Rumble in the lounge room jungle as TiVo and Foxtel iQ2 take on Topfield
Topfield has finally discovered Ethernet in the lounge room, but Adam Turner wonders if former the PVR heavyweight has left it too late for a comeback.
It looks like 2008 will finally but the year of the PVR in Australia, with TiVo and Foxtel iQ2 set to step into the ring along with Beyonwiz - which is finally punching above its weight after a series of firmware upgrades. Traditional CE manufacturers such as Panasonic and Sony have also started throwing a few decent punches. Topfield has been on the ropes for more than a year and this round of new contenders could see the former champ finally go down for the count.
There was a time when Topfield was the heavyweight champion of the lounge room. In a TiVo-less market like Australia, Topfield's Personal Video Recorders were a knock out, letting you do amazing things like time-shifting and ad-skipping. Then the competition started to catch up, but Topfield failed to stay in shape.
The champ's biggest blunder was refusing to add a humble Ethernet port to its PVRs. This would allow users to download an Electronic Program Guide such as IceTV, as well as access other online services such as Video on Demand. It got to the point where IceTV refused to support any future Topfield PVRs unless they included an Ethernet port. Of course a PVR without an EPG is little more than an expensive paperweight.
Topfield has taken quite a few body blows but the big question is, will the champ's rope-a-dope tactics pay off? Topfield's high-def TF7100HDPVRt is about to don the gloves, which features twin-HD tuners, a 320 GB hard drive, HDMI, external drive support and, most importantly, Ethernet and wifi. A year or two ago I would have said the TF7100HDPVRt was a haymaker that would floor the competition, but today it's just another contender.
If Topfield can fight its way back to the top, it will the biggest comeback since Ali took down Foreman in Zaire with a hard straight right in the eighth. Can the former champ still float like a butterfly and sting like a bee?
Other Blog Entries written by Adam Turner:
Thoughts on this article? Add a comment below.
Comments: 3
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nicK
Jun 24, 2008 10:24 PM
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Your article is very impressive. I hope you let us know the result of fight, if topfield can float like a butterfly and sting like a bee or not...
I expect toppy, the former champ win its contenders with its tech. |
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Adam Turner
Jun 24, 2008 10:45 PM
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@nicK, I'm sorry to say it but I think Topfield's day has passed. I don't think it can compete against TiVo and the iQ2, unless Topfield slashes its prices to get the new TF7100HDPVRt under the $AU500 mark - which is very unlikely. |
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Commentator
Jun 12, 2009 10:10 AM
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There is a spreadsheet that compares the available functions of PVRs at:
http://www.box.net/shared/8vm08gircs
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