linux-drivers/
drivers/media/usb/siano

Siano SMS1xxx mobile digital TV USB receivers

Small USB tuner sticks and embedded modules built around Siano's SMS1xxx chips for receiving mobile broadcast TV standards such as DVB-T, DVB-H, ISDB-T, and CMMB. They were sold from the late 2000s into the early 2010s under brands like Hauppauge WinTV MiniStick and MiniCard, PCTV 77e, and various ZTE and ONDA data-card tuners.

keep-annotate conf=0.72 last_sold=2014 deploy=low replacement=none subsystem=media category=media-camera-tv
72%

recommendation

Worth keeping but flagging as legacy hardware. The Siano-branded sticks and OEM variants haven't been sold as current products for years (Hauppauge no longer lists the MiniStick-class devices), but the code is still receiving real upstream maintenance, including a 2024 fix to smsusb.c on the linux-media list. With ongoing fixes and no removal discussion, deprecation would be premature; an annotation noting the hardware is no longer manufactured is the right call.

repository signals

3 files
736 source lines
9 commits, 5y
+34 / −29 lines added / removed, 5y
8 authors, 5y
monthly commits · 2021-04-21 → 2026-04-21 · 9 total · active in 8/61 months
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sources

  1. lore.kernel.org

    The driver still receives upstream maintenance; a linux-media patch touched smsusb.c on 2026-04-17 ('media: usb: siano: don't set URB_FREE_BUFFER flag').

  2. cateee.net

    LKDDb identifies this directory as CONFIG_SMS_USB_DRV for 'Siano SMS1xxx based MDTV receiver' and lists the supported USB IDs/products, including Siano, Hauppauge, ZTE, ONDA, and PCTV devices.

  3. hauppauge.com

    Hauppauge's current support page lists current tuner families separately from legacy/discontinued products; the old Siano-era MiniStick/MiniCard-class devices handled by smsusb are not presented as current hardware.

codex reasoning notes (technical)

Local source inspection (exec_command on smsusb.c and sms-cards.c) shows SMS1xxx mobile-TV USB receivers and old branded variants such as Hauppauge WinTV MiniStick/MiniCard, PCTV 77e, ZTE/ONDA data-card tuners. lore_file_timeline on drivers/media/usb/siano/smsusb.c returned 2024-2026 bug-fix traffic and no removal-thread evidence; the cited lore URL came from that MCP tool. The LKDDb URL came from web search and confirms the driver scope and long-lived kernel presence. The Hauppauge support URL came from web search; combined with the product vintage/mobile-TV standards involved, this supports 'not sold new in 2025' and only low present-day deployment. Because maintenance is still happening, removal/deprecate would be premature; annotate as legacy instead.