OnAir GT Mobile HDTV (ATSC & QAM) Receiver & DVR for Computers - $159.98 @ Wal-Mart

[Brad]

http://i.walmart.com/i/p/00/85/99/49/00/0085994900101_100X100.jpg

 

Wal-Mart has the OnAir GT Mobile HDTV (ATSC & QAM) Receiver & DVR for Computers for $159.98. Shipping is just 97 cents. Save on shipping with free Site-to-Store shipping in selected areas - see site for details.

 

OnAir GT Mobile HDTV (ATSC & QAM) Receiver & DVR for Computers - $159.98 @ Wal-Mart

 

 

[Scott]

Interesting... does that mean that this one can tune unencrypted digital cable as well?

[rpertusio]

Hi Brad & Scott!

I am AutumnWave's Technology Manager (OnAir Solution, North America). I registered to the forum to answer your questions (and any others that people my have.)

 

The OnAir GT does unencrypted digital cable, yes! That's in addition to Over-The-Air Digital TV, Over-the-Air Analog TV, and Analog Cable TV.

 

Essentially, the GT is a device that you plug into a USB 2.0 port on your computer, and you can watch Digital/Analog TV. No subscriptions, no fees (other than if you already subscribe to cable.)

 

I'd be happy to answer any other questions! (I do a lot of support on forums)

 

- Ryan Pertusio

 

AutumnWave Technical Support

OnAir Solution North America

[Ripn]

Interesting... does that mean that this one can tune unencrypted digital cable as well?

Yes, a QAM tuner lets you receive an unscrambled digital signal...so if you have analog cable service only, a QAM tuner may allow you to receive some unscrambled digital stations free (like the local HD channels - ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, PBS)...but stations like ESPN HD are usually still scrambled. That all depends on the cable company though.

[Scott]

Hi Brad & Scott!

I am AutumnWave's Technology Manager (OnAir Solution, North America). I registered to the forum to answer your questions (and any others that people my have.)

 

The OnAir GT does unencrypted digital cable, yes! That's in addition to Over-The-Air Digital TV, Over-the-Air Analog TV, and Analog Cable TV.

 

Essentially, the GT is a device that you plug into a USB 2.0 port on your computer, and you can watch Digital/Analog TV. No subscriptions, no fees (other than if you already subscribe to cable.)

 

I'd be happy to answer any other questions! (I do a lot of support on forums)

 

- Ryan Pertusio

 

AutumnWave Technical Support

OnAir Solution North America

Thank you very much for registering to answer the question.

 

I've been looking for just such a tuner.

 

It is time to replace my aging Hauppauge 878 based analog card...

[gitarzan]

I subscribe to Insight cable in Lexington KY (everything but the premium channels, HBO etc). Is there a way to know if the digital channels I get are unencrypted and can be received by this device? I know that some are but should I expect most to be. ie. ESPN, MTV, SciFI, etc.

 

I build my computers. Tired of waiting on a cable card solution and this looks like a promising alternative. thank you,

 

 

Hi Brad & Scott!

I am AutumnWave's Technology Manager (OnAir Solution, North America). I registered to the forum to answer your questions (and any others that people my have.)

 

The OnAir GT does unencrypted digital cable, yes! That's in addition to Over-The-Air Digital TV, Over-the-Air Analog TV, and Analog Cable TV.

 

Essentially, the GT is a device that you plug into a USB 2.0 port on your computer, and you can watch Digital/Analog TV. No subscriptions, no fees (other than if you already subscribe to cable.)

 

I'd be happy to answer any other questions! (I do a lot of support on forums)

 

- Ryan Pertusio

 

AutumnWave Technical Support

OnAir Solution North America

[AbitaMan]

rpertusio, does it work with satellite providers as well?

 

Hi Brad & Scott!

I am AutumnWave's Technology Manager (OnAir Solution, North America). I registered to the forum to answer your questions (and any others that people my have.)

 

The OnAir GT does unencrypted digital cable, yes! That's in addition to Over-The-Air Digital TV, Over-the-Air Analog TV, and Analog Cable TV.

 

Essentially, the GT is a device that you plug into a USB 2.0 port on your computer, and you can watch Digital/Analog TV. No subscriptions, no fees (other than if you already subscribe to cable.)

 

I'd be happy to answer any other questions! (I do a lot of support on forums)

 

- Ryan Pertusio

 

AutumnWave Technical Support

OnAir Solution North America

[rpertusio]

Hi gitarzan (and everyone else)!

 

If you are looking to get unencrypted QAM channels, there is no complete channel listing. (Cable companies often refuse to provide such a list.) However, a popular place to look is the AVS Forum. I can't post links yet, so you'll have to copy/paste this one:

 

http://avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=453241

 

gitarzan, Lexington KY is listed as #63 currently on that page. A few members of that forum indicate that your local channels should be receivable unencrypted. (Typically that would include NBC, CBS, ABC, PBS, FOX, etc.)

 

FYI, The best place to look for Digital TV (over-the-air, using an antenna) is AntennaWeb: http://antennaweb.org

 

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

 

AbitaMan,

Satellite is a completely different technology, and the OnAir GT is not designed to receive satellite signals (nor can it be adapted to receive them.) The most you can do is to connect a cable from your satellite box to the GT, and tune our software to channel 3 or 4 (much like you would for a regular Analog TV.)

 

The OnAir GT is designed to handle ATSC (digital tv) and NTSC (analog tv) that are being transmitted from TV towers in your area... OR to tune in QAM (Digital Cable) or Analog cable.

 

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

 

I'll happily answer any more questions! I primarily do technical support for AutumnWave, but I can answer any other questions about our products, or HDTV technologies in general.

 

Thanks!

- Ryan Pertusio

 

AutumnWave Technical Support

OnAir Solution North America

[Scott]

Ryan,

 

I fixed your link for you as a convenience to users.

 

Thank you for offering your time to answer questions here.

 

I'm just about set on ordering one of these, and I had a couple of quick questions.

 

Can you give a quick rundown (or provide a link) on the differences between this GT Mobile product and the "OnAir Creator HDTV" and "OnAir Sasem HDTV" units?

 

I like the fact that the GT is really mobile and I can take it with me. But since this will be primarily for my desktop at home, I was wondering about the other two.

[rpertusio]

Hi Scott,

Thanks for fixing the link! I provide tech support questions regularly on forums. There's actually a 48+ page discussion on AVS Forum if you want to read more:

http://avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=695589

 

We have 3 products... the 'OnAir Sasem', 'OnAir Creator' and the 'OnAir GT' (oldest to newest.)

A comparison chart can be found on our website, but I'll describe a bit more in this post:

http://autumnwave.com/products/consumer/comparison_chart_-_onair_hdtv_products.html

 

 

• OnAir Sasem - In 2003, we introduced this as the world's first USB 2.0 HDTV tuner! It features a Philips tuner and is powered by an AC adapter.

   

• OnAir Creator - In 2005 we introduced the Creator. It visually looks similar to the 'Sasem', but the 'Philips' tuner is replaced with an 'LG 5th gen' tuner. (If you look around, the LG 5th gen is the best tuner around! You'll find it in $2000 HDTVs.) In addition to the major tuner upgrade, we also decided to include a license for the nVidia PureVideo Decoder... one of the best decoders in the industry. It provides a great looking picture on your PC / laptop, and allows for 5.1 surround audio. The Creator is powered by wall (AC) adapter, and includes a 'hardware encoder', which takes the load off your CPU when viewing Analog TV.

   

• OnAir GT - Introduced in 2006, the GT is our 'portable' tuner. It uses a 'software encoder', so the power requirements are lower. It is USB-powered, and comes with a 'whip' antenna. It contains the 5th gen LG tuner (same as the Creator), and also has the license for the nVidia PureVideo Decoder.

Essentially, the GT should fit most needs. (It is our most popular and least expensive HDTV tuner for the computer.) You may want to consider the 'OnAir Creator' if you intend on doing a lot of Analog TV stuff, because it has the built-in hardware encoder. The 'OnAir Sasem' is more of a 'legacy' product. (Most customers opt for the GT or Creator).

 

I sound like a salesperson... but you can feel free to read the 'AVS Forum' thread for some unbiased customer experiences:

http://avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=695589

 

Thanks. I'm open to any other questions from anyone :) (If you're shy, feel free to Private Message me, too.)

 

- Ryan Pertusio

 

AutumnWave Technical Support

OnAir Solution North America

[Scott]

Ryan,

 

Your links are fixed again. It won't be long before that won't be a problem.

 

It looks like I'm leaning towards the GT or the Creator. I will check out the site and comparisons more later tonight.

 

Thanks again

[Scott]

After seeing Ryan's support here and reading the "above and beyond" support that Ryan and AutumnWave have given in other forums, I decided to go ahead and order the GT.

 

I love the idea that it is portable, and I will give it a through testing. :)

 

However, I noticed that once I added tax and shipping to the Wal-Mart site, the total was considerably more. So, off I went to find a better deal for me.

 

As luck would have it, Buy.com carries the GT for only $159.99 with free shipping!

 

http://www.buy.com/prod/onair-gt-mobile-hdtv-receiver-dvr-for-pc/q/loc/101/202493924.html

 

I will let you know when I get mine and perhaps do a short review in the tech forum.

[rpertusio]

Thanks Scott :) I'm here if you need any technical support.

 

FYI... between the times you posted, we released an update to our software. It's likely you'll receive a CD with older software from Buy.com. Simply install the CD software, then head over to our website (autumnwave.com) and get the latest Driver & Program for the OnAir GT.

 

If you have any further questions or comments, feel free to let me know.

 

- Ryan Pertusio

 

Autumnwave Technical Support

OnAir Solution North America

[Scott]

Thanks Scott :) I'm here if you need any technical support.

 

FYI... between the times you posted, we released an update to our software. It's likely you'll receive a CD with older software from Buy.com. Simply install the CD software, then head over to our website (autumnwave.com) and get the latest Driver & Program for the OnAir GT.

 

If you have any further questions or comments, feel free to let me know.

 

- Ryan Pertusio

 

Autumnwave Technical Support

OnAir Solution North America

 

Thanks for the heads up... trust me... the updates will be on my computer before the GT arrives. :) I always make sure I downloaded the latest firmware/drivers/software before installing a new product.

[gitarzan]

Thank you for the link. I am a regular reader at avsforum. I keep up with the stuff in the rear projection forum there. I also try to keep up with satellite technology at dbsforum and satelliteguys.

 

I have been watching for news about cable cards over the last year. Kind of hard to find but anandtech.com very recently had a nice write up on a Dell system with a cablecard tuner. I am afraid the digital rights laws are stifling progress in that area. Cablecard solutions seem to me have the most promise for building a near perfect PC DVR. It doesn't sound if I will be able to get a cablecard tuner outside of a full blown cablelabs certified ssytem for a long time if ever.

 

My modded original XBOX xbox media center continues to be my media player of choice by far, just no TV or DVR functionality.

 

I now have Vista Home Premium with Windows Media Center. That and in conjuction with my XBOX 360 and Media Center extender works very well. I am running an HDTV USB stick tuner with my Vista Media center but it only gets local channels OTA. It works very nice but I want more channels and an all digital solution.

 

 

 

Hi gitarzan (and everyone else)!

 

If you are looking to get unencrypted QAM channels, there is no complete channel listing. (Cable companies often refuse to provide such a list.) However, a popular place to look is the AVS Forum. I can't post links yet, so you'll have to copy/paste this one:

 

http://avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=453241

 

gitarzan, Lexington KY is listed as #63 currently on that page. A few members of that forum indicate that your local channels should be receivable unencrypted. (Typically that would include NBC, CBS, ABC, PBS, FOX, etc.)

 

FYI, The best place to look for Digital TV (over-the-air, using an antenna) is AntennaWeb: http://antennaweb.org

 

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

 

AbitaMan,

Satellite is a completely different technology, and the OnAir GT is not designed to receive satellite signals (nor can it be adapted to receive them.) The most you can do is to connect a cable from your satellite box to the GT, and tune our software to channel 3 or 4 (much like you would for a regular Analog TV.)

 

The OnAir GT is designed to handle ATSC (digital tv) and NTSC (analog tv) that are being transmitted from TV towers in your area... OR to tune in QAM (Digital Cable) or Analog cable.

 

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

 

I'll happily answer any more questions! I primarily do technical support for AutumnWave, but I can answer any other questions about our products, or HDTV technologies in general.

 

Thanks!

- Ryan Pertusio

 

AutumnWave Technical Support

OnAir Solution North America

[Scott]

I got the GT this weekend. Hopefully I will get to post my thoughts about it in the tech section later this week.

 

All I can say so far is that my intial impressions of the unit are very good.

[rpertusio]

Excellent, Scott!

 

Be sure to provide a link (if possible) to your thoughts! I'm also here if you encounter any issues, or simply just need some help getting the best out of your GT. Enjoy!

 

- Ryan Pertusio

 

AutumnWave Technical Support

OnAir Solution North America

[Scott]

Is there any linux support at all?

 

I'm just wondering.

[rpertusio]

At this time, no. However, we've provided some samples to members of the Linux community, and they have volunteered their time to try and write some support.

 

- Ryan

[Scott]

At this time, no. However, we've provided some samples to members of the Linux community, and they have volunteered their time to try and write some support.

 

- Ryan

Great...

 

Is there anywhere that can be followed?

[Scott]

Hey Ryan....

 

If you are still listening...

 

Has there been any progress made on the Linux front? Has anyone managed to get the OnAir GT working in a Linux environment?

 

I'm attempting to switch to linux completely, and the OnAir is one piece of hardware that is holding me back.