Glad it aint just me. 
I don’t want to confuse you ladies with technical matters, but it’s concerning a recent invention we call television.
It’s a magic box in the corner of our living rooms that does pretty much what your wireless does, but with pictures too!
I was a fan of Topfield PVRs they are very reliable have twin tuners etc. Mine are getting a bit long in the tooth but still going strong not that I use them much these days when all TV programs are available on line with in hours of going to air. I am not sure they are still being sold but you see second hand Topfields on Ebay.
Main thing is to make sure what ever you buy has two tuners.
Situation normal then?
I use a Panasonic recorder/player. We do a lot of recording and it’s good.
We still have our old Bush Twin Recorder for Freeview. So simple to set up and use.
Muddy and Mups, Did you ever have a video recorder to record your television programmes? If you did, the device l am talking about, is a modern version of those.
Hi Art
This has all been discussed before so easier to just go look at this thread:
https://www.over50sforum.com/showthread.php?t=57974&highlight=miraclebox
As you will see from my post in there I use a Miraclebox PVR which has 3 Freeview tuners inside it allowing me to record up to 12 separate programmes simultaneously (spread over 3 multiplexes)
Hi Realist, 
Thanks for that. l admit, l didn’t look first. I should have done but maybe the two threads could be joined up?
Is the Miraclebox easy to use?
It might well be, but it’s not generally available and it costs at least £339 from a specialist supplier:
I would suggest that a Humax would be a good idea because it seems that there are at least half a dozen posters on this forum alone who would be able to help in the event of a query …
Once set up yep, pretty much but it’s paced choc full of functionality so the vast number of options and settings could overwhelm I suppose.
The thing is it’s an Open Source box, which means anyone can develop an operating system for it so you can choose which to use from a variety out there. I chose something called OpenVix. I can’t remember now how I loaded it up but it would have been fairly easy. Probably connected the box to my laptop and simply downloaded it.
If you’re looking for a really simple plug in and go box, it may not be suitable.
Sorry to bring back this thread from the dead but I haven’t seen any mention of playback using the Humax recorder. Does it have a built-in disc drive or do you plug in a USB stick to an external port?
I’m asking because whilst I mainly use a digital Smart TV, my wife likes the old way of recording by means of using a Freeview recorder that you can record your programmes onto then play them back - everything is built in. But the one we have now is rubbish (an “August” recorder, £29.99!) and is so difficult to operate and now shows no recordings whatsoever so it be going into the bin.
Our previous one was a “Techwood” which was excellent but bit the dust after about 10 years.
We don’t have Sky, but we want to attach a Humax (if it’s suitable) to our standard TV using Scart and TV aerial leads. If this machine is not compatible I will look at buying a new TV with built-in Freeview and hopefully that won’t need an extra set top box to record with.
Thanks all 
I’m not sure which of us you’re asking, but I have a Humax PVR so perhaps I can tell you what I’ve found.
Yes, it has a recorder built in and two tuners, so you can record two programmes at the same time and, of course, play them back whenever you want.
Mine also has a USB socket, so you can save recordings to a USB stick. However, it is important to know that you can’t then use a computer to view what’s on the USB stick.
I think mine cost about £200 and is quite easy to use.
One thing to be careful of is the connection to your TV. Most modern boxes don’t have SCART (they’re unnecessarily big anyway), but have a much smaller (and better quality) HDMI socket instead. They have ordinary aerial sockets too. In my case the aerial output plugs into the Humax box, then another cable connects the box to the telly. So, actually, there are two connections from the box to the telly - aerial co-ax and HDMI.
It sounds like your TV doesn’t have an HDMI socket, so you’d have to either buy a new one that does or look for a PVR which has a SCART socket. I’m not sure whether any still does, but perhaps someone else might be able to advise you. It may be possible to find some sort of cable with SCART and HDMI plugs on the opposite ends to convert one to the other, though I haven’t heard of any.
Just as a point of interest, I find a recorder/PVR almost essential because for some reason all the channels seem to broadcast the best programmes worth watching all at the same time, so I can record two on my Humax box, two more on another (Panasonic) box and watch a fifth one(!) on my telly which includes Freeview. So the buggers can put on five programmes worth watching all at the same time. Then, of course, for the rest of the day it’s all crap!
Thanks JBR, very useful info there 
Yes it looks like I need an up to date TV with the HDMI cable. I wouldn’t watch TV on a computer anyway, so it’s a new TV ideally with Freeview built-in but otherwise the Humax box.
I’ll look into it 
With regard to a TV with built-in Freeview, I don’t know if there are any with a built-in recorder as well.
Not all Freeview boxes are also TV recorders.
As JBR said, they use a hard drive.
I use a Humax Freeview TV recorder. It sounds like it’s the same as JBR’s.
It’s my second one, and is starting to play up a bit, so I will get another one. I think they they do one now that records three at the same time.
I also still have a video recorder, 
, although I haven’t used it for a while.
It’s really for my wife’s use, I’m happy with my digital-only Smart TV in the other room.
She’s not technically-minded so wants it simple without too many add-on gadgets and complicated instructions. I’ll nip to Currys next week.
For God’s sake, don’t actually buy one there! They’re cowboys!
By all means, go and have a look, but then I’d buy one elsewhere at a place with good customer service and support.
‘Google is your friend’, but personally I have bought such things from John Lewis. They have a reputation for being a ‘posh’ shop, but in actual fact when it comes to popular brands (like Humax) they are competitive and also usually offer an additional year’s warranty.
Yeah you’re right mate.
They don’t seem to know what they’re talking about sometimes. They’re only sales staff.
I usually go there to look at the device I’m buying to see the spec for myself and go to Amazon mainly.
We don’t have a John Lewis here but I could always buy online from them.
I buy stuff from John Lewis online, and I get it delivered next day to my local Waitrose, free. Totally without hassle. Saves waiting for deliveries to arrive…I just go the next day after 12 at a time that suits me.
If there’s no Waitrose, I think they do the option of click and collect to other shops too.
The service is fantastic, I think.
Floydy, try richer sounds, I think there’s one in Hull, they usually give good advice, you could treat your mrs to a new tv, and she could use the catch up services, I also think that you can get scart to hdmi cables but not sure, of course google is your friend in these cases…
I don’t have anything to record anything on. Not a prolific telly basher, 'cept if there’s a good film on or Endeavour. 