Given the feeble state of the economy, many of you are in no mood to blow $1,000 or more on a high-definition TV set. But then, you probably own one already.
It's called a computer monitor. The typical monitor can display HD video of respectable quality - not up there with a true HDTV set, but not bad. All you need now is a fairly robust personal computer, and a digital TV tuner that plugs into a USB port and captures the video signals.
We've been trying out a couple of these tuners - the $99 Hauppauge WinTV-HVR-950Q from Hauppauge Computer Works Inc. and the $129 PCTV HD Ultimate Stick from Pinnacle Systems, a division of Avid Technology Inc. in Tewksbury. These are list prices, by the way; shop around and you'll likely find them for less.
Each gadget comes with a simple antenna that'll capture both analog and digital TV signals being broadcast over the airwaves. Both devices are made for computers running Microsoft Corp.'s Windows operating system. But Hauppauge and Pinnacle offer similar tuners for Apple Inc.'s Macintosh machines.
If you've got digital cable TV, most of the signals are encrypted and can't be shown by the Hauppauge and Pinnacle tuners. But you can pick up a lot of digital channels directly over the air, including many you may not know about, like Create, NBC Weather Plus, or PBS World. These little-known channels are the fruit of our nationwide switch to all-digital TV broadcasting.
As of next February, all US TV stations will broadcast digital signals instead of old-style analog TV. People with older sets will have to spring for $40 converter boxes. Digital signals take up much less broadcast bandwidth. The federal government has just raised about $20 billion by auctioning off much of this liberated bandwidth to cellular phone companies like AT&T Inc. Yet the TV broadcasters still have enough left to transmit multiple digital channels, instead of a single analog channel.
Pretty much every local TV station in the United States already broadcasts its primary programs in digital, often in high definition. The stations then use their leftover bandwidth for some extra digital channels, usually offered in standard definition. The Pinnacle and Hauppauge tuners will snag them all.
In the Boston area, NBC offers a digital channel that delivers nonstop weather reports. American Public Television offers Create, a channel full of cooking and home improvement shows. The Public Broadcasting Service transmits some of its best documentaries on PBS World. The Boston airwaves also carry a digital channel for Christian music videos and a couple with nonstop children's programs.
Lots of cable systems don't offer these channels; they're available only over the air. And with a digital tuner and a rabbit-ear antenna, you can watch them on your PC.
You can record the shows, too. The Pinnacle Ultimate Stick comes with a gigabyte of flash memory, allowing you to record TV onto the stick itself. Then you can watch a show by plugging the stick into a different computer - your laptop, say. You won't get much mileage, though. Just 16 high-definition minutes of the excellent PBS documentary "Carrier" filled the memory to the brim. With standard-definition video, I got a bit over half an hour.
Then again, both the Hauppauge and Pinnacle tuners come with software that'll record TV shows to the computer itself. Now your capacity is limited only by the size of your hard drive. The software can also be programmed to record your TV favorites automatically.
Both tuners deliver the goods, but the Pinnacle features software that's more elegant and easier to use. This software is built right into the Ultimate Stick, so there's no need to insert a CD; just plug in the tuner.
Pinnacle's software also includes an Internet radio feature. When your computer's online, you can use the software to easily connect to dozens of free online music streams.
On the other hand, the Hauppauge tuner comes with software that'll capture the few unencrypted digital channels on your cable system. Pinnacle has recently introduced similar software, but it must be downloaded from its website, pinnaclesys.com.
Don't bother with either of these tuners unless you've got a powerful computer, preferably with a dual-core processor. The tuners capture the digital signal, but the processor has to decode it, a complex task that can max out older machines. On an older desktop PC, the tuners delivered sluggish performance and uneven video and audio. But they each worked well on a late-model Lenovo laptop.
You should also visit antennaweb.org, a site sponsored by the Consumer Electronics Association and the National Association of Broadcasters. Here you can type in your address, and find a listing of analog and digital TV broadcasters in your area. You'll also find guidance on the kind of antenna you'll need to pick them up. Some are accessible only with a rooftop antenna. But from my pad in Quincy, I could pick up 21 digital broadcast channels with the simple antennas included with each tuner.
Granted, a 21-inch computer monitor can't compare with a 42-inch TV. But if you already own a monitor, and a high-end computer, you're just $100 or so away from a taste of the HDTV experience.
Hiawatha Bray can be reached at bray@globe.com.
