Indeed. Autotracking in the Humax works the same in the Sony, and like the Sony, both have autotracking (accurate recording) set globally but with the option to edit a reservation/timer so it doesnt use the autotracking feature. None of them go beyond a very basic minimum spec implementation. And in the Humaxs case I have my doubts about whether they have either the caliber of people or the resources to make it bullet proof or advanced enough to take full advantage of the hardware at its disposal.
The Humax then differs from the Sony in that it also offers a different method of recording using autopadding instead, and again this is overidable by editing any specific timers as necessary. However this is not something offered by the Sony or most of the other recorders, which is somewhat suprising given how useful the feature is, so I can only imagine this is because its a pain in the rear to implement.
While the Humax has two options rather than just the one default, autopadding is the option most customers will keep as their prefered method for recordings, and for a long time to come I expect. But if autotracking/Accurate recording is supported well by the broadcasters and more of them over time, it could well be the other way around. I know what the same broadcasters are like with the facility on terrestrial television with PDC and so I have my doubts as to whether dvd recorders and pvr users will be able to rely on the accurate recording signals.
By all means give autotracking a try as it will give you an idea of what it will be like. BBC do make use of it on much of their programmes. However you may prefer to stick with autopadding for a while longer.