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1st gen consumer ATSC cards started being released about 2004-5.
http://www.bbti.us/download/datasheets/Air2PC-ATSC-PCI.pdf

They work ok but are very sensitive to multipath. I still use a few in old HDTV servers.

I use over the air (OTA) [haven't used cable TV since the mid 1980s/80s in PA] and can get most of the local stations (too many crappy ones too!) in Los Angeles (L.A.). I have two old HDTV tuner cards (compatible with Linux) in my Windows box. I don't have to worry about lame DRM and copy protections! I also have backup recorders like my VCR, DTV Pal DVR, etc. if needed. Everything else is online. I don't really like to watch streaming videos online due to slowness, caps, and hard to skip around (have to buffer, still prefer doing them locally [try to download if possible and can watch fullscreen videos on my 20" CRT TV from 1996 unlike streaming videos]).

I had most of the channels working on both analog and digital before the change. But now, I lost them due to VHF and DB2 bowtie antenna. Both rabbit ears and bowtie separately can't get all stations like KTTV 11, etc. Funny how all transmitters are in one location but yet I have to rotate, tilt, etc. my Terk rabbit ears. I never had to do that with my DB2 antenna before the 12th. :(

People think it is my old Air2PC HDTV tuner cards (2005) due to third generation vs. the newer ones. I really don't want to have to spend money to buy new cards nor buy cable/sattelite (subscriptions suck and am not rich). I also can't put an antenna on the roof and in the attic since owners refuse and I am disabled to do it myself.

Bah.

Currently, I use a DB2 bowtie antenna since rabbit ears don't work back in end of 2005. Even with a bowtie (30 miles), sometimes I get dropouts and weak signal strengths like on KABC7's digital 53 (channel 7 for analog), KNBC4's digital 36 (horrible since Super Bowl day almost two weeks ago), etc. I am only under 20 miles to most of these stations (NW direction at 323-324 degrees heading on a compass).

Two weeks, KABC did its digital test on 7 instead of 53 and shutting down its analog channel 7 for 15 minutes after 2:00 AM PST. I woke up for this (yep, I am that crazy) and my two HDTV tuner PCI cards could NOT pick up digital channel 7 at all. with the bowtie antenna. I was told rabbit ears would work. I recalled rabbit ears were too weak for all TV stations when I tried in end of 2005. :(

I will have to buy a new antenna (that supports both UHF and VHF) or add to the bowtie on 6/12/2009 (can't test now since there are no digital channels like 7 [lowest from what I saw for the changeover]. :(

I am currently using a DB2 HDTV Antenna (rabbit ear antenna was too weak (had problems with stronger signal strength [never higher than 50%], but this bowtie type fixed it) with my Broadband Technologies' Air2PC-ATSC-PCI in my computer. This antenna (30 miles) should be fine for HDTV sets if I ever get one.

A lot of friends and family members still use VCR mainly for recording like TV shows because cheap, no DRM, and no friggin subscriptions. Movies are on DVDs. I was going to buy a DVR/PVR a few years ago, but they were still too expensive even without subscriptions. If my VCR (not that old) ever dies, I will probably just get a DVD recorder or something. I only need a recorder. I don't need a TV guide, helper, etc.

I do have a computer with a HDTV tuner PCI card ($40) that works in both in Linux and Windows. Great card and DVB Viewer is OK, but usable. I use it to record HDTV stuff. VCR is my backup in case my computer does something stupid, user error, or I have another TV show to record during the same hours.

Which HDTV card do you use? I use the Technisat Air2PC-ATSC-PCI in Windows XP Pro. SP2. Nice cheap card for ATSC. However, its software (DVB Viewer) is buggy and feature limited.

Ahhh, how about a software MPEG-2 decoder? I noticed on my Athlon 64 (754), it takes almost 50% with the HDTV tuner PCI card I am using.

I avoided TiVo and Replay due to their subscription requirements and high prices.

Do the newer PVRs with timeshift and DTV supports and without service subscription requirement (e.g., don't need the fancy TV guides, recommendations for other shows, voting, etc.) exist? I do not subscribe to satellite and cable TV services (I am a cheap punk, and I don't watch that many TV shows and movies) since I watch through broadcasts. I know DVD recorders exist, but they are quite limited in how much recordings especially with those HDTV (e.g., 1080i). Plus, they are expensive the last time I checked.

Currently, I use an old fashion VCR (record analog TV shows that don't require high quality picture and audio) and a computer with a HDTV tuner PCI card (acts like a PVR, but it is buggy, unstable, and not reliable like a VCR or a standalone hardware-based PVR; also don't like leaving computers on at home). I would love to replace my VCR before February 2009 before digital TV is enforced in USA.

Are there any types of hardware PVRs out there in local retail stores? I live in Los Angeles, CA, USA area. I would love to get a cheap hardware based PVR (no computers) that is like a digital VCR that can handle high quality recordings and playbacks and use over the air (OTA) broadcasts.

Two, actually... pcHDTV 3000 or Air2PC. Both work with (slightly tweaked) MythTV, Neither recognizes the broadcast flag, both cost around $170US... pcHDTV is in stock at the moment, Air2PC handles unencrypted QAM (yeah, right) from cable boxes...

Get a decent PC, make sure it's quiet enough, install Linux, then install MythTV.

Then either get a pcHDTV or better yet an Air2PC.

You're done. :-) Both cards do not bother looking at the broadcast flag and both of them either let you watch the shows in real-time or dump them to the HDD as MPEG2 files. Air2PC is currently better at receiving digital cable, but pcHDTV is supposed to do that as well pretty soon. Both cards receive HDTV OTA with no problems.