Multimedia hubs are becoming increasingly popular nowadays, as the need to set up a centralized control unit for all the multimedia devices in one's home entertainment center becomes more dire. And this is exactly the reason why the people over at Monsoon have come up with the HAVA Titanium HD back in the second half of 2007, a device that supports high-definition streaming, USB connectivity and much, much more.



Thus, the HAVA Titanium HD includes a wireless 802.11g USB dongle that connects to one of two available USB ports, allowing users to incorporate the HAVA Titanium HD into any home or office wireless network. The HAVA Titanium HD wireless setup is fast, easy, and eliminates the need to run Ethernet cables, or purchase costly HomePlug or PowerLine adapters required for Wired Ethernet (802.3) 10/100 interface networks.



One of the most interesting selling points provided by the device from Monsoon is the fact that HAVA users will be able to enjoy new and innovative features long after initially purchasing the unit. Thus, the device will have additional USB peripheral support such as an 802.11n dongle that will offer superior wireless bandwidth and range for streaming HD video around the home. Additionally, users will be able to connect an external hard disk creating a standalone PVR, and record favorite TV shows without requiring a PC running on the network. Other USB peripherals will include a USB hybrid digital TV tuner, which will enable users to watch digital and analog free off-the-air TV channels.



The HAVA Titanium HD also features Monsoon's vBooster technology, which provides superior picture quality and enables multicast video, allowing an unlimited number of PCs connected to a home network to view video content while simultaneously transmitting video to a broadband-connected PC or mobile phone anywhere in the world. vBooster allows the MPEG-2 local streams to bypass the router, effectively doubling the available bandwidth, while keeping the PC connected to the router for non-video traffic.



The included HAVA Player software features a wide range of familiar virtual remote control designs, allowing users to change channels and control other features of their video source such a DVR. The HAVA Titanium HD enables the PC to operate with TiVO-like functionality. Customers can pause, fast forward, rewind and record live TV to the PC hard disk, then burn the recorded content to a DVD for archiving purposes. The HAVA Titanium HD also serves as a Network TV Tuner for Media Center PCs on the home network (no need for a TV tuner and physical TV source in those PCs, to deliver all the powerful TV features of Microsoft Media Center.)



The Monsoon HAVA Titanium HD retails for around 250 US dollars, which is actually a pretty OK price to pay, considering the fact that the device could prove to be quite a sound investment for the future.