Freesat - any good if I get rid of Virgin?

scooby75

I'm currently with Virgin on their smallest package for TV, mobile and phone, but am thinking of ditching.

I only really watch TV for channels available on freeview, plus the BBC multisport on red button. I don't watch "premium" channels like Sky 1 etc.

I've seen a freeview kit at Aldi for £65 (I think). Will this be an effective replacement for Virgin TV, especially in terms of the sports multiscreen?

If not, does anyone know of a non-contract alternative? I've tried looking online but I'm totally clueless on these things.

yorkie98

The freeview satellite kits at aldi/lidl/B&Q etc are not FreeSat, they are a generic free to air satellite receiver. The major difference is that you will not get the Freesat EPG, channel number arrangement etc and also things like the red button/interactive stuff on BBC will not work.
If this is not a concern to you then go for it but personally I would buy myself a Sky dish online for about £22 (with a quad LNB and free postage) and get one of the FreeSat recievers from Argos for £30 which are absolutely great. You'll just need some WF100 cable, a few cable clips and a couple of F-plugs, again, cheap to buy online from the same/similar suppliers.
The cable usually supplied in these kits is highly inferior, RG6 or similar and is not good at all.

As for whether or not Freesat is a good enough replacement for basic Virgin, I'd say yes going by your requirements but if you go to the Freesat website, it will tell you exactly what channels you will get.

macman

Your post is ambiguous, is it Freeview or Freesat that you are interested in? The channel line up is similar but not identical. The Freesat advantage is that it will give you the 4 HD channels as standard, for that on Freeview you'll need a Freeview HD box.
Get a decent PVR on either platform (Humax is my recommendation) and you'll get the best out of them.

almillar

Freeview = through an aeriel
FreeSat = Through a satellite dish (same type as Sky, pointing in same direction).
Free satellite = through a satellite dish, pointing at any satellite, with no subscription.
Aldi/Lidl stuff is usually the 3rd option. Compared to Virgin, and 'official' Freesat, you won't have an EPG (guide) and will lose channels.
If you're talking about Freeview, the sports multiscreen is much more limited due to lack of bandwidth, so there's a lot more available on Virgin and Freesat, but the freeview one has the advantage that you can record it, since it's simply a channel (or two?) - 301 (and 303?).
If you're talking about channels on Virgin or satellite that are free to view, call them 'free to view' instead of 'freeview', which gets confused with the service through the aerial. Confused yet?!