TVonics DTR-Z500HD PVR reviews: HDR with HDMI

TVonics DTR-Z500HD PVR reviews: HDR with HDMI reviews

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This digital TV recorder is a good all rounder.

£120 at 1 retailer out of 409 retailers checked

8.8 out of 10 based on 53 reviews.

Also known as: TVonics DTR-Z500HD HDD, TVonics DTR-Z500HD HDR See full product description

Ease of use	8.7
Image quality	9.0
Sound quality	8.6
Design	8.2
Range of features	8.9
Value for money	9.1
Overall rating	8.8

Some customer reviews of TVonics DTR-Z500HD

Most helpful reviews

Mark, Exeter Multi-purpose viewer

Score 8.0/10

Good points:: Good price and opportunity to plug in other HDMI devices
Bad points:: Slow at selecting programmes to record

Ease of use	7.0
Image quality	7.0
Sound quality	7.0
Design	7.0
Value for money	9.0
Overall rating	8.0

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Confirmed purchase: 28 Aug 2012

Steve, Stockport Occasional TV watcher

Score 9.0/10

Good points:: Easy to set up and easy to use controls and menus. Inputs for ither hdmi devices as well as USB for internet updates and BBC iplayer
Bad points:: Slow to respond between chanel changes and very slow to switch on from standby. Beware as TVONICS have now gone bust so support is difficult as well as add ons such as wifi dongles.

Ease of use	8.0
Image quality	10.0
Sound quality	10.0
Design	7.0
Value for money	10.0
Overall rating	9.0

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Confirmed purchase: 25 Sep 2012

Andrzej, Aylesbury Multi-purpose viewer

Score 10.0/10

Good points:: Just love it, it is simple to use and excellent build quality. Picture is fantastic. Watching HD channels is great and recording is really easy. Picks up WIFI and or Network Cable for iplayer. Even plays MP4 videos from USB Flash drive when firmware update is applied.
Bad points:: None!

Ease of use	10.0
Image quality	10.0
Sound quality	10.0
Design	10.0
Value for money	10.0
Overall rating	10.0

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Confirmed purchase: 19 Oct 2012

Simon, Multi-purpose viewer

Score 10.0/10

Good points:: Just a joy to use! Best PVR we have used so far.
Bad points:: TVonics out of business now - but we would still buy this box regardless

Ease of use	10.0
Image quality	10.0
Sound quality	10.0
Design	10.0
Value for money	10.0
Overall rating	10.0

Was this review helpful? 1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Confirmed purchase: 15 Oct 2012

Geoffrey, Yorkshire. Film and documentary lover

Score 9.0/10

Good points:: Does what it says on the tin!
Bad points:: Sometimes a bit slow to start up.

Ease of use	9.0
Image quality	9.0
Sound quality	9.0
Design	9.0
Value for money	10.0
Overall rating	9.0

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Confirmed purchase: 09 Dec 2012

Sam, Brentwood Multi-purpose viewer

Score 9.0/10

Good points:: Easy to use, very small and compact. Scart inputs are great as avoids haveing more than one remote and remote controls sound of most TV's. Is also very quiet when recording.
Bad points:: Is quite slow to react when viewing EPG which can be frustrating and is very slow to turn on.

Ease of use	8.0
Image quality	10.0
Sound quality	10.0
Design	10.0
Value for money	9.0
Overall rating	9.0

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Confirmed purchase: 08 Oct 2012

Peter, Cornwall Film and documentary lover

Score 10.0/10

Good points:: Easy to set up, easy to use. Made in UK so instruction book in plain English PLUS a UK helpline number.

I've had several HD TV recorders and this is the best so far.

Great bit of kit and the price reasonable to say the least
Bad points:: Non found so far

Ease of use	9.0
Image quality	9.0
Sound quality	9.0
Design	10.0
Value for money	10.0
Overall rating	10.0

Was this review helpful? 1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Confirmed purchase: 06 Oct 2012

Read all 53 customer reviews

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This TVonics DTR-Z500HD is reviewed on TechRadar

This TVonics DTR-Z500HD is reviewed on Pocket Lint

Product Features

Freeview or Freesat tuner	Freeview HD
Freeview is free digital terrestrial TV. FreeSat is a free digital satellite TV service, which gives you HD programming from people like the BBC without having to pay for a subscription to a service like Sky. You need a dish to receive Freesat but not Freeview. For more information see the Freeview site or the Freesat site. FreeSat is a free digital satellite TV service. The main benefit is that you can get HD programming from people like the BBC without having to pay for a subscription to a service like Sky. You’ll need a dish to recieve the signals though.
Connections	HDMI

Connections	USB

Connections	Ethernet

Number of scart ports	1
Scart sockets are places where you can connect other devices to your TV. If you already have a DVD player, a VCR and a Playstation you might want to make sure your new TV has enough Scart interfaces so you don’t have to keep crawling round the back of the TV.
Hard disk capacity (Gigabytes)	500
Hard Disk capacity is measured in GBs which stands for Gigabytes. A gigabyte is 1000 MB or megabytes. The more GB you have the more info like photos and music you can store.
Width in mm	185

Height in mm	70

Depth in mm	240

Manufacturer's Description

The DTR-Z500HD’s compact design is familiar to any TVonics fan . This Freeview+ HD Digital TV recorder allows you to watch, record and pause digital SD and HD TV plus much more. With its 500GB Hard drive you can record hundreds of hours of your favorite programs, as well as catch up on missed BBC programs with BBC iPlayer via the red button.

Freeview+ HD Digital TV Recorder
Supporting the full feature set of Freeview+HD including the ability to record a complete TV series, reschedule a recording and alternative instance recording. Watch, record and pause digital SD and HD TV. Record 2 channels at the same time.

High definition
Enjoy watching 1080p* High definition viewing with no contract. HD channels available are BBC HD, BBC ONE HD, ITVHD, and Channel 4HD or S4C HD (Subject to location). Plus SD channels upscale for better quality viewing.
HD Channels support Dolby digital plus pulse, connect to home cinema system for premium-quality surround sound (Click here for more details).

Trailer bookings and recommendations
Record a programme from its trailer with a single button press and get recommendations for programmes of interest based on existing timers.

Internet services
Connect to home network via Ethernet or USB WiFi and enjoy BBC iPlayer and Automatic internet upgrades**.

Connectivity
HDMI Switch allows you to connect your other HDMI devices to the box then run only one HDMI cable to you TV. 2x USB ports for Picture viewer, software updated and USB Wireless dongle (available from TVonics web store). Ethernet connector.