It is now possible to receive digital television programmes by means of an aerial, cable, satellite dish, phone line or the internet. More choice of channels are available than ever before with channels that specialise in films, music, kids channels, documentaries etc. There are many free channels and subscription channels and now there are even high definition channels.
Free channels are available from Freeview, Skys Freesat and the BBCs and ITVs Freesat and other operators such as Sky Digital, BT Vision, Tiscali, and Virgin Media offer monthly subscription channels.
Television programmes via Freeview
Freeview digital television broadcasts are replacing the normal analogue terrestrial television broadcasts received by an aerial throughout the UK. To receive Freeview you will first of all need to be in an area where it is available and then you will have to have a suitable aerial and either a Freeview set top box or a television with freeView built in. Apart from having to pay the UK television licence Freeview is free of any other charges and offers 48 channels of television and 24 channels of radio.
Up until recently there have been both the old analogue broadcasts and the new digital broadcasts in many areas of the country. The much advertised Digital Switch Over is currently switching off the analogue broadcasts area by area around the UK. This process should be completed during 2012. If you havent already opted to switch to the digital channels you will have to by the time your area switches to digital. You will need either a TV with a freeview tuner or a freeview set top box to use with your existing TV. The digital switch over will affect non digital TVs, Video Recorders and DVD recorders which will need either replacing with freeview equipped equivalents or a set top box connecting to each of them to receive freeview broadcasts. If you choose another method of receiving digital television broadcasts then you will need different equipment to connect to your TV.
The Digital Switch Over might not affect you if you are currently receiving all of your television programmes via Freesat, BT Vision, or Tiscali in which case you wont need to do anything.
Top Up TV
It is possible to add additional subscription channels to the free channels that are available on Freeview with Top Up TV via your aerial. It doesnt require any additional equipment other than the card that slots in to the card slot on your existing PVR set top box. It costs just 9.99 per month without any contract tie in. There is a Movie channel, a sports channel and an on demand channel of programmes that are automatically downloaded to your set top PVR for you to watch at your convenience.
Virgin Medias Cable TV
To receive Virgin Medias Digital TV channels via cable you must first live in an area that can offer this option. You will also have to be willing to at least switch your phone line to Virgin Media to receive a basic 45 channels for free. If you are willing to pay 19.50 per month then over 165 channels are available and there are other cheaper options with less channels. Every television that is connected to cable will have to have a compatible set top box to receive the programmes. So if you have multiple televisions in your house then you will need one for each television at an additional discounted monthly cost.
Virgin media also offer an on demand service where you can access a huge library of programmes and movies some are provided free and some are available on a pay per view basis. Some of the on demand content is in HD.
Sky Digital Television
Sky Digital Television is received by means of a Satellite dish and set top box. It is available on a monthly subscription basis. Unlike Cable TV, Sky Digital is available to virtually every home in the UK as long as the dish can be appropriately fixed and positioned.
If you live in an apartment block or high rise flats then you might not be allowed to have a dish installed. Also some buildings have planning restrictions that dont permit the installation of satellite dishes. Also you may not be able to have satellite TV if there are any physical obstruction such as a building or Trees that prevents the required line of sight.
Every television that you want to connect to Sky Digital will require a suitable set top box connected to a satellite dish. It is possible to connect up to four set top boxes to one satellite dish with a suitable LNB attached however you may still need an additional dish. There will be an additional cost for the supply and installation of each additional set top box and there will be an additional monthly subscription cost for each set top box required. So this could work out to be quite costly.
There is usually a charge for providing and installing the satellite dish and the set top box. Sky packages start from 16.50 per month with a free set top box and 60 for the dish and installation offering over 200 channels. If you opt for all the channels available from Sky you will receive over 630 channels of TV and Radio channels at a cost of 46 per month with an installation charge of 60 for a standard box and 30 for Sky Plus set top box. Sky also offers the widest selection of HD channels at an additional cost of 9.75 per month.
If this isnt enough choice then there is also an On Demand Service known as Sky Anytime for watching a small selection of movies, documentaries and entertainment channels that are stored locally on the Sky Plus set top box. Furthermore Sky Box Office offers some of the latest films On Demand for a small additional charge. There is also an on demand service where you can download films to the hard drive on your PC. You can either view them on your PC or you can copy them on to a DVD to watch on the DVD player that is connected to your TV. Alternatively if you have a Media Centre attached to your television then you can stream the movies directly from your PC to your TV.
Freesat TV
There are two versions of Freesat. One is provided by a joint venture of the BBC and ITV and the other is available from Sky. They both need a satellite dish and a set top box however the BBC and ITV version also has the possibility of being viewed by a Freesat compatible television which the Sky version doesnt have. On both options the service is free once you have paid for the satellite dish, installation and the set top box. If there is already a satellite dish on your house that has spare connections on it then you can save on the cost of the satellite dish and installation. Of course the installation of a satellite dish could be restricted by the problems mentioned in the section above about Sky Digital TV.
High definition channels are available free of monthly subscription on the Freesat from the BBC and ITV. To receive HD you will need to make sure that you buy a HD Freesat set top box.
Freesat set top boxes for the BBC and ITV version are available from 49 and 129 with a Satellite Dish and installation. The standard set top boxes have a standard definition picture and provide over 140 television channels that are free of monthly subscription. The Freesat HD set top boxes on their own start from 129 and about 229 if bought with a dish that is installed. If a Freesat compatible TV is purchased then you will still need the satellite dish but not the set top box.
The Sky Freesat option is available installed with a one off payment of about 75 and offers over 240 free TV channels but there arent any free high definition channels.
BT Vision Television
BT Vision is an on demand service that offers Freeview and on demand TV shows and movies. The content is provided via broadband and requires a BT Home Hub router (which is free to BT broadband customers) which is connected to a phone line and a wireless receiver is connected to the television.
It is possible to either pay for every programme that you view or you can pay a monthly amount for a bundle of programmes each month. If your broadband provider isnt BT then the you will have to pay 29.36 for the set top box and 29.36 for it to be installed. The basic package doesnt have any charges each month you just pay for what you view. BT Vision also offer several different bundles that include 45 channels of Freeview channels, Kids Programmes, Music, Sports and a limited number of Films from a monthly charge of 13.70 to 19.57.
Tiscali Television
Tiscali TV offers a mixture of digital television channels and on demand entertainment, movies and music that are received via an aerial and or phone line. Tiscali TV isn't available in all areas of the country so check with Tiscali for details. There are over 70 channels of digital television and radio channels available and over 1000 on demand movies. Packages start from 19.99 and include 8Mb broadband and phone line rental.
Fetch TV
Fetch TV is a Freeview PVR with a HD home media centre built in that can also download thousands of movies and TV shows via your PC. It has over 48 free channels of Freeview Digital TV and Radio without any subscription, monthly bills or contract tie in. The Fetch set top box interfaces with your computers hard drive to watch movies that you have downloaded to your PC. Fetch TV is available from 129.99 for the set top box.
IP TV and TV On Demand
There are many films and programmes that can be down loaded to your home computer via the internet some of which are in high definition. Some of these are free and some require a small payment. Once down loaded you can then either watch them on your computer or copy them to a DVD disc for playing on your DVD player that is attached to your television. If you have a Media Centre under your television then you can stream the content from your PCs hard drive to your television. Many programmes are available for downloading from Sky, the BBC, ITV and many other channels from all around the world.
Conclusion
The options are almost endless with so many choices. Some of these choices may not be an option but nonetheless the choice is greater than ever before with delivery by Cable, Satellite Dish, Phone Line, Broadband, and Aerial. Whether you are prepared to pay a monthly charge may narrow the options but if you are then you also have to decide if you are prepared to pay extra for HD television broadcasts. IP television offers an interesting possibility but is restricted by our creaking copper cables ability to deliver the content fast enough and reliably enough. To benefit from all of the advantages of Digital Television you will also need a high definition LCD television or Plasma television. - 15615
Free channels are available from Freeview, Skys Freesat and the BBCs and ITVs Freesat and other operators such as Sky Digital, BT Vision, Tiscali, and Virgin Media offer monthly subscription channels.
Television programmes via Freeview
Freeview digital television broadcasts are replacing the normal analogue terrestrial television broadcasts received by an aerial throughout the UK. To receive Freeview you will first of all need to be in an area where it is available and then you will have to have a suitable aerial and either a Freeview set top box or a television with freeView built in. Apart from having to pay the UK television licence Freeview is free of any other charges and offers 48 channels of television and 24 channels of radio.
Up until recently there have been both the old analogue broadcasts and the new digital broadcasts in many areas of the country. The much advertised Digital Switch Over is currently switching off the analogue broadcasts area by area around the UK. This process should be completed during 2012. If you havent already opted to switch to the digital channels you will have to by the time your area switches to digital. You will need either a TV with a freeview tuner or a freeview set top box to use with your existing TV. The digital switch over will affect non digital TVs, Video Recorders and DVD recorders which will need either replacing with freeview equipped equivalents or a set top box connecting to each of them to receive freeview broadcasts. If you choose another method of receiving digital television broadcasts then you will need different equipment to connect to your TV.
The Digital Switch Over might not affect you if you are currently receiving all of your television programmes via Freesat, BT Vision, or Tiscali in which case you wont need to do anything.
Top Up TV
It is possible to add additional subscription channels to the free channels that are available on Freeview with Top Up TV via your aerial. It doesnt require any additional equipment other than the card that slots in to the card slot on your existing PVR set top box. It costs just 9.99 per month without any contract tie in. There is a Movie channel, a sports channel and an on demand channel of programmes that are automatically downloaded to your set top PVR for you to watch at your convenience.
Virgin Medias Cable TV
To receive Virgin Medias Digital TV channels via cable you must first live in an area that can offer this option. You will also have to be willing to at least switch your phone line to Virgin Media to receive a basic 45 channels for free. If you are willing to pay 19.50 per month then over 165 channels are available and there are other cheaper options with less channels. Every television that is connected to cable will have to have a compatible set top box to receive the programmes. So if you have multiple televisions in your house then you will need one for each television at an additional discounted monthly cost.
Virgin media also offer an on demand service where you can access a huge library of programmes and movies some are provided free and some are available on a pay per view basis. Some of the on demand content is in HD.
Sky Digital Television
Sky Digital Television is received by means of a Satellite dish and set top box. It is available on a monthly subscription basis. Unlike Cable TV, Sky Digital is available to virtually every home in the UK as long as the dish can be appropriately fixed and positioned.
If you live in an apartment block or high rise flats then you might not be allowed to have a dish installed. Also some buildings have planning restrictions that dont permit the installation of satellite dishes. Also you may not be able to have satellite TV if there are any physical obstruction such as a building or Trees that prevents the required line of sight.
Every television that you want to connect to Sky Digital will require a suitable set top box connected to a satellite dish. It is possible to connect up to four set top boxes to one satellite dish with a suitable LNB attached however you may still need an additional dish. There will be an additional cost for the supply and installation of each additional set top box and there will be an additional monthly subscription cost for each set top box required. So this could work out to be quite costly.
There is usually a charge for providing and installing the satellite dish and the set top box. Sky packages start from 16.50 per month with a free set top box and 60 for the dish and installation offering over 200 channels. If you opt for all the channels available from Sky you will receive over 630 channels of TV and Radio channels at a cost of 46 per month with an installation charge of 60 for a standard box and 30 for Sky Plus set top box. Sky also offers the widest selection of HD channels at an additional cost of 9.75 per month.
If this isnt enough choice then there is also an On Demand Service known as Sky Anytime for watching a small selection of movies, documentaries and entertainment channels that are stored locally on the Sky Plus set top box. Furthermore Sky Box Office offers some of the latest films On Demand for a small additional charge. There is also an on demand service where you can download films to the hard drive on your PC. You can either view them on your PC or you can copy them on to a DVD to watch on the DVD player that is connected to your TV. Alternatively if you have a Media Centre attached to your television then you can stream the movies directly from your PC to your TV.
Freesat TV
There are two versions of Freesat. One is provided by a joint venture of the BBC and ITV and the other is available from Sky. They both need a satellite dish and a set top box however the BBC and ITV version also has the possibility of being viewed by a Freesat compatible television which the Sky version doesnt have. On both options the service is free once you have paid for the satellite dish, installation and the set top box. If there is already a satellite dish on your house that has spare connections on it then you can save on the cost of the satellite dish and installation. Of course the installation of a satellite dish could be restricted by the problems mentioned in the section above about Sky Digital TV.
High definition channels are available free of monthly subscription on the Freesat from the BBC and ITV. To receive HD you will need to make sure that you buy a HD Freesat set top box.
Freesat set top boxes for the BBC and ITV version are available from 49 and 129 with a Satellite Dish and installation. The standard set top boxes have a standard definition picture and provide over 140 television channels that are free of monthly subscription. The Freesat HD set top boxes on their own start from 129 and about 229 if bought with a dish that is installed. If a Freesat compatible TV is purchased then you will still need the satellite dish but not the set top box.
The Sky Freesat option is available installed with a one off payment of about 75 and offers over 240 free TV channels but there arent any free high definition channels.
BT Vision Television
BT Vision is an on demand service that offers Freeview and on demand TV shows and movies. The content is provided via broadband and requires a BT Home Hub router (which is free to BT broadband customers) which is connected to a phone line and a wireless receiver is connected to the television.
It is possible to either pay for every programme that you view or you can pay a monthly amount for a bundle of programmes each month. If your broadband provider isnt BT then the you will have to pay 29.36 for the set top box and 29.36 for it to be installed. The basic package doesnt have any charges each month you just pay for what you view. BT Vision also offer several different bundles that include 45 channels of Freeview channels, Kids Programmes, Music, Sports and a limited number of Films from a monthly charge of 13.70 to 19.57.
Tiscali Television
Tiscali TV offers a mixture of digital television channels and on demand entertainment, movies and music that are received via an aerial and or phone line. Tiscali TV isn't available in all areas of the country so check with Tiscali for details. There are over 70 channels of digital television and radio channels available and over 1000 on demand movies. Packages start from 19.99 and include 8Mb broadband and phone line rental.
Fetch TV
Fetch TV is a Freeview PVR with a HD home media centre built in that can also download thousands of movies and TV shows via your PC. It has over 48 free channels of Freeview Digital TV and Radio without any subscription, monthly bills or contract tie in. The Fetch set top box interfaces with your computers hard drive to watch movies that you have downloaded to your PC. Fetch TV is available from 129.99 for the set top box.
IP TV and TV On Demand
There are many films and programmes that can be down loaded to your home computer via the internet some of which are in high definition. Some of these are free and some require a small payment. Once down loaded you can then either watch them on your computer or copy them to a DVD disc for playing on your DVD player that is attached to your television. If you have a Media Centre under your television then you can stream the content from your PCs hard drive to your television. Many programmes are available for downloading from Sky, the BBC, ITV and many other channels from all around the world.
Conclusion
The options are almost endless with so many choices. Some of these choices may not be an option but nonetheless the choice is greater than ever before with delivery by Cable, Satellite Dish, Phone Line, Broadband, and Aerial. Whether you are prepared to pay a monthly charge may narrow the options but if you are then you also have to decide if you are prepared to pay extra for HD television broadcasts. IP television offers an interesting possibility but is restricted by our creaking copper cables ability to deliver the content fast enough and reliably enough. To benefit from all of the advantages of Digital Television you will also need a high definition LCD television or Plasma television. - 15615
About the Author:
For almost 2 decades Armadeus Cornelius has accumulated a wealth of knowledge in the electronics industry. For more details on Digital TV go to his site http://www.digitaldirect.co.uk . If you want to save money then go to cheapest tv uk or cheapest tvs in uk
