How can I watch and record television with subtitles? What is Freeview?

Our factsheet 'How to get subtitles' gives you all the information you'll need concerning receiving and recording analogue or digital television with subtitles.

What is a Freeview set-top box?

Freeview set-top boxes are small, relatively cheap products which are widely available and simply connect between your aerial and TV to give you access to Freeview digital television. They are easy to set up and packed full of useful features. Their downside is that, if you want to record from them using a video or DVD recorder, then you have to make sure they are left turned on or their built-in timer is set.

What products are available which both receive and record Freeview?

There are now products available which allow you to both receive Freeview and let you record it with digital subtitles, if available. What’s more, they are coming down in price and now, at less than twice the price of some set-top boxes, they are becoming an affordable option. An advantage of these products is that you have one box instead of two (recording device and set-top box) and they are easier to programme for a recording. Currently there are two types of recording device with a Freeview tuner available: Personal Video Recorders (PVRs) and a Freeview DVD recorder.

Personal Video Recorders (PVRs) record onto a built-in hard drive (just like that in a computer), which makes recording very easy indeed. Both of the products tested will store up to 40 hours of TV programmes (or even longer if recording radio), and record in very high quality. You can also copy your recordings if you connect the PVR to a video or DVD recorder.

The Freeview DVD recorder uses recordable DVD discs which you first have to format. But once you’ve made a recording, you have a copy you can keep. DVD recordings are much higher quality than those on VHS video and it’s much easier to see what’s stored on the disc thanks to a contents list displayed on your TV screen. One disadvantage of recordable DVDs is that there are currently five different recording formats. This can make buying recordable discs confusing, because the formats all have similar names, and discs recorded in one format can’t always be played in another machine.