Millions of homes in the UK currently have HD TV sets but still only watch television in standard definition. This is all changing, with the arrival of Freeview HD.

Freeview HD is a service that now provides not only the same standard definition channels that Freeview currently hosts, but also high-definition offerings from the BBC, Channel 4 and ITV.

These new high-def channels are free to view, that’s why it’s called FreeviewHD, so there is no subscription necessary. The only cost comes from the fact that anyone wanting to view the new service will have to buy a new Freeview HD-compatible set-top box or a Freeview HD TV with a DVB-T2 tuner to decode the HD transmissions.

Old Freeview (DVB-T) tuners – in both televisions and set-top boxes – can’t decode Freeview HD signals and can only receive the existing standard definition channels.

What is Freeview HD?

Broadcasters bundle the Freeview TV channels into six groups, or multiplexes, with each one being transmitted separately on a slightly different frequency. This is why in areas of poor reception, you can sometimes only receive a random collection of channels – it’s common with indoor aerials to not be able to receive all six of the multiplexes perfectly. Sorry, but that’s the way it is!

With Freeview HD, the new HD channels took over one of these six multiplexes, and the channels that were in that multiplex before were distributed across the other five. This is why during the switchover to HD many people have had to retune their standard Freeview TVs and boxes multiple times, with seemingly little effect. It’s all about reshuffling the existing channels to make room for the new HD content.

Freeview HD set-top boxes and TVs are able to tune into and play back the five standard definition DVB-T multiplexes, and the renewed sixth DVB-T2 multiplex. This means that all current standard Freeview equipment will continue to function perfectly well with the SD channels, while only DVB-T2 tuners will be able to see the HD channels.

Why should I care about watching TV in HD?

Oh come on, please! Freeview HD is transmitted at a higher bitrate than standard Freeview channels. This means the picture arrives at a higher resolution and contains more detail, while the audio is often better too. Unless you love blurry (and yes, I accept that the Impressionist painters did!) why would you not want to crisp-up your picture and sound?

Standard definition pictures were designed primarily for smaller CRT televisions. Modern day HD TVs are much bigger, and are capable of displaying more pixels. So if you’ve paid for an HD TV but aren’t able to receive HD pictures, you’re missing out. Correct this straight away!

What channels are available in HD?

Here are four standard channels available in high definition on Freeview HD

• BBC One HD (channel 50). Exactly the same as BBC One, except it’s in high definition
• ITV1 HD (channel 51). Exactly the same as ITV1, except it’s in high definition
• Channel 4 HD (channel 52). Exactly the same as Channel 4, except it’s in high definition
• BBC HD (channel 54). An assortment of BBC content in HD. Sometimes you’ll get an HD simulcast with BBC 2, at other times you’ll get repeats in HD.
• More HD channels will appear over time – your box will tell you when to retune!

Can I get Freeview HD?

Most areas in the UK can now receive the DVB-T2 signal, but there are some regions that are a little behind. You can find out for sure by entering your postcode on the official Freeview HD Coverage Checker.

How do I get Freeview HD?

To watch Freeview HD signals you’ll need a device capable of decoding the DVB-T2 signal. That’ll either be a simple Freeview HD tuner (set-top box), a Freeview+ HD PVR box (which will allow you to record shows as well as pause and rewind live TV) or a new TV with a DVB-T2 tuner built-in.

You shouldn’t need to buy a new aerial, because even a basic indoor aerial is capable of picking up the signal, providing the signal is strong enough. This is partially because Freeview HD is compressed using MPEG-4 instead of the less efficient MPEG-2. If you can already receive a good Freeview signal, you shouldn’t experience any reception issues.

Good luck and enjoy!

Are you thinking of enetering the HDRecorder and Freeview arena? Or maybe upgrading? Then you can do a lot worse than consider this set-up: For around £250 you can have a Pansonic HDD DVD Recorder with a large 160GB of recording space. The DMR-EX773EBK.

What has it got? It has a High Definition DVD Recorder with 1080p Up-Conversion. You wouldn’t expect anything less would you?  An HD Photo Slideshow with Music. That can be good for showing off your holiday snaps with mood music or even recorded commentary over music with it!

The proprietray VIERA Link connects seamlessly with other Panasonic home entertainment products, while the Auto Scene Chapter Function and Juke Box function make for flexibility and variety.

Data from music CDs and USB devices can be easily transferred to DIGA’s hard disk drive. It also supports the ID3Tag information that is embedded in music data. The DIGA is like a jukebox filled with your favourite music.Enjoy watching memorable photos (JPEG 1080×1920 pixels) recorded on to various medias (HDD, CD-R/-RW, DVD-R/-RW, USB). Neat!

Finally, as you should expect the Chroma Processor reproduces coloured and textures with precise digital audio processing.

How is it in practice? Well the general consensus of reviewers and purchasers alike is that it’s good. Very good.

You can watch DVD’s whilst you are recording a show and you can also watch something that you have previously recorded whilst recording something else as well. A lot of people record a film and then edit out the adverts and breaks before transfer onto DVD. That’s a nice way to get quality films at a fraction of the cost, and without the irritating breaks!

Most people find then when they have an HDD Recorder with Freeview, you’ll be unlikely to ever watch live tv again. You’ll order the things you want to watch around your time to suit yourself. No longer a slave to the tv schedules! Well, you may still want to watch the News and Weather live actually.

On most TV shows when you press the skip forward button it skips straight to the end of the adverts but on some shows you end up having to do it manually with the fastforward button, but it’s not really that much of a big problem. That’s not really a fault of the Panasonic, just the programming on some shows!

It seems that this product has struck a chord with users, and the words “pleasure to use” “simplicity” and “versatile” appear a lot in reviews. It is quick and easy to set up and the recording menues are very easy to use. The one touch recording from the TV guide is intuitive and unfussy. The picture quality is excellent, and it’s also a boon that when running
It is a very quiet machine while running.

Finally it’s a nice looking piece of kit that will look good with any other equipment.

If you look around you can get it lower than £200, but my advice is always buy it from somewhere reputable!