BIOS: Technology Means Business

Another day, another USB TV tuner. The latest novelty comes from ADS Technologies, who has announced the launch of its Mini Digital TV USB.

The latest addition to the company’s range of USB products and growing range of PC TV Tuners, the Mini Digital TV USB is one of the first tuners to allow you to watch ‘free to air’ digital TV programmes all over the world. It even acts as a personal video recorder (PVR) so you’ll never miss your favourite show or a live goal again, thanks to the ability to Rewind, Pause or Fast Forward live digital TV.

The Instant TV DVB-T Standard sends ‘free to air’ digital TV and radio to your PC through a regular TV antenna, freeing you from television network programming schedules and allowing you to easily record television on your PC laptop so that you can watch shows when you want. You can then burn to disc and watch episodes of your favourite shows over and over again, archiving the whole TV series to VCD or DVD Disc.

The ability to pick up ‘free’ digital TV and radio channels will be really useful, whether for personal use, or for business users who want to keep up to date of the news and world events while on the move. The device’s small and sleek design also makes the Mini Digital TV USB extremely portable and convenient, allowing you to transport it between their work laptop and desktop PC at home easily. The same can’t be said for PC Card and PCI solutions.

The Mini Digital TV USB comes complete with Ulead’s InstaMedia 2.0 software, making it compatible with the Digital Video Broadcasting-Terrestrial (DVB-T) standard used throughout Europe and Asia for transmitting free digital TV and radio signals. In addition to watching and recording TV broadcasts, the digital entertainment centre allows you to view photos and photo slideshows, and also enables video recording and direct-to-disc burning to VCD or DVD formats.

InstaMedia provides a simple user interface that is easy to use and navigate, and which has been designed with large screen viewing in mind, thus providing a clear and crisp full screen picture on your TV or computer monitor from up to 10 feet away. Alternatively, the scalable TV window allows you to make the TV window any size that you’d like, so you can watch TV and work at the same time - at least when the boss isn’t looking!

ADS Tech’s Mini Digital TV USB will be available in early February, with an estimated RRP of £49.99. The kit includes a USB 2.0 extension cable, antenna, antenna adapter cable, and CD-ROM containing device drivers, Ulead’s InstaMedia 2.0, and User Manual.

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