There’s a new gadget at home, which is actually an upgrade on my birthday present, well ok, it’s also my Christmas present. Anyway, it’s called  Dreambox and is essentially a Linux based satellite receiver. This box in particular is high definition PVR, featuring a single pluggable DVB tuner (satellite in my case), a 300 MHz MIPS processor, 64 Mbytes of Flash memory, 256 Mbytes of RAM, a couple of USB ports and a 500Gb hard disk I fitted just because they’re so cheap.

The box came all the way from China, from an online retailer called DVBSeller who have a selection of different models on sale at great prices. I was sceptical about buying from China, but the support these guys provide was just awesome. I’ve dealt with the twice, the first time using their Online Sales Support facility. The second time I sent an email because Customer Support was offline and I had a problem with a power supply. I received a response in exactly 8 minutes and the new PSU is winging its way to me. Highly recommended if you want to venture into this world.

Anyway, there are a selection of different images you can use for the box, I’ve decided to go down the Nabilosat route, particularly because it optimised for use with the Sky EPG which is one thing my wife missed. There’s still loads to learn, I’m a Linux noob, but I’m enjoying the journey.