EyeTV Devices
As I mentioned, Elgato produces both the video hardware the EyeTV software. Hardware is available from Elgato, Miglia, and Plextor. Each EyeTV device (regardless of the manufacturer) includes a license for the EyeTV software.
EyeTV hardware comes in two general types: those that include video encoding and compression hardware and those that rely on a Mac’s processor to process video. If you are using an older Mac (typically any computer that does not have an Intel or dual G5 processors), you need a device that handles the video processing on its own because less-powerful Macs probably cannot keep up with the demand for processing power.
If you have an Intel Mac, you can use a device that relies on the Mac for video processing. These devices are typically much smaller and less expensive. However, keep in mind that if you are using the Mac heavily for other activities, you may notice a performance decrease while watching or recording video. If you do opt for this option, I suggest that you make sure to add more RAM than the stock amounts for most Macs.