In the times of TV soaps and IPL, does the possession of the ?lowly? television remote decide the menu of your dinner? Half-burnt chapatis and tasteless watery dal with ?Remote? or steaming hot pulao and aloo parathas, if you opt to let go the ?remote?!
But lately, this situation is somewhat resolved by the introduction of DVR (digital video recorder) by DTH service providers. As a result, one programme can be watched while the other is being recorded to be viewed later. A study has revealed that the DVR has improved the relationships in families worldwide, the main reason being that they have fewer arguments over what to watch!
In sync with the latest trend, the Indian telecom giant Bharti Airtel, too, has launched the Airtel Digital TV Recorder, but with a pleasant twist. The new set top box (STB) of the Airtel Digital TV Recorder has the unique feature of remote- recording of live TV using a mobile phone. It offers the convenience of recording your favourite show using your mobile phone from anywhere. A first-of-its-kind feature in India requires a JAVA and GPRS-enabled mobile handset. And after initial configuration and activation, you can browse and schedule a recording from your mobile phone up to two days in advance.
This enhanced STB measuring 355mm X 235mm X 57mm is rather big and will encroach extra real estate on the already cramped side board. Finished in glossy piano black, the box looks non-intrusive and rather drab and the only saving grace is a strip-light under the front-bottom edge, that glows red when it?s powered ON.
The front panel has the Airtel logo and four neon indicators on the left half and a detachable flap to access view card slot on the other half. On top of the front panel, a row of control keys including power On/Off key are replicated, in case you lose the remote or it runs out of battery power.
The rear panel has all the connector options including antenna in and out, component video/out, AV/out, digital SPDIF coaxial RF/out and HDMI. To make it future proof, it also has USB, RJ-11 (telephone) and RJ-45 (Ethernet LAN) ports.
The Airtel digital TV recorder is an upgrade over the standard STB and has an inbuilt hard-disk (160GB) to store 100 hours of recording and to facilitate live ?pause and replay? functions.
The STB churns out very decent MPEG4 DVB S2 picture & sound output and with the inclusion of HDMI connectivity, the displayed picture and sound quality on the TV is excellent.
With the accompanying magic-wand (universal remote), you can manage both TV and STB and also record, pause or replay, fast forward or rewind the live TV programmes and indulge in lots of other interactive (iTV) applications and multilingual on-screen EPG (electronic programme guide).
On the flip side, the TV Recorder takes very long time to boot and the time lag of four to six seconds (when the screen goes blank) while switching channels is a big put-off and at times, gets on to your nerves.
Airtel digital TV Recorder is available as an upgrade for Rs 5,990 to all existing subscribers and new customers will have to dish out Rs 6,990.