Price: $466.5
Despite the name, the T1000 isn’t a
liquid metal killing machine from the future. It’s the launch vehicle for
YouView, the subscription-free Freeview HD-plus-VoD service.
Until now, there have been two classes of
TV citizen – the Sky and Virgin haves, and the Freeview
have-not-quite-so-muches. YouView brings a new middle-class of viewer who doesn’t
pay a monthly sub but still get catch-up, on-demand and other such magic.
Humax
DTR-T1000
While YouView’s choice of channels is much
sparser than what you’d get in a basic package from Sky or Virgin, there’s the
added frisson of on-demand content. A searchable archive contains whole seasons
of programmes, to watch at any time.
YouView collects the catch-up services from
Britain’s terrestrial TV channels: BBC iPlayer, ITV Player, 4oD and Demand 5.
So you get a standard TV guide on your screen, but you can scroll back through
the previous seven days’ worth of TV. For free, remember.
The T100 has intuitive controls for pausing
and rewinding live TV, recording one channel while you match another and
series-linking. There’s space for 300 hours of SD TV or 125 hours of HD, and
twin Freeview HD tuners make taping Telly easy. A non-recording YouView box is also
being readied.
What’s the catch? Well, YouView needs good
broadband – a 5Mbps stream is recommended – so you could find yourself waiting
for HD to buffer. Also, there’s no smartphone control or smart TV apps on offer
yet, though both are possible future upgrades.
Whether the T100 can terminate its rivals
will depend on its YouView programme Armoury, that’s why Sky is so popular –
the box isn’t better, but it does get Sky Atlantic. If YouView can entice
Lovefilm or Netflix into their stable, it’ll become a serious contender.
Alternatively…
Samsung STB-E7500
Price: $ 466.5
Two Freeview tuners, Wi-Fi, the ability to
stream from your phone, NAS or PC and lots and lots of apps, including
Lovefilm, Netflix, BBC iPlayer, BBC Sport, a web browser and games, all in one
pretty box
Samsung
STB-E7500
Stuff says
Price: $ 466.5 for a lifetime’s worth of
Telly? Not bad, but apps and Wi-Fi would sweeten the deal
Teach specs
Tuners: 2x
Freeview HD
Storage:
500GB
Connectivity: HDMI, Ethernet, USB 2.0 (x2), SCART, RCA, digital audio out
