Humax gets the jump on the competition with brand new models
Last week Humax came out with three new boxes, two for the Freesat market and another for the emerging DVB-T2 multiplex in the UK which should be online in the Spring and bring 4 HD channels and World Cup soccer HD coverage. But although the Humax box is one of the first to market, this time we don’t expect others to be so reluctant to enter a market which is sure to be in the tens of millions (there are 30 million Freeview TV sets installed in the UK). For each of the 10 million homes that rely on Freeview as their primary TV in the UK, any that wish to view the new HD multiplex of channels launching in the Spring will have to replace their set or upgrade it with a new set top, which can receive DVB-T2 signals as well as Freeview’s DVB-T.
Most consumer electronic companies had no idea that Freeview would take off and the resulting slow start left Korean set top specialist Humax as the market leader. Humax took the plunge in developing products first and with relatively small revenues compared with consumer electronics giants like Sony and Samsung, it has done the same again with next generation products.
The new HD-FOX T2 is said to be more user-friendly with HD menus screens which has meant that a faster processor was needed to accelerate menu loading. The new box will output at 1080p50 where the 50 indicates how many frames per second it can support (if anyone broadcasts that fast). It features auto-scan to find new channels automatically, which will definitely help when all the popular channels play musical chairs and shift to different frequencies next year.
Later Humax will add a big hard drive at 500GB which can support both HD and SD recordings and this version will be network ready, and arrive in the second half of 2010. A later upgrade will allow storing of programs on Flash memory cards or an external hard drive.
The new Humax satellite devices also heavily featured and arrive as the FOXSAT-HD2 and the FOXSAT-HDR2.
The FOXSAT-HD2 will come with the software to access a number of online catchup TV services, including the BBC iPlayer, ITV Player and again will allow the use of Flash memory and an external hard drive to store programming.
The FOXSAT-HDR2 will come with its own 500GB internal hard drive and sits directly opposite the existing Sky+ HD box specification, but for Freesat. Both of these set tops will also be able to pick up content from your PC and play it on the TV and sometime next year both will have the ability to stream content from one set top to another around your home, so if you stored something in the living room, you can route it to the bedroom and vice versa.
There is nothing on prices for any of these boxes yet, but as we said this is going to be an exceptionally competitive market, and prices will start high but fall fast. The starting price for the HD-FOX T2 will be around £170 and hit stores not long after Christmas.
For a list of the current Humax products at the Freeview Store Click Here Humax at the Freeview Store
Freeview vs Freesat
Freesat
The BBC and ITV launched a satellite-based alternative to Freeview in 2008. While Freeview works with a set top box and a home's existing TV aerial, Freesat requires a set top box and a satellite dish.
Freesat can make use of an existing dish if one is available. Otherwise, a dish will need to be installed professionally for a one-off cost of £80.
Like Freeview, there's a variety of Freesat-compatible hardware to choose from. A traditional set-top box will cost around £50, while Freesat+ digital recorders like the Panasonic DMR-XS350A can record two channels at once and pause/rewind live TV.
Freesat and Freesat+ can also be found built-in to some of the latest HD TVs, including the LG 32LF7700 and Sony's Bravia KDL-40Z5800.
However you receive it, Freesat delivers over 140 subscription-free digital TV and radio channels, accessed via an eight-day EPG. While thanks to the generous satellite bandwidth, Freesat is also capable of carrying the fledgeling HD channels from the BBC and ITV.
Until Freeview HD launches across the country in 2010, Freesat HD is the only way to get live, subscription-free high-def TV in the UK.
To round things off, Freesat also expects to fully support the BBC iPlayer and ITV Player catch-up TV services in 2010.
Summary: A wider choice of channels, 98 per cent UK coverage and currently the only way to watch free-to-air HD in the UK until Freeview HD launches in 2010.
