Specifications
928
Chapter 15 Video Hardware
In many cases, a single device provides both features. However, if you need better 3D performance or
features, more memory, or support for DVI digital displays, you need to replace your video card.
TV Tuner and Video Capture Upgrades
With a few notable exceptions, such as ATI’s Radeon All-in-Wonder and NVIDIA’s Personal Cinema
series, most video cards don’t have TV tuner and video capture upgrade features built in. New cards
with these features tend to be either in the middle to high range of their manufacturers’ price structures
or less expensive but of poor quality.
These features are exciting if you are already into video editing, want to add video to your Web site, or are
trying to create CD- or DVD-based archives of your home video. If you have an up-to-date video card with
acceptable 2D and 3D performance and at least 64MB of video RAM, compare the price of the add-ons to
the price of a new card with these features. You’ll probably find the add-ons to be less expensive. If your
card has less than 64MB of video RAM and you play 3D games, I recommend replacing it with a new card
with these features. Look at sample video captures before making your decision because all video capture
solutions require image compression with at least some loss of quality. If you have a digital camcorder
with IEEE 1394 (also called FireWire or i.LINK) ports, you should purchase an IEEE 1394 interface board to
use high-quality pure digital video that needs no conversion.
Note
Although ATI’s All-in-Wonder RADEON 8500 DV includes an IEEE 1394a (FireWire 400) port, more recent All-in-Wonder boards
don’t include this port. However, a wide variety of multifunction PCI cards include IEEE 1394a ports, including high-end sound
cards from Hercules and Creative Labs and combination Hi-Speed USB (USB 2.0)/IEEE 1394a cards from many vendors.
The USB port can be used to connect TV tuner and video-capture options compatible with any manu-
facturer’s video card from vendors such as Dazzle, Hauppauge, and others. Because the wide variety of
TV and computer hardware on the market can cause compatibility problems with USB TV/capture
devices, be sure to check review sites such as
http://reviews.cnet.com and http://www.epinions.com.
For best image capture quality, look for products designed for Hi-Speed USB (USB 2.0) and connect
them to a Hi-Speed USB port.
If HDTV is in your future, look for products compatible with HDTV, such as an HDTV tuner (some plug
in to an empty PCI slot, and others plug in to a USB port). HDTV tuners enable you to watch HDTV
broadcasts on any monitor connected to your PC, including large-screen monitors and projectors. Some
of the major vendors of HDTV cards include ATI Technologies, Hauppauge Computer Works, and Sasem
Co, Ltd.
Warranty and Support
Because a video card can go through several driver changes during its effective lifetime (about three
years or two operating-system revisions), buying a video card from a major manufacturer usually
assures you of better support during the card’s lifetime. If you buy a card that uses widely available
chipsets (such as NVIDIA’s or ATI’s), you might be able to try a different vendor’s version of drivers or
use the chipset vendor’s “generic” drivers if you don’t get satisfactory support from your card vendor.
Keep in mind that using generic drivers (chipset level) or a different brand of drivers can cause problems if
your original card’s design was tweaked from the chipset maker’s reference design. Look at the vendor’s
technical support forums or third-party discussions on newsgroups, computer information Web sites such
as ZDNet, or magazine Web sites to get a feel for the stability, reliability, and usefulness of a vendor’s sup-
port and driver services. These sources generally also provide alternatives in case of difficulties with a spe-
cific brand or chipset. If you use Windows Me, Windows 2000, or Windows XP, make sure you use
WHQL-certified drivers for best results. These drivers have been passed by Microsoft’s Windows Hardware
Quality Labs and might be available through Windows Update or from the vendor’s own Web site.
16 1738 ch15 7/30/04 10:31 AM Page 928