The Snappy/Monsoon team has just released HAVA Gold, their latest placeshifting device. It has the same basic functionality and software of their higher priced line of placeshifters. The input/output lineup is slightly different, such as an additional audio input… So you can support composite and SVideo sources simultaneously, for example. The Gold box lacks WiFi and an internal tuner. It comes in black (compared the the original’s silver plastic) and is about 50% smaller.
With a list price of $129 (available now, online only), and $70 cheaper than their mainstream Ethernet box it looks like a good value. Which makes me wonder why they’d risk cannibalizing their own sales. They’ve told me they want to get this model into wholesale clubs, so I can only assume they haven’t been able to work a deal at this point.
Their latest software build (on display) includes several branded remote skins. I still prefer the Slingbox Slingplayer functionality, though HAVA’s in-home (as in LAN) multicasting and basic time-shifting (no scheduling) will appeal to some.
A low cost PC->TV gizmo would be much prefered. <$100 that would receive non-transcoded streams from TVersity… one that plays well MVK, xvid with AC3 or otherwise, and other popular formats
this is what the/my market wants
— the HAVA line has traditionally been an EPIC FAILURE
at delivering 1080x to desktop LAN or remote