HDHomeRun

HDHomeRun is a networked digital TV Tuner box, produced by Silicondust.

General Details

There are currently 4 HDHomeRun models on the market: a single-tuner ATSC/clear QAM model, a dual-tuner ATSC/clear QAM model, a dual-tuner commercial (TECH) ATSC/clear QAM model, and a dual-tuner DVB-T/unencrypted DVB-C model. All models are designed to receive unencrypted digital broadcast or cable television and stream it over a network for use by any PC on the network. HDHomeRun normally receives an IP address via DHCP but will also work via an auto IP address if no DHCP server is available.

The HDHomeRun Windows driver presents the tuners as standard BDA tuners, enabling BDA-compliant applications to work with the HDHomeRun. The HDHomeRun can also be controlled via a command-line application which is available for Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, FreeBSD, and other POSIX-compliant operating systems. The control library is open source and is available under the LGPL for use in custom applications.

Retail packaged HDHomeRun units are distributed with Arcsoft TotalMedia Theatre.

Technical specifications

ATSC models

• 8VSB (ATSC over-the-air digital TV)
• QAM 64/256 (unencrypted digital cable TV)
• 100Mbit Ethernet RJ45 connection

DVB model

• DVB-T over-the-air unencrypted digital TV
• QAM 64/128/256 (annex A/C) unencrypted digital cable TV (DVB-C)
• 6/7/8 MHz channel bandwidth (Australia, Europe, New Zealand, Taiwan)
• 100Mbit Ethernet RJ45 connection

Compatibility

The HDHomeRun can be controlled and viewed from a wide variety of DVR/PVR software. Official software exists for Microsoft Windows, Linux, and Mac OS X.

• Microsoft Windows Media Center:
  • Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005
  • Windows Vista Media Center
  • Windows Media Center TV Pack 2008
  • Windows 7 Media Center
• Beyond TV (Microsoft Windows)
• SageTV (Microsoft Windows Linux, Mac OS X)
• MediaPortal (Microsoft Windows)
• GB-PVR (Microsoft Windows)
• EyeTV (Mac)
• MythTV (Linux, other Unix-type platforms including Mac OS X)
• Plex (software), a software fork of XBMC Media Center for Mac OS X
• Pluto (multi-platform)
• TellyServer (OTA ATSC Streaming from Windows PC to iPad/iPhone)
• Signal GH (iPhone App to optimize antenna performance).
• VLC (VideoLAN Client media player) (multi-platform)
• XBMC Media Center (formerly "XBox Media Center")

Future products

On January 7, 2010, Silicondust announced that they are developing a tri-tuner HDHomeRun model with support for CableCARD.

See also

• Monsoon HAVA
• Dreambox
• DBox2
• Slingbox
• LocationFree Player

External links

Official sites

• Official website (hdhomerun.com)
• Official community forum (at silicondust.com)
• Official Twitter page

Reviews

• Engadget
• PVRWire
• Linux.com
• mr. Obsession