MULTIMEDIA

Simple.TV - Transmits TV Programs To Mobile (Part 1)

6/5/2013 9:09:29 AM

Anyone who closely follows the home entertainment sector certainly agrees that TV is broken: antiquated user interfaces, expensive packages, 6 remotes that each does one thing, all are limited within your home. Of course, realizing that it is broken and knowing how to fix it are two different things. An attempt to repair is Simple.TV. This $149 box (with 59 dollars/years of service) bridges the gap between many available devices that you have already owned and the TV world. It allows you to access a lot of contents via encrypted digital cable, or for free via antenna, on almost any devices you own - tablet, smartphone, PC or even TV. It sounds quite great, right? But can it do that? And can it replace the cable box and expensive service coming with it? Keep reading and you will know.

Simple.TV

Simple.TV

The big picture

Some things in life require further explanation, and of course Simple.TV is one of them. The best way we can describe it is this: it is the TV tuner networking with the option storage for your mobile devices. In other words, it does not do anything by itself. A typical system will include a Simple.TV, an external hard drive, a tablet or PC, and 1 Roku connected to the TV. (The supporting for additional devices will soon come later, the representatives of Simple.TV said). It is like the Slingbox but with fewer inputs and no intelligence needed to control a cable or satellite set- top box. But it can record.

A typical system

A typical system

Hardware

Simple.TV is a glossy white device which has oddly strange shape in any home theater - it reminds us of a wireless point that you will find attached to the ceiling in the workplace, except for that it is much lighter and with lower quality plastic. The good news is that you certainly will not put it in the home theater, instead of that; you can connect it where the cable modem or internet enters your home. That is because the device requires a coaxial cable and network connection. The coaxial cable needs to be connected to the cable supplier line or to an antenna. There are 2 coaxial cables and 2 network connections at the back that thread through to make it easier to sort them. Finally, there is one USB port for attaching an external hard drives (many hard drives will need hubs) to help you storing your records - there is no internal storage option.

Simple.TV with its 2 coaxial cables and 2 network connections

Simple.TV with its 2 coaxial cables and 2 network connections

Inside, you will find an unique tuner having capable of transmitting live TV or recording programs, while allowing 5 devices to transmit similar programs, or 5 different previously recorded programs. As you may have noticed, there is no audio or video output. That's because the Simple.TV depends on the others to render the signals that it regulates. Another notable omission: Wi-Fi. However, you should not remember it, because this is a stationary box that can live anywhere in your home, as long as it is connected to a wired network. There are two LED lights, one on the corner that lights red, blue or purple depending on the device state (booting, recording, etc.) and a blue one in front to indicate power source. None of them causes distraction, which is a good thing because there is no way to adjust the brightness or disable them.

Software

Simple.TV software

Simple.TV software

When talking about software, we are really referring to one web application and the Roku channel. There is no application for iOS, Android or desktop - but we know they are coming. You just point your browser to www.simple.tv and login - and there is not even an optimized version for mobile browsers. If you sign up for the premium service with 59 dollars/ year, or choose to register for a lifetime, you can watch TV anywhere you have an internet connection. Without it, your 5 concurrent connections are limited within your home network range. The experience is divided between 3 tabs: Live TV, Guide and My Shows. Live TV is the first thing you see when you browse to a page, but there is no way to set up another default or bookmark your favorite programs.

The Live TV reveals a simple channel list, showing what is happening and if there are any programs that is currently being recorded. From here, you choose to learn more about the program and have quick access to see it live, record that episode or record all the episodes which will air. The streaming experience is like experience of most of embedded webs videos with the ability to view full screen and jump forward or back, but there is no way to get rid of the browser window or change the channel quickly. We find it strange that while the video is provided via HLML5 on iOS devices, on Mac or PC, Silverlight is the technology base - new computers handles it easily, but the 4 year- old computer we tried did not work well.

The Guide tab reveals the typical network's broadcast schedule with a search box, which you will use to schedule recordings - if you see something interesting broadcasting live, you will need to go back to Live TV tab see it. So you need to pay for premium service to receive broadcast schedule data, this tab is not very useful if you do not pay. These necessary indicators are present to let you know what has been scheduled to record. There is a drop- down menu which is easy to access to select up to 5 days in advance, but there is no easy way to choose a particular day and time. Whether searching or browsing, the UI shows to be slower than we like, but the temporary delay when the screen updates is not useless. Once you choose something, you will get additional details about the program, as well as options to record a single episode or all episodes in the series.

The Guide tab

The Guide tab

The last tab is My Shows, which presents your recordings in brick-form layout. Clicking on the image will show which episodes are available to view, and provides the easy access to see what is coming soon. From here, you can delete recordings one by one or all at once and delete recording series. The My Shows experience is faster than the guide, and looks more modern thanks to its artistic presentation. However, the missing thing is a general list or any sorting options.

My Shows tab

My Shows tab

In addition to the three main tabs, there are some setting menus for things like deleting recording series - there is no way to change their priority as well as seeing what will be recorded. The other options in settings include the ability to check how much spaces on the external hard drive is available to write more and the ability to record earlier or later than 1 minute. The only available guide options allow you to select which channels appear and start scanning for channels - this took about 20 minutes for an OTA scan. Finally, you can control which devices are connected to the Simple.TV, but at this time it only lets you adding or removing the Roku.

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