What surprised me about the extender was that it would not allow for DVD replay from the PC using the Extender remote and GUI on the plasma screen. DVD replay on the media center PCs interface is available but not “extended” to the Extender. All other functions are available via the Extender. (I assumed that DVD playback would be available via the Extender, which would have been a nice advantage for this type of equipment.)

The plasma TV also has a TIVO III connected to it and the Tivo is also networked to the media center PC. (The same PC also has Tivo Desktop installed on it allowing to play stored Tivo recordings from the PC.)

Comparing the Tivo versus Media Center output on the plasma screen coming from the PC, it’s no contest. The Tivo recordings played from the PC using Tivo Desktop are superior to the same Media Center recordings being piped through the Extender from the same PC. If one allows the Tivo to download for several minutes to the actual Tivo hard drive before playing, the Tivo remote controls the output a lot better than the Extender remote does for its playback.

My guess is that the recording capability is superior on the actual TIVO box verus the recording on the Media Center PC. (When the TV gets too full with content, I transfer the recordings to the networked Media Center PC. When it’s time to watch the stored Tivo content, I play it from the PC folder that shows up on the Tivo box GUI.)

If one has a choice in the matter and Tivo is available, I would recommend the Tivo solution. Although, if the Extender allowed for DVD playback from the PC, that might be for some the key factor in choosing between the two content delivery solutions.