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Buy iView 3500STB DTV Converter Box Now
Update;There is a new firmware version that should be released shortly. It's being tested now and has address a few issue regarding the Guide.
1. You will be able to schedule a program by two clicks on the "Ok" button without doing a manual schedule entry, just like all other DVR's with Guides.
2. It addresses the bogus "C0xx" channels numbers, replacing those with the correct number in the schedule screen. (It does not fix the number on the display, that is still incorrect.)
3. Also improved, but still needs more work (due to lockups with detail text) is the response getting guide data when one scrolls through the channel list.
The "smell" when you first open the box should go away in a day or so. If it bothers you that much, leave the box open in your attic or basement for a day or so before you use it. It may be coming from the plastic film that covers the top cover, but that is just a guess. I have been in contact with iView. The concern has been relayed abroad. The stock they have has been checked, but no noticeable smell has been noted. It may be a specific batch that had the problem.
They are aware of some of the other issues including a re-written manual. This was designed as a tuner with a added benefit to become a DVR with an addition of an eternally enclosed HDD. This is their first DVR, I guess you have to give them time. Below is a e-mail I received from iView:
"Hi Bruce,
The IV-4000stb will not be under production. We are trying to improved the IV-3500STB at this moment will hear me soon once I got the new firmware.
Best Regards,
Technical Support
Robert Chui
robertchui@iviewus.com"
NOTES:
There is a "midnight bug". If you schedule a recording to span midnight, it will prevent you from adding any other entries AND when the recording does start, it will NOT stop! The workaround is two split recordings, one ending at 2359, the other starting at 0000.
2. There is now also a "weekly bug", where if you setup for a 'weekly' recording, it may only record the 1st episode. Apparently, the unit isn't coming out of standby. It doesn't 'wake up' prior to the next recording.
Pros;
1. Price (what else can you say here),
2. Power consumption; less than one watt off and 7 watts on,
3. HDMI & component outputs and coaxial audio out. Better than many others costing 4x the price. (it also has composite and RF for older TV's),
4. Front panel power & ch. up/dn,
5. Especially suited for smaller TV's in bedrooms and kitchens due to it's very small size. (see below),
6. This will power a 2 1/2" Laptop type of hard drive in an external enclosure WITHOUT a separate power supply,
7. Lightning fast boot time of 10 seconds. Surely beats TiVo's boot time after plugging one in (5 1/2 minutes),
8. Fast channel changes, a rarity with digital tuners especially with DVR's,
9. Ability to add (and completely delete) channels without doing another full scan. In fact, you can skip the initial scan and just enter only the physical channel numbers you want,
10. Picture quality and OTA reception are on par with most other tuners & DVR's
11. Using a USB hub allows access to multiple HDD's up to 1 1/2 TB each. The manual only states drives up to 500GB,
12. The Multimedia player portion allows playing audio files when viewing photos (as long as they are on the same drive).
Cons;
1. Channels numbers in the display and in the 'TV list' are just consecutive numbers starting with the lowest virtual channel number and ascending upwards. What on earth were they thinking here? This is the other serious shortcoming,
2. No ability to scheduled a recording directly inside the Guide. You have to do a manual entry, VCR style which defeats the purpose and convenience of a guide. This is a real shortfall as all other DVR's will schedule the recording by just pressing Ok/select or Rec button,
3. QAM channels all get listed as "0-0" making it useless for CATV applications. There is no analog capability,
4. Bright display. Surely can't use it in a bedroom at night,
5. The very small size doesn't allow it to be placed under any other equipment.There is also the probability of heavy cables pulling it off the shelve due to lack of size & weight,
6. The remote is just as small, so are the labels. Very hard to see and push buttons. The button layout is not logical either,
7. There is no indication on the display of recording status. Nothing preventing it from getting turned off which will cancel the recording,
8. The manual misses a lot of functions. It's too small to read (though you can download a full size manual off their website). Being written for the Chinese market with mis named terms is a major problem,
9. No skip function,
10. Clock can not be set manually. If the reference stations clock is wrong, you can't do anything about it. Also it is only a 24 hour format,
11. You can't playback and record at the same time,
12. Only one tuner,
13. The single USB port is on the front panel. While Ok for a memory stick, it surely isn't for a HDD connection with the cable hanging off the front.
14. Apparently, when a weekly recording is scheduled, the next recording will be 12 days later, not seven,
15. If you set a recording to span midnight (one day to the next), the system won't allow setting any other recordings and will just continuously record from the start time.
16. There is no mention anywhere other than in the system information screen that this has a ATSC tuner, only QAM. there is also little mention about the recording capabilities.
17. When recording, the record indicator is always showing on screen.
update: added info on new firmware versionFor the price I can't really complain too much, I mean for the
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