Many people have heard of the Raspberry Pi - it's a small low-power computer with a low price tag of $35 (or $25 for the lower model). The whole idea behind this concept is it's a platform to learn, tweak, and experiment from. Since they first went on sale 2 years ago I've wanted one, but I've needed a project or idea, something to do with it. Recently I figure out what that idea is - I want to build a cheap low-power DVR for over the air (OTA) broadcast TV. With this broad goal in mind I started my research. Whereas projects with the Raspberry Pi are well documented on the Internet, my experience is any time you're dealing with Linux, unless your setup exactly matches a known working setup then you might run into issues which you need to work through. Anyway, I wanted to do a series of posts on my blog about my progress towards this goal. Hopefully if someone else is considering this project with a Raspberry Pi they will find these posts helpful.
First I wanted to elaborate more on my ultimate goal. Since cutting the cord and dropping cable TV about 7 years ago, my only source of TV is OTA broadcast. With an antenna I receive 9 channels, and whereas I don't watch much TV, there are a few programs that I enjoy. The problem is timing, the shows are on at a time when I can't watch. So I need a simple DVR to record the shows so I can watch them at my convenience. This is typically called "time-shifting."
The most well-known time-shifting device is the TiVo. The problem with a device like this is two-fold. 1) they are expensive, especially when you add in monthly fees; and 2) these devices usually require cable and/or satellite TV. That said, there are a few commercial exceptions. Channel Master makes a product called the DVR+ which is a DVR designed for OTA broadcast TV. This device costs even more than a TiVo, but doesn't have monthly fees. Another interesting product is the HDHomeRun. This tiny box (with a street price of $100) can record TV shows and stream them to a network drive. I already have a NAS (network attached storage) device in my house, so this is an enticing product.
In the end, I decided to go with the Raspberry Pi. In effect I want to create my own version of these devices. Even through the Raspberry Pi is only $35, this route is by no means cheaper. When all is said and done, I estimate the hardware to cost about $150 including shipping and tax. So it's definitely more cost-effective to go with the HDHomeRun. But that is a single use device, whereas the Pi is a fully functional computer which means you can do more, and it will have more configuration options. Plus using the Pi is just cool and more fun! I'm more looking forward to the process of getting this to work than I am in using the end product. I know that sounds weird, but as an engineer I've always enjoyed the work more than the end result.
Anyway, back to the goal of creating a time-shifting DVR. My original plan was to mount the Pi with an antenna into an out of the way place like the garage. The Pi would be headless (no keyboard, mouse, or monitor) so I would control it from another computer. All the Pi would do is record TV shows of my choosing and save the output to my NAS box. This was my original goal, but now I'm kicking around some additional ideas. We have 3 TVs in our house, 2 of which are "smart TVs" but the main TV in the living room isn't. So I thought if I put the Pi by that TV and connect it to the TV via HDMI, then that Pi could be multipurpose. In addition to recording TV programs for all the TVs, it would also be a media server for that TV - allowing me to watch both my recorded TV shows as well as the wealth of free streaming content available on the Internet. As an added bonus, I could use the Pi as an emulator and game station for playing retro video games on the big TV.
So my initial goal is as a headless DVR. But once that is up and running I'll look at turning the Pi into a full-blown media center.
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