Top Up TV Anytime DTR review

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Verdict:

Having recorded and watched endless hours of daytime TV, we felt fully qualified to choose the best PVR. In the end there were two models that deserved special mention, and one undisputed winner.

Samsung's DVD-SH855M is the best of a rather disappointing trio of haard disk/DVD combo PVRs. Although all these devices have an amazing range of features, none of them gets the basics right, so we didn't think any of them deserved an award.

Among the hard disk PVRs, Humax's PVR-9200TB almost took the group's top honours. Its interface is excellent, with timeshifting and scheduling that work exactly as you'd expect them to. It also has a USB port for archiving recordings, but is fairly expensive at £163.

While impressive, Humax's PVR couldn't beat Top Up TV's Anytime DTR. It does everything you need a PVR to do and has the added flexibility of a viewing card slot. It's available for only £100 including VAT, and there's no commitment to subscribe to the Anytime service. It's a bargain and our Best Buy PVR.

Review Date: 5 Dec 2007

Price when reviewed: £100

Reviewed By: Seth Barton

Our Rating 5 stars out of 5

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Top Up TV's Anytime DTR has a viewing card slot on the front, so you can subscribe to Top Up TV's Anytime service, Setanta Sports or both.

Anytime records programmes broadcast overnight for you to view when you choose, while Setanta covers a wide range of sports, including live Premiership football.

The unit offers a good selection of ports on the rear. Like all the devices here it has two SCART connectors, the second of which supports both passthrough and output, so you can back up recorded TV to video tape. There's also an S-video output and a coaxial S/PDIF audio output to connect to an AV receiver.

The remote control has the same curvaceous two-tone design as the main unit. It's one of the better remotes in the group, with controls that are easy to understand, and the buttons for the DTR's main functions are thoughtfully grouped together. The remote can also be programmed to control most TVs.

The onscreen menus are well designed. The EPG is limited in size by the Top Up TV Anytime options, and displays only an hour and a half of scheduled programmes over eight channels at a time. Annoyingly, there's no video window showing the current programme while you browse the TV listings.

You can schedule two simultaneous recordings, and selecting a third conflicting programme brings up a warning and shifts you to the scheduling menu to resolve the problem. It also supports series link, so as long as broadcasters have added the necessary information to a programme, the PVR will automatically record every episode in a series.

The Anytime DTR has continuous timeshifting, which starts buffering every time you change channel. You can pause live TV and search through the recorded information at up to 64x speed. Using the two tuners you can timeshift two channels simultaneously and flick back and forth between them. You can also timeshift to the beginning of a scheduled recording while it's still being recorded.

The Anytime DTR's low price, excellent timeshifting and the added flexibility of the viewing card slot make this PVR a great choice. It's our Best Buy.

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