[buttons129]

sorry folks but its that age old question of which one.

I would like to replace my parents older PVR for a new one at xmas and reading through the various posts nothing seems to come out as a clear winner. being a Sky HD fan i hadn't the need to investigate the leading products so looking for suggestions from PVR fans.

Ideal spec would be-
Twin tuners (HDD recording)
Pause record rewind live TV
extened EPG
DVD (watch a DVD while recording a program)
Of good quality, simple to set up and use.

from what I can gather the DVD wish may have to be via a separate box.

They have a late Sony Bravia 32" LCD if it helps



I leave it in your most capable hands

[Geofbob]

You don't say whether you are looking for a Freeview PVR or a Freesat - the following is based on the assumption that it's Freeview.

As you say, nothing comes out a clear winner - the usual conclusion of discussions about PVRs on these forums generally boils down to a choice between a Humax (eg the 9150T) & a Vestel clone such as the Alba ALDTR160. To be frank, I'm not sure why you think your post will produce some absolutely clear-cut advice, when previous posts have not. But my own view would be that if your dad is comfortable with technology, then the Humax might suit him; but if user-friendliness is a priority then go for the Alba (if you can find it at Argos - it's very popular),

As you probably know, PVRs have twin tuners, and can only record from them onto their hard discs. DVD/HDD recorders with a Freeview tuner can record onto a hard disc or DVD from an external source or their own tuner - but none of them have twin tuners. Therefore, with a DVD/HDD recorder alone you cannot record one channel while watching another - but you can do this if the recorder is used in conjunction with a Freeview TV (which your parents' Sony probably is).

[creddish]

Originally Posted by Geofbob

You don't say whether you are looking for a Freeview PVR or a Freesat - the following is based on the assumption that it's Freeview.

As you say, nothing comes out a clear winner - the usual conclusion of discussions about PVRs on these forums generally boils down to a choice between a Humax (eg the 9150T) & a Vestel clone such as the Alba ALDTR160. To be frank, I'm not sure why you think your post will produce some absolutely clear-cut advice, when previous posts have not. But my own view would be that if your dad is comfortable with technology, then the Humax might suit him; but if user-friendliness is a priority then go for the Alba (if you can find it at Argos - it's very popular),

The Alba ALDTR160 is currently in stock at Argos here for £99.99. An alternative to the Alba is a virtually identical Vestel branded Hitachi HDR163 at Argos here at the same price as the Alba. The Hitachi has a slightly earlier software version than the Alba but has the advantage of a Low Power standby mode. There is also a 250 GB version of the Hitachi here at £119.99. This was a best buy Vestel about a week ago when the price was £106.99 but £20 more for the larger HDD is worth considering IMO. Both Hitachi's have the Low Power mode and also a HDMI port for what that's worth.


@buttons129
Incidentally which PVR does your parents have now. Would they maybe prefer to have the same brand as previously?

Colin

[clemenzina]

Originally Posted by buttons129

extended EPG

If by that you mean 14-day (as opposed to standard 7-day), then you'd have to get a box that wakes up and downloads the EPG at 3am every night, AFAIK. I wouldn't recommend those. 7-day EPG is plenty with today's Series Record boxes.

DVD (watch a DVD while recording a program)

I definitely recommend a separate DVDR, it keeps things simple and I understand that the only model that includes everything is a very expensive new Panasonic (which none of us regulars own, or at least no-one has admitted it ) - you can record from the Recordings Library of the PVR "in real time", ie by playing the recording and setting the DVDR to record from the SCART connected to the PVR. I've got an "old" (by today's standards) HDD/DVDR that I keep hooked up just in case, but I've never recorded onto the DVD yet

clemenzina

[creddish]

Originally Posted by clemenzina

If by that you mean 14-day (as opposed to standard 7-day), then you'd have to get a box that wakes up and downloads the EPG at 3am every night, AFAIK. I wouldn't recommend those. 7-day EPG is plenty with today's Series Record boxes.

Ah! I missed that requirement in the OP's list. That certainly does limit the options. AFAIK the only out of the box current Freeview PVRs which provide a 14-day EPG are the Top Up TV software units which are definitely not recommended. Neither does the 14-day EPG option provide Freeview+ Accurate Recording. To be pedantic the TUTV units download the EPG updates daily at 11:00am.

Doesn't your Toppy have a TAP to provide a 14-day EPG facility?

Colin

[clemenzina]

Originally Posted by creddish

Doesn't your Toppy have a TAP to provide a 14-day EPG facility?

"My" Toppy doesn't, but only because I haven't put it on Toppy has TAPs for almost everything - you can even put Radio Times or Digiguide on it. I'm sure that singing and dancing legs are soon to come

(I left the TUTV details for you to deal with, Colin, to save you having to correct anything I said about it.)

clemenzina

[JethroUK]

Originally Posted by creddish

The Alba ALDTR160 is currently in stock at Argos here for £99.99. ...

Will this still do the whole pause rewind stuff?

Are there any std PVR features missing from the Alba I should be aware of?

I dont suppose it also decodes the mux so you can record/view 2 channels from same mux as per humax?

.

[Geofbob]

You can pause the Alba, restart & rewind to where you paused; but I'm not sure whether there's a permanent buffer, allowing rewinding at any point in live viewing. I would think you can record any two channels, regardless of what Mux they're on - surely the Mux only comes into it with the Humax, if you want to view a third channel while recording two. I don't know where the Alba stands on this feature - the spec refers only to recording two channels at the same time.

By the way, the Hitachi creddish referred to above (at the same price as the Alba at Argos) is possibly a better buy - as well as the low power mode he mentioned, the spec says a Scart cable is included (not mentioned in the Alba spec) & there's a CI slot which would probably allow signing up for ESPN.

[clemenzina]

Originally Posted by JethroUK

I dont suppose it also decodes the mux so you can record/view 2 channels from same mux as per humax?

No it doesn't. So you can record 2 channels and watch a recording at the same time, but not watch a live channel different from those being recorded.

However, when you've finished watching your third channel live on the Humax, cross your fingers and be prepared to turn to your recordings only to find the starts missing

(I only used that smiley cos it's new to me )

clemenzina

[creddish]

Originally Posted by Geofbob

You can pause the Alba, restart & rewind to where you paused; but I'm not sure whether there's a permanent buffer, allowing rewinding at any point in live viewing.

The Vestel PVRs don't have a permanent live buffer. The buffer has to be first initiated by first pressing the Pause button. The buffer will then be maintained for a duration dependent on a preset value up to 2 hours. The buffer will be cancelled if the Stop button is pressed or if Fast Forward reaches real time. This method has the advantage of not having the HDD running un-necessarily, conserving a little energy, also reducing HDD noise and heat generation. Personally I hardly ever watch Live TV, recording virtually everything we watch. If I am watching Live TV and am interesting in seeing the whole programme I prefer to press Record and view the programme from the Library using Chase Play. This gives total flexibility of viewing timing. One minor trap in the Vestel Pause Live TV functionality is that if FF is used and you accidentally reach real time the buffer is cancelled and you are then unable to scroll back.

Colin

[JethroUK]

Originally Posted by Geofbob

... the Hitachi creddish referred to above (at the same price as the Alba at Argos) is possibly a better buy - as well as the low power mode he mentioned, the spec says a Scart cable is included (not mentioned in the Alba spec) & there's a CI slot which would probably allow signing up for ESPN.

the only reservation i have about hitachi is

1/ I've read TUTV recorders are not so reliable - downloading stuff you dont want, etc and skipping recordings you do want

2/ I also understand the Alba is very simple to use - it's for my sis in law and this is at the top of her feature list :o)

.

[Geofbob]

Originally Posted by JethroUK

the only reservation i have about hitachi is

1/ I've read TUTV recorders are not so reliable - downloading stuff you dont want, etc and skipping recordings you do want

2/ I also understand the Alba is very simple to use - it's for my sis in law and this is at the top of her feature list :o)

.

This Hitachi is not a TUTV model. The spec refers to it being TUTV compatible because it has a CI slot, but (not for the first time) Argos is wrong. You can get the sports channel, ESPN, using a the CI & a CAM (& a subscription), but these days to get TUTV you need a TUTV box.

I doubt if the Hitachi is much different from the Alba in terms of the user interface - they are both based on Vestel software, which certainly is very user-friendly to operate, .

[creddish]

Originally Posted by JethroUK

the only reservation i have about hitachi is

1/ I've read TUTV recorders are not so reliable - downloading stuff you dont want, etc and skipping recordings you do want

2/ I also understand the Alba is very simple to use - it's for my sis in law and this is at the top of her feature list :o)

.

LOL. I would not have recommended a TUTV box to anyone, even my worst enemy.

The only possible advantage of the Alba could be that being a slightly later hardware version (T845R) it uses a SATA HDD rather than the IDE drive on the Hitachi. In the future I expect SATA drives will be cheaper to buy and easier to obtain than the IDE equivalent if a replacement is needed. PVRs use "Consumer Electronics" HDDs which are a variation on standard PC drives so are less common.

The latest Alba PVRs also have a later software as well as hardware version than the Hitachi. These versions have yet to be evaluated in service so may prove to be better or not so good as the Hitachi but I suspect they will be neutral. Both PVRs will be equally easy to use I'm certain.

Colin

[JethroUK]

dont know much about them - i have V+ box - they both seem to get very good feedback at Argos (considering how cheap they are) albeit the hitachi report quite a bit of freezing/crashing issues not reported on the alba which might explain the benefits of later firmware & hardware

i think i'll let her choose