With my current venture into the world of YouTube I wanted to buy a HD recorder that can handle full 1080p recording from my Xbox 360 console that easily stores onto my computer.. Which is where the Hauppauge HD PVR 2 (Gaming Edition) comes in.
This great bit of kit from Hauppauge only set me back £130 and comes with a fairly good recording software as standard! So for a very little cost, for a high quality end product has made me a happy little boy :)
Basically what it does is it records HD footage directly from your Xbox 360, or your Sony PlayStation 3 and well anything that has a HDMI cable. (aslong as it doesnt have HDCP copy protection) This little magic black box from Hauppauge uses its H.264 AVCHD HD Video encoder to record 1080p30(1080i from Component) from your HDMI with no delay HDMI Pass through Basically what that means is you can commentate during game play and it should be in almost perfect time with your recordings.
Tech Specs:
Recording Data rate: from 1 to 13.5 Mbits/sec
Recording Formats: MP4, TS and M2TS
Power: 6V at 1.6 amps
HDMI in
HDMI Out
Component Video in, With Stereo Audio
S-Video and Composite video in, with Stereo Audio
Size: 6" Wide by 6" Deep x 1.5" High
System Requirements:
3.0 GHz single core or 2.0 GHz Multi-core Processor
Windows 7(32 or 64bit) Vista or Xp
Hd Tv with HDMI Input
512MB Ram (1GB Recommended)
Graphics card with atleast 256mb memory
Sound Card
220MB free Hard Disk Space
What comes in the packaging:
HD PVR 2 Gaming Edition HD H.264 Personal video recorder, USB 2.0
6V 1.6 Amp power supply
USB Cable
Two Hdmi Cables
PS3 Component Video Gaming Cable with Hauppauge A/V Adapter Cable
Installation CD
Installation Guide
Software:
Arcsoft ShowBizHauppauge's Personal Logo Inserter
Here is image showing the back of the device which
comes on the packaging, and is also displayed on their website here
My Overall Experience and opinion:
The first problem I had was the fact my parcel did not contain the Installation Cd. Which panicked me a wee tiny bit, but had a very simple solution.. I went to their website and onto the forums regarding the HDPVR2 and found a post called "New HD PVR 2 CD 1.3 available!" which had the necessary downloads for all my drivers and the software provided by Hauppauge.
The second problem I had was when I tried to record from the PVR it was coming up with a message saying it was in use by another program. but thanks to their brilliant forum and members there was a post on how to fix this issue, by uninstalling and reinstalling.
Other then the above minor hiccups, it has been very straight forward to setup and install. As im typing this I am currently uploading the Unboxing and Review of the HD PVR to my YouTube Channel TheGeorge8D which will be embeded at the bottom of this video once uploaded :)
A slight concern I have is the fact after about 20 or 30 minutes recording, the PVR actually got quite hot :S but only time will tell if it affects it.
All in all, this product from Hauppauge is great, and I rate it a very strong 10/10. It is definately a must have for any gamer looking to record and share their gameplays with their friends, familys and maybe even half the world.. you never know! The Simplicity of use and design makes this product a very pretty item on your desk and a very straight forward device to use.
So if your looking for a device which can record your games in full hd at a affordable price, this is the product you have been searching for.
If you are interested your own HD PVR by Hauppauge or would like to see what other products they do, please click the following link:
