TV bargain of the year? Netgem SoundBox HD is a soundbar, Freeview Play streamer and a set-top box all in one

Are you a TV fan looking to save space, jack up your TV viewing pleasure a few notches, and smarten up your lounge area? Netgem has an innovative and unique solution: cramming a TV set-top box, streamer and quality soundbar into one attractive package. Enter the Netgem SoundBox HD.

Netgem SoundBox HD: Here’s what you get

• Freeview HD tuner.
• On-demand and all catch-up streaming services from Freeview Play.
• A dual-tweeter, dual-subwoofer soundbar aaaaand…
• Amazon Alexa voice commands. 
• Number of boxes required: One

Netgem has delivered what modern British consumers demand, with the SoundBox HD delivering 70 Freeview channels. That includes the HD channels of all the main UK broadcasters, alongside all the Freeview Play catch-up programme feeds from the BBC, ITV, Channel 4, 5, and UKTV.

In addition, modern viewing habits are catered for with unique one-click streaming of on-demand content from the likes of Amazon Prime Video, Rakuten, Hopster and Hayu, with more on-demand and catch-up services to be rolled out over the coming months. You can also access streaming music services such as Amazon Prime Music.

If you own any Amazon Echo device, you can add Amazon Alexa voice control to the SoundBox HD’s bag of tricks. There’s also a remote if you prefer buttons to talking to your telly. Via Amazon Echo, you can use voice commands for everything from volume controls to finding a particular channel on Freeview to playing a film or tune on Amazon Prime. You can even search both streamed and live TV for specific shows.

To help make the most of Alexa’s skills, Netgem includes a year’s free subscription to Amazon Prime with the SoundBox HD (if you’re an existing subscriber, you get an extra 12 months). That includes Amazon Prime Video, which gives you access to thousands of movies and TV boxsets including exclusive Amazon Prime original series to watch at home or on the go. You also get Amazon Music, which lets you intelligently search and stream millions of tunes; and Prime Delivery, for free, next-day delivery on Amazon purchases. 

With its dual subwoofers and tweeters, the SoundBox HD gives a substantial boost to the thin sound you often get from the speakers on modern TVs. A choice of sound equalizer settings mean you can optimise it for enjoying TV, movies and also music streamed from your phone over Bluetooth, or via Amazon Prime Music.

Netgem has been providing the software and hardware for numerous top-rated set-top boxes for over 20 years. That’s been for third parties including EE, who Netgem made the very nifty EE TV box for. 

That expertise has now been applied to SoundBox HD, blending a great spec with Netgem’s award-winning user experience. Connectivity is as easy as you’d expect, with just an aerial socket, a single HDMI 1.4a port for video up to 1080p, and a 3.5mm audio in. Online connectivity is via dual-band AC Wi-Fi or the gigabit Ethernet port, and there’s also Bluetooth so you can easily stream audio from your mobile devices or laptop.

Netgem’s interface is clean and simple, giving easy access to live TV, catch-up TV and streaming services. 

The Netgem SoundBox HD is just £249 as an introductory offer direct from Amazon UK, including a 12-month Amazon Prime subscription. With Amazon's speedy delivery, it'll arrive in time for the next round of World Cup matches, too.