Vodafone TV - new Gen2 box

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BDFL - Memuneh
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#2547477 22-Aug-2020 09:58

I personally have not seen a showstopper problem with the VTV Gen2. We used to have the Fire TV, Vodafone TV Gen2 and a Freeview recorder. The Freeview recorder is now gone. The Vodafone TV gives us access to TVNZ/Three on demand, Netflix and Amazon Prime - the Fire TV is really used now for Plex, Disney+ and Hulu. If Hulu launches outside the USA (something they are rumoured to do soon) and Vodafone TV were to add Disney+ and Hulu (both owned by Disney) I would happily retire the Fire TV too.

freitasm

BDFL - Memuneh
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#2547478 22-Aug-2020 09:58

freitasm:

I personally have not seen a showstopper problem with the VTV Gen2. We used to have the Fire TV, Vodafone TV Gen2 and a Freeview recorder. The Freeview recorder is now gone. The Vodafone TV gives us access to TVNZ/Three on demand, Netflix and Amazon Prime - the Fire TV is really used now for Plex, Disney+ and Hulu. If Hulu launches outside the USA (something they are rumoured to do soon) and Vodafone TV were to add Disney+ and Hulu (both owned by Disney) I would happily retire the Fire TV too.

@zollymonsta as above - bring on Disney+ and Hulu!

SteveC

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#2547575 22-Aug-2020 12:23

Interesting to see where you are coming from @JaBZ
I strongly suspect that faults are underrepresented in this forum. That is not a criticism at all, just the type of very engaged audience in our particular echo chamber. People here are also very able to willing to answer usage questions (useful when Vodafone don't publish a comprehensive user guide). In my opinion, the user interface (UI) of the VTV box is appalling, but that is a matter of opinion. Others in this forum have said VTV is more pleasant to use than MySky.
We are not great TV watchers, but do like to be in control of when we watch what. Could download most things illegally, but don't want to do that. Our experience with watching and recording free to air TV is:
Myth TV https://www.mythtv.org/
Vodafone T-Box (close to retirement)
Dish TV Freeview
Vodafone TV
Various built-in Freeview tuners and recorders.

IMHO the VTV box has the best hardware of the lot. T-Box is the most consistent and easiest to use (but has stopped working - someone at Vodafone is trying to re-enable it for us ... another story). Myth TV is far and away the best featured option, but is tricky to set up and maintain.

I have two main operational complaints about the Vodafone TV, both first world problems.
* The UI doesn't work very efficiently for the way we use it.
* We can't use fast-forward or rewind when watching recordings of NewsHub news at 6. '20 seconds skip' works OK, in either direction Go figure!

From a licencing point of view, we have found that few TV3 programs we watch are available for recording or catch-up. This is very annoying. Regular ones are in Three Now, movies on Three we record on Myth TV.

Cheers!

Steve

Dynamic

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#2547644 22-Aug-2020 14:00

SteveC: From a licencing point of view, we have found that few TV3 programs we watch are available for recording or catch-up. This is very annoying. Regular ones are in Three Now, movies on Three we record on Myth TV.

I'm a fairly new VTV user, and this is one of three things that really bother me.

- Movies on channels 1, 2, and 3 are rarely recordable, yet on ANY other Freeview box that I have ever seen (and I've seen at least half a dozen), I can record anything I like.

- No Guide button (unless I am very much mistaken). It's too many button presses to get to the guide. Menu, Up, Right, OK (from memory). Also I don't seem to be able to save 'only show me the freeview channels'.

- Can't use the VTV remote to power or control the volume on my Veon TV. I tried the pairing instructions twice, without success.

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MikeB4

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#2547645 22-Aug-2020 14:02

freitasm:
I personally have not seen a showstopper problem with the VTV Gen2. We used to have the Fire TV, Vodafone TV Gen2 and a Freeview recorder. The Freeview recorder is now gone. The Vodafone TV gives us access to TVNZ/Three on demand, Netflix and Amazon Prime - the Fire TV is really used now for Plex, Disney+ and Hulu. If Hulu launches outside the USA (something they are rumoured to do soon) and Vodafone TV were to add Disney+ and Hulu (both owned by Disney) I would happily retire the Fire TV too.

I believe my experience should not be a show stopper for others. I feel for sure that I have a faulty device. I am trying to get Vodafone to replace the unit but so far I have met with road blocks.

SteveC

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#2547766 22-Aug-2020 18:22

@Dynamic: I'm a fairly new VTV user, and this is one of three things that really bother me.

- Movies on channels 1, 2, and 3 are rarely recordable, yet on ANY other Freeview box that I have ever seen (and I've seen at least half a dozen), I can record anything I like.

- No Guide button (unless I am very much mistaken). It's too many button presses to get to the guide. Menu, Up, Right, OK (from memory). Also I don't seem to be able to save 'only show me the freeview channels'.

- Can't use the VTV remote to power or control the volume on my Veon TV. I tried the pairing instructions twice, without success.

Very similar to my concerns - hopeless UI (IMHO), one problem being too hard to get a full guide, and too many things I can't 'record' (can't record anything in reality, just ask Vodafone to record it for you and keep it for a few months)..
As I said, this is a licencing issue. An historic US legal case got us the right to record broadcast content to our hearts content - hence Freeview boxes that use an aerial or satellite, or my MythTV, have no restrictions. Doesn't apply to Internet streamed content. IMHO content owners still seem to prefer to encourage illegal downloads rather than let a legit channel like VTV save it for us.

Removing content you don't subscribe to is a frequent request on this forum. It is in Vodafone's interests to keep showing you the content that you 'missing out' on. Here is the most recent description of how to remove all that rubbish:

Apsattv:
The fix for missing channels is to hide then unhide the pay channels or around the other way.

menu, settings, content settings, unsubscribed channels, show or hide

orsonguels

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#2547779 22-Aug-2020 18:43

- No Guide button (unless I am very much mistaken). It's too many button presses to get to the guide. Menu, Up, Right, OK (from memory). Also I don't seem to be able to save 'only show me the freeview channels'.

I'm using a Logitech Harmony remote to control the VTV box and there is a dedicated "guide" button that works. It is a command that you can assign to any programmable remote, I guess, but it comes as standard to the Logitech remotes that support VTV.

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netspanner

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#2547953 23-Aug-2020 08:51

Can I just wave my hand and say I have posted here since the day that I bought my VTV which was the first day it came on sale about the problems I have with it.

I have had the VTV replaced with another, and the router replaced. The issue is downline from the box in my opinion. In recent months its got better, but still changing one from program to another often results in having to reboot the box.

Rewinding too fast also causes a connection error. Yet fast forwarding does not, which seems to suggest you are using the same connection.

In the past we would have to reboot mulitple times just to get a station to load.

But at least we can now watch the news and a few shows.

I suspect that connection errors occur where the box is being verified at the server. So I imagine that when you need a new connection, ie: to change channels, rewind to start,, it needs to verify you have a licensed box, and that is where it falls over.

My internet, Roku and Amazon all work fine, its just vtv.

IvanPiacun

378 posts

Ultimate Geek

#2547976 23-Aug-2020 09:38

@netspanner What speed does the fast.com VTV app say you are getting please, as it sounds like it might be too slow?

Ivan Piacun CITPNZ

netspanner

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Ultimate Geek

#2548048 23-Aug-2020 11:34

76 mbs down and 40mbs up.

It used to be far higher bu we seem to be going through a slow patch.

jontext88

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#2548058 23-Aug-2020 11:55

I have this Vodafone TV box and what it does, it does very well.
The one fault, which you can work around; is that Vodafone have skimped somewhat on copyright and recording permission agreements.
Applicable to recording, putting on watchlist watching later; premium first releases on TV 1,2 AND 3 often can't be watched other than live.
History channel almost nothing is recordable and natgeo is about 50/50. Even the odd Jones channel program.
If the recording permissions on this were the same as Sky, it would be a no brainer choice as it is cheaper and is more versatile in many ways.
You have access to the Android app store.
I am in poor FM access area for instance and survive on iHeart radio app.

freitasm

BDFL - Memuneh
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#2548066 23-Aug-2020 11:59

@jontext88: You have access to the Android app store.

There are some apps, but these aren't Android apps. The New Zealand version of this box is Linux-based and only runs apps developed for this box, not Android apps.

jontext88

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#2548073 23-Aug-2020 12:05

Accepted. I also have a Dish A2 freeview recorder (which is Android TV driven) and i find the two boxes compliment each other well.
If only Freeview Satellite would go HD. I can't get UHF.
CHEERS.

Rickles

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#2548077 23-Aug-2020 12:10

>What speed does the fast.com VTV app say you are getting please, as it sounds like it might be too slow?<

As a guide, my (previously reported) excellent service using the VTV is this morning running at 90mbps, and that's router:under house cable:ethernet switch:cable to VTF.

SteveC

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#2548094 23-Aug-2020 12:20

netspanner: Can I just wave my hand and say I have posted here since the day that I bought my VTV which was the first day it came on sale about the problems I have with it.

I have had the VTV replaced with another, and the router replaced. The issue is downline from the box in my opinion. In recent months its got better, but still changing one from program to another often results in having to reboot the box.
Rewinding too fast also causes a connection error. Yet fast forwarding does not, which seems to suggest you are using the same connection.
In the past we would have to reboot mulitple times just to get a station to load.
But at least we can now watch the news and a few shows.
I suspect that connection errors occur where the box is being verified at the server. So I imagine that when you need a new connection, ie: to change channels, rewind to start,, it needs to verify you have a licensed box, and that is where it falls over.
My internet, Roku and Amazon all work fine, its just vtv.

Reminds me of this legendary thread that went on for about eighteen months. https://www.geekzone.co.nz/forums.asp?forumid=40&topicid=171348&page_no=234

In particular, I recall major issues in Island Bay. Just down the road from us in Newtown, we had far fewer problems (though, to be fair, 30mbs on a 100mbs was barely considered a problem on those days).

Along came a $20 million + upgrade and DOCSIS 3.1. Now I get worried if a wired connection gets below 700mbs.

The point is that underneath these cool technical advances is a topology (cable TV) that was designed for 1950s analouge TV. Hardly surprising if there are spasmodic, seemingly random, network issues.

One other thing - about eight to ten years ago we had an intermittent fault that was giving contradictory readings on their testing equipment. The Downers Dude replace every F connector between the pole over the road and our cable modem (I think he counted seven). That seemed to get rid of our fault. No significant internal issues since.

Cable maintenance seems more like art than science. The idea of a single length of fibre from an ONT to active equipment at the end of the street really seems elegant.

Steve Cosgrove
Senior Lecturer, Data Networking & Communication. Legal Main Contact, Cisco Network Academy
Whitireia Community Polytechnic, Porirua. mailto:s.cosgrove@whitireia.ac.nz
Things I write here are usually my opinion, but not necessarily those of my employer!

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