Cable Forum - 4K V6 Question

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Hi

From what I'm reading, it appears that the new V6 box has to be connected to the internet and the TV service is therefore streamed to the box, rather than there being a separate feed directly to the box (like all the old TiVo boxes). Is that correct?

I considered getting Sky Q after getting a 4K TV, but my set up is that I have the main box upstairs and my mom has her own separate box downstairs. With the new Sky Q multiroom, her box would just be an idle box for streaming from my main box through my home network. So I had to forget that idea because if my internet went down or my router went on the blink whilst I was out at work she would be left without any telly as she wouldn't have a clue how to rectify it and couldn't get upstairs to my router anyway due to health issues. She'd also get very confused having to navigate to her own shows through the large amount of shows I'd have stored on the planner. And she'd probably delete some of my programs without me realising!

When I heard about VM's V6 box, I was very tempted as the reviews I read suggested you could still have two separate boxes that didn't need to be linked like the Sky Q boxes. But now I keep reading about the boxes needing to be connected to the internet, so it looks like I'm back to square one again.

Can someone please confirm if you can have two V6 boxes working independently of each other and without having to be connected to the internet in order to watch/record broadcast TV channels?

Thanking you all kindly.

Quote:

Originally Posted by OLDGOLD (Post 35879103)

Each v6 will have its own tv feed independent of both the internet connection and the other box. Both need the internet for services like netflix and iPlayer and if you want to stream recordings between both they both need to be networked but their isn't a master and slave concept like sky q.....both v6s are their own master.

Why dont you let your mother use the sky q box and you can use the idle box?

Quote:

Originally Posted by jb66 (Post 35879105)

Why dont you let your mother use the sky q box and you can use the idle box?

Because she doesn't have a 4K TV, but I do and only the main boxes output 4K. Also, all the recorded programmes would still be visible on the one planner and she would get confused trying to find the odd one or two programmes she records amongst the many that I do.

---------- Post added at 22:30 ---------- Previous post was at 22:25 ----------

Quote:

Originally Posted by mike_gain (Post 35879104)

Thanks for the info. So if neither box was connected to the internet, it would be a traditional 2 box multi-room set up?

The V6 also needs a network connection for EPG updates and other system updates.

But there is no interdependencie on another V6 or TiVo box for a V6 box to work.

Okay. I could connect my box to the internet through Ethernet as my router would be near my TV. Could I then set the 2nd box to connect via Wifi for the updates and EPG updates, but without linking the two boxes so they still remain independent and have their own 'planners' (or whatever they're called on the V6 box)? Or would they automatically link together once on the same home network?

The other box could be connected by WiFi or Powerline, depending on which is the best option for your setup.

The planners and personal settings remain separate. The linking is the ability to see recorded shows on the other box with My Shows.

Both of mine are connected by wi fi

Thanks all for the advice. Much appreciated.

One more question I have is around the actual technical aspects of the V6. What are the available video outputs? Can you output at 2160p even if the broadcast is only 1080i HD? If so, does it do a decent job of upscaling, or no different to what the TV will do (I know it won't be anywhere near genuine 4K, but just wonder if outputting at 2160p makes any noticeable difference).

Thanks

You can indeed let V6 do the upscaling, by selecting the 2160P option, but you should compare V6's efforts against those of your TV and decide whether to tick the 2160P option on V6.
In addition, V6 has a 2160P passthru option to allow native 4K to be passed from Netflix and YouTube apps.

Great! Thanks for the reply.

Must admit I'm not 100% here but I'm pretty sure the loss of Internet doesn't stop the viewing of live channels on the Sky Q mini boxes as I believe they use your network rather than requiring an internet connection. Obviously On Demand wouldn't work.