In terms of picture quality, we can't fault the Foxsat-HDR. HD material from a good source looked exceptional. Of course, it's the original source that defines how good the image quality will be. BBC HD is nothing short of brilliant, and 90 per cent of the shows it airs are of a very high technical quality. We did note that, on ITV HD, some football matches looked fairly poor quality. This is something that we'd expect to improve with time, but don't expect every show that calls itself HD to be perfect.
SD pictures also looked good. The HDR will upscale programmes to 1080i if you choose to allow it. The advantage of using it in this mode is that it can generate menus in HD, which makes everything look much prettier and improves the usability too.
You'll also get access to Dolby Digital audio, as long as you've got something that can decode surround sound. Most HD programmes come with 5.1-channel surround sound, which is simply brilliant for movies and sport.
In terms of storage, the 320GB hard drive is ample for SD recordings. When you start to record shows in HD, however, it's not very long before you find yourself running out of space. With moderate use, we stuffed our hard drive to nearly full in under a month.
Conclusion
There's absolutely nothing about the Humax Foxsat-HDR that would put us off recommending it. There are a few minor complaints, but the majority of them are to do with broadcasters and copyright rules, not the hardware. If you're seeking a freesat personal video recorder, your options are quite limited at the moment, but the Foxsat-HDR is likely to remain the best machine on the market for some time to come.
Edited by Charles Kloet
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User reviews6
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little em 7 May 2011
Good: I could tell Sky to go and poke it! HD channels are awesome
Bad: Nothing
Comment: Yippee. Over 140 channels does everything that a sky box does but its FREE and no rude horrid SKY people to have to call anymore. Although cancelling SKY took nearly 6 months. Was worth it in the end.
I love the fact there are separate buttons on the remote for the "Guide" and "Media" (Stuff you've recorded), instead of having to go through the same menu.
Can't believe that after having the box now 2 months we have already saved the cost of it, what we were paying to SKY.
Easy installation just plugged in to the old SKY cables.
Easy to watch iplayer and Channel4 on demand.
How did we manage with out it xxxxxxx
I love the fact the channel plays in the background when you are checking your guide.
The time line, when you are watching something that is recorded or paused, is brilliant.
Controller is sleek and easy to use.
JacobHunt 17 March 2011
Good: 1.Outstanding picture quality, in both HD and SD 2.Simple to set up 3.remote is nice & robust
Bad: 1.The box takes a good 15-20 seconds to wake up from stand-by
Comment: FANTASTIC! I had two Sky Boxes and two Panasonic Hard Drive Recorders and this one box has replaced them all. Where as many, many times Sky did not switch on to record, the Humax has not failed once since I bought it.
I am running the box through a Sony full H.D. 52" t.v. and even the non H.D. channels are clear in fact close to 3D. Far superior too to the Sky + system.
One failing, it does not have a grouping for favourite channels. On the other hand you can enter a name of a program and it will search the next 7 days to find it for you. There is a display on the front of the box so you can see what you are watching, not just the channel but the program too.
The added extra is that EVERYTHING is free after you have bought the box unlike Sky who even charge you for channels with endless adverts. This is a must buy. I have even contacted Humax for some help and they were incredibly polite and helpful.
No need to telephone them, they answer 'personally' by e mail, no costly calls, again unlike Sky. If you want a fantastic product at a great price then this is it. Oh and by the way, you get 200 hours of standard recordings or 80 hours of H.D. recordings and the H.D. quality is unbelievable.
Well done Humax, BBC and ITV for such an innovation and for once you are thinking of the viewing public's pleasure not just what money you can get out of us!
*** P.S. If you will buy this Humax FOXSAT-HDR Freesat+ I suggest you at: amazon.co.uk/dp/B001L5YU36/?tag=reviews.cnet.co.uk-21
LutonFan 28 November 2009
Good: The overall ease of use
Bad: Nothing
Comment: Overall, an excellent machine. Initially, the user was unable to delete a recorded programme whilst the box was recording another. This has been rectified by a recent firmware update. Not sure if this is my imagination, but the boot up time seems to have improved.
The aforemention update also included a parental control facility and the machine now allows you to prevent accidental erasure of recorded content.
To sum up, an almost perfect 'bit of kit'. Would recommend this to anyone.
See all 6 user reviews