Leave Sky and go to Freesat - Any good?

Simon7685

As the title suggests I am considering leaving Sky and moving over to Freesat, I would appreicate any advice on whether Freesat is any good.

My situation is, I currently have the following with Sky;

Sky Entertainment Extra
Multiroom
HD Subscription - currently on a 12 month 1/2 price deal until May 2013
Sky Talk Anytime calls
Sky Line Rental
Sky Broadband unlimited

Total cost = £67 a month

I have just found out that I can receive Freesat by simply plugging a box in as it comes from the same satellite via the Sky dish.

So in essence I can save around £35 a month by switching to Freesat. I will need to buy a PVR and a 2nd receiver for the teenage tearaways room, so around £300 to fork out. However that would be recovered in less than a year. don't want to do though is jump to find out Freesat is not all that it is made out to be. So any advice would be greatly appreciated especially from those that have Freesat and know how good or bad it is.

Thanks in advance

d123

Depends on the channels you watch, work out how much you watch the premium channels that won't be available once you move to Freesat and decide if you can do without them.

david39

Most of the Freesat channels are just duplicates of the ones on Freeview. There are a few that are only on one or the other, but effectively the main channels are on both.

If you are happy with the Freeview channels, then Freesat will be fine for you but I wouldn't go to the expense of a box if you have a normal tv aeriel that will pick up Freeview unless you wanted a specific channel on Freesat that was not on Freeview.

d123

You can, of course, use the Sky box for Freesat from Sky, but the recording and Sky+ functions cease working.

dodger148

I am in the same boat. There are are 3 channels that SWMBO records that are on sky but not Freesat. It has been suggested the programs she watches on these channels may be also on another in which case I could save the monthly sky bill ( after buying a Humax PVR which I am assured is the best )

Simon7685

Freeview isn't really an option for us as the ariel reception is absolutely garbage, we can't get a lot of the channels. so it needs to be Freesat really, unless I get a new ariel put up, which being in rented property I am not paying for and the landlord, well that isn't going to happen.

Also I do want to be able to record, pause, rewind, have HD channels etc, so the Humax box with the Freetime service seemed like the best option. It is a bit pricey at nearly £300 but it will pay for itself in 10 months with what I will be saving from paying Sky.

The only things we watch that are not on Freesat are;
Spartacus on Sky 1 - currently in its final series.
The Walking Dead on FOX - about 5 episodes left this series.
Other than that it is occasional watching of UK Gold and the odd documentary channel. In total no more than 4/5 hours a week that aren't on Freesat channels. This is why I think I am being mugged off by Sky at paying £35 a month for TV.

It is a bit strange really thinking about leaving Sky after all these years with them and the not having the experience of knowing what the other services are actually like. Until I think about all the money we throw down the drain every year for next to nothing.

I noticed that with Freesat there are other channels you can receive that do not come automatically with it. Is there any where to look and see what these channels are? Also how easy are they to get and is it a simple procedure to get them?

davemurgatroyd

Simon7685 wrote: »

I noticed that with Freesat there are other channels you can receive that do not come automatically with it. Is there any where to look and see what these channels are? Also how easy are they to get and is it a simple procedure to get them?

Simply remove your viewing card from the Sky box and surf down the list - the channels then available to view are the FTA channels which would be viewable on a freesat box in either of its modes.

Note also that your present Sky box with your cancelled viewing card will give you around 8 channels (the FTV FreesatFromSky channels) that are not available via freesat at all - so it may be worth you moving it to your second room instead of purchasing a non-PVR freesat box for it.

Moneymaker

davemurgatroyd wrote: »

Simply remove your viewing card from the Sky box and surf down the list - the channels then available to view are the FTA channels which would be viewable on a freesat box in either of its modes.

I don't have one but it used to be that removing the card did nothing to the EPG, if that's what you mean by "list".

davemurgatroyd

Moneymaker wrote: »

I don't have one but it used to be that removing the card did nothing to the EPG, if that's what you mean by "list".

It does not but those viewable from the EPG are the FTA ones.

pingu

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/4465507

Simon7685

Does anyone know what additional channels you can pick up on Freesat?