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Anonymous User
Not applicable

Is there a PVR with Now TV? Freeview or YouView?

I'm after the ability to record live TV, watch NOW TV, Netflix and Amazon Prime in 1 device. And preferably Spotify. The last result I can find in search is from 2016. It feels like that should be possible in 2020. I currently have the Now TV box but I don't like the remote and I can't use it to access Prime.

1 ACCEPTED SOLUTION
RoyB
Legend

@Anonymous User 

 

For a long time, YouView boxes only did NowTV Cinema. But if you get a T2nnn or a T4000, it will update as soon as you connect it to the internet, and then you will get all the NowTV options.

 

I forgot to tell you to avoid the T1xxx Humaxes, which have been rather left behind - my bad.

 

OK, so any YouView box you buy will work on your current ISP, will play your NowTV subscription Passes (though with no subtitles available, currently). There are four boxes you can choose from:-

 

YouView retail T2000

BT subscription T2100

BT retail T2110

BT subscription T4000 (4K, but as with NowTV devices, only for apps, like Netflix and Amazon)

 

The BT boxes look very alike, the YouView one not.

 

The full range of models is here:-

 

https://support.youview.com/youview-box/software-updates/latest-software-versions/

but ignore all the ones I haven’t mentioned.

 

You can go from there to see pictures, specs and things.

Set a Payment PIN on your account so that no-one but you can buy memberships on it. Check your bank accounts monthly for any other unexpected payments to Now. That way you can at least nip them in the bud, while you and Now figure out whose fault they are.

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6 REPLIES 6
RoyB
Legend

@Anonymous User 

 

YouView boxes can do all that except Spotify. You can’t get one retail any more, but eBay and Amazon have a thriving grey market in them, some never unboxed. Avoid the Huaweis, whether they phone home or not, and go for the Humaxes. The BT T4000 is the current pinnacle; and it works perfectly well on any ISP.

 

However, if you sign up for BT Broadband and take their BT TV service, they will lend you a YouView box free of further charge, on which you can record all Freeview channels, two at a time if you like, and all the BT TV channels. And if you then take NowTV through them, you can even record from the NowTV live channels, as well.

 

There are Sport options as well. Have a chat with them about your options.

 

For myself, BT is my ISP, as no-one else can match their speeds in our area (and our current 25Mbps Is going up by a factor of 10 to 20 times on Monday, when we get our FTTP). But we have always resisted the blandishments of BT TV, so all our YouView boxes run ‘retail’ and our NowTV subscriptions are with NowTV, not BT.

 

Being able to record Freeview isn’t as important as it was back in 2012 when YouView started, but it is still something we need.

Set a Payment PIN on your account so that no-one but you can buy memberships on it. Check your bank accounts monthly for any other unexpected payments to Now. That way you can at least nip them in the bud, while you and Now figure out whose fault they are.
Anonymous User
Not applicable

Thanks. Do all the boxes do it do you know? I've seen a refurbished Humax but that looks like it only does Now TV Cinema not Entertainment? I know BT boxes are made by Humax but can't work out if all the features are the same. I feel like I've spent hours looking at it all!
I'm still in contract to my ISP so changing to BT isn't really an option at the moment and they were a lot more expensive for the same money 

RoyB
Legend

@Anonymous User 

 

For a long time, YouView boxes only did NowTV Cinema. But if you get a T2nnn or a T4000, it will update as soon as you connect it to the internet, and then you will get all the NowTV options.

 

I forgot to tell you to avoid the T1xxx Humaxes, which have been rather left behind - my bad.

 

OK, so any YouView box you buy will work on your current ISP, will play your NowTV subscription Passes (though with no subtitles available, currently). There are four boxes you can choose from:-

 

YouView retail T2000

BT subscription T2100

BT retail T2110

BT subscription T4000 (4K, but as with NowTV devices, only for apps, like Netflix and Amazon)

 

The BT boxes look very alike, the YouView one not.

 

The full range of models is here:-

 

https://support.youview.com/youview-box/software-updates/latest-software-versions/

but ignore all the ones I haven’t mentioned.

 

You can go from there to see pictures, specs and things.

Set a Payment PIN on your account so that no-one but you can buy memberships on it. Check your bank accounts monthly for any other unexpected payments to Now. That way you can at least nip them in the bud, while you and Now figure out whose fault they are.
RoyB
Legend

@Anonymous User @nst 

 

Three advantages of recordings:-

 

You can capture material from Freeview channels that don’t have catchup services;

You can capture those programmes that even channels with catchup don’t put on

catchup, like most movies, or news;

You can skip over adverts.


There are other advantages, but those are the main ones.

 

 

Set a Payment PIN on your account so that no-one but you can buy memberships on it. Check your bank accounts monthly for any other unexpected payments to Now. That way you can at least nip them in the bud, while you and Now figure out whose fault they are.
Anonymous User
Not applicable

This is really helpful, thanks. Frustratingly the one I was looking at is now out of stock. Will get hunting...

nst
Elite

I understand what you are looking for... however I think that the concept is a little outdated and you might struggle to find something that does exactly what you want.

 

 

What I mean by that is... any device where you'd find the NowTV app, would also routinely include the iPlayer, ITV Hub, All4, and My5 apps - also probably netflix and amazon prime and UKTV Play.

 

Therefore the need to record live TV seems to be a little redundant when you can just dip into any of the catchup apps and find what it is you wanted to watch.

 

Of course, you dont have control as to how long that 'recording' is available for but mostly you get back access for weeks if not months after broadcast.

 

I used to use SkyQ and predecessors for many many years but this year ditched the lot and discovered that catchup in conjunction with AppleTV's TV app where it keeps track of the latest episodes across most the streaming apps is a more than capable substitute for a record queue.