Help please

[trevp]

I have moved into a new cottage in the Cotswolds
My property has a no ariel, but does have a Sky dish
The TV does have connections to allow me to use someone else's sky box but I do not have one of my own
I am a seperated person with little money but do have a Dell lap top computer supplied by my employer
I have a mobile phone which I need also SIM card to plug into my car's telephone connections when on work related duties
I do need to use a land line phone at the house for making in and out calls
I do need Broadband
I wish only to see basic tv

Can anyone suggest the most economic one off and monthly cost for dealing with the above

[boroboi]

Hi trev, ill help to the best of my ability.

Since you have a satelite dish, you may be able to get away with using a free sat receiver instead of a Sky receiver. Free sat is free, so you'd only need to pay for the box which i dont think is expensive (i don't know how much they cost) Im sure they're compatible though.

There are plenty of SIM only deals you could look for, or if you are looking for a land line also, Virgin may also be able to sort you out a deal for a land line phone with an offer regarding a mobile contract... if you give them a ring they will be able to talk you through your options... this could also include broadband internet, so it would probably be best to get all three on some sort of package if it's available ( someone in the know could confirm this if they read the topic)

Basic TV would be provided through your already installed sat dish, and a free sat receiver (you must double check to make sure they are both compatible, although im sure they are) With it being digital, you'll get a much better quality picture than the analogue... as an alternative, Virgin also supply the "M" package TV for free to people who take broadband and a telephone line i believe.

I'm not sure how much it would cost, my guess for an all inclusive virgin package containing a phone line, a mobile contract (cheap) and internet is around £45, whichj includes "M" tv as standard.

Like i say though, hang around and someone who works for Virgin or is more in the know will confirm what options you have, alternatively dont hesitate to ring them up

IT also depends on whether your cottage is wired to receive digital services through the Virgin network.

[Jonathan90]

I will try help aswell i reccommend http://allyours.virginmedia.com/html...e-builder.html

select 10mbit broadband (L) Basic TV (M) and telephone package (M) evening and weekend calls are free. for the grand price of 25 quid not bad tbh.

not quite sure about mobile contract or payasyougo if payasyougo just order a free sim depening on which network u want.

or scrap the above and take this
http://allyours.virginmedia.com/webs...ct.do?id=14147 for 42 quid month.

[damien c]

i think you get a box from virgin with the basic channels in another words freeview channels, but not sure you would need to get in touch with them about that also iirc they are going to be doing something with one of there broadband packages, i think they might be upping one of them for free but as i say im not sure.

freesat will work with a sky dish and yes it does only cost the price of the box nd you get hd channels aswell, aslong as you have a hdtv i'm going to get one as we have a sky dish but i also have a v+ box but no hd channels yet and i want hd channels.

my brother uses 3 for his mobile broadband which is very good but not sure of the price, and my dad uses the virgin mobile broadband which is still good but not sure on the price.

[Aragorn]

Is a 'cottage in the Cotswolds' likely to be serviced by a VM cable - probably unlikely, imo. (Stick your postcode in to this page to check)
Assuming not, you need a BT landline. As far as I know, the other BT based phone companies can't connect you - ie BT will have to connect you and you will be tied to them for at least a year. (it may cost >£100 to connect to BT )
Once you have a BT landline, you will need an ADSL supplier. Try the availability checker at http://www.thinkbroadband.com/search/package/basic.html for a list of ISP's that supply your exchange.
TV wise - I would go with a cheap freesat reciever from Argos ~£120 with installation (unless there is already a wall plate for the sat dish already in place).

[trevp]

Guys, thanks to you all, and to he who calls himself Aragorn, known also as Strider, a very fine "raid" carried out there

[smee init]

Try looking at this sky package (you dont need the sky+ box just standard box) : http://mysky.sky.com/portal/site/sky...getall3/combi1 but you will need a bt landline so dont forget to buget for that also as for mobile phone just shop around.

[trevp]

I am sorry to be a nuisance but I do not want to have to pay for Sky Tv, all I want is to get Freeview, using the existing satellite (Sky) dish on the cottage, I have a BT landline already and a seperate contract for a mobile phone
My computer which is laptop has just been delivered to me (dell) and as yet I have not selected a broadband operator
I thought if I got a second hand sky box, i could get connected but help is required

[alferret]

Originally Posted by trevp

I am sorry to be a nuisance but I do not want to have to pay for Sky Tv, all I want is to get Freeview, using the existing satellite (Sky) dish on the cottage, I have a BT landline already and a seperate contract for a mobile phone
My computer which is laptop has just been delivered to me (dell) and as yet I have not selected a broadband operator
I thought if I got a second hand sky box, i could get connected but help is required

If all you want is freeview over satellite the all you need is a freesat (which is what freeview is called on satellite) box. These can be got from places like currys, comet and the like. Cost is around £40-£120

[trevp]

Alferret, thanks
Is the freeview useable with the sky dish as there is no arial on the property?
If so, all I do is go to currys etc and ask for a freesat box?
Job done, please confirm for this ignoramus

[alferret]

As PM'd to you (but for the benefit of others who may be interested)



Its not a Freeview box, but a Freesat box you will need to get and this will allow you to receive all FREE TO AIR satellite channels.
Connect the box to the sat dish and then to the TV, switch on and the box will scan and download all channels availiable. Job done. We use Freesat rather than pay a subscription to Sky and find the service excellent.

Just checked for you and Argos do standard definition (SD) Freesat box's
Bush BFSAT01SD £49
Grundig GUFSAT01 £58

Or they do a Hi-Def Freesat box from Bush for £95 although if I were you and I was getting a Hi-Def box I would spend a little more and get a Humax HD receiver which come in at around £130. We have 2 of these (front room and bedroom) and we are totally impressed as to how well they perform.

[trevp]

Am I getting confused, if freeview is not available in the post code area, will a freesat box pick up freeview channels

[Jon T]

Originally Posted by trevp

Am I getting confused, if freeview is not available in the post code area, will a freesat box pick up freeview channels

Yes, freesat receives it's signal via your satellite dish, all the UK is covered.

freeview which you are getting confused with, is a separate service that is received though a TV antenna,. It is this service that is only available in certain areas.

[Noggo]

Yes you will pick up freesat from your location, as long as the dish is pointing in the right way .

and yes you could get either a new freesat box for around £50 or second hand box (£20-50 ish from ebay), then get a freesat decoder card for around £ 20 (I think) and do the install yourself with help. You might as well get Sky pay once watch forever from argos or Currys for £75 and have the install done by Sky engineer and one years warranty.

All you have to do is remember to cancel with Sky before the 4 months is up otherwise they will start to charge you, then you drop down to just freesat channels. There are a few differences between the channel available between freeview and freesat, but as you only want basic TV it will be fine.

Missing channels on freesat:-

• Sky Sports News
• E4
• E4 +1
• More 4
• More 4 +1
• ftn
• UKTV History
• abc1
• The Hits
• TMF

Broadband:
what speed (upto 2M, 8M etc) and usage do you need?
what telephone exchange are you connected to (goto samknows and enter your postcode). Post your exchange OLO code here so we can have a look at what ISP you have available.