Best PVR for older/non-techie people

In article ,
Alan wrote:
In message , "Dave Plowman (News)"
wrote

I've recommended and installed Toppys for two elderly folks who are
happy with them. With only the supplied software.

So what happened on the nation re-tuning day? The Toppy.org forums were
full of people seeking help with un-modified firmware that didn't
support the SplitNit, those who didn't realise that re-tuning only adds
channels and doesn't get rid of the previous channel allocations (a
factory default is required first) and how to get rid of duplicate
(weak) channels from different transmitters or the empty channel place
holders that the broadcasters thoughtfully provided.

They are mostly in the London area if that makes a difference. And adding
channels is a common problem with many FreeView boxes.

While I believe that many old people can deal with technology just as
well as anyone else some PVR controls are not that intuitive, especially
when it comes to configuration changes, and can catch out all age
groups.

Indeed. But since it's unlikely you will get a VCR that copes with
FreeView, what's the answer? Not that VCRs are foolproof anyway - as the
number of recorded over wedding videos would prove...

--
*Change is inevitable, except from a vending machine*

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

jamie powell wrote:

I'm familiar with the Vestel units. Our lad has one, and finds it fine, my
parents have another. Our lad's one gets a lot of use, the condition of the
remote tells me that, and he tells me it's only failed to record something
once in 22 months. My parents use theirs in a far more 'pedestrian' manner,
they have never reported a problem to me in almost year of ownership.

--
Mark
Please replace invalid and invalid with gmx and net to reply.

www.paras.org.uk

On Nov 20, 9:52*pm, "jamie powell" wrote:
"airsmoothed" wrote in message

...
On Nov 19, 6:05 pm, "jamie powell" wrote:



Argos are currently selling a T825 (branded as the Alba ALDTR160) for
£99.99 .
However there are reports of them freezing/locking up, the sound randomly
disappearing, the menu navigation becoming sluggish, and series-linked
timer
settings disappearing whenever the box is put into standby.

Someone also said that the hard disc spins up every 45mins when the box is
in
standby mode, and the noise of this is annoying.

Have you experienced any of these issues?

Thanks.

In a word ...no. The menu / EPG navigation has always been fairly
slow, but it hasn't got any worse since the boxes were new. Series
links are for sure not dissappearing on standby, the HDD is not
spinning up every 45 mins - and when it does it's still very quiet.
I've been pleasantly suprised by the complete lack of lock-ups on
these boxes - or maybe I'm just lucky..

Noted - thanks.
It seems that some people experience loads of problems with these units, and
others none at all.
btw, does the hard disc never spin up in standby mode? or does it just happen
less frequently than every 45minutes?

I've never noticed it spinning up of its own accord, other than the
automatic 3am check for OTA upgrades. My eldest daughter has one of
these units about 2 feet from her head when she sleeps and has never
noticed or complained about the noise, i'd soon be getting an ear
bashing if these was a problem! The only irritation is momentary
picture breakup when she receives a text on her mobile, being a
teenager this is about every 15 seconds...

"Mark Carver" wrote in message
...
jamie powell wrote:

I'm familiar with the Vestel units. Our lad has one, and finds it fine, my
parents have another. Our lad's one gets a lot of use, the condition of the
remote tells me that, and he tells me it's only failed to record something
once in 22 months. My parents use theirs in a far more 'pedestrian' manner,
they have never reported a problem to me in almost year of ownership.

Do you happen to know which model(s) of Vestel they have? (eg. T810, T816,
T825)
Alternatively if you know the 'brands' they were sold under (Alba, etc) and
HDD size, that would be helpful.

Dave Plowman (News) wrote:

However, for such a rare occurrence, any such proceeder could confuse some
regardless of the equipment. So you could just pop round to the elderly
relative and sort it out yourself. It's the day to day operation of the
thing which is more important.

If you don't mind popping in to sort out the odd issue, then the Toppy
may be worth considering.

What TAPs would you think essential for an elderly person? Many make the
on screen graphics less legible in the name of 'graphic design' or
whatever.

I used to use EPG Navigator which I found very good and pretty
intuitive. However, it broke after the FreeView update, and although I
followed the steps to get it working, in the end I gave up, abandoned it
and moved over to MyStuff.

I find the graphics in MyStuff very clear and informative - much more so
than EPG Navigator, and they are configurable too; the problem is that
MyStuff may be too powerful and complicated for some. Even I had to
print out the manual since MyStuff uses a lot of the colour keys and
unless one uses a feature regularly, it can be difficult to remember
which.

"Peter Duncanson" wrote in message
...
On Sat, 21 Nov 2009 12:18:07 -0000, "Max Demian"
wrote:

"jamie powell" wrote in message
...

Out of interest, do the press still publish Videoplus+ code numbers in
their TV listings? And do any PVRs or freeview-based DVD recorders accept
them?

RadioTimes [1] has Videoplus+ code numbers for all its analogue and some
digital only programmes, but AFAIK Freeview recorders have never used them
as they have an EPG.

The Daewoo Freeview SetPal-VCR used the Videoplus+ numbers. It did not
have an EPG. (I put that in the past tense because it can't handle a
split-NIT and is not much use now.)

So there aren't any current DVD ot HDD recorders which can accept Videoplus+
numbers as a way of making timed recordings from their DVB tuners?

"jamie powell" wrote in message
...

"Peter Duncanson" wrote in message
...
On Sat, 21 Nov 2009 12:18:07 -0000, "Max Demian"
wrote:

"jamie powell" wrote in message
...

Out of interest, do the press still publish Videoplus+ code numbers in
their TV listings? And do any PVRs or freeview-based DVD recorders
accept
them?

RadioTimes [1] has Videoplus+ code numbers for all its analogue and some
digital only programmes, but AFAIK Freeview recorders have never used
them
as they have an EPG.

The Daewoo Freeview SetPal-VCR used the Videoplus+ numbers. It did not
have an EPG. (I put that in the past tense because it can't handle a
split-NIT and is not much use now.)

So there aren't any current DVD ot HDD recorders which can accept
Videoplus+ numbers as a way of making timed recordings from their DVB
tuners?

Why would anyone want to, when they can use the EPG?

--
Max Demian

On Sat, 21 Nov 2009 14:52:58 -0800 (PST), widgitt
wrote:

Re the Humax:

The most ridiculous thing they have ever done is to stop supplying an
instruction book and to supply a CD rom with instructions. Only a very
small number of my older customers have computers and those that do
are likely to be able to fathom out how to use a Humax without a book
anyway. Its those who dont who need the book. I would urge anyone who
buys one to phone or write to Humax and demand one whilst telling them
how stupid the decision is.

The emptying of the EPG when the box is in standby is extremely
annoying and causes more complaints than anything else. I am sure it
could be fixed but no one at Humax seems to think this is an issue.

Yes they do lock up but so do all other Freeview receivers / PVRs that
I have come across.

I'd say it's pretty poor for "locking up" to be a normal feature of
any product.
--
(\__/) M.
(='.'=) Due to the amount of spam posted via googlegroups and
(")_(") their inaction to the problem. I am blocking most articles
posted from there. If you wish your postings to be seen by
everyone you will need use a different method of posting.
[Reply-to address valid until it is spammed.]

On Sun, 22 Nov 2009 09:26:58 +0000, Alan
wrote:

In message , "Dave Plowman (News)"
wrote

I've recommended and installed Toppys for two elderly folks who are happy
with them. With only the supplied software.

So what happened on the nation re-tuning day? The Toppy.org forums were
full of people seeking help with un-modified firmware that didn't
support the SplitNit, those who didn't realise that re-tuning only adds
channels and doesn't get rid of the previous channel allocations (a
factory default is required first) and how to get rid of duplicate
(weak) channels from different transmitters or the empty channel place
holders that the broadcasters thoughtfully provided.

While I believe that many old people can deal with technology just as
well as anyone else some PVR controls are not that intuitive, especially
when it comes to configuration changes, and can catch out all age
groups.

I've noticed that, as I have aged, my tolerance for poorly designed
products has declined, as well as my available spare time to try to
sort them out.
--
(\__/) M.
(='.'=) Due to the amount of spam posted via googlegroups and
(")_(") their inaction to the problem. I am blocking most articles
posted from there. If you wish your postings to be seen by
everyone you will need use a different method of posting.
[Reply-to address valid until it is spammed.]

Max Demian wrote:
"jamie powell" wrote in message
...
"Peter Duncanson" wrote in message
...
On Sat, 21 Nov 2009 12:18:07 -0000, "Max Demian"
wrote:

"jamie powell" wrote in message
...

Out of interest, do the press still publish Videoplus+ code numbers in
their TV listings? And do any PVRs or freeview-based DVD recorders
accept
them?
RadioTimes [1] has Videoplus+ code numbers for all its analogue and some
digital only programmes, but AFAIK Freeview recorders have never used
them
as they have an EPG.
The Daewoo Freeview SetPal-VCR used the Videoplus+ numbers. It did not
have an EPG. (I put that in the past tense because it can't handle a
split-NIT and is not much use now.)
So there aren't any current DVD ot HDD recorders which can accept
Videoplus+ numbers as a way of making timed recordings from their DVB
tuners?

Why would anyone want to, when they can use the EPG?

Why do people still buy TV guides, or read the guides
in their newspapers?
Because they are used to it, and find EPG navigation
harder.
Menus and Guides remain a mystery to many older users,
who find it much harder to learn new methods.
Sadly, manufacturers did not foresee this, and refused
to pay the fee to the Videoplus licence holder.