Freeview HD PVR - Digital Stream DHR8205U

well i have a lg plasma with sky, a dvd player and a ps3. i think i will be getting a decent sound setup aswell when i have enough money so if i could get a remote that would work all these it would be great. i don't think i would spend more than £70 on a remote though. the logitech 555 looks like a good choice although i would rather something new with warranty. thanks for the help. these forums are great!! 

The 650 is probably your best bet then, seems to be about £60.

Word of warning though, it won't control your PS3 out of the box. This is because the PS3 uses bluetooth rather than infrared. To get it to control the PS3, you'd need to also buy the PS3 adaptor which is another £40. I haven't bothered with this personally and just use the standard Sony PS3 remote.

there seems to be good reviews on that remote although i ended up buying the harmony 600. its supposed to be the same as the 650 except for the colour screen and got it for £40 from best buy so am happy enough with that. thanks for the advice

Latest software update now available on the MIT London website.

Hi,

I've recently purchased a digital stream DHR8203U currently running 4.03.r7732. I've checked the digital stream website but cannot work out what the most recent update is, do I need to update the software?

Many thanks,

Hi there,

You don't necessarily need to update (I haven't as yet, but will do today probably), but version 4.11.r8280 was released yesterday. This includes the following updates:

1. New Features

        A. Backup schedule list

        [To Backup]
        - Insert a USB memory
        - Go to Menu->Others->Maintenance->Backup/Restore DB
        - The Channel and Schedule Data Base will be stored into the USB
        [To Restore]
        - Insert the USB memory which has stored DB
        - Perform Restore Default (If you do the FVU, it will make same effect)
        - At Welcome screen, press [Exit]
        - Go to Menu->Others->Maintenance->Backup/Restore DB
        - The Channel and Schedule Data Base will be restored.

2. Cosmetic Changes

    A. Grey out past programs in EPG
    B. 5.1ch Audio display
    C. Red dot in EPG
    D. DD, DD+ logo

3. Bug Fixes

    A. Series reservation of split programme lists on All and Single category in the Schedule list.
    B. Duplicate entries in the schedule list when doing series reservation.
    C. Changing of group by the Func+ button at the EPG has no effect.
    D. Channel change by the direct number entry changes the current group mode to TV mode either in Live or EPG.
    E. Sometimes recording cannot be stopped or started.
    F. ITV2, STV+1 shows “No Service” in Blackhill region.
    G. Bug fix for EPG display in Favourite mode.
    H. HDMI compatibility improved.
    I. Can’t play a title if it is moved to a folder with same title name
    J. Pixilation when playing the recorded contents.
    K. 1st part of recording cannot be played after mains power cycle if TV or Radio group is mixed.
    L. Set turns to power on mode sometimes after 3:00 o’clock update.
    M. Set sometimes remains at active standby mode even if the power saving mode was set to “on”.

If any of the above seem like things you desperately want, then you'll need to update. On the other hand, if you're not too bothered by any of the new features and unaffected by any of the bugs listed above (as I am currently), you can stay on 4.03 as long as you like.

If you do want to update, follow the instructions on the MIT website which can be found by clicking here (there's even a video showing you how to do it there now!).

Any issues, come back here and I'll see if I can help.

Hi Prof,

I'd be interested to know if you installed and whether you have experienced any problems as a result.

When I download the update instead of the 10 files mentioned, I get 11 including a 2.1a hex file which is not on the list within the instructions. Did you install that one too?

Thanks

Hi Prof,

I'd be interested to know if you installed and whether you have experienced any problems as a result.

When I download the update instead of the 10 files mentioned, I get 11 including a 2.1a hex file which is not on the list within the instructions. Did you install that one too?

Thanks

Not done it yet, had a really busy week at work and finished late, so not really in the mood to be updating tonight, rather sitting on the sofa, drinking wine and watching a bit of TV!

However, from what I've read elsewhere, the updates does indeed have 11 files including the one you've mentioned there, so put them all on the stick.

I should get round to updating this weekend probably so will post back when done here if you want to wait, but if not, plenty of others have updated and all seems okay for them, though a couple of people have had issues with the box getting stuck on the Loading screen. If you anyone gets this, post here and I'll post some suggestions on getting round the issue.

Update now installed and haven't had any issues as yet.

FYI, there is a method which has been posted in other forums to allow you to backup your schedule list / channels using the new functionality offered in the update to do this. This saves having to re-setup all your scheduled timers and re-scanning for channels once you've done the full update. I will re-post the method here for those who need it, this is the way I updated so I know it works:

1. On your PC / Mac, just copy the the update.tgz and update.md5 files to the root of a properly FAT32 formatted USB stick.

2. With the DS powered on, insert the USB into the front socket and wait for it to be recognised.

3. Go to the Menu > Others > Maintenance menu and choose Software Update.

4. Enter your PIN (if necessary), then choose USB.

5. The update will run and, when finished, the DS will reboot.

6. Once rebooted, with the USB still inserted, go back to the Menu > Others > Maintenance menu and you should now see Backup/Restore DB as an option - select this and choose Backup DB.

7. Again, enter your PIN if you have one and then, after a few seconds, you should get a message Channel and Schedule data have been stored at the following location and it will indicate a path on your USB drive and a file called ChnSchld.tgz.

8. Go to the Recordings list, press the white Func+ button and then choose the option to Remove USB.

9. Now, follow the method here to run the full update (i.e. copy the rest of the files in the download to your USB drive, but ensure you leave the new ChnSchld.tgz file there).

10. Once the update is completed and the DS has rebooted, the channel scan will start - you can cancel this if you like.

11. Ensure your USB drive is still connected with the ChnSchld.tgz file on it, then go into the Menu > Others > Maintenance and choose Backup/Restore DB, then this time Restore DB.

12. Choose Yes to confirm this - once done, I believe the DS reboots once again (can't remember off the top of my head!).

13. Your channel line up and scheduled timers should all be there as they were prior to the update - sorted!

14. You'll still need to go into the menus and re-set up your preferences e.g. power saving settings, amount of time to skip when pressing the Skip button etc.

Hope this helps!

Hi Prof.

Thanks for all the info on the dig stream pvr. i have had mine for 4 days and very pleased with it, but i have noticed that the clock when in standby mode loses about 40 mins in 24 hrs. it corrects its self when turned on. any ideas. thanks. 

Have seen a few other reports of this, it seems to be a faulty internal clock so it loses time when in standby - this is then corrected when it switches on and updates its time from the Freeview broadcast. Best bet is to contact MIT London (click here), tell them the issue and ask them for a replacement as this is what they have offered others who have the problem.

Excellent review and continua led update on the Digital Stream Proffesorhat.

I initially set out to buy the Pace/Philips PVR until reading all of the bad reviews with software glitches; I was thinking oh no not another Pace Twin saga. Anyway after reading yours and other reviews on the net I opted for a Digital Stream 320 GB from Amazon, seemed a bargain at £160.

I must admit I am very happy with the unit thus far the only caveat being the inability to be able to change the order of the favourite lists and the unit defaulting to the all channel list every time you select the EPG.

Do you know or have you heard if these issues are in the pipeline for implementation in future software upgrades?

The new update mentioned above will no longer switch back to the all channel list when you select the EPG so you can now effectively use this with your Favourites lists. However, you still can't re-order the channels unfortunately - it has been requested so we'll have to see if it gets implemented in a future update. Will keep the post updated as and when I hear anything, but given it's only been a week since the last update, it might be a little while until we hear further news on this!

Excellent forum.

Sometimes when watching a programme the information box pops up and stays on screen for a couple of seconds before going, anyway this can be resolved?

Thanks,