Freeview and Sky sat box all in one?

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timbosan

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#1316207 2-Jun-2015 14:05

joshhill96: I have seen the Skybox in action and HD channels are available in HD even if you don't have the HD ticket. you need to subscribe to the channels though.

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The above view is my personal opinion/view and not from Dish TV Technologies

I have seen this comment before, in regards to a HTPC build with a card reader - there was no need for the HD ticket but the Sky HD channels where still viewable in HD. Apparently (and that thread made a mention to it) the HD ticket activates something in the MySky decoders, it does NOT change the stream coming from the satellite (which makes sense). But of course Sky is all about $$$ so I doubt will change anything about that.

bda

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#1316468 2-Jun-2015 21:27

B1GGLZ:
joshhill96: I have seen the Skybox in action and HD channels are available in HD even if you don't have the HD ticket. you need to subscribe to the channels though.

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The above view is my personal opinion/view and not from Dish TV Technologies

You still need to pay for an HD ticket AND subscribe to them if you want to watch HD channels other than the Freeview ones (TV1,2 3 etc).

From Sky website

HD Access Ticket SKY HD content is available on selected programmes on SoHo, THE ZONE, SKY Movies Premiere, SKY Movies Extra, SKY Movies Greats, SKY Movies Classics, SKY Movies Action, SKY Sport 1, SKY Sport 2, SKY Sport 3, SKY Sport 4, ESPN, ESPN 2 (may be subject to change during major sporting events). To access SKY HD content you need an HD TV, MY SKY, the HD Access Ticket ($9.99 per month) and subscribe to Basic, SKY Sport, SoHo and/or SKY Movies.

If you subscribe to basic & sport with no HD ticket and you use the card in a 3rd party set top box you get the sport HD channels in HD.

B1GGLZ

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#1316788 3-Jun-2015 13:21

bda:

If you subscribe to basic & sport with no HD ticket and you use the card in a 3rd party set top box you get the sport HD channels in HD.

Yeah. Just found that out yesterday. Kinda makes a mockery of them charging $10 a month for an HD ticket. Just buy a box that takes their card and get HD plus the ability to transfer recordings to a PC. The savings could pay for the box in a couple of years and the box can still be used for Freeview if you dump Sky and they want their box back.

grant_k

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#1317045 3-Jun-2015 21:40

B1GGLZ:
bda:

If you subscribe to basic & sport with no HD ticket and you use the card in a 3rd party set top box you get the sport HD channels in HD.

Yeah. Just found that out yesterday. Kinda makes a mockery of them charging $10 a month for an HD ticket. Just buy a box that takes their card and get HD plus the ability to transfer recordings to a PC. The savings could pay for the box in a couple of years and the box can still be used for Freeview if you dump Sky and they want their box back.

Just be aware that this happy situation might not last for much longer. A software update that prevents Sky's cards from working in 3rd party gear is likely in the works as Apsattv mentioned above. This has already been done in Australia and probably other countries as well.

stocksp

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#1317086 3-Jun-2015 22:59

The ridiculous HD ticket was one of the reasons I left sky. Not the $10, bu the principle of the thing

mcraenz

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#1317095 3-Jun-2015 23:26

My guess is 12-18 months and it will be all over. It's happened in a number of countries. Oh well all good things come to an end. I also suspect that more card sharing in NZ is creeping in. Not something I'm interested in. I just want to consume the content in my own way, I don't mind paying for it.
I'd rather blunt spoon myself in the eye than use a sky STB. Horrible sluggish crippled things that they are.

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Reggimus

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#1317202 4-Jun-2015 09:07

Most receiver with a CI card slot and running MCAS will be able to accept a MySky HDiCard, general sky cards do not work..something to do with the version of the card. With the future upgrade that sky are doing it is more likely that more, rather than less, that the new standard cards will be able to used in a wider variety of units.

Now as for actual units.. The UltraPlus 990HD is a good basic unit that accepts sky cards, but requires an external HDD for recording, and only has a single tuner (can only record from one transponder at a time). The XCruiser 600 or UltraPlus X9200 are able to have an internal HDD for recording and have a twin tuner setup (record from multiple transponders).

Apsattv

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#1317702 5-Jun-2015 08:46

Sky can lock their cards to their receiver, they never bothered with it before as the old decoder didn't support it.

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