Dorming, Can my Monitor be my TV?

[Kelvrick]

Ok, I'm dorming in UC Davis in the Autumn, hopefully in a single, so then I need to save space. I'm thinking since I have a tv card, I don't need a tv. I can just watch tv, play games (console and comp games), watch tapes, and watch dvds on my monitor. Anyone do something similar to this? How was the quality? Does it look ok? I currently have a 17 inch but if I'm not bringing a tv, I'm going to get a 19 incher.

 

[SpongeBob]

I do since I have a 27" TV and I don't really want to lug that thing up to school. I got myself a TV Wonder VE a while back and I'm glad I did. I don't watch a whole lot of TV, but when I do I think the quality is definitely good enough. I think you'll be fine with a TV card, I'm sure someone in your dorm will have a nice TV that you can play video games and watch DVD's on, but it's nice to have something in your room that just you can watch.

 

[vi edit]

Nothing sucks worse than trying to cram 8 people into a room to watch a flick on a 17" (or smaller) monitor.

Don't expect to have many people over for porn on that little screen.

I'm not the best example though. I crammed a 32" TV into my dorm room It was great, we could play Gran Turismo from the room on the other side of the hallway

 

[thraashman]

For college I bought what is basically a tv tuner that runs my monitor into a TV. I don't even have to have the computer turned on, just the monitor. I even got a remote with it. It was the best thing I ever did.

 

[Mday]

you can get yourself a tv tuner for you puter. USB, or internal pci.

get yourself a cheap amplified antenna.

you're still gonna need a vcr for tapes.

--

i have an aiw radeon, and a usb tuner =) the usb tuner was replaced by the aiw.

 

[kaiotes]

also have a question regarding this issue.
my college that i will be going to (ucla dorms) they have cable outlets, can we have more than 1 'tv' in the room? as in differnet channels at the same time?
i'm gonna be in triple and gonna use computer as my tv.
would there be any conflicts with ability to use same cable outlet w/ splitter then changing channel for each 'tv'?

 

[Pyro]

yep, its a good idea, but do get 19".

also, get the zoltrix card, it has radio AND a remote in addition to its tv....

 

[shopbruin]

kaiotes:

seriously there is NO way you can have three tv's in one room. best thing to do: get one main tv. choose who's bringing theirs. (usually the biggest one will win) you just do not have the space. since you're using a tv card, you can have your own tv time. movies and so on are more fun around a real tv. earlier in the year i had four girls watching dvd's on my 17 inch monitor. not fun.

there are two cable jacks in each room. same with two ethernet ports, but they will let you borrow a router for free from STC.

 

[AnimeKnight]

<< also have a question regarding this issue.
my college that i will be going to (ucla dorms) they have cable outlets, can we have more than 1 'tv' in the room? as in differnet channels at the same time?
i'm gonna be in triple and gonna use computer as my tv.
would there be any conflicts with ability to use same cable outlet w/ splitter then changing channel for each 'tv'? >>



nope.. jsut get a splitter and it will be fine. that's how i am doing it .

 

[AnimeKnight]

<< Got a good TV tuner card suggestion for in Win2k? >>



I have a Radeon ALL In Wonder running Win2K. So far no trouble at all. Except don't install the drivers from windows update it will give you BSD

 

[HansHurt]

I use the ASUS TV Box w/ the ASUS V6800 Video Card in W2K no problem...got the remote to. I don't even turn on my regulaar TV anymore.

 

[Schlocemus]

it wont look as good...

 

[Kelvrick]

Thanks for the replies guys. I'm going to upgrade to a 19incher before I go up there and leave my tv at home. I was thinking of the ATI TV wonder. Of course, I'm hearing about a remote now and I don't think the wonder has a remote. Whats a good tv card that comes with a remote? A link would be appreciated. I'm bringing a vcr and I don't need an antenna cuzz they're providing cable.

 

[kaiotes]

asia, i'm just trying to see if it would work in the scenrio.
only 2 ethernet jacks in a triple room? how gay. w/ router, it means i'm sharing bandwith
anime, good to hear it works.

 

[SackOfAllTrades]

it would work with a TV card, but seriously, you're gonna be in a dorm full of other people...TV should be the last thing you interact with.

 

[Kelvrick]

Guess I left out a crucial piece of information. I applied for a single dorm. At most, a double dorm. I might transfer to a double once I make a friend or two, but then I don't trust strangers with my comp. Would you guys trust them with your comp?

 

[IcemanJer]

<< Nothing sucks worse than trying to cram 8 people into a room to watch a flick on a 17&quot; (or smaller) monitor. >>

Don't worry about that. Just ask a girl and cuddle up with her and watch some tear-jerker movie.

 

[hans007]

i had a tv box. a taiwanese company my dad works for makes them, supposedly they will be selling them at compusa soon. Anyways it just hooks on a pass through with your monitor. TV cards tend to have crappy reception because they have to deal with interference from the high frequency stuff in your computer, i.e processor, fans, etc. All those magnetic fields and stuff mess with it. I recommend an external tuner, or a usb one to avoid that crappy picture.


I was using my tv external box with my 19&quot; fd trinitron. Now i've sold my desktop so basically my 19&quot; $400 monitor is a really geeky looking tv

 

[serialb]

Having a huge ass TV is a great thing to ask chicks over. &quot;Let's watch a movie tonight.&quot; But when they realized a 17-incher you are going to watch on, they might just fight for the door.

Plus, monitors are usually on a desk and you need something to sit on comfortably to watch TV. Because the size of dorms are hardly bigger than your room now, a 19 inch TV will be nice enough for a dorm.

serialb