White Sky+ box, new?

Dunnie1982

My parents are having lots of problems with their Sky+ box which Sky wont seem to help them with, Could anyone who's been in a similar situation please give me some advice.

My dads Sky+ box which he has since sky+ started, packed up a few weeks ago. He rang sky, who after quiet a bit of time on the phone, said they would send an engineer out & if the box was faulty they would replace it with a "brand new" box. The box was bet so the engineer replaced it with an identical model box which he had in the van. This sky box had refurbished in black marker on the cardboard box which it was in & contained no cables, remote control or manuals etc. The engineer insisted it was a brand new sky+ box and was only in that packaging for transport reasons.

I was suspicious so I questioned him on it and he got defensive & said he could leave us with no sky if I didn't want that box, so I left him install it. I took his word but that evening the box started acting up & has failed to record numerous programs, it sometimes refuses to rewind shows or continue playing them after being paused for any length of time. It also freezes up sometimes & won't come back on until its plugged out and back in again. The new sky box had ITV, channel 5 etc already in the other channels section, which the engineer didn't install as I was there the whole way through the installation process. Also the engineer said the box has a 90 day guarantee.

Tonight he rang sky again & explained his problem they told him to keep a record of failed recordings for a week or so before they will do anything. Sky also wouldn't confirm if the replacement box that my parents got was new or refurbished. I myself was under the impression that all new boxes are the Black HD+ ones which are advertised everywhere, even without a HD subscription. He doesn't want to upgrade to HD which sky keep trying to force upon him when he rings them. Could anyone please shed some light on the box situation if they have been in this predicament before? (pictured below is the model which the engineer put in & said was brand new, Identical model to old one).

Kevin!

Dunnie1982 wrote: »

My parents are having lots of problems with their Sky+ box which Sky wont seem to help them with, Could anyone who's been in a similar situation please give me some advice.

My dads Sky+ box which he has since sky+ started, packed up a few weeks ago. He rang sky, who after quiet a bit of time on the phone, said they would send an engineer out & if the box was faulty they would replace it with a "brand new" box. The box was bet so the engineer replaced it with an identical model box which he had in the van. This sky box had refurbished in black marker on the cardboard box which it was in & contained no cables, remote control or manuals etc. The engineer insisted it was a brand new sky+ box and was only in that packaging for transport reasons.

I was suspicious so I questioned him on it and he got defensive & said he could leave us with no sky if I didn't want that box, so I left him install it. I took his word but that evening the box started acting up & has failed to record numerous programs, it sometimes refuses to rewind shows or continue playing them after being paused for any length of time. It also freezes up sometimes & won't come back on until its plugged out and back in again. The new sky box had ITV, channel 5 etc already in the other channels section, which the engineer didn't install as I was there the whole way through the installation process. Also the engineer said the box has a 90 day guarantee.

Tonight he rang sky again & explained his problem they told him to keep a record of failed recordings for a week or so before they will do anything. Sky also wouldn't confirm if the replacement box that my parents got was new or refurbished. I myself was under the impression that all new boxes are the Black HD+ ones which are advertised everywhere, even without a HD subscription. He doesn't want to upgrade to HD which sky keep trying to force upon him when he rings them. Could anyone please shed some light on the box situation if they have been in this predicament before? (pictured below is the model which the engineer put in & said was brand new, Identical model to old one).

I had the same box installed when I encountered hard drive problems, like yourself my previous was a box from the very start.

I don't think they make sky + boxes anymore, just sky HD ones so the chances are we got old stock/refurbished. I was not watching when he installed but I did not receive a remote although the faceplate on the box has plastic on it which seems like new

trackcar

I have the same problem, Mine will not record, rewind or pause, I have been on to the Mumbai help desk a few times, have done full system reset and lost all recording, worked ok for about 2 weeks then it all stopped again, done the full system reset but it did not do any good this time, They said it's more than likely the hard drive in the sky box, they will have to send out an engineer at a cost of € 100, he will fit a reconditioned box with a 3 month warranty, or I can upgrade to Sky HD, box is free, €30 to install and will have to upgrade to HD package for a minimum of 12 months at an extra €15 per months, they said that was the only option they can provide,

200motels

The three of you should ring up the cancellation dept and tell them you'll be leaving them if it's not sorted.

Dunnie1982

200motels wrote: »

The three of you should ring up the cancellation dept and tell them you'll be leaving them if it's not sorted.

He done this in mid August when the original box broke & he cancelled. 2 weeks later they rang back & they guaranteed a brand new box, not a reconditioned one, and sky half price for 6 months if he stayed with them. Now although the sky is half price its not worth having as we aren't getting a proper service. He will probably cancel again if he can't get it sorted.

smodgley

Dunnie1982 wrote: »

He done this in mid August when the original box broke & he cancelled. 2 weeks later they rang back & they guaranteed a brand new box, not a reconditioned one, and sky half price for 6 months if he stayed with them. Now although the sky is half price its not worth having as we aren't getting a proper service. He will probably cancel again if he can't get it sorted.

i would defo ring them again and tell them yr cancelling. they will send another engineer out, tell them you want HD BOX , OR you will cancel

Jon_459

My main box is HD and I had one of the older SKY+ in another room which I rarely use. A couple of months ago I found it wouldn't record or pause and when I rang SKY they said they'd send out an engineer at a cost of €100 to look at it .. no guarantees. I declined.

Then last weekend I checked it again... still wouldn't work so I rang SKY, told them the problem and that I was thinking of cancelling multi-room. I asked them what they could do for me and they offered me a new HD box including free installation. It's due next Monday - here's hoping !!

steveon

All replacement boxes are refurbished, and personally I would be very grateful for this or anything if Sky agree to come around and replace for free, so long as the replacement actually is in working order. The equipment belongs to you after 12 months, if U want a new one you should upgrade or buy one at full price in exactly the same way u would if your tv or washing machine packs in.

You are provided with equipment for either free or a small nominal fee to get sky in at the beginning, and this equipment is rather expensive to manufacture and it takes sky sometime to rebate it's cost before it makes money from each individual subscriber. Many people of whom get in for a year and then cancel so they get fta for a very small charge. You are paying for a TV service not a free lifetime guarantee of equipment, with UPC u are hiring the equipment and as such are on a much inferior system except for their broadband which where available is a great system.

Dunnie1982

steveon wrote: »

All replacement boxes are refurbished, and personally I would be very grateful for this or anything if Sky agree to come around and replace for free, so long as the replacement actually is in working order. The equipment belongs to you after 12 months, if U want a new one you should upgrade or buy one at full price in exactly the same way u would if your tv or washing machine packs in.

You are provided with equipment for either free or a small nominal fee to get sky in at the beginning, and this equipment is rather expensive to manufacture and it takes sky sometime to rebate it's cost before it makes money from each individual subscriber. Many people of whom get in for a year and then cancel so they get fta for a very small charge. You are paying for a TV service not a free lifetime guarantee of equipment, with UPC u are hiring the equipment and as such are on a much inferior system except for their broadband which where available is a great system.

Sky stated originally that we "would not get a refurbished box" we would get a "brand new box". The box they replaced the old one with doesn't work properly though, so my parents are paying for a monthly service which they aren't getting. They have sky since 1993 with movies & sports, even over the last 5 years alone they have paid sky almost 5000 euros. I asked my dad to ask sky could I open the old box & replace the hard-drive for him to which they said no the box isn't mine to tamper with, which suggests that the box isn't owned as you should be allowed do what you wish with something which is yours? He's going to cancel this evening if they don't replace the box & probably move to UPC (Not available where we are by cable only aerial). Sky are an awful company to deal with and only seem to be interested in new customers, not people who have been subscribing to their services for nearly 20 years. Sky equipment isn't expensive to manufacture as you pointed out, I read an article on it a couple of years ago which said that, including shipping from the far east, it costs sky around 25 euros to make each box.

steveon

Whoever told u not to tamper with the box done so perhaps to ensure you didn't electrify yourself etc, i have opened countless boxes and replaced hard-drives. The equipment becomes yours after 12 months, if you decide to cancel your account after that time no1 will come looking for boxes back.

Dunnie1982

steveon wrote: »

Whoever told u not to tamper with the box done so perhaps to ensure you didn't electrify yourself etc, i have opened countless boxes and replaced hard-drives. The equipment becomes yours after 12 months, if you decide to cancel your account after that time no1 will come looking for boxes back.

I'll take your word for it, but if the old box was ours then why did the Sky engineer take it away, I asked him could I keep it and he said no? I would have had no problem changing the hard-drive myself.

steveon

Dunnie1982 wrote: »

I'll take your word for it, but if the old box was ours then why did the Sky engineer take it away, I asked him could I keep it and he said no? I would have had no problem changing the hard-drive myself.

He took it away to refurbish it and give it onto the next customer I would imagine. And then gave you a free replacement, I agree that it should be of working order, the biggest problem with refurb boxes in my opinion is that they are always badly packaged and could be lying around in enginners van for ages before being installed.

Jon_459

Jon_459 wrote: »

My main box is HD and I had one of the older SKY+ in another room which I rarely use. A couple of months ago I found it wouldn't record or pause and when I rang SKY they said they'd send out an engineer at a cost of €100 to look at it .. no guarantees. I declined.

Then last weekend I checked it again... still wouldn't work so I rang SKY, told them the problem and that I was thinking of cancelling multi-room. I asked them what they could do for me and they offered me a new HD box including free installation. It's due next Monday - here's hoping !!

New Amstrad HD box delivered and installed yesterday... no charge

Liameter

Obsolete Sky+ Digiboxes are listed here:
http://sam-radford.me.uk/skyplus.htm

Sky will send an Installer not an "engineer". (Very few Sky Installers have an engineering qualification. They receive the bare minimum training on ladder safety, installing cables and phone lines and operating the Digibox.) So don't expect too much.