Hauppauge WinTV-NOVA-T PCI review

Verdict:

Review Date: 22 Sep 2005

Price when reviewed: inc VAT

Our Rating 2 stars out of 5

Review
Specs

We last reviewed the NOVA-T in What's New, Shopper May 2005, where it received a respectable three stars. The competition has moved on, though, and this Hauppauge card is beginning to look dated.

The card is very simple and has only three sockets: one for the aerial, a pass-through so the same aerial can be connected to another device, and one for the infrared receiver. The remote control is silver with lots of spongy buttons, most of which are superfluous.

Setting up the software takes time. Four drivers are needed, as well as several separate Windows applications. Once this is sorted out, the software automatically launches a tuning application to locate the Freeview channels.

Hauppauge's WinTV 2000 software works well, but it's not that easy to use. The EPG shows only 'now' and 'next' programme information, a poor substitute for the one-week guide provided by some digital tuners. There is a recording scheduler, though, so you can set programmes to record manually by entering channel and time details. It's also compatible with the TVTV online programme guide, which costs £15 per year.

The NOVA-T is reasonably priced and includes everything you need to watch and record Freeview channels. Its EPG is limited, though, and it can't match the excellent and slightly cheaper TwinHan Ter D+A.

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