The most compelling new product I’ve seen at CEDIA thus far didn’t even make the show floor. Up in a hotel suite across the street, executives from Digeo showed off the company’s Moxi DVR device, which combines digital video recording, TV broadcasts, HDTV, video on demand, a DVD player, music jukebox, games, and other multimedia files in a unified, searchable interface. In short, it’s an AV-IT powerhouse, with a guide and remote control that are easy enough for kids to master. With Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen behind the company, the Moxi certainly has a good shot at making a splash in the DVR/set-top market, but how soon and how deep remains to be seen.

Calling the Moxi a DVR, set-top box, or media center doesn’t really do it justice – it’s all three and more. The interface is very slick and intuitive, and using the remote you can scroll through all of the video feeds on one screen—programs on the hard drive, broadcast, HD, and pay-per-view are distinguished only by color-coding–and it includes sophisticated searching capabilities to find programs quickly. With a Linux backend, the Moxi has inputs for coaxial cable and IP, and uses both to collect its programming and guides. The device also has a DVD/CD player and can rip music to the hard drive. There are remote boxes that can be used to create multi-room systems that deliver all of the same programming content as the main unit, even in HD. Using multiple tuners, the Moxi is also able to play two shows and record two shows all at the same time.

Along with Allen, several former Sony executives are running the company, which clearly understands what consumers want and has developed a product that should serve as a model for next-generation DVRs. That is, if they can convince cable companies to offer Moxi as an alternative to their existing and future set-tops. From the brief demo I saw, they would be wise to do so. There are Moxi trials currently underway in over 100 markets in the U.S, where customers are leasing the devices from various cable companies. Digeo expects to have a formal retail launch of the Moxi next year.