Freeview hosts VCR amnesty in Borders

19 October 2008

…and hands out 100 Freeview+ boxes for FREE!

With digital switchover fast approaching, residents from Border will be given the chance to replace and update their recording equipment by taking part in a VCR Amnesty hosted by Freeview - the nation’s most watched TV service.

Taking place in Galashiels on Friday 31 October 2008, locals, armed with their VCR, should visit the ‘Freeview Lounge’ in the Market Square where at 10am, the first 100 people will receive a brand new Freeview+ digital TV recorder worth £229.95.

The Freeview+ TVonics DTR-Z500 can record up to 250 hours of programmes, consumes less than 2W in stand-by mode and less than 15.5W when fully operational - earning this compact box Energy Savings Trust approval. All the VCRs collected during the amnesty will be recycled.

After switchover, tens of millions of VCRs will only allow you to watch and record the same channel. A Freeview+ box with a twin tuner provides a great solution for a digital era - it lets you pause, record, and rewind live TV, record one channel whilst watching another and record an entire series so you can get more out of your favourite TV programmes than ever before.

In the Border region, 98% of homes will be able to receive 20 subscription-free, quality Freeview channels including; BBC Three, Cbeebies, More 4, and ITV2 as well as a variety of digital radio stations, and interactive services. Boxes start from £79.99 and because there’s no contract or monthly bills, in the first year alone you could save over £200.

Ilse Howling, Managing Director of Freeview said: “The VCR amnesty is fun way of highlighting the benefits of Freeview+ and reinforces that to get the most popular TV channels there’s no need to switchover to monthly bills.”

The Freeview Lounge Tour
From Thursday 30th October until 20th November, a mobile ‘Freeview Lounge’ will be visiting Duns, Eyemouth, Galashiels, Hawick, Jedburgh, Kelso, Peebles and Selkirk. Locals can get a glimpse of the Freeview channels available, try out the nifty features Freeview+ offers such as pausing live TV, put questions to our Freeview team and can even buy Freeview digital boxes, TVs and Freeview+ boxes from wi-fi laptops.