MediasonicHW180STB HomeWorx HDTV Digital Converter Box with Media Player and Recording PVR Function, Dolby Digital, HDMI Out

[Updated review] I decided to buy another Homeworx unit for the spare bedroom. I'm a big fan of their previous recording model, the HW150PVR, though it has a glitch or two. I've been waiting for Mediasonic to bring out another recorder- this 2nd generation HW180STB is it (the 1st generation model doesn't record). I tried to cover a lot of bases in this review, just pick and choose what may be useful to you.The specs in the listing say "Composite Out/Component (YPbPr) Output" but no such jacks [green/blue/red] are shown in the photo, a puzzle. After receiving the unit, I found that the photo is correct, the description is not. The older 150PVR has these jacks (I need them for my Samsung analog HD DVD recorder). It also has a coaxial digital out jack for playing Dolby 5.1. (HDMI also carries Dolby signals.)The 180STB is smaller than the 150PVR, maybe ¾ the size- LxW smaller than a 6" Kindle, and less than 1½" thick- TINY, but a little dynamo. The remote is smaller than the original too, performs a few more functions and the buttons are placed differently, so some re-learning there. They're a definite improvement. The legends for play, pause, stop, fast forward, rewind, skip forward, and skip back are now shown in white on the keys themselves, along with the words below each key. And, the buttons are better situated. The Menu, Exit, EPG, and TV List buttons form a square around the volume and channel up down keys, which form a diamond with OK in the center. Much easier to see at a glance and feel, and learn.In a nutshell, both units do a comparable job of recording (crystal clear), output signals in SD/HD via RF-coax cable, RCA cables (red/white/yellow), and HDMI, and at various resolutions/screen widths, allow pausing of live TV, etc. The menu functions look to be nearly identical. I heartily recommend both. Here are the relative advantages of each:The 150PVRPVR:-Has a Digital coax out jack for Dolby Surround Sound.-Has a Composite Out/Component (YPbPr) High-res Video Output for accessories that can make use of this signal- Can tune cable channels (unencrypted QAM) with the QAM firmware updateThe 180STBSTB:-Has a better remote (though smaller)-Presumably has the latest programming and circuitry-Displays multiple pages of the programming guide-Has a small form factor for tight spaces[NOTE: I don't have cable, but I read in Daniel Solomon's review that he has used it to tune cable. See his review for details. I imagine the process will be streamlined with a future firmware update.]One caveat- I did various recording, all went well, except when I hit the RECORD button and just let it go- it stopped precisely on the next hour (started at 5:02 pm and stopped at 6:00 pm exactly). Don't know why, found nowhere to specify automatic recording duration. I plan to go back and play with this. [Have done and results are inconsistent. I thought perhaps it was stopping, as would be ideal, when the program was over, but sometimes it does and sometimes it doesn't so I'm stumped.] However, it's easy enough to circumvent by hitting the TIMER button instead, then ADD (the current channel and time pop up) then enter the time you want it to stop. A few extra button presses but takes only a few seconds, and works fine that way.UPDATE: I used this for a month or so then reverted to my older model in the living room. But when I used it the default mode for any type of recording was "record." I just moved it to another room, hooked up a new antenna and hard drive, and now the default mode is "view." (WTH? I didn't even know it existed). This is now the case whether I'm attempting to record from the program guide or by entering a manual timer. I mention this because if you're having trouble recording, look down at the last option- "Mode" and change it to RECORD. I'm actually delighted it changed somehow or other to VIEW mode because it's a function I used daily when I had DISH.DETAILS: When I scanned for channels, the new unit found 146 over-the-air channels, the same as my other unit. On the 150PVR, in EPG (program guide) mode, on a particular channel it might show "Page 1 of 4" but I could never get it to page down beyond the first page of program listings. I was gratified to see that this unit/remote does (via both the down arrow button, down one listing at a time, and the NEXT/fast forward button, for a page at a time, even though unlike the 150PVR it always showed Page 1 of 1, even when on subsequent pages). So now I can record something more than just a few hours ahead by paging forward then hitting OK/Enter while on a program listing. What I've done in the past if I knew something was coming up was set a manual timer. How nice. [Update: it's no longer paging down while in EPG mode- why I haven't a clue. It still pages down fine in another mode though, discussed further along. I'm wondering if it has to do with some interaction of the unit's insufficient internal memory with the fact that I hooked it to a weaker indoor antenna, but I don't know enough about such things.]I went to Mediasonic's website to see if there was a firmware update (for this AND my 150PVR, since an issue came up, mentioned below). I couldn't find any- in reading a bit in the forums it seems you ask and they now send them to you by email- apparently people downloaded and applied the wrong updates and froze their units (I've emailed them several times- they're responsive and helpful). There doesn't seem to be a firmware update for this unit yet (it's new). To check later, or see if you have the latest update for your 150PVR, you can go to:forum.mediasonic.ca/...(they're in Canada) and type in or copy and paste into the search box:HW-150PVR Firmware versions...the page that results explains how to check which version you have and what's what. I couldn't find anything about this new unit, but I only had a quick look round. UPDATE: there are lots of posts and question there now, and tips on who to contact to get the answers you need. Still no firmware update, as of 4/15/15.The issue I had was that I plugged a hard-drive with 150PVR recordings on it into the 180STB. It recognized the drive, listed the recordings, but wouldn't play them. I recorded several things using the 180STB onto this drive- it interspersed/listed these new recordings with the old, and played the new recordings just fine. They were also listed as .mts recordings, same as the older ones. I'm stumped. I went to the mediasonic forum to see if I could find out anything there, and thought updating the firmware on both might resolve the issue. But both units seem to have the latest firmware. I plugged the drive into the 150PVR, and likewise, it couldn't play the NEW recordings. I plugged the drive into my computer, and VLC Media Player played BOTH units' recordings just fine.This partly comes into play for me because of the feature I like most about the 150PVR, its ability to auto-play recordings (discussed in detail below). And yes, the 180STB does it too, hooray. But this compatibility thing may be an issue for current 150PVR owners (I'm sure some computer whiz out there will know what's up). Anyway, for now I won't be able to swap hard-drives between the two units/rooms.The bottom line is you'll need a dedicated hard-drive, either new or one you can let the 180STB format and set up. I like Toshiba Canvio drives, have several of them now, loaded with movies and entire TV series. I've never had one malfunction, and they're reasonably priced. They come pre-formatted in the requisite NTFS format.Note: Some of the following is contained in my 150PVR review. As with with that model, the 180STB is just as easy to set up. There's a bit of a curve involved in learning to use it, but it's surprisingly intuitive, the remote too.The buttons on the remote have different functions depending on what mode you're in, but since the options are shown on the screen whenever they differ from the buttons' usual functions, it becomes second nature surprisingly fast. It's evident that considerable thought has gone into which buttons have been programmed for which additional functions. The newer remote is a big improvement functionally because it does more than the older remote (in program guide, for example, details below).We have a large rooftop TV antenna my Dad put up about 40 years ago (yes, it brings in digital signals perfectly- digital signals are broadcast via VHF and UHF bands just like the old analogue signals were, it's the decoding mechanism that's changed)- it brings in stations from miles around. I live in the LA area and it also brings in stations from Orange County, so it auto-found 146 stations (15 PBS stations alone, so cool). Obviously, as with any tuner, you need the largest, most elaborate antenna you can accommodate to pull in more channels.As I said before, the issue I was most concerned about was whether the 180STB would retain the ability to auto-play recordings. I found with the 150PVR that when you played a recording and let it run, it continued to play them one after another in the order they're in on the hard-drive. My mother visits often and has poor eyesight, so can't see to use a remote very well, though she can make out some images on the TV and likes to listen to certain programs. She also has dementia, gets confused/frustrated easily. This one too automatically plays one after another, great. I record a whole list of shows she likes and have them play automatically, she needn't do a thing. Though she hasn't the eyesight (or patience) to mess with the remote, I painted the PAUSE key with bright orange nail polish, she can push it to pause or un-pause if need be, that's all she needs.And since the unit auto-tunes to programs you have set to record, and you can watch them while recording, I can pre-set it that way to tune automatically to a channel, or to programs I know she wants to watch, like Judge Judy, Huell Howser, whatever (and keep the recordings that were a big hit, delete the others). UPDATE: as mentioned above, the "view mode" will auto-tune to my mom's shows WITHOUT recording. This is a huge improvement over the former model. Obviously we don't need recordings of Judge Judy, the local news or game shows. I can plan the evening's viewing and just sit back and let it tune.The Skip Ahead/Back key when you're in USB/PVR mode, looking at the list of recordings, skips forward and back by recording- it will advance to the next or the previous recording on the hard drive. So handy. I've worked with special needs populations, in residential, hospital and classroom settings, and this feature allows caregivers/teachers/aides, whomever to advance from recording to recording, to illustrate points while teaching/training (for example, skip from one exercise video to another one). You can watch just part of a recording, and then skip to next one- show just the scenes you want in each recording. There's also fast forward and back buttons, so you can go forward or back at 32X speed within a recording, to quickly find the scene you need. There are many uses for these features.Another reason I wanted a second unit is that I volunteer in the skilled nursing/rehab facility where my mom lives. There's little in the way of recreation or entertainment there in the evening- like a ghost town, the time when many are most anxious, at loose ends. This little unit took less than 30 seconds to hook up to the big screen TV in the activities room (ditto with the TV in my mom's room). This way I can show whatever to residents, tailor showings- for example, old Carol Burnett shows and skits, I Love Lucy, big band performances, Shirley Temple movies, the Beverly Hillbillies, etc. Men really like Star Trek, Batman, Sanford and Son, Bonanza, etc., I've noticed. Anyway, last night The Monkees and Ozzie and Harriet were big hits. I've showed movies on DVD before and read aloud to patients but TV shows are much better. Seeing old favorites with which they're FAMILIAR is comforting, puts residents at ease and gives them a reason and opportunity to socialize- they can laugh together and feel connected, whatever their cognitive status (even those who can't speak). A silver lining to the cloud of dementia and memory loss is that sufferers can enjoy their favorite shows over and over.UPDATE: She's coming home now, this unit will improve the quality of her life exponentially. She'll be in bed most of the time. Besides the obvious (things she loves to watch), I had previously put family photos on her Kindle and then on a tablet for her. Now I'm putting those on the 180STB's new drive, she can see them on the big screen.Regarding the auto-play feature in general (the fact that recordings automatically play one after the other), if you have small children, cognitively/ perceptually challenged children, adults or seniors or seriously ill patients who can't master a remote or the TV in general, this will allow you to have something good (and/or reviewed for appropriate content) going in the background all day or evening long. Ditto with instructional or training materials. Perfect for daycare, nursing homes, hospices, assisted living, residential treatment, invalids (store displays too). I use it sometimes to have favorite/inspiring programs playing in the background while I'm doing whatever. UPDATE: Or, you can program it to auto-tune to whatever.The unit automatically lists recordings on the hard drive in alphabetical/numeric order, so if you want them to play non-stop in a particular order, just rename them with 1, 2, 3 or A, B, C at the beginning of each file/recording name. The renaming process is easy and works flawlessly (more on this below).OTHER ISSUES:I imagine, as with the older unit, this one will commence recording at the designated time, but only if the channel indicates the program is actually on. For example, if a program has been preempted by a football game, it won't record (nor will it if both the program and the time don't match the local station's data). The unit bases its time on the time given by individual stations. It will commence recording according to a timer you've set, but if the station's time doesn't match the unit's time it will stop.There's one batch of stations in the LA area that ALWAYS has the wrong time [channels 8.1 thru 8.6- annoying because some of my favorite shows are on these stations, like Da Vinci's Inquest, Dark Shadows, early Doctor Whos and other rarities- UPDATE: these stations are either temporarily or permanently off the air now]. If you want to record these you have to leave the box on the desired channel AND use that station's time (obviously, a hassle, too much trouble but the point is that it's the stations' fault, not the unit's). It's too complicated to discuss here, but you can't do this while ALSO having other timers set for stations with the correct time (due to dueling time conflicts, nothing will record properly). I emailed the station(s) asking them to please sync their times, to no avail. [BTW, half the time they don't bother to upload/broadcast info for the program guide- if you want to see what's on you have to go to their websites, and often the times given there are wrong too!]A programming/recording feature I like is the fact that if you attempt to program a recording and it conflicts with another you've already set, you're given the option to cancel the existing one, right there, very handy.Two other useful features- first, when you continue viewing a program you've already watched part of, a box pops up asking you if you want to continue or start over, so it remembers where you left off!Second, at first I was annoyed that I always had to press a button to make the image full screen when playing back recordings. But it's in this "editing" or organizing mode that you have extra options, for example, the foregoing. Also in this mode, you can delete old recordings, look at any recording while fast forwarding with a time elapsed/time remaining counter on the screen- so for example if you want to fast forward to the last five minutes of a program you can (you see the video fast forwarding in a smaller window).Another option you have in this organizing mode is renaming recordings. Since you're looking at the list of recordings you already have while doing it, you can rename a new recording accordingly, e.g., BORGEN3,6 (Borgen season 3 episode 6) or whatever. This allows you to be consistent so you can watch episodes of a particular program in order. If you DON'T do this, the unit orders programs by channel and then by date. So if you've recorded Downton Abbey, Call the Midwife, and American Masters on PBS this week, for example, they'll play in that order. OR, you can plug the hard-drive into your computer to organize/rename recordings, if you know what you're doing.One feature both units share that I LOVE is that you can see detailed info on any program for which the channel has provided it. PBS stations tend to give long, detailed descriptions. For some reason, when you're in EPG mode (seeing what's on a particular channel for hours ahead), and you highlight a particular program, sometimes the long description provided will be listed on the right-hand side of the screen and sometimes it won't (or it will be wrong, or jumbled). If you hit the INFO button twice while on a particular channel, you get a listing of whatever's on now and what's coming on next. Provided are the long descriptions of each, even when they don't appear or are jumbled in the EPG. For example, if a show like Masterpiece Mystery is listed and there's no description showing in the EPG, you can do this (within 1-2 hours before it begins, anyway), read the description and see which MM it is, and what episode. Sometimes the description is several pages long- to page down through it you use the NEXT/Skip Forward button on the newer unit. I do this a lot, though I've been unable to get past page one with the older unit.I haven't explored either unit's full capabilities, but according to the specs they can play video in multiple formats (play music and display photos too). With video conversion software one could convert ANY video to play- old home movies, videos downloaded from the internet, old VHS tapes, anything. And organize it all, easily find and show anything, right at your fingertips, on any TV. Toss this little guy in your bag and take it to Aunt Minnie's house, to work or a meetup group. So MANY possibilities.If your TV has a built-in digital (ATSC) tuner, you'll have two tuners so you can watch one thing while recording another, utilizing the unit's built-in pass thru feature, which passes the raw signal thru to the TV's own tuner just like old VCRs used to do. If your TV lacks such a tuner, you can use any set-top box. You could easily hook up a 2nd 180STB to record two shows at once, connect both of them to your TV with an A-B switch from Radio Shack, if you haven't the jacks on your television to accommodate two units (you'd also need a splitter to split the incoming antenna signal into two leads to feed both).My Zenith TV has two sets of RCA jacks (red, yellow, white), I have the HW-180STB connected to one set of jacks and a [fabulous] ROKU unit connected to the other set of jacks. This setup lets me watch virtually any video source from the internet with the ROKU- like Amazon Instant Video or other subscription services like Acorn, MHZ, Hulu Plus, Netflix, etc. (as well as zillions of free sources, even you tube). The 180STB not only tunes but records any over-the-air channel (INCLUDING PBS stations that show Acorn and MHZ programming for FREE). BTW, regarding that autoplay feature I like so much, Crackle (LOVE this free station), does it too, thru the Roku box- it auto-plays TV shows in episode order or movies in alphabetical order within a category. I'm currently, leisurely working my way thru the Larry Sanders show (what a pleasure- seeing Peter Falk, Robin Williams, Dana Carvey, Carol Burnett, so many people again, at the top of their game and with few restraints). No need to do anything, just pause, leave and it resumes when you go back- GREAT. And its FREE!And BTW, if you have high-speed internet thru a cable company, even if you don't subscribe to their cable TV service, they usually include movie channels (like EPIX) free of charge via the internet along with your internet service- you can watch THOSE on your TV with a ROKU box.With the number and quality of over-the-air channels and offerings ever-increasing, there's lots to watch and record with this NIFTY unit. So satisfying to kick satellite or cable to the curb and find better uses for one's cash. And for an initial outlay of under $40- AWESOME!

Update 10/21/2016 - NOTE: If you have an Android device with InfraRed output (many have it), get the "Galaxy Universal Remote" app and swipe over to Cable&Satellite, scroll down to HOMEWORX, tap the TryNextModel button and choose ModelsGroup2. This app gives me a lighted remote that's easier to use in some ways. Because several brands are available that seem to use the same internal hardware and firmware, I've ordered the  ViewTV AT-263 ATSC Digital TV Converter Box and HDMI Cable w/ Recording PVR Function / HDMI Out / Coaxial Out / Composite Out / USB Input (New Model)  because it has front panel buttons, and newer firmware. Possibly less (or no) user support tho, but so far I've had no need for any. I like the ViewTV unit *FAR* better than the HW180 this review is for, so I suggest you read about the ViewTV and consider paying a few bucks more.The 180STB's still working as when new, but I emailed to get the firmware upgrade from their "tech support" (generous term for a terse and uninformative reply email with attachment). My unit bought 1/2016 came with firmware V10.1 but the zip file they sent is the same so I didn't apply it. On their support web page (forum dot mediasonic dot ca slash viewtopic dot php?f=78&t=3334) for the 180STB I found this, which is important for owners to know about: V3, please update to V8.1. Fixes recording bugs. V8.0, please update to V8.1. Fixes recording bugs. V9.0, please update to V9.1. Fixes recording bugs. V10.0, update it to V10.1. Fixes bugs on close caption. (If you don't use close caption then no need to update) V11.0 or V11.1 update to V11.3, fixed bugs on fast forwarding. EPG and recording. V12.0 or V12.1 update to V12.3, fixed bugs on "bad frequency", date and conflict events.So apparently I can't upgrade to their latest v12.3 and that might have fixed some of the glitches in my unit. If so, you'll want to know what version you get when you buy one of these and ensure it's the latest.Problems encountered include loss of all programming if there's a household power surge, loss of all recordings if there's a bad broadcast signal glitch (I have unreliable PBS station KOCE and NBC station), hassles with repeating recordings that "conflict" with others (see below), unreliable time (I see different times based on what channel it's tuned to, making for unreliable timed recordings), channels disappearing from the channel list if their signal has a long glitch, and of course the horrific UI. Still worth the price and a 4star review, if only for great HDTV tuner with handy live "Pause" and unreliable recording.Initial Review:Given all the features it has, great picture & sound, and easy initial setup the price is simply amazing! Very clumsy for extensive scheduled recording, but fine for live viewing and occasional recording by adding a USB stick. This review is for the "new version" (whatever that means), purchased here on Amazon 1/2016. I mention this because older versions apparently had some problems, but the first reviews listed on Amazon are for the old versions and few reviews specify the version.Quick SetupI had it displaying crisp HDTV on my 93" projector about 15 minutes after opening the box, without even a glance at the instructions. That's a Good Thing because the instructions have the double whammy of apparently being written by committee of techies; and they display a weak mastery of English to accompany the fuzzy black and white TV screen pictures. For example you'll find poetic and informative passages like, "When successfully searched CH3/CH4, using remote of the converter box to search TV programs and doing related operation," next to an inscrutable gray photo. Aside from klunky User Interface (UI), the worst aspect I've encountered so far is the Closed Caption font. It's jagged to the point of distracting, and even a little difficult to read at the small setting.Also Great For Old TVsHaving only briefly looked at the Amazon page before purchase, I had the mistaken impression that "3 / 4 Channel" in the Amazon title for this item means it can simultaneously receive three or four channels. Nope. They're talking about the fact that you can select channel 3 or 4 with a switch on the back, for feeding RF output to an old style NTSC 525 scan line "480i SD" TV. The switch is so you can avoid interference with a strong local broadcast station. Local TV is channel 3 in my case, so I set the switch to channel 4 to feed an old VCR as another recording option I'll probably never use. That old-style RF output is by the way sharper than from an old and far less capable Zenith DTT901 HD->SD converter from the early days of HDTV, that a friend gave me when she got a new TV with built-in HD tuner. Bottom line here is, this will be a spectacular unit for anyone with an old TV who wants a very capable and inexpensive tuner/DVR. Even better if you have an HDTV and want a cheap though annoying DVR. For a little over thirty bucks you can "cut the cable" and watch free broadcast TV that's sharper than many cable channels, possibly supplementing that with free internet TV programming on your computer (or phone/tablet).The picture is a little darker than my EyeTV Hybrid running on a Mac Mini but that uses VGA to the projector, and all my other HDMI sources have this same darker (more accurate) look. The tuner is a tiny bit more sensitive (better) than the remarkably good EyeTV but more importantly, on weak stations the dropouts (blocky picture or interruptions in audio) are much more brief so weak stations are actually watchable. Though viewing weak stations is better I found that recording them can crash a hard drive, requiring a re-format (erasing all recordings). Like my older EyeTV USB "thumb drive" tuner this box runs pretty hot so I worry about its long term survival, but reviews seem to indicate that if it outlasts the warranty year you're good long-term.DST GlitchIt looks like you need to set Daylight Saving Time On/Off manually to get the correct time, so that goes on your ToDo list along with any other outdated technology around the house for every annoying DST change.RecordingI plugged in a 32GB USB thumb drive (big enough for about 5 hours of HDTV recordings), still without looking at the instructions, and did some test recordings. To do manual recording you can press the Record button on live TV, or the Timer button for manual setting.Use the EPG button to record a program from the Program Guide though it won't work for programs already in progress unless you manually change the start time to a minute after current time. But by now I was growing annoyed with what my spouse calls the "90s interface." It reminds me of a VCR or those hotel TV menus, where you have to step through several screens to do some routine tasks. You can use the handy Timer button to list programs you've input in the Schedule screen, but it only shows station ID (not channel number), start date, time on-off, any Repeat you selected, and a Status indicator dot that seems to only show orange with no explanation I've found in the manual. Even though the program name & description are in the EPG list, none of that is shown in the Timer program list, nor is it displayed on the USB recordings list. This thing just cries out for a smartphone remote option, but at this price that's not likely to happen.Weekly GlitchOn this "new version" of the HW180STB, the Weekly repeat recording option sometimes gives an error for recordings that span midnight. It says the program conflicts with other weekly programs that are nowhere near the days and times of those it claims to conflict with. To get around this I'm able to split (SNL for example) into two recordings with one ending at 23:59 and the other starting at 00:00 (so an SNL episode is split into 23:30 to 23:59 and 00:00 to 1:03). It worked fine for one time recordings spanning midnight, and (so far) if I delete the "conflict" program and then re-add it after creating the Weekly program.Playing Recordings (klunky)Unfortunately the worst interface is the screen for viewing recordings, where I not only need to select USB and then PVR but then the auto-created folder when I only have or want one folder, then the recording (with scant little info in the list), then a different button on the remote - all just to play a recording. Deleting it is similarly klunky.Note that before recording you may need to first Format the USB device using the menu (menu button, left arrow, down arrow twice for "PVR Configure" item, OK button, down arrow, (wait a couple of seconds), OK button, OK button, (wait). When done you can eventually find your way back out of all the menus or just hold the Exit button two seconds. Klunky would you say? I tried formatting an old 750GB USB-powered external hard drive I had lying around, and it does add essentially unlimited storage space but adds two new problems. First, it takes up to ten seconds to power up and be recognized when you want to record or play. Worse though, I recorded a weak signal and the breakups trashed the recording file so badly it required reformatting the drive thus losing all recordings. I suggest sticking with a USB stick, since startup is a second or two and you won't be able to stand the UI for more than the occasional recording anyway. I've uploaded pix of the recording list, showing the scant additional info you get by selecting a recording and hitting OK (preview screen shows at top-right, with options along the bottom). Among the options are using the remote's Hold button to toggle between this Preview mode and full-screen Play, which you'll find intolerable for frequent use. The other pic I uploaded shows the Rename screen you get with the FAV button, and yes you use it via the remote's arrow cursor keys. Told you this UI was klunky. :)Unless you recall the date/time/channel of a recording, you'll have to preview each recording in your list to figure out what it is or to learn the file size (1080p HD recordings are about 105MB/minute, 6.3GB/hour). But there's no program name or info, just channel name (not number), date & time, and you have to do another button press (Hold) to actually watch the recording full screen. Guess they thought you just wanted to collect anonymous recordings. At least the recordings of strong stations seem to all work so far, but we'll see about the Weekly Repeat ones I just set for several programs (they recorded once, and look right for the next repeat). Once I know whether the Weekly Repeats work I'll delete them all because the playback UI is just way too annoying.Recordings Can Play On Computer (klunky)You can safely "hot swap" a USB thumb drive stick but presumably not during active read/write. I plugged the USB stick into the Mac Mini and the recordings can be played. Recordings are in the obscure .MTS file format your computer probably won't auto-play, but the free open-source VLC app for Mac, Windows and Linux devices automatically plays them fine once you download and install VLC. Recordings are split into 536.7MB files (about 27 minutes for 704x480 SD resolution, 6.5 min. for 1920x1080 HD) with one filename and numbered extensions (.mts, .mts1, .mts2, etc), so playback on computers is much more hassle for anything more than short clips. Playback on the box is also more forgiving of broadcast dropouts than VLC, so you'll probably seldom bother playing recordings on a computer. Still, it's nice having the option to share recordings with friends or play them on a different device. Especially for short recordings.Refining Your Channel Setup (klunky password = all zeros)Also annoyingly over-complex is the process of skipping programmed channels or creating Favorite channels. I had to finally read the low print quality instruction manual to find out it's in the Program section of the menu, which you can't use without the default password of all zeros (seems appropriate somehow). It's exceptionally lame to require a trivial default password to edit channels, since anyone can simply re-scan and get every channel making it easy for average tweens to outflank parental controls.Remote & User's Manual (good, bad, ugly)The remote is good, especially for a low-cost complex device like this. The buttons are many and mostly small but have nearly white markings, on the grippy dark grey buttons, on the black background of the unlighted 2xAAA battery remote. I count seven different sizes and shapes of buttons, arranged into five groups (including Power/Mute). So it's actually possible to use by feel in the dark, once you memorize where the frequently used buttons are. For just watching TV it's great. Pausing live TV and then starting it up again is also very simple. Going beyond that gets more complicated and annoying, but still probably within the capability of most people.The box has only Power & Channel Up/Down buttons and most routine operations are complex, so if you don't have the remote or the User's Manual you'll have a big problem. As I've mentioned, the printed manual is bad not just due to poor writing but also terrible pictures of only some of the screens. Thankfully Mediasonic has a PDF of the manual for free download and it's clearer than the printed version (but sadly still in black & white, when color high-resolution images would help a lot). Since it wasn't clear on the Amazon page where I bought this box, I've attached to this review a screen capture of the remote taken from the PDF manual. On the somewhat helpful Mediasonic Forum an admin wrote, "works with Logitech Harmony remotes so no regular universal" giving some hope if you do lose/kill the remote, and have a device that will record IR remote signals so you can back up (and with a programmable recording IR device even improve on) the remote.Bottom LineRecommended. Given that this toy only cost 33 bucks delivered (compared with twenty times that for my old slicker and more capable EyeTV and Mac Mini), I'm very happy. Even if it dies after the one year warranty I can just buy another, and if something happens to the remote I could at least watch TV with the three front buttons (now that it's already programmed) or buy another complete box for about what many replacement remotes alone sell for on other devices. If you're anguishing over whether to buy and try one of these, you might want to download the manual and visit the Forum first. If you're not techie and just want a simple HDTV tuner that can make occasional recordings by adding a cheap USB thumb drive (or you are / have access to a techie to learn about more of the cool features), just go for it.

I brought back a LED TV after our stay in South East Asia. Unfortunately, it's tuner was incompatible to North American channel standards so it wasn't able to pickup over the air channels. Although the HW180STB is designed to give a second life to old CRT TVs, it works fine with LCD, plasma or any other new flat screen TVs. With it, we are able to pick up seven over the air HD TV stations which I'm told is what my neighbours get with the type of antenna I'm using. Bottom line, if you have an old CRT TV or a newer flat screen TV without a working tuner, this kit will work fine for you. I don't use this kit as a recorder so I can't say whether that functionality is good or bad.

Es un convertidor que si funciona. por el momento no he usado la funcion para grabar de la USB, pero respecto a lo demas todo muy bien. Yo aproveche una promocon con la antena Mediasonic Homeworx HW110AN Super Thin Indoor, aunque la antena es pequeña y el material parece de baja calidad, funciona de forma excelente, ademas de que es muy delgada, discreta y utiliza muy poco espacio.

OK, I've had this gadget for about 3 months now & time for feedback. First, I bought this as a replacement for a Zinwell ZAT-970A which burnt after about 3 years of reasonbly good service. I didn't want to spend a lot of money, this unit seemed to fit my price range and had a media player/PVR feature in the bargain. Altogether, the product is OK but is a bit unstable. I've learned that it needs to be treated gently in order to get decent use out of it. Here's the list of pro's & con's I've run into since owning it.ProsIt doesn't need a wall wart for power. The unit plugs directly into the AC wall socket.The PVR works fairly well despite some quirks, which are listed in the "cons".The PVR works well with USB 2 flash drives and a USB2-to-IDE that I use with older HDDs.The PVR recording works well although it's limited to storing as .mts files. The mts files can be edited with popular video editing software.OTA channel searches are fast and reliable.OTA reception is better quality than I had with the ZAT970AConsMajor-Major defect is the media player WILL NOT play back videos that are longer than about 2 hours. I've had no response back from Mediasonic on how to fix this or if there even is a fix. There are no firmware updates whatsoever on their web site.The unit draws about 18 watts, so it runs a bit warm. It remains to be seen whether the heat will shorten the unit's life.The unit does not respond well to aggressive button pushing on the remote. It will hang and reboot if you push the remote buttons too quickly.The remote will hang occasionally. The only way to reset the remote is to remove the battery for a few seconds and re-install.Media player playback has an annoying 100 mSec delay between audio and video. This can be fixed by pressing "fast reverse" and "play" in succession.The unit will attempt to auto-search OTA channels immediately after applying power the first time out of the box. I suppose that's ok, but if your antenna isn't pointed in the right direction, the auto-search won't be optimal. Of course, you can force a re-search or search manually later, but the autonomous auto-search came as something of a surprise.Mediasonic does have a web site with a customer feedback section that you can check out. The customer feedback is a good idea but none of the feedback on the HW180STB operational bugs seems to attract the attention of Mediasonic tech support.That's about it. A reasonably good unit for the price. I'd recommend it.

I have bought three of these devices over the last 5 years. They initially worked quite well as advertised, BUT... the first one died after about 1.5 years (just past warranty). I replaced this with a second one, which also died after about 1.5 years. Got a third and it died after 1 year. It appears that these products are poorly made and have a great tendency to stop working after a while without warning or any good reason. These Mediasonic products (any model) are poor quality and not worth your time or money. DO NOT BUY THEM! Purchase a product from another manufacturer.

Performed correctly. The set-top box features are good, the image is good too. Until I connected a device on the USB port. The unit shut off and never turned on again. Did something physically broke when I inserted the connector, or some electronic overload, fuse blow? The user's manual has no specifications about this connector, like the maximum power draw for the device, but it says you can connect hard drives for the pvr function. Aside from its cost, the pvr is the outstanding feature and the reason for my purchase. But it is so badly documented. I returned the unit, and I'll buy another one to try again, but first with a USB flash stick. We'll see what happens.