Upgrading to USB 2.0 from 1.0 - cheapest method?

woj101

I want to purchase a usb dvb-t receiver to get cheap digital tele on my pc, however, having read a number of reviews of different devices they all only seem to work properly in a usb 2.0 port because of the power the devices require.

Therefore I need to upgrade my pc to usb 2.0. I know I can put in a PCI card with usb 2.0 ports, but I've seen usb 2.0 hubs for cheaper. Can these hubs be plugged into a standard 1.0 port and then work at 2.0 speeds/power. It doesn't sound right to me but I could easily be wrong and it would be easier and more convenient to do it like this so any knowledge on these hubs, or recommendations of good cheap pci cards would be very much appreciated.

Thanks

Chippy_Minton

A USB 2.0 device or hub plugged into a USB 1.x port will operate at USB 1.x speed (12 Mbit/s).

See these USB 2.0 PCI cards: http://www.ebuyer.com/customer/products/index.html?rb=19409146489&action=c2hvd3N1YmNhdGVnb3J5X3BhZ2U=&subcat_uid=420

arrowsmith

Chippy_Minton wrote:

A USB 2.0 device or hub plugged into a USB 1.x port will operate at USB 1.x speed (12 Mbit/s).

See these USB 2.0 PCI cards: http://www.ebuyer.com/customer/products/index.html?rb=19409146489&action=c2hvd3N1YmNhdGVnb3J5X3BhZ2U=&subcat_uid=420

Not always the case, some devices won't operate at USB 1.1 speeds, TV cards being one of them because of the required bandwidth. The USB 2 PCI cards you will find don't work as well as a motheboard designed for USB 2. There are reports that DAB cards don't work well with PCI USB2 cards so I would look at updating your computer a little bit first.

woj101

Thanks for the input, but of course upgrading my pc motherboard involves a whole new expense and hassle of researching. I'm basically looking to get tele on my computer as cheaply (but reliably with good picture and ability to record) in time for the world cup otherwise O/H would insist on buying a new tele.

It's looking like I can't be confident that a usb stick will do the job via usb 1.0, in which case I'll have to start looking at the pci tv cards, which is a shame cos I liked the convenience of a stick that could also be used on a laptop.

If anyone has any further advice as to the best way to achieve my goal of cheap tele (preferably digital) then I'd be very grateful.

tomd84

What sockets is your proessor?

If its a socket a, they are selling these motherboards off cheaply becuase they are "end of range", so you can pick one up for around £20 and that will have native USB2 and Firewire support :-)

Thanks tom :-)

woj101

I'm afraid I'm not too hot on the technical specs side of things, and the pc in question (and it's manual) are currently in a different location so I can't look it up. It's an Intel Celeron 2.3ghz but I can't recall the model of the motherboard and am not sure what you mean by processor sockets.

tomd84

Ah, If you use something like sisoft sandra to look up the model of your motherboard, then have a look on the manfacture site what socket it is, then have a look on ebuyer what the cost of motherboard is for it :-)

Kilty_2

Try one of these:
http://www.ebuyer.com/UK/product/108594

Only a few quid, cheapest method you have. Order it with their £20 USB DVB-T stick and save on postage!

woj101

That's exactly what I've been thinking about Kilty, that exact pci card but possibly with the freecom stick. However, taking note of the above posts I am by no means convinced that I will get a reliable result from it. Thanks anyway.

Kilty_2

woj101 wrote:

I am by no means convinced that I will get a reliable result from it. Thanks anyway.

TBH its your only real option as replacing a motherboard isnt a good idea on a machine which is old enough to have USB 1.0.

If it doesnt work its only £4 which you could recoup on eBay or something, and then consider a serious upgrade. (ie Motherboard, CPU and RAM)

woj101

Oh dear, this is embarrassing, I do apologise everyone...

I decided it was only sensible to confirm what sort of USB I have and did a quick google. This told me to look on the Device Manager. Double clicking on USB controllers brought up 8 entries. I don't know what they all refer to but the first is 'USB 2.0 Enhanced Host Controller' and another is 'USB 2.0 Root Hub'. The other 6 entries don't have 2.0 in the title and having 6 ports (2 front, 4 back) I'm not quite sure what it all means, but can I take this to mean I do have USB 2.0 capability afterall?