BT Vision. Yes or No?

jaybee1 · 16-08-2010, 12:35

I'm thinking of signing up to BT Vision, but am reluctant to sign up without actually seeing it in action. If I don't want any sports or extra channels, the package I chose would cost me £7.99pm for the first 3 months, then £14.99pm thereafter. But exactly what channels will I get? I've been a Sky subscriber for so many years and we mainly watch the American drama-type channels such as CBS. I really need to know what channels I would get and which ones would no longer be available to me.

johnson293 · 16-08-2010, 13:07

To answer your thread title... No.

To answer you query in the post, the only 'channels' you will get are the Freeview ones, and Sky Sports 1 & 2 (if you wanted them).

The ondemand stuff is individual shows from certain channels, but not the actual linear channel as you would get on Sky or Virgin.

intercept · 16-08-2010, 14:43

I suggest that you should do some more research rather than relying on the polarised opinions that online forums tend to include (both positive and negative).

Here are some facts:

BT Vision provides the Freeview SD set of live TV channels: http://www.btvision.bt.com/tv-guide/

plus the option of 3 sports channels: ESPN, Sky Sports 1 & 2 http://www.btvision.bt.com/sport/

plus about 10000 hours of TV/films/music/sport/info available instantly On-Demand via your broadband line (without affecting your data usage limit):

http://www.btvision.bt.com/on-demand/

It doesn't have most of the channels that Sky provides but you will probably find that many of the programmes shown by the Sky channels exist in the Video On Demand library. Maybe a season behind Sky, but at least you can watch them precisely whenever you want rather than waiting for the broadcast.

BT Vision has a small library of HD films & programmes, but no live HD channels.

and my opinion:

In order to fully benefit from BT Vision you have to lose the old "channels" mindset, and think more about programmes and series.

Hopefully this is a balanced review

masona2 · 16-08-2010, 16:32

Yes

Agree with Intercept. You will get a lot of polarised views on this forum - as above - the negative Vision comment was posted by a Sky customer (as stated in his profile).

I personally have been a customer of both services and both have pluses and minuses.

It all depends on what YOU want for your money.

By the way, what do you want?

jaybee1 · 16-08-2010, 17:07

All food for thought.

What I want is value for money (don't we all)? Because I'm currently paying £38.50 per month to Sky and I can't honestly remember the last time I watched a film. So I don't want to pay a high subscription, but I need something that's user friendly (my other half's a bit of a technophobe).

Are you familiar with Bright House network in the US? Does the BT Vision work anything like that (it's TVOD).

johnson293 · 16-08-2010, 17:12

Quote:

Originally Posted by masona2

Yes

Agree with Intercept. You will get a lot of polarised views on this forum - as above - the negative Vision comment was posted by a Sky customer (as stated in his profile).

I personally have been a customer of both services and both have pluses and minuses.

It all depends on what YOU want for your money.

By the way, what do you want?

I am a Sky customer now, however I was a BT Vision customer for about 18 months until Oct 2008, when I moved back to Sky for financial reasons - believe it or not, Sky were actually cheaper for providing the TV, Phone and BB for me at the time.

I wouldn't go back to BT Vision as I had a nightmare time with their billing department, regularly double or treble billing me for the viewing packs, not returning calls to sort it out, and leaving the problem to re-occur after being told it had been sorted. They also took ages (after numerous phone calls) to activate the (then) Setanta card.

The OP should read some other recent threads on here, as the customer services at BT still doesn't seem to have improved much in the 20 months (or so) since I left.

So while this may not be deemed a 'balanced post', it is here to balance up the good experiences others have had with BT Vision, as prosepctive new customers should know about the possible problems too.

wwwebber · 16-08-2010, 17:42

Quote:

Originally Posted by johnson293

I am a Sky customer now, however I was a BT Vision customer for about 18 months until Oct 2008, when I moved back to Sky for financial reasons - believe it or not, Sky were actually cheaper for providing the TV, Phone and BB for me at the time.

I wouldn't go back to BT Vision as I had a nightmare time with their billing department, regularly double or treble billing me for the viewing packs, not returning calls to sort it out, and leaving the problem to re-occur after being told it had been sorted. They also took ages (after numerous phone calls) to activate the (then) Setanta card.

The OP should read some other recent threads on here, as the customer services at BT still doesn't seem to have improved much in the 20 months (or so) since I left.

So while this may not be deemed a 'balanced post', it is here to balance up the good experiences others have had with BT Vision, as prosepctive new customers should know about the possible problems too.

I respect your right to have an opinion and to provide advice but I do question your motives. You say that you have Sky at the moment so why don't you post in the Sky forums with your advice ?.

I think prospective BTVision customers need to know this too so that they may guage the credibility & quality of advice given.

To the OP :-

BTVision doesnt have channels other than those provided by Freeview and a couple of Sky Sports channels. The content is provided on demand so you can watch anything thats available immediately (except for HD). The BTVision box is easy to use and reliable. The film library is huge and is ideal for someone who just watches stuff occasionally as you can pay per view the content if you wish.

See here for more :-

http://www.productsandservices.bt.co...?topicId=24687

If you've got any more questions then fire away and those here that have BTVision will do thier best to help.

fifilapew · 16-08-2010, 18:58

I have bt vision, and I find it far cheaper, I think I pay some thing like £6 per month ( remember it was a special offer at the time) and I get all the free view channels, the recorder plus the free OD tv progs, and catalogue of pay per view films and kids programmes. The films and tv shows are updated weekly and £3.49 isn't too bad for me as will only watch one movie a month and they are quite quick at getting the latest releases.

For me it is great as I rarely watch live tv I prefer to record things I like the sound of, or watch a box set when I get a spare hour or two.

fifilapew · 16-08-2010, 19:06

Quote:

Originally Posted by jaybee1

All food for thought.

What I want is value for money (don't we all)? Because I'm currently paying £38.50 per month to Sky and I can't honestly remember the last time I watched a film. So I don't want to pay a high subscription, but I need something that's user friendly (my other half's a bit of a technophobe).

Are you familiar with Bright House network in the US? Does the BT Vision work anything like that (it's TVOD).

Just as easy if not easier to use than sky. I can tell you unless you want kids and sports channels you will definitely be paying less than sky.

The reason I left sky was because during a temporary, 6 month move, I didn't bother to get a sky subscription just got a freeview box. I think there might have been just 2 programmes I actually felt bothered about missing in all that time. I also found myself actually watching a programme rather than mindlessly flicking every time the ads come on or even during the show.

When I moved back I cancelled my sky and bt phoned with the £6 offer and I would never go back to sky and my sore flicked out thumbs

One more thing, you will need a pretty good arial and signal as the freeview channels will run off it.

steven3001 · 16-08-2010, 20:03

Quote:

Originally Posted by johnson293

I am a Sky customer now, however I was a BT Vision customer for about 18 months until Oct 2008, when I moved back to Sky for financial reasons - believe it or not, Sky were actually cheaper for providing the TV, Phone and BB for me at the time.

I wouldn't go back to BT Vision as I had a nightmare time with their billing department, regularly double or treble billing me for the viewing packs, not returning calls to sort it out, and leaving the problem to re-occur after being told it had been sorted. They also took ages (after numerous phone calls) to activate the (then) Setanta card.

The OP should read some other recent threads on here, as the customer services at BT still doesn't seem to have improved much in the 20 months (or so) since I left.

So while this may not be deemed a 'balanced post', it is here to balance up the good experiences others have had with BT Vision, as prosepctive new customers should know about the possible problems too.

You left BT Vision almost 2 years ago, thats a long time a lot has happened since then, new improved box, larger content, sky sports.different bundles

So you do note you left 20 months ago, 2 years in Vision life is a long time with how new the service is, back then it had problems as it had not been around long

As an employee I have never heard of a single person been double or triple billed for Vision so whilst I dont doubt your story it's something that is unlikely to happen to many, all billing has now been merged to one bill, new simpler billing formats but even still this is not an issue I come across ever in 4 years Ive been at BT

ney · 16-08-2010, 20:07

I would say no untill they bring out a box that can also pick up the Freeview HD channels.
Although I do like sport I dont watch enough of it to be paying extra for it every month.
The pay per view film service seems a good idea if you dont watch many films a month and dont want to pay a montly fee the films.

Darren

johnson293 · 16-08-2010, 20:55

Quote:

Originally Posted by wwwebber

I respect your right to have an opinion and to provide advice but I do question your motives. You say that you have Sky at the moment so why don't you post in the Sky forums with your advice ?.

I think prospective BTVision customers need to know this too so that they may guage the credibility & quality of advice given.

I post here as past subscriber as I believe I can offer advice in the service (and have the odd rib-poke)

.

Unfortunately, some of my experiences with BT Vision aren't happy ones, and I believe potential subscribers should see this side of things as well as hear the praise from happy subscribers like your good self.

I wouldn't post this opinion on the Sky Forum as potential BT Vision customers wouldn't be on there looking for opinion of BT Vision.

Quote:

Originally Posted by steven3001

You left BT Vision almost 2 years ago, thats a long time a lot has happened since then, new improved box, larger content, sky sports.different bundles

Agreed.

Quote:

Originally Posted by steven3001

So you do note you left 20 months ago, 2 years in Vision life is a long time with how new the service is, back then it had problems as it had not been around long

Reading this forum, there are still some of the same problems happening these days that were happening back then (VOD errors, etc).

Quote:

Originally Posted by steven3001

As an employee I have never heard of a single person been double or triple billed for Vision so whilst I dont doubt your story it's something that is unlikely to happen to many, all billing has now been merged to one bill, new simpler billing formats but even still this is not an issue I come across ever in 4 years Ive been at BT

Cheers for not doubting me - here is the thread from back in August 2007 when I got my first BT Vision bill in, detailing the problems...

http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/forums/s...vision+billing

There are one or two others on that thread who say they also had billing problems, too.

Here also is the thread stating the problems I had getting the Bronze pack and the Setanta Card activated....

http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/forums/s...vision+billing

Dacco · 16-08-2010, 21:05

Quote:

Originally Posted by johnson293

I am a Sky customer now, however I was a BT Vision customer for about 18 months until Oct 2008, .

You were a customer for 14 months(bit of a nit picking mood tonight), BTVision launched August 07. Very different service now to what it was then.........Oh how I miss the frequent reboots and the little green light.

masona2 · 16-08-2010, 21:09

Sorry to hear you had problems,

But that was then, this is now.

As you proberly already know, the majority of Vision customers don't have any problems.

And those who do (I've had a couple) find their issues resloved to their satisfaction.

Trying to compare the service two years ago with the service anyone can get now is like trying to compare Eastenders with Tele-tubbies.

andyf94 · 16-08-2010, 21:15

Quote:

Originally Posted by intercept

I suggest that you should do some more research rather than relying on the polarised opinions that online forums tend to include (both positive and negative).

Here are some facts:

BT Vision provides the Freeview SD set of live TV channels: http://www.btvision.bt.com/tv-guide/

plus the option of 3 sports channels: ESPN, Sky Sports 1 & 2 http://www.btvision.bt.com/sport/

plus about 10000 hours of TV/films/music/sport/info available instantly On-Demand via your broadband line (without affecting your data usage limit):

http://www.btvision.bt.com/on-demand/

It doesn't have most of the channels that Sky provides but you will probably find that many of the programmes shown by the Sky channels exist in the Video On Demand library. Maybe a season behind Sky, but at least you can watch them precisely whenever you want rather than waiting for the broadcast.

BT Vision has a small library of HD films & programmes, but no live HD channels.

and my opinion:

In order to fully benefit from BT Vision you have to lose the old "channels" mindset, and think more about programmes and series.

Hopefully this is a balanced review

I thought it was an excellant review

andyf94 · 16-08-2010, 21:32

The only advice I would give is to choose the your service based on your own viewing habits. I had BT Vision a couple of years ago (maybe a bit more) and on the whole it wasn't a bad service. I previously had Sky HD and went back to them for the live football.

Now that BTVision have SS I've come back, and I don't regret it one bit. My experience with them has been positive thoughout, the box itself is good and the product ( the breadth of content) is second to none. Whatever type of progam I want to watch I can find something of that genre WHEN I want it, and I'm not being force-fed 287 channels I have no interest in.

At the end of the day it's horses for courses....so only you can decide.

masona2 · 16-08-2010, 21:50

Ahh! Ahh!

Quote - 'being force-fed 287 channels I have no interest in'.

What a brilliant post that is.

I have never, ever, heard it put like that. But it sums up the situation perfectly.

And 287 channels I too hardly ever watched, whilst paying a small fortune for it.

For me, and me alone, in my humble opinion, the beauty of Vision is that you only pay for what YOU want to watch.

And, starting at only £7 p.mth, you only PAY for what you want to watch.

Brill.

jaybee1 · 16-08-2010, 23:31

One other small point. The young woman I spoke to at BT told me that the new Vision box is HD, so I can receive any free to air HD channels, and also the HDOD content.

And also pause live TV (live as in Freeview channels), and record up to 2 programmes whilst watching a third. Am I understanding this right?

The last thing I want to do is sign up on a contract then find that I can't get on with the BT Vision product, because by all accounts once I sign the dotted line I'm in it for the duration

masona2 · 16-08-2010, 23:50

Yes,

The Vision box is a freeview recorder. Watch one channel whilst recording another.

But, err, one question, what new freeview HD box?

The version 1 (silver) and version 2 (black) can only download HD content. NOT watch freeview HD.

Oh, and you can only record two channels at the same time whilst watching a programme you've RECORDED on you're box.

steven3001 · 17-08-2010, 20:10

Quote:

Originally Posted by jaybee1

One other small point. The young woman I spoke to at BT told me that the new Vision box is HD, so I can receive any free to air HD channels, and also the HDOD content.

And also pause live TV (live as in Freeview channels), and record up to 2 programmes whilst watching a third. Am I understanding this right?

The last thing I want to do is sign up on a contract then find that I can't get on with the BT Vision product, because by all accounts once I sign the dotted line I'm in it for the duration

You sure not HD ready, which basically means there is content to watch from on demand in HD

I hear there is a new box coming out that will allow HD channels from freeview but its just goss at the moment, even working there Ive heard nothing official of a new box just gossip on here but im sure there will be something in the pipeline

littleboo · 17-08-2010, 20:37

Quote:

Originally Posted by masona2

Yes,

The Vision box is a freeview recorder. Watch one channel whilst recording another.

But, err, one question, what new freeview HD box?

The version 1 (silver) and version 2 (black) can only download HD content. NOT watch freeview HD.

Oh, and you can only record two channels at the same time whilst watching a programme you've RECORDED on you're box.

Or record two whilst watching on-demand

masona2 · 17-08-2010, 22:35

Oh yes,

Thanks for that.

This box has so many features its hard to remember to list them all.

MostynDS · 18-08-2010, 14:26

Quote:

Originally Posted by jaybee1

One other small point. The young woman I spoke to at BT told me that the new Vision box is HD, so I can receive any free to air HD channels, and also the HDOD content.

And also pause live TV (live as in Freeview channels), and record up to 2 programmes whilst watching a third. Am I understanding this right?

The last thing I want to do is sign up on a contract then find that I can't get on with the BT Vision product, because by all accounts once I sign the dotted line I'm in it for the duration

The box IS HD (Technically) in that it can play back the tiny number of HD Films/programmes that are available if you pay extra.

The box has only two tuners so you can record one whilst watching another or record two if you watch a third via your TVs tuner.

You should be very careful in signing up. I spent a nightmare 12 months with BT Vision. The on-demand content is third rate, nearly all American and years behind Sky. I left in May, and bungling BT were still taking money from my account until July. They've paid it back now after the usual tale of phonecalls made and promises broken.

And before anyone moans, the OP was asking 'Yes or No' my answer is a resounding 'No' and I choose to respond because I'm a recent BTV customer (victim), it's shite, very expensive when seen as a bundle, and the OP deserves to be informed.

Don't touch it with a barge-pole.

wwwebber · 18-08-2010, 17:51

Quote:

Originally Posted by MostynDS

The box IS HD (Technically) in that it can play back the tiny number of HD Films/programmes that are available if you pay extra.

The box has only two tuners so you can record one whilst watching another or record two if you watch a third via your TVs tuner.

You should be very careful in signing up. I spent a nightmare 12 months with BT Vision. The on-demand content is third rate, nearly all American and years behind Sky. I left in May, and bungling BT were still taking money from my account until July. They've paid it back now after the usual tale of phonecalls made and promises broken.

And before anyone moans, the OP was asking 'Yes or No' my answer is a resounding 'No' and I choose to respond because I'm a recent BTV customer (victim), it's shite, very expensive when seen as a bundle, and the OP deserves to be informed.

Don't touch it with a barge-pole.

A couple of things. Having two tuners is kind of an industry standard for PVR's so saying that it "only" has two tuners is not fair really. Yes, VM has 3 but that's an exception.

Lastly the quote "The on-demand content is third rate, nearly all American " can be clearly labelled as "in your opinion" and I totally disagree with it a personal & factual basis.

You had issues with BTVision and you've made your point. It just goes to show that Sky & VM are not alone when it comes to the odd disgruntled customer.

masona2 · 18-08-2010, 18:27

Agree.

All service providers have problems.

The trick with a 'good' service provider is that they resolve your problem quickly and to your satisfaction!

16-08-2010, 12:35	#1
jaybee1 Forum Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Posts: 3	BT Vision. Yes or No? I'm thinking of signing up to BT Vision, but am reluctant to sign up without actually seeing it in action. If I don't want any sports or extra channels, the package I chose would cost me £7.99pm for the first 3 months, then £14.99pm thereafter. But exactly what channels will I get? I've been a Sky subscriber for so many years and we mainly watch the American drama-type channels such as CBS. I really need to know what channels I would get and which ones would no longer be available to me.

16-08-2010, 14:43	#3
intercept Forum Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Posts: 311	I suggest that you should do some more research rather than relying on the polarised opinions that online forums tend to include (both positive and negative). Here are some facts: BT Vision provides the Freeview SD set of live TV channels: http://www.btvision.bt.com/tv-guide/ plus the option of 3 sports channels: ESPN, Sky Sports 1 & 2 http://www.btvision.bt.com/sport/ plus about 10000 hours of TV/films/music/sport/info available instantly On-Demand via your broadband line (without affecting your data usage limit): http://www.btvision.bt.com/on-demand/ It doesn't have most of the channels that Sky provides but you will probably find that many of the programmes shown by the Sky channels exist in the Video On Demand library. Maybe a season behind Sky, but at least you can watch them precisely whenever you want rather than waiting for the broadcast. BT Vision has a small library of HD films & programmes, but no live HD channels. and my opinion: In order to fully benefit from BT Vision you have to lose the old "channels" mindset, and think more about programmes and series. Hopefully this is a balanced review

16-08-2010, 21:15	#15
andyf94 Forum Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Sunny South Coast Posts: 298	Quote: Originally Posted by intercept I suggest that you should do some more research rather than relying on the polarised opinions that online forums tend to include (both positive and negative). Here are some facts: BT Vision provides the Freeview SD set of live TV channels: http://www.btvision.bt.com/tv-guide/ plus the option of 3 sports channels: ESPN, Sky Sports 1 & 2 http://www.btvision.bt.com/sport/ plus about 10000 hours of TV/films/music/sport/info available instantly On-Demand via your broadband line (without affecting your data usage limit): http://www.btvision.bt.com/on-demand/ It doesn't have most of the channels that Sky provides but you will probably find that many of the programmes shown by the Sky channels exist in the Video On Demand library. Maybe a season behind Sky, but at least you can watch them precisely whenever you want rather than waiting for the broadcast. BT Vision has a small library of HD films & programmes, but no live HD channels. and my opinion: In order to fully benefit from BT Vision you have to lose the old "channels" mindset, and think more about programmes and series. Hopefully this is a balanced review I thought it was an excellant review

16-08-2010, 13:07	#2
johnson293 Forum Member Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Newcastle upon Tyne Posts: 1,243	To answer your thread title... No. To answer you query in the post, the only 'channels' you will get are the Freeview ones, and Sky Sports 1 & 2 (if you wanted them). The ondemand stuff is individual shows from certain channels, but not the actual linear channel as you would get on Sky or Virgin.

16-08-2010, 16:32	#4
masona2 Inactive Member Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Manchester, UK Posts: 780	Yes Agree with Intercept. You will get a lot of polarised views on this forum - as above - the negative Vision comment was posted by a Sky customer (as stated in his profile). I personally have been a customer of both services and both have pluses and minuses. It all depends on what YOU want for your money. By the way, what do you want?

16-08-2010, 17:07	#5
jaybee1 Forum Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Posts: 3	All food for thought. What I want is value for money (don't we all)? Because I'm currently paying £38.50 per month to Sky and I can't honestly remember the last time I watched a film. So I don't want to pay a high subscription, but I need something that's user friendly (my other half's a bit of a technophobe). Are you familiar with Bright House network in the US? Does the BT Vision work anything like that (it's TVOD).

16-08-2010, 17:12	#6
johnson293 Forum Member Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Newcastle upon Tyne Posts: 1,243	Quote: Originally Posted by masona2 Yes Agree with Intercept. You will get a lot of polarised views on this forum - as above - the negative Vision comment was posted by a Sky customer (as stated in his profile). I personally have been a customer of both services and both have pluses and minuses. It all depends on what YOU want for your money. By the way, what do you want? I am a Sky customer now, however I was a BT Vision customer for about 18 months until Oct 2008, when I moved back to Sky for financial reasons - believe it or not, Sky were actually cheaper for providing the TV, Phone and BB for me at the time. I wouldn't go back to BT Vision as I had a nightmare time with their billing department, regularly double or treble billing me for the viewing packs, not returning calls to sort it out, and leaving the problem to re-occur after being told it had been sorted. They also took ages (after numerous phone calls) to activate the (then) Setanta card. The OP should read some other recent threads on here, as the customer services at BT still doesn't seem to have improved much in the 20 months (or so) since I left. So while this may not be deemed a 'balanced post', it is here to balance up the good experiences others have had with BT Vision, as prosepctive new customers should know about the possible problems too.

16-08-2010, 17:42	#7
wwwebber Forum Member Join Date: Feb 2001 Location: Nottingham Posts: 3,536	Quote: Originally Posted by johnson293 I am a Sky customer now, however I was a BT Vision customer for about 18 months until Oct 2008, when I moved back to Sky for financial reasons - believe it or not, Sky were actually cheaper for providing the TV, Phone and BB for me at the time. I wouldn't go back to BT Vision as I had a nightmare time with their billing department, regularly double or treble billing me for the viewing packs, not returning calls to sort it out, and leaving the problem to re-occur after being told it had been sorted. They also took ages (after numerous phone calls) to activate the (then) Setanta card. The OP should read some other recent threads on here, as the customer services at BT still doesn't seem to have improved much in the 20 months (or so) since I left. So while this may not be deemed a 'balanced post', it is here to balance up the good experiences others have had with BT Vision, as prosepctive new customers should know about the possible problems too. I respect your right to have an opinion and to provide advice but I do question your motives. You say that you have Sky at the moment so why don't you post in the Sky forums with your advice ?. I think prospective BTVision customers need to know this too so that they may guage the credibility & quality of advice given. To the OP :- BTVision doesnt have channels other than those provided by Freeview and a couple of Sky Sports channels. The content is provided on demand so you can watch anything thats available immediately (except for HD). The BTVision box is easy to use and reliable. The film library is huge and is ideal for someone who just watches stuff occasionally as you can pay per view the content if you wish. See here for more :- http://www.productsandservices.bt.co...?topicId=24687 If you've got any more questions then fire away and those here that have BTVision will do thier best to help.

16-08-2010, 18:58	#8
fifilapew Forum Member Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: london Posts: 3,321	I have bt vision, and I find it far cheaper, I think I pay some thing like £6 per month ( remember it was a special offer at the time) and I get all the free view channels, the recorder plus the free OD tv progs, and catalogue of pay per view films and kids programmes. The films and tv shows are updated weekly and £3.49 isn't too bad for me as will only watch one movie a month and they are quite quick at getting the latest releases. For me it is great as I rarely watch live tv I prefer to record things I like the sound of, or watch a box set when I get a spare hour or two.

16-08-2010, 19:06	#9
fifilapew Forum Member Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: london Posts: 3,321	Quote: Originally Posted by jaybee1 All food for thought. What I want is value for money (don't we all)? Because I'm currently paying £38.50 per month to Sky and I can't honestly remember the last time I watched a film. So I don't want to pay a high subscription, but I need something that's user friendly (my other half's a bit of a technophobe). Are you familiar with Bright House network in the US? Does the BT Vision work anything like that (it's TVOD). Just as easy if not easier to use than sky. I can tell you unless you want kids and sports channels you will definitely be paying less than sky. The reason I left sky was because during a temporary, 6 month move, I didn't bother to get a sky subscription just got a freeview box. I think there might have been just 2 programmes I actually felt bothered about missing in all that time. I also found myself actually watching a programme rather than mindlessly flicking every time the ads come on or even during the show. When I moved back I cancelled my sky and bt phoned with the £6 offer and I would never go back to sky and my sore flicked out thumbs One more thing, you will need a pretty good arial and signal as the freeview channels will run off it.

16-08-2010, 20:03	#10
steven3001 Forum Member Join Date: May 2005 Posts: 629	Quote: Originally Posted by johnson293 I am a Sky customer now, however I was a BT Vision customer for about 18 months until Oct 2008, when I moved back to Sky for financial reasons - believe it or not, Sky were actually cheaper for providing the TV, Phone and BB for me at the time. I wouldn't go back to BT Vision as I had a nightmare time with their billing department, regularly double or treble billing me for the viewing packs, not returning calls to sort it out, and leaving the problem to re-occur after being told it had been sorted. They also took ages (after numerous phone calls) to activate the (then) Setanta card. The OP should read some other recent threads on here, as the customer services at BT still doesn't seem to have improved much in the 20 months (or so) since I left. So while this may not be deemed a 'balanced post', it is here to balance up the good experiences others have had with BT Vision, as prosepctive new customers should know about the possible problems too. You left BT Vision almost 2 years ago, thats a long time a lot has happened since then, new improved box, larger content, sky sports.different bundles So you do note you left 20 months ago, 2 years in Vision life is a long time with how new the service is, back then it had problems as it had not been around long As an employee I have never heard of a single person been double or triple billed for Vision so whilst I dont doubt your story it's something that is unlikely to happen to many, all billing has now been merged to one bill, new simpler billing formats but even still this is not an issue I come across ever in 4 years Ive been at BT

16-08-2010, 20:07	#11
ney Forum Member Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Scotland, Dunfermline Area Posts: 10,705	I would say no untill they bring out a box that can also pick up the Freeview HD channels. Although I do like sport I dont watch enough of it to be paying extra for it every month. The pay per view film service seems a good idea if you dont watch many films a month and dont want to pay a montly fee the films. Darren

16-08-2010, 20:55	#12
johnson293 Forum Member Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Newcastle upon Tyne Posts: 1,243	Quote: Originally Posted by wwwebber I respect your right to have an opinion and to provide advice but I do question your motives. You say that you have Sky at the moment so why don't you post in the Sky forums with your advice ?. I think prospective BTVision customers need to know this too so that they may guage the credibility & quality of advice given. I post here as past subscriber as I believe I can offer advice in the service (and have the odd rib-poke) . Unfortunately, some of my experiences with BT Vision aren't happy ones, and I believe potential subscribers should see this side of things as well as hear the praise from happy subscribers like your good self. I wouldn't post this opinion on the Sky Forum as potential BT Vision customers wouldn't be on there looking for opinion of BT Vision. Quote: Originally Posted by steven3001 You left BT Vision almost 2 years ago, thats a long time a lot has happened since then, new improved box, larger content, sky sports.different bundles Agreed. Quote: Originally Posted by steven3001 So you do note you left 20 months ago, 2 years in Vision life is a long time with how new the service is, back then it had problems as it had not been around long Reading this forum, there are still some of the same problems happening these days that were happening back then (VOD errors, etc). Quote: Originally Posted by steven3001 As an employee I have never heard of a single person been double or triple billed for Vision so whilst I dont doubt your story it's something that is unlikely to happen to many, all billing has now been merged to one bill, new simpler billing formats but even still this is not an issue I come across ever in 4 years Ive been at BT Cheers for not doubting me - here is the thread from back in August 2007 when I got my first BT Vision bill in, detailing the problems... http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/forums/s...vision+billing There are one or two others on that thread who say they also had billing problems, too. Here also is the thread stating the problems I had getting the Bronze pack and the Setanta Card activated.... http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/forums/s...vision+billing

16-08-2010, 21:05	#13
Dacco Inactive Member Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: 47°9′ S, 126°43′ W Posts: 2,948	Quote: Originally Posted by johnson293 I am a Sky customer now, however I was a BT Vision customer for about 18 months until Oct 2008, . You were a customer for 14 months(bit of a nit picking mood tonight), BTVision launched August 07. Very different service now to what it was then.........Oh how I miss the frequent reboots and the little green light.

16-08-2010, 21:09	#14
masona2 Inactive Member Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Manchester, UK Posts: 780	Sorry to hear you had problems, But that was then, this is now. As you proberly already know, the majority of Vision customers don't have any problems. And those who do (I've had a couple) find their issues resloved to their satisfaction. Trying to compare the service two years ago with the service anyone can get now is like trying to compare Eastenders with Tele-tubbies.

16-08-2010, 21:32	#16
andyf94 Forum Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Sunny South Coast Posts: 298	The only advice I would give is to choose the your service based on your own viewing habits. I had BT Vision a couple of years ago (maybe a bit more) and on the whole it wasn't a bad service. I previously had Sky HD and went back to them for the live football. Now that BTVision have SS I've come back, and I don't regret it one bit. My experience with them has been positive thoughout, the box itself is good and the product ( the breadth of content) is second to none. Whatever type of progam I want to watch I can find something of that genre WHEN I want it, and I'm not being force-fed 287 channels I have no interest in. At the end of the day it's horses for courses....so only you can decide.

16-08-2010, 21:50	#17
masona2 Inactive Member Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Manchester, UK Posts: 780	Ahh! Ahh! Quote - 'being force-fed 287 channels I have no interest in'. What a brilliant post that is. I have never, ever, heard it put like that. But it sums up the situation perfectly. And 287 channels I too hardly ever watched, whilst paying a small fortune for it. For me, and me alone, in my humble opinion, the beauty of Vision is that you only pay for what YOU want to watch. And, starting at only £7 p.mth, you only PAY for what you want to watch. Brill.

16-08-2010, 23:31	#18
jaybee1 Forum Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Posts: 3	One other small point. The young woman I spoke to at BT told me that the new Vision box is HD, so I can receive any free to air HD channels, and also the HDOD content. And also pause live TV (live as in Freeview channels), and record up to 2 programmes whilst watching a third. Am I understanding this right? The last thing I want to do is sign up on a contract then find that I can't get on with the BT Vision product, because by all accounts once I sign the dotted line I'm in it for the duration

16-08-2010, 23:50	#19
masona2 Inactive Member Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Manchester, UK Posts: 780	Yes, The Vision box is a freeview recorder. Watch one channel whilst recording another. But, err, one question, what new freeview HD box? The version 1 (silver) and version 2 (black) can only download HD content. NOT watch freeview HD. Oh, and you can only record two channels at the same time whilst watching a programme you've RECORDED on you're box.

17-08-2010, 20:10	#20
steven3001 Forum Member Join Date: May 2005 Posts: 629	Quote: Originally Posted by jaybee1 One other small point. The young woman I spoke to at BT told me that the new Vision box is HD, so I can receive any free to air HD channels, and also the HDOD content. And also pause live TV (live as in Freeview channels), and record up to 2 programmes whilst watching a third. Am I understanding this right? The last thing I want to do is sign up on a contract then find that I can't get on with the BT Vision product, because by all accounts once I sign the dotted line I'm in it for the duration You sure not HD ready, which basically means there is content to watch from on demand in HD I hear there is a new box coming out that will allow HD channels from freeview but its just goss at the moment, even working there Ive heard nothing official of a new box just gossip on here but im sure there will be something in the pipeline

17-08-2010, 20:37	#21
littleboo Forum Member Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: South Coast Posts: 892	Quote: Originally Posted by masona2 Yes, The Vision box is a freeview recorder. Watch one channel whilst recording another. But, err, one question, what new freeview HD box? The version 1 (silver) and version 2 (black) can only download HD content. NOT watch freeview HD. Oh, and you can only record two channels at the same time whilst watching a programme you've RECORDED on you're box. Or record two whilst watching on-demand

17-08-2010, 22:35	#22
masona2 Inactive Member Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Manchester, UK Posts: 780	Oh yes, Thanks for that. This box has so many features its hard to remember to list them all.

18-08-2010, 14:26	#23
MostynDS Forum Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Posts: 773	Quote: Originally Posted by jaybee1 One other small point. The young woman I spoke to at BT told me that the new Vision box is HD, so I can receive any free to air HD channels, and also the HDOD content. And also pause live TV (live as in Freeview channels), and record up to 2 programmes whilst watching a third. Am I understanding this right? The last thing I want to do is sign up on a contract then find that I can't get on with the BT Vision product, because by all accounts once I sign the dotted line I'm in it for the duration The box IS HD (Technically) in that it can play back the tiny number of HD Films/programmes that are available if you pay extra. The box has only two tuners so you can record one whilst watching another or record two if you watch a third via your TVs tuner. You should be very careful in signing up. I spent a nightmare 12 months with BT Vision. The on-demand content is third rate, nearly all American and years behind Sky. I left in May, and bungling BT were still taking money from my account until July. They've paid it back now after the usual tale of phonecalls made and promises broken. And before anyone moans, the OP was asking 'Yes or No' my answer is a resounding 'No' and I choose to respond because I'm a recent BTV customer (victim), it's shite, very expensive when seen as a bundle, and the OP deserves to be informed. Don't touch it with a barge-pole.

DS Forums

BT Vision. Yes or No?

18-08-2010, 17:51	#24
wwwebber Forum Member Join Date: Feb 2001 Location: Nottingham Posts: 3,536	Quote: Originally Posted by MostynDS The box IS HD (Technically) in that it can play back the tiny number of HD Films/programmes that are available if you pay extra. The box has only two tuners so you can record one whilst watching another or record two if you watch a third via your TVs tuner. You should be very careful in signing up. I spent a nightmare 12 months with BT Vision. The on-demand content is third rate, nearly all American and years behind Sky. I left in May, and bungling BT were still taking money from my account until July. They've paid it back now after the usual tale of phonecalls made and promises broken. And before anyone moans, the OP was asking 'Yes or No' my answer is a resounding 'No' and I choose to respond because I'm a recent BTV customer (victim), it's shite, very expensive when seen as a bundle, and the OP deserves to be informed. Don't touch it with a barge-pole. A couple of things. Having two tuners is kind of an industry standard for PVR's so saying that it "only" has two tuners is not fair really. Yes, VM has 3 but that's an exception. Lastly the quote "The on-demand content is third rate, nearly all American " can be clearly labelled as "in your opinion" and I totally disagree with it a personal & factual basis. You had issues with BTVision and you've made your point. It just goes to show that Sky & VM are not alone when it comes to the odd disgruntled customer.

18-08-2010, 18:27	#25
masona2 Inactive Member Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Manchester, UK Posts: 780	Agree. All service providers have problems. The trick with a 'good' service provider is that they resolve your problem quickly and to your satisfaction!