TVMicro sized right for occasional TV/Mac usage
Posted by Dennis Sellers 
Jun 12, 2006 at 11:28pm
If tiny is in, Miglia Technology’s US$99 TVMicro is bound to be a hit. Though the “cool white” device is barely the size of an iPod shuffle, you can use it to watch and record analog TV on your Mac. Heck, it can record TV straight to your hard drive with a single mouse click.
It offers USB 2.0 connectivity, the marvelous EyeTV 2.0 (see our April 7 review) software and a remote control that’s 2-3 times bigger than the TVMicro itself. With the Miglia hardware/EyeTV 2.0 software combo, you can watch TV in a window or in full screen.
Files are recorded in VCD (MPEG-1), S-VCD (MPEG-2) or DVD (MPEG-2) quality. Unlike its big (and more expensive) brothers EvolutionTV or the excellent TVMini, TVMicro relies on your Mac to transform the TV signal into a digital file.
TVMicro isn’t as full featured as Miglia and Elgato’s other Personal Video Recorder (PVR) products, but it’s well suited for users on the go, folks wanting a fast and easy solution for watching TV on a Mac or (especially) those who just watch the ‘tube occasionally on their Mac. If you are really into watching TV on your computer, lay out the extra moolah for either the TVMini or the EyeTV 200. After all, when you throw in the remote and antenna or cable connections, the small size of the TVMicro loses some of its appeal. TVMicro requires a PowerPC (G4 or G5) or Intel based Mac with USB 2.0 connectivity and Mac OS X 10.4 or higher. You’ll need a dual G4, dual G5 or Intel Dual Core processor to record in full DVD quality.
Macsimum rating: 6.5 out of 10
Marcus Says:
TV Micro is excellent if your Mac is fast enough to handle the encoding.
I can attest that my Powerbook 1.67 G4 can encode the video using
Mpeg-2 setting “good”. This is the middle resolution available. VCD stinks…
Posted on June 13, 2006
deepkid Says:
I just ordered the Miglia TVminiHD (TVM02) from JR.com for $206 shipped. Since I just donated my analog 27” tv to Salvation Army, I reckon this would be an affordable HDTV interim step. I like the portability aspect of it and hope that my experience in Chicago is as fruitful as other user reviews I’ve read. Thanks for the product reviews, Dennis.
Posted on June 13, 2006
MacBearPS Says:
I’m dissappointed with the Micro; it seems I can _only rewind/ffwd_ when I’m recording—NOT when watching live TV—Defeats the best feature of a PVR device! The software brings my G5 iMac 1.6ghz to it’s knees often hitting 100% CPU utilization at the lowest settings. I regret this purchase, should have forked out for a higher-end device. My 1st generation USB 1.1 EyeTV unit was much better than this TVMicro is.
Posted on June 13, 2006
deepkid Says:
Wanted to come back and say that I’m quite happy with my Miglia TVminiHD. I’ve had it for 2 days and am still tweaking… up from 6 channels to 25 with the included antenna by moving it around the house.
I am in a basement/garden condo so that makes things more challenging. But with that said and living on Chicaog’s north side/lakefront with lots of tall buildings, I’ve still managed to get quite a few signals.
Perhaps I’ll buy an amplified antenna soon to see how things go. I did notice that when people walked past my window and the antenna, the signal weakened. I found that bizarre. Reflections?
Posted on June 17, 2006
David McElroy Says:
What kind of antenna does the TV Micro require to pick up signals over the air? At least, I assume it requires an external antenna. What kind of connector does it require? Also, can you plug a coax cable for non-digital cable straight into it?
Posted on June 23, 2006
Roel Torres Says:
You can connect the coax to the key with a supplied adapter.
Posted on June 25, 2006
Bostonmac Says:
I’m deciding between the Micro and the Mini HD. Does anyone have some comparative opinions?
Do you still get a clear picture with the analog tv (micro)? I just want to watch basic tv without the monthly cable bills. I’m not concerned with recording HD, but I want to be able to watch a couple channels with decent picture quality without having to constantly adjust the antenna.
Posted on July 25, 2006
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Contributor
Dennis Sellers
Dennis has been a newspaper editor/reporter (seven years) and teacher (seven years). He has over 4,000 magazine, newspaper and online articles to his credit. He has also covered the Mac and tech industries for over a decade for such online publications as MacCentral, MacMinute and now MacsimumNews.
deepkid Says:
Miglia’s TVminiHD (TVM02) product is quite intriguing at $199 or so and has generated pretty good user reviews. (check Froogle for current street prices).
If analog tv is really going away in 2 years in the U.S., Miglia’s micro (TVM04) might not get such good ROI, unless it’s on all the time until then.
I reckon’ it really would depend on your location regarding how many over-the-air HDTV stations each person’d receive, if not subscribed to cable, etc..
Check <a >www.checkhd.com</a> to find out.
Posted on June 13, 2006