CroNiX:

NoogMan:

The cards aren't coming anytime soon, so hold your thoughts til June-August.  If they wanted to make a TON of cash off of these cards they would have a definite date (responding to the forum) now that it's closer to the anticipated shipping date.  I won't happen the end of this month.  We are still months out, or Ceton doesn't understand marketing at all. They have built anticipation, and left potential customers hanging.  I'll be buying 2, but it won't be until it's out in 3rd quarter 2010.

 

I think you're rushing to judgment.  Ceton has said end of Q1/2010 and that's the end of this month.  Maybe we should wait until that date before "guessing" whats going on or speculating that it won't happen.  Most of the "anticipation" has been due to people itching to get this card and not posts made by Ceton reps.  You could probably fill about 2 or 3 pages with real answers from Ceton reps and the other 100+ are us speculating and dreaming and wishing and wanting.  We've built the anticipation, not them.  Its not like they have ads up everywhere.  Let's just wait until the official date, which they say is end of Q1.  Almost there, not quite yet.

 

CES 2009 they said it would be released in 2009. DId it happen? No. Now Centon says by March 31st of this year and unless I am mistaken, they have yet to even turn it in for Cable Labs approval.

jeremyh:

bjdraw:

radams:

 so i should be able to move the cable card from my Tivo into the Ceton tuner without Verizon (Fios) coming out to pair it?

 

Actually you shouldn't, but FiOS doesn't seem to pair the cards with the tuner so you can. In fact I review lots of CableCARD devices for Engadget and I swap my FiOS CableCARDs all the time without repairing.

 

I want to point out that FiOS is the exception to this. In general if you move a CableCARD between devices you will need to have it paired. What I meant about changing PCs is that you can put the Ceton Tuner WITH THE SAME CABLECARD into a different PC and you will not need to repair it.

 

I think somewhat this is true. I think technically you do need to have them paired again but it still may work. Just all the channels may not work properly. I have done this a few times myself with Comcast in Seattle without pairing to the new device. The only time I had to call them is when I took a Tivo HD, only used it for a few months before going back to Media Center, out of an old roomate's name and put it into my name. I had to pair it again because some HD channels wouldn't show up as the Tivo HD was attached to his account and not mine. Actually the CableCARD had nothing to do with it as it was paried to my new card to my account. Even recently I had to RMA a ATI CableCARD tuner and I never called Comcast to pair it with the new tuner I was sent.

phenixdragon19:

Now Centon says by March 31st

Now all repeat after me.

CETON CETON CETON

Pronounced sea tun apparently.

phenixdragon19:

CES 2009 they said it would be released in 2009. DId it happen? No. Now Centon says by March 31st of this year and unless I am mistaken, they have yet to even turn it in for Cable Labs approval.

i'm pretty sure you're mistaken. And that is not conjecture.

phenixdragon19:

CES 2009 they said it would be released in 2009. DId it happen? No. Now Centon says by March 31st of this year and unless I am mistaken, they have yet to even turn it in for Cable Labs approval.

Maybe your problem is you're looking at the wrong company. It's not Centon and the device being made by Ceton has passed Cablelabs Certification (according to a chat on the EngagetHD Podcast).

But you don't want one anyway, so it won't matter to you (can trolls even get TV under the bridge?)

 

JohnW248:

Maybe your problem is you're looking at the wrong company. It's not Centon and the device being made by Ceton has passed Cablelabs Certification (according to a chat on the EngagetHD Podcast).

 

I don't remember saying that the card has passed Cablelabs certification. I believe someone said it was submitted and we know that the process has been well under way for months, but as far as I know the word has not come that the process is completed

OK, new sub-topic to help pass the time.  I know this has been addressed in at least one other thread, but it might be worth a revisit for first-time HTPC-builders.  Apparently the WTV format used in Win 7 Media Center uses roughly 3.5 GB/hr for HD content (correct?).  But in looking at actual throughput, I've seen mixed things about actual and theoretical per-tuner bandwidth.  Most commonly it's said that there's a 19.2 Mbps limit per tuner, which most providers don't come close to touching.  I'll get to the point.

There's currently a Samsung 1.5 TB "green" hard drive for $94 at NewEgg that has respectable read/write speeds for a 5400 RPM drive, with the additional HTPC attraction of low power consumption and cool operation.  Even with 4 simultaneous streams recording on the Ceton Quad-Tuner card, and perhaps both local and remote extender-based playback happening simultaneously, I would think that such a drive in a standalone configuration wouldn't be overtaxed.  Agree?

cseaman:

OK, new sub-topic to help pass the time.  I know this has been addressed in at least one other thread, but it might be worth a revisit for first-time HTPC-builders.  Apparently the WTV format used in Win 7 Media Center uses roughly 3.5 GB/hr for HD content (correct?).  But in looking at actual throughput, I've seen mixed things about actual and theoretical per-tuner bandwidth.  Most commonly it's said that there's a 19.2 Mbps limit per tuner, which most providers don't come close to touching.  I'll get to the point.

There's currently a Samsung 1.5 TB "green" hard drive for $94 at NewEgg that has respectable read/write speeds for a 5400 RPM drive, with the additional HTPC attraction of low power consumption and cool operation.  Even with 4 simultaneous streams recording on the Ceton Quad-Tuner card, and perhaps both local and remote extender-based playback happening simultaneously, I would think that such a drive in a standalone configuration wouldn't be overtaxed.  Agree?

 

I would agree.  The SATA interface would be plenty fast enough to support all those streams and then some.  :)

cbdudek:

cseaman:

OK, new sub-topic to help pass the time.  I know this has been addressed in at least one other thread, but it might be worth a revisit for first-time HTPC-builders.  Apparently the WTV format used in Win 7 Media Center uses roughly 3.5 GB/hr for HD content (correct?).  But in looking at actual throughput, I've seen mixed things about actual and theoretical per-tuner bandwidth.  Most commonly it's said that there's a 19.2 Mbps limit per tuner, which most providers don't come close to touching.  I'll get to the point.

There's currently a Samsung 1.5 TB "green" hard drive for $94 at NewEgg that has respectable read/write speeds for a 5400 RPM drive, with the additional HTPC attraction of low power consumption and cool operation.  Even with 4 simultaneous streams recording on the Ceton Quad-Tuner card, and perhaps both local and remote extender-based playback happening simultaneously, I would think that such a drive in a standalone configuration wouldn't be overtaxed.  Agree?

 

I would agree.  The SATA interface would be plenty fast enough to support all those streams and then some.  :)

 

I wouldn't really worry about HDD speed. We've done recording of 16 HD channels on standard HDDs with playback on multiple extenders. :) More than that and you have to start doing RAID.

I'm not saying it wouldn't help overall performance to put RAID in, but its not a requirement. RAID can be helpful in general, regardless of tuners.

 Does anyone know about Ceton's financial backing or the business experience of the principals? Looks like its all family running the business and I have seen no references in Google search about venture capital financing.

 Gives me reason for pause. Certainly, nothing personal, but I had many years in vc in a prior life and this seems curious.You would think that given the leading edge nature of the product that the background and bench of management would be more substantial and venture firms would be all over them.

 Anyone have info?

Ask the guy who posted 4 minutes before you. He's the one whose every word the lurkers in this thread hang upon. ;)

This card is $400 and the media center is around $1000. I don't think this is a mass market product yet. The VC's I know want "blow-up" potential and a huge upside. This is not going to be huge. Too narrow of a target audience. If an entire system can come down into Tivo-ish range of $500 and be widely distributed with strong distribution channels then I would invest. Otherwise this company will probably be gobbled up by a big firm and the owners will walk away with their bags of cash. I hope they do.

Samsonite:

This card is $400 and the media center is around $1000. I don't think this is a mass market product yet. The VC's I know want "blow-up" potential and a huge upside. This is not going to be huge. Too narrow of a target audience. If an entire system can come down into Tivo-ish range of $500 and be widely distributed with strong distribution channels then I would invest. Otherwise this company will probably be gobbled up by a big firm and the owners will walk away with their bags of cash. I hope they do.

 

$1000 for the media center?  Where are you getting that figure?  I built mine for less than half.

There is a lot of computer hardware out there that is built for a small target audience.  I don't know if Ceton's business will boom or not, but its a little early to be singing praises or beating the drum of doom.

Solo1:

 Does anyone know about Ceton's financial backing or the business experience of the principals? Looks like its all family running the business and I have seen no references in Google search about venture capital financing.

 Gives me reason for pause. Certainly, nothing personal, but I had many years in vc in a prior life and this seems curious.You would think that given the leading edge nature of the product that the background and bench of management would be more substantial and venture firms would be all over them.

 Anyone have info?

The Hammer family is a group of experienced entrepreneurs, having launched multiple businesses in the past.  See http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2010001258_brier05.html

 

Samsonite:

This card is $400 and the media center is around $1000. I don't think this is a mass market product yet. The VC's I know want "blow-up" potential and a huge upside. This is not going to be huge. Too narrow of a target audience. If an entire system can come down into Tivo-ish range of $500 and be widely distributed with strong distribution channels then I would invest. Otherwise this company will probably be gobbled up by a big firm and the owners will walk away with their bags of cash. I hope they do.

What you describe is the opening volley and list prices.  To compete directly with Tivo a 2-tuner card with a scaled down bare minimum all-on-one-mother-board PC.  I believe that this product could be manufactured for retail at under $500.  A $500 Tivo competitor with no monthly fees would be very attractive to the mass market.  Payback for the consumer over a feeble cable company DVR rental is under 3 years.

 Add $100 for a 4 tuner model and it's a pretty attractive product. 

The Ceton product has the potential to be a game changer.

But, you're correct, the retail market for the Ceton product alone is limited.  They need OEM versions that can be put directly on the motherboard.