I have been using EyeHome since February 2004 and have found it to be a wonderful device. My EyeHome is connected via 10/100 ethernet to a PowerMac G5 Dual 2.0GHz that is in another room, the office. The EyeHome product allows me to view EyeTV recordings, MPEG1, 2, 4, AVI, DVD (.VOB) movies, iPhoto pictures, iTunes music and even surf the web from my TV/home theatre system. This product is awesome. While I have read some reviews that seem to indicate EyeHome has issues that other reviewers find to be a problem, it seems to me that, "they just don't get it". There is nothing out there that can perform like EyeHome for watching Macintosh movies, photos or listening to music on your TV/ home theatre. There are other audio solutions available like Squeezebox and AirPort Express but none of them support both audio and video. EyeHome meets the need for an all in one Macintosh TV/home theatre interface better than any other device I have seen.



EyeHome Update Changes
Audio: The original EyeHome allowed the user to play Apple Music Store AAC files on EyeHome. Apple requested Elgato remove that feature, so EyeHome now plays AIFF, MP3, WAV, (unprotected) AAC and Ogg Vorbis audio files.

The EyeHome 1.5.1 software requires that you update the EyeHome hardware to the October 2004 EyeHome Firmware. It does not matter whether the firmware update is performed before or after installing this software but both the firmware and software have to be updated for it to work. To update the firmware, EyeHome will need to access the Internet. To do this you press the wrench button on the remote control, navigate to the Update section. Select “Check for firmware update” or "Check for core graphics update" and follow the on-screen instructions. EyeHome will download the firmware and prompt you to restart when finished. After your EyeHome has rebooted, repeat these steps until you receive a message that no more updates are available. Next, install EyeHome 1.5.1 and restart your computer after the install is completed. After the firmware has been updated and the installation of EyeHome 1.5.1 has been performed, you are ready to enable EyeHome Media Sharing in the EyeHome system preference pane.

Performance
I tested the EyeHome 1.5.1 under several high CPU usage conditions and found no slow down or drop in audio or video quality after the update on my system. At one point, I was using Squeeze 4 to compress a video on the G5 2.0GHz, while EyeTV was recording a TV show. The G5 activity monitor was over 90% on both CPUs. Then, I turned on EyeHome and began watching a .VOB DVD file located on the PowerMac G5 with no problems. Next, I played some AIFF music and used the new feature to show an iPhoto library while the music was playing under the same processor load. No drop outs. I was very surprised that I saw no effect on the EyeHome TV/stereo playback while the G5 CPUs were under such a heavy load. EyeHome lets the PowerMac G5 work hard while you also use it to power the family home entertainment system.

EyeHome 1.5.1 gets 5 AMUGs out of 5!
EyeHome is the product Macintosh users have been waiting for. It allows you to play almost all of your Macintosh computer media on the home theatre and retrieves the files from any Macintosh you designate on the network. The unit is reasonably priced at $199 and refurb models are available for $149. While I have listed several cons above, they would simply be a great update to this already cool product.

Contact Information:
Elgato Systems LLC
900 Kearny Street Suite 750
San Francisco CA 94133-5145
Phone (415) 391-0310
http://www.elgato.com/

Copyright 2004
Arizona Macintosh Users Group, Inc. (AMUG)
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