IBM T43 and PCMCIA TV Tuner

[NimnuL]

Hello,
I'm searching for a TV Tuner for my notebook. Could You tell me what is the best for analog cable tv?
I've found AVER E-500 http://www.arest.pl/index.php?inc=produ ... 8&katid=23

Best regards
NimnuL

[alfio]

did you end up deciding on this? if so, how did it go?

alfio

[nutjobox]

theres one problem i have with pcmcia tv tuners, you still have to have a fat coax cable hanging off the side of your laptop, wether you use cable or antenna.

my solution has been http://www.orb.com. just install it on your pc that has a tv tuner, and install nothing on your laptop! just use internet explorer to log into orb, and it will automatically use your home network for the most speed. if your not at home, it will reduce the detail so you can still watch over the net. the setup couldnt be easier, and it been a rock-solid service for the last few months for me. perfect for watching the morning news in bed!

[alfio]

well, that is another approach... it does not work in my situation however. i can't afford to haul my desktop with me while abroad to carry out my research in south america. i need something via USB or ExpressCard/54.

alfio

[nutjobox]

no hauling needed. orb works over the internet too. leave the pc on at home and stream the live tv right to your laptop. of course, you would need internet down there, and this is only if you want local tv from home, not amazon tv.

[Tony Chan]

Another option is to purchase a Slingbox.

I used to used ATi Tuner USB 2 to watch TV on my T40p. There are fair amount of cpu generated and it wasn't as smooth. Not to mention the cable constantly connect to my laptop, as well as various driver related issues.

I briefly tried orb as suggested by members in the forum but I encountered some problems with my AIW 9000 and I gave up ( probably too soon and didn't do much investigation ).

I've now sold the USB TV tuner and bought Slingbox Pro, and have very good experience with it. TV quaility rivials my AIW on my desktop. TV are stream wirelessly into my laptop so I can watch TV in rooms without cable plug. I can even move around the house freely while watching TV.

I've also watch TV in a hotel room with half decent quality ( this depends on the the quality of the hotel's internet connection ).

Overall I find this a very simple solution ( almost plug and play, save a bit of setup my router for remote viewing ). If you have not invest in any hardware yet, I highly recommend you to take a look at various models of current Slingbox, but make sure you get version 2 as it has much better TV decoding chip.

Hope this helps

[JHaislet]

Anyone tried Adaptec's external USB dual-tuner? I think it only works with MS Media Center Edition & Vista, but still, could be interesting for only $125.

http://www.adaptec.com/en-US/support/Vi ... /AVC-3610/

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/custom ... lectronics

[nutjobox]

looks nice, and if 3 idiots from amazon got some good results from it im sure its a decent product.

its not HD though, i find the nightly local HD broadcasts to be a hell of a lot of fun to watch. even shows i wont normally watch, like house, i will in HD. and COPS in HD is awesome!!! cant wait till cable goes high def...

[JHaislet]

I found one for $90 shipped online and figured what the heck. I agree, I've read a number of reviews and most people seem really pleased with it. Non-HD compatible doesn't affect me as I neither have digital cable nor an HD TV.

I'm currently building a Mini-ITX based Celeron M 1.73Ghz w/1MB L2 cache, 533Mhz FSB (Yohan) based around the Intel 945GM chipset.

The external Adaptec USB dual-tuner should be a perfect fit for this little box. The board also has 16x PCI-Express, 1x PCI-Express, one 32bit PCI slot, and THREE Intel gigabit ethernet ports, all in the mini-itx format! Should be interesting!

The board is a MSI 945GM2 (MS-9642) and the case is the Travla C137 w/120w power supply. I've built a number of mini-itx firewalls with this case and they're awesome.

http://www.msi.com.tw/program/products/ ... ?prod_no=4
http://www.caseoutlet.com/common/produc ... 7-120.html

[nutjobox]

you dont need an hdtv, or digital cable. im talking about the over-the-air network stations. you only get the latest mainstream shows of course but you always get the biggest sports games. even on regular tv's the picture looks better. you dont even need a new antenna, OTA hdtv works on the same gear as regular analog, but you need a converter box if you dont have an hdtv. i guess in your case it is of no worry, but someday soon you will be thinking of one

[JHaislet]

With an HD converter box, I can feed that signal straight into the Adaptec Dual Tuner (the same way you hook it up if you have satellite or digital cable).

I also live way outside of the city and can't pick up VHF/UHF OTA very well, so I doubt HDTV would even be possible.