Tivax HiRez7 Portable 7-Inch Digital Widescreen TV (2009 Model)

I pre-ordered this TV like a lot of other reviewers did. I did a little research and a couple of emails before I made the purchase. Hopefully, this review is constructive and helpful to those who wish to purchase in the future or have already purchased this unit.PACKAGING:The unit comes in a nice box with all of the peripherals in 1 bag. The unit is enclosed in custom bubble wrap (nice) and taped into a thin plastic bag within this bubble wrap. The problem is that the unit needs a semi-sticky protective tape over the screen because it can move around in the bubble wrap and scuff the surface. Thankfully, I only had scuffing marks along the edges and not on the screen. I had a slight crack (2 mm) below the right speaker. When I turned the unit over, I noticed the large battery compartment cover had been pushed into its compartment but not cracked. I took a small screwdriver and pried it out. At this point, I asked myself should I send it back because it looked like the unit might have sustained some shock damage despite the nice custom bubble wrap. I decided...despite the small cosmetic deficiencies...let's test it out.CHANNELS AND ANTENNA:I live in the Los Angeles area so I expect a lot of digital channels when tuned. I was not disappointed. My first scan through I tuned into 56 channels. The problem is that I wasn't getting some of the VHF channels. So...I decided to head to Radio Shack to purchase:1) Screw-On F-Connector (Coax) Female to Push-On F-Connector (Coax) Male----$3.00You don't have to call Tivax for this adapter because Radio Shack has it.2) An HDTV antenna with adjustable VHF dipoles and UHF loop (non-amplified)----$11.00I hooked it up and automatically rescanned the channels. WOW! I got 72 channels. Now a nice feature with this unit is that you can use the Menu to set certain channels to skip as you channel surf. It would have been better if they had a feature to manually delete and add channels but maybe in the next go-around. After I manually skipped over all of the foreign language and weak signal channels I was left with 33 channels. Plus I got my VHF channels: CBS, ABC, NBC, FOX plus more. Not bad for a $14.00 purchase at Radio Shack.PICTURE:The picture is really sharp/clear and you can toggle between normal and wide aspect ratios. You can use the Setup button to adjust the contrast, color, saturation, brightness, etc to your liking. I was a bit disappointed in that the actual picture does not use the full screen capability. In other words, I expected the picture to be larger.ON-SCREEN MENU:If you try reading the manual to decipher the on-screen menu functions you will only get confused. I suggest learning by hands-on method. Just dig in and figure it out. I recommend using the remote because it has all the functions and more. The buttons on the unit itself are a bit odd to use and not intuitive. So I began my journey through each of the functions in the Setup screen and Menu screen. I was pleasantly surprised by all the functionality the unit contains. Basically, more functions then I will ever plan on using but nonetheless impressive. I'll leave that for you to decide. My only complaint while moving through all of the screens is that the unit is slow to respond to inputs. It can take a second or two to respond to a command and most of the time I had to hold down the remote buttons longer then just a simple press. But I managed. Some of the nicer features of the screen programming are:- "TV Display", shows time, channel, program, program time, etc- "Signal Strength", I love this feature because you can fine tune your antenna as you watch the signal strength indicator- "Recall", goes to last channel viewed- "Ch List", shows all of the channels programmed (even the ones you skipped). However, you have to page through these because it only shows about 6 at a time.- "Fav", you program 5 of your favorite channels and every time you press this button it will allow you to go to your favorite channels.- "EPG", this program guide allows you to see 12 hours of future programs when you are on a specific channel. I love this feature.Finally, I'll say it again. I really wish you could manually add/delete channels from the lineup instead of just skipping them.USB/SD PORT:I haven't had a chance to explore this function yet but if the on-screen menus for this function are any indication...the unit provides a lot of functionality with regards to this aspect. Maybe, I'll edit my review later once I have a chance to explore this function more.MONITOR FUNCTION:I also haven't explored this function. However, I am confused by the fact that the provided composite audio/video cable has one end as an input. However, the unit has an "audio in" and "video in" input jack. So...which jack do you plug the supplied cable into the unit?BATTERIES:I know this has been the source of a lot of contention among the first users of this unit so I'll try to be objective. The supplied Li-ion batteries charged up no problem and yielded a little over 1.5 hours of usage. Not the best but I'll deal with it. I did my own research, as I mentioned, before pre-ordering this unit and realized that it required an external docking station to use alkaline batteries. This didn't deter me...and I'll probably purchase it in November when it's available. This made me think of other ways to power the unit. So...the unit comes with a cigarette lighter car adapter. I had a 12V car battery in the garage so I figured I could use that and off to Radio Shack I went to find an adaptor. I purchased a cigarette lighter car adapter with alligator clips to attach to each node of the battery. (about $8.00) Now I have a power source that will last days while using the portable TV. Rather then relying upon a large source of AA batteries why not just purchase a 12V car battery for $50?SUMMARY:For a company that is just making it into the market with their first portable TV, they did an admirable job. Despite a marketing hick-up, the TV performs better than some of the other portable TVs I have tried with regard to many factors: size, weight, channel reception, functionality, etc. I hope this review has provided some objective insight. I am happy with my purchase despite some of the flaws I pointed out in my discussion.

The Tivax Hirez7 DTV has a beautiful picture, and the set is really rugged! It actually has 4 power options: AC power, car charger, rechargeable Lion batteries (included), and if the docking station is purchased (sold separately), the user can use 8 AA batteries. There is a also a remote control.One of the best features offered, if the user purchases a separate docking station, the Tivax 7" portable DTV can use AA batteries! This is very important in areas where long-term power outages occur, such as along the US coasts - Hurricane Country, or anywhere else - in Tornado Alley! The Tivax Hirez7 DTV with a docking station should also be very useful in winter storms as well! Although most of the other portable 7" DTVs offer external power sources, it seems that Tivax is one of the few DTV brands that offer the AA BATTERY OPTION power source. The docking station also works as a great TV stand, keeping the unit secure, and in place. Many of the other DTV brands (including this one) have very flimsy support stands, and the DTVs can be easily knocked over. A few users commented on the fact that the user could easily build their own AA power source, but not everyone is able to do this easily. Just order the docking station, if AA power is a necessity. It is not very expensive. Otherwise, after 2 hours with no power, the included Lion batteries will drain. And then, you have NO TV!The Tivex 7" DTV is easy to figure out, although many users have complained (in other reviews) about the user manual. I will have to agree that the user manual could be improved or revised, to be simpler. Not everyone is "techy," and the included uses guide is just "not user-friendly!" But, I figured it out just by plugging it all up, and doing a channel scan. When I first purchased the set, it was not mentioned that the docking station was "sold separately," but it is now mentioned correctly. Thanks for clearing this up - proper advertising is very important to make sure the customer is getting what was expected. I did purchase the docking station separately, and like it! The Tivax docking station will allow the Tivax Hirez7 DTV to be used with 8 AA replaceable batteries, and it works fine. The user also has the option to enhance the DTV sound with the docking station, but can choose not to, just to save power.Using the external antenna (included), the user should be able to receive local DTV channels. I was able to receive about 15-20 channels, using the provided antenna. However, if the user decides to purchase a much stronger external antenna, an adaptor is definitely required. The adaptor is a Screw-On F-Connector (Coax) Female to Push-On F-Connector (Coax) Male. It is available at Radio Shack. With an adaptor, and much stronger external antenna attached to the Tivax 7" DTV, I was able to receive a lot more channels!!! In my case, the number of channels was 30-40, using the adaptor with a stronger external antenna.Overall, I am happy with the purchase. It works fine. And because I also ordered the docking station, we also have AA battery power, and that is the most important feature! We can also pick up many stations with this DTV.