41 replies to this topic

[William]

we've got a £30 digibox which goes, via the VCR, into a TV which i think my parents bought a couple of years before i was born. it has to go via the VCR because the TV has no SCART socket, and the digibox has no AV Out.

[Dave]

22-1. Griffin - you're well outnumbered now!

Edit: 24 - 1

Edit: 25 - 1

[Maz]

Do you know I have no idea and I don't really care either.

[dickie mint]

The improvement with radio signals has been realy impressive, love my digital radio. Unsure re what impact the switchover with telivision will have ?

[flybyknight]

I had no complaints about analog, especially the superior sound of vinyl, though I do like the HD format. Sample quality is a lot better these days so I've found myself automatically switching over for quite a while.

I suppose it is going to affect old people the most and it is a shame because they are alright with what they've got, plus they're harder to con

[Griffin]

I don't know, many older people are convinced that they'll need a new TV set after the analogue switch-off, and the manufacturers are, understandably perhaps, hardly falling over themselves to reassure them that they won't.

[dotcomdan]

This area goes digital next year and we had a talk from the company responsible.
Firstly your present TV is fine but you will need a Digibox or Sky to receive the digital signal. The drawback is recording because if you only have the basic receiver, you can only record what you are watching unless you splash out on a new dual channel recorder. They are between £150 and £200 for the VCR.
The other alternative is the freeview box with a hard drive which has two channel receiving, watch one record another. The best choice at the moment here is Sky+, which is a special deal of £49 for taking Sky+ with the least package of £17 per month, or if you already have Sky they will install it in another room for an extra £10 per month so you have two boxes. The beauty of Sky + is that it it records instantly and you can rewind live TV if you miss something.You can also link recordings so that you don't miss an episode of your favourite programme.
The first station to go is BBC2 and then subsequent stations before it is switched off permanently, there is a basic package from the government which will be free to people who can't afford a new aerial and digibox.
At the present time freeview in our area is only running at 25% of it's operative strength, it's not bad but it will be better after the switch off.
I have sky+ as well as a freeview recorder, but it loses channels at the moment and is not good, sky is excellent, you get what you pay for.
Hope that helps.

[dotcomdan]

Well we finally went digital today, we lost BBC2 from analogue and we will lose the rest altogether in a months time. At first when you switch your telly on there's no signal on BBC1, because it is now where BBC2 used to be. ITV was bad for most of the day with lines running up and down the side of the picture, but it cleared later on. We had to retune our digi boxes and BBC2 came back but I lost Channel 5.

I am using digital as much as I can as it is a better picture than analogue, but I'll keep you posted. Sky+ is the best option though and it's only £49 in switch over areas, with free installation, provided you take the lowest package.

[Dave]

Something that bothers me for some unknown reason is that with both Sky and Freeview we're like a second behind analogue. It's not a lot, but it seems to give me a sense of unease. (unavailable needs-shrink smiley)

[dotcomdan]

I've noticed that, I think it is because they receive it and then transmit it, hence the delay

[dotcomdan]

A few people have lost ITV from their digi box even after retuning it, so we will have to wait and see if it gets any better. I have only lost channel 5 at the moment from the pub TV but can still get it on analogue. I think it depends on the equipment you have, so I hope Griffin is taking note.

[Griffin]

I'm waiting until the last minute, to try to gauge others' experiences and recommendations. O to be back in the Wicklow Hills, where you can only get two channels!