HAVA Titanium HD TV Device with Wi-Fi
by Monsoon Multimedia
(Click here)
Digital product summary information
Manufacturer: Monsoon MultimediaFormat: CD
Platform: Windows
Model: 052507HT
Product features:
- Lets you wirelessly stream television content via your home network and watch from anywhere with a broadband internet connection
- Automatically adjusts video encoding for smooth video, no matter the network activity
- Functions as a PVR, letting you record, pause, and rewind live television
- Two USB ports allows you to add an external hard drive and upgrade the wireless capability from 802.11g to 802.11n
- Backed by a 1-year warranty
- AmazonBasics RJ45 Cat5e Ethernet Patch Cable (50 Feet/15.2 Meters)
- AmazonBasics RJ45 Cat5e Ethernet Patch Cable (14 Feet/4.2 Meters)
Digital camera reviews of HAVA Titanium HD TV Device with Wi-Fi
Digital camera Review: **Remote Viewing** - HAVA vs Slingbox
Summary: 2 Stars
This review is for the purpose of remote viewing only. I only use the HAVA and Sling Box on a completely separate internet connection from where they are stationed. Sometimes this is across town and sometimes it is on the other side of the world. These devices do allow you to stream locally, on your local network, but I do not do that often enough to comment on it.
I bought these devices so I could get all of my local cable channels when I was away from home, whether that is at the office, traveling for business, or on vacation. Many times I like to catch a local sports game, football, basketball, soccer, and no matter how hard you try you can't get it in other locations of the country. ABC, NBC, and CBS all have regions, and different games are broadcast for each region. So even though the game you want to see is on regular TV in your home town, it might not be on that same station on the other side of the country. I also use the On Demand portion of my cable box quite frequently. This is nice because I can remotely watch anything that is in the on demand section.
I have had the Sling Box Solo for about 2 months now. It has the 2.0 software with all the latest software and firmware updates. I have had the HAVA Titanium HD Wifi unit for about a week. I bought the HAVA because of the ability to plug a separate hard drive into the unit to record remotely for viewing at a later time. The HAVA also has the latest software, 1.8 latest firmware etc... On a side note, if you buy the HAVA, you must be hooked up by cat 5 or Ethernet to update the firmware. It will fail over wifi.
Comparison - Both of these units do what they are designed to do. One does it much better in my opinion than the other.
Streaming - I am talking about this first because this is the most important capacity of any of these type of units. If you can't stream properly, the unit is worthless, or at least very annoying to watch. The internet connection where the units are located is through COX, and I believe it is rated at 768K up and around 15mbps down. The only number you need to be concerned with is the UP speed of the location where the units are located. The Sling box blows the HAVA away in this area. If you were to watch these units for an hour each, this is what you would see. The HAVA unit will have about a 5 to 10 second delay from the live stream. While watching, the picture will cut in and out for about 10 seconds every 2 to 5 minutes. This might not sound like much, but it gets very annoying, especially if you watching a game and you miss a big play. Every time the picture cuts out, it comes back on at the lowest bitrate and works itself back up, so the picture quality is very poor for at least 10 seconds from the time it comes back on. The audio does cut out as well, but not as often. The Sling box is quite different. If you watch it for an hour, it might stutter once or twice for a second, but it has never cut out on me with a solid connection. Even with fairly slow internet connections in some hotels, once the Sling box has fully buffered it very rarely cuts out.
Picture - The picture clarity is very close on these two units. When I hook up my laptop to a Samsung A750 LCD 52" it appears as if the HAVA has a slight edge over the Sling box when the HAVA is not cutting out. Keep in mind this edge is so small that most people will not notice it. On a laptop you can't see any difference.
Sound - This is a huge area to myself. I generally buy the best or very close to the best audio equipment available, whether it is for my house, car, mp3 player, or headphones. If you are an audiophile in the slightest way, you will be severely disappointed with the HAVA unit. It sounds like an AM radio station on a 1970's car. The highs and lows are missing, and what you are left with is a very bland and dull sound. The Sling box again is the opposite. It is very clear, about 95% of the original broadcast sound, and has a full rich sound to it. If you would like to get a better idea of what I am talking about, go to you car and turn the radio on. Tune it to a strong FM channel and listen for a minute. Then switch it over to an AM channel. Hear the difference? That is at least the level of separation between these two units.
Software - The Sling box software is nice because it gives you an entire TV guide for your local cable provider. You can double click on what you want to watch and the Sling box changes channels. The HAVA does not have this guide. The Remote control interface is similar on both units. The only difference I have notice is that on the Sling box the A B and C buttons do not work correctly with my Motorola cable box. This doesn't come into play very often but it can be a pain to function in some screens.
Changing Channels - Again, the Sling box blows the HAVA away. The Sling box takes about 1 to 2 seconds to do what you tell it to. When I first started using the Sling box I thought this was slow until I received the HAVA. The HAVA takes anywhere from 5 to 15 seconds for the channel to change. A lot of this has to do with the longer delay in the stream on the HAVA, but either way, it is a long process. If you go to watch something On Demand, it my require ten or more button pushes of the remote to get to where you want. This can take upwards of 5 minutes on the HAVA. On the sling box, you could do the same thing in 30 seconds.
Recording - This is really the only area where the HAVA truly wins. The Sling box currently does not have the ability to record. It will give you a buffer, so you can rewind the show you were watching if you missed something, or pause it for a few minutes but that is all. The HAVA functions as a true DVR. You have to hook up a separate hard drive to the unit through a USB port, but once you have that it works great. This feature runs independently, so you don't have to have a computer on for it to record. The other thing you can do is record directly onto your laptop. So if you were watching something and wanted to record it to watch later you could. You can even view those recorded shows that are on your laptop when you don't have internet, like on a plane or in a car.
Mobile Phone - I have an HTC Touch Pro on Sprint. EVDO rev A, windows mobile 6.1 I have only tested the HAVA on my phone. It works ok. The phone must be in portrait mode, not widescreen, and you get about 2 frames per second. The audio comes through uninterrupted for the most part but the video continuously cuts out. I have not used the Sling box software on this phone but I have seen it run on a HTC Mogul, and it ran great, much better than the HAVA.
Overall, I believe the Sling Box wins hands down. If you are really into recording then maybe the HAVA is for you, but with its stream and sound issues, the recordings are not very fun to watch. I find the Sling box pleasurable to watch. The HAVA I find to be annoying and irritating which is not good considering I am watching it to try and relax. My HAVA will be getting sent back for a refund.
Summary of HAVA Titanium HD TV Device with Wi-Fi
The Monsoon HAVA Titanium HD WiFi lets you extend your home theater experience within your home and beyond! Now you can wirelessly stream your live TV over your home network, and watch and control programming from your HD video source on any PC or mobile phone. You can turn your PC into a DVR by recording your favorite programs onto a hard disk or an externally connected USB hard disk for playback at a later time. HAVA also enables TV functionality on a Media Center PC without having a TV tuner installed in the PC. With WiFi built in, there are no ugly cables to worry about and setup is a breeze. Wirelessly Stream Live TV Around Your House By connecting your HD video source to the HAVA Titanium HD WiFi, you can wirelessly stream live television to multiple PCs and other WiFi devices around your house using your existing 802.11g wireless home network. You no longer require TV connections and set-top boxes in each room. While streaming live wireless TV at DVD-quality, multiple users can watch, pause, rewind, fast forward or record the same program independently and simultaneously. View Your Home Television From Anywhere In The World The HAVA Titanium HD WiFi allows you to watch and control your live home TV programming, or other connected A/V devices, from anywhere in the world over a broadband internet connection on your notebook PC, cell phone or other mobile devices. While remotely watching your home TV, other members of the household can also watch TV on their PCs around the home at the same time. Remotely control any A/V device, including DVRs, Satellite Set Top and Cable Set Top boxes, DVD players and video cameras as if you were sitting on your sofa with your favorite remote control in hand. Two USB Ports For Additional Storage & Functionality The HAVA Titanium HD WiFi has two built-in USB ports, allowing for peripheral upgrade possibilities. By connecting an external USB hard disk record hours or full seriesAmazon.com Product Description The Monsoon HAVA Titanium HD WIFI lets you extend your home theater experience, both within your home and beyond! With WiFi built in, the HAVA accepts an HD video source and wirelessly streams it throughout your home in DVD-quality video. You can also watch and control programming on any PC or mobile phone with a broadband Internet connection.
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 You'll have control of your A/V components from your computer, complete with customizable virtual remote. View larger. |
 Wireless networking is built-in, so you can stream your video throughout your home without any cables. View larger. |
By connecting your HD video source to the HAVA Titanium HD WIFI, you can wirelessly stream live television to multiple PCs around your house using your home network. The video is streamed wireless via an 802.11g network, and the Titanium HD WIFI automatically adjusts the encoding based on dynamic calculation of the bandwidth to ensure smooth video to all clients on the network. In addition to the wireless, there are also wired Ethernet connections available.
Programming comes in at DVD-quality wherever you are in your home, and multiple users around your house can watch/record the same program at the same time thanks to VBooster Multicast technology.
View Television Remotely From Virtually Anywhere
The HAVA Titanium HD WIFI allows you to watch your local television programming, or programming from another connected A/V device, from anywhere in the world with a broadband Internet connection. As you are watching, other members of the household can also watch the same programming on the home network. You can even remotely control the settings for virtually any A/V device, including PVRs, satellite TV, and digital cable boxes; a customizable virtual remote will show up on screen allowing for complete control of the device. It's like having a remote control that works everywhere!
Works as a PVR!
The HAVA Titanium HD can also function as a PVR. You can record, pause, fast forward, and rewind live TV right on your computer. Recorded shows are stored on your PC's hard drive, or on an external USB drive (sold separately). After you've recorded shows, you can burn them onto DVD for archiving or viewing during those instances when you don't have an Internet connection. The HAVA works out of the box with Microsoft MCE, or you can install the included PVR software for non-MCE PCs.
 Using the HAVA mobile player software, you can watch television on your cell phone. |
When you connect HAVA Titanium HD WIFI to your network, you are in essence creating a virtual TV tuner for Media Center PCs. This eliminates the need for a separate TV tuner card, and the need for any hard-wired cable connection.
Two USB Ports for Upgradeability
The Titanium HD WIFI has two built-in USB ports, allowing for upgrade possibilities. The wireless functionality is provided by a USB 802.11g dongle, and this can be optionally upgraded with a USB 802.11n dongle to stream higher quality video. You can also connect an external USB hard drive for use with recording shows.
High-Quality Viewing
By employing the standard MPEG-2 format, the HAVA Titanium HD WIFI achieves the best possible video quality over a home wireless network. (Of course, you can also view using wired connections if you have any computers that lack wireless capability.) Television programming that is streamed through your home network boasts DVD-quality clarity. The video is also simultaneously encoded with the MPEG-4 standard, which has a higher compression and allows for remote viewing over a broadband Internet connection by a single client.
Thanks to the VBooster technology, all the users on the home network can experience high-quality video. While watching video, users can simultaneously use the Internet for regular uses such as web browsing, email, chatting, printing, transferring files, etc. The encoding is automatically adjusted based on the available bandwidth to ensure steady and smooth video all the time.
The HAVA Titanium HD requires a home network with either a 10/100 base-T router with an available Ethernet port or a wireless connection, a broadband Internet connection (300Kbps upstream recommended) for remote viewing, and a PC with Windows XP/Vista and a minimum of an Intel Pentium 1.2 GHz CPU, 512MB of RAM for XP and 1GB of RAM for Vista, 75 MB of disk space for the HAVA software, an Ethernet connection or 802.11g wireless capability, DirectX 9-class video card, and an audio output.
The HAVA Titanium HD WIFI is backed by a 1-year warranty.
What's in the Box
HAVA Titanium HD WIFI unit, two composite cables, Ethernet cable, power adapter, IR blaster cable, two component cables, 802.11g wireless dongle, quick start guide, software CD.
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