Anyone bought a portable DVD/Freeview TV and feel ripped off?

colmil

A few weeks ago, I bought a Digitronix 10.2" screen DVD with a Freeview Digital tuner on EBay from Digitronix UK who sell new items.

Including postage etc it was about £148.

I travel around a lot on business and thought it would be useful to receive extra channels when away.

I tuned it in but couldn't receive any signal at all, yet I live in an apartment which receives Freeview.

I bought an aerial from Argos, again, absolutely nothing.

I posted on here and a poster kindly suggested another one from Argos, again, a total waste of time.

We have satellite here so I plugged the aerial into my unit, and Lo & Behold, at last, pictures!

Now if I can only work out how to take a complete satellite system away with me.......

This unit is a complete waste of money, Digitronix refuse to refund me as they
say it is in their terms and conditions that no refunds will be given. I have spoken to Trading Standards who said that, as I can receive channels, all be it through a satellite dish, I have no comeback. I maintain that Digitronix should have made it clear in ther webpage that there may be problesm with reception.

I bought this for the Freeview, I already have a 7" DVD player, it now seems that I have a larger one at a very high price.

I have asked for a refund three times but have been refused.

Dixitronix's attitude is disgusting and I am considering taking them to the small Claims Court as I am so disgusted.

Any comments, pleae?

penrhyn

What exactly did you connect to your portable unit to get pictures?
You need a decent external terrestrial aerial to receive freeview unless you are very close to the transmitter as DTT output power is low in comparison to the Analogue signal.
PS you cannot get freeview via a satellite dish.

cledor

colmil wrote:

............Now if I can only work out how to take a complete satellite system away with me.......

Is this a satellite freeview receiver or one that receives digital terrestrial signal?

If it's a satellite receiver then yes you will need to carry some form of satellite aerial (i.e a dish) to receive anything on it. This is unlikely.

I think what you did is plugged your regular TV aerial into it (which is usually plugged into the back of your sat receiver alongside the dish input) and the signal was strong enough to show digital channels.

You will have a hard job convincing a court that what you bought is not fit for purpose since the supplier will argue that you are not using it with suitable aerials. Check the wording of the eBay listing and see if it states that it will work with any indoor aerial, if it says so then you may have a case.

mattogier

There is obviously a problem with

free-view reception - I recently brought a USB digital TV stick for
daughters birthday and ended up having to put a new
Ariel on a new pole on the roof to make it work (The little
antenna supplied is only useful to clean out ones ears!!)

As part of the process of getting it all working I thought I'd check that my

Ariel got free-view by buying a box from Argos with a view to returning it when I'd tested the signal.

Argos DO NOT accept returned free-view boxes (probably the ONLY thing they

don't accept back) - there must be a big issue with reception for Argos to make it their policy!

Even now the signal keeps dropping out when it rains or a bird sits on the Ariel!

cledor

Yes, as others have posted here and on other MSE threads, the digital signal is not as strong as analogue, this will be the case for at least a couple of years. Even after analogue switch off you will still need a decent enough signal for the DTT to work in a reliable fashion.

colmil

I have thoroughly read through their blurb and they say that one should check to ensure that they are in a Freeview area, which I am.

At no point does it say that an external aerial is needed, they even offered a small portable aerial at exrtra cost.

It also says that I should receive 'crystal-clear' analogue signals which it doesn't.

I have no doubt that these people are selling goods not fit for the intended purpose, i.e. a TV able to receive signals when used portably which this clearly cannot do.

jonesMUFCforever

colmil wrote:

I have thoroughly read through their blurb and they say that one should check to ensure that they are in a Freeview area, which I am.

At no point does it say that an external aerial is needed, they even offered a small portable aerial at exrtra cost.

It also says that I should receive 'crystal-clear' analogue signals which it doesn't.

I have no doubt that these people are selling goods not fit for the intended purpose, i.e. a TV able to receive signals when used portably which this clearly cannot do.

Go ahead and sue but you will lose.
Cut your losses and put it on Ebay.

MarkyMarkD

Frankly, ejones999, I don't agree.

If you take them to small claims court, the chances of them bothering to defend a claim for £148 are next to nothing, so I expect that the OP would win.

That said, the part of the OP's last post I don't understand is where they state that the supplier offered an optional external aerial - if they offer this, I don't see that they are saying that the device will work WITHOUT this external aerial. Unless the specific compatible external aerial was bought, they might feel they can claim that you didn't buy the necessary combination of devices for it to work.

colmil

I received an e-mail about 10 days after I bought the tuner offering this aerial, at extra cost, the company said it would refund the cost of the aerial if it didn't work but not the cost of the tuner.

It did not look to be anything like the quality of the aerials that I had already tried from Argos, I am willing to buy their aerial on the basis that if it doesn't work they refund the cost of the tuner AND the aerial but they have refused, in writing.

As ar as I am concerned, they are selling a product not fit for purpose.

I warn anyone against buying anything from Digitronix.