Which Freeview Box?

[Henry]

My sister's after a freeview box and I wondered if anyone had any recommendations as to which one to choose? She'd spend up to about £150.

Cheers!!!

[Mark Grant]

Hello Henry,

Sony VTX-D800U http://www.lordpercy.com/sony_freevi..._vtx-d800u.htm

is a good one

No card slot but you dont need it for freeview.

Mark.

[mike7]

It'll be a problem to spend that much. Prices range from about £35 to just under a hundred. Not a great deal of difference in the quality. Why not lash out £35 on one from Tesco and see how it goes.

[dogtanian38]

Originally Posted by mike7

It'll be a problem to spend that much. Prices range from about £35 to just under a hundred. Not a great deal of difference in the quality. Why not lash out £35 on one from Tesco and see how it goes.

Agreed.

if your sister does not really know that much, then why spend any more than necessary. If reception appears to be a problem, and assuming you yourself have a decent one that yields better results on the same aerial lead, then take it back and spend more money. My philips dtr500 is connected via svhs, but the g/f, sister and half my male friends can't identify the difference when the tv is incorrectly set to AV2 (composite) with bad colours and jaggies rather than AV2-S, I get the feeling most people, possibly including your sister are the same.

[Henry]

I believe that some of them have Hard Drives in to record stuff too. Any of them worth looking at?

[Richard46]

Originally Posted by Henry

I believe that some of them have Hard Drives in to record stuff too. Any of them worth looking at?

They are usually called PVR's. Most have two tuners so that you can record and watch something different at the same time. In fact most of them allow you to record two things at the same time. See here

If she is spending that sort of money she is closer to what these cost than a simple STB.

Richard

Also look at the PVR forum just above this one.

[Dr Diversity]

It all depends on how much space you have for your sister's box. If you go the seperates route then upgrading is cheaper and simpler. Or else go for the combined box

[Henry]

Originally Posted by Richard46

They are usually called PVR's. Most have two tuners so that you can record and watch something different at the same time. In fact most of them allow you to record two things at the same time. See here

If she is spending that sort of money she is closer to what these cost than a simple STB.

Richard

Also look at the PVR forum just above this one.

That's an excellent chart. I've passed it onto her to have a look at. Cheers!

[Henry]

Originally Posted by Dr Diversity

It all depends on how much space you have for your sister's box.

I'd rather not discuss my sister's box thanks!

Originally Posted by Dr Diversity

If you go the seperates route then upgrading is cheaper and simpler. Or else go for the combined box

Size doesn't matter. Must cut out the innuendos. She's not worried about how many boxes she ends up with. If you're suggesting separates, what would you recommend?

[bradavon78]

Originally Posted by Mark Grant

No card slot but you dont need it for freeview.

Fat lot of good if you want TopupTV. For the kind of money Sony charge I'd demand a card slot.

[Rasczak]

Prices range from about £35 to just under a hundred. Not a great deal of difference in the quality. Why not lash out £35 on one from Tesco and see how it goes.

There is a massive difference in performance between the units. Speed of menus, ability to 'store' EPG data, handling of text/inactive services for example are noticeably better on performance units such as the Sony. Picture quality and audio also are noticeably better on high value units: comparing my Topfield 5800 with my Sony D800U for example the latter is definetly the better.

If you want PVR functionality then obviously the Sony isn't for you - but to suggest you're not getting a significant benefit from such a high quality box is mad!

[MartinImber]

There are some cheap new Pace Twins on Ebay occasionally