Yesterday, Nero and TiVo Inc. announced their first attempt at putting TiVo software on a PC with Nero LiquidTV I TiVo PC (LiquidTV). The full press release can be viewed here.

Perhaps the first thing I noticed was that LiquidTV does not integrate software-wise with Windows Media Center. The only thing that works with LiquidTV is the Media Center remote. Since there is no integration with Media Center, it appears as though LiquidTV is trying to compete with Media Center to be the best DVR option on a PC. In my opinion, it just doesn’t stack up.

For TiVo fans that already have TiVo DVRs in their house and don’t want to invest in a Windows Media Center solution, LiquidTV will provide some great benefits. It allows users to do all of the normal DVR stuff like record TV, set up series recordings, etc. It also allows TiVo users to transfer recordings between PCs and other TiVo boxes connected to your home network. As a current Media Center user, the fact that you have to transfer the recordings is a deal breaker for me. I love being able to not only access my recordings via extenders, but also being able access most of the items within the Media Center interface on extenders. You don’t have to wait for transfers…it’s all just there when you want it.

Another thing lacking from LiquidTV is digital cable. There are no options for CableCARD or DirecTV. You can use a set-top box from your cable company or DirecTV, but you will be limited to an S-Video connection which does not allow for true high definition programming. With high definition programming becoming more and more popular every day, this is a must have in my opinion.

LiquidTV also supports a maximum of 4 tuners. With the recent release of TV Pack 2008 for Windows Media Center, users who also have Windows Vista Ultimate can add up to four tuners of each type (e.g. four CableCARD tuners and four Clear QAM tuners). Media Center users have been able to perform a hack that would allow for more tuners for some time but it just recently became a supported solution with TV Pack 2008. It’s not clear yet whether users will be able to hack LiquidTV to allow for more tuners but it would be nice if it were supported out of the box.

There are two pricing levels for LiquidTV. The $99 solution gives you the software only, leaving you responsible for finding a compatible TV tuner and remote. You can opt for a $199 solution that gives you the software, a Hauppage WinTV HVR 950Q TV tuner and a TiVo remote and IR blaster. Both solutions also provide you with a one year subscription to the TiVo service. What isn’t included, however, are subscriptions for subsequent years of service. You will have to spend an additional $99 per year for the service, which is another downfall from the ‘free’ solution that Windows Media Center provides.

In summary, I do not think LiquidTV will be a viable competitor for Windows Media Center. While it does provide a great solution for current TiVo users, there just isn’t enough there in my opinion to convince Media Center users to switch over. The lack of a true extender experience, along with a lack of any true high definition solution is a deal breaker for me and the added annual subscription fees just makes it look even worse.