Freesat getting left behind...

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  • David (2)David (2) Posts: 20,632
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    Mickey_T wrote: »
    It gives you a few extra channels of tat imo and dozens of channels you can receive for FREE anyway.

    Not to mention Sky's absolutely shameful policy of deliberately reducing the picture resolution and bitrate of their own SD channels to unacceptable levels, especially when it's a paid for product. :mad:

    At least for our money the BBC gives us a glorious 720x576 picture resolution on their SD channels plus HD thrown in at no extra cost, unlike Sky. Your £21.50 a month doesn't seem such a great deal now.

    i go along with that. £21.50 a month doesnt buy you much. Most people think that sky are supplying all those pay channels, but in reality most are FTA or FTV anyway. I used to have one of the earlier digital entry level subscriptions (the only way to get digital at this location at that time).
    Its a bit of a con.

    Theres more to, why is Eurosport part of the new package (or it was the last time i checked).

    Our friend you has sky (as do most people in this area) thinks she has a good deal. She is on one of the lower packages, but she doesnt even get HD for that, or Sky+. There are many, many examples of this in this area with people we know. I think thats a poor deal - i wouldnt consider a pay service without having some HD and PVR function as standard. She thinks its a good deal, as she gets her Scifi channel. She also doesnt like the fact that if she just had freesat (or freeview) she could afford to put her heating on more - she is on the "breadline".

    Put another way, sky have done a fantastic job on most of the people, making many people think that they have to keep paying forever or go without tv reception. Living in an area where proper strength freeview didnt arrive until 2010, sky made a killing with nearly every house in some streets having a dish prior to 2010 switchover.

    But dont get me wrong, while i think some people will choose sky when they should be turning their heating on, and while many appear to think its the only method of getting a picture, and that the entry level sub packs are poor value, when it comes to the higher levels of subscription you do get a lot of channels. If i were that well paid i would have that sort of subscription.
  • derek500derek500 Posts: 24,887
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    David (2) wrote: »
    i wouldnt consider a pay service without having some HD and PVR function as standard.

    Every new customer gets an HD PVR for free. There are now less than 1m basic Sky boxes and a phone call to Sky will get a free upgrade or £65 cost at most to a Sky+HD box.

    And even without the HD sub, there's more free HD than Freeview or Freesat.

    BTW the £600m a year that Sky is investing in home grown drama and comedy is all available on the cheapest entry level package.
  • HotbirdHotbird Posts: 10,009
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    If you know how to hack the Freesat box using the Tuning Menu then you can add other channels to your list that are FTV (Free-To-View) such as Pick TV+, etc, etc

    No you cant, you can add other FTA channels that are not part of the freesat EPG, but you cannot added FTV channels to a freesat box as you have no card reader.

    FTV channels require a Freesat from Sky or expired Sky subscription card.

    Pick TV +1 is FTA so can be added but something like Channel 5HD is FTV so cannot be added even though its a free channel.
  • VetinariVetinari Posts: 3,336
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    derek500 wrote: »
    Every new customer gets an HD PVR for free.

    When you say free, you mean, I presume, free apart from the £20+ per month that you have to agree to pay before they will give you one.

    This is the marketing technique employed by the mobile companies where people get a free handset and free minutes and all they have to do is pay £30 (or whatever) a month.
  • derek500derek500 Posts: 24,887
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    Bspks wrote: »
    Providing it's not a long match if you're are glasses wearer.
    Try watching a film with 3D glasses perched in front of your normal ones, it'd have to be good for me to be able to make it to the end without a sore nose and a headache.

    I suggest you try an LG Cinema 3D set. No worries wearing 3D glasses over prescription one and no headaches.

    Wouldn't recommend watching Chelsea v Arsenal and Spurs v Man U tomorrow afternoon on Sky 3D for five hours on an active shutter set though.
  • GiovanGiovan Posts: 747
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    Vetinari wrote: »
    When you say free, you mean, I presume, free apart from the £20+ per month that you have to agree to pay before they will give you one.

    This is the marketing technique employed by the mobile companies where people get a free handset and free minutes and all they have to do is pay £30 (or whatever) a month.

    No, the box really is free. The £21.50 per month is for the channels.

    A few years ago you had to pay the monthly fee plus £300 up front for the box.
  • VetinariVetinari Posts: 3,336
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    Giovan wrote: »
    No, the box really is free. The £21.50 per month is for the channels.

    So, if I contact Sky and tell them I want a box, they will send me one even if I don't agree to pay them £21.5 pm?

    You see, a lot of people don't seem to understand the concept of 'free'.

    Something is free if it does not cost you anything.

    If your getting it is conditional on your spending £21.5 pm then it is not free at all. It just means that the cost is subsumed in the monthly charge.
  • David (2)David (2) Posts: 20,632
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    must be all those 1m old type digi boxes are in this area, as lots of people i know are still relying on them as their only means of tv reception.
  • peter05peter05 Posts: 3,569
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    Giovan wrote: »
    No, the box really is free. The £21.50 per month is for the channels.

    A few years ago you had to pay the monthly fee plus £300 up front for the box.
    Vetinari wrote: »
    So, if I contact Sky and tell them I want a box, they will send me one even if I don't agree to pay them £21.5 pm?

    You see, a lot of people don't seem to understand the concept of 'free'.

    Something is free if it does not cost you anything.

    If your getting it is conditional on your spending £21.5 pm then it is not free at all. It just means that the cost is subsumed in the monthly charge.

    Can I have one please:D:D:D:o;)

    No second thoughts I will stay with my FREESAT HUMAX PVR:D
  • David (2)David (2) Posts: 20,632
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    as an overview, it does seem that at the moment, providers like sky, mobile phone companys, and others want to make money from ongoing cotracts, rather than upfront costs. Like, you can have this mobile phone for £60, as long as you pay us £36 every month.
  • tvmad-alantvmad-alan Posts: 1,996
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    FreeSat is not behind at all with what is going on at this time.
    BBC & ITV the two owners of the EPG are both have budge troubles with ITV just spent £millions on changing images and logos and idents to all it's channels and Internet site and BBC has just be found out that job for the boys managerment has cost around £0.5 Million in a pay off and cost of committees to find out why manages are so bad.....

    BBC is also heavy into selling the last space on freeview and about spend high price to change BBC HD to BBC Two HD even with all platforms not needing make room etc...

    FreeSat has trouble with so many makers of items with different parts like SD boxes, HD boxes, HD+ Boxes, Youview type boxes, and TV's that all have software that is made up different, so some can handle BBC iPlayer & ITV too but others that can not and others that are about to have 4OD & 5 player too ....

    FreeSat has just had sky advert channels join the EPG to push sky platform like they do on freeview.

    Also at this time BANKS are just messy the world of companies up with not leading out or leading at such high prices when they are getting cash at knock down price from the Bank of England & other world banks, that TV companies have look at the price of joining a EPG.

    Plus we have sky that ties up channels to it's platform when they join, with deals on joining sky epg with software coding etc...

    If our MP's have any ****s they will not allow sky to grow any more at the cost to the public being able to have a good chioce of free TV channels on it's two main platforms ( Freeview & FreeSat ) ...

    FreeSat has also a little trouble coming with Internet TV systems on EPG linking as I said above too many company softwares and hardwares to link to the Internet. Freeview has the same troubles too.

    Platforms like VirginMedia, BskyB, and BT Vision all have same hardwares and softwares and BIG plus a Broadband system to handle new Internet TV channels.

    But I feel we are going to be happy with what comes over the year to come.......
  • GiovanGiovan Posts: 747
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    Vetinari wrote: »
    So, if I contact Sky and tell them I want a box, they will send me one even if I don't agree to pay them £21.5 pm?

    You see, a lot of people don't seem to understand the concept of 'free'.

    Something is free if it does not cost you anything.

    If your getting it is conditional on your spending £21.5 pm then it is not free at all. It just means that the cost is subsumed in the monthly charge.

    The box doesn't cost anything, And unlike other providers, when the initial 12 months is up you keep the box.
  • JoddleJoddle Posts: 505
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    Of course the box costs something - its just that Sky have calculated that if you commit for a year then their profits will cover the cost of providing the box..After that period is over they are in clover and it does not matter if you keep the box or not - they have covered their outlay costs. What they are really saying is they wont reduce the cost of your subscription once the cost of the box has been recovered - they just make even more money - crafty that!!!!

    If you are still in doubt think of it this way - Sky have to make money. They also have to pay for the boxes they install. The money for this has to come from somewhere - where do they get their money from? YOU. The box is not free.
  • roddydogsroddydogs Posts: 10,298
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    Hasnt Freeview HD skittled Freesat?
  • David (2)David (2) Posts: 20,632
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    roddydogs wrote: »
    Hasnt Freeview HD skittled Freesat?



    why would that be? Freesat has HD as well.

    And unlike Freeview, the Freesat package is the same all over the country which is certainly not the case with Freeview (many places have just the core Freeview channels - not all of them). Many people are unaware of this!
  • HumidHumid Posts: 1,782
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    swills wrote: »
    Only in HD if you have the HD pack

    But what extra channels do you get, can you name them?
  • GiovanGiovan Posts: 747
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    roddydogs wrote: »
    Hasnt Freeview HD skittled Freesat?

    No.

    Freesat has more HD than freeview and more capacity for future HD.

    Picture quality is better too IMO.
  • David (2)David (2) Posts: 20,632
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    i expect freeview to take a hit when they screw it over by taking away a shed load of bandwidth to re-use for 4G. Also a hell of a lot of re-tunes, maybe new aerials for some people as well. Freesat users will be in the clear with no issues though.
  • ProDaveProDave Posts: 11,398
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    Vetinari wrote: »
    So, if I contact Sky and tell them I want a box, they will send me one even if I don't agree to pay them £21.5 pm?

    You see, a lot of people don't seem to understand the concept of 'free'.

    Something is free if it does not cost you anything.

    If your getting it is conditional on your spending £21.5 pm then it is not free at all. It just means that the cost is subsumed in the monthly charge.

    They probably will. IF you pay for installation. It's in the small print of the sky contract.

    When Sky digital first came out, and before you could buy FTA DTT boxes in the shops, I got a "free" sky digibox without a subsctiption just by asking. Of course I had to pay £100 for the installation, but at the time £100 for a working freesat from sky installation was cheap (long before the freesat from sky name was dreamed up)
  • GiovanGiovan Posts: 747
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    Joddle wrote: »
    Of course the box costs something - its just that Sky have calculated that if you commit for a year then their profits will cover the cost of providing the box..After that period is over they are in clover and it does not matter if you keep the box or not - they have covered their outlay costs. What they are really saying is they wont reduce the cost of your subscription once the cost of the box has been recovered - they just make even more money - crafty that!!!!

    If you are still in doubt think of it this way - Sky have to make money. They also have to pay for the boxes they install. The money for this has to come from somewhere - where do they get their money from? YOU. The box is not free.

    Of course it is free. The monthly cost is for the channels and you would pay the same monthly cost if you provide your own box.

    If I buy a sky box off ebay and then ring up sky to subscribe then i will pay £21.50 per month.

    So the box is free.
  • grahamlthompsongrahamlthompson Posts: 18,486
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    Giovan wrote: »
    No.

    Freesat has more HD than freeview and more capacity for future HD.

    Picture quality is better too IMO.

    More capacity but picture quality on Freeview-HD is actually a tad better thanks to being able to use 1080p25.
  • grahamlthompsongrahamlthompson Posts: 18,486
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    David (2) wrote: »
    i expect freeview to take a hit when they screw it over by taking away a shed load of bandwidth to re-use for 4G. Also a hell of a lot of re-tunes, maybe new aerials for some people as well. Freesat users will be in the clear with no issues though.

    Apart from a few mux changes at a limited number of transmitters the upper UHF band to be used for 4G was cleared as part of the DSO project. No new aerials will be needed.
  • grahamlthompsongrahamlthompson Posts: 18,486
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    Giovan wrote: »
    Of course it is free. The monthly cost is for the channels and you would pay the same monthly cost if you provide your own box.

    If I buy a sky box off ebay and then ring up sky to subscribe then i will pay £21.50 per month.

    So the box is free.

    You buy a box of e-bay and it's free :eek:

    Strange logic.
  • GiovanGiovan Posts: 747
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    You buy a box of e-bay and it's free :eek:

    Strange logic.

    No, the box you get from sky is free.

    Why pretend to not understand? Or did you, heaven forbid, really not understand?
  • peter05peter05 Posts: 3,569
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    Giovan wrote: »
    Of course it is free. The monthly cost is for the channels and you would pay the same monthly cost if you provide your own box.

    If I buy a sky box off ebay and then ring up sky to subscribe then i will pay £21.50 per month.

    So the box is free.

    I am really not interested in sky boxes , I think you are on the wrong forum, and what good are sky + boxes even if they gave them away with a Sunday newspaper you would still have to pay sky to record, where FREESAT PVR's you can record and keep your recording for as long as you want, where with a sky + box you would have to pay sky just to watch your recordings, Far from FREESAT getting left behind FREESAT is moving forward, just hard for a few sky people to understand this:confused:

    And what fool would buy a sky box of ebay then phone sky to get a contract, they I would think only buy a sky box of ebay to have freesat fron sky, but as you have said they can now phone sky and ask for a FREE box and have no subsciption:p ( I think NOT )
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