Top Deals From the Weekly Email
Cheap Freeview PVRs
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Personal Video Recorder (PVR) is the unwieldy name for advanced freeview boxes which allow you to pause live TV, and record shows on their built-in hard drives. They're essentially the humble VCR gone digital, and given a range of fancy new features.
Since they're freeview, there's no subscription to pay; you just buy the box and get recording. This is a rundown of the top freeview PVR deals at the moment.
The Cheapest: Refurbished DigiFusion 80GB PVR £45.10 delivered
DigiFusion and DigiHome PVRs have consistently been the cheapest for some time now. The best deals are on refurbished versions (ie, those that have been returned and/or repaired), but these still come with a full year's guarantee.
Microdirect has an 80GB version for £45.10 inc delivery, and if there's something else you want at the same time ebuyer sells a similar DigiHome box for £45.24 (pictured), with free delivery on orders over £50.
Recording Time (max): 40 hrs
EPG (Electronic Programme Guide): 14 days (DigiF), 7 days (DigiH)
Tuners: 2, can record whilst watching another show.
Warranty: 1 year return to depot
Series Link (records whole series in one-touch): NoTwice the space: DigiHome 160GB PVRs from £58.86 delivered
If you want more recording space, there's a refurb 160GB DigiHome box at SVP for £58.86, or you can get it brand new for only slightly more, £65.85. They both come with a 1 year warranty, and for budget recorders they've received excellent feedback for their usability.
Recording Time (max): 80 hrs (160 GB)
EPG (Electronic Programme Guide): 7 days
Tuners: 2, can record whilst watching another show.
Warranty: 1 year return to depot
Series Link (records whole series in one-touch): No
The Top Deal: Humax Twin Tuner 160GB £106.50, 320GB £136.50 delivered (Silver or Black).
Market leader Humax is offering 'Grade A remanufactured' (ie. should look brand new) versions of its best-selling boxes at significantly reduced prices. Whilst these are more expensive than the boxes above, they're also amongst the most feature-packed, easy to set-up, and reliable PVRs available, and they're not short of accolades for it. They usually retail at upwards of £160 (£160GB version), though it's likely these are reduced in light of new models being released, which include such delights as HDMI out and 720p upscaling.
The only difference between the boxes is in hard drive capacity; both feature Dolby Digital out (optical), one touch recording, USB 2.0 out for archiving shows on your PC, and automatic software updates. This is a great deal, and there are only a few hundred available, so get in there soon if you want one!
Recording Time (max): 100 hrs (160GB), 200 hrs (200GB)
EPG (Electronic Programme Guide): 8 days
Tuners: 2, can record whilst watching another show, and playback whilst recording two.
Warranty: 1 Year return to depot
Series Link (records whole series in one-touch): Yes, after free update.
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Seen a better PVR deal, or got feedback on those above? Please post it in the forum discussion and I'll add it to this note.
Why get a PVR?
One of the biggest selling points of these digital recorders is their user-friendliness; all of them have an in-built Freeview programme guide, and you can just browse it and select things to record. Then go away and forget about it, and before you know it you'll have a backlog of shows to catch up on.
The ability to pause live programmes is useful too; no longer will you have to wait with a raging thirst for the ad break before you get a drink, nor deny calls of nature. Used properly, a PVR'll make TV viewing fit around you, rather than vice-versa; many find they never watch shows when they're actually aired anymore.
However, don't get one if:
You primarily watch TV over satellite or cable. These boxes won't be able to record from anything other than Freeview.
If you're looking to record satellite/cable channels in the same way, check out Sky+ and V+ boxes, which can also be reasonable depending on your current package, or waiting for a cheap Freesat PVR (see below).
Alternatively. Do it cheap on your PC!
It's also possible to record shows on your PC's hard drive. All you need is a DVB-T tuner USB stick or PCI card (Hauppauge's good brand to look out for), which can be bought for around £20. The software should allow you to record shows in much the same way as the PVRs above, and you're only restricted by your PC's hard disk size. Note that you still need a TV licence to watch Freeview on your PC.
Want more channels and HD? Consider waiting for Freesat PVRs.
The BBC and ITV's joint venture into non-subscription satellite broadcasting, Freesat, is now a couple of months old. There are just over 80 channels (inc. 2 HD ones) at the moment, slated to increase to over 200 next year. The boxes you need are still quite expensive at the moment, and there are no budget PVR versions.
However, towards the end of the year other manufacturers will be allowed to get in on the act (currently only selected ones are allowed), so better-priced Freesat PVRs will undoubtedly appear. When they do, they'll be included in our weekly emaill.
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