By Shane McGlaun

One of the features that I like about my DirecTV DVR is that I can access it via my iPhone and set shows to record from anywhere I can get a Wi-Fi or cellular signal. The DVR doesn’t even have to be connected to my Internet connection to use the app.

Dish Network has announced its own remote access program called simply Remote Access. They even offer an iPhone App just like DirecTV. The service allows users to access their DVR from anywhere in the world and schedule recordings. The catch with the Dish Network app is that the DVR has to be connected to the Internet.

Once accessed users can browse a 9-day program guide or search programs by genre, title, or channel for shows and record them. Only specific DVRs are compatible including the coming ViP 922 HD, 722k, 722, 622, and 612HD. The service is free of charge and available to all subscribers with compatible hardware.

[ Dish Network ]

By Jonathan Kimak

This is a fairly neat looking and rather discrete video recorder. The CamBall is a miniature digital video recorder that can record MPEG-4 video in 320×240 or 640×480 resolution. It can store up to 8GB of data on a tiny SD card(and it looks like the card is sold separately).

And like many great gadgets, this one is currently only available in Korea, for around $200 US. And while my Korean language skills are limited to 0 words, my looking at a photo ability has discovered that this spy ball also has an underwater case(might be sold separately) for taking videos while you’re snorkeling or scuba diving.

There is also an alternate version that comes with an mp3 player built in.

[ CamBall(Korean Website) ] VIA [ Ubergizmo ]

This post is syndicated with permission from Gadgetoholic.com

I am a DVR nut and record everything — even if I plan to watch it right then. I like to let the show get about 15 minutes ahead of live TV so I can skip all of the commercials. I also have kids so we tend to collect gobs of Dora episodes as well. When we start running out of space on the DVR, everyone gets nervous that their programs will be deleted.

Hitachi has announced some new hard drives that are aimed at the DVR user in its CinemaStar line. The more interesting of the two new drives is the CinemaStar 7K1000.B. This drive has a massive 1TB storage capacity and can hold 247 hours of MPEG-4 encoded HD video and support ten simultaneous data streams. My pathetic DVR drive can only hold 30 hours of HD programs.

In addition to the 1TB behemoth Hitachi also announced a CinemaStar 5K320 that uses CoolSpin technology. CoolSpin allows for a quieter and more efficient drive that Hitachi claims is one of the most power efficient and quiet hard drives available. Both of the new drives have mechanics designed to run 24/7 without failure and can operate in expanded temperature ranges to allow operation in fanless DVR designs. The CinemaStar 7K1000.B will be available in August and the 5K320 will ship in September. I would like to see Seagate bring its newly announced and sufficiently massive 1.5TB drive to the DVR market as well.

Via Gadgetoholic