Watching and Recording HDTV... need help!

What kind of setup do I need to watch and also record HDTV on a notebook computer? I would also like to capture still images from a HDTV broadcast.

I should mention that I'm starting from scratch here... present laptop is 10 years and just about ready for the dump heap.

 

Well if your notebook is ten years old it past ready for the dump years ago.

As to your main question, all you need is at least one tuner and Windows Media (W7 Home Premium and above). It has the capability to do what you ask and above (although I'm not sure about the still imagies though?)

I you're really intrepid, you can install a dual tuner and watch on show while you record another. Or record two shows at once! WM is quite advance, and can easily take the place of an aftermarket VTR.

 

What are the specs of your current laptop? (just curious)

Whatever you get, if you want to watch tv you will need a tv tuner. Laptops with built in tv tuners are expensive. The other option is to have a USB tv tuner (not used one myself but heard they are OK)

How much are you looking at spending or is it more a case of you have needs and will spend however much you need to?

 

Guys, I think he's saying he's getting a new notebook, but wants to be able to use it as a DVR. I don't think he's using the old one for this purpose...lol In any case, I'll let someone more experienced help here.

 

I know, I'm just curious on the spec of a 10year old laptop

 

Dell Inspiron 5000
Win 98, 500/600MHz Pentium III, 128MB of SDRAM, 12GB hard disk, 6x DVD-ROM drive, 56Kbps modem, two Type II PC Card slots, one USB slot

I guess I got that out of the way...

 

Wow!
Laptops have come so far since then!

What is your budget? And what country are you in?

 

I had a friend build a desktop that included a ATI All-In-Wonder 9800Pro card that allowed me to capture video and stills from live TV broadcasts. Sadly, it passed away last month. With the power and versatility of modern day notebooks, it just seems prudent to go with a laptop and perhaps add a nice large auxilary monitor.

What notebooks come with tv turners installed?

Can HDTV signals be received wirelessly

 

I was hoping for $1500 or less, but can go higher.

USA

 

Would Windows Media (W7 Home Premium and above) allow me to record a 2-3 hour telecast and then edit and save small sections/snippets?

I'm a golf junkie and enjoy saving high speed/slow motion footage of golf swings and and also golf instructional tips/references.

 

Any recommendations as to new notebook would be helpful as well.

Would the HP ENVY 14 be a worthwhile consideration?

 

Yea I think a HP Envy would be a fine upgrade. But any new notebook is going to impress you coming from a 10 year old.

I am going to be getting a USB tuner soon. One thing I notice is some of the reviews on NewEgg are talking about W7 driver issues with some I like. Not sure if it is a real issue or one user.

I do know that the antenna are very important. A good one=good picture bad=bad (digital no picture or artifacts). So the quality is sometimes in the antenna not the unit itself.

For notebook buying advice I highly recommend you fill out the questionnaire and post in the "what notebook should I get" section. Things like what is your budget and what you will use it for are critical to getting good advice.

Good luck.

 

As said, anything you get will pretty much blow your socks off.
The Dell Studio XPS 16 fits your price very nice at $1250
IMO Dell are the best bang for your buck.

 

Thanks very much for you replies so far...

Joe

 

u might as well get an asus G73 for 1600.. its much better and seriously , its for gaming... so it can easily do ur tasks.. IMO , its better than XPS16 and u also get a full HD screen.. Also 1TB of storage and up to 16GB RAM.. its comes with 8 standard.. and u get a blue ray drive and much better graphics card than XPS 16..

 

Yes, the XPS 16 is a good choice, but there are other from Hp, Asus, Toshiba and others.

Yes, that would be most prudent. But from what he's described so far, a Media Center notebook would fit his purpose best.

 

Maybe I'm a little biased though

 

Funny, and to think I didn't mention the HDX 18 (now DV8t) being an entertainment notebook. Wait!...what??

 

Excellent

 

Dv8t is allright... but still i'd say a Qosimo X505 or X300 has best speakers and media entertainment package ever.

 

I believe most, if not all, of these notebooks are 16" or larger.

Does anyone make a 13" or 14" multimedia machine?

 

envy 14 is a great choice here. A Dell studio 14 might alos do the job. Imo something like a G73 is way over the top.

 

That's because those machines are media/entertainment driven and therefore, focus on 16" and larger screens. You could get many of the sames components of these machines, but not with the convenience and cost factor they provide.

 

What size screen are you running right now?

 

nope.. the screen size is too small and ususally these 13 14 inchers are for office work , portable use and not media centre's. I would look at Dell Studio XPS 16 otherwise.. in 15-16 inch depending on screen.. but consider the Toshiba Qosimo X505.. its cheap and really u don't get any better speakers than it or bigger screen...

 

the studio xps 16 is a good multimedia system but a samller system will still be able to ahndle the tasks if thats what you want althouhg you wont be able to have things like a full hd resolution. it might be that you want to connect it to an external monitor in which case most 13 to 14 inch notebooks with a core i3 or above should do the job

 

I'm not much of a Toshiba notebook fan, but the reviews do support your claims; and the fact that is also does a pretty good job at gaming isn't too shabby either.

 

well the older X300 does a better job at gaming if he can find.. its also has more features i think but X500 is awesome for the price.. alternative is new Acer 8943G which has better specs than Qosimo IMO and is quite comparebale to it... the multimedia system seems good but i would wait for a few reviews first.