Freeview and Freeview Playback more popular than Sky: which box should you choose?

As The Guardian, among others, has been reporting this week, Freeview boxes are now in more UK homes than Sky. 11 million Brits are turning to Freeview as the favoured TV provider, and it is expected that the launch of the Freeview Playback branding for combined hard disk recorders and receivers will see 10m of these in UK homes by 2012.

Switchover from analogue is looming, with the service being phased out from 2008 to 2012. So with that in mind, if you're not sure about subscribing, it's time to check out Freeview receivers. If you're still reliant on your VCR to record, it's definitely worth investing in a hard drive recorder with twin tuners. On average, they're about £140 more expensive than a normal receiver, but you'll have the freedom to record one channel and watch another, which you won't have with a VCR after the switchover. We've taken a look at what's on offer...

1) TVonics DVR-250 (pictured above)

We've extensively reviewed this TVonics box on video and on "paper", and it's definitely a favourite with me. Easy to use and with the extra consideration that the company are eco-conscious, it's also got a capacious hard drive; I can't imagine wanting to store more than 125 hours of TV on the drive, especially as much of that will be one-off episodes of a series.

2) Goodmans GHD8015F2 Freeview 80GB HDD Recorder

Coming as it did before the branding change, this doesn't necessarily carry the "Freeview Playback" sticker, but it's exactly the same principle. If the lure of a larger hard drive seems an unnecessary extra expenditure, this model ought to appeal. Coming in at £99.99, it's one of the most budget of its kind as the majority of available boxes will start at £170.

3) Sharp TU-R160H PVR

If silence is golden, then the construction of this Sharp receiver ought to appeal. Whilst being £199 for only 160GB, the extra expense has been spent on removing the need for a cooling fan.

4) Bang & Olufsen HDR2

So, being B&O, I'm going to let you imagine the price; after all, if you're considering splashing out on this, you probably don't need to know prices because you have people to do that sort of thing for you. This is the momma and poppa to TVonics poor (if smart) cousin, also being 250GB and including features for trimming, protecting and password-locking recordings. It really doesn't do THAT much more than any of the others, but - gosh darn it - it does it with style.

5) Archos AV700TV

Of course, there's always the portable option. £210 will let you take your TV wherever you want on a neat 7" screen. 40GB of hard drive means about 35 hours of TV, so you can record your programs when it's hooked up and then take them with you to view on the go.

Whatever you eventually go for, there's very little point sticking to a cheap, plan £30 receiver unless you're very sure you'll never want the recording option - and who can be sure of that?

Over and out.