Manhattan T3-R Freeview Play 4K Smart Recorder 500GB

Product Information

I've never used a T3-R but what impressed me was that Manhattan were actively developing and supporting it. A remote you won’t want to put down The T3•R's learning remote has a spacious, clean layout and sleek, rounded shape that sits perfectly in your hand.

Freeview is still quite popular, despite all the streaming services we’re all now used to – as it provides 80+ channels without any monthly fees (except for the TV Licence fee).

IIRC it just allowed you to start recording from some point in the buffer you'd gone back to, then stop either by pressing stop or setting a multiple of 15 minutes to continue recording for. For those of you who've registered their box with Manhattan, there's an optional update released today. No problems with any recordings in terms of missing bits, although it has found a few repeats in the wee small hours that I didnt want. In this on-demand age, the need for time-shifting isn’t what it once was – so can the Manhattan T3-R rekindle our love for series-linking?

However, if you’re desperate to ditch your expensive subscription TV set-top box and/or breathe new life into an ageing TV whose digital tuners are looking increasingly ancient, there are few better options for a glossy Freeview Play recording and catch-up TV experience than the Manhattan T3-R. Niggles are minor, but our principal caveat is the limited number of channels that can be recorded simultaneously – irksome, if you live in an area where the broadband speed isn’t conducive to care-free streaming. Two other minor gripes: I had no trouble getting the remote of my T3 to control my TV but can't repeat the trick with this, and have yet to find a way of making the T3-R 'wake up' the TV when I switch in on. Connecting the T3-R to the internet is essential for using its FreeviewPlay and streaming features, and that can be done either with an Ethernet cable (connected directly to your router or via a Powerline Adapter) or via WiFi (802b/g/n). As far as I'm aware nothing available on freeview is broadcast higher than 1080p anyway and that option in the machine is for watching 4K YouTube videos, so your mother in law will probably not be worried about that anyway?

I know I could have used the Freeview app in conjunction with an ex HDD but that operation proved to be clumsy and not a good option for me. You can change your choices at any time by visiting Cookie preferences, as described in the Cookie notice. So at this point, if you’re looking for a Freeview box, I would say the real decision is whether you want something cheap and basic – like the T1 – or a full-featured box that will upgrade your Freeview experience, like the T3-R. YouTube on the Box Your favourite YouTube and YouTube Kids videos on the biggest screen in the house.

In recent years, the BBC ran some trials with 4K content on iPlayer – namely World Cup games, Wimbledon matches, as well as Blue Planet II, Dynasties and even Dracula. Some of the channels you can find on Freeview are all the BBC channels (including HD), ITV, Channel 4, Channel 5, The Food Network, CBS Action, QVC and many others. Therefore, the flagship T3-R was the only model still being manufactured – and now, the popular box is coming to the end of its retail life.In fact, many T3-R owners have been upset since November, with the device not supporting ITV’s new streaming service – ITVX. The machine looks nice, states that it can record 2 channels, BUT YOU MIGHT NOT BE ABLE TO VIEW A THIRD. Free 2-year warranty We back the T3•R with a 2-year warranty and in-house technical support right here in the UK. I’ve not recorded any programmes “in anger” yet so I haven’t come across any problems with clashes etc, but I’ll be wary of them and see how it goes.