Freeview Set-top boxes

FrequencyCast UK TV Podcast

This page provides information and specifications on the range of Freeview set-top receivers available in the UK.

Freeview set-top boxes allow you to access over 40 channels of digital TV without subscription. Boxes can be purchased for a one-off fee starting from around £20.

Below, you'll find a summary of the range of UK Freeview set top box receivers.

If you're looking for general advice on what to buy, try the FAQ on our help page first.

Radio & Telly's Freeview Quick Picks
Philex FV400: Basic box that works on TVs without a SCART socket. Amazon £35	BT Vision: Freeview recorder plus on-demand content. Available to BT Broadband customers. More info: get.btvision.bt.com	Humax PVR-9300: Includes a hard-disk recorder that holds 160 hours of TV. Laskys £164

Key: With modulator Hard disk recorder

	3view Box Powerful Freeview HD set-top box set to go on sale in late July 2010. This is set to be the first Freeview HD recorder in the UK and will also offer BBC iPlayer and Sky' Sky Player, as well as Facebook and Twitter in your TV Price: £299 - available end July 2010 More details: 3view Box Explored
	BT Vision+ box This box is designed for the BT Vision service, which launched in December 2006. The BT Vision+ Box supports live TV from Freeview, and TV-on-demand via broadband. The box has a twin-tuner, hold 80 hours of TV, and requires a BT Total Broadband connection to support download of content. The BT Vision box is available to BT Broadband customers. More on our BT Vision page or at get.btvision.bt.com
	Bush SCART Adapter Want Freeview without having to clutter up your TV system with a set-top box? Then this could be the answer. This adapter from Bush plugs into the back of your TV's SCART socket, and lets you receive the Freeview TV and radio channels without a set-top box. An infrared pod plugs into the idapter, so that the remote control can work. The Idaptor supports the 7 day programme guide. Available for £29.99 from argos.co.uk (Cat no: 532/2082) Available from Amazon.co.uk Also available on Ebay.co.uk
	Bush TU160DTR - Top Up TV PVR Freeview, plus extra content via Top Up TV Anytime 160GB hard drive - Up to 80 hours Twin Tuner 14 Day EPG 2 x SCART sockets Price: £87.99 from Argos (Cat no: 527/0299)
	Daewoo DSD9520 PVR to allow recording of Freeview onto hard disk. Card slot suitable for subscription services and has EPG Hard Disk: 80Gig (40 hours) Outputs: 2 x SCART, stereo audio, digital audio Listed for £175.95 from Amazon
	Dion Eco 1 - BUDGET MODEL A budget model with a 7 day programme guide and one SCART socket Available for £19 from the Tesco Direct website.
	Fetch TV Smartbox 8000 Fetch TV launched towards the end of 2008. It combines Freeview, hard disc recorder, and content over broadband - a little like the cheaper BT Vision service. Specs: 80Gig hard disk, 8 day EPG, Freeview, hard-disk recorder, USB connector. Made by NetGem Available for £219 from Currys.co.uk. More on our Fetch TV page.
	Humax HD Fox-T2 - Freeview HD The first Freeview HD receiver to be produced by Humax Available in February 2010 for around £180. 2 x SCART ; HDMI ; RF loopthrough ; Ethernet Listed for £180 at Argos.co.uk and Comet More details: See our Humax HD Fox T2 Page
	Humax PVR-9150T Freeview receiver with a built-in hard drive. Features: 160GB built-in hard-disk (up to 100 hours recording) Twin Tuner 7 day Electronic Programme Guide Available for £129.21 from Tribal UK Available for £126.99 from Comet Available for £149.99 from Argos (Cat 532/1681)
	Humax PVR-9300T Freeview receiver with a built-in hard drive. An upgrade from the popular PVR-9200. Became available in July 2008. Supports Freeview+ . Features include: 320GB built-in hard-disk (up to 160 hours recording) Twin Tuner (watch one channel while recording another Picture-in-Picture HDMI out for upscaling to a Hi-Def TV 8 day Electronic Programme Guide Card slot suitable for subscription services. (requires CAM) Full details on our Humax PVR9300 page.
	Metronics Eco Zapbox Freeview box with 7 day programme guide. Two SCART sockets Available for £34.99 from Comet Available for £34.99 from Currys
	Nikkai 7" Freeview /Analogue TV and Media Player OK - So this is not a Freeview box - it]'s a Freeview desktop telly, but we thought it was worth a mention. Capable of getting Freeview and analogue telly, this TV can also watch DivX video, play MP3 files and show a slideshow of pictures via a connected USB stick. Under £100 and a good buy. See our collection of photos and our review: Nikkai 7" LCD Review, or find out more at maplin.co.uk
	Panasonic DMR-EZ28EB-K DVD Recorder/Freeview Top quality DVD recorder with built-in Freeview tuner and HDMI upscaler, for better picture. DVD Recorder: DVD-RAM, DVD-R, DVD-R DL, DVD-RW, +R, +R DL, and +RW. Has an HDMI socket for use with High-definition TVs - 1080p upscaling. Supports DivX playback. Output: 2 x SCART , RF loopthrough Available for £159.99 from Dixons online - *Best price, free delivery* Available for £179.99 from Currys Available for £199.99 from Play.com Available for £199.99 from Comet Available for £228.88 from Bennetts Electrical
	Panasonic DMR-EX78 DVD Recorder/PVR/Freeview 250Gb HDD Recorder (for up to 441 hours), Freeview Tuner and DVD recorder. DVD Recorder: DVD-RAM, DVD-R, DVD-RW, DVD+RW, DVD+R, DVD+R DL, DVD-R DL. Has an HDMI socket for use with High-definition TVs - 1080p upscaling. Supports DivX, MP3 and JPEG compatible. USB Flash Drive playback Output: 2 x SCART , RF loopthrough Available for £279.99 from PurelyGadgets.co.uk
	Panasonic DMR-EX88 DVD Recorder/PVR/Freeview 400Gb HDD Recorder (for up to 700 hours), Freeview Tuner and DVD recorder. DVD Recorder: DVD-RAM, DVD-R, DVD-RW, DVD+RW, DVD+R, DVD+R DL, DVD-R DL. Has an HDMI socket for use with High-definition TVs - 1080p upscaling. Supports DivX, MP3 and JPEG compatible. USB Flash Drive playback Output: 2 x SCART , RF loopthrough Available for £348.87 from Bennetts Electrical
	Philex FV400 This box has an RF modulated output - handy for TV sets that don't have a SCART socket. Also supports connection by SCART, digital audio out and a 7 day programme guide. Available for around £35 from Amazon
	Philips DTR220 Features: Electronic Programme Guide, digital text. Outputs: 2 x SCART, digital audio, RF loopthrough Available for £34.95 from Laskys Available for £39 from John Lewis Available for £33.23 from Tesco.com
	Philips HDT5520 - Freeview HD Available Now (May 2010) Features: 8-day EPG, HD resolutions up to 1080p, surround sound support, low power consumption, auto-switch off. Connectors: HDMI, 1 x SCART. Ethernet socket £149.99 at Comet.co.uk £141.29 at Laskys £169.97 at Tesco.com £141.29 at Amazon.co.uk
	Thomson DTI 6021 - Top Up TV PVR Freeview, plus extra content via Top Up TV Anytime Two versions: 250GB drive (Up to 180 hours), or 500GB drive (up to 310 hours) Twin Tuner 14 Day EPG 2 x SCART sockets 250 Gig version: £99.99 from Amazon 500 Gig version: £149.99 from Amazon
	Thomson DTI 6300 - Top Up TV Anytime PVR Freeview, plus extra content via Top Up TV Anytime Two versions: 160GB drive (Up to 120 hours), or 250GB drive (up to 180 hours) Twin Tuner Output: 2 x SCART, digital audio and RF modulated output Reviewed on our TopUp TV Anytime page 160 Gig version: £49.99 (reconditioned), or £89.99 (new) direct from topuptv.com 250 Gig version: £59.99 (reconditioned), or £99.99 (new) direct from topuptv.com
	Topfield TF5800PVR Twin tuners, 160Gig hard disk (up to 88 hours recording time), supports time-shifting & dual recording, Electronic Program Guide (EPG), MP3 via USB 2.0 for storage of personal files. CI slot suitable for subscription services. Became available April 2005. 250Gig version available for £188 at Amazon More details on our PVR page
	TVonics MFR-200 Ultra-small box, works with TV sets that don't have a SCART socket. Has an 8-day Electronic Programme Guide and is energy efficient (1.5 watts). Available for around £40 from Argos online , Tesco Direct Online , Play.com and Homebase More on this on our TVonics Freeview page
PC Cards
	Hauppauge HVR900 Hybrid USB Receive digital TV on your PC. Run either in full-screen mode making your PC monitor behave as a TV, or having a smaller TV screen sitting in the corner of your desktop while you work. This model is a 'hybrid', so supports both analogue and digital. Available from Dabs.com, Amazon and Play.com For more on this, see our TV on your PC page
	More Freeview on a Computer solutions There are a number of different solutions available, from different manufacturers: Hauppauge - These seem to be the most common and popular - You can get these from Amazon , Dabs.com and PC World AverMedia and Nebula - See the range at Misco and www.maplin.co.uk (under the 'Computers', 'Build your own' section). Xpert V-Stream VS-DVBT - Available from Maplin.co.uk - Cat No A75BZ (PCI version) and A78BZ (USB version) Got an Apple Mac? Consider the Equinux Tubestick For more on the options available, see our TV on your PC page

List last updated: July 2010

Prices, specifications and offers are subject to alteration. Refer to the websites that we link to for latest prices, information and conditions

* RF loopthrough - Your main TV aerial connects into set-top box, and the box has an aerial output socket that can be used to feed a TV or video recorder regardless of whether the Freeview box is on or off. For a fuller explanation, see our Glossary
* RF modulator - Modulated output indicates that a box can 're-broadcast' the output onto a new TV channel, so that your TV or video can 'tune in' to the Freeview signal (this is especially useful for TV and video equipment that don't have SCART sockets). For a fuller explanation, see our Glossary

Boxes are available from: Dixons, Comet, Currys, Argos , John Lewis and Littlewoods Direct.

Low-priced boxes?

If you're looking for a cheap, basic Freeview box, you can find some simple models for around £20 at the Tesco Direct website. At the time of writing, there is the Dion Eco 1 Freeview receiver for under £19

Older / Discontinued Set-top boxes

If you're looking for information on older, discontinued or hard-to-find Freeview or onDigital boxes, try our list of Older Freeview Boxes

Freeview Links

Freeview information - More details of Freeview
Discuss Freeview and Set-top boxes in our Freeview forum
Remote controls - Need a new replacement remote control? See our FAQ
Freeview FAQ - Our page containing answers to common Freeview questions and problems

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