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Watching TV?

B

brn2rnjk1

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Feb 24, 2008
272
3
What device do I need if I want to conncect my cable box to iMac? We don't have Apple TV or anything like that. Ideally, it would also be able to record using the iMac HD, but that is not required. My parents have an iMac and want to use the screen as a tv also and get rid of a small tv in the room. They already have cable box hookup.

Thanks
 
At this time there are no adapters that can take in HDMI, or anything else, and input it through the Thunderbolt port. Very unfortunate for those of us that would like to use our iMac as a screen for computer and tv/video games.
 
Dresevski said:
At this time there are no adapters that can take in HDMI, or anything else, and input it through the Thunderbolt port. Very unfortunate for those of us that would like to use our iMac as a screen for computer and tv/video games.
Click to expand...

What if I don't care about quality at this time? Composite or Component cables would be okay to?

You mean there is no way to watch any tv on iMac if not a streaming site (like HBO Go, Hulu etc.)?
 
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Take a look at the EyeTV products. The one that would fit your product description would be the EyeTV HD.

This device would take the component output from your cable STB and convert/encode it to h264. The EyeTV software would handle all aspects of channel guides and recording onto the iMac's HDD. You would need to connect an IR blaster from the EyeTV HD to the STB so that the software could change the channels when needed.

Here's my opinion ... unless you have a real need to get rid of the TV or to use the iMac as the TV screen, DON'T. It's not worth the trouble. For the money you would shell out for the EyeTV and the set-up hassles, it's not worth it. Plus, you wouldn't be able to use the iMac when someone wants to watch TV. You're better off spending the money for a real TV. More bang for the buck.

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forty2j said:
If you have a TiVo, you can use Toast to transfer non-protected programs (nothing from pay channels).

If quality is irrelevant, there's devices like this one (http://www.amazon.com/StarTech-SVID2USB2-S-Video-Composite-Capture/dp/B000O5RIWO) that will input to USB, though I'm not sure which ones have OS X software support. There's this guy: http://store.apple.com/us/product/H0863VC/A?fnode=MTY1NDExOA
Click to expand...

The Tivo will not allow for the iMac to be the sole TV screen in the room. You'd have to wait for the show/movie to be transferred prior to watching it on the iMac. Plus, you'd still need the Tivo to see what's going on, since the iMac won't accept the Tivo's outputs.

As for the StarTech USB adapter .... that's won't work unless you have the proper software. EyeTV works with devices similar to this StarTech, but they're usually more money.

The EyeTV hybrid would only work with the unencrypted channels. The OP didn't say, but I would assume that he'd want all of the cable channels that are on the "preferred" tier, which typically are encrypted.
 
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Ideally, I am going to put two monitors in on the iMac. They want to mimic what I have in my office for their home office. I have a 2 screen pc set up with the tv on one when I don't need it and the other regular PC/computer. I simply have an adapter in the back that takes coaxial out from the cable box. So the PC acts like a dummy and everything is controlled through the cable box.

Disappointing if I can't mimic this for them on iMac. Also, I am going to get a new iMac soon and was hoping to do it on mine.
 
ftaok said:
The Tivo will not allow for the iMac to be the sole TV screen in the room. You'd have to wait for the show/movie to be transferred prior to watching it on the iMac. Plus, you'd still need the Tivo to see what's going on, since the iMac won't accept the Tivo's outputs.
Click to expand...

In theory you could have the TiVo hooked up to no screen at all. But yes, you do need to wait for transfer before you can watch. You can do all of the scheduling & such with iPhone/iPad apps, or the TiVo.com website, or with a SlingBox.

Actually, Sling is another option as a standalone solution for any cable box.
 
brn2rnjk1 said:
Ideally, I am going to put two monitors in on the iMac. They want to mimic what I have in my office for their home office. I have a 2 screen pc set up with the tv on one when I don't need it and the other regular PC/computer. I simply have an adapter in the back that takes coaxial out from the cable box. So the PC acts like a dummy and everything is controlled through the cable box.

Disappointing if I can't mimic this for them on iMac. Also, I am going to get a new iMac soon and was hoping to do it on mine.
Click to expand...

Well, if they want a two screen set-up for their iMac, you could have them buy a monitor that had a separate HDMI input, in addition to the DVI for the iMac. If they want to watch TV, then they would switch the input on the secondary monitor. Not sure if the iMac would recognize that the second monitor was "gone" and drop the screen. Hmmm?

If your parent's cable STB doesn't have an HDMI output, then you'll probably want to look for a 1080p HDTV. The TV would definately have component/composite inputs. It'll also have HDMI, which can be adapted to a DVI input for the iMac.

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forty2j said:
In theory you could have the TiVo hooked up to no screen at all. But yes, you do need to wait for transfer before you can watch. You can do all of the scheduling & such with iPhone/iPad apps, or the TiVo.com website, or with a SlingBox.

Actually, Sling is another option as a standalone solution for any cable box.
Click to expand...

Yeah, good call on the Slingbox. I forgot about that option.

In addition to the Slingbox, there are two other similar devices. The Monsoon Vulkano and the Hauppauge Broadway.
 
Thanks for all the suggestions. Sling is a way to go since they have it. The issue is real estate on the desk. My dad wants to watch tv while working on the computer and liked how I had two screens for my computer that could either be one large screen or I can pop the tv up on one. Tivo not necessary, and buying a tv for the desk might work, just not as neat as through the computer.
 
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