One of the best seize card: 4K and 1080p playing cards for PS5, Xbox, PC, Swap

Whether or not you’re streaming video games for an viewers otherwise you wish to document some informal gameplay footage out of your PC, PS5, Xbox Collection X, or Nintendo Swap, you may want a seize card. It’s an important accent that may course of your console’s uncompressed video sign, both sending it to a PC for livestreaming or changing it right into a file that you could edit later to share on-line.

There are a number of fashions on the market, and also you may get fortunate discovering the appropriate one with out placing within the analysis. Then once more, you could not get so fortunate. Our information contains dependable, feature-packed seize playing cards, protecting a spread of dear and cheap choices. To finish the streaming setup, we’ve additionally included some suggestions for digicam seize playing cards, in case you wish to flip your DSLR right into a webcam. We’ll preserve this publish up to date as extra fashions turn into out there.

Finest seize card

Elgato HD 60 X

Picture: Elgato

One of the best seize card for most individuals is the $159 Elgato HD60 X. Once we polled the Polygon video crew for his or her enter, the HD60 X was the unanimous winner. It was chosen as a result of they assume it provides one of the best efficiency and options in comparison with different seize playing cards in its value vary.

The HD60 X connects to PCs through USB (it features a USB-C to USB-A cable), and it has a most seize decision of 4K at 30 frames per second. It may possibly deal with 4K passthrough at as much as 60 fps. These specs are greater than enough for capturing footage from any current-gen console. In the event you’re recording in 1440p or 1080p resolutions, it may well seize at a quicker 120 fps.

Including to its spectacular record of specs, the HD60 X grants patrons entry to Elgato’s 4K Seize Utility software program. This utility isn’t completely needed, but it surely’s simpler to study for streaming newcomers than OBS Studio. The 4K Seize Utility additionally means that you can document commentary over your video clip, when you’d like, and take top quality screenshots from the captured video.

Exterior of a sale, the HD60 X is often priced at $199.99, but it surely usually sells for much less. Instead that’s considerably cheaper, the $64.99 UCEC GAM Reside seize card helps the identical passthrough/seize resolutions and body charges because the HD60 X, but it surely is probably not as dependable because the HD60 X.

Finest price range seize card

AVerMedia Reside Gamer Mini

Picture: AVerMedia

In the event you’re simply testing the waters with capturing and modifying gameplay footage, there are some good seize card choices that value nicely beneath $100. The AVerMedia Reside Gamer Mini has an inventory value of $99.99, however is frequently out there for round $80. This pocket-size seize card is able to recording 1080p footage at as much as 60 fps and has an identical passthrough decision, making it the proper selection for capturing footage from the Nintendo Swap. The Reside Gamer Mini is suitable with different consoles as nicely, however this mannequin received’t make PS5 and Xbox video games look their greatest.

Picture: AVerMedia

A cheaper (and even smaller) possibility is the $50 Genki ShadowCast. The ShadowCast is successfully an HDMI to USB-C dongle that means that you can forged the video sign of your supply console to a desktop or laptop computer with the help of the free Genki Arcade app. You can too stream that footage instantly into PC instruments like OBS Studio. Whereas the ShadowCast is suitable with all current-generation consoles, it may well solely course of 1080p footage at 30 fps, and the footage high quality is suitable, not distinctive.

Finest 4K seize card

AVerMedia 4K60 HDR10

Picture: AVerMedia

Because of the present limits of how a lot knowledge you’ll be able to funnel by a USB connection, PCIe seize playing cards are your only option if you wish to seize gameplay at 4K, 60 fps. Your best option we’ve discovered for doing that’s the AVerMedia 4K60 HDR10, which is often out there for round $200.

Picture: AVerMedia

As its identify suggests, the 4K60 is able to a most seize and passthrough decision of 4K at 60 fps, even with HDR enabled. The cardboard may also document at increased body charges with decrease resolutions than 4K, maxing out at 144 fps for 1440p, or 240 fps at 1080p. It’s necessary to notice, nonetheless, that whereas the Xbox Collection X and PlayStation 5 are each able to outputting 4K resolutions at 120 fps, this seize card’s HDMI 2.0 ports imply you’ll solely be capable to seize 120 fps footage by pulling down your console’s output decision to 1440p. We’re protecting our eyes out for seize playing cards that use HDMI 2.1, which can permit for capturing 4K footage at as much as 120 fps on consoles.

Some options to AVerMedia’s 4K60 embrace Elgato’s PCIe card, the 4K60 Professional MK.2, which is supplied with related specs, however prices $249.99. The most important distinction (apart from the model identify) is that AVerMedia’s possibility doesn’t embrace video modifying software program. That’s no large deal, so long as you’re desirous to learn to use OBS Studio.

There are PCIe card choices out there on Amazon for as little as $100, however given the potential for an unvetted PCIe card to do some precise hurt to your desktop (or simply not work as marketed), we wouldn’t suggest taking this route.

Finest seize card that doesn’t require a PC

AVerMedia GC513 Moveable 2 Plus

Picture: AVerMedia

Stand-alone seize playing cards can seize footage with out being tethered to a PC. As a substitute, they function a microSD or full-size SD card slot that may retailer your gameplay till you’ll be able to deposit the information onto your PC. This function alone makes this sort of seize card essentially the most versatile possibility, though they at present help a decrease seize decision than the options. However look no additional for one which’s splendid for bringing to tournaments, or different conditions the place a laptop computer or desktop received’t be out there to you.

Picture: AVerMedia

Till Elgato makes a extra aggressive possibility than its discontinued 4K60 S+, your only option for a stand-alone card is the AVerMedia GC513 Moveable 2 Plus, which helps 4K passthrough at 60 fps, however is restricted to recording 1080p at 60 fps. Whereas recording to distant storage is a key promoting level for the GC513, it will also be used whereas linked on to a PC, like different seize card fashions.

Presently, stand-alone seize playing cards are a rarity on this product class, so there isn’t an abundance of options. Nevertheless, when you’re in search of one thing that prices much less, the Hauppauge HD PVR Professional is accessible on Amazon for round $130. The HD PVR Professional provides most of the similar specs as its AVerMedia counterpart, however is suitable with standard-size SD playing cards along with microSD playing cards, in contrast to the GC513, which may solely use microSD playing cards for storage.

Picture: AVerMedia

Finest digicam seize card

Elgato Cam Hyperlink 4K

Picture: Elgato

Digicam seize playing cards are extra of a distinct segment product, permitting you to show most DSLR cameras right into a webcam. Some newer DSLR cameras help this function out of the field with native USB connections, however different cameras might want to depend on a digicam seize card to translate what your digicam sees right into a video sign that’s usable by your PC.

Your only option for that is the Elgato Cam Hyperlink 4K, which permits for 4K video seize at as much as 30 fps and is totally suitable with quite a lot of DSLR cameras from in style producers like Nikon, Canon, and GoPro.

AVerMedia provides a barely cheaper digicam seize card that options related specs for about the identical value. The AVerMedia BU113 can technically document 4K footage at 30 fps, however its shorter record of totally suitable cameras means solely a handful of units can help this function.