High Definition Freeview

[floppybootstomp]

Available now

As just about every TV is advertised as 'HD Ready' this must be what all the fuss is about.

Wonder if it's any good.

If anybody decides to buy one from Richer Sounds tell the salesman you got an e-mail offering it for £169.95 which is £10.00 cheaper than it's advertised on the above link.

 

[Ian]

I've seen a few HD programmes at a friends house and it really does look amazing - although at the time there were only limited channels available. More and more things are being shown in HD now, so it seems a good time to get onboard the bandwagon.

I'm going to wait a little while longer until the HD tuners come down in price, as it shouldn't take long till they match the current price of tuners.

 

[V_R]

I have Sky+ HD and have to say even though its only 720p or 1080i not 1080p (yet) The picture quality is stunning, adn of course it sounds much better.

Movies and football are soooooo good. But its nice to see the usual stuff in HD too, Like the normal programmes not just big budget films and sporting events.

 

[historian]

We have just replaced our old,10-12 years old,crt 20" Panasonic T.V with a LG 26" flat screen HD ready job.Needless to say we were blown away with the picture quality and sound. If we want full HD we need a HDMI cable and a box of some sort,connected to a satellite dish,is this right? Can someone explain this to me please.

historian

 

[peahouse05]

Hi historian
The ultimate is to sign up to Sky HD and receive a free Sky HD+ box (currently free) but you need a Sky dish with a twin LNB fitted, as this system lets you record one channel and view another at the same time, or record two channels and watch either at the same time. You also have to pay for a Sky subscription package monthly (approx £17 to £50) depending which Sky channels you want - the basic channels,sports channels, films etc.
You could choose a Freesat HD box (recording or not) which requires a dish - a Sky dish will be fine but B&Q are selling a kit with dish and box for approx £75 for DIY fitting. I believe there are Freeview HD boxes that work off the aerial but I have no experience of this option.
Just to complicate matters I fitted a four-way LNB to my Sky dish (the lump at the end of the arm) and have a Sky HD+ box for wife and myself while daughter uses a Freesat HD box on the third way. This box does not record so the fourth way is currently spare.
Let me know what you want and I will describe how to do it.
Regards
peahouse05

 

[historian]

Hi historian
The ultimate is to sign up to Sky HD and receive a free Sky HD+ box (currently free) but you need a Sky dish with a twin LNB fitted, as this system lets you record one channel and view another at the same time, or record two channels and watch either at the same time. You also have to pay for a Sky subscription package monthly (approx £17 to £50) depending which Sky channels you want - the basic channels,sports channels, films etc.
You could choose a Freesat HD box (recording or not) which requires a dish - a Sky dish will be fine but B&Q are selling a kit with dish and box for approx £75 for DIY fitting. I believe there are Freeview HD boxes that work off the aerial but I have no experience of this option.
Just to complicate matters I fitted a four-way LNB to my Sky dish (the lump at the end of the arm) and have a Sky HD+ box for wife and myself while daughter uses a Freesat HD box on the third way. This box does not record so the fourth way is currently spare.
Let me know what you want and I will describe how to do it.
Regards

Hello peahouse05

Many thanks for your reply.
One of the reasons I asked the question is to find out if it is really worth getting one of these boxes,record or not. At the moment the picture we are getting is very sharp and clear,would full HD really be that better? I have taken a look at a few of the boxes on Amazon,Humax,Panasonic etc. They all seem to need installation,I presume from a pro`. Personally I can`t see my self going up a long ladder to fix a dish.
As for SKY,do I need to subscribe to another company when I all ready subscribe to the BBC?
Again many thanks for your reply.
historian

 

[peahouse05]

Hi historian
You have absolutely got me there - if you do not want lots of sport or films what you have is fine. SkyHD is a huge improvement in picture quality and choice but it comes at a price which Sky is delighted to extract.
Having a Freesat dish installed would not be expensive and the HD box is as simple to self-install as Freeview box. My advice would be to go to a local store and look at a HD setup and decide whether the improved picture quality is worth the extra expenditure. Also check the TV listings to see how many BBC and ITV programmes are in HD (ITV HD is from the red button on Freesat channel 103, BBC HD is on Freesat channel 108).
Regards
peahouse05

 

[Abarbarian]

Personally I can`t see my self going up a long ladder to fix a dish.

historian

You can mount a satellite dish on the ground or a short post or anywhere. As long as the dish can see the satellite it will work. Most dishes only need a compass for you to set them up.

 

[peahouse05]

Hi historian
Yes I totally agree with ABARBARIAN. Just look at the direction and elevation of dishes in your area and the angle of the LNB in its mounting and drill the wall. Eventually you will get it right.
I must admit that in 1995 I had to secretly lop a few branches off a tree on my boundary to an adjacent field to get a signal on an analogue dish .
Cheers
peahouse05

 

[JudgE]

We have just replaced our old,10-12 years old,crt 20" Panasonic T.V with a LG 26" flat screen HD ready job.Needless to say we were blown away with the picture quality and sound. If we want full HD we need a HDMI cable and a box of some sort,connected to a satellite dish,is this right? Can someone explain this to me please.

historian

With you upgrading from crt to this, i dont think you will see much difference to HD untill you get use to your new tv.

with regards to HD you will need a HD freeview box and HDMi cable to connect.

another option is go to SKY, Entertainment pack is only 20 quid a month, plus you get free install and an HD plus box.......BARGAIN.

 

[V_R]

Sky HD Sub here, and i love it. movies and sport (inculding hte workd cup) in HD is soooo good..

Freeview HD isn't a bad selection of channels wither.

 

[Michael J]

Only my humble opinion freind, however whilst I can appreciate the richness in the texture of the picture that HD provides, as I watch it with scrutiny, I feel that what we see is still an interpretation of what the technology thinks we should see, and with fast moving objects, if you look closely the colour appears to be trying to catch up with the moving image, it's almost like an exageration of how we really see the world, but the missus and the children seem sold by it. Take care and be well.

 

[floppybootstomp]

Ah yes, watching with scrutiny. I always say to myself, when settling down with a crate of guinness and a bowl of pork scratchings to watch the latest Hollywood blockbuster 'I must remember to watch this with scrutiny'.

Everything we watch on any screen is based on trickery and the vagaries of the human eye. We can go back to the days when UK technicians working in Germany developed the Hanover Blinds method of presenting images with interlaced lines of pixels.

But none of that matters, not one jot, all that matters is our perception of the presented moving images.

C'est la vie and pass the mustard my friend

 

[Anon_F]

when settling down with a crate of guinness and a bowl of pork scratchings to watch the latest Hollywood blockbuster.

C'est la vie and pass the mustard my friend

 

[EvanDavis]

Ah yes, watching with scrutiny. I always say to myself, when settling down with a crate of guinness and a bowl of pork scratchings to watch the latest Hollywood blockbuster 'I must remember to watch this with scrutiny'.