Author: Justin Pot / Source: howtogeek.com
Whether you’re interested in recording live TV using Plex or considering setting up NextPVR, you need a tuner card. But which form factor is best?
TV tuner cards for computers come in many shapes. There are USB cards, which you simply plug in. There are the PCI cards, which you have to install inside your desktop computer.
And there are network cards, which you connect to via Ethernet. Which one should you choose?The answer is: it depends. Here’s a brief look at the different form factors.
PCI/PCI-e: Neat and Tidy
If you have a dedicated Home Theater PC (HTPC), or just a computer that you use as a media server, a PCI option like the Hauppauge WinTV-quadHD, above, might be a good idea. These TV tuners are installed inside the box, meaning everything is neat and tidy: just plug your antenna into your computer and you’re done.
The main downside: you have to install the card yourself, which means opening up your computer. It also has to be a desktop computer. You can’t use cards like these in a laptop, or a tiny computer like the Mac Mini. And even if you have a proper PC, these kinds of cards…
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