Today is a big day for the Xbox One when it comes to watching television. The Xbox One Digital TV Tuner is expanding its coverage to preview members in eleven more countries throughout Europe; Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Sweden, and Switzerland. The device was already available in Australia, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom. This news comes the same day as the announcement of an OTA TV tuner that allows users in the US and Canada to view Over-the-Air television.
The Xbox One Digital TV Tuner gives users the ability to watch free-to-air HD TV on their Xbox One and it integrates well with the rest of the Xbox One. Features include, viewing TV in snap mode, pausing live TV, changing TV channels by voice through the Xbox Kinect, and showing a list of programs that are available on demand. The device also creates integration with OneGuide. OneGuide creates a TV guide that can be customized by creating favorites and works well with Xbox SmartGlass.
The Xbox One Digital TV Tuner is different than the announced OTA TV tuner that is available in the US and Canada. If you compare the features listed by Xbox.com they aren’t that different but the key difference is availability. The Digital TV Tuner is available and works in 17 countries throughout Europe and Australia. The OTA TV tuner only works in the United States and Canada. Here’s a screenshot of the feature list of the two devices. The OTA TV tuner is on the left and the Digital TV tuner is on the right. The Digital TV Tuner is made by Microsoft while the OTA TV tuner is made by Hauppauge.
The end result of both devices being available is that users in 19 countries around the world can view television through the Xbox One without needing any subscriptions.
Further reading: Cord cutting, Digital TV Tuner, Xbox One
