ATI TV Wonder Elite

[NoripiiGuy]

Looks like a new product from ATI

http://ati.com/products/tvwonderelite/index.html

[Soopafresh]

I don't get it. HDTV is now. Why didn't they make it HD ?

[Heywould3]

I don't get it. HDTV is now. Why didn't they make it HD ?

they have both <-----look there

[DeadLamb]

they have both

yeah true but it seems really strange as a company move to bring out this so called "Highest quality Home Theater TV Experience" whoop ass TV card for blah blah [cut and paste from site] "Featuring high quality TV and stereo FM radio, TV WONDER™ ELITE delivers full hardware MPEG-2 compression, a 3D comb filter, and advanced noise reduction for advanced Personal Video Recorder capabilities.

errrrrrrrrrr so it has all that but gets just blown away by an average card pushing a HDtv signal. Do most even care about higher end "standard tv" recording etc Vs DVD or HDtv anymore? I'm sure some do but the timing of a highend "normal" standard tv recorder card seems sort of strange..

more so as I said being many are looking to capture HDtv streams that 100% crush normal tv on looks etc.. Maybe 3 years ago it would have been great?. I would expect today, this sort of highend card to come WITH a HDtv tuner in it AND all that other stuff.. Like a higher end HDtv card over the HDtv wonder they have now..

this just sounds like a step backwards... Of course watch it go on to sell a zillion units.

[lordsmurf]

Out of hundreds of people I know, only ONE has an HDTV. Other than that, nada. Zip. Zilch. Nobody cares. There is ZERO REASON to replace what already works. That HD thing isn't going to be catching on anytime soon. There are still many people that are just now getting tv for the first time.

[smilinpete]

Out of hundreds of people I know, no one that has actually seen a HDTV displaying a HD picture didn't want one. If you have replaced your black and white tv with a color set despite having ZERO REASON and are glad you did, you will love HDTV. Live telecasts are especially vivid and immersive.

[DeadLamb]

yeah but people who don't want HDtv at all are not the techy sort I would think this card would be marketed at in the first place. Not point to debate the merits of HDtv over Standard, it clearly beat the hell out of it. Only thing holding it back is cost and reception/delivery issues. Those will change and of course go down over time.

It just seems strange to market a higher end version of a PC product that has already been passed by newer tech. In other words they are marketing to a person that wants the best look they can get out of their home recorder PC or home theater pc etc etc.

IMO that is not the sort of person who is also going "Oh HDtv?! No I don't want that." HDtv tuner cards are down to sub $150 and even my old Fusion HDII card is able to encode mpg2 at 640x480 with no frames dropped so it seems strange to not throw in a HDtuner and make this elite card be the end all be all of tuner capture cards.. After all, HDtv cards can "tune" normal tv too.. Why not have everything on one card as ATi is sort of known to do?

sep no.. they are going to market a more costly tv card, to a techy sort of person with the hook that it looks better then any other tv card.. Leaving out the tiny * next to it that says "....sep for DVD that looks better and HDtv that looks way better".. IMO I think that techy sort of person will not go nuts for this card as they would if had a HDtv tuner..

Then again clearly they feel they can sell the card and it's not like this new one is that much more. $150 right? Not really a highend only price point.. Cheap enough to fall into impluse over that cheapy VE card next to it on the shelf I would guess.. Key word being guess. heh

[rfielder]

Looks like a new product from ATI

http://ati.com/products/tvwonderelite/index.html

Did you notice the mention of a Remote Wonder Plus?

What is THAT? They are not even selling the Remote Wonder II except as a bundle with the 9600XT AIW.....

????????????????

[FulciLives]

I don't have HDTV because it is too expensive.

None of my friends have it either for the same reason.

I am a tech head but very poor LOL

Please remember that many people still have a large collection of irreplacable videos (analog tape or DV even) that they want to transfer to DVD so the HDTV thing is a VAST minority.

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

P.S.
I just bought a lowly Avermedia DVD EZMaker to replace my Avermedia AverTV Stereo capture card. The DVD EZMaker cost me $36 and change with shipping.

[DeadLamb]

Please remember that many people still have a large collection of irreplacable videos

oh geeesh way to make me have a bad flash back to getting hooked into doing that for a friend, for his family..

me: Yeah transfer to dvd is easy to do if ya have all the gear and software.
them: you have all that right?
me: Yeah I have all sort of geeky stuff
them: sooooooooooooooooo [holding out VHS tape marked family films]
me: what?
them: sooooooooooooooooo [holding out VHS tape marked family films]
me: no wait I just
them: sooooooooooooooooo [holding out VHS tape marked family films]
me: sigh fine give me the tape.

[MikeS]

I would get this card but I'm not interested in a hardware compression card. I like to do the editing with Virtual dub for max sharpness. I wish they had a software compression card with a 5 way comb filter.