WiFi, gigabit Ethernet and TV adapters are able to fit into a USB dongle, because components are getting smaller and software is able to take up the jobs left by hardware DSP.

Moving to a USB stick has its pluses and minuses depending on your needs. The Miglia TVMicro - a Hi-Speed USB analog TV dongle that will put you in the same dilemma in which you have to choose between convenience and scalability.


Package Content
- Miglia TVMicro USB TV dongle
- Remote
- 2 AA batteries
- Elgato EyeTV 2 CD-ROM
- Quickstart Guide

Miglia TVMicro isn't the first of its kind, but such form factor for analog TV is apparently the only one for Mac as of this writing. It is about 40% thicker than an iPod shuffle so you can almost dangle it around your neck. The remote, on the other hand, is about double the size of the TVMicro.

Pros:
- The EyeTV can wake up and asleep Mac to begin recording either by EPG web services or manual scheduling.
- An iPod export function is available if you want to convert the saved shows.
- The TV picture quality produced by the USB TV dongle was decent.
- Fast-moving motions came out okay, without any residual ghost images.

Cons:
- The colors were muted, details were somewhat blurred and the tuner had a difficult time filtering out the noises properly.
- Miglia recommends only Dual G4/G5 Mac owners.
- The price (about 90.90$).

Conclusions:
Overall, the Miglia TVMicro has lived up to our expectations; it performed well without any quirks. The rock solid Elgato EyeTV 2, requiring nearly no learning curve, is easily the best PVR software available for Macs.

writtnen by Florin C.