Eyetv, in the latest upgrade appears to offer mpeg-4 (and 1 and 2) as their compression methods. There is also a transcoding preset for psp and of course it allows you to do h264. If you look at the eyetv docs it appears that the post processing system is virtually free quicktime pro.
The Miglia supports all the above formats (except H264) via hardware (as far as I can tell) AND support DIvx.
If you have a diVx (case unsensitive) player then the Miglia may be a better bet as you will be able to have higher resolution/lower size video on normal dvd media that plays in a set-top box.
From what I saw, neither offers an output system.
Both the Miglia and eyetv (I'm going on the 200 here) offer remotes and if you have quicktime pro you essentially have the same post processing options.
Another consideration is Formac studios products. The formac converter has the same features (dvr, channel guide, a post-processing application and they are all as good if you go w/ qt pro), but lacks divx or a remote. However, the Formac unit offers 2 distinct advantages 1) It records in DV so you get the highest quality initial recordings, and 2) I offers outputs.
I realize you are talking about turning your g5 into a TV, but if you consider the resolution and the method in which a CRT ghosts images; you may be happier with an output to television.
I bought the Apple out to television (expat so RCA not scart) and that was not a good experience. I will be purchasing a formac unit as I am perfectly capable of controlling itunes w/ salling clicker, or on a new iMac Front Row.
In home theatre integration the eyetv system can be complimented w/ the eyehome setup (a seperate unit that gives media centre..oops center 😉 properties to your mac. There are even wireless distribution upgrades.
Until more is known of the miglia, although it is considered quite a challenger, I would put it in the same league as the eyetv 200. W/o eye home I believe it loses an advantage (apart from the colou..or) the Miglia is brushed aluminium or titanium v the whitemac eyetv.
The formac has vertical or horizontal mounting and is the superior 'break-out' box.
Also, there is a new eyetv product that uses software encoding.
I know in the US the limitations on eyetv and formac for ntsc are 740x480 (which covers all aspect ratios).
If I were you I would look at the documentation and the readme's for all the different lines. I forget which one does auto-cropping of widescreen (getting rid of the letterboxing) and it may be the eyetv.
To make a long bunch of stuff I made up short. The Miglia and EyeTV as individual units appear competitive with the Miglia having the Divx advantage, but the EyeTV having an aggresive firmware upgrade campaign and what looks like a better post-processing system. If you want to go room to room the EyeTV is the choice. If you NEVER EVER want to output from the box then either works, but if you want to rip to DV and break-out then the Formac comes out on top.
I hope I haven't confused you here. Whatever you choose I think they all offer their own benefits.l
