Saturday, January 30, 2010

Watch Satellite TV On Your PC

Did you know the latest buzz in the satellite television industry is that you can now watch satellite tv on your pc for free? Besides being able to watch free satellite tv channels, you can also record the tv shows as well as connect it to your television or plasma tv if you prefer to watch satellite tv on your TV.

To watch satellite tv on your pc, you will need either a satellite tv software or a PCTV card installed on your computer. The PCTV card nowadays comes in both external and internal. The external version can be plugged into any USB port and is suitable for laptop users. The internal version slots into the PCI slot on your desktop computer. You may need some help if you are not familiar with installing cards on your desktop computer.

The PCTV card contains a processor that enables it to decode satellite signals and transform it into digital signals that can be output on your computer monitor. Since it performs the decoding on the PCTV card, it is less processor intensive than a purely software satellite tv software. This allows a smoother and higher quality satellite tv playback on your PC.

To watch satellite tv on your pc, the minimum specification for your computer would be stated on the PCTV card or the satellite tv software. Usually, you need at least a Pentium III 500 Mhz processor with at least 256 MB RAM. Your operating system should be at least windows 2000/XP as well. A sound card is also needed and if you are using the external PCTV version, a USB port needs to be available as well.

You can connect your internet cable directly to the PCTV card or use a third party product such as Hauppauge 3000. For some satellite tv software, it is even simpler. All you need is to make sure your computer is connected to the internet.

I do recommend you have at least a broadband speed of 512kbps and above in order for smoother satellite tv playback.

Besides watching satellite tv on your PC, you can also record the channels if you wish to. I would advise getting a larger capacity hard drive as it can take up a lot of space when you record satellite tv channels.

Click here for Ricky's reviews of the best satellite tv to pc software.

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