We consider tuners to be much of a muchness but Dvico’s new offering really caught our eye.

It’s a small PCI card with two tuners and just one antennae connector. It even comes with a low profile backplane for small cases and is Windows Media Center Edition (MCE) compatible. It seems ideal for media centre builders as it takes up little space in the case, which requires good air flow.

The second tuner runs off the USB bus and connects either internally or externally – a smart idea that could save valuable USB ports on a small form factor PC.

Setting it up is tricky though – experience is recommended before tackling the highlytechnical instructions. The bundled software offers powerful features but is clunky to use. Still, it picked up all local channels in Sydney. However, when using it with MCE, it only managed to pick up one TV station when our Hauppauge tuner picked up over 50. As such, it was impossible to test its simultaneous watching and recording performance. Doing so with the included software proved difficult as you can’t switch between tuners when recording without using picture in picture.

A programmable Media Centre-compatible remote and infrared receiver are also included along with a cable allowing S-Video and composite input. On paper it’s a great product for media centre builders but its refusal to acknowledge under-strength TV signals in MCE costs it an award.