Step-by-Step: Turn Your PC Into a Personal Video Recorder
Stan Miastkowski
It's easy to get "gizmo envy" if you've seen the latest generation of personal video recorders (PVRs) from ReplayTV or TiVo. These boxes act as sophisticated automated video recorders that use a hard drive instead of tape for storing video, and they have a raft of unique features.
But these stand-alone boxes are expensive and often hard to find because they're so popular. There is a lower-cost option: Assuming your PC has a decent-sized hard drive, you can turn it into a PVR by installing an add-in card and software.
PC PVRs let you easily browse and choose which TV shows to record on your PC's hard drive using an on-screen program guide. Also, they can pause a live show when you get interrupted and can then continue from where you stopped watching. PC PVRs can create transcripts from closed-captioning, or watch for certain phrases in the captioning and automatically start a recording. That's just the beginning. If you have a CD-RW drive or a recordable-DVD drive, you can even create your own classic TV show collection. You can also play back shows you've digitized and record them on a standard VCR.
The PC-based PVR arena hosts a wide variety of product choices, but we used a PVR-ready graphics card (the $195 ATI All-In-Wonder Radeon 7500) as our example here. Matrox, VisionTek, and many others have similar products.
Two caveats: First, despite large differences in hardware requirements among different makes, figure on a minimum of a 750-MHz Pentium III, 256MB of RAM, and a large hard drive (40GB to 80GB) if you want to turn your PC into a PVR. Second, you might prefer an all-in-one solution that includes a TV-out jack so you can hook up a standard TV for viewing. Some TV-tuner cards lack that output.
Stan Miastkowski is a contributing editor at PC World. Send questions and comments to him at stan_miastkowski@pcworld.com.
Going the Parts-and-Pieces Route
If you don't want to replace your PC's existing graphics card, you can buy a TV tuner (for $50 to $100) from many of the manufacturers listed in " The Top Down" (above). If you have a free PCI slot, get a TV tuner built on an add-in card. If you have no free PCI slots (or if you don't want to open your PC), get a USB TV tuner that you can simply cable to your PC.
Many TV-tuner cards, such as the $100 Video Blaster Digital VCR from Creative Technology, come bundled with PVR software. If your PC already has a TV tuner, several video-recording software packages can work with it, most of them priced at around $50. These include CyberLink PowerVCR II, InterVideo WinDVR, ShowShifter, and SnapStream PVS. Most PVR software makers offer customers a 30-day free trial.
The final piece of the puzzle involves deciding what to record, and with many cable systems offering 50 to 100 channels or more, you need an expeditious way to see what's on. Most all-in-one PVR products and some PVR software packages include program guides accessible via the Internet. If they don't, TitanTV is the obvious choice. This free service provides customized program listings for your area and integrates with most PVR hardware and software, allowing you to choose what to record with a click of your mouse.
Before you start
Installing the hardware and software for a PVR significantly alters your PC's configuration. Do a complete backup first. Then check your PVR maker's Web site for the latest drivers; these are crucial, especially if you use Windows XP. The steps shown here are typical, but different products require different steps. For example, some boards require that you uninstall existing graphics drivers before you begin. Read your manual or installation poster carefully.
Install the add-in card
Turn off your PC, unplug it, and open the case. Use an antistatic wrist strap to avoid static damage. If you're replacing your graphics card, unhook the monitor cable, remove the screw holding the card, and carefully remove it. Then gently insert the PVR card and fasten it down with the screw. Reconnect your monitor cable. When you restart your PC, Windows should detect the new card. Install the drivers for the new card.
Hook up the equipment
Follow the manufacturer's directions to hook up your cable TV or satellite input, television, and VCR, as well as any other accessories you'll be using.
Install the PVR software
Follow the manufacturer's directions. Usually, several steps and decisions are involved. If you have any doubts, refer to your manual.
Start watching and recording
Most PC-based PVR products offer a wide range of options. Expect a challenging learning curve as you familiarize yourself with them. But on-screen program guides customized for your area usually simplify the process of picking programs to record.
Make a DVD
If you have a DVD-RW or DVD+RW drive, you can create DVDs (for personal use only) from your TV recordings, and you can use the discs in any DVD player. Procedures vary by drive and by authoring software. DVDs require that video be stored in MPEG-2 format. Most PC-based PVR products can record in MPEG-2 or can convert stored video to it for DVD writing.
The Top Down
Benefits: Record TV programs on your hard drive for playback later; write to DVD or to VCR; use time shifting to pause program and watch later.
Costs: Complete add-in kits, $100-$250; DVD writer, $500-$600
Expertise level: Intermediate
Time required: 30-60 minutes
Tools required: Phillips screwdriver, antistatic wrist strap (recommended)
Vendors: ATI, AVerMedia Technologies, Creative Technology, Hauppauge Computer Works, Leadtek Systems, Matrox, Pinnacle Systems, VisionTek