Replacement for analogue

banchang

Now that analogue has been switched off I need to find an alternative which gives me Irish channels and UK channels if possible.

I would like to avoid putting up an external aerial.

I'm not familiar with this tech so advice appreciated on what specific kit I would need to buy. I don't have a smart TV.

Thanks

caff

Settop box something like this https://www.did.ie/saorview-set-top-boxes

And a digital aerial like this https://m.argos.ie/static/Product/partNumber/1074815/Trail/searchtext%3EAerial.htm

Digifriendly

Excuse my ignorance but wasn't analogue switched off in 2012 when everything went digital?

Johnboy1951

Digifriendly wrote: »

Excuse my ignorance but wasn't analogue switched off in 2012 when everything went digital?

Some had Analogue channels through Virgin Media cable connections long after that (maybe still do?).

winston_1

caff wrote: »

Settop box something like this https://www.did.ie/saorview-set-top-boxes

And a digital aerial like this https://m.argos.ie/static/Product/partNumber/1074815/Trail/searchtext%3EAerial.htm

NO such thing as a digital aerial.

Why do you think that grotty Argos thing will work when you have no idea of the OPs location or distance to local transmitter?

OP for UK channels you will need a satellite box and a dish (which is a special form of external aerial), no way round it, unless you live near to the border when you might get Freeview (with an external aerial).

Johnboy1951

The alternative to erection of aerial/dish is to pay for IPTV from one of the providers.

caff

winston_1 wrote: »

NO such thing as a digital aerial.

Why do you think that grotty Argos thing will work when you have no idea of the OPs location or distance to local transmitter?

OP for UK channels you will need a satellite box and a dish (which is a special form of external aerial), no way round it, unless you live near to the border when you might get Freeview (with an external aerial).

Easier to say digital aerial than to try explain the need for uhf and vhf or that old rabbit ears may not work.

No I have no idea where they are but they said they don't want an outdoor one so linked to the cheapest aerial instead of a 100+ euro amplifier one that may not work for them either

Fogmatic

No idea what your budget is, but yes, if you're somewhere near the border you might be able to get a Freeview signal, though with an external aerial (unless in the loft might do - I don't know). Quickest way to find out if there's a chance is probably to ask some neighbours and/or your nearest TV supplier. (In marginal areas it might need someone with a signal testing gizmo, as it can vary from house to house.

banchang

winston_1 wrote: »

NO such thing as a digital aerial.

Why do you think that grotty Argos thing will work when you have no idea of the OPs location or distance to local transmitter?

OP for UK channels you will need a satellite box and a dish (which is a special form of external aerial), no way round it, unless you live near to the border when you might get Freeview (with an external aerial).

Thanks for all the replies - much appreciated.

In terms of budget, VM were looking for 50 installation & 60 for new digital set top box, plus 10/month extra for the use of the digital box, so I guess anything under 250 will make a business case vs going with the VM digital offer.

This was a second TV in the house on VM analogue which was switched off in May.

I'm in Clontarf Dublin. Does this change anything ?

coylemj

banchang wrote: »

In terms of budget, VM were looking for 50 installation & 60 for new digital set top box, plus 10/month extra for the use of the digital box, so I guess anything under 250 will make a business case vs going with the VM digital offer.

You had the analog signal which means the TV point in the bedroom is connected to the VM network. That means there will be no physical 'installation' required. And I'm fairly sure that if you tell them that you can do a user setup, they will ship the box to you for no charge. The box comes with all of the necessary gear, including a HDMI cable to connect to the TV. You will need an additional power point as the digital box comes with a DC power unit similar to a phone charger.

The second (or subsequent) digital box in the house (and which can not record) is called 'multiroom'. I would stick to that term when dealing with VM, in case you're talking to their call centre in some remote part of the world. So don't say 'digital set top box', it's 'multiroom'.

Fogmatic

A bit of a long shot, but I remembered something on Boards once about some people in the Dublin area being able to receive Freeview from a Welsh transmitter (depending on the local lie of the land), including someone with their aerial in the attic. A quick search found threads on the subject. These more or less random samples from the first page might be of interest;
https://www.boards.ie/...thread.php?p=3047985
https://www.boards.ie/...thread.php?p=3337756

My search results were pretty old, and the help available on the web has no doubt updated and improved since that big wave of early adopters of Freeview. I'd suggest starting a separate topic on the specific thing (mentioning your location), and maybe also posting a link to it in the Dublin forum.

Worth a try (you might just be lucky!).

coylemj

Fogmatic wrote: »

A bit of a long shot, but I remembered something on Boards once about some people in the Dublin area being able to receive Freeview from a Welsh transmitter (depending on the local lie of the land), including someone with their aerial in the attic.

Plenty of people in Dublin can pickup Freeview from NI and people along the east coast from Dublin to Rosslare can pickup Wales. You need to be at a high elevation and the best check is to look at your neighbours' houses to see if any of them has a big aerial pointing north or east.

Fogmatic wrote: »

A quick search found threads on the subject. These more or less random samples from the first page might be of interest;
https://www.boards.ie/...thread.php?p=3047985
https://www.boards.ie/...thread.php?p=3337756

My search results were pretty old....

So old that they no longer work..... 'The page you requested does not exist on the server.'

Fogmatic

coylemj wrote: »

So old that they no longer work..... 'The page you requested does not exist on the server.'

Sorry - forgot to check I'd done it correctly (unless maybe it's a time limit on links by design?)

decor58

Fogmatic wrote:

My search results were pretty old, and the help available on the web has no doubt updated and improved since that big wave of early adopters of Freeview. I'd suggest starting a separate topic on the specific thing (mentioning your location), and maybe also posting a link to it in the Dublin forum.

I am in Bray (Vevey) and I have tried a number of times to get freeview without success, though during good weather, like today, I can get a signal but it's gone by evening, Bray head gets in the way. An aunt in Greystones, Wingates, and my in-laws in Wicklow town get a signal all year round, but do not get the full range of channels.

coylemj

Fogmatic wrote: »

Sorry - forgot to check I'd done it correctly (unless maybe it's a time limit on links by design?)

No, I can see where you went wrong. On boards, when someone posts a long web address, the system abbreviates it and replaces some of the URL (the web address) with a series of periods in the middle for display though the full link is there and will work when you click it. You copied and pasted two such links so the URLs were unusable.

Where you see periods in a URL in an existing post and want to paste that link into a new post, you need to right-click the link and select 'copy link' (or similar) from the popup menu, then paste that link into the text of the post you are creating. For multiple links, you'll probably need to open a notepad session to hold the text, including the text of your post, then copy and past all of it into your new post.

Fogmatic

Thank you for that, coylemj. I tested it with the 'copy link' equivalent in my Android phone and it worked.

I did compose the posting in a separate text editor. Always have except for the briefest ones - it's got round all sorts of problems (from site timeouts when I was on dialup to premature posting on a little phone screen!). I just forgot to test the links this time.

My phone didn't come with a text editor (minimal preloaded stuff was part of its charm!), and I use Google Docs (just not bothering with any formatting for forums).

I didn't mean to go so off-topic (though it should least steill be searchable)!