TV Tuner

RWB

Had a hard time figuring which forum to put this in, I like this area better though

So I wanna buy a TV Tuner, I like having one on my laptop. But I have a 20" LCD at home I wanna start using for TV. Sadly my TV won't fit in my apartment, just not enough room for another 32" TV. So I make due.

I was thinking about making a MythTV type thing, but all my foray's into Linux have ended in shame. I don't want to mess with it anymore. So WinXP it is. I want to be able to use a remote control, and of course have a damned good picture on my 20" LCD :thumbup

Been looking through Newegg... but it's just so hard to choose! Any help would be appreciated.:thumbup

Park_7677

I've had the ATI All-In-Wonder since the 9800 series. They are great cards with a lot of features. TV picture is just as good as a real TVs. The remote is wonderful; I can use it anywhere in the house.

However, the software is a lacking. ATI keeps updating it but it still has the same look and feel as it did when I first got it years ago. Also, getting it to install the latest drivers is also sometimes a bummer. However, once that's out of the way it's nice. TV as your wallpaper is cool even though I hardly use it

You probably don't want a full video card upgrade too so just the TV would do http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16815116312

RWB

I have no idea where to put this, it's kinda off topic... but I am curious about HDTV vs LCD. My LCD is quite good, is there an HDTV thing I could buy that would make the LCD an HDTV?

Basically, when Halo 3 comes out, I'll want an HDTV, can't get anything big becuase of the apartment so my 20" LCD will have to do. It's the Dell 2000FPW, has DVI, VGA, S-Video, and a couple other connectors. Kinda hoping that perhaps I'd be able to play Halo 3 on the LCD with good quality image as an HDTV.

What forum would I put that in for a better responce, lol, we've like Digital Media, Convergence, and Graphics forums it kinda fits under :P

RWB

Thanks man, I think that'll do. I was looking at another ATi card by power color, can't recall what it was that made me think it wasn't for me, but this one seems nice.

TheSmJ

Beyond TV is what I've been using for nearly a year now and I have no complaints. It's very stable and plays well with other apps- such as recording a show while playing a game. There's a 21 day trial on snapstream.com if you want to see what it's like before you put money on it.

A few times a year it's on sale too for either a free FireFly remote (which I have - it's very handy to have) or a big discount. Look around.

As for the tuner, I'm using an old STB branded bt878 based tuner card I bought from someone here for $5. For a card made back in 1998 and supported only by 3rd party drivers, the picture quality is just as good as any of the more modern and expensive cards.

Enverex

Hehe, I just set up MythTV on my old PC thrown together from old parts the other day, very cool. Can use anything to control it too (Joystick, TV Card remote, etc).

deicist

You can output HDMI (the HDTV connector) to um....whatever the PC digital video connector is called (DMI? I have acronym confusion) easily enough, they're basically the same thing. You just need a converter because the physical connectors are slightly different from what I remember. And HDTV with regards screens just means that the screen can support HD reolution (which yours can) and has the right connector (which yours does, with a converter)

I'd go into more detail, but this isn't in convergence so I'm slightly offended :P

ps: not really.