Watching
After this involved setup, I was ready to enjoy some "quality time" by the computer. After all is said and done, it is surprisingly convenient to sit in front of the monitor watching last night's episode of Seinfeld. What is not so convenient is realizing that the TV schedule changed, and what you thought was "Seinfeld" is actually "ABC News." After you have found some quality profiles you can live with, you can sit back and enjoy without messing around with two-hour videotapes.
As for the PocketPVS module, I can't say that it's worth the CPU time for regular viewing. There are too many variables, including battery life, adverse viewing conditions, and generally bad video quality. However, it would make a nice optional (read: free) feature that may interest frequent travelers. I think the same applies to Internet streaming for most broadband users with limited upstream bandwidth.
However, downloading over the Internet is a better idea, and is probably the way to go if you decide to open your firewall.
The home network streaming works perfectly, and comes highly recommended if you also have a home network server.
TV anywhere? Maybe not anywhere, but certainly here and there.
Conclusion
SnapStream is an interesting product, and I expect SnapStream-like functionality to become as common in the future as streaming audio is today.
However, there are several things that can be improved from version 2.0. In particular, I would like to see support for codecs other than Windows Media, more extensive documentation, and tighter security. Most of all, however, I would like to see a better and more versatile Program Guide.
SnapStream gobbles up both storage space and CPU cycles, and if you already have a capable PC and/ or Pocket PC, you might very well be satisifed with SnapStream's big bang-for-the-buck. If not, it's not worth upgrading the computer, instead look for SonicBlue or TiVo's latest products.