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Firstly I hope this is the right place and secondly my question is more about platforms.
I have ITV Player via via my foxsat HDR and iPlayer via my Sony TV but i sometimes need catch up tv from 4oD and demand5, so having asked around last few days i was going to go the route of Samsung BluRay player for about £100, but having thought about it i was wondering if i should go for a YouView box new on ebay for about the same money and that offers catchup as well and also found out Freesat has same kind of things called “FreeTime”.
So my question is does anyone have BOTH YouView & FreeTime? If so what do you think of the hardware and the catch up side of things?
I have looked around for shootouts between YouView and FreeTime and not seen much so if you find any links can you let me know please.
All1
Personally I’d say stick with your first idea and buy a Samsung BluRay player, if you’re not concerned about recording features. I’ve had YouView, and now have freetime (HB-1000S), and never found much use for the “scrollback EPG” features on either of them.
i liked YouView but after two boxes died on me within 18 months I decided not to risk buying another. I definitely wouldn’t buy one being sold cheap on ebay. YouView still has a lot of problems, having been forced to market before it was ready. A cheap ebay box is probably going to be an ex-BT or ex-TalkTalk box. That means not only no warranty and no support, but also no manufacturer updates, including bug fixes. You’d be dependent on BT or TalkTalk for future updates.
YouView pros:
1 excellent search, which searches not only the 7-day EPG but also all the catchup/on-demand.
2 more catchup/on-demand than you get with freetime
3 nice UI and a better “feel” in use
4 has developed since launch, and more goodies may be coming.
YouView cons:
1 dismayingly unreliable
2 very few user options on things like channel tuning, setting timers, etc
3 no DLNA, no USB playback, no wireless
4 many inexplicable frustrations, for instance the brilliant search won’t work at all if the box isn’t connected.
5 uncertain future and too many conflicting interests
Freetime pros:
1 It’s just a box, with no known plans for world domination
2 Very good search, though only for the EPG
3. Good, easy-to-use user features of the kind YouView doesn’t offer, DLNA, USB playback, etc
4 The catchup players work well and reliably, and so does the YouTube player.
Freetime cons:
1 I personally really dislike the drab green EPG
2 Limited on-demand
I would go for the Samsung if I were you. Hope this helps.
Alloneword – 7 hours ago »
I have ITV Player via via my foxsat HDR and iPlayer via my Sony TV but i sometimes need catch up tv from 4oD and demand5, so having asked around last few days i was going to go the route of Samsung BluRay player for about £100,
Have you considered a Now TV box for £10?
The NowTV box doesn’t have 4oD though.
JamesB – 2 minutes ago »
The NowTV box doesn’t have 4oD though.
It claims to have 4OD?
The OP mentioned 4oD as one of the things he’s looking to get.
JamesB – 30 minutes ago »
The OP mentioned 4oD as one of the things he’s looking to get.
But the Now TV box claims to have 4OD. Are you certain that it doesn’t?
Apologies, I should have checked before I posted. It does now have 4oD, so a bargain indeed for the OP’s requirements.
I had never given the Sky box a thought to be honest, I’ll look into this now, if i go this route then i’ll need an HDMI switcher but i’ll still be quids in, thanks for the suggestion i’ll have a dig around now.
All1
Mmm seems like a nice box but does not come with ITV Player (but i do have this on Foxsat HDR), I’m going to look into xmbc and modding it in some way so it’s still on the list of maybe’s
All1
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