# Sky HD



## Kelmar (24 May 2006)

Does anyone know if Sky HD is available in Ireland yet?  If so how much does it cost?


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## roxy (24 May 2006)

Its says its €449 on its website with just 'coming soon' as to when its available.

www.sky.com

HTH


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## Alex (30 May 2006)

i'd say that €449 will come down a good bit in time just like sky+ did. i don't know when sky hd will be available myself.


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## redo (30 May 2006)

I got it 9am last monday. It's gggggggggrrrrrreat


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## Alex (30 May 2006)

is there a big difference when compared with normal sky digital?


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## redo (30 May 2006)

I have been a sky customer for around 6 years.  The old sky box was an early panasonic model and very slow when using the EPG.  I never really though it was bad PQ until the new one.

I really noticed the difference watching the "Extraordinary league of gentlemen" last week on RTE, also "Magic roundabout" (was not using drugs but feeding baby) on Sky Movies HD.  All this on a 100hmz sony 32' CRT.  Will probably wait until after xmas to get HD LCD.  Colours and lens flares seems to be very pronounced.


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## redo (30 May 2006)

.......Just waiting for Babestation HD


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## Ron Burgundy (30 May 2006)

dont know if i'd pay 449 for about how many 8 channels in hd ????


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## Leo (30 May 2006)

redo said:
			
		

> I really noticed the difference watching the "Extraordinary league of gentlemen" last week on RTE...


 
RTE isn't broadcasting in HD yet (and don't hold your breath), so any pq difference you noticed was down to the new box, and not HD Vs SD.

Currently available in HD are Sky One, Sports One, Movies 9 & 10, Box Office, Artsworld, National Geographic and Discovery. BBC is listed on Sky.com, but not in the EPG yet. At that, not all content on these channels will be HD, at the moment, most of it is not.

Think I'll wait for a little more content before splashing out. €450 for the box plus €15 a month is a little too much for the above few channels.


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## redo (30 May 2006)

Leo said:
			
		

> RTE isn't broadcasting in HD yet (and don't hold your breath), so any pq difference you noticed was down to the new box, and not HD Vs SD.
> 
> Currently available in HD are Sky One, Sports One, Movies 9 & 10, Box Office, Artsworld, National Geographic and Discovery. BBC is listed on Sky.com, but not in the EPG yet. At that, not all content on these channels will be HD, at the moment, most of it is not.
> 
> Think I'll wait for a little more content before splashing out. €450 for the box plus €15 a month is a little too much for the above few channels.


Yes correct.  The new HD box gives DVD PQ on CRT than 6 year old box.   I recently moved house and wanted a new sky box for faster EPG.  I was going to get the Sky+ with the other box multi room. (can't remember the upgrade cost) but at the last minute, decided to get the HD instead.


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## Ron Burgundy (2 Jun 2006)

jusr wondering if you pay much extra per month, we are looking at getting sky + when we get our house finished ????


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## redo (2 Jun 2006)

Not too sure, It costs ~64 euro for all the movies and sports (Ryder Cup time).  I do remember one of the sky agents saying that if you subscribe to one of the premium packages (moveis or sport) it's free.


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## Leo (2 Jun 2006)

redo said:
			
		

> Not too sure, It costs ~64 euro for all the movies and sports (Ryder Cup time). I do remember one of the sky agents saying that if you subscribe to one of the premium packages (moveis or sport) it's free.


 
Yep, free with one premium package, otherwise it's €15 a month.


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## Ron Burgundy (3 Jun 2006)

sorry for the questions, but does the hd box do sky plus as well or would i have to get a sky plus box for that. we indend having two boxes and i'd like hd and plus in the cinema room


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## redo (3 Jun 2006)

The new HD box has the plus features built in (has hard disk)


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## redo (3 Jun 2006)

The HD box has a digital optical output connection if you have an AV 5.1 Receiver also.


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## Ron Burgundy (3 Jun 2006)

redo said:
			
		

> The HD box has a digital optical output connection if you have an AV 5.1 Receiver also.


 
which i do


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## MonsieurBond (14 Jun 2006)

redo said:
			
		

> I have been a sky customer for around 6 years.  The old sky box was an early panasonic model and very slow when using the EPG.  I never really though it was bad PQ until the new one.
> 
> I really noticed the difference watching the "Extraordinary league of gentlemen" last week on RTE, also "Magic roundabout" (was not using drugs but feeding baby) on Sky Movies HD.  All this on a 100hmz sony 32' CRT.  Will probably wait until after xmas to get HD LCD.  Colours and lens flares seems to be very pronounced.



Sorry to burst your bubble, but there is little advantage in paying for a Sky HD box if you don't have a HD TV. You will only receive a Standard Def image, obviously.


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## redo (15 Jun 2006)

MonsieurBond said:
			
		

> Sorry to burst your bubble, but there is little advantage in paying for a Sky HD box if you don't have a HD TV. You will only receive a Standard Def image, obviously.


Yes, standard 567 lines (whatever it is).  However the colour and surround sound is tops.  Also the sky plus feature.


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## Leo (15 Jun 2006)

Wouldn't it just be cheaper to get a Sky+ box? Identical picture quality on an SD TV, also has the 5.1 digital audio out and all the same plus features.


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## redo (15 Jun 2006)

Leo said:
			
		

> Wouldn't it just be cheaper to get a Sky+ box? Identical picture quality on an SD TV, also has the 5.1 digital audio out and all the same plus features.


As per pervious posts, I had a 6 year old box.  I moved house and needed a new dish installation.  I was told I have to keep my old box or upgrade to multiroom with a new sky+ box.  

Sky HD was due to be comming out at that stage in 4 1/2 weeks.  Being a gadget freak, I knew I would kick myself if I didn't get the HD.  Plus it gives me more ammo come xmas to argue with wife "we NEED a HD to get any benefit".  So in effect, I leapfrogged the Sky+.  I not saying Sky HD is better than Sky+, just that it is far far better than what I came from.


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## redo (15 Jun 2006)

Leo said:
			
		

> Wouldn't it just be cheaper to get a Sky+ box? Identical picture quality on an SD TV, also has the 5.1 digital audio out and all the same plus features.


 Yes


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## Leo (15 Jun 2006)

OK, I get you! You may be able to work something out with Sky where you drop the HD subscription until you get a HD TV, should save you €15 a month. Though you're probably tied in to a minimum term.


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## redo (15 Jun 2006)

HD subcription is free if you take a premium package (sports, movies).  I have heard that the Ryder Cup will be broadcast in HD. yummy.

EDIT (I think)


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## askalot (15 Jun 2006)

redo said:
			
		

> I really noticed the difference watching the "Extraordinary league of gentlemen" last week on RTE, also "Magic roundabout" (was not using drugs but feeding baby) on Sky Movies HD.


 
Wow. If it managed to make a turkey like The Extraordinary League of Gentlemen worth watching it must be magic - or maybe you were on drugs after all!


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## MonsieurBond (15 Jun 2006)

redo said:
			
		

> As per pervious posts, I had a 6 year old box.  I moved house and needed a new dish installation.  I was told I have to keep my old box or upgrade to multiroom with a new sky+ box.
> 
> Sky HD was due to be comming out at that stage in 4 1/2 weeks.  Being a gadget freak, I knew I would kick myself if I didn't get the HD.  Plus it gives me more ammo come xmas to argue with wife "we NEED a HD to get any benefit".  So in effect, I leapfrogged the Sky+.  I not saying Sky HD is better than Sky+, just that it is far far better than what I came from.


What pervy posts? Did I miss something? 

Yeah, I kind of guessed that future-proofing or WAF or both was the reason you got the HD box first, but couldn't resist the HD on SD jab.  (And please, no "Is my HD Hardware compatible with your SD Software"-type jokes.)


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## redo (16 Jun 2006)

Oh look, over there -->


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## Leo (16 Jun 2006)

redo said:
			
		

> HD subcription is free if you take a premium package (sports, movies). I have heard that the Ryder Cup will be broadcast in HD. yummy.
> 
> EDIT (I think)


 
Sky+ is free if you have a premium package, HD is €15 extra regardless. Full details on [broken link removed]


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## tap (16 Jun 2006)

hi guys. have been looking into getting a hd ready tv myself. what does EPG stand for?


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## redo (16 Jun 2006)

On screen navigation menu system


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## tap (16 Jun 2006)

thanx redo


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## MonsieurBond (26 Jun 2006)

*HD on NTL: or Digitial Terrestrial TV in Ireland?*

There is a short but interesting thread over on boards.ie about HDTV on NTL: and DTT in Ireland. Would be nice to see some competition to Sky in order to keep costs down...


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## Technologist (26 Jun 2006)

There's an incorrect quote that says BBC HD is only available on $ky.

That's not true. New generation MPEG-4 DVBS2 receivers such as the Humax HDCI 2000 will pick it up FTA.

As to NTL doing HD in Ireland, I'd say pigs will fly first. They're barely able to provide acceptable quality on SD. NTL needs competition (from DTT) to pull its socks up.


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## MonsieurBond (27 Jun 2006)

Technologist said:
			
		

> There's an incorrect quote that says BBC HD is only available on $ky.
> 
> That's not true. New generation MPEG-4 DVBS2 receivers such as the Humax HDCI 2000 will pick it up FTA.



Yes, this was pointed out in the thread.  A pity we won't be able to pick this up over here. 



			
				Technologist said:
			
		

> As to NTL doing HD in Ireland, I'd say pigs will fly first. They're barely able to provide acceptable quality on SD. NTL needs competition (from DTT) to pull its socks up.



Well, UPC (who now own both NTL and Chorus) have announced that $200M is to be spent replacing all coaxial trunk with fibre and upgrading all cable into homes with cable capable of carrying signals up to 850 MHz, in order to carry multi-channel cable and 30 Mbit/s internet concurrently (Source: wikipedia)

They should be able to put HD channels over this. 

However, it may be too little too late - they have lost a huge number of customers to Sky already.

Plus, your point about competition is well taken - with no other cable operators to compete with, UPC can continue to charge high prices and provide poor service.


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## redo (27 Jun 2006)

Yes NTL SD quality is stomach churning.


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## dam099 (27 Jun 2006)

MonsieurBond said:
			
		

> Well, UPC (who now own both NTL and Chorus) have announced that $200M is to be spent replacing all coaxial trunk with fibre and upgrading all cable into homes with cable capable of carrying signals up to 850 MHz, in order to carry multi-channel cable and 30 Mbit/s internet concurrently (Source: wikipedia)
> 
> They should be able to put HD channels over this.


 
An upgrade of this magnitude sounds like it could take a few years, (though they may perhaps roll out the services incrementally by area as they are completed?).


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## Sunster (30 Jun 2006)

Anyone there managed to get any special deals with the Sky people when taking on Sky HD?


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## Sunster (6 Jul 2006)

Now that Sky HD is available across Ireland, I'm interested to know if anyone with Sky HD has had any problems with the service since signing on?
I note there apppears to be some teething issues with the UK service and was wondering if anyone in Ireland had experienced any or if it's been plain sailing


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## redo (6 Jul 2006)

Sunster said:
			
		

> Now that Sky HD is available across Ireland, I'm interested to know if anyone with Sky HD has had any problems with the service since signing on?
> I note there apppears to be some teething issues with the UK service and was wondering if anyone in Ireland had experienced any or if it's been plain sailing


Yes I had some problems at the start.  It took around 4-5 days for the HD channels and sports to come online.  Mainly due to Sky client registration software not being able to upgrade non Sky+ customers I think.  It is all sorted now


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## Sunster (8 Jul 2006)

Are we able to get BBC HD channels on the package here in ireland?


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## redo (8 Jul 2006)

Sunster said:
			
		

> Are we able to get BBC HD channels on the package here in ireland?


I don't think so.  However, one can get the BBC HD preview channel pretty easy.  It shows (currently) World cup and Planet earth.  You have to manually add it via the services menu.  You can search www.digitalspy.co.uk for more details.


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## Sunster (9 Jul 2006)

Were you able to watch wimbledon on HD? WDid you have to set the channel yourself? Was this easy to do?


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## redo (9 Jul 2006)

Yes


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## Sunster (11 Jul 2006)

Tell me this, can you get Sky without a phone line?


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## Alan Moore (11 Jul 2006)

"Tell me this, can you get Sky without a phone line?"
Not, through Sky and I'm not aware of anyway around it.

Just a point on SKY HD. I ordered same before the world cup and was told it would be Sept 5th before delivery. They have just rung to move the date forward a month. Either demand is not what they expected or the boxes are coming through quicker than expected.

Seen England v Portugal game on a friend who has HD in. Picture quality is superb. I'm always amazed though. You walk into any TV shop. They are all selling HD TV's put not one has a HD feed so you can appreciate the picture.


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## Leo (12 Jul 2006)

Hi Sunster,

Please respect the  and do not duplicate posts.
Leo


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## sonnyikea (12 Jul 2006)

Sunster said:
			
		

> Tell me this, can you get Sky without a phone line?


 
For standard Sky in the UK if you buy all the equipment yourself without availing of their free/discounted equipment offers and install it yourself or through an independent installer then you don't need a phone line connected. You do have to pay a one off connection fee of £25 though.

I would imagine the same can be done here. For HD I have no idea what the situation with the phoneline is.


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## Ron Burgundy (18 Jul 2006)

according to sky you pay €15 per month for HD regardless of the package you are on. there is also a long waiting list and the end of Aug is the earliest they can do it they say.

here is an example of how much sky can cost per month.


Highest Package..................64.50

HD....................................15.00

Multi Room.........................15.00

thats almost 100 a month and if you go for HD in the second room you'll pay 1000 for 2 boxes and 30 a month to recieve 6 stations in HD


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