Technisat HDFS Freesat HD receiver

Review Among the various HD Freesat receivers emerging this year is Technisat’s HDFS, that its German manufacturer has the claim to fame of being the first such device to be able to access the BBC's iPlayer service wirelessly. However, the devil is in the detail.

Technisat's HDFS touts wireless iPlayer features, but you'll need to buy the Wi-Fi adaptor

The Technisat HDFS is a decent looking black box with chrome-look trimmings and ice blue backlighting. There's a USB port on the front for accepting video and audio files, plus another on the back for the wireless dongle. That's right, it hasn't got built-in wireless capability, but instead requires TechniSat's plug-in adaptor, which currently retails for around £30.

There's a monochrome LED display to tell you what channel you're watching, a blue-lit power button and a large circular navpad control that allows you to negotiate left and right, up and down, with an OK button in the middle.

The bottom half of the front flaps down to reveal a USB port and SD/MS/MMC and Compact Flash memory card slots from which you can play audio and video files. Yet you can't use the USB to add memory for recording – like most Freesat boxes so far, it's a view-only affair.

USB media playback is available but recording isn't supported

Around the back is a single LNB satellite connection, composite analogue out, a pair of Scart sockets, HDMI, coaxial and optical digital outputs – so you can take advantage of 5.1 Dolby Digital through a suitable sound system, if any programmes happen to be using it – plus Ethernet and USB connections. The slim remote is neatly and clearly laid out, though its grey plastic shell looks a little on the cheap side.