Quote:
Originally Posted by Brifla
Sure. There are bunch of them out there. They are like the TV tuner cards that people have in their desktop computers but instead these just plug in to the USB port on a computer (good with laptop). They have a coax connector on the other end of the USB stick that you connect to either an antenna or your cable coaxial feed. They are very versatile and allow you to not only watch live tv anywhere there is tv air signal or cable feed, but also allow your laptop to act as a DVR for recording and watching stuff later. They also can be used to convert VCR/DVD/etc to a digital copy kept on your computer. Search USB TV Tuner on a site such as Amazon or Buy.com. They range in price from $25-$150. I bought the Diamond TVW750USB ATI Theater HD 750 USB TV Tuner which is only $39.99 and has a $10 rebate right now. I'm hoping this will eliminate the need to purchase and carry a TV with me when camping. The only thing I will add that your laptop needs to have a little muscle (RAM and processor) if you are processing HD signals (which many local TV stations broadcast).
|
I just wanted to provide an update on the use of a USB tuner and laptop for television in the TM. We put it to the test recently on a camping trip and it passed with flying colors. Surprisingly, the TM TV antenna was able to receive more than a dozen channels in a fairly remote area of North Florida and using the USB tuner/laptop combo, we got great picture and reception. We even received two music video channels (1 Pop, 1 Country) on the TV so used this as a substitute for a radio. The laptop TV picture did freeze up a couple of times (likely a Vista or processing overload issue) but it was simple enough to just restart it. We believe this will allow us to avoid buying and carrying a TV with us in the camper (saving $$ and weight), since we usually take a laptop everywhere we go and don't really plan on watching much TV while camping. The laptop DVD player also plays movies.