Help me Pick a TV/Phone/Internet Package
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I'm about to move rooms, into a block which for some reason doesn't have access to Virgin cable, despite literally every single building within 10 miles having it. So I need to find a new way to watch TV, get phone and internet access etc.
Looks like internet is fairly easy. It's right next to the exchange, ADSL2 is enabled, so I should be able to get 16Mb/s broadband through BT, Sky etc.
For TV though, if I go with Sky it's all quite simple. But realistically, I don't watch a lot of TV, so I'm not sure I need that. Especially as the BT deal is awesome, £17 a month for unlimited evening & weekend calls, and free unlimited internet for 6 months.
If I go with that, how do I watch TV? What's Freeview all about? What channels can I get, and what box should I buy to get the Sky+/TiVo functionality I'm used to?
Or, is it better to go with Sky just so I get everything together, even if there's no freebie broadband for 6 months?
Halp, opinions please. -
I would give Freeview a go first, it runs over the old terrestrial waves so is free and can be hooked up using the old port in the wall you would have been used to before going America land.
Requires a TV with built in tuner (near all TVs in the past 5 years) or a box (about a tenner).
Here is your channel list, varies depending on signal though
http://www.freeview.co.uk/whats-on/channels?gclid=COa8iLPYo7sCFRMRtAodqTYAdw
If you just want to watch the odd bit of TV it is perfectly fine. I just have freeview and Netflix now.
IMO unless you want the sport or obsessed with DIY shows then SKY is a rip off, outside of those it offers not a lot else than what freeview does. -
Also, have you rang Virgin to see if they can fit a box? Maybe that the property is near enough a cable but no box was ever fitted.
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Liveinadive wrote:Also, have you rang Virgin to see if they can fit a box? Maybe that the property is near enough a cable but no box was ever fitted.
Oooh, is this a thing? I'm moving, in terms of direct distance, about 30-40m. As in my new bed will be about 35m from where I'm sat right now in my old room. There's a cable box outside, that is probably about 25m from my new room, which is the one providing services to my old room.
If there's a way to keep Virgin I'd be perfectly happy. Saves me arguing about the cancellation fee, considering they told me they had "every building" on my station covered.
Regarding Freeview, I pretty much just watch terrestrial channels and a handful of other ones. Be nice to have a couple more like Sky 1/Fox etc, but that's probably enough. I don't have a Freeview compatible TV though, my TV's America, so I'd need a box. Which one do I go for if I want it to work like a Sky+HD box and do some recording, series linking etc for me? -
Virgin are awesome. -
Yeah pretty sure the Virgin thing is indeed a thing just links your property to the actual line.
Ref boxes.
A freeview box cant record other channels as it only has one feed.
You can get freesat boxes which can though. Freesat is just like freeview but uses a dish like sky so can record, provide HD and can be topped up with other subscription channels like (at least at some point) Sky Sports.
Mod would be a handy person on this if you can contact him.
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I'm pretty sure you can get hard disk recorders with a freeview decoder built in, I think my parents have one. It's not quite as good as Sky+ as the series record essentially sets a timer for the same time each week so if the programme's moved it gets missed.
Can't help on prices, mind. -
Liveinadive wrote:Yeah pretty sure the Virgin thing is indeed a thing just links your property to the actual line.
That would be perfect. Admittedly, I'm just moving to another wing in the Officers' Mess, so it's not like it's my property, but if they can drill something into the wall outside my room and give me a little box on the inside to plug into, I'd happily let them do that. -
Perhaps more importantly, what short-ish TV series should I download to get me through the difficult next few days with no TV?
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This is nonsense.Liveinadive wrote:A freeview box cant record other channels as it only has one feed.Come with g if you want to live... -
Soz didnt think they could. Surely you are still gonna be limited to recording what you watch though, unlike a sky box.g.man wrote:
This is nonsense.Liveinadive wrote:A freeview box cant record other channels as it only has one feed.
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Nope. I've got a freeview box that's ten years old and has twin tuners. You can watch one programme live whilst simultaneously recording up to two other channels. So it's hardly a new feature.Liveinadive wrote:
Soz didnt think they could. Surely you are still gonna be limited to recording what you watch though, unlike a sky box.g.man wrote:
This is nonsense.Liveinadive wrote:A freeview box cant record other channels as it only has one feed.
you get what you pay for
g.manCome with g if you want to live... -
Ah ok, didnt know that existed. Pricey mind, not a million miles away from a years Sky sub.
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But it does last more than a year and you get the satisfaction of not giving Rupert Murdoch any more money than you have tol
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Tis true. I imagine Sky dont give you 500gb either.
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Ok, so I can pay a £20 setup charge to Sky, and then £49.40 a month for unlimited ADSL, the most basic TV package, and a phone line.
Or I can pay £200-odd for a YouView-style Freeview tuner (this one looks pretty slick), and pay BT a £6.95 delivery charge, followed by £17.45 a month for a phone line (includes free evening calls, this one) and unlimited ADSL.
Seems like a no-brainer in favour of BT, but after 6 months, the monthly charge jumps up to £33.45. Still cheaper, but only Freeview instead of Sky.
Any reason to go with Sky? -
I should add that Virgin have said they're happy to disconnect me and they can't provide a line to my new room.
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