Digital Stream DHR8203U review

A slow EPG blights this Freeview+ HD recorder's otherwise impressive performance

Digital Stream DHR8203U
The touch sensitive buttons change colour to yellow when pressed

Why you can trust TechRadar We spend hours testing every product or service we review, so you can be sure you’re buying the best. Find out more about how we test.

digital stream

The DHR8203U manages superb picture quality. Hi-def channels such as BBC HD and ITV 1 HD are stunning in their depth and detail, though that's hardly a surprise.

More of a shock is the excellent quality of most SD channels, which are solid, colourful and almost completely free of artefacts and noise. The DHR8203U doesn't shout about its upscaling abilities, but it's pretty clear that it's doing something special since pictures even from low bittrate channels are always watchable on a big telly.

Stream gui

Hit the 'Media' button and a list of recordings is presented. The DHR8203U's MPEG4 recorder churns out TRP files, though they're only visible in the Media list and can't be transferred to an external USB drive.

Stream installation

The quality of recordings made on the DHR8203U is also excellent. Colours are vibrant, detail is high; they're identical to the original broadcasts. All good, but an option to reduce the quality (and, therefore, size) of recordings would be useful.

Jamie Carter

Jamie is a freelance tech, travel and space journalist based in the UK. He’s been writing regularly for Techradar since it was launched in 2008 and also writes regularly for Forbes, The Telegraph, the South China Morning Post, Sky & Telescope and the Sky At Night magazine as well as other Future titles T3, Digital Camera World, All About Space and Space.com. He also edits two of his own websites, TravGear.com and WhenIsTheNextEclipse.com that reflect his obsession with travel gear and solar eclipse travel. He is the author of A Stargazing Program For Beginners (Springer, 2015),

Latest in Home Theater
An array of Genelec speakers with. a Samsung soundbar in the middle at the Samsung Audio Lab
‘Atmos content costs too much money’: Samsung told me why Dolby Atmos isn't the future of surround sound, and why it launched Eclipsa Audio
The movie Punch-Drunk Love playing a TV, with a logo saying Blu-ray Bounty
3 new 4K Blu-rays to add to your collection from February 2025
A Bose soundbar and a Dali separate speaker
Why are soundbars so much better than TV speakers, and dedicated speakers better than soundbars? It's about volume (and not the one on your remote)
Optoma CinemaX P2
I think a new world of wireless home theater is coming that could explode its popularity, if anyone can put all the pieces together
Sony Bravia Projector 8 on black background
I tested Sony’s Bravia Projector 8, and its class-leading motion handling and ultra-low input lag make it fantastic for gaming
Yaber K3 projector listing image
I tested a cheap smart projector with surprisingly good JBL sound, but don't get too excited
Latest in Reviews
Tiger Woods and Matt Fitzpatrick on the PGA Tour 2K25 artwork
I’ve spent hours honing my swing in PGA Tour 2K25, and while its shot craft remains excellent, familiar frustrations can’t keep it totally out of the rough
AOC Graphic Pro U32U3CV during our review
I reviewed the AOC Graphic Pro U32U3CV and it's a staggeringly pro-grade monitor for the price
The cover art of co-op game A Way Out
A Way Out is a gritty co-op game that challenged me to make the right choice in a world full of bad ones
The player characters approach a stuffed animal in It Takes Two.
It Takes Two pushed me to the limit with clever platforming puzzles and moreish co-op challenges
The cover art of co-op game Split Fiction
I rode a dragon, sizzled as a sausage, and won a dance-off with a monkey in Split Fiction, and that’s not even the half of it
HP Series 7 Pro 734pm during our review
I reviewed HP's Series 7 Pro 734pm and I'm obsessed with the sheer connectivity of this widescreen monitor