Which digibox should i buy

Want to keep the entire World Cup for posterity, including all the pre-match prattle? Look for the 1TB version. It only lets you record two programmes at once rather than four, but also has a few extra tricks. It also has special long play recording modes that chip down the amount of storage your shows take up.

YouView is an alternative to Freeview Play, an interface that combines normal Freeview channels with streaming services. For the tech-heads out there, this box is actually made by PVR master Humax.

There's no point in having the best set-top box in the world if your TV's display is terrible; that's why we have the following roundups for you to browse:. On a budget?

Check out the best cheap TV sales and 4K deals this month. North America. These days, many of us watch a healthy mix of live TV and streamed content — and the best set-top box models of make it easier to keep on top of your favorite shows, whether you're counting down the days to the return of the Premier League or flicking through Netflix for your next movie fix.

The harder choice, however, is which one do you buy? Making matters even more difficult, most of the options are very similar at first blush. Prices have come down to the point that most set-top boxes are extremely affordable, so you now have to choose based on what you want to watch, and what you want to do with your box. If you want to watch Netflix, the world is your oyster — basically every device that connects to the internet has a Netflix app installed.

But if you want to watch Hulu, or sports, your options are narrower. Narrower still. What if you want to stream your own files, or use your phone as a remote rather than losing yet another controller in the couch? Picking a set-top box is a balancing game between features and content, and the right choice will be different for everyone.

First up, what kind of device do you want? Calling it a set-top "box" is something of a misnomer, because you can actually get most of the same features in a device you might already have. You can buy a standalone box, which are typically better-designed for this particular feature; everything from the remote to the interface is geared entirely around set-top and streaming features, and they're usually a little simpler to figure out.

But if you don't want yet another box and remote in your home theater, or another HDMI port monopolized on your TV, you can combine set-top features with another device for maximum efficiency. Hell, you might even own one already and not even know.

If you don't want to buy a set-top box off the shelf, there are three broad categories of devices that offer some or all of the features you'll find in a standalone box like a Roku, Apple TV, or Boxee Box. If you've purchased a TV in the last few years, there's a good chance you already have a lot of streaming features already built into your device.

Known interchangeably as "Smart TVs" or "Connected TVs," nearly every television manufacturer now makes TVs that can check the weather or show your Twitter feed, and a handful go further and offer Netflix and other services. If you're feeling really enterprising, Sony also makes a set with integrated Google TV, which takes over the whole UI and integrates web and streaming features at every level. It's certainly the most efficient system, since everything is baked into a menu system on your TV — no extra remotes, boxes, or cables necessary.

The problem with TVs-cum-set-top-boxes is their interface: they're almost universally terrible, complex and difficult to navigate. They also tend to be really slow, which can kill the whole experience; TV manufacturers clearly don't spend much on processors. Some are getting better — Sony's adapting its PlayStation 3 interface for TVs, which is a marked improvement — but none come remotely close to qualifying as "user-friendly.

So maybe you bought a TV before they were "smart," and you're not into the idea of spending many hundreds of dollars on another set. In that case, maybe it's time to upgrade from your DVD player to Blu-ray: players are now totally affordable, Blu-ray is everywhere, and you can get all the streaming accoutrements built into your player pretty easily. Samsung, Sony, Panasonic, and LG all make Blu-ray players with these features — honestly, at this point it's hard to find a Blu-ray player that won't stream your Netflix queue.

Since Blu-ray players aren't trying to do as many different things as your TV, the interfaces are sometimes a little more usable, though they're often the same as the TV and typically suffer from the same speed problems as well. Here it's about finding the small features that help, like the dedicated Netflix button on the Panasonic DMP-BDT, which is regarded as one of the best Blu-ray players on the market.

You could pretty easily make the case that the PlayStation 3 is the best Blu-ray player on the market — and, oh yeah, it also lets you play games. Microsoft's Xbox is a similarly content-rich machine, so much so that people actually spend more time using the media apps on the than they do playing multiplayer games.

There's a lot to watch on your Xbox, too: Netflix and Hulu of course , but also HBO Go, a number of sports options, Comcast and Verizon apps if you have cable , and many more.

Microsoft recently revamped the 's interface, too, and with a new Metro-style look the Xbox is one of the easiest devices to navigate as well. One note, though: you'll need a paid Xbox Live account to stream much of anything. All of the above are very important considerations and we recommend they be checked out in detail.

When a seller says their product comes fully loaded this may be true but do not buy a fully loaded box. Ask yourself the question: Where do I go to update or keep the content fresh into the future?

Shipping may be free but be prepared to wait four weeks in some cases. Regarding backups simply ask any seller can they maintain a box into the future with Over the Air OTA updates or is it up to the individual themselves to do this update.

Extremely important: check out what box you are buying. Be very careful that you are buying a genuine box and not a cloned box.

We at smarttvbox. If a seller has a great name for their box but is a little shy in the specs sheets there may be good reason for the shyness. The chipsets and processors will change over time so compare these differences.

RAM is important, for best performances always make sure it is 2 GB. Storage is not as important if you are using the box only as a streaming box but 16GB is always good to look for.

Now it would be simple if you could compare apples to apples but we recommend weighing up everything before any decision is made.

Reading this article you might think we are biased against other box manufactures or box sellers, but that is far from the truth.

In fact we are extremely truthful and call it as it is, we at smarttvbox. Until now, this has only been available through paid-for TV services. This Freeview box comes a close second. The highest storage option would give you up to hours of high definition recording space.

You can watch and record live TV and the box is capable of recording four different shows at the same time. It allows you to access all the major catch-up services and Netflix, but not other paid-for streaming services or other apps. Read the full Humax FVP review. If watching shows and movies in the highest possible quality is important, this set-top box offers some content in 4K resolution if you have a compatible TV.

At this time though, 4K quality is only available on the YouTube app and iPlayer catch-up, although more services may be added. The model we tested had GB of storage but you can get 1TB if you pay a bit more. As with other models, it lets you watch and record Freeview channels, and you can record two channels at the same time.

Read the full Manhattan T3-R set-top box review. If the ability to record TV programmes is more of a priority for you than access to online catch-up services or you already have a streaming device , then this budget Freeview box may be the ideal option.

Read the full Manhattan T2-R review. Type keyword s to search.