Humax Tivizen TV review

With a strong signal, the image quality is really good, with a sharp image and strong colours. We compared the footage from Tivizen to the footage using the BBC iPlayer app. Quality is similar, but the BBC loses out detail, particularly in areas such as foliage and grass. To be fair, you probably wouldn’t notice the difference in a moving image. The one thing that’s particularly strange is that the Tivizen TV shows a picture with thin black bars around it, whereas the iPlayer app shows the image full screen.

The BBC iPlayer version (top) has slightly less detail than the Tivizen TV version (bottom) – click to enlarge

There’s no way to pause live TV, but you can record shows so that you can watch them later. You can only record what you’re watching and there’s no scheduling, but it at least lets you catch up with a programme for viewing later. A basic TV guide lets you flick through what’s currently on TV by channel, but we couldn’t get a full guide up on the iPhone. The iPad app lets you browse through a list of TV shows by channel, but a full guide would have been nice.

A MicroUSB port lets you charge the internal battery

Inside the case is a Nokia BL-5C 3.7V 1,050mAh battery, which is charged via the Tivizen TV’s MicroUSB connector. It should last around 3.5hours on battery charge alone, although replacements costs just a few pounds and you can charge the device while you watch.

Whether or not you need the Tivizen TV depends on what you want to do. At home, the free CatchUpTV app, which streams all of the Freeview channels for free over your internet connection is the best bet. If you go camping a lot, it’s a handy product, but you’ll need a decent Freeview signal to get the most out of it.