I am in the market for a TV tuner card for my HP notebook and am
interested in the experience of those of you who have one that can
receive unscrambled digital broadcasts, such as the recently digitized
Comcast channels, and preferably even HD broadcasts. As most of these TV
tuners use a USB2 port, I wonder if they can produce smooth enough
picture. I know there are some ExpressCard tuners out there that are
probably better than USB based ones, but they tend to use the wide (54
mm) card format and my notebook only has a 34 mm ExpressCard slot. So
that's that.

"Dabbler" <dabbler@nospam.invalid> wrote in message
news:h4q316$nu0$1@aioe.org...
>I am in the market for a TV tuner card for my HP notebook and am interested
>in the experience of those of you who have one that can receive unscrambled
>digital broadcasts, such as the recently digitized Comcast channels, and
>preferably even HD broadcasts. As most of these TV tuners use a USB2 port,
>I wonder if they can produce smooth enough picture. I know there are some
>ExpressCard tuners out there that are probably better than USB based ones,
>but they tend to use the wide (54 mm) card format and my notebook only has
>a 34 mm ExpressCard slot. So that's that.

I bought this Artec T19ard tuner:
http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/Produc...dlist=celebros

Using it on an ASUS 1000he netbook. It works fine on the digital stations.
Also has several other formats and the FM radio stations. Plugs into the
usb port like a big thumb drive. Even has a remote control.
I do not think this netbook has enough processor to do a smooth hd tv ,but
it is watchable. Some of the lower deifnition stations work fine. It will
also recorde programs like a dvd to the hard drive. I noticed the live
station was jumpy on one station , but if I set it to record, it smoothed
out very well. Sometimes I think it may be the antenna . I have only
tried it with the antenna that comes with it. Looks like a mousepad with a
cable. Atleast it comes with a standard TV connector so I can plug it up to
another antenna if I want to.

The netbook processor is not speced high enough to do all the TV converter
can do so I am not dissapointed in it. Especially for under $ 60 shipped to
me.

I'd recommend the Artec or the Hauppauge 950Q (the Q suffix is
critically important; the 950 (no Q) can't receive QAM signals).

There are some concerns: Some of these run incredibly hot, and
depending on the broadcast format and what you are doing (watching vs.
recording) they require a huge amount of CPU power (the minimum CPU
recommendation on the Hauppauge is over 2GHz if you have a single core
machine). Expect to pay about $60, give or take $5-$10.


Dabbler wrote:
> I am in the market for a TV tuner card for my HP notebook and am
> interested in the experience of those of you who have one that can
> receive unscrambled digital broadcasts, such as the recently digitized
> Comcast channels, and preferably even HD broadcasts. As most of these TV
> tuners use a USB2 port, I wonder if they can produce smooth enough
> picture. I know there are some ExpressCard tuners out there that are
> probably better than USB based ones, but they tend to use the wide (54
> mm) card format and my notebook only has a 34 mm ExpressCard slot. So
> that's that.

"Ralph Mowery" <rmowery28146@earthlink.net> wrote in
news:x56dnR03KeX2B-3XnZ2dnUVZ_q-dnZ2d@earthlink.com:

> I bought this Artec T19ard tuner:
> http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/Produc...de=10008896&pr
> odlist=celebros
>
>

Just curious, how hot does the USB dongle get? I have a Hauppauge but it
just guzzles the battery and the dongle gets nearly too hot to touch, even
though it's a great TV tuner. There's gotta be one made with MOS
technology instead of TTL like this PoS....(c;]

Does it seem to eat the battery quickly?

--
Larry

http://flightaware.com/analysis/allflights_movie.rvt
Each tiny red dot is an airliner in this Quicktime movie, ONE recent day of
air travel in the USA. What would happen if "they" found out this was the
real source of air pollution or cancer or why all the bugs around my
streetlight have disappeared? Would "they" tell us? Would "they" STOP
IT?!

There is only 2.5 watts available from a USB port, I'm sure that the
Hauppauge draws that or less. That is a lot, however, and can produce
what seems like a lot of heat.


Larry wrote:
> "Ralph Mowery" <rmowery28146@earthlink.net> wrote in
> news:x56dnR03KeX2B-3XnZ2dnUVZ_q-dnZ2d@earthlink.com:
>
>> I bought this Artec T19ard tuner:
>> http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/Produc...de=10008896&pr
>> odlist=celebros
>>
>>
>
> Just curious, how hot does the USB dongle get? I have a Hauppauge but it
> just guzzles the battery and the dongle gets nearly too hot to touch, even
> though it's a great TV tuner. There's gotta be one made with MOS
> technology instead of TTL like this PoS....(c;]
>
> Does it seem to eat the battery quickly?
>

"Barry Watzman" <WatzmanNOSPAM@neo.rr.com> wrote in message
news:h4qvfi$fnn$1@news.eternal-september.org...
> I'd recommend the Artec or the Hauppauge 950Q (the Q suffix is
> critically important; the 950 (no Q) can't receive QAM signals).
>
> There are some concerns: Some of these run incredibly hot, and
> depending on the broadcast format and what you are doing (watching vs.
> recording) they require a huge amount of CPU power (the minimum CPU
> recommendation on the Hauppauge is over 2GHz if you have a single core
> machine). Expect to pay about $60, give or take $5-$10.

I've just noticed that the new AverMedia ExpressCard/34 TV tuner is now
available from soome sources but because it's so new, I could not find
any reviews of it. That kind of tuner would be my choice over USB type.
However, they might also be run pretty hot and being inside the
notebook, the cooling could also be a problem. I wonder what you guys
make out of its specs. They nowhere mention cable input (only a 75 Ohm
TV antenna) though I can see something recessed on one end that might
be it.

http://www.avermedia-usa.com/AVerTV/...il.aspx?Id=478

http://www.avermedia-usa.com/AVerTV/...0Datasheet.pdf

Barry Watzman <WatzmanNOSPAM@neo.rr.com> wrote in news:h4r0e5$irm$1
@news.eternal-september.org:

> There is only 2.5 watts available from a USB port, I'm sure that the
> Hauppauge draws that or less. That is a lot, however, and can produce
> what seems like a lot of heat.
>
>

It gets really hot so it must be using all of that.

--
Larry

http://flightaware.com/analysis/allflights_movie.rvt
Each tiny red dot is an airliner in this Quicktime movie, ONE recent day of
air travel in the USA. What would happen if "they" found out this was the
real source of air pollution or cancer or why all the bugs around my
streetlight have disappeared? Would "they" tell us? Would "they" STOP
IT?!

"Larry" <noone@home.com> wrote in message
news:Xns9C57E1D3C1CB4noonehomecom@74.209.131.13...
> "Ralph Mowery" <rmowery28146@earthlink.net> wrote in
> news:x56dnR03KeX2B-3XnZ2dnUVZ_q-dnZ2d@earthlink.com:
>
>> I bought this Artec T19ard tuner:
>> http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/Produc...de=10008896&pr
>> odlist=celebros
>>
>>
>
> Just curious, how hot does the USB dongle get? I have a Hauppauge but it
> just guzzles the battery and the dongle gets nearly too hot to touch, even
> though it's a great TV tuner. There's gotta be one made with MOS
> technology instead of TTL like this PoS....(c;]
>
> Does it seem to eat the battery quickly?
>
> --
> Larry

My Artec runs very warm. You can hold your hand on it, but the antenna
connector gets hot enough that you do not really want to hold it for more
than about 10 seconds.

It seems to cut the battery life in about half or maybe less. I have the
ASSU 1000HE and the battery indicator drops from about 8 hours to 4 hours
when the TV tuner is pluged in and is running. The processor seems to be
running from around 40 to 70 % when I call up the task manager. That is to
be expected as a lot of processing is going on. Also I am running the
processor in the super performance mode .

I did notice that it makes a big differance in where the antenna is. The on
screen signal indicators seem not to be a reliable indicator . By moving
the antenna around the room the station goes from a jumpy screen on some
stations to a smooth flow like a normal TV. It does not seem to go into the
pixal mode like a dish antenna will if the signal fades for a second or so.
That is why I think the whole screen just stops for a fraction of a second
if the antenna is not in a good position. Just my guess.

"Ralph Mowery" <rmowery28146@earthlink.net> wrote in
news:H-CdnTP7fb0UIO_XnZ2dnUVZ_uCdnZ2d@earthlink.com:

> My Artec runs very warm. You can hold your hand on it, but the
> antenna connector gets hot enough that you do not really want to hold
> it for more than about 10 seconds.
>
> It seems to cut the battery life in about half or maybe less. I have
> the ASSU 1000HE and the battery indicator drops from about 8 hours to
> 4 hours when the TV tuner is pluged in and is running. The processor
> seems to be
>

Thank you for the information. I cannot find a TV plug that isn't a power
hog. I'm sure there's some technical reason why, so will wait until
someone comes out with a cool-running TV plug at some point in the future.

Of course, as Wimax is rolled out, ATSC TV will be moot and no longer a
problem. WiMax at 9.5Mbps is plenty fast for good TV without the ATSC
nonsense.



--
Larry

http://flightaware.com/analysis/allflights_movie.rvt
Each tiny red dot is an airliner in this Quicktime movie, ONE recent day of
air travel in the USA. What would happen if "they" found out this was the
real source of air pollution or cancer or why all the bugs around my
streetlight have disappeared? Would "they" tell us? Would "they" STOP
IT?!

"Barry Watzman" <WatzmanNOSPAM@neo.rr.com> wrote in message
news:h4qvfi$fnn$1@news.eternal-september.org...
> I'd recommend the Artec or the Hauppauge 950Q (the Q suffix is
> critically important; the 950 (no Q) can't receive QAM signals).
>
> There are some concerns: Some of these run incredibly hot, and
> depending on the broadcast format and what you are doing (watching vs.
> recording) they require a huge amount of CPU power (the minimum CPU
> recommendation on the Hauppauge is over 2GHz if you have a single core
> machine). Expect to pay about $60, give or take $5-$10.

I took the chance and bought the AverTV Express mini tuner I mentioned
earlier. My first impression of it is very good. What a little jewel it
is! It's amazing how they could cram such a complex tuner into such a
small card. So far I tested it only with Comcast cable and it works not
only with the AverMedia software but with the Windows Media Center and
HP's QuickPlay software, though the latter can only handle analog
channels. The only problem I have now is figuring out where some of my
former favorite analog cable channels are now in the digital format. I
wish the player software would have the capability to map them in a
convenient way. Come to think of it, how do you find those digital
channels on a regular digital TV set? Well, I'll figure it out
eventually.