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Set top box - pros and cons

Whether it’s called a Freeview receiver or a digital box, this is a small piece of kit that is connected to your TV to decode the digital TV signal for your TV. It comes with its own remote control, separate from your TV one.

Set top boxes are the cheapest way to go digital. You don’t need to buy a new TV and they can bring you extra channels without subscription.

Depending on how you plan to get your digital TV signal – through an aerial, by satellite, cable or broadband phone line, you will need a different set top box.

The majority of set top boxes in the shops are Freeview boxes which deliver standard definition digital TV via an aerial. These cost from £25 to about £70, depending on their features. The new HD (High Definition) Freeview boxes cost £100-150. These deliver the Freeview HD channels, offering higher quality, more realistic pictures. But note Freeview HD channels are not available in all areas yet, use the Digital UK Postcode checker to check availability. You also need a TV with a screen capable of showing all the detail of high definition broadcasts. These TVs are labelled ‘HD Ready’.

You may also need to buy a new aerial depending on how good yours is. See terrestrial channels.

Also available from retailers are freesat from BBC and ITV set top boxes, that connect via a satellite dish from £49 to about £150. These bring you both standard and high definition channels, but again you'll need an HD Ready TV to display the HD pictures.

For BSkyB, cable and broadband, the companies supply and install their own set top box as part of the service. Both standard and HD boxes are availble. See satellite channels and cable/phone line channels for more details of the services avaialble - subscription and non-subscription.

For and against

For

Cheapest way to go digital
Don’t have to buy a new TV
Extra TV channels and radio stations without subscription
Set top boxes can be small and neat
Provide an on screen 7-day TV Guide (sometimes called an EPG).
HD boxes available that deliver HD channels

Against

Some are easier to use than others – choose carefully if this is important to you
Might need to buy a new aerial or satelite dish

If you are installing a terrestrial (Freeview) set top box yourself, it is simplest to plug the set top box into your TV with a SCART lead. All set top boxes and most modern TVs have SCART sockets. If your TV does not have a SCART socket, you will need a set top box that can feed the digital signal into the TV’s aerial socket - one with what's called an RF modulator or Modulator output in our test reports. See our FAQ converting TVs without SCART sockets.

To record digital TV programmes you can connect your set top box to a VCR or DVD recorder, but if you want easy recording and features like ‘Pause live TV’ you should consider getting a digital TV recorder instead.

For what to look for in a set top box, see Features to look for. For all test results, go to set top boxes test reports.

Combination units
There are complex units on sale with different combinations of digital TV products built in – mixes of set top box / digital TV recorder / VHS recorder / DVD recorder / DVD player. Right now we have no plans to test the more complicated options but we have tested Freeview Playback compatible DVD recorders. Go to easiest to use DVD digital TV recorders.