Is there an NTL PVR?

[Stephen]

Well its probably not that much of a secret, lol.

[opelfruitcase]

Originally Posted by DarthYoda

Well its probably not that much of a secret, lol.

Well seeing as everyone was talking mid Jan until you mentioned end of year, lol! I really hope 'by end of year' actually translates as 'in time for Christmas'.

[Shaun]

Originally Posted by gruff_rhodes

And if you do have Sport and/or Movies... it's more expensive.

It's the only reason we have Sky sports. We hardly watch it (bar England matches) but if we didn't we'd have to pay £10 a month for Sky+. Basically we get the sports channels for free as we have to pay the £10 one way or another.

[uno]

Just noticed on my girlfriends Samsung box when go into engineer menu on boot up that PVR epg is there and more interesting is that BBC HD and ITV HD are there too but says not provisioned .
Do i take it then that the headend is now recieving these two HD feeds ? If so looks like to me providing no major faults found in testing regions full Langley rollout can happen fairly quickly I suspect NTL have a warehouse sitting full of Tv Drives just waiting for the ok from network to release.
I would expect a soft release around 24th Nov and then advirtise in bills and local adverts week begining 4th Dec to try and catch a generally slack time and get intalled for Christmas.

[Horizon]

Originally Posted by uno

Just noticed on my girlfriends Samsung box when go into engineer menu on boot up that PVR epg is there and more interesting is that BBC HD and ITV HD are there too but says not provisioned .
Do i take it then that the headend is now recieving these two HD feeds ?.

Must be if you're seeing them. I've had the pvr epg data on my samsung for a few months now. Just looked and no sign of ITV or BBC HD channels though.

[relegationmateri]

Originally Posted by opelfruitcase

If your on family pack, and you decide to keep your second box for a fiver a month, then you won't have the install charge, only the £10 monthly PVR charge (£15 on base, select, free). Please don't go demanding a completely free box (ie no monthly charge if this is what you meant) just for the sake of it, it hardly seems fair for everyone else.

You assume I have a second box which i don't and never will. I meant that I, as a loyal customer will be charged £75 for the pleasure of NTL to install the new box, whereas a new customer gets it for free??????

I've paid NTL for years and years and given them my money yet some new guy gets new equipment for free?

Now that's why I'll be ringing retentions. And it won't be an idle threat to go to Sky. Free install or f off.

[Stephen]

Originally Posted by relegationmateri

You assume I have a second box which i don't and never will. I meant that I, as a loyal customer will be charged £75 for the pleasure of NTL to install the new box, whereas a new customer gets it for free??????

I've paid NTL for years and years and given them my money yet some new guy gets new equipment for free?

Now that's why I'll be ringing retentions. And it won't be an idle threat to go to Sky. Free install or f off.

No what he meant is if you keep your existing box that will become a secondary box and the PVR would be the main box. That would get you free install.

[Downloads]

Originally Posted by Shaun

It's the only reason we have Sky sports. We hardly watch it (bar England matches) but if we didn't we'd have to pay £10 a month for Sky+. Basically we get the sports channels for free as we have to pay the £10 one way or another.

Exactly, thats why i won't be getting it. I don't mind a one off fee, but i'm not paying £10 a month indeffinitely considering i pay a lot for my current TV package, just to record some TV. I can do that with a DVD recorder and save a fortune.

The alternative is to jump ship to Sky, who don't charge the £10 extra if you already pay a lot!

[relegationmateri]

Originally Posted by DarthYoda

No what he meant is if you keep your existing box that will become a secondary box and the PVR would be the main box. That would get you free install.

So I get a free install and the other box would also be free? (pointless otherwise). also, i have absolutely no need whatsoever for a second box at all. ever.

One box. Full package. NTL currently have just under £100 a month off me every month. Do they want to lose that over a £75 box? Doubt it.

[Tristan]

I'm confused, on two counts.

Firstly, why are people getting so het-up about pricing that hasn't even been confirmed yet?

And secondly, the new box is a very sophisticated bit of electronics that costs NTL a lot to buy, and has (we imagine!) taken umpteen hours of engineers' time to get working. It provides you with a significantly upgraded TV service. While like everyone else, I want to pay as little as possible, I find it difficult to argue with the principle of NTL charging more for an upgraded service.

(And it's no good comparing this to vanilla Sky Plus -- remember that you're getting a box that's the equivalent of Sky Plus HD. For that, Sky charge £200 for the box, plus a tenner a month extra no matter what other package you have.)

[Downloads]

Originally Posted by Tristan

I'm confused, on two counts.

Firstly, why are people getting so het-up about pricing that hasn't even been confirmed yet?

And secondly, the new box is a very sophisticated bit of electronics that costs NTL a lot to buy, and has (we imagine!) taken umpteen hours of engineers' time to get working. It provides you with a significantly upgraded TV service. While like everyone else, I want to pay as little as possible, I find it difficult to argue with the principle of NTL charging more for an upgraded service.

(And it's no good comparing this to vanilla Sky Plus -- remember that you're getting a box that's the equivalent of Sky Plus HD. For that, Sky charge £200 for the box, plus a tenner a month extra no matter what other package you have.)

I'm personally not het-up and will await an official announcement. I complain because i hope someone might read it that will take note.

You like another person on this thread have made an incorrect comparison. Whilst this box might support HD, we won't be getting it. The £10 a month you are talking about is for HD channels, not Sky+. Are we getting any HD channels? No is the answer as far as i am aware. Have NTL said they won't be charging extra when they release HD? No is the answer again. Now, they might not charge anything for HD, in which case it could be a good deal, which is why wait and see. But the current price structure compared to Sky is £10 more expensive if you have Sport and/or Movies (according to the internal memo).

[Tristan]

Originally Posted by gruff_rhodes

You like another person on this thread have made an incorrect comparison. Whilst this box might support HD, we won't be getting it. The £10 a month you are talking about is for HD channels, not Sky+. Are we getting any HD channels? No is the answer as far as i am aware. Have NTL said they won't be charging extra when they release HD? No is the answer again. Now, they might not charge anything for HD, in which case it could be a good deal, which is why wait and see. But the current price structure compared to Sky is £10 more expensive if you have Sport and/or Movies (according to the internal memo).

Assuming it's the same as Telewest (and there's not really any reason to assume it won't be), the HD content that will be available will be BBC HD and ITV HD, together with some HD programmes on VOD (Lost for example) and some HD Filmflex options. These will be available to anyone with a TVDrive.

In fact just today some people in have confirmed that the two HD channels are already being broadcast on the Langley network.

I agree that it's possible that NTL could do a two-tiered pricing structure, with one price for the regular TVDrive, and a "top-up fee" if you want to activate the HD features. But there's no reason to assume this is the case, and all the evidence suggests that it won't be.

[King Of Fools]

Having a look at the Telewest TVDrive information it appears that the NTL pricing will be exactly the same as Telewest (as you would expect now they are the same company). We can therefore, assume that these prices are more official than the internal information we are currently discussing.

There is a good price comparison against all the different Sky+ boxes:
http://www.telewest.co.uk/html/tvdrive/how.html

There are also some pertinent FAQs to the current discussion:
http://www.telewest.co.uk/html/tvdrive/faqs.html

Originally Posted by Telewest

How much does TVDrive cost?
There is no up-front equipment fee for TVDrive. The monthly subscription is £10 per month if you subscribe to Telewest's Supreme TV package or £15 per month is you subscribe to Starter or Essential.

If you are new to Telewest TV, installation is free. If you are an existing Telewest digital TV customer installation is free if you keep your existing set top box in another room for an additional £5 a month. Otherwise £75 installation fee will apply.

I want a second standard digital box in another room when I take a TVDrive. Is this possible and how much does it cost?
If you take a TVDrive and would like a second standard digital box in another room, this will cost an additional £5 per month.

How long will I have to keep my TVDrive for when I sign up?
TVDrive must be kept for a minimum of 12 months.

How long must I keep my £5 additional box for when I sign up?
The £5 additional box must be kept for a mimium of 12 months in addition to your other services.

So anybody wanting the avoid the £75 installation fee by getting their current box installed as a second box (for £5 per month) will have to pay at least £60 - they would still save £15 though!

Originally Posted by King Of Fools

So anybody wanting the avoid the £75 installation fee by getting their current box installed as a second box (for £5 per month) will have to pay at least £60 - they would still save £15 though!

Sounds a good deal to me - I can justify to my financial manager (my darling wife) showing that in fact we are getting a second box (for in the bedroom) foc for 15 months.

[Jules]

I all ready have 2 boxes so I would have to pay the £75 if I wanted this