

I would love to read a user review from whomever wins this...

 

[JohnA]

Contest question: What reservations have you had about purchasing a HTPC/Media Center system? What has stopped your from getting one? Explain your choices and add any other reasons not listed on the poll.

The first stopping point is price...too much $$$ for what they do. Also I find too many issues with Windows software to put my "trust" it in.

Right now I have no need...I have SAT with a DVR, a computer that has all my media...so if I "need" to view or listen to stuff I just hook it up to my home theater system.

I like the idea but it is not practical right now.

 

[KC23]

VidaBox wants your opinion!

VidaBox is offering a FREE Roommate Original Media Center System to one (1) lucky eligible forum member (a $1499 value!).

For more information about the Roommate Original Edition click here ​

To be eligible to win, you must: 1) Be a registered Audioholics forum member, 2) Have USA or Canadian Residence 3) Respond to the poll above and explain your response below in this contest thread.

Contest question: What reservations have you had about purchasing a HTPC/Media Center system? What has stopped your from getting one? Explain your choices and add any other reasons not listed on the poll.

Note this contest ends on September 30th, 2006. Winners will be drawn shortly thereafter

Have fun and good luck!

Because computer technology just keeps getting cheaper and cheaper and better and better. They have seemed overpriced for what it really is. Not enough added features over what could be done by myself.

 

[chriscmore]

For me it's the constant balance between separate, dedicated units (e.g. DVD player, DVR, streaming device like a Slimbox) and their inherent simplicity and reliability versus a one-box PC solution that while may be integrated, is far from simple or reliable. When a single cheap box craps out, you can easily replace it. When an expensive HTPC craps out, you then either face a major purchase, or diving into hardware and software to try to fix it yourself, which is rarely fun for me. The "benefit" of a single box therefore turns out to be a disadvantage. And they can't bring in much for gaming power; otherwise the case gets large and loud. An Xbox 360 is far slicker and suits that purpose just fine.

I still hold out hope that Blu-Ray and HD-DVD drives would inexpensively drop into an HTPC and justify the whole effort, but so far the drives are in the $750-$1000 range alone. I jumped in whole heartedly to the Microsoft format WMV-HD, and to this day I plan 30 minutes to an hour to get a disc to play. I've never gotten T2 to play. So with history as my lesson, and recent developments such as Vista not allowing dual video card cross-communication, or not allowing HD material to play on 32-bit systems, makes me feel like I just paid a lot of money to a monopoly to make frustrating decisions FOR me. No thanks. I certainly want my PCs to be media-integrated, but trying to tame one down enough to be quiet in a HT environment and then expecting ease and reliability still seems elusive to me.

Hopefully Steve Jobs comes in and solves everything.

Cheers,
Chris

 

[mark4mich]

lack of funds and don't really know enough about the product.

 

[sandtrap]

The price is to high, but I have one anyway

We purchased an HDTV monitor 2 years ago. After a year I wanted to see some HD content. I decided to go with an OTA tuner in my PC. So now I have the MyHD-130 with DVI purchased with an unexpected Christmas bonus. Then when I discovered Charter encrypts the Broadcast HD channels I installed an Antennas Direct DB4 antenna.

Works great

 

[Mr. Lamb Fries]

Price is my main concern at the moment, but I'm surprised HDTV compatibility isn't one of the issues. This is one that needs to be addressed. HD is used primarily by your target market and that would have to be sorted out before you can market to the masses. HDTV compatibility would add value to a box that is an obvious premium over stand-alone components. If you're going to bother with the stability issues of an HTPC, there ought to be some added functionality that you can't easily get in and be compatable with existing equipment...not just for the present time, but for the future. Upgradeability needs to be virtually failsafe.

 

[ahdeeoh]

Crash

While I loath big box retailers for pc purchases, a brick and mortar location is easier to return to. With a pc's notorious ability to croak at the wrong time a place to get it fixed is a must. While arguing with a BB sales person is probably no more effective than endless emails to online retailers it is somewhat more cathartic.

 

[brianjof]

Roomate HTPC form VidaBox

I am not sure of the advantages of the product and because of that teh price does not fit into the budget of the system. MAybe woth some demo or seeing the product may change my mind.

 

[Jim Robbins]

I have attempted to build an HTPC already. I am a computer guy, and it just seemed like there were too many problems. It has been about a year since my last try, but the Sony DVR I bought seems to have very few problems in relation to all the problems I had with the HTPC. I tried using Windows media center with an ATI HDTV Wonder tuner card. I had to use hacked drivers to get both the NTSC and ATSC tuners working. After that, I could never get the guide to match all my channels. It seemed that there were always a couple of channels that had no guide info, or were just wrong. Also, the stupid thing was too loud, even though I put ultra low rpm fans, quiet HDs, etc, into it. I couldn't find an acceptable keyboard that actually worked across my living room. There were a lot of options, but they all either felt good to use, and dropped the connection, or were total crap for the feel and worked fine. I deal with computer problems and bugs everyday in my job, and I just didn't feel like having my "relaxing" home theater setup be extra work. I just want to sit down and have it work without thinking about it. Oh, and I can't use a cablecard or sat dish and record HD in a PC yet, either. I mean, my local channels are just fine and all, but there is other good content on pay movie channels that just looks great! Heck, if I can't DVR a show, then I probably can't watch it. Who has time to actually sit down when your movie or favorite tv show is on...

 

[nbourbaki]

I just don't feel the cost/benefit ratio is biased on the benefit side of the equation. If I had a fixed pixel display which needed some odd resolution it might be a different story. I have a CRT based rear projection set and I would worry about burn in with a HTPC.

 

[j_garcia]

Other: At the moment, a HTPC doesn't offer me anything I really need that I don't already get from a solid DVD player and receiver. I still don't really have a need for PC access in the living room, and do not really need to access MP3s on either of my systems.

 

[Jottle]

These media centers are always very pricey for the options they provide. Also, a good PC can do much of what the home theatre center offers for a fraction of the cost.

 

[rozumek]

No support for upcoming HDMI 1.3 and DTS-HD

I would not buy HTPC right now because it would lack support for HDMI 1.3 and upcoming sound formats especially DTS-HD. Finally I am waiting for a manufacturers to come up with universal player that supports HD DVD and Blu-ray with HDMI 1.3 with 1080p output. Another reason I would not buy HTPC is because it doesn't have iLink output which is a must have for me for the best possible quality music transfer for all my music on CD's SACD and DVD-A. Finally the price tag for HTPC is way too high, I would be willing to spend at most $1000 for HTPC. Finally I need a HTPC that is silent, I don't want to hear annoying loud fans in my already well sound isolated room.