RE: Sky+ HD - Lower Hardware Price

["Paul Gordon" <paul@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Yeah, the really annoying thing is, when it works properly, it is
actually =
a really good service. They do have the greatest selection of HD channels
&=
programming, (albeit some of it is sheer sh1te, just Hi-Def sh1te!). Hopef=
ully the situation will improve a bit when both Freesat HD & Virgin
Media m=
ature a bit. I believe that there are a couple of channels that are still
l=
ocked into a Sky-only contract just now that will be free to spread onto
th=
e other platforms in the not too distant future. Hopefully that will
happen=
and there will finally be some *real* competition to Sky... which can only=
be a good thing, even for those of us who plan to stay with the Sky offeri=
ng...

The other really annoying thing they did when they launched the HD service
=
is the way they sliced & diced the channel packages... - you pay your
extra=
=A310 HD sub, you might think you would get the "HD channel
package" right=
? - wrong... - If you want the HD sports you have to pay seperately for
the=
Sports package, you want the HD movie channels, you have to pay seperately=
for the movie channels package.. so effectively for these channels you end=
up paying twice... If you don't buy either of the sports or movie packages=
, your HD channel line-up is drastically less than their advertising would
=
have you believe, - and far closer to what little the competition have....

Of course, it has to be said, that the grass isn't always greener on the
ot=
her side... I have heard that the other HD services have their own
"foibles=
" as well... By all accounts the Virgin Media HD box is also a bit
slow & b=
uggy. (I can't bring myself to believe it can be much worse than the
curren=
t Sky box though).

Paul G.




> -----Original Message-----
> From: ukha_d@xxxxxxx [mailto:ukha_d@xxxxxxx] On Behalf
> Of Geoff H
> Sent: 02 July 2008 15:52
> To: UKHA Group
> Subject: Re: [ukha_d] Sky+ HD - Lower Hardware Price
>=20
> Paul,
>=20
> It was really interesting reading your review of 'living with sky'. I
> have never had sky (so I am the kind of person they really want)
> because
> whoever I speak to, who has it, will mention something like 'I have to
> pay an extra =A310/month to get such and such' because sky have
> reorganised packages, or generally increased charges, or brought out
> some new hardware that is free to new subscribers but not existing
> ones.
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> Sky has to recoup the money they have paid out for sports coverage, so
> regardless of whether you subscribe to sports or not, everyone is
> paying
> for it. I would love to just get HD, but instead I will have to pay
for
> a load of rubbish that I don't need and more importantly don't want
> just
> to view HD programs.
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> So I shall be waiting for FreeSat to mature a bit before jumping on
the
> HD bandwagon.
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> Geoff
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> Paul Gordon wrote:
> > I do have movies in my package, so I've (fortunately) never been
> stiffed for the =A310 premium for sky+, although, as Mark said, that
was
> dropped a while back.
> >
> > I pay:
> >
> > My package sub (entertainment + movies), - not sure what that
comes
> to, about =A338-ish I think
> > Multiroom sub - =A310 extra
> > HD sub - =A310 extra
> > HD sub for 2nd room - =A310 extra
> >
> > The total per month for that is a whopping =A368... - this is far
too
> much, and I'd like to stop giving $ky so much money for old rope all
> the time...
> >
> > Sky have actually done themselves in IMHO.... I was previously
> "content" to keep paying them somewhere round this amount,
but they
> kept getting greedier & greedier. At one point a year or two ago,
I
> actually had to start cancelling channels out of my package to keep to
> the same overall sub, - I used to have the sports package as well, but
> that went when I learned I'd have to pay TWO lots of HD subs..
> >
> > Plus, I don't think they've done themselves any favours with the
> state of the HD boxes... - we're several years in from the original
> product launch, and they STILL haven't sorted out some of the basic
> functionality of the PVR (FFWD & REW speeds spring to mind). Add
to
> that the boxes themselves seem to be notoriously flaky &
unreliable
> with far too many failed boxes, failed recordings, and just really
> weird, annoying, and plain stupid behaviour, like:
> >
> >  - go into live pause, then the box refuses to unpause. Only way
out
> is turn box into standby & on again, - thus losing the buffer of
what
> you've paused.
> >  - Series links will disappear at the drop of a hat. Seems to be
> possibly related to gaps in the schedule maybe? - I've had plenty of
> occasions of missed programmes because a series link I'd setup at the
> beginning of a series has disappeared some way through the series.
> >  - Descriptions in the planner have been known to get mixed up. -
I
> recorded one of the Star Wars films over christmas, I'm fairly sure
the
> description was right originally, but several weeks later when I went
> to watch it, the recording description was for an episode of Only
Fools
> & Horses...
> > - Recordings will often start playback with no sound. Only fix is
> once again to go into standby & turn on again, whereafter playback
is
> usually OK.
> >  - Failed recordings are far too common. I've experienced loads.
Some
> of them have even said the recording failed *before* it was even
> broadcast!! (go figure). Other times it says failed due to power
> failure (my arse! - comfort would go into alarm if there is a power
> failure, and my boxes are not on X10 modules). I now habitually
> schedule all my recordings on both my boxes, in the hope that at least
> one of them will get it...
> >  - The boxes are also seemingly prone to die after approximately
1
> year & 1 day (i.e. just after warranty expiry). Sky want to charge
=A360
> for an engineer call out to repair/replace in this situation. (I told
> them where to go, & threatened to cancel the lot unless they
replaced
> it for free, - which, funnily enough, they did). Replacements are
> usually refurbished/repaired boxes though..
> >
> > All in all, that's a p1ss poor showing for what is supposed to be
> their *premium* product & service. I'm pretty much just waiting
for one
> of my boxes to die again, or freesat HD to launch a decent PVR box (a
> TiVo one would be fabulous!) in order to start moving away from Sky.
> One thing is for certain; - I'm absolutely not going to pay them =A360
to
> repair/replace a failed box - not unless it goes for about 5 years
that
> is.... Also, Freesat aren't getting any of my money unless & until
they
> drop their stupid restrictive practises regarding dish installation...
> (like you *have* to have installation, even if you already have a
> perfectly suitable dish installed)...
> >
> > I live in a Virgin Media cabled area, so switching over to a
cable
> service is also an option for me, and since I already have phone &
> broadband from them, I reckon I could get a fairly competitive bundle
> deal.
> >
> > Gosh, perhaps I should go to that pub that was on the news last
night
> & have a go on their grumble soapbox!
> >
> > Paul G.
> >
> >
> >
> >> -----Original Message-----
> >> From: ukha_d@xxxxxxx [mailto:ukha_d@xxxxxxx] On
> Behalf
> >> Of John Murray
> >> Sent: 02 July 2008 14:05
> >> To: UKHA Group
> >> Subject: RE: [ukha_d] Sky+ HD - Lower Hardware Price
> >>
> >> If you don't have movies or sport in your package, you have
to pay
> =A310
> >> to use Sky +, so is that:
> >> Basic Ents sub =A318 + =A310 to use skyplus + =A310 for multi
room + =
=A310
> for
> >> HD room1 + =A310 for HD room2 =3D =A358/month for FTA
equivalent packa=
ge
> >> which is erm =A30/month
> >>
> >> Or worse, do you have to pay an further tenner for the 2nd
Sky+
> >> facility?
> >>
> >> From: ukha_d@xxxxxxx [mailto:ukha_d@xxxxxxx] On
> Behalf
> >> Of Paul Gordon
> >> Sent: 02 July 2008 13:41
> >> To: UKHA Group
> >> Subject: RE: [ukha_d] Sky+ HD - Lower Hardware Price
> >>
> >>
> >> It's even worse if you have multiroom & a 2nd HD box... -
then you
> have
> >> to pay TWO =A310/month HD subs... - complete ***ing rip-off!!
> >>
> >> *seriously* considering cancelling at least one of my $ky
subs &
> >> getting a freesat HD box when they bring out a decent PVR
one...
> >>
> >> Paul G.
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
> >>
> >>
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