Currently unavailable.
We don't know when or if this item will be back in stock.
Deliver to France
Added to

Sorry, there was a problem.

There was an error retrieving your Wish Lists. Please try again.

Sorry, there was a problem.

List unavailable.

Hauppauge WinTV-PVR-150MCE Personal Video Recorder (1042)

3.3 3.3 out of 5 stars 73 ratings
Currently unavailable.
We don't know when or if this item will be back in stock.
Connectivity Technology Auxiliary
Compatible Devices Television, Desktop
Brand Hauppauge
Audio Input RCA
Video Input VGA, Composite

About this item

  • Personal Video Recorder with Media Center package
  • Watch and record TV on the PC
  • Multitask with other Windows programs
  • Record home videos to disk
  • FM radio tuner included

Additional Details

Small Business
Shop products from small business brands sold in Amazon’s store. Discover more about the small businesses partnering with Amazon and Amazon’s commitment to empowering them.
Learn more
Small Business
This product is from a small business brand. Support small. Learn more
Note: Products with electrical plugs are designed for use in the US. Outlets and voltage differ internationally and this product may require an adapter or converter for use in your destination. Please check compatibility before purchasing.

Product guides and documents

User Guide (PDF)

Looking for specific info?

Product information

Feedback

Hauppauge WinTV-PVR-150MCE Personal Video Recorder (1042)

Found a lower price? Let us know. Although we can't match every price reported, we'll use your feedback to ensure that our prices remain competitive.

Where did you see a lower price?
/
/
/
/
Please sign in to provide feedback.

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

WinTV-PVR-150MCE brings live TV, FM radio and TV recording to Windows XP Media Center Edition

Add TV and FM radio to your Windows XP Media Center Edition PC with the Hauppauge WinTV-PVR-150MCE. The WinTV-PVR-150MCE has the best video quality of any Media Center TV tuner, plus adds FM radio.

Use up to two WinTV-PVR-150MCE's in a Media Center 2005 system
Watch one TV channel while recording another by installing two WinTV-PVR-150's in a Media Center system. If you already have a Media Center system with a Hauppauge WinTV-PVR, you can add a second WinTV-PVR.

The WinTV-PVR-150MCE also runs with third party applications like BeyondTV and SageTV, too.
You can also use the WinTV-PVR-150MCE under Windows XP to watch TV in a window and record your TV shows by using applications like SageTV and BeyondTV. These applications are great if you already have a Windows XP system and would like to add TV watching and recording.

For Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005 users

  • Watch TV with the MyTV button on Media Center Edition. You can install up to two WinTV-PVR-150MCE's in a Media Center 2005 system.
  • Use the Media Center Edition TV scheduler to record your TV shows to disk
  • WinTV-PVR-150MCE's built-in hardware MPEG encoder allows you to continue to use your computer while recording. Listen to music, watch digital pictures or play a DVD movie while recording!
  • Listen to FM radio while you work on your PC
  • Record your home videos to disk. WinTV-PVR-150MCE includes audio/video inputs to connect to VCRs and camcorders
  • Note: the WinTV-PVR-150MCE does not come with a remote control or a software DVD decoder. If you are building Media Center systems, please check with Microsoft for a list of MCE certified remote controls and DVD decoders.

    For Windows XP users

    • Compatible with third party applications like BeyondTV, SageTV and Showshifter for watching and recording TV on your PC
    • Note: there is no remote control included with the WinTV-PVR-150MCE

      WinTV-PVR-150MCE includes

      • 125 channel cable ready TV tuner, NTSC or PAL
      • High quality MPEG-2 video and audio encoder based on the Conexant -416 MPEG encoder
      • Composite/s-video plus stereo audio inputs to connect to VCR, camcorders or set top boxes
      • Auxiliary A/V header on-board for connecting to an audio/video input set
      • dbx-TV stereo decoder (Nicam stereo decoder in Europe)
      • FM radio receiver
      • Note: There are two models of WinTV-PVR-150: one for NTSC television and one for PAL television. The PAL model supports PAL I, PAL B/G, Secam and PAL D/K.

        MPEG record specifications

        • MPEG2 record datarates: 2 Mbps, 4 Mbps, 6 Mbps, 8 Mbps, 12 Mbps. Selections for DVD Standard play (8 Mbps), DVD Long Play (4 Mbps) and DVD Extra Long Play (2.5 Mbps)
        • NTSC format at 29.97fps: Full D1: 720x480
        • PAL format at 25fps: Full D1: 720x576, MPEG1: 352x288
        • Audio capture formats: 44.1/48 KHz, 16bit stereo, 192/224/384Kbps
        • Video digitizer: 10 bits
        • Chroma sampling: YUV 4:2:2
        • Four line adaptive comb filter for both NTSC and PAL to remove dot crawl
        • Fast video locking for security camera applications
        • Video file format: .MPG
        • MPEG file tested compatible with: MediaStudio 6.0, MyDVD and DVD MovieFactory DVD authoring applications

          System Requirements

          • Processor requirements: Pentium IV processor 1.2GHz or faster for TV pause with full screen playback
          • Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005, Windows XP Home or Windows XP Professional Note: when using the WinTV-PVR-150MCe with Windows XP, you need a third party TV application such as MythTV, SageTV or BeyondTV
          • Free PCI slot
          • Sound card
          • VGA card (PCI or AGP) with Media Center 2005 certified driver
          • DVD decoder certified for use with Media Center 2005

Customer reviews

3.3 out of 5 stars
73 global ratings

Customers say

Customers like the ease of use, quality and value of the digital video recorder. They mention that it works well, is better than TIVO and that the picture quality is great. Some appreciate the value for money. However, some customers dislike the software and display. Opinions are mixed on ease of installation.

AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

Select to learn more
Ease of useQualityVideo qualityValueEase of installationSoftwareDisplayRemote control
24 customers mention "Ease of use"20 positive4 negative

Customers find the digital video recorder easy to use. They mention it works well in Linux Fedora Core 5, Vista X64, and Linux. Some say the card does a better job on one channel and has no problems at all using the Windows XP MCE software.

"...tuner I decided to give it a try and am pleased to see that it does a much better job on that one channel...." Read more

"...The video quality, performance, and usuability are great with or without Windows MCE...." Read more

"...Returned the product and purchased AverMedia DVD EZmaker Gold. It works great and it is cheaper." Read more

"...RadioNothing much to report here - the radio works just fine. You can't do any recording on the radio.- Reception..." Read more

16 customers mention "Quality"12 positive4 negative

Customers like the quality of the digital video recorder. They mention it's the very best TV tuner, better than TIVO, and an excellent PVR. Some say the card is good but missing stuff. Overall, most are satisfied with the quality, performance, and usability of the product.

"...The video quality, performance, and usuability are great with or without Windows MCE...." Read more

"...The TV viewing and radio applications are very usable and the reception is superb. The Hauppauge PVR is a very usable and reliable overall." Read more

"...Awesome! Better than TIVO and does game and player tracking if into Fantasy leagues, etc...." Read more

"...basically the included driver as i said was worse than useless and so was the manual...." Read more

9 customers mention "Video quality"9 positive0 negative

Customers are satisfied with the video quality of the digital video recorder. They mention that it has very good picture quality, excellent sound quality, and clear picture for analog cable and regular TV channels. They also appreciate the higher quality tuner and smoother video.

"...Obviously a higher quality tuner...." Read more

"...The video quality, performance, and usuability are great with or without Windows MCE...." Read more

"...Picture quality is pretty good (using S-Video feed from my satellite set-top box)...." Read more

"...It works with: Nero, Media Center & Ulead Studio. The picture is very clear, and doesn't seem to affect my system's performance at all...." Read more

8 customers mention "Value"8 positive0 negative

Customers are satisfied with the value of the digital video recorder. They mention that it works great and is among the least expensive hardware capture cards on the market.

"This is among the least expensive hardware capture cards on the market (if not THE least expensive)...." Read more

"...It works great and it is cheaper." Read more

"...with digital audio input I think for this price this card is an excellent value...." Read more

"This is a good price, put watch out if you don't have Windows MCE, despite what the description says...." Read more

14 customers mention "Ease of installation"8 positive6 negative

Customers are mixed about the ease of installation. Some mention it's easy to install, work with, and simple to use, while others say the window is not very clear, the program is not user friendly, the instructions are confusing, and the drivers weren't that easy to installation. It does take a little time to do, since you are in effect "watching" the VCR tape. The user interface is unintuitive, and it takes a while to do the initial setup.

"...Drivers installed with no problem at all and I was able to pause live tv as well as record TV programs.CONS:..." Read more

"...Second, the initial setup requires a channel search be complete before it will give you any audio...." Read more

"...Installation on Windows Vista was extremely easy. All I did was open the PC, seated the card and started the PC...." Read more

"...The user interface is unintuitive. The record function is SLOW to respond...." Read more

4 customers mention "Software"0 positive4 negative

Customers are dissatisfied with the software that comes with the digital video recorder. They mention that it's worse than useless and that the product does not include DVD decoder software, so you can't watch DVDs out of the box.

"...differs from the "regular" non-MCE version because it does NOT come with *ANY* software other than drivers and it adds an FM radio tuner...." Read more

"i got it to work but it wasn't easy.the software included was worse than useless...." Read more

"...In my opinon, the enclosed software is useless when it comes to capturing VHS videos...." Read more

"...But the product does not include DVD decoder software, so out of the box you can't watch DVDs...." Read more

3 customers mention "Display"0 positive3 negative

Customers are not satisfied with the display of the digital video recorder. They mention that the window is not very clear, and the program is not user friendly. They also say that they are having issues displaying the output.

"...Quality wise, I am having some issues displaying the output but that could be my video card...." Read more

"...The sound could be better, it's not cristal clear it could be from my pc I am not sure...." Read more

"Not as expected, display window not very clear and program not user friendly. Had difficulty programming TV channels and recording is very cumbersome." Read more

3 customers mention "Remote control"0 positive3 negative

Customers are dissatisfied with the remote control of the digital video recorder. They mention that it does not work as expected.

"...This thing didn't come with the remote, but I didn't need it...." Read more

"...The one I ordered did not have the remote, but I do not need it since I have it hooked up to my dishnetwork receiver...." Read more

"...card is meant to be used for Windows MCE and for this reason doesn't have a remote included." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

BrettRobi
4.0 out of 5 stars Simple to use - great tuner
Reviewed in the United States on June 24, 2005
Verified Purchase
I bought this tuner after having installed an ATI based tuner in my home built MCE 2005 system. I am trying to move from DirecTV back to good old antenna reception and found the ATI could not tune one of the basic networks in my area, yet my $100 TV could.

After reading that this unit had a good tuner I decided to give it a try and am pleased to see that it does a much better job on that one channel. Obviously a higher quality tuner.

On the encoding side I might have to agree with others that it does show a little more artifiacting than the ATI but not enough to bother me.

Just buy the thing already.
One person found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
Harvey Ramos
5.0 out of 5 stars Great Low Cost Option
Reviewed in the United States on November 1, 2005
Verified Purchase
This is among the least expensive hardware capture cards on the market (if not THE least expensive). The video quality, performance, and usuability are great with or without Windows MCE. I happen to use this card on my XP Home system and did not have any problems during installation or otherwise.

This is a "Hardware-based" capture card. Which means that the card comes with hardware onboard that handles all of the processing to convert your TV signal to a file on your computer. Software-based cards use your CPU for this. The advantage is that with a hardware based card you can actually use your computer while recording as the CPU usage is minimal (I actually don't see any CPU usage on my machine), compared to a software card which uses almost all of your CPU. This also means that you can use an older or slower computer to watch/record TV without suffering any performance issues. In the past, software cards were much cheaper than hardware, but Hauppauge's line has brought the cost down so that now there really isnt a reason to choose anything but a hardware card.

The MCE version of Hauppauge's PVR-150 differs from the "regular" non-MCE version because it does NOT come with *ANY* software other than drivers and it adds an FM radio tuner. The regular version comes with a remote and software to control the PVR-150, but no FM radio. There is only one TV tuner so you can only watch or record one channel at a time.

Since the 150MCE doesn't come with any software, you will have to control it with another program. Windows MCE can do this, but if you have XP Home or Pro you will need to use 3rd party software like BeyondTV and SageTV, or free ones like the open source MediaPortal. Since the card outputs MPEG2, you need to have installed a DVD player like Intervideo WinDVD or Cyberlink PowerDVD in order to watch TV (decode MPEG2). If you have an Nvidia card, you can use Nvidia's PureVideo Decoder which gives probably the nicest picture. Note that decoding (watching TV or your recorded movies) does take up some CPU, about 10% on my computer. If your computer came with a DVD player or burner you likely already have this software. And if not, most DVD burners come with it, so if you don't already have one you can get a DVD burner for around $50 and get the software thrown in.

For those with quality issues, check with the software you are using and try to increase the bitrate. This will lead to less "artifacts" (looks like a bad JPG), and smoother video. Obviously the filesize will increase per recording, but hard drives are so cheap now that you can afford to get a bigger drive to accomodate. You will have to adjust the settings to find what is an acceptable compromise between filesize and quality. Just for reference, I usually record with a variable bitrate with an average of 5000 and a max of 6000 which lets me fit about 2hrs on a DVD. In your decoding software adjusting the interlace method also gives good results (choose from bob, weave, or both). I rank the decoding software as Nvidia PureVideo, WinDVD, PowerDVD from best to worst as far as quality goes, but it is really a matter of personal taste.

Other options to consider are obviously the regular PVR-150 which adds software and a remote (but you lose the FM radio), and the PVR-500 which comes in both regular and MCE versions as well. The PVR-500 has two tuners so you can watch one program and record another or record two shows at the same time which is very nice. Just like the PVR-150MCE, the PVR-500MCE comes without software or remote control, but adds an FM radio. FYI, the PVR-500 is essentially two PVR-150 tuners on the same board, so quality is the same. There is also a low-profile version of this card.
127 people found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
George C
3.0 out of 5 stars it is possible to get it to work
Reviewed in the United States on February 16, 2008
Verified Purchase
i got it to work but it wasn't easy.

the software included was worse than useless. not only did they pretty much not include any but whatever they included did not work.

only after i got newer driver from the site and figured out how to uninstall the included driver then i got the thing to work with the software from the site.

basically the included driver as i said was worse than useless and so was the manual. once installed the driver could not be uninstalled without special software and how it should be done was not described in the manual which is just ONE PAGE. in fact NOTHING useful was to be found in the manual and the only useful software included on the CD was the program that uninstalls the included driver (but no way to know what this program is for).

as if that wasn't bad enough you need an MCE compatible remote control for the thing to work with MCE ... the remote is made by microsoft and cots 40 dollars. without the remote you cannot schedule recording in MCE and will have to use Hauppauge software from their site which is nowhere as pretty as Vista.

3 stars because theoretically it works ... but i suspect many people will simply give up and send it back because it does not work out of the box so to speak.

ps: i tried it on two computers - XP SP2 and Vista Ultimate X64. on both systems i managed to get it to work but only with the driver from the website (not with the included one).

ps2: it would have saved me a lot of time if they did not include any manual or software CD at all - apparently they include useless manual and broken driver just to tick people off
One person found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
Douglas Figueredo
1.0 out of 5 stars Dissapointed
Reviewed in the United States on January 19, 2007
Verified Purchase
I'm a tech kind of guy and was very dissapointed with the output quality of this card. In doing a lot of research, I've come to the conclusion that this is to be expected from the technology at this point. I'm going to wait a few months and see what the new trend and possibilities are. Anyway, I returned it.
2 people found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
Amazon Customer
2.0 out of 5 stars No good for Windows XP PRO
Reviewed in the United States on December 13, 2007
Verified Purchase
Purchase this to convert my VHS tapes to DVD. My decision to purchase was based on reviews and that it can be used on Windows XP Pro. I had a hard time loading it. Spent a lot time looking for downloads on the internet. Tried to contact customer service and that was a joke. Finally got it to work and then I was very disappointed with the software that came with it. In my opinon, the enclosed software is useless when it comes to capturing VHS videos. I gave it a 2 star rating because someone with Windows Media edition may find this product useful. Returned the product and purchased AverMedia DVD EZmaker Gold. It works great and it is cheaper.
2 people found this helpful
Helpful
 Report

Important information

Legal Disclaimer

<b>CONSUMER ALERT:</b> This television receiver has only an analog broadcast tuner and will require a converter box after February 17, 2009 to receive over-the-air broadcasts with an antenna because of the U.S.'s transition to digital broadcasting. Analog-only TVs should continue to work as before with cable and satellite TV services, gaming consoles, VCRs, DVD players, and similar products. For more information, call the Federal Communications Commission at 1-888-225-5322 (TTY: 1-888-835-5322), or visit the commission s digital-television Web site at: www.dtv.gov.