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Set-top-box manufacturer Humax appears to be preparing to launch its first box with video recording capabilities for the new broadband-based live TV streaming service Freely, which is supported by several of the major UK TV broadcasters (BBC, ITV etc.) and is an evolution – not yet a full replacement – of the existing Freeview service (inc. Freeview Play and Freesat).
Freely has been slowly improving their device support since the service first went live in April 2024 (here) and recently confirmed plans to launch on Netgem’s new streaming TV box during Q4 2025 (here); such boxes are typically bundled by broadband ISPs like Brsk, TalkTalk, CommunityFibre, Wightfibre and others. The BBC are also understood to be considering the launch of a streaming box (here).
However, Freely’s adoption is likely to remain limited until the service arrives on popular streaming devices from Amazon, Google and Roku, but at present there’s no clear indication of whether or even when this will happen. In the meantime, progress is still being made and a number of electrical retailers (examples here, here and here) recently started listing the existence of a new device – the Humax FHR-6000T – “Freely PVR Recordable Set Top Box“.
The new 4K (UltraHD) supporting box doesn’t yet appear to be listed on Humax’s website, but the retailers indicate that it will cost £249 and “stands out as the very first Freely PVR (personal video recorder) set top box, allowing recording of up to four channels simultaneously on a single screen” (max recording time of 1000 hours). The box will also offer connectivity via HDMI 2.1 and USB ports, as well as WiFi capability, Ethernet (LAN), SPDIF (optical audio), RF out and RF in.
The box supports popular TV services / apps like BBC iPlayer, ITVX, C4, C5 and allows Remote Record (Schedule on the Go). The kit, which also has the ability to pause live TV, comes with a 1-year warranty (extendable to 2 years upon registration), weighs a hefty 1.7kg and is sized as follows: H48 x W280 x D200 mm.
However, there’s currently little to no other information on how this box will go about Freely’s integration, and a sizeable question mark remains over the limitations of its video recording capabilities (i.e. does this really extend to content delivered via Freely or only via something like aerial-based Freeview signals).