Comparison of DVR software packages
This is a comparison of digital video recorder, also known as personal video recorder, software packages. Note: this is may be considered a comparison of DVB software, not all listed packages have recording capabilities.
General information
Basic general information for popular DVR software packages - not all actually record.Features
Information about what common and prominent DVR features are implemented natively :| DVR | Subscription free electronic program guide | Power management | Multiple TV tuner cards support | CableCARD support | CAM support | ATSC tuner support | Automated commercial skipping | Teletext | Schedule timed recordings | Personalized intelligent recording and scheduling | DRM support | DVB tuner support | Smartphone/tablet playback | Smartphone/tablet syncing | Smartphone/tablet remote control |
| Beyond TV | |||||||||||||||
| EyeTV | External add-on | ||||||||||||||
| WinTV | |||||||||||||||
| Kodi | |||||||||||||||
| NextPVR | |||||||||||||||
| MediaPortal | Using Plugin | ||||||||||||||
| MediaPhoenix/ShowShifter | |||||||||||||||
| MythTV | |||||||||||||||
| SageTV | |||||||||||||||
| Video Disk Recorder | |||||||||||||||
| Windows Media Center | ; also respects "do not record" flag | ||||||||||||||
| VBox@TV |
Video format support
Information about what video codecs are implemented natively in the PVRs.| DVR | MPEG-1 | MPEG-2 | MPEG-4 ASP, i.e. DivX, XviD | H.264/MPEG-4 AVC | HEVC | VP8 | VP9 | WMV | AVI | ASF | QuickTime | MP4 | RealVideo | MKV |
| Beyond TV | ||||||||||||||
| EyeTV | ||||||||||||||
| WinTV | ||||||||||||||
| NextPVR | ||||||||||||||
| Kodi | ||||||||||||||
| MediaPortal | ||||||||||||||
| MediaPhoenix/ShowShifter | ||||||||||||||
| MythTV | ||||||||||||||
| SageTV | ||||||||||||||
| Arcsoft TotalMedia Theatre | ||||||||||||||
| Windows Media Center | ||||||||||||||
| VBox@TV |
Information about what video codecs are implemented natively in the PVRs.
Network support
Each features is in context of computer-to-computer interaction.All features must be available after the default install otherwise the feature needs a footnote.
| DVR | Tuner Sharing | Hard Disk Pooling | Shared Media Database | Home Automation | Media Extenders | Placeshifting/Spaceshifting | Two-way Remote Control | Second Screen |
| Beyond TV | ||||||||
| EyeTV | ||||||||
| NextPVR | ||||||||
| Kodi | 4 | 3 | ||||||
| MediaPortal | 4 | |||||||
| MediaPhoenix/ShowShifter | ||||||||
| MythTV | 3 | |||||||
| SageTV | ||||||||
| Arcsoft TotalMedia Theatre | ||||||||
| Windows Media Center | 6 | 7 | 2 | 5 | 2 | |||
| VBox@TV |
1 Yes with registry change
2 Yes with retail third-party plugin
3 Yes with free supported third-party plugin
4 Yes with free unsupported third-party plugin
5 Yes with free third-party software Web Guide 4
6 Yes with add-on software called DVBLink Server
7 Yes with using symlinks, or just adding folders in settings
TV tuner hardware
TV gateway network tuner TV serversDVRs require TV tuner cards to receive signals. Many DVRs, as seen above, can use multiple tuners.
has and that are networked TV Tuners