Best Freeview Reviever currently out there.....

Hi there people,

Whats currently regarded as the best freeview reciever on the market.

I was considering getting a Sony VTX-D800U as seen he

http://www.sony.co.uk/view/ShowProdu...VP+Set+Top+Box

I have seen some good reviews on the interweb about this but its expensive
compared to some of the cheap Tesco £20 ones

Is there a real advantage of spending so much money on this Sony chap?

Also if i got a Sony PVR with build in freeview would it have the same
functions (freeview wise) as this standalone reciever?
--
__________________________________________________ ___

Cheers,
Always trust an owl, especially and Arrogant one
Home of the Himalayian Trip: http://www.lhasa-2-kathmandu.co.uk
Home of the Owl: http://www.arrogantowl.com
__________________________________________________ ___

Martin Sinclair wrote:
Hi there people,

Whats currently regarded as the best freeview reciever on the market.

I was considering getting a Sony VTX-D800U as seen he

http://www.sony.co.uk/view/ShowProdu...VP+Set+Top+Box

I have seen some good reviews on the interweb about this but its
expensive compared to some of the cheap Tesco £20 ones

Its good. Whether you think its worth the price is your call. I find it far
better than boxes which keep re-booting and loosing their settings, failing
to record to my VCR, etc...

You might have fun getting one, as several shops seemed to be discounting
for discontinuing a few months ago.


Is there a real advantage of spending so much money on this Sony chap?

Straight pounds, hard to justify. But how much do you value hassle ?


Also if i got a Sony PVR with build in freeview would it have the same
functions (freeview wise) as this standalone reciever?

No idea about them.



--
Nigel Cliffe,
Webmaster at http://www.2mm.org.uk/

Nigel,

Ta for the feedback. I must admid i was baseing my questions on looking at
prices several months back. A quick Google search now tell me what you
hinted at; being they are a bit hard to come by.

There are a few referbs on ebay tho'

i do agree with what you say about hastle factor and dont mind paying extra
for quality.

--
__________________________________________________ ___

Cheers,
Always trust an owl, especially and Arrogant one
Home of the Himalayian Trip: http://www.lhasa-2-kathmandu.co.uk
Home of the Owl: http://www.arrogantowl.com
__________________________________________________ ___



"Nigel Cliffe" wrote in message
...
Martin Sinclair wrote:
Hi there people,

Whats currently regarded as the best freeview reciever on the market.

I was considering getting a Sony VTX-D800U as seen he

http://www.sony.co.uk/view/ShowProdu...VP+Set+Top+Box

I have seen some good reviews on the interweb about this but its
expensive compared to some of the cheap Tesco £20 ones

Its good. Whether you think its worth the price is your call. I find it
far better than boxes which keep re-booting and loosing their settings,
failing to record to my VCR, etc...

You might have fun getting one, as several shops seemed to be discounting
for discontinuing a few months ago.


Is there a real advantage of spending so much money on this Sony chap?

Straight pounds, hard to justify. But how much do you value hassle ?


Also if i got a Sony PVR with build in freeview would it have the same
functions (freeview wise) as this standalone reciever?

No idea about them.



--
Nigel Cliffe,
Webmaster at http://www.2mm.org.uk/

I've owned six different Freeview boxes and the Sony is - in my experience -
definitely the best.

Note the price is starting to encroach into the cheap end of the PVR market.

Thack

I also have a Sony, absolutely superb

As you point out, there are a lot cheaper of cheaper boxs available, but the
quality from the Sony 800 is outstanding.

In my opinion, well worth the extra.

Brian (Huddersfield)


"Thack" wrote in message
...
I've owned six different Freeview boxes and the Sony is - in my
experience - definitely the best.

Note the price is starting to encroach into the cheap end of the PVR
market.

Thack

Horse.trader wrote:
"Thack" wrote in message
...
I've owned six different Freeview boxes and the Sony is - in my
experience - definitely the best.

Note the price is starting to encroach into the cheap end of the
PVR market.

I also have a Sony, absolutely superb

As you point out, there are a lot cheaper of cheaper boxs available, but
the quality from the Sony 800 is outstanding.

I have a £30 Onn Digitial box from Asda sat atop my hot-running TiVo. I
get clear pictures, the TeleText works (on the odd occasion I've used
it) in what seems to me a timely manner. It survives being roasted by
the TiVo and doesn't seem to lock or freeze.

What am I missing out on by not having a dearer box (apart from me and
Sony products never really getting on)?

Ta,
James

"Thack" wrote in message
...
I've owned six different Freeview boxes and the Sony is - in my
experience - definitely the best.


Agreed. You get what you pay for. At worst you'll have to power cycle the
Sony once a year or thereabouts to overcome what I suspect is a small memory
leak that gradually dulls its performance.

I changed my TV for a Sagem DLP with integrated Freeview, so no longer use
my Sony - boy do I miss it. The Sagem TV has stunning picture quality, but
its a £1k TV with a £19.99 cheap **** DTT box glued inside, and it performs
like any cheap **** DTT box does - badly.

There's only one feature missing from the Sony, and that's the ability to
switch off MHEG, so you don't have to put up with "Press Red" interruptions.

James Sargent wrote:
Horse.trader wrote:
"Thack" wrote in message
...
I've owned six different Freeview boxes and the Sony is - in my
experience - definitely the best.

Note the price is starting to encroach into the cheap end of the
PVR market.

I also have a Sony, absolutely superb

As you point out, there are a lot cheaper of cheaper boxs available,
but the quality from the Sony 800 is outstanding.

I have a £30 Onn Digitial box from Asda sat atop my hot-running TiVo.
I get clear pictures, the TeleText works (on the odd occasion I've
used it) in what seems to me a timely manner. It survives being
roasted by the TiVo and doesn't seem to lock or freeze.

What am I missing out on by not having a dearer box (apart from me and
Sony products never really getting on)?

Arguably nothing.
You have found a box which works reliably for you, does what you want, and
cost only £30. You have got a good deal there, and should be content with
the low cost and good performance. Well done.

What I found was that the cheaper boxes I tried, including £50 brand names,
went wrong. They crashed, lost settings, reset, failed to record to VCR. All
unacceptable in my mind for any consumer product (and I told the salesman
who said "they all do that, sir" that perhaps they shouldn't sell rubbish) .
I could have carried on returning boxes for refund as "not fit under the
sale of goods act", trying another, costing me time, petrol, parking fees,
etc. each time, or I could just get a box which I know works but at a
premium price.

The side benefits of the Sony include an EPG which is noticably faster than
that on some cheaper boxes, on screen text which is easier to read, and a
generally "nicer" experience. Whether you think the reliability and better
interface is worth 2.5 times the price of an Asda box is up to you. As your
box work for you I think you got a good deal and should stick with it.


regards,

- Nigel



--
Nigel Cliffe,
Webmaster at http://www.2mm.org.uk/

yea slow EPG are horrid

you always pay for what you get in this world.........this is always some
down side to cheap rubbish.

This thread seems to prove that (there is always the odd exception i guess)
--
__________________________________________________ ___

Cheers,
Always trust an owl, especially and Arrogant one
Home of the Himalayian Trip: http://www.lhasa-2-kathmandu.co.uk
Home of the Owl: http://www.arrogantowl.com
__________________________________________________ ___



"Nigel Cliffe" wrote in message
...
James Sargent wrote:
Horse.trader wrote:
"Thack" wrote in message
...
I've owned six different Freeview boxes and the Sony is - in my
experience - definitely the best.

Note the price is starting to encroach into the cheap end of the
PVR market.

I also have a Sony, absolutely superb

As you point out, there are a lot cheaper of cheaper boxs available,
but the quality from the Sony 800 is outstanding.

I have a £30 Onn Digitial box from Asda sat atop my hot-running TiVo.
I get clear pictures, the TeleText works (on the odd occasion I've
used it) in what seems to me a timely manner. It survives being
roasted by the TiVo and doesn't seem to lock or freeze.

What am I missing out on by not having a dearer box (apart from me and
Sony products never really getting on)?

Arguably nothing.
You have found a box which works reliably for you, does what you want, and
cost only £30. You have got a good deal there, and should be content with
the low cost and good performance. Well done.

What I found was that the cheaper boxes I tried, including £50 brand
names, went wrong. They crashed, lost settings, reset, failed to record to
VCR. All unacceptable in my mind for any consumer product (and I told the
salesman who said "they all do that, sir" that perhaps they shouldn't sell
rubbish) . I could have carried on returning boxes for refund as "not fit
under the sale of goods act", trying another, costing me time, petrol,
parking fees, etc. each time, or I could just get a box which I know works
but at a premium price.

The side benefits of the Sony include an EPG which is noticably faster
than that on some cheaper boxes, on screen text which is easier to read,
and a generally "nicer" experience. Whether you think the reliability and
better interface is worth 2.5 times the price of an Asda box is up to you.
As your box work for you I think you got a good deal and should stick with
it.


regards,

- Nigel



--
Nigel Cliffe,
Webmaster at http://www.2mm.org.uk/

The Sony is no better than other freeview boxes, I got one and I found to
my horror that all the programs were the same :O|
Whay waste money on a badge?

"Martin Sinclair" wrote in message
...
Hi there people,

Whats currently regarded as the best freeview reciever on the market.

I was considering getting a Sony VTX-D800U as seen he

http://www.sony.co.uk/view/ShowProdu...VP+Set+Top+Box

I have seen some good reviews on the interweb about this but its expensive
compared to some of the cheap Tesco £20 ones

Is there a real advantage of spending so much money on this Sony chap?

Also if i got a Sony PVR with build in freeview would it have the same
functions (freeview wise) as this standalone reciever?
--
__________________________________________________ ___

Cheers,
Always trust an owl, especially and Arrogant one
Home of the Himalayian Trip: http://www.lhasa-2-kathmandu.co.uk
Home of the Owl: http://www.arrogantowl.com
__________________________________________________ ___