MYSKY Help

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Kermit

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Topic # 8402 27-Jun-2006 14:49

hi i am considering buying mysky but just have one query can you watch one chanel on sky whilst recording another one at the same time? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

lokinz

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Reply # 39811 27-Jun-2006 15:02

Yes you can

There is a nice little demo here

Oh, and Welcome to GZ!

chiefie

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Reply # 39812 27-Jun-2006 15:13

If you are going to buy it, you will be disappointed that you don't actually own the unit. You pay the high price to subscribe to the service of using the unit. You don't wholey own the unit as you would with other manufacturers' HDD/DVD recorders.

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cyril7

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Reply # 39840 27-Jun-2006 17:22

But if it breaks, its there problem (unless of course the axe through the top cover has your finger prints on it). Lots of folk have vexed over this issue of the ownership of the MySky, but once folk have used it 9 times out of 10 they realise they made the right decision. A PVR/DVR without an EPG in my view is not the way to go.

Cyril

manaia

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Reply # 39928 28-Jun-2006 12:21

The example of maximal use which is usually quoted is the ability to record two different channels simultaneously while watching a separate pre-recorded programme off the hard disk.

jpwise

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Reply # 39930 28-Jun-2006 12:28

I'm assuming the hardware isn't custom made for Sky (maybe the firmware, but not the main unit).

I haven't physically had a look at the mysky units, but does anyone know what hardware it is?
Does it use the same card for security?
Any possibilities to obtain the hardware and use it instead without paying for their unit?
Might need to do some firmware hacking if it's custom firmware, but I'm guessing the main hardware is just an OEM from someone (purely a guess).

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cyril7

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Reply # 39934 28-Jun-2006 13:08

The MySky is made by Pace, it is only available to network operators, ie you cannot buy one directly from Pace. It uses the same NDS Conditional Access card as the standard STB's, this encryption remains unbroken. The hardware is the common type for DVB STB's, I have not checked exactly which chipset is used, but based on Pace's normal preference it is most likely SGSThompson, these are single chip solutions that have an integral ST20 16bit processor, dual Transport Stream handlers and Mpeg decoders, IDE interfaces etc.

The particular Pace model is used by SkyNZ, bSkyb, Foxtel(Aus), SkyItalia and possibly other members of the NewsCorp PayTV operation.

Cyril

jpwise

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Reply # 39935 28-Jun-2006 13:15

Hi Cyril, thanks for that. Worked out it was a Pace unit a little while after posting the message. Probably the TDS460 from what I can tell, but I don't have any visuals to compare the MySky & TDS460 to be certain.

Bit of a shame, wonder if anyones selling them internationally (even if they are only supposed to be supplied via network operators).

Jp.

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jpwise

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Reply # 39936 28-Jun-2006 13:24

LOL Cyril. You certainly do seem to get around. Seen a few of your posts on audioenz and dtvforum now too.

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cyril7

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Reply # 39953 28-Jun-2006 14:12

Yep thats me, and yep the TDS460 is that box, also known as the IQ in Aus, Sky+ (rev2.5) in UK, and once again MySky in Italy.

As part of the NDS Conditional Access, manufacturers can only sell NDS STBs to licenced operators. NDS is also owned by NewsCorp.

Cyril

jpwise

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Reply # 39959 28-Jun-2006 15:13

cyril7: As part of the NDS Conditional Access, manufacturers can only sell NDS STBs to licenced operators. NDS is also owned by NewsCorp.

Cyril

Ahh.. You wouldn't happen to know if other operators around the world operate on the same system? ie: customer pays for box, but doesn't retain ownership? Or is it possible to buy the box outright overseas?

Thx.
Jp.

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cyril7

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Reply # 39960 28-Jun-2006 15:24

Both SkyItalia, and Foxtel use the same marketing approach as us where they retain ownership of the STB, bSkyb is different you own the STB, however I understand that the firmware stops a box being moved from one operator to another, obviously there are ways (that I have no knowledge of) of getting around that, but I dont suggest you ask Sky's technical department for the obvious reasons.

Cyril

jpwise

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Reply # 39962 28-Jun-2006 15:39

LOL. Point taken, it's a customised unit for NZ anyway (TDS460NNZ), so it's not surprising they've put some restrictions into the firmware of units for various countries.

I used to have a similar peeve with TelstraClear about their cable modems. They charge you a fixed rental per month for the hardware, but you have no option to buy it outright. In this case you pay an up front charge, and still don't own it. Except for the fact that a ~$15/month rental would still equate to a similar figure over 2 years.

With the cablemodems you can get upgraded to a newer cable modem if you have a good reason (I did when I moved house (2 houses back) - the Motorola Surfboards had a way lower ping than the old Com21 units). I wonder if Sky will be prepared to swap out MySky units to newer ones with more features if you have a good reason. <- speculation with probably a touch of cat amoung the pidgeons.

At any rate, thanks for your comments Cyril. I should probably go get some proper work done now, but it will be interesting to see how things with the MySky vs. PVR develope. The biggest limitation I can see is the dual tuning (2 STB's vs 1 MySky to get separate feeds). The EPG is almost secondary to that as (if you spend enough time with the IR Blasters etc) you can work around it to an extent from what I can tell.

Jp.

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Kermit

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Reply # 40498 5-Jul-2006 12:23

Cheers guys helps alot i think i am going to purchase one very soon. But how much memory does it have and how much does and hour show take up?

JohnPorter

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Reply # 40557 5-Jul-2006 23:27

Follow the link for more technical info from here.