The first Freeview HD personal video recorder (PVR) will be launched December 11, going head-to-head with Sky TV's MySky HDi.

The model released December 11 is made by Zinwell, but other manufacturers, including A-lister Panasonic, are planning PVRs customised for Freeview HD and the platform's new MyFreeview service, that allows one-click recording of programmes through a user-friendly onscreen electronic programming guide (EPG) similar to the one offered by MySky.

Nosebleed price
Unlike Sky TV's MySky HDi, which has no up-front cost put a $49 fee for PVR installation then $15 a month in service charges, MyFreeview will have no ongoing subscription charges. The up-front cost of Zinwell's PVR has yet to be announced, but one insider says it will be $1100 - what could be considered a bit of a nosebleed at a time when third-party hard drive recorders (which can record Sky TV or Freeview, but without the user-friendly benefits of an EPG) sell between $279 and $699.

Like MySky, MyFreeview lets you set your PVR to record every programme in a TV series, with record times updated automatically if scheduling shifts. Live pause and chase play are also supported.

Zinwell's PVR comes with two tuners (meaning two channels can be recorded at onece) and a 250GB hard drive - enough capacity to record 60 hours of high definition (HD) digital programming, or 240 hours of standard definition (SD) digital broadcasts.

Low-down high def spat
Freeview HD currently offers HD versions of TV1, TV2 and TV3, plus an HD demo channel (which will be replacd by Prime, should Sky TV come onboard).

Sky TV's $15 a month HDi service offers TV3 in HD, plus HD versions Sky Movies, Sky Movies Greats, Sky Sport 1and Sky Sport 2.

The HD version of TVNZ's TV1 and TV2 are not available on Sky TV, and in tit-for-tat, Sky TV is not making Prime available for Freeview's SD or HD platforms (Sky TV CEO John Fellet also cites the unlikelihood of ad revenue being more than the $1.8 million he would have to pay Kordia to put Prime on Freeview HD, plus $100,000 in service fees to Freeview).