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Ivan Piacun CITPNZ
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Hello fellow disgruntled Sky TV users. This is my first post on Geekzone. I have been following this discussion from page 1 and have read every post on all 67 pages to date. So I knew in advance the problems with my Sky Pod before I even plugged it in, and sure enough every issue documented here I experienced as well. I am a long time Sky customer starting with Telstra-Saturn, then Vodafone and now Sky directly using broadband, I have never received Sky directly from a Satellite dish. Up to March 30 I received Sky content on Vodafone TV – Sky Starter, Sky Entertainment & SOHO for $56.58 On March 31 Vodafone TV was switched off, so I connected my Sky Pod. On Saturday 1 April I received a bill from Sky TV for the exact same content starting Friday March 31, but now the price was $61.48, an increase of $4.90 (8.6%). So I am adverse to paying more and more to Sky for less and less service. National Geographic has gone as well.
The original Telstra-Saturn set-top box had 2 AV outputs, I used one for my TV and the other I connected to my DVD/HDD recorder and was able to record all Sky channels and play the recordings back at any time, they were mine and they were permanent. Then Telstra pulled out and my set-top box was taken away by a technician and replaced by the all new Vodafone TV box, but it had only one output – HDMI, so my HDD recorder was of no more use, but I kept it plugged in as my TV had 3 AV inputs and 3 HDMI inputs. Vodafone TV was great from the start, the so called “recordings” lasted for 3 months, and the series lasted for up to 1 year. Then things started to change and the “recordings” were there for less and less time. So I decided to do something about this. I purchased an HDMI splitter/amplifier on eBay from China. It cost me $11 NZD including shipping and GST. I decided to get a 2nd one in case it stopped working, but it never has after 1 year of use. I use it to run a 2nd TV in my bedroom via a 5m HDMI cable and for recording. It is now plugged into my Sky Pod. I then purchased a HDMI Capture Card on TradeMe for $28 (free shipping) to plug into my laptop. This combination allows me to record any Sky channel or App, both Movies and Sports, there is nothing I can’t record. I use OBS Studio (which is free) to record all programs in Full HD (saves as .MKV files) and play them back using an HD Media Player which I purchased on TradeMe for $67. I store my saved video files on a 1TB SSD which I purchase from AliExpress (China) for $19 NZD including shipping and GST, sent by courier, not in the post.
So if anyone on this forum is looking for a cheap DIY alternative to the Sky Box, this is what you can do. See the attached photos. This system I have run for 1 year now, first with Vodafone TV and now using my Sky Pod.
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I'm told I can not record, pause etc. (images attached) and to go to My Sky Account to upgrade.
There is nothing in My Account to upgrade, when I set up the new box all it asked me to enter was my Google email address and password
I thought we needed to enter our Sky login details but nothing shows or did I miss that option, Live TV channels are play ok.
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