HP MediaSmart Expander for TiVo Add-In for Windows Home Server

HP are releasing a free Add-In for Windows Home Server called the HP MediaSmart Expander for TiVo.

This free Add-In will allow TiVo owners to manage their content from their HP MediaSmart Windows Home Servers.

Here is the full press release from HP:

PALO ALTO, Calif., March 10, 2010 – HP today made available HP MediaSmart Expander for TiVo®, a new software application that lets TiVo DVR⁽¹⁾ owners manage video content from an HP MediaSmart Server.⁽²⁾

With a high-definition (HD) DVR from TiVo, consumers can record and pause live TV, and access the world’s largest on-demand video store to watch hit movies, TV shows, music videos and cool web videos.

With the new software application, which is offered at no charge to MediaSmart server owners, TiVo customers can:

— transfer shows from TiVo to a HP MediaSmart Server and back to TiVo

— view TiVo recordings stored on a HP MediaSmart Server

— watch TiVo recordings that are stored on the HP MediaSmart Server on any PC in the home using Windows Media Player

Based on the Microsoft Windows® Home Server platform, the HP MediaSmart Server is a central repository for automatically backing up and accessing digital music, videos, photos and documents from multiple computers on a home network.⁽³⁾

The HP MediaSmart Server automatically organizes files across all Windows and Mac computers, streams media across a home network and the Internet,⁽⁴⁾ and publishes photos to popular social networking and photo sharing sites.

“The HP MediaSmart Server is the ideal companion to TiVo. With the HP MediaSmart Expander for TiVo, consumers don’t have to worry about running out of high-definition storage space since they can save their movies and shows on the HP MediaSmart Server and watch them on any computer in the home,” said Jason Zajac, vice president of Attach, HP Personal Systems Group. “Plus, consumers will benefit from all of the additional features the HP MediaSmart Server provides, such as backing up all Windows and Mac computers.”

Pricing and availability

The free HP MediaSmart Expander for TiVo application can be accessed through the Windows Home Server Console of the HP MediaSmart Server EX90/EX495 and HP Data Vault.

(1) Requires TiVo DVR Series II, Series III, TiVo Premier and TiVo desktop software.

(2) Compatible with HP MediaSmart Servers EX490/EX495. HP MediaSmart Server, PCs and TiVo DVR must be on the same network.

Whilst it is really great to see HP coming out with some more Add-Ins for Windows Home Server, especially free ones, it’s just a shame they release one that pretty much does the same thing as TiVO Publisher for WHS. Also, its a bit of poor timing what with the announcement this week that TiVo’s Q4 2009 results were a loss of $10.2 million.

Still, anything that adds to Windows Home Server cannot be a bad thing!

I don’t have a TiVo here in the UK, they never really took off, so any of our US readers that have one and try this add-in, let us know what you think – and why not consider writing a review for us?