[PhilipL]

Hi

Originally Posted by stone41

Hi Guys

Several months ago I upgraded our Thomson DVR to a Humax Fox T2. The box is fine but doesn't work as well as the Thomson for normal viewing. The picture on the Thomson is better on it too (we have no HD here yet).

On the 3view, if you pause a channel and pick another channel from the EPG and go to it. Is the first channel held on pause? Our Thomson would hold the paused channel and move the other receiver to the new channel, you could then go back to the paused channel and resume play from where you were. The Humax looses the channel.

I need to get another unit and was thinking about the 3view.

Stone

If you aren't already and don't have any HD reception to watch I suggest connecting the Humax via SCART rather than HDMI if you prefer artificially sharpened SD. Also when I've compared the picture quality of the Humax to the 3View box they appear identical. If connecting via HDMI, then switch the resolution to 576i or 576p which avoid the pitfalls of double scaling which can remove some detail.

I'm not sure why you would want to pause the channel you are on to move to another one on such a regular basis you need this as a feature? If you have a PVR with twin-tuners the best use is to simply set everything to record, regardless if you might usually watch it live. That way you can do as you wish, stop the playback, view another channel and then resume where you left off later. Other options rather than pausing that might achieve the same thing for you, is on the Humax (and most other PVRs) just press the record button (press it twice to record automatically to the end of the current program on the Humax) and then you know you will always be able to return and continue watching.

Hope that helps.

Regards

Phil

[gcpete]

Originally Posted by PhilipL

Hi



If you aren't already and don't have any HD reception to watch I suggest connecting the Humax via SCART rather than HDMI if you prefer artificially sharpened SD. Also when I've compared the picture quality of the Humax to the 3View box they appear identical. If connecting via HDMI, then switch the resolution to 576i or 576p which avoid the pitfalls of double scaling which can remove some detail.

Not sure why you would get double scaling if the humax box was set to the same resolution as the TV, as surly the TV would not apply any scaling to the already upscaled picture? Others who have compared have said they prefer the 3view picture to the Humax. I have no interest in Humax and so have not compared.

I'm not sure why you would want to pause the channel you are on to move to another one on such a regular basis you need this as a feature? If you have a PVR with twin-tuners the best use is to simply set everything to record, regardless if you might usually watch it live. That way you can do as you wish, stop the playback, view another channel and then resume where you left off later. Other options rather than pausing that might achieve the same thing for you, is on the Humax (and most other PVRs) just press the record button (press it twice to record automatically to the end of the current program on the Humax) and then you know you will always be able to return and continue watching.

Hope that helps.

Regards

Phil

The other half loved this feature on the Digifusion of blessed memory. It meant he could start watching one show live, pause when the adds came, watch another recording, or live show, then after the adds end go back to the first live show, fastforward past the adds and resume live viewing. It drove me mad but made him happy... One feature of this I did enjoy was that it waas easy to pause a recording, flick to a live cahnnel for a minute or two and then resume were you left off very easily. The 3 view box almost does this as a recording will always restart from where you left it but its not quite as good.

Peter

[PhilipL]

Hi

Originally Posted by gcpete

Not sure why you would get double scaling if the humax box was set to the same resolution as the TV, as surly the TV would not apply any scaling to the already upscaled picture? Others who have compared have said they prefer the 3view picture to the Humax. I have no interest in Humax and so have not compared.

Is the TV full HD? If no, upscaling to 1080p and the TV downscaling to 720p is going to remove a lot of detail as it is a lossy process.

If yes it is full HD, is the TV set for pixel-to-pixel mapping, if not, overscan is applied and another scaling process takes place, again two lots of scaling, lossy process = less detail.

This applies to every HDMI bit of equipment when sending out anything up-scaled, if you are not sure about something, may I suggest you check first before suggesting someone else doesn't know what they are talking about, it would then be a nicer place here.

The other half loved this feature on the Digifusion of blessed memory. It meant he could start watching one show live, pause when the adds came, watch another recording, or live show, then after the adds end go back to the first live show, fastforward past the adds and resume live viewing. It drove me mad but made him happy... One feature of this I did enjoy was that it waas easy to pause a recording, flick to a live cahnnel for a minute or two and then resume were you left off very easily. The 3 view box almost does this as a recording will always restart from where you left it but its not quite as good.

Peter

A recording restarts from where you left it on the Humax, and for that matter most and probably all HD PVRs as well. This is why I suggested using instant record or setting everything to record on what ever it is they decide to keep as a PVR, as clearly the pause/flip to another channel is not something that is supported widely if at all on newer PVRs, and was probably just a quirk of that particular model.

The other obvious option if you have an HD ready TV which will most likely have a Freeview Tuner, is just pause on the PVR and then flip to the TVs tuner for a bit!

Regards

Phil

[gcpete]

Originally Posted by PhilipL

Hi



Is the TV full HD? If no, upscaling to 1080p and the TV downscaling to 720p is going to remove a lot of detail as it is a lossy process.

If yes it is full HD, is the TV set for pixel-to-pixel mapping, if not, overscan is applied and another scaling process takes place, again two lots of scaling, lossy process = less detail.

This applies to every HDMI bit of equipment when sending out anything up-scaled, if you are not sure about something, may I suggest you check first before suggesting someone else doesn't know what they are talking about, it would then be a nicer place here.

I was going to flag this for abuse but maybe you genuinely did not realize that this was a genuine question which did not deserve an insult as part of the answer. But yes downscaling could certainly be an issue if the output of the box is set to a higher resolution than the display. Now genuine question. Does over scan have a real affect and have you found it is better applied from the 3view/humax box or from the display?

A recording restarts from where you left it on the Humax, and for that matter most and probably all HD PVRs as well. This is why I suggested using instant record or setting everything to record on what ever it is they decide to keep as a PVR, as clearly the pause/flip to another channel is not something that is supported widely if at all on newer PVRs, and was probably just a quirk of that particular model.

Not just that model as I said our Digifusion also did it. I was just explaining why some people find it useful, though as I said the constant switching from one thing to another is annoying. Also I did not mean to imply God forbid that the 3view did something the Humax did not, just clarifying what it did do in response to the original question which was about the 3view.

[PhilipL]

Hi

Originally Posted by gcpete

I was going to flag this for abuse but maybe you genuinely did not realize that this was a genuine question which did not deserve an insult as part of the answer. But yes downscaling could certainly be an issue if the output of the box is set to a higher resolution than the display. Now genuine question. Does over scan have a real affect and have you found it is better applied from the 3view/humax box or from the display?

Considering the tone of your posts to me in other forums I took it as you telling me I was posting rubbish, if I got that wrong then I apologise.

In the context of 'overscan' this is always applied by the TV, never by the source.

I was merely trying to help the OP avoiding returning one product and getting another that wouldn't resolve their issues and do not want to get into another "mine is better than yours" debate.

Regards

Phil

[professorhat]

Originally Posted by gcpete

Not sure why you would get double scaling if the humax box was set to the same resolution as the TV, as surly the TV would not apply any scaling to the already upscaled picture?

You'll also find many HD Ready TVs (i.e. not Full HD) have a native resolution of something like 1024 x 768 (or 1280 x 768 is not uncommon). So outputting at 720p means the TV then has to upscale slightly (and also probably apply overscan) to fill the 768 lines, or downscale if output at 1080p.

Ultimately, there's no right or wrong answer of course, it comes down to preference. This is why it's always good to try different resolution outputs on your sources and see which one you prefer.

[gcpete]

Originally Posted by PhilipL

Hi



Considering the tone of your posts to me in other forums I took it as you telling me I was posting rubbish, if I got that wrong then I apologise.

Thank you

In the context of 'overscan' this is always applied by the TV, never by the source.

I was merely trying to help the OP avoiding returning one product and getting another that wouldn't resolve their issues and do not want to get into another "mine is better than yours" debate.

Regards

Phil

Certainly not, I was letting him know that the 3view did not have he feature he was looking for, and letting you know why somepeople, my partner included find that feature usefull as you had questioned why some one would want such a feature.

Peter

[technogran]

May I take this opportunity to wish all 3View owners a Very Merry Christmas a a Happy new year! Enjoy all of your recordings over the Christmas season.

TG

[gcpete]

Originally Posted by technogran

May I take this opportunity to wish all 3View owners a Very Merry Christmas a a Happy new year! Enjoy all of your recordings over the Christmas season.

TG

Certainly hope to get through some of the 300GB of backlog :-) Star Treck and Gilmore Girls can get away from you when its on every day......

Peter

[technogran]

Originally Posted by gcpete

Certainly hope to get through some of the 300GB of backlog :-) Star Treck and Gilmore Girls can get away from you when its on every day......

Peter

As can my current favourite program (where I end up laughing so much at the guy who does the commentary, he is so funny!) Come Dine with Me. Its on a lot over the Christmas period and I have to watch every one!

TG

[daveyoung]

Hi everyone

I wonder if anyone else has the same problem as I do.

The subtitles on recordings are consistently out of sync with the picture (subtitles appear 7 - 10 seconds before they should do). This is not the case on live tv.

I have reported it to 3view but have heard nothing back from them (not sure how quickly they normally respond, and maybe Christmas has delayed things).

Does this happen with anyone else's box?

Thanks in advance for your help.

Dave

[daveyoung]

further to my above thread. Apologies to 3view. Just checked and they have replied. They say they will fix it soon. Fingers crossed!

[petrev]

Hi

Can anyone post any photos of the 3View iPlayer implementation ?

Does it look like this ?

Front End

Program Page

EDIT OK !

Found some photos on 3Viewer and Technogran/GG's Blog now. and it does look like this

Cheers
Pete

[technogran]

Was just going to reply to you Petrev when you beat me to it by mosying over to my blog!

Yes that is the one. At the moment only the 3View unit has that enhanced BBC iPlayer. It's super to use as well. The Humax is supposed to be getting it soon I understand and more units from other manufacturers will no doubt follow.

TG

[petrev]

Originally Posted by technogran

Was just going to reply to you Petrev when you beat me to it by mosying over to my blog!

Yes that is the one. At the moment only the 3View unit has that enhanced BBC iPlayer. It's super to use as well. The Humax is supposed to be getting it soon I understand and more units from other manufacturers will no doubt follow.

TG

Hi TG

Thanks - spotted your blog just as you posted on DS I think.

That version is available on the DS DPS1000 IPTV box and can be seen on a computer

go to - http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/bigscreen/ -

In IE8, Safari and others make the page full screen (Monitor 1280x1024 and above)(IE8 close the sidebar/favourites/history)

you may get a "Please Wait . . Optimising iPlayer for your display" message then that version will appear.

It is a nicer version than the std. small-screen "Bigscreen" version.

Open IE8/Safari/etc. in a smaller window to see that version.



Cheers
Pete

[technogran]

Yes you are right. My apologies. Can you watch HD programs on it as well, I've honestly never tried because I never want to watch TV on my computer. Ahh, just tried 'Toast' via that player and no it doesn't seem to give you the HD choice like the 3View unit does.

TG

[petrev]

Originally Posted by technogran

Yes you are right. My apologies. Can you watch HD programs on it as well, I've honestly never tried because I never want to watch TV on my computer. Ahh, just tried 'Toast' via that player and no it doesn't seem to give you the HD choice like the 3View unit does.

TG

Hi TG

It does HD on the DS IPTV DPS1000 and sometimes on a computer. On the computer I have had it show HD channels and then, after a refresh, not ! ! !

The BBC select the format and content depending on the detected client (hence the size changes depending on screen) - seems the BBC generally detect that a computer can't stream h264 with the "bigscreen" version so don't enable the HD feed ! Thay are wrong of course so on a computer it is better to use the normal computer interface that does detect correctly and provide HD.

Cheers
Pete

[dazzlingdaz]

Quick question - since everything has gone quiet about HD on Winter Hill - is the problem now completely solved for everyone now?

I know 3view have been putting out many firmwares which have introduced some instability but on the plus side did these firmwares correct the HD issue completely?

I know several users reported they were able to watch now - but then there was some others that still had problems.

[technogran]

Originally Posted by dazzlingdaz

Quick question - since everything has gone quiet about HD on Winter Hill - is the problem now completely solved for everyone now?

I know 3view have been putting out many firmwares which have introduced some instability but on the plus side did these firmwares correct the HD issue completely?

I know several users reported they were able to watch now - but then there was some others that still had problems.

Yes.

[Tony212]

Given the silence in this thread for the past week can I assume that all is well with the 3View unit?

Hope so, I'm poised to buy one! I was going to get a Fetch box but reading that thread there still seem to be so many problems with it.

[brookheather]

Originally Posted by Tony212

Given the silence in this thread for the past week can I assume that all is well with the 3View unit?

Hope so, I'm poised to buy one! I was going to get a Fetch box but reading that thread there still seem to be so many problems with it.

I would read the DS forum first:

3view - Digital Spy Forums

[gphome]

Hi guys, I posed this in another thread I started but thought it might be useful info for here:

Well it seems I got told some duff information, but in the process was very impressed with the company response from 3view.

As stated in my post earlier, I emailed 3view last night and this morning I had an email from Ed Silvester at 3view, since then we have been emailing back and forth.

Basically the unit currently sends out the format the sounds comes in for 5.1, which is HE-AAC which hardly no amp will recognise. He stated that they are working on transcoding this to Dolby Digital but he anticipates this will only be through SPDIF

He also clarified that currently the unit cannot receive AC3 audio from MKV video files, this is due to the dolby license not being added to the chip correctly. This should be corrected in a firmware update over the next few days.

I asked him to clarify whether the unit is capable of trasnmitting 5.1 Dolby Digital through HDMI, he is going to talk to his hardware guys and get back.

I really hope they can do it because this box seems to be the best PVR/Media player hybrid out there! Otherwise my search will have to continue...

As above, I was very impressed with the speedy response from 3view

[technogran]

Yes, I am the proud owner of a 3view unit and for streaming to your PC (and back to the unit) and for the implementation of the 3View portal and BBC iPlayer it is second to none. Ed and the team are always ready to put themselves out for users and are also on the ball when it comes to listening to users wishes and bug reports as well.

TG

[digitalsignum]

Hi

Glad to hear you're enjoying your box but I would strongly suggest to all potential buyers that they have a good look through here and the Digital Spy forums to see what other users have experienced in order to get a more balanced view.

There has been, and still are, issues with this box.

I know as I own one

signum

[technogran]

Originally Posted by digitalsignum

Hi

Glad to hear you're enjoying your box but I would strongly suggest to all potential buyers that they have a good look through here and the Digital Spy forums to see what other users have experienced in order to get a more balanced view.

There has been, and still are, issues with this box.

I know as I own one

signum

What issues are you getting? Can you be more specific or alternatively let the 3View team know please? Thanks

TG

[obt]

hi. iam new to this, i have a 3view box that is now almost every thing i chose it for, however apart from sky player that i have paid for since i got 3view in sept and still cannot get . I could get youtube full lenth films at first but then it would say content blocked by youtube so thats gone.and i still cannot connect my laptop content through to the tv.I would be gratefull for any tips thank you . ob

[brookheather]

Originally Posted by obt

hi. iam new to this, i have a 3view box that is now almost every thing i chose it for, however apart from sky player that i have paid for since i got 3view in sept and still cannot get . I could get youtube full lenth films at first but then it would say content blocked by youtube so thats gone.and i still cannot connect my laptop content through to the tv.I would be gratefull for any tips thank you . ob

Probably best to ask here:

3view - Digital Spy Forums

[digitl]

Originally Posted by obt

hi. iam new to this, i have a 3view box that is now almost every thing i chose it for, however apart from sky player that i have paid for since i got 3view in sept and still cannot get . I could get youtube full lenth films at first but then it would say content blocked by youtube so thats gone.and i still cannot connect my laptop content through to the tv.I would be gratefull for any tips thank you . ob

Lots of help and information in the 3view forum on DigitalSpy at 3view - Digital Spy Forums and at 3viewPVR.info but in the meantime, have you installed the latest firmware and have you raised a ticket with 3view in the My 3view section of their website?

[its_me_cal]

Hi Guys I'm thinking of getting one of these or the HDR-FOX T2 (oops shouldn't say that in here) and was wondering if its possible to archive recoded programs from the HD to a USB HD? I know you can copy stuff from a USB HD to the internal HD but I want to do it the other way around. I understand some HD material may have some restrictions ie copy once or not at all.

Thanks for any help....

[Gavtech]

Originally Posted by its_me_cal

. I understand some HD material may have some restrictions ie copy once or not at all.

Thanks for any help....

The usual limitation with HD material is that it is tied to the machine on which it was recorded, thus even if it is possible to get it onto 'off-board' storage, the only machine on which it will playback is the original.