Beyonwiz U4
TEN CHANNELS, ALL AT ONCE.
THE INTERFACE TO the U4 is identical to the T2. In other words, it’s complex, intimidating and deep. Whether or not that’s what you’re looking for is entirely up to you. What this box does have that the others lack is the inclusion of four different TV tuners, meaning it can record a ridiculous ten channels at once. If that’s not enough content to keep you busy for the next year, you need to find some new hobbies.
Like the T2, there’s one hugely surprising omission with this box — there’s no Wi-Fi included. If you want the benefits of internet content, you’ll need to shell out extra for the optional Wi-Fi dongle. Given the price, this is hard to accept. It’s also got one of least user-friendly remotes out there, with 37 different buttons to get the user nice and confused. Even the amount of info displayed when you change channels is a little overwhelming, with the screen crammed with various bits of data that most viewers won’t have a clue about. On the plus side, the interface is super-snappy and responsive when switching between screens, though this was true of all of our boxes. Like its smaller sibling, you can upgrade the hard drive simply, although the inclusion of a 2TB drive should be enough for most couch potatoes.
The U4 is the power-user’s PVR of choice. With the ability to record up to ten channels at once, its ability to record multiple shows is unrivalled. Unfortunately, it’s let down by a lack of integrated Wi-Fi and an interface that makes a Rubik’s Cube look simple.