how to watch tv on your computer for free

HOW TO WATCH TV ON YOUR COMPUTER FOR FREE INSTALL
HOW TO WATCH TV ON YOUR COMPUTER FOR FREE SOFTWARE
HOW TO WATCH TV ON YOUR COMPUTER FOR FREE PC

Buffering, by the way, is when your connection pauses so it can download video frames to keep ahead of what you're watching, because either your connection or the website isn't fast enough. Like learning about nature but hate spiders? There'll be a station out there somewhere that suits your tastes.Īny time you're dealing with video content online, you'll need a reasonably fast connection so you're not sitting around forever waiting for it to buffer. They're often on quite niche subjects, but that means you can find exactly what you want. Often the word 'channel' is a bit of a stretch for these operations, because they only post an hour or two of new material online every week. There is a lot of content out there, everything from Germany's finest cooking shows to Chinese soap operas. Content is streamed over the Net through your PC, so you don't have to download a file before you can watch but you can't save it for later, or short downloadable clips.

Instead of receiving TV signals through your aerial, you can use the Internet to find the video content you want. $299 from There's a cheaper model (PVR-150) that comes with a remote, but this only has one tuner and basic connections so image quality won't be great. Some tuners will come with their own aerials, but you should be able to plug in the cable from your existing aerial.įor tuner cards, check out the Hauppauge PVR-500 MCE, which has two TV tuners so you can record and watch different channels simultaneously.

HOW TO WATCH TV ON YOUR COMPUTER FOR FREE SOFTWARE

Most mid-range tuner cards will come with a remote control and infrared receiver to control the software too. It should let you automatically record programmes at set times, fast forward through ads on recorder programmes, and pause and replay live TV. Make sure software that comes with the tuner has the features you want. That's the one that looks like a thick credit card.

HOW TO WATCH TV ON YOUR COMPUTER FOR FREE PC

You can also find versions which plug into your laptop's PC card slot. You can buy a USB tuner dongle (most look like a bigger USB Flash drive) to get the same thing. There's an easier way, especially if you have a notebook computer. It should be a fairly straightforward affair, but you may want to have a professional to do it for you. TV tuner cards have to be installed in the back of your desktop tower. For the time being, New Zealand only has analogue TV signals unless you use a satellite, but digital signals (called 'digital terrestrial transmission') is due to start next year. Probably your best bet is a hybrid TV tuner that can receive both digital and analogue signals. TV tuner cards take an analogue or digital TV signal and instead convert it into a video file that your computer can play (usually a file format called Mpeg). They take a bunch of radio waves and convert it into an episode of America's Next Top Model, or if you're lucky, Baywatch.

PC TV tuners are a bit like the tuner for your TV.

HOW TO WATCH TV ON YOUR COMPUTER FOR FREE INSTALL

Some high-end media PCs will come with these built-in, but in most cases you'll have to buy a card and install it yourself. To watch TV signals you get over your TV aerial on your PC, you need a TV tuner card. Your computer also gives you access to a world of niche programmes, delivered solely over the Internet, that you can send to watch on your nice big TV screen.

How to watch tv on your computer for free