Freeview PVR (Fusion FVRT150) (merged)

[Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 161
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Thought I would start a new thread on this box as it is somewhat different to the 100

Styling is the same as the Bush Freeview box with hard drive but includes 80GB harddrive instead of 40. It is mega improvement to me as well as being better built. :)

Build quality appears better than the 100 as well although the larger fan is more noisy and stays running when in standby mode. :( Remote is the same but is far more responsive than the 100. Mains adapter and connections are the same.

The unit come preloaded with 1.6.4 software and the box proudly says that it includes 14 day multiguide so I think we can take it that the 100 will be updated very soon. I am even thinking tonight as I cannot see how this box would be compatible otherwise. This is a pure hunch though. :D

Interestingly despite the box picture saying its a FVRT150 the unit actually has fvrs150 on it.

One other point is that there is no mention of the box in the Argos sale catalogue that I could see and when I went to order it says it was out of stock however it does exist but I suggest pre ordering it on the Argos website.

Overall I would rate this as a better buy at £199.99 than the 100 at £179.99 not only for the larger harddrive but also for the styling.

Hope you all had a great xmas
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Comments

  • HumidHumid Posts: 1,782
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    I'm very interested in this box but I have a couple of questions. Can you watch a programme whilst it is recording the programme...ie like the timeslip on the Panasonic Video recorders? Does it have a 2 week programme guide now? I believe it can record two programmes at the same time? How does it compare to the HUMAX? I know the Humax has only one tuner but is it as good?
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 569
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    Thia box has the same software as the Fusion we already have, and will no doubt be updated with the same features, at the same time.

    The larger hard drive will be a real bonus, of course, and as the buyer will be paying less than we early adopters paud for the 100, they will be getting a bargain!

    One point puzzles me: You say the "build quality" is better? In what respect? How do you define it? Are the chips soldered in more effectively? Or is this just a subjective impression based on the cosmetics of the casing? :)
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 2
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    For me noise is my number one issue. I bought a humax and had to bring it back because of the noise.

    So the digifusion is noisey? How noisey would you say it is? Is it a fan noise or a whine? Do you find the noise distracting?

    I was tempted by the one in the argos sale, but if its a noisy bugger i will leave it ;-)

    Thanks in advance.

    Brian
  • HumidHumid Posts: 1,782
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    What about anyone with the 100. Can you answer my questions?
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 13
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    I see Argos are selling these FVRT150's but had a look on the digifusion website and there is no mention of this.

    Is there any real difference from the FVRT100 ???

    Sorry if im being thick.... but im really really new to these, I bought the FVRT100 for christmas and set it up yesterday. Now I see argos is selling the FVRT150 what I have never hear off... im going to bring the FVRT100 back to currys and get the FVRT150 from Argos but wanted to know all your opinions...

    Thanks in advance peeps...!
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 61
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    For me noise is my number one issue. I bought a humax and had to bring it back because of the noise.

    So the digifusion is noisey? How noisey would you say it is? Is it a fan noise or a whine? Do you find the noise distracting?

    I was tempted by the one in the argos sale, but if its a noisy bugger i will leave it ;-)

    Thanks in advance.

    Brian

    When the TV is on I dont heat the fan. When the room is quite you can hear it. Does not bother me as the room is rarely quite:)
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 13
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    Just picked 2 of these up this morning from Argos. It comes with 1.6.4 software and does say it includes 14day listings.

    As im really new to this can someone please tell me if the listings are only downloadable at the end of the week or can you download them every night ??

    Will tell you how i get on with this new box..!!
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 569
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    They download every night. But if the box has 1.6.4. I doubt if you will get a 14 day EPG. You will have to wait for the update, like us!
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 161
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    Bestbear. I say that the build quality is better for the simple reason that the three buttons on the unit feel more substantial and that the lid is rigid not flexible as on the 100. Outside that its about the same. I had a look inside today looks simular to the 100 hard drive is a Maxtor diamond max 16 80gb mounted on a slight slant. It is nosier than the 100 however I have had several 100 which have had or shown faults and been returned and I would say that you have about a 1 in 5 chance of a noisey one.

    One area that I have noticed is that the unit downloads the epg for a whole hour (3 to 4)I presume to minimise errors. I am on CP and am missing data for itv2 and 3 only.

    I have also noticed that the units works best if you plug the aeriel directly into the unit rather than go through a filter (I have a Belkin 6 way adapter with a filtered aeriel output, if I use this I tend to get glitches on recordings plug the aeriel directly in the unit and they disappear, very curious). It may also explain why I had so many problems with earlier units.

    One other point that I know will interest Bestbear is recording subtitles, it does seem that the units handbook was written with 1.6.5 software in mind as it is currently littered with mistakes (it says the unit has a 40gb harddrive hmm). It talks about subtitle recording, 14 day epg,chase play etc. One point that it does say is that you are unable to compress a subtitle recording.

    All we need now is the update.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 569
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    plugman wrote:
    It is mega improvement to me as well as being better built. :)

    Build quality appears better than the 100

    Plugman, how does this "better build quality" make itself evident to you, I wonder?
    plugman wrote:
    The unit come preloaded with 1.6.4 software and the box proudly says that it includes 14 day multiguide so I think we can take it that the 100 will be updated very soon.

    But the 100 came saying it could record subtitles, and it still doesn't. We all have 1.6.4 already, so I will be surprised if this version 1.6.4 actually delivers the 14 day guide. Perhaps you can let us know?

    plugman wrote:
    Overall I would rate this as a better buy at £199.99 than the 100 at £179.99 not only for the larger harddrive but also for the styling.

    You are right about the value! This sounds like a far better bet for the new buyer. Of course styling improvement is in the eye of the beholder, although from the picture, this does not look nicer to me! But you would have to see the new box design "in the flesh" to be sure about this. Maybe the new box has a little more room in it, and better ventilation? That would be a real advantage! :)
    plugman wrote:
    Hope you all had a great xmas

    Thanks! And a happy new year to you and to all! :)
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 569
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    OOOOOPs!

    That last posting "crossed in the post" with mine! Thanks for the reply!
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 161
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    And the sound distorts after its been on a while ( this happened this morning I unplugged he unit and replugged and it was fine for about 5hours and has just happenend again so looks like this one will be taking a return trip to argos). Oh joy :mad: Just about to try a reinstall and reformat. As you say styling is a matter of taste.

    The format reinstall seems to have worked at least temporarly :rolleyes:
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 61
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    I went to add a new scene near the end of a recordring so that i could delete a bit at the end (to save space) I went to delete the last couple of scenes but then noticed it was not deleting anything. instead i got egg timers on a lot of the scenes. Each time i pressed delete, a scene would be replace with the timer. But now I cant delete a scene or a recording. Anyone know what I have done wrong:)
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 161
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    Onto unit 2. So far so good the units lid is on this flexible a la 100, I think this must be right. It also appears queiter than the other unit. I just hope that this solves the problem with the sound.

    I have just checked the aeriel alignment screen and on this one Tuner 1 is about the same strength as 2 on the same frequency. Unit 1 was higher on tuner 2 than 1 by about 6%. Very odd.

    I am convinced that there are quality control issues with Fusion but at least they are not as bad as Humax IMHO.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 13
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    I got 2 of these boxes from Argos... left them on last nite and it downloaded the channel listings... but loads of listings are missing like some from 3 and nearly all from Channel 5...

    Any ideas peeps ??
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 233
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    blackbear wrote:
    I went to add a new scene near the end of a recordring so that i could delete a bit at the end (to save space) I went to delete the last couple of scenes but then noticed it was not deleting anything. instead i got egg timers on a lot of the scenes. Each time i pressed delete, a scene would be replace with the timer. But now I cant delete a scene or a recording. Anyone know what I have done wrong:)
    I've had this once or twice on the FVRT100 (not much more though). I just power cycled the box and it was fine afterwards. I think it's a software bug that occurs under certain but unidentified circumstances, I don't think you did anything wrong.

    Unless the FVRT150 software is different from the 100's then I'm surprised that you can delete portions of recordings to save space. All I can do is delete scenes (which are essential markers with thumbnails) but the entire recording remains on the disk. For example, deleting the first scene allows you to easily start playback from later on in the recording but the first portion of the recording remains (you can rewind into it).
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 11
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    Can you record saved or "live" programs onto a DVR in RGB?( "live" as in not recording on the fusion but straight to the DVR/VHS)

    I've looked at the spec of the 100 but it looks like the video in/out is not RGB just the TV out. Is the 150 any different and has anyone had any experience of this?

    Ta!
  • hendomanhendoman Posts: 36
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    The back of my box has a jack point the instructions say you can use to lay off recordings onto VHS. Havn't tried it yet.

    Have to say i think this box is fabulous. The picture quality is pristine, the recording menu is a breeze after the complexity of the VHS I used to struggle with, and sleek look with the double tuner makes it easy to sell to the girlfriend.

    Can't remember wether I've got the 80 gig or 40 version; I have come nowhere near filling it yet on the highest res, anyway.

    Oh yes, its changed my life this thing has.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 114
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    Anyone opened one of these yet and had a look at what make of hard drive is inside? It could be useful information for those of us wanting to upgrade our 40Gb drives. Thanks,

    Bri
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 6
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    Hi all,

    I purchased an FVRT100 just before Xmas and liked it although it hung a few times. I saw the FVRT150 in Argos so took the FVRT150 back to Currys and got the 150.

    Despite the Argos photo it is quite different in appearance to the 100 although dimensions are the same.

    It has 1.6.4 software and despite the claims of the box and manual it does not have:
    • 14 day epg
    • Chasing playback on recordings
    • Add previously taped bits (up to 30 mins) when instant record is pressed part-way through a program

    I will be calling the fusion technical helpline to ask when these features will start working!

    ** Update, Rang Digifusion and software release will fix these within the next 2 weeks apparently. guess this will work on FVRT100 too! **

    It also noiser than my (virtually silent 100) with a low fan noise and "hard disk" sort of a noise when recording.


    Ross.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 207
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    RossP wrote:
    Hi all,

    Despite the Argos photo it is quite different in appearance to the 100 although dimensions are the same.

    I was going to buy a 100 up until yesterday evening when I discovered the the 150. Could you describe what the 150 looks like if it is different please?
    RossP wrote:
    I will be calling the fusion technical helpline to ask when these features will start working!

    It also noiser than my (virtually silent 100) with a low fan noise and "hard disk" sort of a noise when recording.

    I'll be interested to find out what they say! I guess with the noise thing it can depend on all sorts (even between the same boxes since others have reported theirs is quiet and for others it makes a noise!). I've got a hard drive music player that makes a bit of spinning when it starts up, but generally goes quiet after that. I don't think anything could be noisier than the 3 VCRs we have in the house at the moment though!

    Am going to pop over to argos to pick one up today - can't wait to banish the clutter of tapes that constantly surround the telly!

    JO
  • red16vred16v Posts: 2,960
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    As I've noted to you in a previous thread, they tell everyone that the next software release is '2 weeks away' (if not less). On the basis that they continually raise people hopes only to 'dash' them I wouldn't recommend this company's products. Luckily for me I only paid £50 for my box - I can afford to 'ditch it'. Pity really. Regards, yt.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 12
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    blackbear wrote:
    When the TV is on I dont heat the fan. When the room is quite you can hear it. Does not bother me as the room is rarely quite:)

    I picked one up from Argos, to replace the Pace Twin that I have now given up with. The fan noise on it is unbearable, more like a whine. To give you an idea how loud I can hear it at the other end of the lounge quite clearly, which must be at least 10 metres away. From what I've read here & in the FVRT100 thread I must have one with a duff fan. I'll go back to Argos & swap it today (if the queue for returns isn't going out the door like on monday). If it's just as noisy it will be refund time, which would be a shame.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 4
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    Being a newcomer to the forum apologies if I have missed any comments. I was going to get the digifusion box from Argos but have since found I can't get freeview in my area. I do have sky digital but not one if the expensive packages and I thing that Sky+ is rather expensive for what it is. My question to you all is, can the 150 be used with anything other than freeview? I like the idea of hard drive recordings, and the 150 looks quite a good buy, but no good buying it if it won't work with sky or a terrestrial channel.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 569
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    No, I'm afraid these PVRs only work with Freeview.

    But that is not to say that you can't have a hard drive recorder! There are hard drive recorders, with DVD recorder, and terrestrial tuner available ... but you have to pay a bit more for these,
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