CNET editors' review
-
CNET editors' rating:
stars
Excellent
Detailed editors' rating
- Reviewed on: 12/04/2006
- Released on: 10/01/2006
The Vista View Saber 2020 is a low-profile card with two coaxial connections for TV and FM radio and a port for connecting a two-input S-Video breakout cable. The card supports a variety of common TV standards, including NTSC, PAL, and SECAM.
Installing the card was easy using the setup CD, which included basic drivers and a custom DVR application called SaberView. The card also works with Windows Media Center Edition and third-party apps, such as SageTV. While you can use a standard MCE remote if Media Center is your front-end application, the card doesn't include a remote for use with the bundled SaberView DVR application.
SaberView will appear very stripped down to anyone used to Media Center, SageTV, or Beyond TV. There's a lack of hand-holding while setting up your TV signal, and the interface has a sparse Windows Explorer look, unlike the icon-heavy 10-foot interfaces common in other DVR apps. Still, for basic viewing and recording of a TV or FM radio signal, it suffices, and it gives non-MCE users a fully functional DVR setup right out of the box.
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