TOPFIELD
TF 5810 PVRt
User Guide
Digital Terrestrial Receiver
Personal Video Recorder
Use only with the cart, stand, tripod, bracket, or
table specified by the manufacturer or sold with
the apparatus. When a cart is used, use caution
when moving the cart/apparatus combination to
avoid injury from tip-over.
•
Changes or modifications not expressly approved by the
party responsible for compliance could void the user’s
authority to operate the equipment.
•
The mains plug, which is used as a disconnect device,
shall remain readily operable.
The lightning flash with arrowhead symbol, within an
equilateral triangle, is intended to alert the user to the
presence of uninsulated “dangerous voltage” within the
product’s enclosure that may be of sufficient magnitude
to constitute a risk of electric shock to a person.
The exclamation point, within an equilateral triangle, is
intended to alert the user to the presence of important
operating and maintenance (servicing) instructions in
the literature accompanying the product.
iv CONTENTS
Contents
Contents iv
1 Introduction and getting started 1
1.1 Unpacking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
1.2 Remote control buttons and their functions . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1.3 Rear panel connections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
1.4 Connecting up your PVR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
1.4.1 Connecting the aerial to your PVR . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
1.4.2 Connecting the PVR to your TV using a HDMI . . . . 10
1.4.3 Connecting the PVR to your TV using a SCART . . . . 10
1.4.4 Connecting to your HiFi system . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
1.5 Switching on for the first time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
1.5.1 Searching for TV and radio channels . . . . . . . . . . 11
1.5.2 Basic system settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
1.5.3 Time and date options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
1.5.4 AV output settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
1.6 Pay TV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
2 Watching TV 18
2.1 Starting to watch television . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
2.1.1 Volume control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
2.1.2 Changing channels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
2.1.3 Radio channels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
2.2 Electronic Programme Guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
2.3 Time Shift television . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
CONTENTS v
2.3.1 Rewinding TV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
2.3.2 Pausing TV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
3 Recording and playing TV programmes 27
3.1 How your PVR records . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
3.2 Instant recording . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
3.3 Scheduled recordings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
3.3.1 Scheduling a recording using the EPG . . . . . . . . . . 31
3.3.2 Altering the details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
3.3.3 Viewing your recording schedule . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
3.3.4 Scheduling a recording without using the EPG . . . . 37
3.4 Things you should know about recording on your PVR . . . . 38
3.4.1 Dual recordings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
3.4.2 Watching television while dual recording . . . . . . . . 39
3.4.3 When recordings start or stop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
3.4.4 Leaving the PVR in standby . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
3.4.5 Switching off while recording . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
3.4.6 How recordings are named . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
3.5 Playing back recordings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
3.5.1 Playback features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
3.5.2 Bookmarks and resume play . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
3.5.3 After you’ve watched a recording . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
4 Extra features 46
4.1 Make the most of digital TV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
4.1.1 Subtitles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
4.1.2 Sound tracks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
4.1.3 Picture in Picture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
4.1.4 Digital teletext . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
4.1.5 Sleep timer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
4.2 Adjusting the on-screen display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
4.3 Organizing channels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
4.3.1 Favourite channels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
4.3.2 Setting up favourite channels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
4.3.3 Managing lists of favourites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
4.3.4 Watching TV using favourites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
vi CONTENTS
4.4 Organising recordings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
4.4.1 Renaming recordings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
4.4.2 Organising recordings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
4.4.3 Copying recordings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
4.4.4 Editing recordings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
4.5 Additional playback and viewing features . . . . . . . . . . . 59
4.5.1 Playing back multiple recordings . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
4.5.2 Slow motion playback . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
4.5.3 Repeat playback . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
4.5.4 Parental lock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
4.5.5 Restricting access to recorded programmes . . . . . . . 62
4.5.6 Restricting access to TV channels . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
4.5.7 Organising the channel list . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
5 The PC Connection 64
5.1 Installing the software and drivers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
5.2 Connecting the PVR to your PC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
5.2.1 Using Altair . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
5.2.2 How files are organised on your PVR . . . . . . . . . . 68
5.2.3 Transferring files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
6 Advanced features 70
6.1 MP3 playback . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
6.2 Formatting the hard disk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
6.3 Firmware updates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
6.3.1 Installing a firmware update via USB . . . . . . . . . . 72
6.3.2 Installing a firmware update via a serial connection . . 74
6.3.3 Installing a firmware update over the air . . . . . . . . 74
6.4 Copy Firmware and Settings to Another System . . . . . . . . 75
6.4.1 Copy Firmware to Another System . . . . . . . . . . . 75
6.4.2 Copy Settings to Another System . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
6.5 TAPs - Additional software for your PVR . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
6.5.1 Installing TAPs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
6.5.2 Starting TAPs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
6.5.3 Starting TAPs automatically . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
6.5.4 Troubleshooting TAPs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
CONTENTS vii
7 Troubleshooting and How to 81
7.1 Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
7.1.1 Unexpected channel changes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
7.1.2 Failed recordings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
7.1.3 PVR crashes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
7.1.4 Incorrect channel numbers and duplicate channels . . 83
7.1.5 Unable to view Pay TV channels . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
7.2 How to . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
7.2.1 Adding a new channel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
7.2.2 Moving home . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
7.3 Contacting support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
A Technical Information 87
Index 89
1
Chapter 1
Introduction and getting
started
Congratulations on buying a Topfield TF 5810 Personal Video
Recorder terrestrial(PVRt). The TF 5810 PVRt allows you to
view and record digital TV channels easily, via an ordinary
television aerial. You can receive all the Freeview channels
broadcast in your area, which includes a range of digital radio
stations too. In addition, with a small subscription module, you
can access some additional channels from pay TV broadcasters.
Your new PVR allows you to record two different programmes
simultaneously, and even to play back existing recordings
while you’re making new ones. With it’s large hard drive,
there’s plenty of space for all the shows you want to watch,
and the built in electronic programme guide (EPG) makes it
easy to find programmes and schedule automatic recordings.
As well as recording and playback of TV programmes, it has
plenty of other features. You can pause TV when the phone
rings, for example, or rewind a sports match to watch someone
score a second time. Channels can be arranged into groups
of ‘favourites,’ and there are other useful features like picture
2 Introduction and getting started
in picture, interactive services and even a link to your home
computer.
We’ll cover all of those issues in this manual, starting from
basic installation and setup, then looking at everyday use, and
finally giving you an idea of some of the advanced features
that you can make use of when you’re comfortable with how
your PVR works.
1.1 Unpacking
Before going any further, check that you have received the
following items with your PVR.
• Remote control unit
• Two AAA batteries for the remote control
• One aerial cable, to link the PVR to your TV aerial
• One loop cable (a short aerial cable)
• One SCART cable, to link the PVR to your television set
• A copy of this user guide
These items may vary according to your local area.
Unpack the cables, and insert the batteries in the remote control;
make sure you insert them the correct way round, following
the symbols on the inside of the battery compartment.
Before going any further, you should familiarise yourself with
the remote control and with the connectors on the rear of the
PVR. Let’s look at the remote control first. Dont worry if some
of the things we mention here seem a little unusual —all the
functions and features will be explained later on.
1.2 Remote control buttons and their functions 3
1.2 Remote control buttons and their functions
3
1
2
5
6
20
15
17
16
9
22
25
26
29
30
34
33
4
7
8
14
17
18
19
23
24
27
28
31
32
21
16
35
36
37
10
13
11
12
1
Use this button to switch the
PVR in and out of standby mode.
2
Press this button to temporarily
switch off the sound; press again
to switch it back on.
3
This button changes a video res-
olution.
4
Press this button to change a
aspect ratio.
5
This button switches the output
of the main SCART socket between
the PVR’s picture and the device
connected to the secondary SCART
socket.
6
Switch the PVR between televi-
sion and radio channels.
7
These Numeric buttons are used to
enter channel numbers and menu
options.
8
This button switches between
the current channel and the previously viewed one.
9
Press this button to display
more information about the current programme or a programme
highlighted in the EPG.
10
Press this button to select an audio track and a sound
mode.
4 Introduction and getting started
11
Press this button to select a teletext track.
12
Press this button to select a subtitle track.
13
This button gives access to additional features, such
as subtitles, favourites, soundtracks, teletexttracks and
the sleep timer.
14
Use this button to access the PVR’s menus, or to
return to the previous menu from a sub-menu.
15
This button displays the Electronic Programme Guide
(EPG).
16
In system menus, the up and down buttons allows you
to choose an item from the menu. They are also used to
navigate through the electronic programme guide, and
in interactive services.
17
In system menus, the left and right buttons allow you to
change the options for a menu item. They are also used
to navigate through the electronic programme guide, and
in interactive services.
18
This button is used to select items in menus, and in
interactive services. When viewing live TV, it displays
the channel list.
19
Press Exit to leave the current screen.
20
Press List once to display a list of all the channels
stored for TV or Radio. Press it again when the list is
displayed to select a group of Favourite channels.
21
The and buttons increase and decrease the volume. In some screens, they also work as right and left
movement keys.
22
The and buttons move to the next or previous
channel in the channel list or the current Favourites list.
In some screens, they also work as up and down movement keys.
1.2 Remote control buttons and their functions 5
23
Press to reverse playback; press again to increase
speed, or hold down to move along the progress bar.
24
Press to pause playback of a recorded programme or
live television.
25
Press to go to normal playback speed, or to display
the progress bar for faster navigation when playback has
already started.
26
Press to start fast forward, and again to increase playback speed, or hold down to move along the progress
bar.
27
Press to start a recording.
28
Press to stop playback, to stop a recording, or to jump
back to live TV from time shifted television.
29
This button starts slow motion playback. Subsequent
presses change the speed of playback.
30
This button displays the list of recorded programmes
that have been saved on your PVR’s hard disk.
31
When the PiP function is being used, this key displays
a list so that you can choose which channel is displayed in
the smaller picture. When the Progress Bar is displayed,
it allows you to select a section of a programme for repeat
playback or editing.
32
This button changes the position of sub-picture counterclockwise. It is also used to jump back to beginnng of
recording during a playback.
33
This button changes the position of sub-picture clockwise. It is also used to jump to end of recording during a
playback.
34
This button swaps the Picture in Picture with the
main picture.
6 Introduction and getting started
35
These coloured buttons have a different function per
menu. They will be guided by on-screen help.
36
Press this button once to start the Picture in Picture
(PiP) function. Press again to change the position of the
Picture in Picture, and to turn it off.
37
This button displays the favourite lists.
The coloured buttons on the remote control are used by interactive services, such as BBCi or Teletext — for example, you
may see a message on screen asking you to ‘Press Red.’ The
keys are also used in some of the PVR menus, where you will
usually see an on screen message telling you which key to use
for which function.
1.3 Rear panel connections
The TF 5810 PVRt has a wide range of connections on the back
panel, and it can look a little complicated at first. Dont worry —
it’s much simpler than it looks, and not everyone needs to use
all the connections. We’ll explain some of the most common
ways of connecting the PVR after we’ve looked at the rear
panel.
ANT 1 IN
RF LOOP
1 OUT
RF LOOP
2 OUT
AUDIO
L
R
S-VIDEO
VCR
USB
S/PDIF RS-232
VIDEO
TV
ANT 2 IN
1 3 5 9
2 4 6 11 12 1310
8
HDMI
7
1
ANT 1 IN
This is the input to one of the TV tuners in your
PVR (it has two, so that it can record two things at the
same time.) This socket should be connected to your
TV aerial.
1.3 Rear panel connections 7
2
RF LOOP 1 OUT
This is the output from the first tuner.
Normally, you should use the supplied loop cable to
connect this to the ANT 2 IN connector.
3
ANT 2 IN
ANT 2 is the input to the second of the tuners
in your PVR.
4
RF LOOP 2 OUT
This is the output from the second
tuner.
5
Video output
This yellow socket carries composite video.
This format is used by some video projectors, and
audio visual amplifiers; most users will not need to
use this socket.
6
Audio outputs These two connectors provide left (white)
and right (red) channel audio outputs, which can be
connected to a hi-fi system, if you wish.
7
HDMI
This socket carries high definitioin video with dig-
ital audio.
8
S-Video
The S-Video output is another way of connecting some televisions, projectors or AV amplifiers to
your PVR. Again, most users will not need to use this
socket.
9
TV SCART
This is the main output socket from your
PVR, carrying both audio and video connections using the large SCART connectors. You should normally
use the supplied SCART cable to connect this to the
corresponding socket on your television set.
10
VCR SCART
This is a secondary SCART socket. It is intended to be used to allow other devices to record the
material you are watching or playing on your PVR,
and can also pass their signal through to your television, so that even if you have only one SCART connector on your TV you can use, for example, both the
PVR and a DVD player, selecting one or the other via
the SAT button on the remote control.
8 Introduction and getting started
11
USB port
By connecting to your computer using this USB
port, you can upgrade the built-in software of the PVR,
transfer recorded programmes to your computer, or
transfer music files from the computer to play back on
the PVR.
12
S/PDIF optical connector
If you have an audio visual system with a surround sound decoder or an amplifier
that has optical input, you can use this connector to
link it to your PVR. (Note that multi-channel digital surround, such as Dolby Digital, is not currently
broadcast on UK digital terrestrial TV channels).
13
RS-232 serial port
The serial port connector allows you
to update the software on your PVR using a computer
that does not have a USB connection.
1.4 Connecting up your PVR
As you can see, there is a wide range of connectors on the back
of the PVR, and consequently you can set it up in a number of
different ways. To some extent, the way that you choose will
depend on the other equipment that you have. We’ll cover the
most basic cases here.
The first thing you need to work out is how you will connect
your PVR to your television.
Most modern television sets have one or more connectors for
other equipment, often referred to as AV, EXT or SCART connectors.
1.4 Connecting up your PVR 9
1.4.1 Connecting the aerial to your PVR
Whatever sort of connection you have between the PVR and the TV, you need to connect the PVR to your television aerial so that
it can receive digital TV channels.
Note that in some areas, you may need to
upgrade your aerial to ensure that you receive digital television broadcasts — good
reception of existing analogue signals is no
guarantee of good digital reception.
The first connection you should make is to connect a cable from
your TV aerial to the ANT 1 IN connector on the back of the
PVR.
However your PVR is connected to the TV, you must ensure
that there is a connection to both the ANT 1 IN and ANT 2 IN
connectors on your PVR, so that both tuners work properly.
Normally, you do that by using the supplied loop cable to link
from RF LOOP1 OUT to ANT 2 IN.
However, if you are in a weak signal area, or are using a signal
amplifier with more than one output, you may achieve better
results by connecting a cable from the aerial or amplifier directly to the ANT 2 IN connector, rather than using the loop
cable.
10 Introduction and getting started
1.4.2 Connecting the PVR to your TV using a HDMI cable
For best results with a television set, you
should use a HDMI cable, plugging one end
into the HDMI socket on the PVR, and the
other end into a HDMI socket on your television. In this case, you do not have to make
audio connections because the HDMI connector can output stereo audio or Dolby digital
audio.
1.4.3 Connecting the PVR to your TV using a SCART or AV cable
If your television does not have a HDMI
socket, you should use the supplied SCART
cable for better results than other connections
except HDMI, plugging one end into the TV
SCART socket on the PVR, and the other end
into a free SCART socket on your television.
Some televisions have inputs via S-Video or Composite connectors, rather than HDMI or SCART. If you have such a television,
use an appropriate cable to link the socket on the PVR to the
matching socket on your television.
1.4.4 Connecting to your HiFi system
If you wish to play the sound from the PVR
through your HiFi or audio visual system,
you should connect either the S/PDIF digital
audio connector or the left and right audio
connectors to an input on your audio system.
1.5 Switching on for the first time 11
1.5 Switching on for the first time
Now that you have your PVR connected, you should plug it in
to a mains socket, and switch on at the wall. Ensure that your
television set is turned on and that the correct input or channel
has been selected, so that you will be able to see the display
from the PVR.
Now, press the Standby button on the front of the PVR or on
the remote control. As the PVR starts, the front panel display
will show first C457, followed by the word ‘run’. You will need
to perform some initial set up steps before you can start using
your TF 5810 PVRt.
1.5.1 Searching for TV and radio channels
The first step in setting up your PVR is to search for the available TV and radio channels.
If there are no channels stored, you will not be able to access
other menu options. If you ever use the Factory Setting option in the menus to fully reset your PVR, you will have to
perform this procedure again.
When you turn on the PVR, it may automatically display the
Service Search screen. If not, press the MENU button on the
remote control, move to Installation with the arrow buttons,
then press OK. On the next screen, select Service Search and
press OK.
On the next screen, move to Search Mode and ensure that the
Auto option is selected — you can change options by using the
left and right arrows.
All the system menus work in this way; in future, we’ll simply
explain which options to select; remember to move up and
down to highlight menu entries, left and right to change the
options, and OK to select or confirm.
12 Introduction and getting started
Next, move down to Start search, and then press OK button.
The PVR will start to search for channels, and will display a list
of TV and radio services as they are found.
It may take several minutes for the search, and it is common
for no channels to be found until quite late in the process. Be
patient; when the scan is complete, you will see a message
telling you how many TV and radio channels, or services, have
been found. Press OK button to save the list, and then press
the MENU button to move back to the main menu from the
Installation screen.
If you receive signals from more than one transmitter, or are in
a poor reception area, you may miss some channels, or receive
duplicates of others when searching. You can find out how to
resolve this problem in the Advanced Features section of the
manual.
1.5.2 Basic system settings
As well as tuning your PVR in to the available channels, there
are also some other settings that you should check, to ensure
that you get the best performance from your new TF 5810 PVRt.
Remember that you’ll also need to check these settings if you
decide to perform a full reset of your PVR at any time.
1.5.3 Time and date options
First, we’ll set the time options, which ensure that the PVR
knows where it is, and displays the correct time for programmes in the Electronic Programme Guide. From the Main
menu, choose System Setting, and then Time setting. You
should see a screen like this one.
1.5 Switching on for the first time 13
First, select the top item in the
menu, Mode, and ensure that
it is set to Auto; this will allow
your PVR to receive its time signal from the television stations,
keeping it accurate all the time.
Next, move down to Time Offset.
The left and right arrow buttons change the offset in fifteen
minute steps; if you are not in the United Kingdom, you should
use this option to select the correct difference between your
time and GMT (or UTC as it is also known). Remember that
this difference may change with the start or end of summer or
daylight savings time.
If you are in the United Kingdom, you should ensure that the
Time Offset is set to Auto; use the left button to decrease the
time offset to 00:00, and then press left once more; the offset
will now say Auto, and your PVR will automatically change to
and from British Summer Time.
Return to the previous menu, System Setting, and select A/V
Output Setting.
1.5.4 AV output settings
The AV output settings screen allows you to set the PVR options
to match your television set.
14 Introduction and getting started
Set the TV type to PAL for most
European television sets. The
Video Output option selects the
type of video signal that will be
sent via the TV SCART socket.
You can choose between RGB, SVideo, YUV (also known as component, and used with some flatpanel displays), and CVBS, also
known as composite.
For most televisions, you will get the best picture by choosing
the RGB option. If, while you change this option, the picture
on your television disappears, or changes to black and white,
simply use the arrow buttons to select another option, until
you can see the display correctly. Some televisions may take a
few seconds to adjust to a new setting.
Use the VCR SCART setting to change how the signal from the
VCR SCART connector is passed through to your television.
When set to Standard, it will be automatic, and so will depend
on the device you have connected to the VCR SCART; for
example, a video recorder’s picture may display only when
it is playing, while a DVD player may display all the time. If
you set this option to External A/V, then the picture from the
device you have connected to the VCR SCART connector will
only appear on your television when you select it via the SAT
button on the remote control.
If you have a widescreen television, you should set the TV
Aspect Ratio option to 16:9; for a conventional television set,
set it to 4:3.
The Display format controls how widescreen programmes will
appear on a non-widescreen television or non-widescreen programmes will appear on a widescreen television.
If you set TV Aspect Ratio option to 4:3 and select Letter Box,
then the widescreen picture will appear with black bars top
1.5 Switching on for the first time 15
and bottom; select Center Extract to see a picture that fills the
whole screen, with some of the side information lost. And, if
you set TV Aspect Ratio option to 16:9 and select Full, then
the non-widescreen picture will appear with full screen; select
Center to see a picture in the original ratio with balck bars left
and right.
You can cycle through the different display size options by
pressing the 0 button on the remote control while watching a
programme; a message will appear in the top right of the screen
telling you which option has been selected, and the settings in
this menu will also change.
The Sound mode allows you to select stereo, mono, left or right
channels; you should normally leave this set to Stereo.
The digital receiver supports various video resolutions from
576 to 1080. In general a resolution of 720 or more is considered
high definition. The higher the resolution is, the better quality
you can enjoy. However, if your television set does not support high definition, you cannot enjoy high definition quality
picture.
Set the HDMI Output option as you desire. The available
values for this option are changed according to the TV Type
option.
If you set this option to 576P, the digital receiver will present
even high definition programmes in resolution of 576. On the
contrary, if you set it to 1080I, the digital receiver will present
even standard definition programmes in resolution of 1080.
You can enjoy only standard definition video with the following
connectors:
• Composite video connector (VIDEO)
• S-Video connector (S-VIDEO)
• SCART connector (TV)
16 Introduction and getting started
The Video Output Scaling mode allows you to inflate or shrink
picture from−20 to+20 percent so that they could fit tight to
the screen without black space.
When you have made the necessary changes, if any, to the
settings in this menu, you’re ready to start using your PVR.
Press the EXIT button on the remote control to leave the menus,
and turn to the next chapter, where we’ll explain the basic
features and how to use them.
1.6 Pay TV
Although most of the channels broadcast on digital television in
the UK are free, including all BBC channels and all the existing
channels available on analogue television, there are a few that
are only accessible via a subscription.
Your TF 5810 PVRt is capable of receiving these additional
channels when it’s fitted with a subscription module. If you
choose not to add a subscription module, you will still be able
to see all the free channels and listen to all the radio stations.
Your PVR will automatically detect all channels during the
setup procedure that we have described, including any pay TV
channels being broadcast, but you will need to install the subscription module, called a CAM (Conditional Access Module)
before you can view the pay channels.
To install a CAM, make sure your PVR is in standby mode, and
pull down the flap at the right hand end of the front panel.
Push the module into either of the slots — it
doesn’t matter which one — until it is fully inserted; the button to the right of the slot will pop
out. Ensure that the CAM is the correct way up;
the multi-way connector should be pushed into
the slot, and the corner of the connector that does
not have a small plastic ridge sticking out should
be at the top left.
1.6 Pay TV 17
Next, insert the viewing card into the slot on the front of the
CAM. To activate your subscription, you will need to follow
the instructions supplied with the CAM and viewing card.
When your card is activated, it will be used automatically by
your PVR, so that pay channels can be viewed just like any
others.
If you attempt to view a pay tv channel without a subscription
module, or with an invalid viewing card, a message will be
displayed, telling you that the channel is scrambled.
18 Watching TV
Chapter 2
Watching TV
Your PVR incorporates twin digital television tuners, allowing
you to pick up more channels than an older analogue television
set, together with some radio stations that are also broadcast on
the digital TV service. In this chapter, we’ll explain the basics
of how you watch TV or listen to the radio with your PVR, and
start to explore a few of the new features that it offers.
Why twin tuners?
With an analogue television and a video recorder, there was a
tuner in each device, so you could watch one programme on
your TV and record another on your video. By having twin
tuners, the TF 5810 PVRt allows you to do the same for digital
television, unlike single tuner ‘digiboxes,’ where you can only
record the channel that the box is displaying.
To start watching TV through your PVR, turn on your television
set, and then press the button on the remote, or the Standby
button on the front of the PVR.
Some televisions will automatically switch to the correct connector when the PVR is turned on; on others, you may need to
select the appropriate channel or input.
2.1 Starting to watch television 19
After a short pause, the word ‘run’ will appear on the front
panel display of the PVR, shortly after that, you’ll see the television picture. The front panel will display the channel name.
2.1 Starting to watch television
Just after the picture appears, the information box will appear
on screen; it looks a little like this:
This box appears briefly each
time you change channel; as you
can see, at the left is the channel
number, while the channel name
appears just to the right of it. Below that is the name of the current programme, followed by a
short description.
Further to the right, you’ll see a graph showing the signal
strength and quality, and below that is the current time, information and a series of icons that indicate other information about the channel, such as whether or not subtitles are
available, or a$symbol to indicate that a channel is a pay TV
channel.
You can see additional information about the current programme by pressing the button while the information
box is on screen. Press the EXIT button to hide it. Another
press of the button will display the box again.
You can also use the left and right buttons on the remote control
to switch between the details of the current programme and
the next programme on the channel you’re viewing.
20 Watching TV
2.1.1 Volume control
Use the V+and V−buttons on the remote control to alter the
volume to a comfortable level. You may need to adjust the
volume on your television set too, so that the controls on the
PVR’s remote give you a good range of control, without too
much noise or distortion.
To temporarily switch off the sound, press the button on
the remote control. Press it again to restore the sound to the
previous level.
The PVR’s remote control changes the volume or mutes the
sound sent through the TV SCART connector, and the left
and right audio connectors. Neither the volume nor the
buttons affect the signal sent to the VCR SCART connector, or
the S/PDIF optical connector.
2.1.2 Changing channels
The simplest way of changing channels is to press the appropriate numbers on the remote control; if a channel number has
more than one digit, don’t wait too long between each button
press.
For example, to switch to Five, press 5. To switch to ITV4, press
3 then 0.
You can also use the P+and P−buttons on the remote control;
press either of these buttons to move to the next or previous
channel in the list. They’re a good way of just flicking through
the channels to see what’s on — as each channel appears, the Information box will pop up, telling you the name of the current
programme.
If you’re not sure which channels you have, or you can’t remember the correct numbers, press the OK button on the remote
control, and you’ll see a display like this:
2.2 Electronic Programme Guide 21
Here you can see all the TV channels that your box has stored,
with their channel number at the
left, and the name at the right.
If any pay TV channels were detected, they will be marked with
a $ symbol.
Use the up and down buttons to move through the list, and
press OK to switch to the channel that you’ve highlighted.
2.1.3 Radio channels
As we’ve said, your PVR can also receive some radio channels.
Don’t be surprised if you can’t see them in the channel list, or
if you can’t change to them by typing in their number.
Radio and TV channels are kept separate, and to listen to a
radio station, all you need to do is switch to Radio mode, by
pressing the button on the remote control, and then select
the radio channel you want to hear.
When the PVR is in radio mode, it works in just the same way.
The only difference is that when you look at the channel list,
or move through the channels with the P+and P−buttons,
you won’t see any television stations. Instead, you’ll just see
the radio stations.
To switch back to watching television, just press the button
again.
2.2 Electronic Programme Guide
The Electronic Programme Guide, or EPG, is like a built-in
version of a TV listings magazine, allowing you to see what
22 Watching TV
programmes are on, for up to eight days ahead. You can see
a short synopsis of each programme, and in the next chapter
we’ll explain how you can use the EPG to schedule recordings
of programmes that you want to watch.
To access the EPG, press the GUIDE button on the remote
control. You’ll see a display like this, showing the current
channel, with a list of the programmes following the current
one.
The first time you access the EPG
after switching your PVR on, it
may take a few moments for the
information to appear. It may
also take a moment for the information to appear when you
move to a new channel.
Use the up and down buttons to highlight different programmes; as you move down the list, you’ll see the short
description of the highlighted programme change, in the bottom right quarter of the screen. If you can’t read the whole
description, press the Blue button to see the next section of it,
or use the button to display the whole description in one
go; another press of the same button will hide it.
The left and right arrow buttons allow you to view the EPG
for a different channel; when you use them, you’ll see that the
picture in the top right or the screen changes, so that it always
shows the channel for which you’re viewing the guide.
You’ll also see at the bottom of the screen that you can use
the Green and Yellow buttons on the remote control to move
backwards and forwards by one day at a time, so you can easily
see what’s on tomorrow.
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