If you want an easy way to get live, broadcast TV onto your computer, you need a TV tuner. Whether it's an internal card or external peripheral, they connect to your antenna and give you a way to watch live TV on your computer's screen. Here are five of the best.


Earlier in the week, we asked you for the TV tuners you thought were the best . Ironically, of you nominees, few of them were actual cards, or PCIe cards you install in your computer. Instead, many of you preferred external peripherals and USB devices that connect to your computer more easily over cards to be installed into HTPCs. Here are your favorites, in no particular order:

What's the Best TV Tuner Card? After talking about how to stream broadcast TV to your computer in the wake of the Aereo decision,… Read more


Hauppauge's WinTV HVR 2250 is a half-height dual tuner PCIe card that supports both clear QAM from an unencrypted cable box or an over-the-air TV antenna. The card features an internal splitter, so you plug in one device, and you can watch two channels, or watch one and record another at the same time. The card comes an on-board MPEGF-2 encoder that handles video encoder without offloading the task to your CPU or graphics card. Beyond that, the card comes with a remote control, and features an IR blaster so you can program your favorite universal remote to work with it. It supports Windows Media Center, Windows 7 and 8, has in-chassis AV inputs and an external input, and even supports FM-radio recording. It even comes with an AV breakout cable for connecting to receivers and set-top boxes that don't use coaxial input.

Those of you who nominated the 2250 praised its dual tuners and internal splitter—in short pointing out that it's nice to be able to watch one program while recording something completely different. You noted that it comes with the option for multiple A/V capture from other devices, which makes it a great video input for your TV recording or digitizing needs, and its low-rise design means it's right at home in HTPCs or other small media centers. The price doesn't hurt either, you can grab one from Amazon for $109. You can read more in its nomination thread here .



The HDHomeRun series from SiliconDust is well regarded if you're looking for a network-attached TV tuner that can stream to all of your devices. The HDHomeRun Plus is a perfect example of this, and while it's not specifically a tuner card, it's certainly a tuner that can serve all of the devices on your home network. It sports dual tuners, so you can watch one thing while recording or streaming something else, it's tiny (about the size of a small cable box), features coaxial input for your OTA antenna or cable line (again, Clear QAM), supports Windows and Windows Media Center as well as MythTV on Linux, is DLNA compatible, and is compatible with the InstaTV apps for iOS and Android for mobile viewing.

Those of you who praised the HDHomeRun Plus noted that it's an exceptional DLNA server, and can easily stream to just about any DLNA compatible device in your home, from tablets and mobile devices to TV screens and A/V receivers. Many of you specifically called out its MythTV compatibility, and the fact that it's ideal if you're looking for a way to roll broadcast TV into your MythTV HTPC. If you're interested, they're $130 at Amazon. You can read more in its nomination thread here .



If you like Hauppauge's TV tuners but don't necessarily want to install a PCI card in your computer—or you have a laptop—the WinTV HVR 950Q is a USB alternative. It sports coaxial input for unencrypted cable (Clear QAM) or an OTA antenna, and comes with Hauppauge's WinTV software for viewing and recording TV programs, a remote control, and even a portable antenna you can use with it. It's single-tuner, so you shouldn't expect to be able to watch one thing and record another, but you will be able to pause, record, and resume live television, and you can schedule recordings for later with the included software. It's compatible with Windows Media Center, and Windows 7 and 8.

In the nomination thread, you praised the 950's portability and small size, and the fact that it's relatively plug-and-play with just about any Windows PC. An included antenna means you don't have to have your own OTA antenna to use it, but if you do, that's even better. If you already have an HTPC, this is a simple one-click operation, and while it may not be a TV tuner card, combined with its own DVR software and any other remote access software, you have a USB peripheral that gives you access to your local broadcast TV anywhere you go. The price is nice too—you can get one for $64 at Amazon. Read more in the nomination thread here .



AverMedia's Hybrid Volar Max is a USB TV tuner stick that sports coaxial input on one end for your OTA antenna, and USB on the other to connect to your computer. Installation is simple with the right drivers, and the Volar Max supports Windows 7 and Windows Media Center out of the box. It's single tuner, but has its own MPEG-2 video encoder on-board, offers 64-bit driver support, and all in all is a simple and affordable alternative to many other USB-based TV tuners. It supports FM Radio as well, and it ships with AverMedia's own DVR software to help you get started.

The Volar Max is portable, and ideal for laptop users looking for a way to get TV on their notebooks without prying them open. Those of you who praised it in the nominations round noted its portability and Windows support, praised its reliability, and noted AverMedia's included software makes it easy to set up and configure. It also includes a dongle for additional source input. There's no Linux support, though—this stick was made with Windows Media Center in mind. If you'd like one, they're $50 at Amazon. You can read more in its nomination thread here .



The Elgato EyeTV made a strong showing in the nominations round, and if you can still get your hands on an EyeTV Hybrid (and we see plenty of used—and some overpriced ones—on Amazon and other sites), you have a great USB stick that supports OS X and Windows, connect to an external OTA antenna, and allows you to pause, watch, and record live TV on your computer or offload it to another device. It even comes with its own antenna, has a built-in programming guide (that you'll need a subscription to make use of, assuming you're in a supported country—you could do without it and use web-accessible TV listings instead and use it for free), and even support for FM radio on your computer.

The trouble with the EyeTV Hybrid is that technically it's been discontinued in North America. If you look at Elgato's website, you'll see that it's widely available in the EU, Australia, and several other countries, but North American countries are off the list. Sadly, most other EyeTV devices available require that you already have cable. That said, Elgato earns huge points for ease-of-use and broad features, and their products work well with OS X and Windows, thanks to their bundled software, and earned your praise in the nominations round. We found this listing at Amazon, which is a good place to start if you want a new one. Read more in the nomination thread here .


Now that you've seen the top five, it's time to put them to an all-out vote:


Honorable mentions this week go out to the Ceton InfiniTV 6 and InfiniTV4 PCIe, both of which are spectacular cards, but require that you already have a subscription to a cable or satellite provider in order to use them (since they both use CableCARDs), so they don't help you get that whole "free broadcast TV on your computer" experience we were looking for here. However, if you have cable and you want to turn your computer into a DVR, or you prefer to watch through your computer or HTPC instead of a cable box from the cable company, they're amazing devices that offer a ton of features. We could do an entire piece just on the benefits of replacing your cable box with your HTPC with a CableCARD.

We should also highlight the SiliconDust HDHomeRun Prime. It's the HDHomeRun Plus's bigger brother, sports three tuners, including support for CableCARD. It also has coaxial input for cable (although that coaxial input doesn't have an NTSC/ATSC tuner behind it, so no OTA TV), USB on the back, support for Windows Media Center and MythTV, and like the Plus, it's a DLNA server, which means you can stream video to just about any DLNA-compatible device on your home network, including game consoles, tablets, TVs, and receivers. Again, like the Plus, it supports remote control and DVR control from the InstaTV mobile app for iOS and Android, and more. You can even connect it to other HDHomeRun devices around your home network.


Want to make the case for your personal favorite, even if it wasn't included in the list? Remember, the top five are based on your most popular nominations from the call for contenders thread from earlier in the week . Don't just complain about the top five, let us know what your preferred alternative is—and make your case for it—in the discussions below.

The Hive Five is based on reader nominations. As with most Hive Five posts, if your favorite was left out, it didn't get the nominations required in the call for contenders post to make the top five. We understand it's a bit of a popularity contest. Have a suggestion for the Hive Five? Send us an email at tips+hivefive@lifehacker.com !