hummy, sammy or echostar

canonbeck

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I need to buy a freesat pvr asap as my toppy is finally dead.

I do like the community & hackability of the hummy but it seems very long in the tooth now and i'm concerned about the generally slowness of it - would not go down well with the wife and family... (and the toppy was _very_ fast)

The samsung by contrast seems like a modern machine - now that most of the bugs have been ironed out.

I also like the echostar although the styling is a little funky and i'm not sure i'd ever use the sling stuff.

So, which would you buy and why? Is the hummy hdr realy that slow? Which is the best bet out of the remaining 2?

Cheers
 
Cant comment on the other 2, but the humax is SLOW, well mine is anyway. The remote is very directional. The box freezes as well, usually only for a minute or so, but lately I've had to unplug it from the mains to get it going again.
If mine packs in,I wont get another one.
 
Thanks for confirming the slowness. I'll need to focus on the other two now.

Cheers
 
I don't see how any satellite receiver could be slow - and if it was it would go right back to the supplier for a replacement.
The Samsung is relatively recent but that doesn't make it any better, and with the very limited range, all made to same specification to do the same job, the others are all as current as they ever were.
 
Guess my Foxsat is sluggish when scrolling the programme guide (doesn't help that the directional control buttons are like blancmange !), certainly compared with my Sony Freesat TV. But everything else including flicking through programmes, punching in a channel number, starting recording / playback, or negotiating menus is as fast as you would want.

Bear in mind that the Samsung only records off one of its twin tuners, the other is for viewing only, so limited ability to record two programmes at once.

And unless updated the Echostar's two USB ports are only good for firmware update, not external recording or playback.
 
Not true...
Guess I was referring to the Samsung BD-DT7800 Freeview HD PVR (see master thread on this forum), not the Freesat SMTS-7800. My mistake !
 
The Humax may be slow to switch on but its only about 40 seconds or so as it boots and ist about the same speed to boot as my panasonic dvd recorder.

Once on the Humax is very fast. The on delay is not a problem when recording as the box starts up before the recording starts.

My remote control direction is not too bad either, my Panasonic Viera TV needs to be aimed within +/- 3 degrees of latitude, think it was designed by Captain Cook, and thats directional.
 
Have had my Humax for a couple of years now. No complaints. Sure, the initial boot time is a little slow (not as slow as my bluray player !!) but once up and running its great. Mines never frozen either.
 
Hi Canonbeck.
I bought the Echostar PVR back in June, and so far has been very reliable. Don't let the slingbox styling put you off, as you will soon get used to it.
Boot up from "normal low power mode" is just 30 seconds. "Ultra low power mode" is around 60 seconds.
It is very easy to use. The channel change speed is very quick and the EPG loads in a couple of seconds.
The price has dropped quite a bit since I bought mine from Amazon.

Stu.
 
Just for clarity, when I said slow, I was referring to scrolling through the programme guide as lauraeva said.
I've no problem with the boot up time( I believe you can alter that if you choose anyway).
I guess everything else is as fast as anything else, but we do most of our searching etc through the guide and its that that is driving me nuts.
And if it freezes again kevkbuk, its going straight back.
 
That would be enough for the first part of my previous post to apply.
 
My other PVR is a Toppy. I think anyone who's used to a well-tapped Toppy is likely to be a bit disappointed with any other PVR. ;)

I find the Humax's guide is only slow if I go straight into it by pressing "Guide", because then it's updating itself. In practice I use "Schedule, Red", and then there's no speed problem, but sometimes the EPG isn't available for the full week ahead. (I can still press "Guide" if I want an update.)

I was used to a long boot time on the Toppy, so that doesn't bother me. The only other speed problem I experience is with the Media list. It takes a good few seconds to appear. Apparently this is because my (500GB) disk is fairly full.
 
Had the same dilemma as my Humax non PVR is on the way out.

Have gone for the Sammy because the UX is meant to be nice and the wife and kids will use it the most :)

Also got it for 160 from Amazon which was ÂŁ40 cheaper than the echostar.
 
Had the same dilemma as my Humax non PVR is on the way out.

Have gone for the Sammy because the UX is meant to be nice and the wife and kids will use it the most :)

Also got it for 160 from Amazon which was ÂŁ40 cheaper than the echostar.

How you getting on with the Sammy?

Dal
 
really pleased :) Fast delivery from Amazon. The box looks nice, menus and overall UI is really clean. Has some nice features and seems reasonably fast. Also very quiet.

The wife and kids like it as well which is good :)

I haven't experienced the other choices but I heartily recommend this box based on my experience so far.
 
rmg said:
really pleased :) Fast delivery from Amazon. The box looks nice, menus and overall UI is really clean. Has some nice features and seems reasonably fast. Also very quiet.

The wife and kids like it as well which is good :)

I haven't experienced the other choices but I heartily recommend this box based on my experience so far.

Cheers for the reply - it does look a good one

Dal
 

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