Using laptop as a tv (1 Viewer)

[geordie graham]

Does anyone use their laptop as a tv using a tv stick/dongle and if so is it any good and do you use a portable aerial.

Thanks Graham

 

[gasman2008]

we used to worked well. Ariel needed. Changed to wire to standard co-axel cable plug.

 

[Al1]

As above and used Windows 7 media centre to view.

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[magicsurfbus]

If you buy a cheap USB video grabber you can take a composite output signal (ie yellow, white/black, and red plugs) from your Freeview or Freesat box and feed it into a computer via the grabber's USB plug. To view it you need some sort of video editor software that accepts the signal as input - there's plenty of free ones.

Obviously you need a dish in place, or a decent aerial of some description for the Freeview box.

We don't have a satellite dish for the main home TV, but I've got a cheap Aldi portable sat dish and receiver attached to my conservatory, which feeds a signal into my PC via a video grabber if I want telly on the computer. This means I can now watch 937 different channels of men in turbans chanting whenever I want.

 

[Larrynwin]

Only when out of the country where can't get satellite but can get reasonable wi fi and use filmon

 

[TheCaller]

Yes - a plug in USB tuner & Windows Media Centre - which is better than most of the freebie TV programs that usually come with the tuners.

You need just as good an aerial as you do for any other telly though, so you can't compromise on that. I have a 12v powered Avtex aerial with built in signal booster - forgotten the model number off hand, but it's their standard portable one. Again, the ones that come with the tuner are only any good in very strong signal areas.

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[geordie graham]

Thanks everyone for great advice

Graham

 

[timdownieuk]

Tivizen is a great gadget that allows you to watch TV on your phone, tablet or laptop. It's a freeview tuner that rebroadcasts on wifi to connect to your device.

We have the nano which is handier than the USB version as you can move it around for best reception.

http://www.tivizen.com/wifi-dongle.html

 

[geordie graham]

That Tivizen is a good piece of kit.
Graham

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