August 4th, 2009
Moxi Mate adds multi-room support for Moxi HD DVR
Being able to watch shows recorded by a DVR on any TV in the house will be the norm in a few years, but today it’s still news whenever a device is announced that adds multi-room support to your home video setup. Digeo has tried to crash the DVR party (primarily hosted by your local cable TV provider) with its Moxi unit, which costs quite a bit ($799) but doesn’t require you to pay a monthly fee to your TV provider or TiVo for the privilege of recording the shows you want. Now it’s adding a partner device, the Moxi Mate, that communicates with your Moxi DVR over your home network and can be attached to any other set in your home for remote viewing of taped programming.
The Moxi Mate can also access the other services that the Moxi DVR offers, such as the ability to stream media stored on the PCs on your network or access Internet streaming services like Netflix’s on-demand video, Hulu, and Rhapsody. It connects to your TV via a HDMI, component-video or composite-video input, and also comes with a pair of USB ports and even an eSATA port. Given the $399 price tag, you’d hope it would come with built-in 802.11n Wi-Fi, but instead you get the usual Ethernet port instead.
That isn’t a hard $399 price out of the gate, however. Existing Moxi customers can pick up the Mate for $199, while Digeo is additionally offering a combo deal of the Moxi DVR and Mate for $999. There are also monthly payment options, if you really want to feel like this solution is replacing your cable DVR service.
Sean Portnoy spent several years as an editor at Computer Shopper magazine, most recently serving as online executive editor. See his full profile and disclosure of his industry affiliations.
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