Hauppauge Digital has made a price breakthrough for consumers wanting to experience High Definition TV. The company is introducing a £99 TV tuner card that allows owners to watch free-to-air HD content on their PC or linked TV. Available immediately, the Hauppauge WinTV-NOVA-HD-S2 card simply plugs into a PCI slot inside a desktop PC and connects to a satellite dish to provide live HD TV on the PC. Included with the Nova HD S2 is CyberLink PowerCinema application for full screen TV or TV-in-a-window on the PC.
Beyond a regular TV licence, there are no subscriptions to pay to receive free-to-air HD satellite channels, which include the BBC's HD broadcasts of Planet Earth, Torchwood, Coast and Robin Hood, a variety of live events, from football and Six Nations Rugby to Wimbledon and the Proms.
Owners can also record programmes to disk in the original hi-definition H.264 format. DiSEqC 1.0 is supported, allowing switching between four satellite sources.
"High Definition is becoming reality for UK consumers, but at present is only available with a subscription," said Yehia Oweiss, UK Managing Director of Hauppauge Digital. "The BBC is leading the way with its free-to-air HD programming over satellite. With our new receiver, owners can watch that HD content without subscription."
The new card from Hauppauge demands a high spec PC, with 3.2 GHz processor or faster, or Intel Core Duo processor, with 512 MB of RAM minimum, 1Gb recommended.
Included in the package:
- WinTV-NOVA-HD-S2 PCI card with built-in satellite DVB-S2 and DVB-S TV receivers
- IR remote control transmitter and 2 batteries
- IR remote control receiver
- WinTV installation CD-ROM with CyberLink PowerCinema application and manual
- Quick Installation Guide