14 DAY TRIAL // Technology has advanced so much the last years that it has made some home-use devices almost obsolete. In this category we can include TV and Radio which can be very easily found on the Web. The truth is that no matter what device you use, it is impossible to get a little closer to the possibilities the Internet offers. Today you can watch TV channels from the Philippines, UK, USA and even Aruba.
As for radios, the possibilities are almost limitless and everybody can improvise a radio station and broadcast over the Internet. Of course, you need an appropriate software to do all these and again, the largest database in the world makes available the proper softwares.
One of these applications is called Internet TV and Radio Player and the developer is EPCTV Inc. We're used to good things not to come for free and the cost for this software is $19.95. The really good thing is that you get to test the application before actually buying it.
The only requirements of the software are that you have installed RealPlayer and Microsoft Media Player in order to make it work. These two additional softwares are mandatory as the Internet TV and Radio Player uses their codecs for the television and radio signals.
I must admit that the interface impressed me a bit as the colors are in tone with this millennium and there are no rough edges in this concern. There is nothing complicated in here as the player provides few options and the user will not find the application hard to use.
All the TV and Radio stations are displayed in the left side of the application window, thus leaving the right side for the images or visualizations. The menu bar in the left upper part of the software window consists of File, Channels and Options.
File menu's first option is Open URL. This means that if you have your own URLs for radio or television streaming, then you can add them and view/listen in the player. Every media link is presented in folders and each folder bears the name of the country the link belongs to. That way, you will know exactly from which country is that certain radio or television. Right clicking on the name of the radio or television channel will open up a context menu that allows you to add it to your favorites.
File menu also makes available backing up the list with your favorites and when in need, all you have to do is restore them from the same menu. Channels menu changes the mode of the player (television, radio or my favorites) and here you also have the Search option that allows the user to lookup for certain radio stations or TV channels. The search can be performed in the TV programs, radio stations or among your favorites.
The last menu is Options and it allows you to configure the mode to be loaded at startup. There is no use of displaying all the TV programs and radios you do not need, so you can set the player to load your favorite items when it launches.
The list of channels is in continuous growth and you do not want to miss any of them. The software can check for new channels from server and the feature is available in the Options menu. Every channel has its own icon and they can be displayed.
At the bottom of the application window there are the controls (play, pause and stop) and further to the right there is the volume control and the Show/Hide Channel list which allows you to view the TV programs in a single window.
The Good
The interface is absolutely incredible. The use of use also contributes to the list of "goodies" provided by the software. We can also mention the quality of some channels that is really impressive.
The Bad
The "reception" was not quite as good as I expected and I had interruptions at all times. I can put this on the account of my Internet connection. But what about those dead connections in there?
I could not find my way to fullscreen mode as at right clicking the visualization window, all the video size options were blocked.
The Truth
I liked the player despite the fact that the channel list (both radio and TV) did not include some major stations in certain countries. You are free to test it by yourselves for the trial period (20 days).
ChrisTV Online made me a much better impression and the price is just 5 cents higher.
Here are some snapshots of the application in action:
