TV on laptop computer

[Barbara S.]

I have had problems receiving TV reception at several campgrounds and am looking for some way to get access to TV programs via my laptop. I keep hearing that it can be done, but so far I am having no success.

I purchased a Hauppauge WinTV-HVR-950Q from Best Buy. I got it hooked up and did a scan for channels.....nothing. I changed from digital to analog and scanned again.....3 obscure channels that I don't watch. This is in my house - if I can't get channels here, I can't imagine it getting channels when I am out camping.

Any suggestions before I return it to Best Buy and admit defeat? Thanks!

[NLOVNIT]

If the laptop is capable & has the room, you can buy a TV tuner card & install it. I don't know how much one for your laptop would cost, but I see on Amazon they run $25 to close to $200.

Dave's got a TV tuner in his desktop. As a matter of fact, he just put in a new one (Hauppauge 1183 WinTV HVR-1600 Internal PCI Dual TV Tuner/Video Recorder Media Center Kit - bought thru Amazon for $100) as the old one (at least 8yrs+ old) gave up the ghost.

Lori-

[Bill Adams]

What kind of outside antenna do you have this hooked to? Did this antenna work OK before the digital change-over? What is your zip code?

[kjburns]

If you're having problems with reception, it's not likely to improve with a connection to your laptop.

One option is Justin TV for live streaming TV over the internet, assuming you have a decent internet connection.

Another option, that again depends on an internet connection, is live streaming from a home satellite or cable setup with Sling Box or Hava.

The most reliable option is going to be satellite with DirecTV or Dish Network.

[Barbara S.]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bill Adams What kind of outside antenna do you have this hooked to? Did this antenna work OK before the digital change-over? What is your zip code?

The antenna I am using came with the Hauppauge unit. I cannot get an antenna connection from my attic to this part of my house. My TV set worked fine before the digital change-over but will not work without an external antenna now (yes, it has a converter connected). A contractor wanted $300 just to run a line down the inside wall. That is one reason I was trying to get this to work here. The other reason I wanted it to work was at campgrounds where I can't get TV reception, but I think that is a lost cause now. My home zip code is 77070.

[Wayne M]

Barbara,
Have you thought of going at it from a different way? The networks will broadcast their TV shows via the internet, plus, there is HULU.COM that you can get episodes of series. I believe that there may be a 10 day delay on some of the HULU shows, but I'm not positive. You have to have a broadband connections such as Cable, Satellite, or DSL.

[Bill Adams]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wayne M Barbara, Have you thought of going at it from a different way? The networks will broadcast their TV shows via the internet, plus, there is HULU.COM that you can get episodes of series. I believe that there may be a 10 day delay on some of the HULU shows, but I'm not positive. You have to have a broadband connections such as Cable, Satellite, or DSL.

You would absolutely not want to take this route if you are using satellite or cellular as you will quickly eat up all of your available bandwidth. With satellite that means that your speeds will be cut to an almost unusable slow speed. With cellular it means you will get charge high overage charges.

[Bill Adams]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Barbara S. The antenna I am using came with the Hauppauge unit. I cannot get an antenna connection from my attic to this part of my house. My TV set worked fine before the digital change-over but will not work without an external antenna now (yes, it has a converter connected). A contractor wanted $300 just to run a line down the inside wall. That is one reason I was trying to get this to work here. The other reason I wanted it to work was at campgrounds where I can't get TV reception, but I think that is a lost cause now. My home zip code is 77070.

For TV reception you need a good antenna and height is might. There is simply no way around this equation. Your zip code shows that you are only 28 miles from some very strong transmitters so you should be able to receive these signals with the most mundane antenna, but that antenna likely needs a clear view. If you are in a valley or low area and there are buildings or other obstructions between you and the antennas the UHF signals are much more line of sight than the VHF signals. That explains the few fuzzy analog channels (VHF). You will likely have very good results when you get in your RV and start moving around (maybe OK where you are) since you will have a very good external antenna to which you can connect your adapter. It might be worth trying that next to ensure the adapter is actually working properly.

[bruceh]

In the little motor home, I use my laptop and a Pinnacle Systems tuner. This works quite well. I was quite surprised by just how good this tuner performs. If you are in an area with no off the air stations or have a marginal antenna, this won't help.

Internet TV requires a good high speed connection and this is not too likely in these marginal areas.

I go this route becuase the small motor home did not come with a TV (it did have the Winegard antenna and amp) and space is at a real premium.

[Theberrys]

Here is a USB tuner for $30.00. It comes with a little antenna but an outside Antenna would work better.
WS-ATSCU03AD ATSC/NTSC USB 2.0 TV Tuner Adapter w/Remote Control - Watch & Record HDTV on Your Notebook or Desktop PC! WS-ATSCU03AD

Dick

[DonnaB]

Hi Barbara,

We have a Winegard batwing antenna on the roof of our motor home and coax wiring run to several places for TVs. In one desktop we have a TV card and for the other one, we have an AVER Volar USB TV card. It is about the size of 2 USB thumb drives. It plugs into the USB port on the computer and the coax antenna feed attaches to the other end. The AVER supplies digital TV capability. We actually have a digital TV too, but receiving on the 2 computers lets us live in a very small space and we can use headsets and be watching different things. Or he can watch a ballgame/golf tournament and I don't have to. The biggest plus is that is our DVR also if you will, and we can use Windows Media Center to record when we are where we have a signal. In addition we have hooked up a Lynksys Media Extender which lets us play back what we record on the larger TV screen. There are lots of options out there.

[Barbara S.]

[QUOTE=bruceh;603804]
Internet TV requires a good high speed connection and this is not too likely in these marginal areas.[QUOTE]

My Verizon broadband card USUALLY gets a good signal. At the Escapees park "Rainbows End" in Livingston, TX I can get the internet but NO TV stations. I have been only 2 places (in 4 years) where my Verizon card did not work so I thought this might be an option.

After trying to get a signal all day today I finally gave up and took my device back to Best Buy. They immediately credited my card with no questions so now I start over.

[Barbara S.]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Theberrys Here is a USB tuner for $30.00. It comes with a little antenna but an outside Antenna would work better. WS-ATSCU03AD ATSC/NTSC USB 2.0 TV Tuner Adapter w/Remote Control - Watch & Record HDTV on Your Notebook or Desktop PC! WS-ATSCU03AD Dick

That looks almost exactly like the $80.00 adapter I just returned! Very interesting!!! Thanks!

[Wayne M]

Barbara,
As Bill Adams pointed out, using the Internet may not be the best solution financially. Especially if you have a 5Gb limit on a monthly basis. Streaming video can rapidly exhaust your 5Gb limit. I understand that there may be some plans out there that do not have limit. In that case you would be good to go with an air card.

Good luck.