The gaming industry has been evolving right from day one. Earlier there were heavy devices with max 1–2 games, but now the scenario is completely different. Gaming experience has changed and gone to a whole new level. Gaming devices are now compact in size as well as powerful with minimum support for HD games. Speaking of such devices, gaming devices are nowadays not only used for gaming but are also used for recording them, so that gamers can share their experience and gameplay with fans and other gamers. Normally known as capture cards, these devices are being used all over the world.
Top 7 Game Capture Card
1. AVerMedia Live Gamer Mini
The AVerMedia Live Gamer Mini is both affordable and portable video game recorder. In addition to this, it is a worthy option for a newbies who have just got into the race for video streaming and capture. The device is simple, with only a microUSB connection and a couple of HDMI ports that are capable of passing a 1080p signal at a framerate of 60fps through without any lag or compression.
This is one of the game capture devices for recording that has an in-built hardware encoder, which employs the well-known standard. This indicates that that capturing your game video will not have an effect on gaming performance of your PC. The capture card also has RECentral application to get you started, although it can also operate with other video capture programs.
2. Elgato Game Capture HD60 S+
This device is, normally, a 4K60 Pro in short. The device have some advantages over the base 4K60 Pro. Normally, the device has / hardware encoder within it. Users do not require a supercomputer to employ it since all processing happens on the device itself. With the encoder within, users do not even require a computer to employ the 4K60 S+. With the in-built SD card reader, users can simply record gameplay free of a computer, all at 4K60. In addition to this, the device shows support HDR in case you need to showcase your PS4 Pro and Xbox One X.
There are some disadvantages while using external device. The device does not support high frame-rate/resolution pass through such the PCIe edition, and “Instant Gameview” is postponed by 250 milliseconds. Yet, the 4K60 S+ is a perfect device when it comes to recording your game at the highest frame rates and resolutions.
3. Diamond Multimedia USB 2.0 HD
The Diamond capture card is a HD video capture box dedicatedly developed for PC games and video. It lets you to edit and capture games from gaming devices such as PS3 and Xbox 360 as well as from camcorder, VHS / DVD player, or satellite set top box, or from almost any device with output and input. It also comes with recording support through S-Video input source.
The program compression allows the device to record 1080p footages while increasing its memory. Users can enjoy high definition real-time (at 30/60 fps up to 1080i) video capture on your laptop and PC through USB 2.0. The capture card can record your captured gameplay sessions directly and broadcast them on Facebook and YouTube. It is also able to reserve your VHS tapes. With Loop-Through video output and input support, the device can be employed for HD game recording, hence offering zero-delay display on your TV and capturing video gameplay on your computer at the same time.
The device sports a full screen video recording feature and POP/PIP modes for playback of video. In addition to this, Power Director 8 by CyberLink is added to the recording for users can edit their videos and burn their support files to VCD/DVD. The device is also well-matched with Microsoft Windows Vista, XP, and 7.
4. Hauppauge HD PVR 2 Gaming Edition
The Hauppauge HD PVR 2 Gaming Edition has been one of the well-liked devices among the gamers that are looking to share the gameplay on YouTube. But with next-generation now in action and everything shifting towards 60fps and 1080p, the device seems to adjusting with the changing times. When it comes to installation, the device makes things simple with its connectors. These comprise HDMI out and in—letting to pass through to a TV—along with an S-Video socket and a group of cables to connect your older consoles including PlayStation 3.
The device is at advantage as there are only handful of capture cards in the industry with the capability of capturing video from the older consoles such as the PS1, Mega Drive, Super Nintendo, and more. Particularly since a shift for 60fps forced many companies to renovate their devices.
Videophiles must remember that HDMI pass through for older machines is a bit tricky. If you are seeking looking to go this way, a video-splitter cable might come handy. The device comes with its own recording program. Similar to most of the software bundled with capture devices, it does not provide much beyond the fundamental things. It lets you record gameplay with only a few settings to change video format and other settings, making it great for newbies.
5. AVerMedia Live Gamer 4K
Using the AVerMedia Live Gamer 4K, users will have the most affordable capture card that presently lets you to record 4K video in HDR. However, users will not be able to broadcast that recording. In addition to this, users will not be able to edit it with the included shareware. Users will be able to this once streaming services and software will be released by the company. For now, users can broadcast the video directly to YouTube, which is the reason the capture card has been able to make it to this list.
You can also lower down the resolution of your recording to 1080p and be capable of recording at frame-rates of almost 240 fps. The device also has RBG lighting for visual personalization, in case your computer case requires a few more lights.
6. AVerMedia Live Gamer Bolt
Next in our list is the AVerMedia Live Gamer Bolt, which is one of the best capture cards for streaming. It offers the lowest amount of added latency that users have seen out of any capture cards at only a few milliseconds. This makes it ideal for games that need twitch aiming style Apex Legends or cat-akin reflexes such as Spelunky.
The device also captures good quality video at either 1080p24 or 4Kp60 HDR. The only difficult thing about this device is users require a Thunderbolt 3 port, which indicates that you can employ it with only a few well-matched gaming laptops and gaming motherboards. User must definitely cross verify their device’s ports before purchasing this capture device.
7. Game Capture HD Pro
Users do not need to spend a heavy amount to buy a capture card. And with the Game Capture HD Pro, users barely even need to shell out a huge amount. The device sports an auto-capturing element to capture your gameplay. The built-in proprietary program sports soundtracks, picture-in-picture boxes, transitions, and text to make your content seem professional. It directly streams to Twitch or YouTube. The device has an in-built encoder so your computer does comparatively less work. It comes with Component and HDMI connectors, letting you to record importantly any machine at 30 frames per second at almost 1080p. The only disadvantage here is that you cannot connect a PS3 to its HDMI input owing to HDCP reasons. It also does not have Component or HDMI cables.
Unluckily, the device does not support Mac, so you must look for different options if you have an Apple device. It also employs USB 2.0 rather than USB 3.1, which can lead to latency problems at the time of streaming. Some consumers report problems with reliability, but users get what you shell out for! The system needs are negligible at best. Your computer requires at least an AMD Athlon x2 64 chip at 2.0GHz or an Intel Core 2 Duo CPU at 1.8GHz. Users will also require DirectX 9.0c-matched sound and graphics and 2GB of RAM.
