Best FreeviewHD PVR to replace MySky+?

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zenourn

271 posts

Ultimate Geek

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#812145 6-May-2013 16:46

Deev8:
jamesrobert: Change to the broadcast-only option for $18.70 a month

Paying $224.40 each year to get free-to-air TV is still a reasonably expensive option.

Agreed. You also have to pay another $240/year for the MySky+ rental. So $460/year for a PVR with FTA channels.

I think both the Panasonic and MagicTV are likely great options depending on the exact features you want. Doesn't take long to recover the purchase cost either.

jamesrobert

90 posts

Master Geek

#812501 7-May-2013 09:20

Not if you've already paid for the MySky in full.....

Klipspringer

2385 posts

Uber Geek
Inactive user

#812518 7-May-2013 09:38

We bought a Tivo last year and switched off our mysky. Have not looked back.

There are a few new ones on trademe. I would buy one of those.

Jaxson

8042 posts

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#812675 7-May-2013 11:39

There were quite a few TIVOs given as gifts to Telecom customers, many of whom were not even in terrestrial reception areas, so they remained unused. TIVO requires some involved registration initially, so it would pay to clarify the status of the unit with the seller, as well as cover any queries with the GZ crowd too.

For the record I have a TIVO as my main PVR. It works well. I don't love it like others do, but I can't fault at all the bang for your buck factor. Typically they either work or don't, right from the start. If it turns on then it's probably a good one, but they are old technology, manufactured in 2000 and something in Mexico.

Assuming you can get a TIVO for not much money, they are a good bet. After that I'd probably go Panasonic myself now, with the Bluray built in, but I'd ensure I filtered out any VHF signal component first. My TIVO has not required this step.

Dunnersfella

4086 posts

Uber Geek

#812711 7-May-2013 12:10

$699 for the Panasonic 2013 BluRay recorder (it'll record to the HDD, but will not rip to optical disc)... good bet.
The $999 version has a 1TB HDD and is the all singing, all dancing unit... EXCEPT, they appear to have dropped Gracenote, meaning you can no longer use it to rip your CD's and copy the content to the HDD, then use it as a music server. The ability to stream the live / recorded content to iOS and Android devices is pretty sweet though.

zenourn

271 posts

Ultimate Geek

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#813933 8-May-2013 20:02

Klipspringer: We bought a Tivo last year and switched off our mysky. Have not looked back.

There are a few new ones on trademe. I would buy one of those.

Thanks (and also to others as well who mentioned Tivo). Minimal cost so just picked up one off trademe to see how well they work and am impressed. Things I've noticed so far compared to MySky is a much better EPG, ability to keep only a selected number of recordings of a show (great for news), and much better pause/rewind/fastforward.

It's a shame that these are no longer available in stores. Also crazy how Consumer ranked these the lowest when it reviewed Freeview receivers!

KiwiTim

376 posts

Ultimate Geek

#814179 9-May-2013 08:39

You could get an UltraPlus X-9200HD. This usually has twin DVB-S2 tuners, but you can request to have one removed and replaced with a DVB-T tuner, which is what my brother did.

My brother's one is easy enough to use. It doesn't receive the Freeview MHEG-4 EPG, but the standard EPG is good enough.

[url=]http://www.ultrapower.co.nz/product_receiver_hd_satellite_pvr_ultraplus-x9200hd-pvr.html[url=]

Comes standard with a 500GB drive, but you can upgrade.

Although this PVR compares well with others, none that I have seen seem to perform as well as a HTPC with PVR software.

I use DVBViewer and DVBViewer Recording Service with my HTPC, and on FreeviewHD channels, I have never seen a set-top-box /branded PVR with as good a picture as my HTPC.

My advice would be spend the money on a HTPC, then you can choose how many and what type of tuners you want, stream recordings and live TV to other devices on your home network, and, depending on the system's video graphics, have a far superior picture.

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