elgato is well known and renowned for its famous eyeTV solution allowing Mac users to watch TV on their Mac. If elgato is massively present at this expo, Lars Ferber indicates that it will most likely be the last one as "it smells end-of-life".
The last version of eyeTV offers a iTunes-like interface, with the list of sources on the left part (including the "smart recording"), the main window displaying the current video or the list of programs. However, elgato is attached to its eyeTV remote, as the icon of its product.
One can browse the list of programs (up to the next 2 weeks) with different parameters and keywords, build complex requests, within a Spotlight-like interface. A new function, introduced with the last version of eyeTV allows you to "record all" recognized series, recording automatically the new episodes once they become available, similarly to iTunes for podcasts.
The interface allows you to simply quickly export your recordings to iPod/iPhone, Apple TV or even Toast with a couple of clicks. One can even automatically synchronize recordings in iTunes or Apple TV. The eyeTV Diversity model features a double tuner, so you can watch a program while recording another one, or use both in "boost mode" to improve channel reception when the signal is too weak.
Forced by the market and users, eyeTV 3 integrates some iPod-dedicated functions, even though it remains limited: one can stream recordings on a local network, watch them on an iPod/Phone or on another Mac via a http interface. However, it is not possible to watch live TV shows, or get access to your video via internet.
Nevertheless, elgato is listening to its customers, collecting wishes for improvements of new functions, especially for an iPhone-dedicated application, and currently most users would like to use their iPhone as a remote control, similarly to the Remote app from Apple. Exclusively for France and some EU countries were full HD DTB is being deployed, eyeTV version 3.1 (to be available in January) will be able to decode an audio Dolby Digital +.
In another field, Lars Felber indicates that sales of their H.264 encoding hardware solution, known as turbo.264, are declining as such the function is massively available in new hardware, or have been added to existing software solution such as Handbrake. However, the product is still supported, and a new version should be released during H1 2009, offering full HD input/output encoding.
