04-05 - TELE-satellite International Magazine

BEGINNER’S SECTION
Topfield PC Software
The Wide World of Extra Features:
PC Software
for Topfield Receivers
by Thomas Haring
Without doubt South Korean company Topfield is one of
the most innovative manufacturers of satellite receivers
in the world. Owners of Topfield products not only get a
receiver, but a masterpiece of state-of-the-art technology
with a whole range of extra features that extend far into
the PC realm. We want to take you on a journey to the
wide world of Topfield bonus features:
Creating a DVD
If you already own a PVR receiver you
certainly had moments when you wished
it were possible to save a recorded event
on DVD for archiving in a quick and easy
way. In actual fact, Topfield receivers
save the transport stream they receive
via satellite, cable or digital terrestrial
TV without any changes or reformatting.
Depending on the actual receiver
model in Topfield’s comprehensive product
range the individual stages you have
to go through for creating a DVD differ
slightly.
What is the same for all models is step
1: transferring the recorded event from
the receiver’s internal hard disk to the
PC. Topfield provides three procedures
to accomplish that task:
16 TELE-satellite & Broadband — 04-05/2009 — www.TELE-satellite.com
• data transfer between receiver and
PC using a USB 2.0 connection
• data transfer between receiver and
PC using a LAN or WLAN connection
• direct access from the PC to contents
stored by the receiver on a hard disk
Direct access from the PC is supported
for all receiver types that do not come
with a built-in hard disk, such as the
TF7700HSCI. Thanks to USB 2.0 these
boxes are able to record events on an
external hard disk and whenever you
need to transfer files all you are required
to do is unplug the external hard disk
from the receiver and connect it to the
PC. MS Windows Explorer will recognise
it as a removable disk drive after a few
moments and then you’re all set for
copying files to the local disk.
Data access via LAN or WLAN has
also turned out to be a very convenient
solution and that is why Topfield has
equipped a number of its premium products
with LAN or WLAN connectivity.
The current top-of-the-range receivers
TF7700HDPVR or TF6000PVR, for example,
offer this feature.
Luckily, Topfield has not only looked
at the hardware aspects but also made
sure the software includes functions
such as DHCP so that a network connection
between the receiver and the PC can
easily be set up. Cat-5 cables are needed
for a physical connection, in cases where
the two devices are linked directly you
have to go for a crossover cable, while
a straight-through cable must be used
if a router or Internet gateway provides
access to the network.
Without exception, Topfield receivers
with network connectivity come with
both a web and an FTP server. This allows