Help reccomend me a TV and/or Radio Card! (1 Viewer)

[BravoGolf]

Hi all, my sincere apologies if this is the wrong place for this thread, but I guess you rather knowledgeable people would be the best people to ask!

Basically, I've just downloaded this excellent MediaPortal and it would be an excellent software if I could watch TV (imagine, no more watching crappy soaps with the missus!). I've no idea who to setup a TV card (is it PCMCIA based?), do I need to run a cable from the TV to the computer (laptop). How much are they and is there one you reccomend to me?

My specs are as follows: Dell Inspiron 8500, 1.25 Gigs RAM, 64MB GeForce 4, P4 @ 2Ghz

Cheers

Edit: Thanks Mods for moving me rather than sticking me in the bad posts place!

Another edit: I've noticed this one (http://www.komplett.ie/k/ki.asp?sku=304755&view=detailed), would this work ok on my PCMCIA card without any lag on my laptop?

 

[scoop]

Hi,

(I don't count myself to the "knowledgeable people" but I'll give it a try :wink

According to http://www.maisenbachers.de/dokuw/install:capturecards:start , the card you mentioned is currently not on the list of supported hardware. (This doesn't mean that it's totally UNsupported, though)

Looking at this list I wouldn't recommend a PCMCIA-based card a.t.m., but advise to search for a well supported USB hardware based TV card (something like the hauppauge WinTV USB2 / AVerMedia AVerTV USB2.0). They're priced about the same as the PCMCIA card you mentioned. And, as soon as you decide you gonna build your "missus" a nice HTPC so she can record those nice soaps, you can also use it for that! :wink:

I don't have any experience with USB-based TV cards, so I can't tell you if there's any "lag" with these types of cards. AFAIK USB2 should be able to handle the amount of data, but searching the forum for other users' experiences is recommended.

Kind regards,
Michel

 

[vbap]

Hi,

I agree with Scoop - try a USB-based TVCard. And try searching the forums to see what others have setup with their laptop. Integrated graphics chips are generally not the best for MP, since it uses DirectX9 features. It should work OK with the GF4, but be prepared to tweak various settings to get the best experience. Again search the forums to see what others are doing with their GF4.

Yes, you will need to run a cable from your TV outlet to your laptop (or, from your TV outlet to your USB TvCard, then a USB cable from your TVCard to your laptop!)

You don't mention what kind of TV conenction you have - cable, antenna? Do you have access to digital TV?

Even though you don't mention where you are from, I would suggest using your favourite online or bricks-and-mortar retailer should have a range of TVcards. As Scoop mentioned, check the wiki to see whether it's known to work with MP.

Good luck.

 

[BravoGolf]

Great, thanks for your help, USB TV Card it is.

I'm from Ireland and although we do have digital, I've not yet bothered subscribing to it. Currently using NTL cable.

Also, I looked around last night and noticed that there are Freeview cards, would they work ok?

 

[vbap]

I don't have cable, so I'm not sure if a single cable box can feed both your TV and your Laptop's USB-TV Card.
You'll have to do a search on freeview - I've seen it mentioned but have no idea!

 

[AllenConquest]

I don't have a laptop, so I can't test any PCMCIA cards, but has anyone tried the LifeView range of cards ? The FlyDVB-T Mini Analog looks an interesting card.

Allen