Silicon Dust, the maker of HDHomeRun digital TV tuners, now offers a solution for Xbox One fans still hoping for some kind of DVR functionality on their console.
The company announced on Tuesday, via its Kickstarter page, that the HDHomeRun DVR playback app is coming to the Xbox One with support for the console’s controller and the Xbox One Media Remote. In fact, by the time you read this it should already be available.
Microsoft announced in June that it had put on hold its plans to add an over-the-air DVR feature for the Xbox One. That left it up to third parties to come up with an equivalent—or better—DIY solution.
What is HDHomeRun DVR?
HDHomeRun DVR is a crowd-funded service meant to augment Silicon Dust’s networked TV tuners. The devices let you view live TV all over your house on Wi-Fi-capable devices. We’ve reviewed Silicon Dust’s HDHomeRun TV tuners before and were pretty happy with what they offer. The devices can receive over-the-air broadcasts and also feature a CableCard slot. Adding DVR functionality for the Xbox One is a natural extension for Silicon Dust’s lineup.
The impact on you at home: To use HDHomeRun DVR, however, you’ll have to invest in the ecosystem. First, you’ll need one of the company’s aforementioned TV tuners that currently run around $85 to $180 on Amazon, depending on the specific model’s feature set. In addition, you’ll need a device for storing your recordings, such as an always-on PC, a compatible NAS storage device such as a WD My Cloud box, or a 500GB Nvidia Shield Android TV device.
On top of that, you’ll also need a $60 annual subscription for HDHomeRun DVR. Right now, you have to pay that money with the understanding that the DVR project is still in development. If the software fails or is otherwise unreliable, well, that’s the price you pay for being an early adopter. It’s not clear if the price will go up (or down) once HDHomeRun DVR is publicly released.
After investing all that money for DVR functionality, you’ll be able to take advantage of HDHomeRun on more devices than just the Xbox One. Android devices and other PCs around your home will also be able to receive and playback content.