Freeview and Saorview in south Dublin?

Kwekubo

I know these posts have become quite common here recently, but please do bear with me, not my area of expertise.

My parents live in south Dublin, near Dún Laoghaire. The house currently receives UK and Irish channels via an analogue aerial. The house also used to have a Sky Digital subscription, and all the kit for this is still in place (satellite dish etc).

Basically, my dad wants to be able to watch Sky News again, and is finally making enquiries to renew the Sky subscription (having been forced into action by the digital switchover). But I see that Sky News is included in Freeview; since this is the only thing he is subscribing to Sky for, I'm just wondering whether it would be feasible to get Freeview where we are? Or is Freesat an option? (I can't tell whether the latter includes Sky News.)

Mullaghteelin

Sky News is free to air on satellite and will be receivable on any satellite receiver connected to that old dish, including an old sky box without subscription.
Sky News is unlikely to be available on Freeview in Dun Laoghaire. The analogue uk tv you can receive there is likely to be from Kilkeel, and Kilkeel will not carry Sky News after switchover. A smaller range of Freeview and Saorview channels may be possible on a Saorview box connected to that aerial.

Kwekubo

Thanks for that. So Saorview for all the Irish channels, plus Freesat for most of the UK channels, plus free-to-air Sky News would probably be the best long-term solution then?

Is a special decoder card needed to unlock Sky News on the Sky box? Just wondering as my dad continued to receive Sky News through it for months after he ended the Sky subscription.

sesswhat

Kwekubo wrote: »

The house also used to have a Sky Digital subscription, and all the kit for this is still in place (satellite dish etc).

If the old sky box is working, take the card out and turn it on. Then use this guide.

On branded Freesat boxes, Sky news has to be tuned in separately in non-Freesat mode.

coylemj

Kwekubo wrote: »

My parents live in south Dublin, near Dún Laoghaire. The house currently receives UK and Irish channels via an analogue aerial.

Just in case you fall for the typical scam - the aerial is not analogue, its a UHF aerial so don't listen to anyone who tries to sell you a 'digital' aerial. The distinction between analogue and digital is where the signal is decoded, not at the aerial. Your parents' aerial is capable of receiving both analogue and digital TV because if it can currently pick up UK analogue TV, it has to be a UHF aerial.

If they receive the Freesat channels with their dish, they will still need the aerial to receive the Saorview channels, they shouldn't need a new aerial. If you subscribe to Sky you get the Irish channels as part of the subscription, if you stop paying Sky and go Freesat, you need an aerial to pick up the Irish channels as they are not available on Freesat.

coylemj

Kwekubo wrote: »

But I see that Sky News is included in Freeview; since this is the only thing he is subscribing to Sky for, I'm just wondering whether it would be feasible to get Freeview where we are? Or is Freesat an option? (I can't tell whether the latter includes Sky News.)

Sky News is not listed in the Freesat channels but I believe you can get it with a manual process which I'm sure someone will describe for you.

http://www.freesat.co.uk/what-you-get/our-channels

Sam Russell

No, SkyNews is not a Freesat channel, but it is free to air. If that is what you want, just get a combidox and this will receive the Saorview channels (from an aerial) and all the FTA satellite channels (from the dish).