Topfield TF5810PVRT Set-top Box

Big selling point on this box is a truly great picture (1080i video upscaling is very impressive) but, despite this, the Topfield is hard to love. Operationally the unit is fiddly, inconsistent and buggy. Manufacturer admitted to me some problems they know of (make sure you have firmware version 5.15.09+).

Cheap bargain-basement remote needs a complete redesign to lay buttons out logically and give prominence to often-used commands. The unit has a VERY bright blue display and power button light which, even when off and just showing the time, is almost but not quite as distracting as the annoying scrolling title display whenever you watch anything (which of course cannot be adjusted or disabled).

It seems to detect timer clashes well but I don't trust it's going to do what I tell it to do when presented with solutions. If you're watching a recorded program and the second timer starts recording something, it switches the programme you're watching off (without leaving a bookmark so you're back at the beginning when you resume playback). And, as mentioned by other reviewers, I'd prefer a 430mm wide case to match other DVD players/hi-fi separates.

On top of this I've had problems with unit refusing to play some recorded programs, random resetting of aspect ratio to 4:3 (from 16:9), random deletion of series timers (making it difficult to trust the unit to record everything you want) which has made the whole owning experience so far something of an endurance test.

On the plus side people at Topfield are easy to communicate with and respond promptly. I'm about to reformat hard drive and install latest firmware. Wish me luck.

As far as I can tell the issues identified by other reviewers have been sorted. It's easy to use, easy to upgrade and a pleasure to own.

A quick tip regarding the issue with not being able to turn off the box without losing a ongoing recording. You can simply set the timer to turn off the box automatically, just use 10 minutes. If the 10 minutes elapses and the recording hasn't finished it simply waits until it has before turning off.

I got a Toppy because my much loved Tivo could only record the basic analogue channels (connecting a freeview box is asking for trouble!) UPDATE 3 cont. The Series 1 Tivo is no more as the contract to supply EPG data went to Virgin and they will no longer support the older units, plus Freeview has replaced analogue, so RIP TiVo series 1.

The good.

If you are PC literate, and by that I mean you understand software installation and configuration, then the Toppy is a dream come true. You can download TAPs (Topfield Application Programs) that extend the functionality of the box, especially the user interface. I run MyStuff which gives similar functionality to Tivo giving me the option to record everything that has a word or phrase in it, so "star t" would record Star Trek, Star trek the next generation, Star trek the movie etc no matter what the channel, time, day, date. I have loads of these set up to record and file Series into thier own folders and films into a film library. This means we hardly ever watch live TV and there is always something on Toppy that I, and even my wife!!! wish to watch.

It has a hugh 500Gb drive and will save more than you can possibly watch. We have problems keeping up and the day will come when we will have to delete older stuff we need to abandon.

Twin tuners allow you to record up to 2 programs at once and watch another on the same multiplex as one being recorded. Sounds complicated but is not likely to cause you a problem, especially if you have a freeview TV as you wouldn't turn Toppy on to watch live TV if it was recording 2 other channels... How often are there 3 things on at once that you want to watch???

Picture and sound quality are excellent. It renders a very good picture on our 42" plasma with great sound on the stereo speakers.

It's quite reliable (see The Bad below), it's basically a simple PC which runs its own operating system.

The bad.

The remote is pants! Throw it away and buy a Logitech Harmony Logitech Harmony 885 Advanced Universal Remote Control . This allows you to set up one remote for all your AV kit and label buttons that make sense. I have the 1000 and this allows simple 2 screen access to all functions (Transport and File Management). It also controls all your kit in a sensible way (Watch TV - turns on TV, Watch DVD - Turns on TV, sets it to DVD input, turns on DVD, turns on AV amp, you could even get it to open the DVD tray on start up! Same thing for listening to CD etc)

TAPS are written by enthusiasts. This is a great source of innovation and improvement, however, they can crash. MyStuff will run for months and then it will seize up. The team are working on it and may have fixed it when you read this review. If you are not technically minded, then this will be a hugh source of angst and pain for you. I hate it but can get around it. My wife would take the box back to the shop. What you need to realize is that this is not an appliance, but a configurable computer that allows you to view and record TV.

Conclusion.

Don't let the bad put you off, the TAPS will get better and more reliable making this PVR a great asset to anyone's home viewing. Eventually, all Freeview boxes will have the functionality of Toppy, much the same as the Americans have Tivo and the Brits are lumbered with an inferior Sky+. If you haven't used Tivo you probably think Sky+ is great, I've used both and Tivo beats it hands down... ask my wife.

**** UPDATE1: I have now had a firmware update and loaded the new version of MyStuff. It's now running smoothly and recording everything I need and some of the wife's stuff ;) . I did have a slight problem in that the first unit failed after a year, but as it has a 2 year warranty it was replaced quickly and the new one is better. As for TiVo, it now controls and records from a Virgin Media box. Works well until someone knocks the IR blaster or the box decides to throw up a dialogue box that needs to be OK'd to remove. (Use Pace 20020 code to get Tivo to control the Cisco box) **** NB The Tivo mentioned here is a SERIES ONE TIVO, not the new Virgin box.

*** UPDATE 2 The box with new firmware and the latest MyStuff has now been rock solid for around a year. Well done MyStuff and Toppy! No restarts have been required and neither has it crashed. ****

*** UPDATE 3 *** The newest box has now been running reliably for over a year, so maybe the original was a Friday afternoon one!