HUMAX Aura Android TV 4K Freeview Play Recorder with Google Assistant and Chromecast - 1TB

We purchased this model to replace an older Humax set too box. After about 7 years the receiver failed. This new Humax Aura is good, easy to setup following the on-screen instructions until completed which takes 5 mins. The version we chose has double the storage of 1TB. A simple but effective on screen display for the guide. Quite quick in it's operation and quiet too. It will record 4 different channels without watching any at the same time. Whilst watching a channel, it will record 3 separate channels. All black polycarbonate construction. Definitely would but Humax again.

Overall this is a good product. It was fairly quick and easy to set up. It does a pretty good job of using the regular TV aerial (which is old technology) and trying to have similar functionality to the Virgin V6/360 box or Sky Q. However the system does contain bugs. I've had the system for less than a week, and already I've had a few issues where the screen went blank and the system stopped, and also programmes not recording when they were meant to. I've found out that resetting the apps fixes the blank screen issue, although not everyone would be able to discover that themselves. The Humax Aura has been around since 2020 and they should've fixed these issues by now. Unlike Sky or Virgin, Humax don't need to rely on your continuous subscription to incentivise them to fix these bugs. I also think the Humax Aura is expensive for what it is, and it doesn't allow you to install Netflix or NOW which you can do on much cheaper devices such as the Amazon Fire Stick. But overall it's a good product and there aren't any rivals that contain so many things in one, and with a few improvements it could be great.

I was nearly put off buying this because of the negative reviews. I think the latest update has really done the job - this is a great box. I have had to return a Manhattan box (terrible lip sync and constantly crashing), a BT4k YouView box, which was really good but then kept getting stuck in standby, so third time lucky. The set up is easy but time consuming by the time it updates, scans for channels, sign into Google etc. and it sometimes seems like nothing is happening - you just have to leave it to do it’s thing. Once set up, it is a dream to use, with one caveat, you need to get used to the screens and menus. Once you do, you can zip through and it’s great. If all else fails and you think “how do I get out of this menu” you can just press the ‘live TV button’ on the remote and you’re back to the start. It has an android operating system with Google Play and most apps - they all work perfectly. Netflix is not available (yet) and NowTv can only be used via a phone or tablet via Chromecast (which works very well with no issues). Recording TV is easy - not one recording has failed. The recording are organised well - easy to find what you want. The app works really well - not sure what others are doing, but if you’re on the same network you can stream your recordings to a tablet etc. It works every time for me - as does remote record. Again, I’m not sure why/how others are having issues. The remote is Bluetooth - so no line of sight required and it has a massive range!! Overall, this is one of the best boxes you can by at the moment - it is worth the money. Just give yourself time to get to know the menus and its little quirks. It has never crashed once, you can record four programmes and watch another - I have done so several times to test it and it has never faltered. I really think the latest update has done the trick. It’s a shame Humax released this too early with bugs in the software, as this gave a poor experience for early adopters and put them off. It seems Humax have finally got their act together!

Our previous box was a Humax so we got the same brand assuming it would be good, but they’ve taken very large steps backwards. We’ve had nothing but trouble since we bought it, Humax asked us for error reports last year (I think they assumed we wouldn’t send them as the instructions were 2 pages of A4), we sent them & nearly a year later we still haven’t heard back from them. Whenever I email they just say they’ll look into it. It’s very rare we can watch catch up as it just says it’s not connected to the Internet (even though it is) then when we try to go to settings it just freezes & we have to restart it. It records about 90% of the things we set up but we’re lucky if we can watch a 40 minute program in one go. It usually kicks us out at least 4 times, it’s hard to explain how stressful & annoying it is when you’re watching a program & the screen just goes black & you’re back on the home page, then you go back to the file & it’s like you’ve never watched it, it’s just back at the start & you’ve to fast forward through to try & work out where you got to. By the time you’ve done this 4 or 5 times a 40 minute episode takes about an hour to watch. Save yourself a lot of stress & buy a different brand!!

RE: Humax aura The advert for this product on Amazon states that this product may not work in other countries. According to HUMAX UK this is incorrect as this a UK specific product only, and will not work in other countries. The advert of this product should reflect this. I have recycled the packaging so I will not be able to return. Regards GD