Humax PVR-8000T Review

Overall Rating

Easy set up. Quiet. Good electronic programme guide. Excellent picture

Manual written by a Martian. Cannot watch a previously recorded programme while recording another.

I bought the Humax because I was fed up with having to keep deleting the contents of the RAM disc (a time-consuming chore which my wife has never mastered!) on my Panasonic DVD recorder (pre-hard drive model) to allow me to record something else. I was also frustrated by the Panny's inability to get itself going for at least 60 seconds after switch on. Also, I did not feel justified in spending £400+ on a replacement DVD/HD recorder.

I had heard of Humax in Which? magazine reports where their Freeview tuners came out best on test. On this basis and the reviews I read here I decided to buy it off the page from 24-7 Electrical who at the time were offering it at £125 plus p&p.

I was pleased with my initial reaction to its design - nice shiny mirrored front panel and slightly narrower than the standard DVD dimensions. I plugged it in and - hey presto!- it found all the available stations in a very short space of time and I was away.

The setup procedure is quite intuitive - fortunately you don't need the handbook to get going.

Warm up time is so quick that from turn on to record is less than 10 seconds. On my Panasonic LCD 26" TV the picture quality is flawless. Switching between the TV's own Freeview tuner and the Humax shows no change in picture (or sound) quality at all. The Humax EPG is excellent - both rapid to appear - and easy to navigate. To set a programme to record, simply highlight the item in the EPG listing and press OK on the remote. You are asked to confirm you want to 'reserve' the programme - hit OK again and that's it. Unlike some reports I have read, I have not had any recording failures. Also, in addition to recording of Freeview TV it will also record your favourite radio shows (unlike the 40GB model it supersedes).

When you first turn on the Humax it makes a tinny ticking noise for about 30 seconds or so while the hard drive sorts itself out. After that it is completely silent.

Things that irritate (but bear in mind I've only had it a month so may have missed something crucial in the handbook):-

1. When it starts a timer recording it switches the TV to the channel it's about to record and helpfully informs you it is starting to record. Bit annoying if you are engrossed in a programme and can't find the remote to change back!

2. I have yet to find a way of recording one programme while you watch a previous recording - if anyone has found a way of doing this please let me know!

3. If you are time-shifting (ie you have started watching the recording of a programme which is yet to finish), when the recording ends, the Humax stops playing back. To resume playback you have to wind back the recording using the remote and try and guess where you were when you were interrupted!

4. There is no slot to accept Top-up TV cards

The fact is that, regardless of the four gripes above, this is an amazing piece of kit for not much money. For me it's is fine and it does exactly what I want it to. If I didn't have the built-in Freeview tuner in the TV (which allows me to watch one station while Humax is recording another) I would wait for the dual tuner model which I believe is due out shortly.