Personally I'd say stick with your first idea and buy a Samsung BluRay player, if you're not concerned about recording features. I've had YouView, and now have freetime (HB-1000S), and never found much use for the "scrollback EPG" features on either of them.
i liked YouView but after two boxes died on me within 18 months I decided not to risk buying another. I definitely wouldn't buy one being sold cheap on ebay. YouView still has a lot of problems, having been forced to market before it was ready. A cheap ebay box is probably going to be an ex-BT or ex-TalkTalk box. That means not only no warranty and no support, but also no manufacturer updates, including bug fixes. You'd be dependent on BT or TalkTalk for future updates.
YouView pros:
1 excellent search, which searches not only the 7-day EPG but also all the catchup/on-demand.
2 more catchup/on-demand than you get with freetime
3 nice UI and a better "feel" in use
4 has developed since launch, and more goodies may be coming.
YouView cons:
1 dismayingly unreliable
2 very few user options on things like channel tuning, setting timers, etc
3 no DLNA, no USB playback, no wireless
4 many inexplicable frustrations, for instance the brilliant search won't work at all if the box isn't connected.
5 uncertain future and too many conflicting interests
Freetime pros:
1 It's just a box, with no known plans for world domination
2 Very good search, though only for the EPG
3. Good, easy-to-use user features of the kind YouView doesn't offer, DLNA, USB playback, etc
4 The catchup players work well and reliably, and so does the YouTube player.
Freetime cons:
1 I personally really dislike the drab green EPG
2 Limited on-demand
I would go for the Samsung if I were you. Hope this helps.
| Fri 3 Jan 2014 10:14:58
#2 |
