The Humax HD-FOX T2 is a breakthrough – the first set-top box that delivers Freeview HD into the home. Rig your terrestrial aerial up to this dinky device and (depending on where you live) you’ll have HD beamed right into your living room, without having to pay for a satellite dish or cable installation. So is Freeview HD’s debut a successful one? Read our full Humax HD-FOX T2 review and all will be revealed!
The Humax HD-FOX T2 is a compact Freeview set-top box with full DVB-T2 compliance and an HDMI output, meaning it can receive HD signals and deliver 1080i programming to your HD Ready telly. After whacking in a cheap portable aerial and running the search, we found ourselves with BBC HD and ITV1HD in the EPG alongside the regular standard def line-up (other channels, including Channel 4 HD, will be added in time).
The picture quality isn’t quite up to Sky HD’s usual standards, lacking the slight edge in sharpness, but it’s still a whopping upgrade from regular TV. The Winter Olympics on BBC HD revealed bags more detail than most viewers will be used to – the colour had more pop, spectators’ faces were clearly visible and everything just looked cleaner.
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We found the standard def picture reasonably impressive too. Again, it’s not quite as good as Sky’s, but that could be due to us using a portable rather than a rooftop aerial – the signal strength read is around 30 percent, so there’s plenty of room for improvement, in theory at least.
HDTV is just one of the Humax HD-FOX T2’s talents, however. It’s also fully specced up for media playback, either via USB or Ethernet. With the latter it can latch on to almost any photo, music or video file on your home network – a very handy feature if you don’t already have a digital media streamer set up in your living room.
Overall you should definitely consider the Humax HD-FOX T2 if you’re planning on adding Freeview HD to your home entertainment arsenal. The service may still be in its infancy, but this box should ensure you’re ready when terrestrial HDTV hits maturity.
