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Dion STB1AW09
by topsyturvy
I have had a good set top box in my living room for a while and have gone through a number but this one I have had for over a year. I bought this brand a while ago and at the time, I definitely wasn't familiar with Dion but the set top box looked fine to me and all I wanted was access too all Freeview channels, so I purchased this. The ... set top box comes with a remote control as standard and is quite a good size, not as big as some and it fits perfectly on my television table.
APPEARANCE
This set top box is about the size of a box of Maltesers, a weird comparison I know but that is about the right size, Amazon claim its boxed weight is 2.6kg. It is black in colour and the front of it has a plastic panel which has the Dion logo on it and the receiver light and on the reverse is where you plug everything in. To hold, it is very light in weight and the remote control is small too it is the right weight and runs on 1 x AAA battery and has a very good connection unless you are blocking the signal.
DION STB1AW09
To start with, setting this up wasn't difficult at all, you just follow the instructions and plug your SCART cable into the bag along with the power and other cable. This should then connect the box fine and it can automatically start scanning for channels if you follow the set up process and let it to do the rest. Once it has finished the scan, it says you can get up to 50 channels, I have about that and there you are, ready to watch TV. This scan also gives you up to 24 radio channels but I don't really listen to these.
The remote control is great on this, always has a signal and is quick to respond. You always need to press the red power button to be able to use the set top box and then you can control the volume, you have your coloured red through to blue buttons and menu buttons. There are your channels up and down buttons and your guide button which is where you click to see the programme. It is a nice blue display showing the channel in the corner and it shows information and hourly guide of what is on all channels.
The guide is great, very informative and the display is very easy to follow. To change channels, it always works fine I never find signal issues with this box which is why I like it so much as other boxes always have errors, losing signal or a crackled signal and this just doesn't do that. Once every couple of months the TV does freeze but a quick switch off then on again and it is back to normal and able to use. This is normal thought and considering my signal is that great, I cannot fault it greatly for the freezing as it is so infrequent.
This set top box has a 1W standby power consumption and this also comes with teletext if you need to use it. The remote is easy to guide along all of the channels but I tend to use the guide to find what I want as it loads so quickly that you can see right away what is on. The battery on the remote has lasted me since I bought this set top box but I always turn off the set top box when I am not using the TV as I don't like to keep it on all of the time. It shows a green light when on and a red light when off.
I am happy with this set top box and recommend it to anyone who needs one. Don't be put off by the fact it isn't a well known brand as I have had mine a while and it is still doing a great job and giving me a fantastic signal so that I can watch TV with no interference which is hard to find in a set top box. It looks nice and fits well next to any TV set being black and having a small light, nothing too fancy. Its cables all stay connected fine and it is east to set up which is what you want.
COST
To purchase this set top box, you can buy it from Amazon who are selling this model for £16.58 from one of their sellers, this is a good price, not the cheapest but it is reasonable.
I could not find an official Dion website, I'm afraid but Amazon give some good information.
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Thomson DTI 6300
by mafwmaf
As with gifts, there sometimes comes with it a stigma, a little unseen emotion that won't let you hand it back to the generous bearer, and with this product, I certainly wanted to hand it back to my friend.
Although this was a gift, I understand that the price at the time was quite high and was full of features, but since i am ... talking about my experience with it, I will. So far this box has been the most bog standard piece of kit I have ever graced the shelf under my TV with, feature wise, its got channels, you probably know the freeview standard ones. Other features were meant to include recording and pausing live TV, up to two channels at once, which would be handy, if it worked. Top up TV is present in this but I don't see the point.
As for the build quality, its not a tight as I would like and sometimes hear a loud fan noise coming from it (probably to cool the hard drive which is supposed to doing stuff, but isn't), it isn't the nicest looking piece of kit either, but that's just my opinion, other people may like it.
Another problem that I have had is having to rescan for channels once every couple of weeks, which is irritating at best.
All in all, it's a good job this was a gift, because if I paid good money for it, I would be less than unsatisfied.
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Amstrad DRX890 500 GB SKY HD BOX
by k444tmc
I acquired my Sky HD box late last year when I moved into my old house and took out a Sky HD subscription to go with my new 42" HD TV - I had opted for the HD subscription as I thought getting the basic box with this TV would be a waste of potencial and I would regret it months/years down the line.
Generally I do love my ... Sky HD box but at the same time the love is full of regret. What are the conflicts? Well for one the picture on my screen when watching a HD channel on the sky box is amazing - a massive difference to a normal screen when the TV is also Full HD. Another good point for me would be the much more attractive Sky Menu screen when you compare to the basic Sky box - much easier to use and looks better (this has also undergone a recent revamp which looks even better than before)... Now on to the bad point. THE COST! I did get the box for free when I took out the Sky which is ok, but the monthly costs are horrendous. Thankfully unlike some people I do not have Sports or Movies which helps but to many it is a cost which they can live without.
Installation
Setting up the box on to HD is simple - Sky wil send someone from the company out (with box and connections) and set this up for you. If for any reason such as a house move you need to dismantle the connections away from the box it is very easy to set up again.
Appearance
On to the appearance of the Sky HD box... Compared to the older box which is a grey/silver colour the HD version is mainly black with very minimul silver features - on the front just a small strip of silver which runs through. To most this would be more attractive as when the older normal Sky box's came out the favoured appliance colour for TV's/Stereo's ect was silver which is not to everyones tastes anymore. On the face of the box are your regular sky buttons which are used to record/play/forward/rewind ect and the opposite side holds your channel changing buttons (which are handy if you ever happen to lose the remote!). One great feature which doesn't appear on the older box is the screen at the front which lights up in blue and red colours and indicates when the box is recording a programme or you are watching a pre-recorded programme. To me this makes the box look very modern.
The remote control which comes with the box is also different to the original remotes that came out with the older box's and the theme goes with the mainly black features on the HD box.
Features
OK, so what features does the HD box have that the older box doesn't? As well as the HD content one of the main things I love is the fact you can connect your internet router directly to the box and have instant access to Sky Anything + which is many favourite programmes that Sky has picked out available for immediate download. This holds many different programme types such as documenteries and kids shows so there is something for everyone there. To me its a great feature as there is always a point in our lives where we can't ever find anything on TV to watch!
Like the older Sky box's you also get all the games such as BeeHive Bedlam and all your shopping and gambling needs.
To date I have not had any issues with how the box runs / recordings although my parents got a HD box as soon as it came out to go with their new TV and they have had some problems where it has just stopped working and Sky being very slow to try and sort it out (not to mention rude call centre staff liking to hang up rather than resolve the problem). Whether you have problems or not it seems to be pot luck with Sky, but if for any reason you are unsatisfied with their service if you threaten to go to another provider you can usually get reductions and free things added to your package!
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Would I recommend?
As previously stated its a luxery which we all love and hate. We love it compared to the boring Freeview but we hate it for the running costs. The box itself is free of charge from sky but you make up for this with the high monthly bills. Being honest I don't think I could live without it as I do tend to put my feet up when I come in from work and watch a bit of TV and I do like that Sky has more choice than Freeview. And in a way the HD content is worth it. I would recommend to all but be prepared to pay the price for it which can be costly depending on the package you are after.
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