I just received a Product Announcement from SILICON LABS. There new TV Tuner Chip, the Si2177, appears to be able to demodulate Analog TV directly on the chip without software. If I am not mistaken, this function is a new feature in TV Tuner Chips, which may provide a much better SDR than current TV Tuner Chip Dongles, especially when it comes to noise performance. It also eliminates almost all external components. RF Input Frequency Range - 42 to 870 MHz
Si2177 5th Generation Silicon TV Tuner ICs http://www.silabs.com/Support%20Documents/TechnicalDocs/Si2177-short.pdf
