Nath
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Registered: 3rd Apr 02
Location: MK
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Any got this?
Does it need installing or is it just a plug'n'play box?
Can it work alongside Sky+?
Seems like a cheap way of getting HD tv channels.
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xa0s
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Have you already got Sky+?
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Rob_Quads
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Registered: 29th Mar 01
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Not many HD channels on freesat...well only BBC & ITV which ain't great
It is plug and play and will work alongside Sky+ but it will need its own feed from the Satelite
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xa0s
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And Channel 4 HD.
But even so, before I can give any advice... Have you already got Sky+?
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ash_corsa
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Registered: 15th Apr 04
Location: Shrewsbury
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Freesat HD will be big, they just need to sort out the channels as some are having issues with contracts with Sky.
Channels are being added all the time though.
You will need a HDMI input though as the component outputs on all the Freesat HD boxes have been disabled for copyright reasons.
The Panasonic 81 series freesat HD TVs are excellent, we have fitted loads of these lately.
Currently you wont get channel 5 on freesat but theyre working on it 
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Nath
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Registered: 3rd Apr 02
Location: MK
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Yeah we have SKY+ already. Will that rule out Freesat?
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oceansoul
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Registered: 19th Jun 06
Location: Sunbury, Surrey
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think u just need to take 2 new feeds from your LNB to the freesat hd box. Obvously you'd need a Quad LNB.
(LNB is the thing on ur dish that the cables come out of  )
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ash_corsa
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Location: Shrewsbury
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quote:
Originally posted by oceansoul
think u just need to take 2 new feeds from your LNB to the freesat hd box. Obvously you'd need a Quad LNB.
(LNB is the thing on ur dish that the cables come out of )
Why two new feeds? Freesat HD only uses one sat feed.
There are no PVRs currently available but will be out soon
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ash_corsa
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Location: Shrewsbury
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And yes it will run alongside Sky+ no problem.
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oceansoul
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Registered: 19th Jun 06
Location: Sunbury, Surrey
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Oops thought it was a PVR like the + box. Yups just 1 new feed then
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xa0s
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Why has no-one suggested simply buying a Sky HD box and plugging it into the Sky+ feeds? You don't need to pay the £10 monthly subscription if you don't want to, and you'll get all the channels Freesat will get bar ITV HD. Sky HD's PVR is second to none and the box upscales standard definition channels too. That's what I've done in my bedroom.
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ash_corsa
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quote:
Originally posted by xa0s
Why has no-one suggested simply buying a Sky HD box and plugging it into the Sky+ feeds? You don't need to pay the £10 monthly subscription if you don't want to, and you'll get all the channels Freesat will get bar ITV HD. Sky HD's PVR is second to none and the box upscales standard definition channels too. That's what I've done in my bedroom.
because you will need to pair the box with sky, once they know youve got a HD box they will charge you for the record function and the privilage to watcha few Hd channels.
Also, sky+ Hd boxes are a pile of shite, they fail again and again and if you buy one off ebay you have no warranty, so that will be £150 wasted as its almost 100% certain to go wrong
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Nath
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Registered: 3rd Apr 02
Location: MK
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Would upgrading to SkyHD+ be easier? Even though it's more expensive!
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xa0s
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quote:
Originally posted by ash_corsa
because you will need to pair the box with sky, once they know youve got a HD box they will charge you for the record function and the privilage to watcha few Hd channels.
Also, sky+ Hd boxes are a pile of shite, they fail again and again and if you buy one off ebay you have no warranty, so that will be £150 wasted as its almost 100% certain to go wrong
Utter toss. You obviously don't know a thing so I'm not sure why you're giving advice.  He has Sky+, so he already has the record function -- he won't have to pay no extra what-so-ever. I know -- I've done it myself. They'll ask if he wants to upgrade (which is £10 a month -- well worth it IMO and he may want to do this), but he can say no and keep his current package with the ability to watch BBC HD, C4 HD and any other HD channels that are released on freeview (same situation as Freesat). He can also record everything (including HD channels) as Sky HD is a PVR too (unlike Freesat). It has the slick Sky+ interface as expected.
We've got 3 Thompson Sky HD boxes in our family and none have gone wrong, so how on earth can you say it's 100% certain that it'll break you absolute pillock?
Nath, seeing as you have Sky+, you may as well upgrade to Sky HD. You can either:
A) Buy a Sky HD box from eBay and not pay the extra £10 monthly subscription. No warrenty on the box.
B) Phone Sky and upgrade through them. The box will be slightly more expensive, and it'll cost you £10 a month more, but you'll get so many more HD channels and warrenty.
If you've got Sky Sports and Sky Movies you'll also get those in HD too, and if you're a football fan like myself nothing beats watching your team win in HD. 
Getting Freeset when you already have Sky+ is just silly. You can literally buy a Sky HD box on eBay and plug it directly into the wires you pull out of Sky+. You can then sell the Sky+ box on eBay to make some money back.
If you can afford the extra £10 a month, go for it -- it's the nuts and you'll find much more to watch.
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ash_corsa
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Registered: 15th Apr 04
Location: Shrewsbury
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Im not getting into an argument about this as it would spam the thread.
Anyone in 'the trade' knows about the problems associated with Sky HD boxes, a simple google search will bring up pages and pages of angry Sky subscribers.
I could give you very a long list of our customers who have called us out due to their sky not working and its been down to a faulty HD box.
9/10 of these have had their box replaced more than once.
New Sky HD boxes (with the green stripe around the ethernet port) are 'supposed' to be free of all the teething faults of earlier HD boxes.
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Nath
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Registered: 3rd Apr 02
Location: MK
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Wow, cheers for that xa0s!
SkyHD it is then!
[Edited on 05-11-2008 by Nath]
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John
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Registered: 30th Jun 03
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If you are willing to pay the extra tenner a month don't go buying a box from anywhere.
Sky are doing it for 75 quid, they'll come and fit it and you'll have warranty.
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xa0s
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quote:
Originally posted by ash_corsa
Im not getting into an argument about this as it would spam the thread.
Anyone in 'the trade' knows about the problems associated with Sky HD boxes, a simple google search will bring up pages and pages of angry Sky subscribers.
I could give you very a long list of our customers who have called us out due to their sky not working and its been down to a faulty HD box.
9/10 of these have had their box replaced more than once.
New Sky HD boxes (with the green stripe around the ethernet port) are 'supposed' to be free of all the teething faults of earlier HD boxes.
I know there's problems, but it's like the 360's -- it's luck of the draw. You can't say it's 100% likely to fail. We've got three in our family, and none have failed.
quote:
Originally posted by John
If you are willing to pay the extra tenner a month don't go buying a box from anywhere. It sounds like he's going directly through Sky so he'll get warrenty so it's neither here nor there. Sorry for getting rude earlier.
Sky are doing it for 75 quid, they'll come and fit it and you'll have warranty.
The £75 deal is only for new customers.
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John
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Registered: 30th Jun 03
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No it's not, it's for all customers.
Sorry, it's up to £99 now, I was £24 out, still much better than ebay.
[Edited on 05-11-2008 by John]
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John
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Registered: 30th Jun 03
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I wasn't even £24 out, they give you a £15 credit on your account.
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John
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£99 + £15 credit isn't a haggle, the deal is on the sky website.
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ash_corsa
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Location: Shrewsbury
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quote:
Originally posted by John
I wasn't even £24 out, they give you a £15 credit on your account.
This is true, only if you upgrade online though, but £84 is still cheaper than a freesat box, you will have to pay the £10 a month going through the upgrade but at least you can record off one box rather than arsing about with two boxes.
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John
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Registered: 30th Jun 03
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If you are willing to pay the £10 a month I personally think skyhd is a better option, if the box breaks within a year you get it fixed/replaced anyway.
I'm still of the opinion they'll scrap the £10 charge in the near future.
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ash_corsa
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Registered: 15th Apr 04
Location: Shrewsbury
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quote:
Originally posted by John
If you are willing to pay the £10 a month I personally think skyhd is a better option, if the box breaks within a year you get it fixed/replaced anyway.
I'm still of the opinion they'll scrap the £10 charge in the near future.
They scrapped the £10 a month for the Sky+ feature but i think it will be a while before they scrap the £10 a month for the SkyHD channels as new channels are still being added and its still relatively new, if they can get away with charging you - they will!
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