Computer DVR/TV-Tuner Cards?

[Anusien]

I'm looking to turn my computer into a DVR.  I'm doing shopping for two different systems; one of them requires a PCI card and the other requires a USB setup.  Anyone have any relevant experience/advice?  At the moment, Hauppage seems to be the tech.

[Polynomial P]

I have an ATI TV/DVR card. It replaced my normal video (in the PCI slot) card and can handle the RCA, S-video, and cable hookups. I like it alot (i think it is a 64 MB card and have had it for like 4 years now). If you dont plan on doing seroius gaming, I would reccommend replacing your video card with the PCI based card. Ive even hooked up my PS2 and Gamecube to it.

The software leaves something to be desired, but you might be able to get 3rd party software or a newer version that may have fixed the problems. PM me if you have more questions.

[Shock Wave]

I bought a TV Tuner card and I did not have a good experience with iit. There was very noticable lag when I hooked up my console or DVD player. With my console, there was a lag in response time, and with the DVD player, there was disparity between the picture and the audio. I'm not sure how well it would work with other applications, but intuitively, going through a PCI card adds another point of delay, regardless of what it is being used for.

[ctthespian]

I've got the WinTV-PVR-500 MCE http://www.hauppauge.com/pages/products/data_pvr500mce.html  and just love it.

I use GB-PVR software as it's free, gets free guide updates and works really well.  You can also get an addon to remove comercials from TV, though it works after it's recorded so you've got to watch it after.  Also GB-PVR isn't proprietary, it saves as a standard mpeg, so you can watch it anywhere.