Freesat To Start...
 

Timothy Murphy wrote:

: 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?

Astra 2D is more tightly beamed on the UK and the BBC (and others) use
this argument to (try to!) limit programme costs on bought-in material
BUT, with a large enough dish, it can be received in much of Europe. There
is a web-site (www.astra2d.com) which gives more details.

Freesat To Start...
 

Timothy Murphy wrote:
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?

A friend in Milan has no problems using an 85cm dish, though the signal
probably falls sharply as you move east or south of there.

--
Mark
Please replace invalid and invalid with gmx and net to reply.

Freesat To Start...
 

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!


Chris.


Frankly, it doesn't matter. Unless C4/E4/More4 are on the line-up at
launch, it's a stillborn platform. The C5 channels would be nice too.

Realistically, who on earth is going to be interested in the BBC/ITV
Freesat offering when a chunk of the 'basic' channels are missing? Don't
get me wrong, I'd be up for it in a flash if C4, C5 et al were
available, but they're not - you've got to have a $ky box, so what's the
point?


Clem

Freesat To Start...
 

On 12 Feb, 16:47, Brian McIlwrath wrote:
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.


Thanks for confirming that.

The fact that Sky are uplinking it and transmitting it on a BSkyB-
leased transponder does make one wonder whether Sky's gameplan is to
try and keep C4-HD as a 'Sky-HD only' service (as it were) for as long
as possible and thus keep it off the 'rival' FreeSat platform.


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.


Are Sky not obliged to sell a customer a Sky-HD STB without an
associated subscription if they want one, or do they do this but
merely charge a punitive price?

Freesat To Start...
 

"Clem Dye" wrote in message
...
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!


Chris.
Frankly, it doesn't matter. Unless C4/E4/More4 are on the line-up at
launch, it's a stillborn platform. The C5 channels would be nice too.

Realistically, who on earth is going to be interested in the BBC/ITV
Freesat offering when a chunk of the 'basic' channels are missing? Don't
get me wrong, I'd be up for it in a flash if C4, C5 et al were available,
but they're not - you've got to have a $ky box, so what's the point?


Clem

To me the points are simple: To save a tenner a month for the privilege of
using Sky+ and hopefuly to have a substantially more flexible EPG than Sky.

I'm quite sure channels 4 and 5 will be there before the end of the year and
in any event I can see them on Freeview. Of course judgement on the EPG
will have to be reserved until launch whenever that may be. I'll be down in
the local Comet as soon as they have hardware to play with.

In the mean time I'll continue to use Sky+. 6 years so far x a tenner a
month = £720. Makes me cringe.

D

Freesat To Start...
 

Clem Dye wrote:

Frankly, it doesn't matter. Unless C4/E4/More4 are on the line-up at
launch, it's a stillborn platform. The C5 channels would be nice too.

It'll be the only subscription free D-Sat PVR with 7 day EPG. A significant
fact for 25% of the UK population currently out of DTT range.

I want one, because a: I want to see the BBC and (soon to be launched) ITV HD
channels, and b: I want to record them.

I can live without C4 HD if need be.

--
Mark
Please replace invalid and invalid with gmx and net to reply.

Freesat To Start...
 

Vortex3 wrote:

: In the mean time I'll continue to use Sky+. 6 years so far x a tenner a
: month = £720. Makes me cringe.

For me it's £19/month including Sky+ - £17/month saving for Sky Broadbandd
over previous (and less good!) ISP = Great satisfaction!

Freesat To Start...
 

On 12 Feb, 20:23, Mark Carver wrote:
Clem Dye wrote:
Frankly, it doesn't matter. Unless C4/E4/More4 are on the line-up at
launch, it's a stillborn platform. The C5 channels would be nice too.

It'll be the only subscription free D-Sat PVR with 7 day EPG. A significant
fact for 25% of the UK population currently out of DTT range.

I want one, because a: I want to see the BBC and (soon to be launched) ITV HD
channels, and b: I want to record them.

I can live without C4 HD if need be.


But not having C4 SD would be a bit of a pain (along with no More4, I
can live without E4!).

As others have said though it surely must only be a matter of time
until the C4 (and C5) channels come to Freesat.

Freesat To Start...
 

In article
..com, Mizter T scribeth thus
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.

Quite. They want a simple box easy to use and no sky or sub cards unless
they -want- to sub to Sky.

Just like the Freeview system and channel count but with a dish rather
then a massive Yagi array .

And better piccy quality then what Freeview can deliver..
--
Tony Sayer

Freesat To Start...
 

In article , Clem Dye
scribeth thus
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!


Chris.


Frankly, it doesn't matter. Unless C4/E4/More4 are on the line-up at
launch, it's a stillborn platform. The C5 channels would be nice too.

Realistically, who on earth is going to be interested in the BBC/ITV
Freesat offering when a chunk of the 'basic' channels are missing? Don't
get me wrong, I'd be up for it in a flash if C4, C5 et al were
available, but they're not - you've got to have a $ky box, so what's the
point?


Clem

Its all rather well thought about eh;!...
--
Tony Sayer