Humax Freeview playback Digital TV Recorder PVR-9150T 160GB Twin Tuner PVR

UPDATE: I have had this for about 2 and a half years now. I have had relatively few problems. I have found that it does lock up and freeze but this only happens when the disk is nearly full. Deleting a few programmes does the trick. The box, like all of them, does suffer from forgetting to record programmes when re-tuned. You have to re-reserve the programmes you want to record after a major re-tune. I think this is beacause the box understands channel numbers and not channel names so can't follow a station if it wanders around. The Panasonic that I have has the same problem but its a bit more forthright in its warning about re-tuning meaning it needs to be re-programmed.

I bought it in December 2008. Here is what I wrote after 2 weeks (and I have not changed my mind!)

A great buy at just over £100, and only a little more than a plain set top box. I did a lot of research, and the Humax comes out top for a dual tuner freeview recorder. Now its not perfect, but it has the following advantages: from other reviews, its more reliable; Series link and automatic timing are really great and simple to use. A couple of button presses and you will never miss an East Enders episode again. There have been some grumbles about fan noise, mine is in the lounge and the PC in the other corner is much noisier, I think Humax may have fixed this since it was first raised, as I do not find it an issue at all.
Reception: it should be obvious from reviews and forums (actually fora) like Digital spy that you need good (not fantastic, but good) reception from a roof-top aerial for any freeview box. A TV top aerial won't give you what you want, and a proper aerial fitted on the roof is absolutely necessary.

To help you decide wif this is for you, this PVR/DTR replaces two old VHS recorders that you use for "time shift" recording (record something and watch later or a different day), this is for you. A temporary recording is also made whenever you are watching something, so you can hit the pause key and suddenly you are not watching live TV but the recording.

On the other hand, if you want to record a film, edit out the commercials and save it to a DVD, buy the Panasonic. It only has one freeview tuner, but a DVD writer, and its even easier than the Humax to use.

Throw your VHS tape recorder (VCR) away and buy one of these boxes now. Don't bother with the larger 9300T. It has double the capacity, but if you have recorded more than 100 hours of TV, when are you going to watch it? 100 hours is a lot of telly!

Series link: you select a programme in the future using the guide. The box asks you if you want the whole series. Select Yes and now not just the Monday episode is selected but any programme with the same name on the same channel will always be recorded.
Auto Timing: Don't add extra minutes to the start and end of the programme, tell the box to record the exact programme (this is the default anyway). If the programme is delayed, advanced or otherwise re-scheduled, the Humax just records it at the new time. Not the old time. Exact timing does not miss anything - East Enders doesn't record the music, but you see the title screen disappearing as it starts (or cut to first few words if it was on standby).
Pause live TV: Just press the pause button and what you were watching is frozen. Once you restart, by pressing Play, then you are watching a temporary recording. You can rewind it fast forward, etc. all while it is recording the rest of the programme (and anotehr channel as well).

All this but only 4 stars? Okay, it is not perfect. The guide is not as good as the Panasonic and I have not found how to make it automatically go over things, like the Panasonic - so recording Monday's East Enders should over-write the episode from Monday before. No option in the Humax.

These are all extra features that would be nice, don't be put off by them. Buy this machine.

I bought this 2 days ago, after long being interested in the already well-reviewed Humax PVR 9200T. The reason for hesitatng over the other was that it was on the expensive side (at least for some of us!) so I was delighted to see it had been updated at a price I could afford. It came out on 1st August. I literally plugged it in according to the very simple quick start guide, and the freeview channels loaded so fast and smoothly. The full instructions seem quite wordy, but are perfectly clear and simple to follow. The reception and picture on my -rather old- television is now excellent, whereas it was a bit temperamental before, eg with traffic, the reception deteriorated, had a lot of fuzz and had to juggle the aerial. None of that now.
Despite being cheaper, it seems to have all that the 9200T had and more. It is also more economical, using only 1 watt on standby.
You can record a series at touch of button. And have subtitles if wish. And loads more, but rather than go on, I will say confidently- see for yourself.

O one small niggle, the same as the above mentioned PVR- for some the fan noise may take some getting used to. But I think it is every bit worth it. still deserves five stars.

UPDATE 23/8/08
Ok , so it's only a week later, but I would like to add a few things. i have now recorded a number of programs, and tried watching 1 while recordiing 2, and it works. And having watched back some of these, the picture is very clear, and it starts and finishes correctly when the programmes do, even when they run a bit late. It is truly simple to use. I did find the instructions a bit boring at times, perhaps that is because once you start to get the feel of it using the well laid out remote control, it quickly becomes intuitive, and I discovered a lot by playing with the buttons. Having said that, I think it is well worth reading the booklet to get the most out of the machine. It is not that long.

I lke the PIP which enables you to keep track of a second program if wish. Eg. I like to keep half an eye on the Olympics, and when I see an event or athlete interested in, I switch that to my main screen.
YOu can change the size of it, and move it if wish, but I prefer to keep it in a top corner.

Thre is an Information button located conveniently near the channel and volume controls. Press it once, and it tells you the title and channel-press it again and it gives a simple overview of the program.

The fan noise is not really an issue for me anymore. It is good value for money too, at £130 and a recording capacity of 100 hours.

I only want to echo the comments by other users on what a wonderful and simple to use machine this is. It does everything it claims to simply and efficiently. I now have hours and hours of my favourite programmes stored up - don't know when I will watch them! Series record is BRILLIANT!

Yes, it does make a noise when it is on, due to the fan. I cannot believe that this would disturb you whilst you are actually watching TV. I am usually pretty sensitive to annoying or distracting noises and not ONCE have I found this a problem (one reviewer claims s/he had to return the product for this reason). That seems crazy to me. You would have to turn your TV volume down to nearly zero for the hum to actually drown out the sound. Sure, when you have switched off the TV it creates a perceptible low buzz in the corner of the room. Why not power it off then?
I would think this is only a problem if you are sleeping in the same room as the tuner of have canine hearing powers. If I had to, I would take a half star away for the noisiness, just because I hope Humax can improve on this in future models. But in every other sense I am 100% happy so far.