Telephone Router for Sky Multiroom?

Lemlin

I had a Sky engineer call out the other day and I was speaking to him about getting Sky multiroom. At present, our Sky isn't connected to the phone but he was telling me that if I get multi room it will have to be. The only problem with that is that, while our sitting room does have a telephone connection point beside the TV, our sun room does not.

Its only a newly built house so I don't want a Sky engineer coming in drilling all over the place so the engineer said that I could buy a "telephone router" which would negate the need for running a cable from the phone line over to the sun room. Is this correct?

If it is, what sort of "telephone router" should I be looking for? The engineer thought most electrical shops would have them but I'm just wondering is there any special type/brand that I should look for. He reckoned it would cost about €30.

blindside88

I was told the same, have him set it up without the telephone line and tell him you'll get a router over the weekend, he'll connect a telephone wire to it at first to update the box and then take away, after this there is no need for a telephone line or router, keep the 30 quid in your pocket and say nothing, I had mine done over a month ago and my dad has his over a year, still no telephone line or router in either

PogMoThoin

blindside88 wrote: »

I was told the same, have him set it up without the telephone line and tell him you'll get a router over the weekend, he'll connect a telephone wire to it at first to update the box and then take away, after this there is no need for a telephone line or router, keep the 30 quid in your pocket and say nothing, I had mine done over a month ago and my dad has his over a year, still no telephone line or router in either

Not good advise. For multiroom they have the right to charge you for 2 separate connections if you don't keep the phone line connected. It's in the small print.

This is what's needed: http://www.amazon.co.uk/RTX-WTA-111-Wireless-Phone/dp/B000NJQHL4

blindside88

Bit how do they know if a telephone line is connected?

gavindublin

Depends on the engineer. And if a supervisor comes to inspect, or sky do a customer service call, he's gets it in the neck. And the price of the job is taken back at a later time. Wireless ones are 2 plugs. Lead from phone into plugged in plug at socket, other receiver plugged in beside sky box and telephone wire from plug into sky box. It's neat and tidy

gavindublin

And they do something called a call back. Sky "ring" your box, and if the box doesn't answer, they ring the house asking why

PogMoThoin

blindside88 wrote: »

Bit how do they know if a telephone line is connected?

The box sends a pulse down the line every so often. They know when it's not connected. You MUST have all boxes connected for multiroom.

Lemlin

I'd prefer to keep it legit and get a router. To get back to the crux of the thread, what I'm asking is will it definitely work?

I already have a broadband router beside where my telephone is. The two wouldn't cause connection issues or anything?

Jesus Shaves

PogMoThoin wrote: »

You MUST have all boxes connected for multiroom.

Sorry but this is bull, you must at the start, and then periodically connect to keep sky happy, i know people who haven't connected their second box to a phoneline for years.

PogMoThoin

darokane wrote: »

Sorry but this is bull, you must at the start, and then periodically connect to keep sky happy, i know people who haven't connected their second box to a phoneline for years.

Sorry, read the terms and conditions. It's unwise to be recommending people do this, especially when the engineer will offer to run a cable and otherwise the equipment is not that expensive. Sky have the right to charge your account for 2 separate connections. And they do, I've seen cases where it has happened, they ring first to make you aware of it not being connected then they charge if you don't keep it connected. Remember, there is no set figure on a direct debit, they can increase it as they please without your input.

PogMoThoin

Lemlin wrote: »

I'd prefer to keep it legit and get a router. To get back to the crux of the thread, what I'm asking is will it definitely work?

I already have a broadband router beside where my telephone is. The two wouldn't cause connection issues or anything?

This isn't wireless, it goes over your electrical circuitry. My own experience of homeplugs are that they can be very hit or miss for data, where latency makes a difference, but they should be ok for the likes of this that has very little traffic. Homeplugs depend on the quality of the cabling in your house, if it's a new house you should be fine. I've had issues in old houses with old cabling and fuse boards.

Lemlin

PogMoThoin wrote: »

This isn't wireless, it goes over your electrical circuitry. My own experience of homeplugs are that they can be very hit or miss for data, where latency makes a difference, but they should be ok for the likes of this that has very little traffic. Homeplugs depend on the quality of the cabling in your house, if it's a new house you should be fine. I've had issues in old houses with old cabling and fuse boards.

Is there any form of actual wireless phone router that I can get then or is the item shown above from Amazon what the engineer actually meant?

PogMoThoin

Lemlin wrote: »

Is there any form of actual wireless phone router that I can get then or is the item shown above from Amazon what the engineer actually meant?

No, this is most likely what he meant. He knows of the devices but knows little about them. Data homeplugs are not routing devices, they do not route, they are bridges that use your electrical circuitry, they behave no different to a cable.

muffler

darokane wrote: »

Sorry but this is bull, you must at the start

and for the first 12 months.

darokane wrote: »

and then periodically connect to keep sky happy

Its called honouring the contract which clearly states that the box must be connected at all times. Nothing at all to do with keeping anyone happy.

darokane wrote: »

i know people who haven't connected their second box to a phoneline for years.

Of course you do. After 1 year they dont have to keep the line connected to the box.

PogMoThoin

muffler wrote: »

Of course you do. After 1 year they dont have to keep the line connected to the box.

For a single box yes, when your contract is up you don't need to anymore, but for multiroom you always need all boxes connected. It's their way of ensuring both boxes are in the same house

muffler

PogMoThoin wrote: »

For a single box yes, when your contract is up you don't need to anymore, but for multiroom you always need all boxes connected. It's their way of ensuring both boxes are in the same house

Is it not a case of the line not being an issue if there is no "interruption" of your sub? What I mean is once the 12 months is up and you dont altar your package or cancel or change boxes etc and continue paying the monthly mutiroom sub then they dont look for the line to be connected to the second box?

PogMoThoin

muffler wrote: »

Is it not a case of the line not being an issue if there is no "interruption" of your sub? What I mean is once the 12 months is up and you dont altar your package or cancel or change boxes etc and continue paying the monthly mutiroom sub then they dont look for the line to be connected to the second box?

Not much they can do if you're out of contract. They will always look for all boxes to be connected for multiroom, if you're out of contract they will do their best to get you sign to a new one. They won't just forget you've a multiroom package.

Jesus Shaves

muffler wrote: »

and for the first 12 months.
Its called honouring the contract which clearly states that the box must be connected at all times. Nothing at all to do with keeping anyone happy.

sigh, If you are fooled by Sky then by all means keep your second box connected to a phoneline

steveon

Get the wireless phone senders made by phonejak had 100% success rate with these.

http://www.tvtrade.ie/wireless-phone-extender-base-and-extension-unit.html

Video to show how to connect it.,

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g6aI6ZXA81Y

muffler

darokane wrote: »

sigh, If you are fooled by Sky then by all means keep your second box connected to a phoneline

Lets be clear here. There's a legal and binding contract entered into so are you advising people to break that contract?

PogMoThoin

steveon wrote: »

Get the wireless phone senders made by phonejak had 100% success rate with these.

http://www.tvtrade.ie/wireless-phone-extender-base-and-extension-unit.html

Video to show how to connect it.,

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g6aI6ZXA81Y

I would be very weary of any wireless device you bring into your house, it could end up interfering with your broadband wireless router much like video senders do. The problem is they are regulated very loosely, they cause noise to every channel and do not conform to universal wifi standards. The description doesn't even give any info on what frequency they use, or even a brand name :eek:

steveon

PogMoThoin wrote: »

I would be very weary of any wireless device you bring into your house, it could end up interfering with your broadband wireless router much like video senders do. The problem is they are regulated very loosely, they cause noise to every channel and do not conform to universal wifi standards. The description doesn't even give any info on what frequency they use, or even a brand name :eek:

Wouldnt recommend them if they didnt work...have used them thousands of times where other units failed...there are excellent.

steveon

darokane wrote: »

sigh, If you are fooled by Sky then by all means keep your second box connected to a phoneline

If sky contact ur box and it doesnt get a reply they will send u a letter warning u, second time they will re-warn u...third time u will be charged full price for the second box...so for any1 that is on a high package of say 76 euros could now pay €152....its a stupid rule needing the phoneline but it is what sky want now what u want. Just cause u may have gotten away with it for yrs does not mean u will continue to do so

zg3409

PogMoThoin wrote: »

I would be very weary of any wireless device you bring into your house, it could end up interfering with your broadband wireless router much like video senders do. The problem is they are regulated very loosely, they cause noise to every channel and do not conform to universal wifi standards. The description doesn't even give any info on what frequency they use, or even a brand name :eek:

Most of these units are DECT. This should not interfere with Wifi internet. However DECT is known to interfere with Sky, especially Channel 4 Sky Ireland version, so best to move it a few feet away from the Sky box. Generally they transmit very rarely, but more so during a call which should be only in the middle of the night when they are calling Sky or you press the on-demand button.

But yes Sky installers generally do not use them, prefering to run a phone cable whenever possible.

PogMoThoin

It doesn't say DECT, in fact it doesn't say anything, no info, no brand name, nothing. I'm still weary.

Digital Satellite TV

PogMoThoin wrote: »

It doesn't say DECT, in fact it doesn't say anything, no info, no brand name, nothing. I'm still weary.

just to add a bit of info to the discussion, if in fact the above was related to our own link.

The are made by the following folks http://www.rtx.dk/

As for DECT/possible interference with wifi, I can't recall a single complaint on that front and we would have sold nealry 1500 of these units since we got them and only had a small handful back for genuine failure reasons

The channel four issue on sky is always an issue as folks with cordless phones too near the TV will atest to.

Point taken on the lack of info on the website, we have added initially the info we could find. There is scant info with them to be fair but they work and they're reliable, that's all I know.

Digital Satellite TV

added pic of specs of the wireless phone senders

Digital Satellite TV

coincidentally, we had a guy buy one during the week to try and use with onwave satellite broadband's router to use their phone in a different location. He reported back to us that it works with onwave aswell. Thanks for that Mark.

James__10

Sky are coming out with the 2 new boxes on Wednesday and I think i'm going to have the same problem:o

Our existing sky box is out in the conservatory which is situated off the kitchen . The TV is in the kitchen and we change the channel using the sky eye. Now that we're getting HD we need to connect the box via a HDMI cable and a phone cable. The wireless router and phoneline is in the kitchen beside the tv but the existing sky wires ( which come from the dish outside ) are in the conservatory. So now the Sky man will have to change the wires

Sorry for the vague description. It says on letter we got from sky that we would have to notify sky of any changes and that are charge may incur. How much roughly would we be looking at?

And btw i'm not a wum and there is no way I could ask this sort of question on google.

EURATS

blindside88 wrote: »

I was told the same, have him set it up without the telephone line and tell him you'll get a router over the weekend, he'll connect a telephone wire to it at first to update the box and then take away, after this there is no need for a telephone line or router, keep the 30 quid in your pocket and say nothing, I had mine done over a month ago and my dad has his over a year, still no telephone line or router in either

Had a similar situation, although I just didn't want it hooked up to the phone line. I told sky that I'm away a lot of the time and that when I am, the box is off so won't ping home anyway. Apparently the box pings home at random..once a month

the corpo

Have been thinking of getting multiroom, this is the first I've heard of needing a phone line. We currently don't have any phone line in our house, never bothered.
So, is multiroom not an option for me?

zg3409

the corpo wrote: »

Have been thinking of getting multiroom, this is the first I've heard of needing a phone line. We currently don't have any phone line in our house, never bothered.
So, is multiroom not an option for me?

Officially you would need to pay full price for the 2nd TV. You could get a basic phone service just for the line. Other phone lines which may or may not, UPC in Dublin area seems to work, imagine wimax/digiweb metro line may or may not work, so it does not have to be a landline as such, but it's not available by mobile phone.

Other non multiroom options:

1) Get a Sky eye, both rooms needs to watch the exact same channel, however with a plus box in the main room you can record one channel, while watching one channel.

2) Get a Sky eye and a Saorview TV, more options for who watches what

3) Get a Sky eye, Saorview TV and an old Sky box, more options

4) Get a Sky eye, a Saorview TV and a FreeSAT HD box, most options without monthly charge.

Skerries

darokane wrote: »

Sorry but this is bull, you must at the start, and then periodically connect to keep sky happy, i know people who haven't connected their second box to a phoneline for years.

I'm one of them

uck51js9zml2yt

Ive had sky with multiroom for over a year.
The engineer had to run a cable up to the other room to initialise the box but after that he just told me to plug them in periodically so they can update.

I think Ive done it about 3 or 4 times in 12 months just to allow the box to update.

I've never had an issue with viewing nor have I had any phone calls.

MACHEAD

So long as the box gets to 'call home' periodicaly, Sky know it's being used at the location it's registered to. Nine times out of ten they don't bother checking beyond that. If however, a multi-room box hasn't been able to call home for an extended period, then they will ask questions.