Cable TV Vs SKY

[ian@huth]

Originally Posted by skunk4u

Hate to But I have SKY + now and it rocks

Thanks for advise Guys, and a choice well made I think its great a must have

It rocks even better if you upgrade the hard drive to give more recording time for such times as when you are on holiday.

One good feature is that you can download a PPV movie but you don't pay for it unless you watch it. Great if you are unsure of your plans and want to cover a few possibilities.

[orangebird]

I'm with Towny, for all the same reasons.... Especially the 'info' button issue.... Why on earth won't Skys epg display info for programs other than the one you're watching.

And one extra reason - my red button works!

[Stuart C]

I'm with Towny as welll (oo eer)..

One thing I don't understand. Why is Sky +'s EPG limited to a week? NTL's reason for limiting their EPG to three days (or whatever it is now) was that the early Pace boxes don't have enough storage for more than that (they only have a few meg of memory). Sky + has (at least) a 40 gig hard drive. Why can't they store the EPG data on that?

IMO, TiVo has the best EPG, and is the only one comparable to Digiguide.

[ian@huth]

Originally Posted by orangebird

I'm with Towny, for all the same reasons.... Especially the 'info' button issue.... Why on earth won't Skys epg display info for programs other than the one you're watching.

And one extra reason - my red button works!

I use the EPG only to set the programmes that I want to record on my Sky+ box which I then watch at a time convenient for me. For deciding what programmes to watch and get all the info about them I use DigiGuide. As many people are finding out and reporting, Sky+ is the best way to watch TV and DigiGuide is the best source for deciding what to watch. Give them both a try, you won't regret it.

As for red buttons, it's not just whether they work or not, it's what is available when you press them.
__________________

Originally Posted by scastle

I'm with Towny as welll (oo eer)..

One thing I don't understand. Why is Sky +'s EPG limited to a week? NTL's reason for limiting their EPG to three days (or whatever it is now) was that the early Pace boxes don't have enough storage for more than that (they only have a few meg of memory). Sky + has (at least) a 40 gig hard drive. Why can't they store the EPG data on that?

IMO, TiVo has the best EPG, and is the only one comparable to Digiguide.

The problem with storing the EPG on the hard drive could be that this is updated very frequently on Sky, not just once a day. You only have to see how Sky+ changes recording times when some unforseen event alters schedules sometimes only minutes before the programme you want is due to start.

[jtwn]

Had a mate who changed from sky+ to cable after moving back to a cabled area, has to be the biggest anti-ntl person in existence but admitted that he doesn't get the interference and some weird colouring issue and general dodginess with ntl that Sky seems suceptible to.

I can't say Sky+ appeals, I'd rather a VoD catchup type service. If i'm going to record somethingto keep, its going to mean its for archiving, ie not stuck on a hard drive.

[orangebird]

Originally Posted by ian@huth

I use the EPG only to set the programmes that I want to record on my Sky+ box which I then watch at a time convenient for me. For deciding what programmes to watch and get all the info about them I use DigiGuide. As many people are finding out and reporting, Sky+ is the best way to watch TV and DigiGuide is the best source for deciding what to watch. Give them both a try, you won't regret it.

I really don't watch enough TV to worry about recording things/missing programmes etc. Adverts don't bother me much and if I go on holiday, I don't care about what's on TV back home to sit down for hours after trying to watch it all.

As for red buttons, it's not just whether they work or not, it's what is available when you press them.
__________________

snip.

I get email, sms via tv, games, interactive for things like wimbledon and Big Brother (including the ability to vote), and (limited) access to the web.

[Stuart C]

Originally Posted by orangebird

I get email, sms via tv, games, interactive for things like wimbledon and Big Brother (including the ability to vote), and (limited) access to the web.

Agreed. That's pretty much all we use interactive for at home. TBH, I haven't seen anything on any TV based interactive service that has made me think "Ooh, I must get that service". Sure, it is nice to be able to watch different stories on the news, or different angles on sports shows, but that's not actually something I really miss when it's not available.

[Jules]

Even though I wish cable did the + thingy I have voted for NTL because I had nothing but trouble with Sky

[ian@huth]

Originally Posted by orangebird

I really don't watch enough TV to worry about recording things/missing programmes etc. Adverts don't bother me much and if I go on holiday, I don't care about what's on TV back home to sit down for hours after trying to watch it all.

Used to be the same but not being able to get about much alters your priorities. The ability to watch what you want, when you want, in broadcast quality is one of the big advantages of Sky+.

Originally Posted by orangebird

I get email, sms via tv, games, interactive for things like wimbledon and Big Brother (including the ability to vote), and (limited) access to the web.

Football enthusiasts in particular have had a much better selection of games to watch via Sky's red button.

At the end of the day we all have different needs and pick the platform which best provides these.

[ls129]

Recently moved to a new flat. In the previous flat I had Sky. The new flat is temporary and Telewest was already instaled so we chose not to go through the hassle of setting up the Sky dish and arguing with the landlord.

I am shocked by the poor quality of the Telewest video signal!!! and out of frustration i'd like to share my ranting on the web so that other suckers don't fall for the same false advertisement trap.

Colours - Sky vs. Telewest is like a DVD (Sky) vs. an old NTSC video cassette recording (Telewest). Sky colours are bright and crisp. Telewest colours are dull and look like an MPEG movie downloaded from edonkey and played on TV through a PS2.

Shape - The left and right boundries of the picture are trimmed!!! believe it or not!! I can't stand watching TV and having 25% of the image missing!!

Channels - Who the f*k cares about channels when you suffer watching TV!! In any case I think the Sky basic package is more comprehensive then Telewest. I only watch the BBC, discovery, MTV and extreme sports anyway. PPV on Telewest has very old movies compared to Sky (anyway, i'd rather rent a DVD or download something then get a trimmed colorless signal from these mo-fo's).


It's truely remarkable that Telewest are in business when you get so much more out of Sky. Then again, the crazy-frog campaign makes 10m/week so I guess advertisement is more reliable then people's intelligence.

LS

[Chris]

Originally Posted by ls129

Recently moved to a new flat. In the previous flat I had Sky. The new flat is temporary and Telewest was already instaled so we chose not to go through the hassle of setting up the Sky dish and arguing with the landlord.

I am shocked by the poor quality of the Telewest video signal!!! and out of frustration i'd like to share my ranting on the web so that other suckers don't fall for the same false advertisement trap.

Colours - Sky vs. Telewest is like a DVD (Sky) vs. an old NTSC video cassette recording (Telewest). Sky colours are bright and crisp. Telewest colours are dull and look like an MPEG movie downloaded from edonkey and played on TV through a PS2.

Shape - The left and right boundries of the picture are trimmed!!! believe it or not!! I can't stand watching TV and having 25% of the image missing!!

Channels - Who the f*k cares about channels when you suffer watching TV!! In any case I think the Sky basic package is more comprehensive then Telewest. I only watch the BBC, discovery, MTV and extreme sports anyway. PPV on Telewest has very old movies compared to Sky (anyway, i'd rather rent a DVD or download something then get a trimmed colorless signal from these mo-fo's).


It's truely remarkable that Telewest are in business when you get so much more out of Sky. Then again, the crazy-frog campaign makes 10m/week so I guess advertisement is more reliable then people's intelligence.

LS

I can't comment on your picture quality issues but I assure you, the $ky starter pack has next to nothing in it so Telewest cannot possibly be worse in that respect.

P.S - please don't post identical stuff multiple times.

[STONEISLAND]

Originally Posted by ls129

Recently moved to a new flat. In the previous flat I had Sky. The new flat is temporary and Telewest was already instaled so we chose not to go through the hassle of setting up the Sky dish and arguing with the landlord.

I am shocked by the poor quality of the Telewest video signal!!! and out of frustration i'd like to share my ranting on the web so that other suckers don't fall for the same false advertisement trap.

Colours - Sky vs. Telewest is like a DVD (Sky) vs. an old NTSC video cassette recording (Telewest). Sky colours are bright and crisp. Telewest colours are dull and look like an MPEG movie downloaded from edonkey and played on TV through a PS2.

Shape - The left and right boundries of the picture are trimmed!!! believe it or not!! I can't stand watching TV and having 25% of the image missing!!

Channels - Who the f*k cares about channels when you suffer watching TV!! In any case I think the Sky basic package is more comprehensive then Telewest. I only watch the BBC, discovery, MTV and extreme sports anyway. PPV on Telewest has very old movies compared to Sky (anyway, i'd rather rent a DVD or download something then get a trimmed colorless signal from these mo-fo's).


It's truely remarkable that Telewest are in business when you get so much more out of Sky. Then again, the crazy-frog campaign makes 10m/week so I guess advertisement is more reliable then people's intelligence.

LS

Just wanted to say

[Stuart C]

Originally Posted by ls129

<snip>
Channels - Who the f*k cares about channels when you suffer watching TV!! In any case I think the Sky basic package is more comprehensive then Telewest. I only watch the BBC, discovery, MTV and extreme sports anyway. PPV on Telewest has very old movies compared to Sky (anyway, i'd rather rent a DVD or download something then get a trimmed colorless signal from these mo-fo's).

Haven't checked recently, but last time I did check, Front Row (who provide PPV for Telewest and NTL) had the same movies Sky Box Office did. I have to admit, I never nother with PPV movies though. By the time any movie I want to see comes on TV, then I will either have seen it and decided I don't like it, or if I do, I will have already bought it.


Welcome to the site BTW.

[mdean]

Originally Posted by skunk4u

Arrrrh but what about Sky + ?

Sky + is propriatory rubbish which locks you into sky- a very bad idea- Do not touch it. Buy something which will work with all systems such as a DVDR

All NTL need to do is
1) Speed up the EPG - If I want to check ahead more than a couple of hours I always use the sky epg
2) Align the channel numbers- It is pathetic that any one channel does not have the same number on all 3 platforms

[Neil]

Originally Posted by mdean

Sky + is propriatory rubbish which locks you into sky- a very bad idea- Do not touch it. Buy something which will work with all systems such as a DVDR

Does/can a DVD-R be set to record a whole series at the touch of a button (like Sky +)?

Originally Posted by mdean

All NTL need to do is
1) Speed up the EPG - If I want to check ahead more than a couple of hours I always use the sky epg
2) Align the channel numbers- It is pathetic that any one channel does not have the same number on all 3 platforms

So Sky is not quite the 'proprietory rubbish' that you suggest then is it?