BBCi on an FTA receiver?

Mayo Exile

Is it true that you have to have a Sky Digibox to access BBCi? If so, what are those channels BBCi 1 to BBCi 7 at 12441V on Astra 2B south? (see link http://www.lyngsat.com/28east.html). Also there is BBCi 8 and BBCi 9 at 10847V Astra 2D.

According to the symbols on the lyngsat page they seem to be FTA. Are these the channels you watch programmes like extra snooker coverage that aren't on BBC1 and BBC2 analogue?

DMC

Yes they are. You can watch these on an FTA reciever as normal channels, however, you will not be able to switch commentaries during a football etc, like you can on a Sky box.

But if you are looking for the BBCi Text (Ceefax) or switching between screens on BBC News Interactive, you will need a Sky box.

Mayo Exile

Thanks for that DMC. Hoping to install an FTA system soon. Good news to know about those channels! Hoping to use a Stong 4012 receiver. Anybody know anything about it? Good, bad, troublesome?

mickd

In the press statement for the new BBC/ITV Freesat service mention was made that there will be an FTA receiver with full interactive features available. Currently the software copyright is owned by sky, so i assume they are developing an alternative interactive software.

ro2

Mayo Exile wrote:

Thanks for that DMC. Hoping to install an FTA system soon. Good news to know about those channels! Hoping to use a Stong 4012 receiver. Anybody know anything about it? Good, bad, troublesome?

If you're planning on using it for Sky only I think you'd be better off with a digibox. It'll automatically update the EPG when new channels are added and BBCi will work properly. You could also pick one up with an FTV card on ebay and get ITV, Channel 4/5.

Tony

Mayo Exile wrote:

Thanks for that DMC. Hoping to install an FTA system soon. Good news to know about those channels! Hoping to use a Stong 4012 receiver. Anybody know anything about it? Good, bad, troublesome?

Its a very new receiver so not sure you will get many opinions on it either way.

Tony

ro2 wrote:

If you're planning on using it for Sky only I think you'd be better off with a digibox. It'll automatically update the EPG when new channels are added and BBCi will work properly. You could also pick one up with an FTV card on ebay and get ITV, Channel 4/5.

I agree I think a digibox would be better suited to your needs.

Mayo Exile

Thanks all the advice. I was thinking of an FTA box because of the awkward way you have to keep accessing 'other channels' on a digibox if you were to subscribe to Sky (in ROI) in the future. Plus you can only store a limited number of 'other channels' on a digibox as you seem to lose them if you store over 30. (Is this still true even with newer digiboxes?). All i want is the news channels so i was thinking FTA as the best route for me.

watty

If you going FTA box, consider an 80cm dish and a Motek motor. Increases selection.

NCTV on 15W shows two english language films a day

BBC World on 13E has in Teletext almost all the content of BBCi Text news. Also a better station than BBC News24.

Much sport on 42E, 13E, 19E etc.


But for simplicity of Sky use you can't beat a Digibox. I did have two, one for Ireland and one FTV. The Irish one died.

Also have motorised PalcomDSL4 FTA box and PC with Diseqc 4 way swtich on 28(Sky) , Astra 19, Hotbird 13 and Telstar12 @ 15W.

YOu can get a digibox and add a 2nd one or a FTA box later.

The "interactive" most of time is a waste of time if what you want is to watch TV.

It is slow and irratating compared with real teletext/ceefax, especially on newer TV, PCs and Satellite boxes that can store all the teletext pages.

Once novelty wore of we hardly use interactive at all.

ON a FTA box you can sellect the extra matches and commentry on wimbilton etc. They are just extra TV channels Stream1, Stream2, etc.

watty

For FTA news a motor and FTA box is good.

Add FTA
CNBC, Bloomberg on other satellites, that are encrypted on Sky.
Also good for english news
Sat7 Tunisa Teletext in English pages 500+
DW TV
Nile TV
Ch33 IBA once a day
TRT int once a day
JSTV once a day.
MSNBC feeds on 15W
News feeds evrywhere except sky from 42E to 50W

A sky box can't be motorised.