Technika STBHDH2010 review

There’s an 8-day EPG which is neatly presented. Two hours’ worth of information is shown for eight channels, and a blurb for the currently selected programme is shown at the top. To the right is the all-important video thumbnail so, unlike with Panasonic TVs, you can still watch and listen to the current programme while you browse. You can set programme reminders to ensure you don’t miss your favourite shows.

Similar to Sky and BT Vision boxes, it’s possible to scroll to the previous and next programme’s information blurb after pressing the ‘i’ button on the remote, as well as up and down to scroll between channels. The remote itself is sensibly laid out with large, well-labelled buttons.

It’s possible to create a list of favourite channels, and also lock certain channels so only those who know the PIN code can watch them. In general the box was quick to respond to the remote, but there were occasional quirks such as the need to press the Back button in the menu before you can exit it completely.

Image quality for standard definition channels was good, but not excellent. There were more artefacts visible than we usually see, making the text ticker on BBC News, for example, a little fuzzy. However, you’re unlikely to notice any problems in video without any text. High definition channels were as sharp as we’d expect, and looked fantastic on a 50in plasma TV.

For this price, the STBHDH2010 is a true bargain. It may lack internet services and any capability to play videos, photos or MP3s via the USB port, but if you only want to watch Freeview, it’s a no brainer.