With the advent of broadband internet and many streaming video services, the habit of sitting in front of the TV to watch your favorite shows and movies is a thing of the past. Many viewers refuse to buy a TV set, consider it a relic of the pre-digital era, and prefer to spend their free time in front of the screen of a computer, laptop, or mobile gadget. So here you will find how to connect tv tuner to laptop correctly.
However, the restrictions that copyright holders impose on the programs and series aired, the abundance of advertising on free resources, problems on the side of Internet providers, the desire to watch the next release of TV shows outside the home force laptop owners to look for other ways to connect to digital TV.
How To Connect Tv Tuner To Laptop
If the laptop is not equipped with a built-in TV tuner, the situation will be saved by an external module, which can be connected and configured even by a non-specialist.
DVB-2 module compatibility with laptop
The digital TV tuner for the laptop receives the signal from the antenna, decodes the information, and transmits it to the computer, which outputs the image and sound. In our country, the European standard for TV broadcasting DVB-T2 has been adopted, which is accepted by an outdoor (collective) or room (individual) wired antenna. Some digital channels are available free of charge throughout some countries, the rest are included in paid service packages provided by regional providers.
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An external TV tuner for a laptop must support the DVB-T2 standard, be equipped with a USB, RCA (“tulip”) or HDMI connector for connecting to a mobile PC through the appropriate ports and be small in size. The package usually includes the following components:
- cables for connecting to a laptop;
- CD with a set of software for correct operation;
- remote control (for some models);
- instructions for setting up and using the device.
USB-models of TV-tuners for a laptop have gained great popularity: due to their small dimensions, some of them look like flash drives. These devices have a USB plug at one end and an antenna jack at the other. The compact module is easy to carry with a laptop to watch digital TV where it is convenient for the user (in another room, at work, on a business trip) and where DVB-T2 is caught.
To amplify the signal, which may weaken, some manufacturers equip tuners with portable antennas.
A number of models are equipped with a radio receiver that works in the FM band, supports playback of various media formats and streaming video and music from the network (in YouTube, online cinemas), records the broadcast, allows you to pause and resume viewing later from the same place, and also turns on at a predetermined time.
How To Connect Tv Tuner To Laptop with USB tuner ?
User actions are not very complex. You will need to follow these steps:
- Insert the device into an unused slot.
- Connect the antenna to the tuner (indoor or portable from the delivery set).
- Turn on the receiver (the button is on the body of the device).
- Install the necessary drivers and applications from the disk (as a rule, Windows finds a new device and displays a message in the notification area).
- Reboot laptop.
- Launch the installed TV viewing software and automatically search for all available TV channels.
If there is no disk with programs and drivers, the software can be found on the hardware developer’s website or on a third-party resource (in this case, it is advisable to check the files for viruses). The request must include the exact name of the model because if the software and hardware versions are incompatible, the module will not function correctly.
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The installation files are downloaded and launched, after which the laptop is rebooted and starts scanning the air.
Other Methods To Connect Tv Tuner To Laptop
If there is an HDMI input on the laptop, the module is connected using an HDMI cable. Unfortunately, a significant part of laptop is equipped only with HDMI outputs, through which a TV-tuner for a laptop cannot be connected. You can find out about the type of connectors from the detailed description of a particular laptop model on the manufacturer’s website, the store where the laptop was purchased, or the paper instructions that come with each new laptop.
3 RCA connectors are needed to output video and audio through separate channels. Typically the video cable is yellow, the left audio cable is white, and the right audio cable is red. Since new video cards do not have the necessary jacks, special adapters are used to transfer the image, and the sound is output through one mini-jack, to which headphones or speakers are usually connected. In the latter case, an RCA – 3.5 mm jack adapter may be needed.
The cables are plugged into the necessary connectors when the laptop is turned off, and after turning on and loading the OS, the drivers and necessary software are installed.
Wireless communication channels: Bluetooth and Wi-Fi are needed to expand the capabilities of a compact receiver. With their help, the DVB T2 module for a laptop is connected to an access point to play audio and video from the network, and not only broadcast digital TV. To do this, you need to get an external wireless adapter. The tuner must have a USB connector since external Wi-Fi and Bluetooth modules are connected through it.
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The adapter is inserted into the port, then the tuner itself is turned on, after which the drivers are installed if necessary. Then you need to enter the password for the access point in the communication module settings. It is important to remember that the tuner must support the ability to play content from the Internet. This is evidenced by the receiver’s software, where, in addition to searching and viewing channels, there are network applications, for example, YouTube, IPTV, and others.
Buying an external tuner is the best option for users who value portability. It is suitable for those who have already connected a package of paid channels, and those who are content with a public set. M clothed, which is capable of reproducing the content network and play files from local media, will allow postponing the purchase of the TV and set-top boxes that appreciate travelers, vacationers, as well as employees who often travel on business trips.
There are receivers on sale that can be connected not only to stationary or laptop computers but also to mobile devices: smartphones and tablets. With such a tuner, you can watch your favorite programs from any device and in any place where you can catch a digital TV signal.
