Any advice on TV only packages?

madaminx

TV only packages are a minefield . . . looking for a set top.box that records, has catch up TV and allows for amazon Netflix to be added if I want . . . .

There's so many options out there such as
You view, Freeview Plus, Free play . . . . but want something that's not part of a.contract,.any recommendations?

Thanks in advance :beer:

iniltous

If you want non pay TV, that's Freeveiw or Freesat, adding in the ability to pause/record broadcast TV then it's Freeview + or Freesat +.
Catchup services like BBC I player, or ITV Hub can be accessed on many devices, 'smart' TV's or as 'apps' on the Freeveiw/sat set top box, provided the box or TV is connected to your broadband.
As far as the STB manufacturer , I'm sure others will post recommendations , or do a search ...obviously if you go for Freesat you need a satellite dish pointed at the correct orbital position, a Sky dish works (not Sky Q) an aerial is needed for Freeview
Some recommend Now TV as a half way house between pay TV and free TV, you pay for some content, but you can dip in and out on a month by month basis, and the catchup works when you don't have a TV pass, but as its part of Sky , it may not be possible to easily access their competition Netflix or Amazon, and I'm not sure if even the expensive versions of the Now TV box allow you to pause /record broadcast TV

Neil_Jones

Now TV doesn't allow the functionality of Sky+, its just a streaming service. You used to be able to sideload Netflix or Amazon on the Now box but that's been cut off with a firmware update.

Rodders53

First things first:

Do you have a UHF TV aerial that works well? Freeview products need one to work. https://www.freeview.co.uk

Do you have a working satellite dish? With two cables to the room from the dish lnb? a freesat pvr will need two feeds to work. https://www.freesat.co.uk/get-freesat

Or do you have both sources of broadcast TV available?

almillar

Recording boxes with catch up. No problem.
If you have an aerial, buy a Youview box.
If you have a satellite dish (with 2 cables/dual cable), buy a Freetime box.
Netflix etc would require smart functionality. You may get some of this in some of the above boxes, or you may need another device, or a smart TV.

Bronvahl

A friend of mine has a DVD recorder with hard disk that has Freeview channels, I think it is samsung, it has some sort of App capability for Netflix, Amazon etc