
Popular Freeview box receives upgrade that fixes bug wreaking havoc on Netflix, recordings and more
Manhattan released the software update for its T4-R and T4 Freeview boxes.
1
The latest version - 2.06 - will finally fix a long-standing standby mode issue that has affected a number of users.
The update, which began rolling out this week, addresses numerous stability issues while fixing compatibility problems with popular streaming apps and improving recording reliability on the T4-R.
If you've been using Energy Saver mode as a workaround to avoid the standby problems, you can now safely switch back to Sleep or Smart standby modes without fear of your box becoming unresponsive.
The upgrade comes after households were warned of widespread Freeview disruption this week that could make their TVs stop working properly.
Viewers may switch on their telly to find a black, pixelated or flickering screen as a result of planned engineering works.
Some 87 areas are expected to be affected, according to Freeview.
Freeview has urged households that the disruption is only temporary and to not retune their TV.
"If you are affected by engineering work, please don't try and retune your TV - reception will be restored as soon as the engineering work is completed," the company said.
"Occasionally, routine engineering work is required on transmitters in order to improve terrestrial TV services.
"While every effort is made to minimise the impact on viewers, this can cause temporary disruption to reception."
Clash of Clans coming to Netflix in new animated TV series
If you don't want to miss your favourite TV shows while the work is taking place, Freeview has suggested households check out its online TV guide.
The Freeview Channel Checker tells viewers what changes are taking place that may affect their service and viewing.
To use it, simply enter your postcode to see what will be affected.
If you have a hybrid or smart TV, you can watch uninterrupted TV during the engineering works via the Freeview app or website.
While Freeview typically requires an aerial, you can access many Freeview channels and on-demand content through streaming apps like BBC iPlayer, ITVX, and All 4.
If you're not sure what transmitter you're predicted to get your signal from, put your postcode into Freeview's Detailed Transmitter Information tool to check.

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


The Independent
2 hours ago
- The Independent
Record installations of solar panels, batteries and heat pumps so far in 2025
A record number of solar panels, batteries and heat pumps have been installed in UK homes and buildings in the first six months of 2025, figures show. Data from MCS (Microgeneration Certification Scheme), the quality mark for small-scale renewables, found there were more than 172,000 certified installations between January and June this year. That is up 37% from the same period in 2024 and a third above the previous record high start to the year, in 2023, the figures show. The MCS said the jump in installations was being driven by three technologies: solar panels, electric heat pumps and battery storage. The top technology is solar panels, with 123,000 certified installations in the first six months of 2025 – a record that breaks the previous January-to-June high set in 2012. There were more than 18,000 installations of batteries, which can allow households to capture excess power from solar panels or charge up from the grid when electricity is cheap and then use it at more expensive peak times to cut bills. The figure is more than double the near 8,000 batteries installed in the same period in 2024, the MCS said. Meanwhile, certified installations of highly efficient heat pumps, which run on electricity to draw heat from the air or ground to warm homes and heat water, reached 30,000 in the first half of the year, up 12% on the first half of 2024. The figures also show that there were almost 50,000 renewable installations on newbuild properties, accounting for 28% of the total for the year so far, and significantly up on the first half of 2024, when they made up 21% of the 125,000 installations overall. The MCS said that, with the Future Homes Standard set to mandate solar panels and low carbon heating in newbuild homes from 2027, there was massive potential for growth in the low carbon tech industry as the Government attempts to boost house building. And the organisation said one of the key drivers behind the increasing number of renewable installations was government financial support, through schemes such as the £7,500 grant for new heat pumps to replace boilers in homes. The latest available figures from January to March show that about three quarters of heat pump installations were wholly or partially supported with government funding. Ian Rippin, chief executive at MCS, said: 'Across all renewable technologies, we are seeing a dramatic rise in the number of installations being delivered into homes, helping to reduce energy bills for consumers and drive down emissions. 'Crucially, there are also more MCS certified installers than ever before, which means a growing capacity to deliver high-quality installations at volume into people's homes.' Miatta Fahnbulleh, minister for energy consumers, said: ' People can save hundreds of pounds off their energy bills when installing renewable and low-carbon technologies like solar panels, heat pumps and batteries. 'So, it is no wonder that installations in the first six months of 2025 have broken records, as households recognise it just makes financial sense.'


The Guardian
2 hours ago
- The Guardian
News Corp warns Trump AI is eviscerating sales of The Art of the Deal
News Corp is warning Donald Trump that AI is cannibalizing sales of his books, including The Art of the Deal. The company, owned by billionaire Rupert Murdoch, owns dozens of newspapers and TV channels around the world including the Wall Street Journal, the Times (in the UK), the Australian and the New York Post. News Corp also owns book publisher HarperCollins, which has published three of Trump's books, though his best-known title, The Art of the Deal, was published by Random House. Still, the company appeared keen to warn Trump about the impact AI is having on publishing. 'The AI age must cherish the value of intellectual property if we are collectively to realize our potential,' News Corp said in a statement with its fourth-quarter earnings report. 'Even the president of the United States is not immune to blatant theft. The president's books are still reporting healthy sales, but are being consumed by AI engines which profit from his thoughts by cannibalizing his concepts, thus undermining future sales of his books. 'Suddenly, The Art of the Deal has become The Art of the Steal.' Media outlets have sued AI companies, including OpenAI, operator of ChatGPT, for using their content to train AI models without permission. In May, a federal judge rejected OpenAI's request to dismiss a lawsuit from the New York Times over its usage of the newspaper's content. Dow Jones, which publishes the Wall Street Journal, and the New York Post sued Perplexity AI in October over similar copyright claims. News Corp's message to Trump also comes after the White House last month announced Trump's 'AI action plan' that would see the loosening of AI regulations that had been put in place under the Biden administration. In an earnings call Tuesday, News Corp CEO Robert Thomson said that the company is in the middle of 'advanced negotiations with several AI companies'. 'It's clear that many of them have come to recognize that the purchase of [intellectual property] is as important as the acquisition of semiconductors or the securing of stable energy sources,' he said, noting that it's a mix of 'wooing and suing'. 'We prefer the former, but we will never shy away from protecting our property rights,' he said. The warning comes at a tense moment between News Corp and the White House. Trump sued the Wall Street Journal after the newspaper published a report that the president had once sent Jeffrey Epstein an intimate birthday message that included a sexually suggestive drawing of a woman. Trump claimed that the report was false and amounted to libel. The newspaper has requested a judge dismiss the case. Murdoch, who also owns Fox News, was once friendly with Trump, though relations soured during the president's third presidential campaign. The company beat fourth-quarter expectations with Tuesday's earnings announcement, largely due to a rise in digital subscriptions from Dow Jones, which houses the company's business publications like the Wall Street Journal, Barron's and MarketWatch. On Monday, News Corp announced it will launch a sister tabloid to the New York Post in California, called the California Post, in early 2026.


The Guardian
3 hours ago
- The Guardian
Lib Dems call for urgent regulation of YouTube ads after wave of scams
The Liberal Democrats are calling for urgent regulation of YouTube advertising after scams including deepfakes, impersonated public figures and fraudulent investment claims were found to be spreading on the platform with little oversight. The party said YouTube's adverts remain largely unchecked by independent regulators, despite new data from Ofcom showing the platform has overtaken ITV in weekly UK viewership and continues to dominate children's media consumption. Among the recent scams onYouTube was a series of ads using an AI-generated voice and likeness of the consumer champion Martin Lewis to promote a cryptocurrency scheme, despite Lewis having no involvement. The videos, which have drawn thousands of complaints on Reddit and X, mislead users into thinking they are receiving financial advice from a trusted source. Other viewers have reported false product claims, scam diet pills and fake competitions. In one Reddit thread users reported being targeted with ads impersonating UK media figures or pretending to offer government-backed grants, with little clarity over how to report or block such content. YouTube adverts fall under the same Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) rules as TV, but unlike broadcasters, there is no pre-approval, real-time scrutiny or independent enforcement unless someone complains. The ASA has previously warned of a rise in 'celebrity deepfake' and 'impersonation' scams on online platforms, particularly for financial services. The lack of mandatory pre-approval or independent enforcement means that many of these adverts remain online for days before action is taken, if any is. Max Wilkinson, the Liberal Democrats' spokesperson for culture, media and sport, said the system leaves the public exposed. 'We cannot allow a two-tier system where traditional broadcasters face robust scrutiny, while a digital giant like YouTube is allowed to mark its own homework,' he said. The party is calling for YouTube advertising to be brought into line with the system used for TV and radio, including tougher oversight, clearer accountability, and the power for Ofcom to levy fines on platforms that repeatedly allow harmful or misleading ads. It also wants revenues from those fines used to support victims of online scams. YouTube ads are served through Google Ads and are regulated under a voluntary framework created by the tech industry. This contrasts with the ASA's co-regulatory model for broadcast advertising, where Ofcom retains backstop powers and many adverts must be pre-cleared before airing. Privately, some Labour MPs acknowledge that online ad regulation is 'behind the curve', but there is little appetite for major change. Others have warned that new restrictions could make it harder to target voters aged under 35, many of whom are disengaged from traditional media. Last month the Guardian revealed that Ofcom is preparing to push for new legal powers to require platforms like YouTube to give greater prominence to public service content, amid concerns that trusted news, children's programming and UK-produced shows are becoming 'invisible' to younger viewers. The Lib Dems argue that the same logic should apply to advertising, especially given the rise in misleading financial content and impersonation scams. 'YouTube is no longer a niche platform – it's one of the main ways people of all ages consume news, entertainment and information,' said Wilkinson. 'The government needs to act now to ensure that consumers are properly protected.' A YouTube spokesperson said: 'YouTube is not a broadcaster and it should not be regulated like one. 'We have strict policies that govern the ads on our platform which we enforce rigorously. When we find ads that breach our policies we take immediate action, including removing the ads and suspending the account when necessary.'