Walker saorview & FTA TVs?

paultf

Someone on boards mentioned before about Walker TVs having FTA in the future.

I have been keeping any eye out as I want to get a setup for my elderly parents that gave the Irish and UK channels through 1 remote on a new HD TV. All they need is a basic enough 32" - cheap as possible - no need for a Smart TV, internet, etc.

I got this reponse from Walker:-

"The current range has PVR and Saoriview in the next couple of months the WP3270LCD & WP4270LCD will have FTA as well"

Are Walker TVs reliable?
Do you think a more well known brand will provide this type of TV for the irish market?
Will there ever be a TV for Saorview & FTA with a bulit-in PVR?

SalteeDog

Primary advantage of Walker is that they are Irish and hence are more likely than other suppliers to provide solutions specifically for the Irish market. Generally speaking our market is too small for the big players to offer custom firmware for Ireland.

paultf

Spotted this on Powercity's website:-

Walker 32" LCD (Model : WP3270LCD) Saorview and Satellite TV €369.95

Due mid-August - can order now

http://www.powercity.ie/?par=10-12-WP3270&pages=1&prod=WP3270&brands=WALKER&image=

hibble

SalteeDog wrote: »

Primary advantage of Walker is that they are Irish and hence are more likely than other suppliers to provide solutions specifically for the Irish market. Generally speaking our market is too small for the big players to offer custom firmware for Ireland.

In my experience this is not the case. Their customer service is non- existant, I mailed them because the EPG on my TV kept dissapearing and to ask if thier was any updates to improve the painfully slow text didn't hear anything back.

If you want a cheap telly with text that takes an age, just passable sound and picture, that's great for the kitchen or bedroom then buy one. You won't get the back up you would expect from a "local" company though.

The Cush

hibble wrote: »

If you want a cheap telly with text that takes an age, just passable sound and picture, that's great for the kitchen or bedroom then buy one. You won't get the back up you would expect from a "local" company though.

Also I'll add, my brother-in-law has a Walker TV and because of his hearing impairment has to use subtitles but if he want to use Aertel he has to switch off subtitles. Haven't seen this happen on any TV from one of the big manufacturers. He's planning to move the TV to the bedroom.

SalteeDog

Just to say, I'm not a cheerleader for Walker - I don't own any of their products but I will say I believe the business economics of making products specifically tailored for an Irish market of 1.5 million TV watching households is difficult to say the least. Gross margins on TVs are probably around the 20% mark - maybe €100 for every TV sold - so that doesn't leave a lot of money to invest in both firmware development and customer support given the likely volumes involved. Walker are competing as an Irish niche player against big boys like LG, Samsung and Panasonic, and their overheads are amortized against a much much lower volume of sales. To me it looks a tough business.

recyclebin

I have two Walker TVs. Both are Saorview approved.

I bought the 26" about 20 months ago for €300 and it is a good tv. The EPG and digital text load quickly and reliably.

I bought the 32" about 7 months ago as a present for my parents. This is an okay TV once you don't use the digital text. The text takes an absolute age to load. The remote controlle on the 32" has a lot cheaper feel to it compared to the nice sturdy one I got with the 26".

I bought the 32" one as I thought it would be as good as the 26" one but sadly that was not the case.

I regret not getting the lad in the store to show me the remote so I could have tested it and the text out before I paid for it.

norbert64

So any further developments on these makes/models.

http://www.powercity.ie/?par=10-13-WP4270

Walker as a brand doesn't instill great confidence in me of course, but 4 x hdmi, 2 x scart, saorview and fta, with full hd, all for €450.........?

Even the best value, big brand lcd tvs which may be full HD, seem to only come with a bare minimum 2 x hdmi.

JonathonS

If you want a satellite TV and are on a budget then go for Walker. Picture and sound will not be as good as Samsung and Panasonic, and those 2 have the advantage that they have Freesat tuners. Have a look at the Samsung 6300 models (have 3 HDMI) and compare with Walker (4 HDMI).