THE LAZY MAN'S GUIDE TO CABLE SWAPPING (Gefen 3x1 HDMI Switcher)

Member Name: stuleg

Product:	Gefen 3x1 HDMI Switcher
Date:	03/11/09 (62 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Intuitive, unobtrusive

Disadvantages: None of note

I thought I'd covered all the bases when I purchased my High Definition TV last year; but amongst the dazzling contrast ratio and screen resolution stats I somehow overlooked the fact that it only came equipped with one HDMI port. At the time this wasn't a major issue, the only high definition accessory I owned was an Xbox 360, so my entertainment appliances lived happily side by side all using their own different types of socket. But then those rascals at Sky came into my life, tempted me like a burlesque dancer showing just too much petticoat with their £49 all singing all dancing high definition boxes. Of course, me being an advertisers dream I simply had to have one, only then would my life be complete as I view repeats of Gladiators or When Budgerigars attack! in glorious, crystal clear detail. And so I signed up, but having rushed to order the practicalities of the situation sunk in - these new boxes are only connectable to a TV via an HDMI cable, which had me rueing the purchase of a TV with only one of the sought after sockets. Of course the simple solution would be to swap cables between the Xbox and Sky as and when required; but I use the gaming device to watch DVD's which would mean swapping the cables several times a week. To me this just wasn't acceptable - It's no good showing off your high def picture and glorious looking console games if you have to fumble behind the TV for ten minutes, swearing and muttering as you try to find the end of the requisite cable while waggling your bum in the faces of the assembled throng.

Something permanent and less troublesome was called for. I'd heard of gizmos called HDMI switchers - handy little devices that sit behind the TV and enabled you to switch between HDMI devices with a simple remote controlled button push. Great! Problem solved, or so I thought. Alas a decent one of these clever little boxes cost close to £100, enough to make me blanch as my face lost all definition - high or otherwise. I also toyed with the idea of upgrading my TV - again, but this was a very expensive solution to a niggling little problem. Just when all hope seemed lost and I'd resigned myself to a lot of labour-intensive cable jiggery-pokery a work colleague came to the rescue. Like the proverbial Knight in shining armour he told me about a similar problem he had encountered having purchased a PS3 for his son at Christmas. He too had come face to face with the "more HDMI devices than sockets" conundrum, but rather than consider an expensive switch box his son pointed him in the direction of an HDMI switcher made by Gefen. He was happy with the performance and said it was simple to setup and unobtrusive, and at the not unreasonable price of £35 I was rapidly becoming a fan myself, so I ordered one of the aforementioned gizmos in the hope of banishing my cable swapping woes.

What's in the box?

First and foremost you get the switcher box itself - the size of a paperback book with numerous sockets and ports to accommodate the many cables and wires required. These cables include a remote control sensor, a USB power cable (more on that later) and a mains power adapter. Next out of the box comes a small and simple three button remote which is used to switch between the three ports dependent on what high def signal you want displayed on the TV. Last, and probably least, is the User guide - unnecessarily thick due to it being printed in eight languages it nevertheless provides enough information to setup the switcher with little trouble.

How does it work then?

All you do is plug the HDMI cable from your TV in one side, while the opposite side has three ports to plug your HDMI appliances into. Then all you do is use the remote to switch between your appliances. The remote sensor can be placed anywhere in view and is so unobtrusive it blends into its surroundings. The best part of the switcher for me though is the ability to use the included USB cable to power the unit. Behind my TV, plug sockets are at a premium, and the thought of using yet another adapter/extension cord didn't sit well. All Sky and Virgin V+ boxes, as well as the PS3 and Xbox 360 have USB sockets to their rear. On the consoles they are used for various add-ons but with the digital TV boxes they have no clear use, yet they are connected and have a power supply which makes them ideal for powering the switcher. The remote control is best described as basic, but then you only need three buttons to switch between HDMI appliances so there is little point adding buttons for the sake of it.

Conclusion

Simply put the Gefen switcher does its job well, and without the price premium of other switchers. I was a little dubious at how a unit costing so little would deliver, yet it manages in a no nonsense way. I've been using the switcher for around a fortnight now and have had no problems whatsoever; the remote is responsive and the switching is instantaneous. When all of the cables and wires are inserted the unit is a little on the cumbersome side, not dissimilar to an electro-spider as cables sprout hither and dither, but then this switcher is not designed to sit in view and as such it doesn't have to be aesthetically pleasing. The idea of using a USB cable to power the unit is a masterstroke, simple and intuitive yet something competition switchers seem not to have considered. Four stars out of five from me then for a clever, uncomplicated and practical solution to a lack of HDMI sockets on a TV.

Summary: A clever, low cost option to increase your HDMI connectivity