Elgato's Turbo.264 HD speeds up QuickTime-compatible video encoding on slow and fast Macs but trades speed for a measure of quality.

Impressively speeds up compatible-video encoding ; lets you trim video clips before importing ; can gang together multiple clips

Resulting video isn't as good looking as video encoded with other methods ; software a little unstable

Earlier this year, Elgato released the Turbo.264's more-powerful sibling, the Intel-only Earlier this year, Elgato released the Turbo.264's more-powerful sibling, the Intel-only $150 Turbo.264 HD. Like the original Turbo.264, the HD model is designed ...

The EyeTV 250 is a great personal video recorder for Mac users. This is a particularly useful unit if you have a slower Mac, as the hardware encoder ensures high quality recordings without stressing the computer's processor.

Analog tuner ; strong scheduling software ; remote scheduling ; one-click iPod video export ; option to turn off hardware encoder for zero latency video gaming

Requires external power adapter

Whereas the EyeTV 200 was a FireWire device, for the EyeTV 250, Elgato chose to go with a USB 2.0 interface. Though the move to USB doesn't affect the quality of TV recordings, the 250 now requires an external power supply rather than being bus ...

In spite of the Pyro A/V Link's stronger audio capture and component video in, we prefer the DAC-100. Due to its excellent video quality and reasonable price, most users will find the DAC-100 to be the best overall value. We like the ADVC55 for its ...

Best video quality ; audio-boost adjustments ; FireWire powered ; compact metal case

Pricey for a one-way converter ; no A/V (composite video and audio) or S-Video cables

In terms of overall quality, none of these cameras can touch the iSight, thanks to its excellent picture and sound capabilities and its industrial design. In terms of value, the Pyro's price, software bundle, and picture quality make it the best ...

Great picture quality ; best software bundle

Bulky ; hard to position at eye-level