tv-out card

[athalus]

i have a friend and i recently put a pioneer 16x dvd drive in his computer. he wants to watch dvd's on his tv instead of his 15" monitor. i suggested a new video card and then connecting it to his tv . this guy does not play games. its main use is for aol.

i was looking at newegg and it looks like the ati 8500 for around $85 would be his best bet. any suggestions?

here are the specs on his computer
933mhz p3
dfi mobo
256mb pc133 ram
20gb wd hard drive
hp 9150 8x4x32 cdrw
300w ps
kyro 2 video card
w98 se

thanks in advance

 

[knowan]

Since he doesn't play games any non-geforce 2 or 3 card will be fine. Don't get a geforce 2 or 3, as they are incapable of displaying to both a TV and a monitor at the same time. The ATI 8500 would be a very good choice, but may be overkill. The ATI 7500 would likely better match his needs. It has exactly the same TV-out and 2D engine as the 8500. The only difference between the 7500 and the 8500 is in the 3D engine, which you stated that he will not be using (since he doesn't play games), and the price.

If this is an older computer, say less than 400 mHz, you may want to consider the realmagic hollywood DVD decoder instead. It's a hardware dvd decoder, which puts alot less stress on your CPU than the software solution that was included with your DVD player. It can be found at <A HREF="http://www.runtimecc.com/pricewatch/index.rcc?view_category=173" target="_new">http://www.runtimecc.com/pricewatch/index.rcc?view_category=173</A>

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[Crashman]

You could find him an old Radeon VIVO card for around $50 probably. That version was about the same performance as a GeForce2 GTS, but had much better TV-Out options, and TV-In as well.

<font color=blue>By now you're probably wishing you had ask more questions first!</font color=blue>

 

[athalus]

i did some checking and the 8500le is only $85. i couldn't find the 7500 at newegg. i think they have discontinued it. could someone tell me the difference between the le and the normal one?