Domestic television broadcasting is slowly switching to digital technologies. This solves the main problem that is relevant for many today - the quality of the output image. Naturally, more modern technology is needed to organize digital TV viewing, and you can’t cook porridge with the old Ruby or Horizon.
Nevertheless, the demands of the new TV format are not so tough. It is enough to have a TV with the ability to receive a signal according to the DVB-T2 standard and a special set-top box - a receiver (tuner) - for decoding the image. If we talk about the budget segment, then the first and second will not cost so much. Small TV-"babies" 17 inches cost about 5,000 rubles, and the cost of set-top boxes starts at 800 rubles.
Today's TV tuner market offers a chic range of models that support the DVB-T2 standard. On the shelves of stores you can find both ultra-budget options and advanced gadgets of the premium segment. But among other devices youyou will surely come across the D-COLOR brand. It offers a good selection of TV tuners in different price ranges.
We will consider one of the most remarkable models of the brand - the D-COLOR DC1302HD digital set-top box. Reviews about it are not always unambiguous, but many consumers liked the device, so there is something to deal with here. In addition, the company's marketers reward the gadget with too attractive epithets from the category of "exceptional", "super-convenient" and the like.
So, we present to your attention a review of the D-COLOR DC1302HD TV set-top box. Problems, user reviews, operating features and other important points will be discussed in the article. The receiver is sold in almost every specialized store and costs a little more than 1000 rubles. So there should be no problems with buying and testing.
Package set
The prefix comes in a beautifully designed cardboard box. On the front of the package you can see the image of the device and its most attractive features. Behind is a mini-spec, as well as random reviews of the DVB-T2 D-COLOR DC1302HD tuner. Naturally, the latter were chosen from the general positive mass.
Bar codes, labels, certification icons and other elements necessary for sale are located on the sides. Judging by the reviews of the DVB-T2 D-COLOR DC1302HD receiver, many people liked the “wrapper” and interior decoration. All accessories are well packed and lie on their own.place. It’s even a pity to throw out the box after unpacking.
Scope of delivery:
- receiver D-COLOR DC1302HD;
- remote control;
- set of two PU batteries;
- RCA type cable;
- instruction manual;
- warranty card.
Unlike its competing counterpart represented by the Oriel brand, D-COLOR completes its devices with "tulips" (RCA) and more detailed instructions, which reflect the chipset schemes. Judging by the reviews of the DVB-T2 D-COLOR DC1302HD receiver, the owners were especially pleased with the warranty period - two whole years. In the budget segment, this is a rarity. The same "Oriel" does not give such guarantees.
Appearance
The top and bottom of the console are made of metal and have ventilation grilles. On the base you can see four rubberized feet that prevent the device from sliding on smooth surfaces.
The front panel of the receiver is made of plastic and framed around the perimeter with a silver border. Separately, it is worth noting that the front surface is matte, and a segment display is hidden behind a seemingly opaque coating.
Judging by the reviews of the D-COLOR DC1302HD set-top box, everyone liked this solution. Especially when you consider that other manufacturers supply their devices with glossy panels that absorb fingerprints, dust and other dirt like a sponge.
The display is located in the central part of the gadget on the front panel. When the machine enters standby mode,the clock appears on it, and in the working format - the channel number. On the right side of the display are the channel switch buttons and the device's power button.
In the left side of the front panel, there is an infrared sensor, an event indicator and a USB interface. In idle mode, the LED glows red, and during operation, it glows green. The back panel is reserved for various interfaces. The set of switching connectors can be called a classic for set-top boxes in this price category. Here we have standard RF IN and RF OUT antenna interfaces, modern HDMI and "tulips" (composite VIDEO output and L-AUDIO-R audio connector).
Judging by the reviews of the D-COLOR DC1302HD TV tuner, this set is enough for a good half of ordinary consumers. Especially when you consider that for the set-top box to work with a modern TV, only HDMI is enough to head.
Connection
If you look at the reviews of the D-COLOR DC1302HD receiver, we can conclude that users do not experience serious connection problems. To begin with, you need to connect a standard television antenna operating in the UHF range (RF IN interface) to the set-top box.
After you need to connect the appropriate cable to the audio output. For "tulips" this is AV IN. The color of the cable for all RCA connectors, as a rule, does not change: white is the left audio channel, red is the right channel, and yellow is the image. If the TV is in mono, then only the yellow and white wires need to be connected.
Judging by the reviews of the TV tunerD-COLOR DC1302HD, the model fully reveals itself when connected via HDMI-interface. In this case, the image will be of the highest quality. So if your TV supports both tulips and HDMI, it is better to give preference to the latter.
Connection features
After connecting all the interfaces, you need to plug the device into a power outlet, and select the appropriate AV output from the menu. Separately, it is worth noting one nuance. The fact is that the wire at the console cannot be called long - only 80 cm.
Reviews about the TV-tuner D-COLOR DC1302HD on this occasion are far from being the most flattering. It is not clear what prevented the manufacturer from making the wire at least one and a half meters long. You have to place the carrier directly behind the TV or in the cabinet on which it is located. In options where the furniture comes without doors and back walls, this solution looks unaesthetic.
Getting Started
When you first start the tuner, the master settings should turn on. In the first window, you must select the language and country, after which you can start searching for channels. It is also worth noting that the control is via a remote control. Full customization without it, alas, is impossible. Users also leave not the best reviews about D-COLOR DC1302HD DVB-T2 about this.
As for the remote control itself, it differs little from similar models from competing analogues. Its length is a little more than 12 cm, and its width is about 4. The rubberized buttons are small, but judging by the reviews of the D-COLOR DC1302HD TV, they are convenient to use. The only ones who left negative feedback about the ergonomics of the remote are people with thumbs, of which there are not so many. In this case, buying third-party PUs helps.
Settings
On the first window, where you need to select the language and country, there is a line "Setting (Search) channels". When you click on it, the receiver will start searching for all available programs. The number of channels found depends on the broadcasting area and can be very different.
If we take into account the DVB-T2 standard, then several programs can coexist on the same frequency band at once. Providers call them multiplexes, where each is able to broadcast on 10 channels in classic definition (SDTV).
In addition to television programs, radio, exact time, schedule, sub titles and more can be broadcast. During automatic channel search, the receiver scans the entire frequency range available to it.
There are two windows on the main screen. One contains found digital programs for TV, and the other contains radio stations. If you do not change the default settings, then the channels are sorted by logical numbers (LCN).
After the tuner scans all the frequencies and finds some programs, it automatically switches to its usual broadcast mode on the first found number. Judging by the reviews of the D-COLOR DC1302HD, the receiver scans for quite a long time and thoughtfully processes every hint of a channel. Some users note that the model search works more efficiently, inunlike competing Oriels.
Functional
As for switching channels, there are several ways for users to switch channels. You can select the desired program using the digital block on the remote control, or move up and down using a kind of joystick located in the middle of the remote control.
Users in their reviews of the D-COLOR DC1302HD repeatedly thanked the manufacturer for the ability to switch channels without the participation of the remote control. On the front panel of the receiver there are a pair of buttons (up / down), with which you can select the desired program.
To quickly move to the previous channel, there is a special LAST button on the remote control. To switch to radio broadcasting and back to digital TV, there is a TV / R key. Functionality for managing teletext, if provided by the provider, is also available.
In addition to the usual features for such devices, the model allows you to display additional information on the screen: signal quality, announcements, channel data, weather forecast, and more. The functionality opens by pressing the INFO key, and to return to the usual broadcast mode, you must press the EXIT button.
The remote control also has an EPG key for the program guide. By clicking on it, the "Program Guide" window appears, which provides detailed information about broadcasts on TV channels. Judging by the reviews of the D-COLOR DC1302HD, most users are satisfied with the existing functionality.
Main menu
Local sections of the menupractically do not differ from similar branches of competing analogues. Almost all receivers in this price segment have a set of chipsets from MStar Semiconductors. It is he who is responsible for the set of commands and the appearance of the interface. The only thing that can differ in the menu of competitors is the name of the sections and only.
The TV tuner interface has 7 sections:
- Programs.
- Output picture.
- Search for channels.
- Time and date.
- Settings.
- System.
- USB.
In some firmwares, the names may be different, but close in meaning ("Settings" -> "Options", "Image output" -> "Image" and so on). Judging by the reviews of the D-COLOR DC1302HD, it is quite difficult to get lost in the receiver's interface. Moreover, the localization is not clumsy (in the latest firmware), and all sub-items are in intuitive places.
Let's take a closer look at the sections.
Programs
Here you can edit TV channels: change the number, block, move, create a group and change the name. It is worth noting that the local system does not accept Cyrillic and puts question marks instead of characters. So you need to enter information strictly in Latin.
There is also a task scheduler, where using a timer you can set up some tasks to record or turn on the broadcast at a specific time.
Output picture
In this section, you can change the aspect ratio of the screen, as well as selectpermissions. The default value is 1080p, but if the TV resolution is designed for a maximum of 720p, then it makes sense to set the desired value. Otherwise, frame desynchronization and other inconsistencies may occur.
If necessary, here you can also change the TV broadcasting standard in the "TV format" item by changing the value to PAL or NTSC.
Search channels
In this section, either automatic or manual search for programs occurs. Here you can also change the country for reception and turn on the power supply to the active antenna amplifier, if installed. Judging by user reviews, there are no complaints about automatic search.
But with manual it takes a very long time to fiddle around. And the point is not even in the volumes of frequency ranges, but in the interface. Constantly moving on three lines in search of the optimal wave is not very convenient. Most users believe that one of them is clearly superfluous here and only interferes with normal tuning.
Time and date
These settings are synchronized automatically and depend on the selected region. If there is such a need, you can choose the time zone yourself. Here you can also set a timer to automatically turn off the device.
Settings
This section provides access to the choice of localization, sub title and audio settings, as well as digital audio settings. You can experiment a lot with the last point, because there are enough presets to choose from.
System
BIn this section, you can set up parental controls, set a password that will need to be entered every time you turn it on or change settings, and reset all settings to factory presets. There is also detailed information about the device itself.
USB
The section provides access to work with external drives. Using a USB flash drive, you can play video, audio and view photographic materials. The latest firmware versions received the AC-3 codec, so there should not be any serious problems with playing files from the Internet. Judging by user reviews, the receiver "digests" about 70% of video and audio content, and rejects the rest for lack of codecs.
In conclusion
If we take into account the responses of the owners of the set-top box, then in general this model turned out to be successful. Yes, it has some drawbacks, but they are more than offset by the low cost of equipment and confident TV signal reception. So the model copes with its direct task "excellently".
Of course, you can find more intelligent receivers in terms of functionality and capabilities. The competitor VVK has many such options, but the cost of the models will be much higher. So D-COLOR DC1302HD is a great budget option that fully justifies its cost.
