Freesat To Start...
 

On 12 Feb, 10:10, "Ivan" wrote:

I hope that there'll be a decent HD package incorporated in the lineup,
especially as there are now so many 'HD ready' receivers in people's homes.


There might be lots of 'HD ready' television sets, but there aren't
really that many 'HD ready' television receivers out there.

How many V+ boxes has Virgin Media got out there?

Freesat To Start...
 

On 12 Feb, 11:45, Brian McIlwrath wrote:
Ivan wrote:

: I hope that there'll be a decent HD package incorporated in the lineup,
: especially as there are now so many 'HD ready' receivers in people's homes.

Likely to just be BBC-HD at launch with possibly ITV-HD - depending on when
that starts

C4-HD will be available from later this year.

Basically EXACTLY the same as a Sky-HD STB without a Sky-HD subscription
will receive (except that C4HD is available on that now!)


I hope C4-HD will be available soon on FreeSat, but it has the same
problem as C4, E4 and More4 - they all need to find some space on the
already full Astra 2D satellite which focusses its footprint on the
British Isles before they all go unencrypted. C4 won't be wanting to
broadcast in the clear on a footprint that covers much of Europe.

Freesat To Start...
 

"Mr & Mrs L" wrote in message
...


"Mark Carver" wrote in message
...
On Feb 12, 7:52 am, "Chris" wrote:
...When?

Here we are, less than three weeks away from the supposed start date,
and we
know nothing about what STBs will be available or even, when!

I did hear that Humax were going to be making Freesat STBs, but they
refused
to tell me ANYTHING over the phone, and said "I must wait until the
press
release". They wouldn't even tell me when that was likely to be.

Come on guys, somebody on this group must know something!

'Easter' was the date I think ? 6 weeks away. However you're right,
nothing yet.

ISTR Humax, Panny, and Alba were the three manufacturers lined up, and
Argos as one of the retailers. There's nothing in their phone book
sized Spring catalogue.
I'm holding out for a Dual tuner freesat PCIe card supported by Microsoft
for use in Vista Media Center.

Well you need one of these then:

http://shop.blackgold.tv/product/3540.html

Vista, Freeview and DVB-S all in one.

Looks like the dogs' to me. Anybody tried one?


D

Freesat To Start...
 

On 12 Feb, 12:18, Mike wrote:
On Tue, 12 Feb 2008 11:41:07 +0000 (UTC), Brian McIlwrath

wrote:
David wrote:
: Is it thought these Freesat ones will be compatable with Europes satellite
: system?

Discussed (to death!) on the digitalspy forums (with limited input from
Humax) and the anwser seems to be that Freesat receivers will all be to
a very tight and controlled spec. (similar to Sky). So using on other
satellites *MAY* be possible - but not a design aim.

: Will they have DiSEq controls for movable dishes?

Explicitly said to be not.

So no real point in waiting for them is there?

--

Most people just want an easy to use system that gets them their free
UK channels - as David said, the existing systems are not really for
Joe Public, who don't care about having a moveable dish or an array of
other complex options, they just want it to work (and why not, I
say?).

I dunno if any of the existing STBs will support the MHEG system for
interactive services that FreeSat will be using.

Freesat To Start...
 

Mizter T wrote:
: There might be lots of 'HD ready' television sets, but there aren't
: really that many 'HD ready' television receivers out there.

: How many V+ boxes has Virgin Media got out there?

V+ has, of course, many other benefits BUT has just ONE HD-Channel at present!

Sky-HD is Sky's fastest growing sector (in percentage terms) and is
something like 400,000 paying STBs (plus others from eBay which are used for
FTA/FTV HD-channels only - BBCHD plus C4HD)

Freesat To Start...
 

Mizter T wrote:

: I dunno if any of the existing STBs will support the MHEG system for
: interactive services that FreeSat will be using.

There seem to be no public-domain documents on either this or the exact
EPG format that Freesat will be using. Only licensed manufacturers have
the details.

I am sure that lots of effort will go into trying to reverse engineer things
when it goes live!

Freesat To Start...
 

Brian McIlwrath wrote:

Mizter T wrote:

: I dunno if any of the existing STBs will support the MHEG system for
: interactive services that FreeSat will be using.

There seem to be no public-domain documents on either this or the exact
EPG format that Freesat will be using. Only licensed manufacturers have
the details.


I suppose the intention is to guarantee the quality of FreeSat boxes, and
ensure all users get a reasonably similar, quality experience. I can't quite
see FreeSat being as totally prescriptive as BSkyB is though!


I am sure that lots of effort will go into trying to reverse engineer
things
when it goes live!


Indeed, though anything produced through reverse engineering won't carry the
FreeSat logo (or at least it won't legitimately carry it!). I do wonder
however whether the cost of licensing and producing a box that meets the
required spec will really be so prohibitive as to make this a genuinely
worthwhile venture.

The other thing I forgot to mention regarding the FreeSat specifications is
the FreeSat Playback system - I'm sure that FreeSat will launch with an
equivalent Playback system for HDD recording to the Freeview Playback
system, with a series record function and the like.

Freesat To Start...
 

On 12 Feb, 14:47, Brian McIlwrath wrote:
Mizter T wrote:

: There might be lots of 'HD ready' television sets, but there aren't
: really that many 'HD ready' television receivers out there.

: How many V+ boxes has Virgin Media got out there?

V+ has, of course, many other benefits BUT has just ONE HD-Channel at
present!


One must presume that the forthcoming ITV HD channel will be carried by
Virgin Media, as will C4-HD sooner or later.


Sky-HD is Sky's fastest growing sector (in percentage terms) and is
something like 400,000 paying STBs (plus others from eBay which are used
for
FTA/FTV HD-channels only - BBCHD plus C4HD)


Aha, that's interesting - I hadn't quite realised how many Sky-HD boxes were
out there.

Incidentally I presume that C4-HD can be decrypted on a Sky-HD box using a
FTV Sky card, or a Sky card previously used for a now discontinued
subscription (both cards being much the same thing I suppose) - i.e. C4-HD
doesn't require one to be a Sky subscriber?

One hopes that C4-HD, along with C4, E4 and More4, will make their way onto
FreeSat soon, but as you made clear to me recently that is dependent upon
space being secured on the already full Astra 2D so that the channels can be
broadcast without encryption (given the British Isles focus of Astra 2D's
footprint).

Freesat To Start...
 

Mizter T wrote:

: Incidentally I presume that C4-HD can be decrypted on a Sky-HD box using a
: FTV Sky card, or a Sky card previously used for a now discontinued
: subscription (both cards being much the same thing I suppose) - i.e. C4-HD
: doesn't require one to be a Sky subscriber?

Yes - C4HD is treated in exactly the same way as all the other C4 channels.
With a Sky-HD STB any subscription/expired/FreesatFromSky smartcard will
decode it. An (invisible to the user!) difference is that Sky are uplinking
C4HD on a Sky-leased transponder at the minute.

Getting hold of reasonably priced Sky-HD STBs needs the use of eBay or
other third-party retailers at present as standard Sky STB prices are based on
subscribing to Sky's own HD-service for a year.

Freesat To Start...
 

Mizter T wrote:

I hope C4-HD will be available soon on FreeSat, but it has the same
problem as C4, E4 and More4 - they all need to find some space on the
already full Astra 2D satellite which focusses its footprint on the
British Isles before they all go unencrypted. C4 won't be wanting to
broadcast in the clear on a footprint that covers much of Europe.

When you say that Astra 2D "focusses its footprint on the UK",
will FreeSat actually be visible in Europe (I'm thinking Tuscany)
with a large enough dish?


--
Timothy Murphy
e-mail (80k only): tim /at/ birdsnest.maths.tcd.ie
tel: +353-86-2336090, +353-1-2842366
s-mail: School of Mathematics, Trinity College, Dublin 2, Ireland