I have that card since about a 3/4 year and as said, I can't confirm any of his problems. Channel change is not as fast as on an analog card, but that's the nature of DVB. Of course, there are cards that have been reported as switching faster or slower. But the NOVA-T is not one of the slowest, IMO.
BDA drivers are what is required to have your card work with MediaPortal and MCE2005. If the card doesnt have them then native support is needed (but very unlikely to get).
On the newer 90002 model Nova-T, the driver support is very impressive, as I swear they come out monthly.