Hi there,

Wondered if you guys could help. We have a huge 42" Plasma TV. Bought in the UK, brand "Orion"

Just wondered if it would be useable in the Costa Del Sol. We would really like to take it with us, but wondered how easy it would be to use it?

Can we broadcast Sky Tv from it? and how ?
Can we get UK channels on it ? and how ?

Is there such a thing like freeview over in Spain ?

Many thanks

Michael & Dawn.

Yes your plasma will work
Yes you can get SKY with all the channels if you bring your original box, keep you're d/d running from your bank, and use a UK address (relative, maybe). You'll need to buy a bigger dish than you are used to though, maybe 1.8

Search this forum for freeview as its been discussed before

Ooh great stuff. How does the Sky thing work then. We dont actually have Sky Tv over here already, so we would be getting it from scratch in Spain.

Is it not the done thing over there. if not, what do most people get so that they have a spanish/english mix. I have heard of something called tellymad. Trying my best not to put url's or anything, so pls dont delete my post xxxx

SKY dont have a licence to broadcast in Spain, so if you did have it and told them you were moving abroad they would cancel it immediately.

If you took it out now it would do you no good, unless you aren't moving for 12 months, because for the first 12 months you need to be connected to a UK phone line.

You can get SKY over here via dealers, but I keep hearing stories on how it is all being clamped down upon.

I think Telemad is american

Hi Michael and Dawn,
We came over to live in Spain in July 2007 and we also brought a 42 inch Plasma Tv with us and it works fine we have purchased a 1.9m Satellite dish and get nearly all the freeview channels apart for E4 and More 4 oh and Sky Sports news, The dish cost us a 1000 euros inc installation and card and it works fine the picture is perfect like in the UK, if u need anymore advice just give me a shout.
And good luck with your move.

Suzanne

It will work but you have to make sure you stand on one leg rub your tummy and pat your head while watching it.

Am i reading that right, a 1000 euros, or did you mean to say 100

Not quite true

Sky do a non subscription card (Freesat) that you can buy for a one off fee of £20. You can then, obviously not strictly legal, have it shipped to a UK address and then sent out here from that. You then just put the card in your box here and ring them up and it gets switched on immediately

You don't get most of the susbscription channels but you do get, all the BBC, ITV, Ch4 and Ch5 channels amongst other such delights as Open Access

That is how much big dishes cost! In some areas, you need a 2.4 metre dish! In which case you could be looking at €1600-€1800!!!
They also don't hang on the wall very easily!
Tim

I, like many others, get a fine signal with a 1.2 metre satellite dish but make sure it is a good quality such as channelmaster otherwise I am advised that any warping in the heat will lose signal. You can source the dish, the cable and the LNB almost anywhere but you then need a decoder to feed your tv, that is where you make your choice and pay your money. It is roughly about 600 euros for a complete set up good enough for Spanish reception and better if you can source and buy one of the older second hand decoders which has better sensitivity. Talk to your local satellite shop in the UK and often you will find them full of good advice and in my case they sold me all the stuff and even set up the card to my (then) uk address. In any case a UK spec TV set (nor a UK spec recorder as the critical bit it is the tuner) will not tune into Spanish aerial signals directly. The set will work with a decoder box which does its own "tuning". I replaced my LNB just a few weeks ago for 20 euros, no problem. Dishes are standard and cable just has to be the right stuff.

The size of dish required is dependent on where in Spain you are. Many area on the Costa Blanca for example require a 2.4 metre dish to ensure reception of some channels into the evening.

Agreed Valenciatim that the bigger the dish the better but I am further out of the Astra footprint than Costa Blanca being close to Sevilla and a 1.2 channelmaster does me fine except for the loss of signal on some channels when it rains.

Most of the south of Spain will get all channels 24/7 with a 1.3m dish.

Not quite.
New installations performed by Sky are required to. As Sky heavily discount the cost of the installation (dish and box) the equipment is still theirs for that first 12 months and they require the telephone line conenction to make sure you dont run off with their equipment. After 12 months the dish and box (not the card which is still Skys property) are offically yours to do with what you like.

You can quite happily buy a dish and box from a NonSKy source and get a Sky card without the requirement for a telephone line - which is what happens out here.

Mitzy has got two, "not quite true" in this thread, come on people, grow some nuts, just come out and say he is talking shite.




Of course this is not my opinion at all, I love Mr Mitzy and all who sail in her.