A reliable PVR?

[Simpo Two]

I have a Sony SVRHDT500B. It looks nice, it's just the right size, it matches my Sony TV. But after three years of light use it started playing up, stuttering and conking out. Disk repair didn't work so I had to reformat it (with loss of everything recorded). However it's never been the same since, and is now back to its old ways. Last night's recording of the F1 highlights was riddled with picture break-up, stutter and hang-ups of grey or black screen if I try to jump forward or back.

So unless anyone has any ideas how to fix it, I need a new one. It needs to be small and smart, Freeview HD and twin tuner with a good EPG. Is there anything out there that fits the bill please?

[Simpo Two]

Why are they so crap?

VHS players lasted for decades...

[Simpo Two]

Well, my PC is about 12 years old, gets used every day and is absolutely fine. I don't see how what is basically a hard drive with few wires sticking out can be so fickle and need replacing every 3 years (with loss of everything recorded). If I'd bought an unbranded thing for £50 then fair enough, but I expect better when it says Sony and costs £250...

And this I think will be the legacy of the computer age - lost data, or the inability to play it. There is warning that the Sony is about to go wobbly, but no way to save the data.

[Simpo Two]

Hmmm - how about one with swap-out HDs? Surely they are standard items?

[Simpo Two]

FurtiveFreddy said:

http://www.avforums.com/threads/sony-hdt500-hard-d...

Very interesting, thanks. Beyond my ability to do but I may give my tame PC bod a ring...!

[Simpo Two]

Well my current plan is to open it up, see what the HD is and fit a new one.

And then I thought - would an SSD fit/work? What does the panel think?

[Simpo Two]

I'd hoped for 'reliable' rather than 'fixable'

[Simpo Two]

OK, I opened it up and the HD is a Western Digital SATA 32Gb cache. But I get the impression that any replacement HD will fail in 2-3 years due to overheating.

So how about an SSD? www.scan.co.uk/products/512gb-crucial-mx100-25-7mm...

Can it be that simple?



NB To my surprise, when I removed the box to open it, the bottom was very warm - even though it wasn't on!