digital sticks...any good?

Channa

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I have had an old analogue portable tv which has given up the ghost.

A week when BGT and Football finals they may be something worth watching.

Anyway it occured to me I could watch tv through the laptop running vista which has the microsoft media centre software.

I have seen Maplin do a stick which fits into the usb of the laptop and acts has a tv card / and aerial socket for £19.99

Has anyone ever used one ? and are they any good?

My aerial on the van is a status ...so not sure if that is compatable.?

They also have a myriad of inverters....what do I need to just power the laptop...any ideas ?

Any help or thoughts is appreciated

Channa
 
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Mornin Channa, Ive had a tv stick for my laptop for some while now and they are very good as long as you have a good signal(possibly use a small signal amplifier). If you get an inverter for electronics, you want one with a proper sine output(maplin will help) or you will get buzzing or humming through the tv or computer. The cheap ones are fine for lights or element type things. Hpe this helps....Bob
 
Morning Bob ,

Out of interest I am running an 85 amp battery......Do you notice just running the laptop puts much drain on the battery. ( I am thinking when wild ..and no EHU )

Channa
 
Channa

Sorry to hear about your tele! Rather than buy an invertor for my laptop I bought a 12v adaptor which I think is more efficient. Maplin do them here

Maplin > Laptop Car Adaptor

I think the one I bought was about £20. You can get them cheaper on Ebay but they are rubbish apparantly. I needed one with a rating of 6amps. What I tend to do with mine is run it off the cigar lighter on the dash rather than the leisure battery as the lead runs as far as the table near the front of the van. I also tend to charge the laptop as we drive and then just run it off its own battery until it dies and then plug it in but thats just me being anal about conserving me Leisure battery!

Cheers
Barry
 
Thanks Barry, I subscribe to your style..!!!!....if there is a way of taking it from a 12 v adapter sounds more feasible ...cigar lighter in the cab, and a 12 socket on the leisure circuit.

I paid a little visit to Maplin and forgot the lappy so no idea what PCMIA socket it has...(A210-11P Toshiba Satellite)

Anyway the salesman seemed very honest, helpful and had good PK...seemed to echo what I have found so far on the internet..

They have recommended this one

PCMCIA Hybrid DVB-T / Analogue FM Tuner Cardbus > Maplin

the A74 FL..

I fancy the idea of Hybrid for two reasons.

I have analogue status aerial on the van, with the standard signal booster arrangement.

I spend a lot of time abroad so the freeview becomes redundant when the otherside of the channel I am told.

With the analogue I can tune into French stations ...helps the linguistic skills :eek:

I suppose when I have a bit more money I can upgrade the aerial to digital ...in the meantime got a stick thing.

I did consider the camping satellite set they have for £99.99 but it only has a 39 cm dish I would need a 90 in the Dordogne...and to me would take up to too much space.

Out of interest anyone who is happy with just Digital reception, They have
a A41 DVB-T express card for £29.99 it was £60 ...but being discontinued apparently.

thanks for the help.....if there is a flaw in my thinking, or you have additional tips or considerations, as always grateful

Channa
 
Sounds good Channa. I was wondering if it would be possible to watch our satellite system through my laptop. It would just be a receiver, well screen I guess as all we do with the 2 TV's we use is plug the cable in and switch the tv to AV. The satellite receiver controls the receiving of the signal and the remote control changes channel on the receiver not the TV. Anyone done this before with a laptop? (sorry Channa, didnt mean to hijack the post)
 
barryd said:
Sounds good Channa. I was wondering if it would be possible to watch our satellite system through my laptop. It would just be a receiver, well screen I guess as all we do with the 2 TV's we use is plug the cable in and switch the tv to AV. The satellite receiver controls the receiving of the signal and the remote control changes channel on the receiver not the TV. Anyone done this before with a laptop? (sorry Channa, didnt mean to hijack the post)
Click to expand...

Thank you for your help, you have far from hijacked.

I think the piece of kit I gave the linky too has Av capability...which might solve your problem ?.

I will be happy if I can achieve what I want from the laptop, Minimal expense:D And it will free up the space that the TV takes up.

Channa
 
Let us know how you get on. Another big advantage for is that when the tele gets a bit boring you can ALT TAB back to this site and keep up to date with the posts! I reckon before too long TV and everything will just be online. I already find myself not bothering to tape stuff anymore as I just watch it on the laptop online when I feel like it. Mind you they will have to improve the 3G coverage first if your going to do it in the van

Cheers
BD
 
I believe that analogue telly is on it's way out all over the continent, not just here. Anyway, I bought a hybrid stick for my XP laptop which I gave to my daughter and with my new(er) vista laptop the tuner was included. Quite honestly the hassle of setting it up, and more importantly, the power drain make it more of a back up than a first choice system for me. Re aerial compatibility, both of the systems I had included a neat little co-ax adapter so you can hook up to a standard co ax socket. Hope this helps, Derek.
 
TBH as I previously stated I dont watch too much TV.

My portable gave up the ghost, and the week just passed champions league final, FA cup and Britains got talent I enjoy.

It has turned out, I have had access to A TV so I saved £60 I guess.

But I dont regret asking the question, I have knowledge to help me in the future

Thanks to all for your input

Channa
 
I hhave just got a 12v camping sat dish and decoder but the output is SCART. Anyone managed to connect a scart output to a laptop? I have a Dell inspiron which seems to have an S-video input but have no idea if this can be utilised. I have a DVB USB stick which is fine in a strong signal area but pretty tenuous elsewhere. Anyone out there help?
 
Digital TV

The only way I can think you'd be able to connect your sat decoder to the laptop is to get an av (audio/video) USB adaptor and use a scart to av lead. Won't be cheap though. I have one from Dazzle which I used to transfer my old video 8 home videos onto dvd. If you do buy one make sure if it is USB2 only that your laptop is usb2 compatable. I have A Haupage terrestrial DVB usb stick and it is usb2 only and won't work in my old laptop which is usb1 only.

Hope this helps.
 
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thanks for the above, will explore usb / av option. Or perhaps just buy a 12v TV...... Tidewatcher
 
just got back from cornwall bought a new digital tv/dvd with built in freeview was ok but we reckon the omnistat basic aerial supplied with our new motorhome is not up to much any suggestions. picture is great when you get pick up, so its not the tv. my other half has christened our aerial the omnicrap!
 
Freeview aerial

A caravanning friend of mine uses the Image 530/18 shown in the middle Image TV Antennas & Masts from Towsure and has a number around his house. Better he said than his much bigger home aerial and the Status he had. Haven't tried them myself. Anyone else like to comment?
 
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I have the T 800 myself and use it with a booster,(not included) when I am struggling to get a signal. Normally I use a Status Compact with a built in booster which works very well in most situations for digital and analogue and they take up minimal space.
Highly recommended:D unlike it's stablemate the 315 'flying saucer'.:(
 
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