Sky Plus and Tivo
 

One thing I'm going to really miss when we move this fall is Sky Plus not English telly but the hard drive which allows you to pause live TV and record all your shows.

Does anyone know if there is a sky+ or Tivo equivalant here. Going back to using a VCR is like giving up your Ipod for prerecorded cassestes, its just so yesterday.

Personally for all the hype about HD TV I think harddisk recording is the way to go

Re: Sky Plus and Tivo
 

I have always thought Sky Plus was overrated and bug-ridden.

I use a Panasonic HDD/DVD combination unit in conjunction with two satellite receivers which does all that Sky Plus does and more.

Re: Sky Plus and Tivo
 

There are quite a few satellite receivers out that come complete with a hard drive for recording etc.
The most popular one is the Dreambox. You can also after some further reading up on them use your official sky sub card in these ;)

BW

Re: Sky Plus and Tivo
 

More than likely were going to go with Spanish TV (digital TV) that allows you to choice OV. Question is do I have to have 2 recievers, ie one for Canel and one with the harddrive.

I do agree about Sky, it seems every time they introduce a new feature it means a new box. First it was Digital, after buying a new box, then Sky+ now its Sky HD which agains requires a new box ugg!

Re: Sky Plus and Tivo
 

You can use just the one, but to be honest they are a bit complicated to set up if you are not a sat tv anorak like me :D ;)
search google for dreambox receivers and see what you think. :)

BW

Re: Sky Plus and Tivo
 

You can get Sky+ in Spain.

Re: Sky Plus and Tivo
 

I have a Siemens M740 Digital TV receiver which is pretty good as it has two independent tuners inside. That way you can record two channels, or watch one and record another simultaneously.

For the anoraks, it runs linux and can be modified to do some interestung things. The software is just about stable at the moment, but it can be a bit of a pain at times when powering up and down. Best thing is to leave it on. It uses a USB external hard drive, so you can attach some decent capacity storage.

What it lacks is an independent external video input to allow you to record other sources to disk, for example.

Re: Sky Plus and Tivo
 

I just found out, called a guy who does satellites and we would need a 1,2 mtr dish with a clear line of site for Madrid. That's not too bad, wouldn't work if you had a flat as that's a bit big to hand out the window:)

Although it can be buggy at times, Sky+ is for a change much better than they advertise, its really awesome.

Re: Sky Plus and Tivo
 

Hi there,
why do you have to give up your Sky Plus ? It is perfectly possible to operate a Sky Plus System in Spain....However the further south you are the bigger the dish you would need.....
Your contract with sky would need to be at a UK address or if not there are websites that will host for you
If not there are hard drive recorders these days that could be attached to the domestic telly
Maybe there is hope for you
The Skyman

Re: Sky Plus and Tivo
 

HI

The problem isn't so much getting sky as we have currently (we live in Germany) but that when we move we might be able to get a place that will allow a large enough of a dish to recieve. We're moving to Madird and alot will depend on what sort of package they offer Chris, moving only, moving plus housing allowance. I looked at several villas that will allow the required dish, but at 1400 to 2500 a month they our too steep for our budget.

Apartment rentals are more reasonable but my be limited to a small dish if anything at all.

that's the problem, most dishes I see around Madrid are 60cm.

rob

Re: Sky Plus and Tivo
 

Hi There
have you tried www.soleil-satellite.co.uk they CLaim to have a system that only needs a standard size Sky dish.....
they may be the answer to your needs
One thing to point out is that sky dishes need to be wider rather than taller so a dish the correct shape can be less obvious that the fully round ones....??
Other than that...you might be able to get away with a smaller ( :) than specified) sized dish that would give you reception most of the time...ie you would loose signal in thick cloud / rain / thunderstorms etc but it would be fine the rest of the time....just a last resort idea!!! After all the weather is clear and sunny most of the time in Spain isn't it !!!!??????!!!!!!
cheers
the Skyman

Re: Sky Plus and Tivo
 

Looks like a con to me. You can pick up the channels in their list with any cheap free to air satellite receiver. This is no "magic" box. :rolleyes:

BW.

Re: Sky Plus and Tivo
 

Hi Mr. Big
the claim they make is regarding dish size needed to work their box....!!! which is the salient point ???
It might be worth an e-mail to see what they say....maybe they could provide some 'Satisfied Customers' to verify their claims....i am sceptical too but if there is a difficulty re. dish size and siting ....surely it is worth investigating.....
The Skyman :beer:

Re: Sky Plus and Tivo
 

Evening Skyman
On their site they seem to be implying they have something "special"

Quote"Just like todays mobile phones have become smaller and our computers more powerful, we have a beautiful up to the minute Satellite Receiver purpose fitted with an enhanced receiving tuner capable of picking up and using the very weak satellite signals which reach us far from the UK footprint"

The Sky receiver has a very weak threshold as it was designed only for one purpose, to pick up the VERY strong signal in the UK from 28 degs East.
Any standard free to air receiver will pick up some channels in Spain from 28 east using a 1m - 1.5m dish.
I would very much doubt they have anything better Than the normal Technomates, Echostars, Manhattans, Humax etc.

They also use some clever phrasing on the site.

"330 Euros in our central area on just a 75cm dish. In Southern Spain we can install for a further 70 Euros."

Note the use of "our" and the full stop after the word dish ;)

You would probably get the same gear for around half price by shopping around.

regards
BW.

Re: Sky Plus and Tivo
 

There has been some discussion about this system on another forum but despite contributions from someone who claimed to be using such an installation on the Costa del Sol the outcome was somewhat inconclusive.

I asked about the system on the Digital Spy technical forum and there was much scepticism about the possibility of receiving BBC/ITV in Spain on a dish with a diameter of anything less than 1.2m.