should i get freesat?(article)
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/may/08/television.bbc is this the worst article on freesat?(the idiot would rather have apple tv as he says it is "freer":D
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A lot of people here are acting like Freesat is the latest and greatest thing to hit TV. It isn't. It's old technology finally being made accessible to the wider public. In a couple of years it might grow into something to rival Sky/Virgin but not at the moment.
There's nothing on Freesat right now that can't be had from at least one other service. Even when ITVHD finally appears there will be more HD channels available on Freesat from Sky. (and no, you won't need a subscription to see them).
Freesat is only going to start making sense to the wider audience if/when PVRs for it appear and if/when more HD channels appear.
If you can't currently get DTT or if you haven't yet bought any DTT equipment then consider buying the kit. Otherwise there are probably better things to spend your money on.
How much is the HD freesat box with no PVR feature?
And if you're comparing the price of things like Freesat boxes in the high street with a sub free Sky box, isn't that the fairest thing to do - to look at the official listed price for each? Yes, of course you can get a Sky HD box cheaper by hunting on eBay or online, and in time the same will be true of Freesat boxes.
But if you want to give a fair comparison, that should really mean comparing like with like, so either a bargain eBay price for both items, or the 'official' price for both. That's the general rule of thumb, certainly, in the magazines for which I write. You can't hunt around for the cheapest price for one part of a comparison, and then ignore discounts for the other, unless you make that clear to the reader.
Prices for SkyHD if you're not a customer, and don't subscribe, are at the bottom of this page.
Obviously, those prices are the unsubsidised SkyHD ones, and likely intended to push people towards a subscription. But if people do want free HD with no sub, that would seem a fair headline figure to use.
From a factual point of view it was poorly researched and poorly written. OTOH I agree with the overall assessment. It all costs money and right now Freesat isn't offering anything special.