Technika AV 104 AV Sender

...Tesco I happened across the Technika AV104 video senders at just under £20 a pair.

What comes in the box

One AV transmitter base
One AV receiver base
Two AC Power adapters (Plugin block type)
Two Scart to 2 RCA phono cables (1 for transmit and 1 for receive)
One Infra Red extender cable - capable of supporting 3 different devices.
User Manual

Specification - taken from ...
...to change Sky channel whilst being lazy in bed. Ideal for my inner couch potato.

The added benefit to me is Argos sell similar looking units (I suspect they are the same as Technika is simply a Tesco rebadging brand) for £10 more at £30 a pair.  ... more

I have seen video senders (used to send video and audio wirelessly between devices) from years ago and they were expensive and not very reliable, with picture break up being common. Also most were unable to control the sending device using a remote. Whilst browsing round my local Tesco I happened across the Technika AV104 video senders at just under £20 a pair.

What comes in the box

One AV transmitter base
One AV receiver base
Two AC Power adapters (Plugin block type)
Two Scart to 2 RCA phono cables (1 for transmit and 1 for receive)
One Infra Red extender cable - capable of supporting 3 different devices.
User Manual

Specification - taken from the supplied manual

Operating Frequency - 2.4GHz to 2.4835GHz (4 selectable channels)
Modulation - FM
Video Level (in and out) - 1 V p-p @ 75ohm
Audio Level (in and out) - 1 V p-p @ 600ohm
Antenna - Hidden and omni-directional
Transmitter power output - 10 dBm
Receiver sensitivity - -80dBm minimum
IR Remote modulation - ASK
Unit Dimensions - 105mm x 52mm x 110mm
Power input - 9V DC 400mA
Unit Weight - 130g (Transmitter) 140g (Receiver)
Operating Range - 100m with line of sight
Remote Control Range - 50 m with line of sight

Connecting the Units

Connecting the units to the source device (Video, DVD, Satelite Receiver) is simple. Connect the RCA jacks to the transmitter using the colour coded plugs and jacks and the other end of the cable to the Scart (Eurosocket) connection on your source device. If you want to use the remote exender facility connect the cable to the receiver as well. At this point also connect the mains adapter to the unit.

The receiving unit is even easier. Simply connect the unit up as you did the transmitter witht he phono jacks and plug in the Scart socket to the TV. Again connect the unit to the mains. The TV should be set to receive its picture from the AV input source related to the scart socket.

Both units now need to sit horizontally and ideally point towards each other with as little as possible between them. The more walls you have the less the quality of the singal that is received. Electic equipment also causes interference so should be kept to a minimum.

In Use

In use I found the picture quality to be excellent as long as I didn't have any other wireless devices enabled at the time. This included the wireless access point in my Netgear DG834G router. With this AP enabled I found the sound had frequent crackling with occassional banding going down the screen. I tried altering the channels on the units and found that 2 of these caused total loss of both signal from the AV sender and from my router. Channels 1 and 4 both produced similar results. I also tried altering the channel my router uses but found no improvement (although My router only seems to work properly on the middle 6 channels rather than the full 13 available).

It is also important not to use a microwave at this time. The effect is to make the audio and video unwatchable.

The remote sending facility is very useful. I have positioned the extender cable over the receiver window on my satelite receiver. I found finding this quite difficult and got it working using trial and error in the end. On many devices finding this window is alot easier as you can see the red pickup unit. So far I have had no mixed up signals, although I have found that my satelite receiver is capable of switching itself off using the remote extender and not switching it back on. Very odd since it uses the same signal for both.

It is possible to send the same signal to more than one receiver unit although Tesco only sell the units as complete pairs round here. It is also possible to have upto 4 different AV sending networks in the same area.

The supplied instructions are easy to follow but do not contain a huge amount of information. The main advantage is alot of the information that is supplied is in the form of pictoral wiring diagrams. These make it alot easier to work out where to plug the cables in.

Conclusion

For £20 these AV senders are an excellent bargin. The quality of the sent signal is excellent when there is no other wireless device in the area. Over time as more and more people start to use wireless networking on their computers this may become an issue, but at present I am able to work around it. If there was more than 4 available channels it may of been possible to get around this even easier.
The remote extender facility is very useful as it allows me to change Sky channel whilst being lazy in bed. Ideal for my inner couch potato.

The added benefit to me is Argos sell similar looking units (I suspect they are the same as Technika is simply a Tesco rebadging brand) for £10 more at £30 a pair. 

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