CableCARD Pros
CableCARDs eliminate the need for boxes that take up space on your home entertainment center or living room. The cards are easy to install and do not require an appointment with a technician. They generally cost less to lease from your cable provider than a set-top box. CableCARDs can bring you more choice, freeing you from whatever options your provider decides to give you through their cable boxes. For example, the TiVo Series3 will include slots for two cards, allowing you to record from one channel while watching another.
According to Audioholics.com, the biggest advantage from CableCARDS comes in the picture quality. Set-top boxes provided by cable companies are generally more focused on features than signal quality. CableCARDs allow you to decrypt digital cable and use higher quality components to handle the scaling and display of your cable channels.
CableCARD Cons
If your current home entertainment devices are not marked with the Digital Cable Ready icon, you can't take advantage of the technology until you purchase new ones. In addition, CableCARD technology is currently a one-way system. Until the cards are upgraded, you can't access an interactive program guide. You'll be limited to non-interactive onscreen listings. The one-way system also means you can't order pay-per-view or on-demand programming from your TV screen.
You can access these functions with your set-top box by inserting the CableCARD into it, as most new boxes have the built-in slot. However, that would require paying to lease both a card and a box from your provider. An upgraded 2.0 version is planned sometime in the future that will allow for two-way communications between customers and cable providers, which would eliminate the limitations of the one-way system. However, these upgraded cards will not work with the current DCR-enabled televisions. You would have to purchase a television labeled Interactive Digital Cable Ready. Many television manufacturers have stopped including the DCR slots and plan to wait until the interactive versions are ready for production.
Bottom Line
Set-top boxes aren't going away any time soon. If you are comfortable with your currently entertainment set-up, you should stick with it. Cable operators say they have developed new downloadable technology that will be less expensive for both the cable companies and consumers, and they continue to lobby for a continuation on the ban CableCARD technology. If they have their way, you may never need to decide between the two devices. However, if given the choice, it's important to research how well your current television works with the technology and do a cost comparison of the CableCARD versus the fee you pay for your current set-top box. If interactive features are important, you may want to wait until the technology gets an upgrade before making the switch.
For a more in-depth look at CableCARD technology, check out the Ars Technica.com article CableCARD: A primer.
