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What channels will it have on launch then?

Hopefully there will be a big takeup of the service and then Sky will drop their £10 HD subscription charge, inthe same way they dropped their SKY+ fee once other PVR's became readily available.

I want to go down the Sky HD route but not willing to pay their monthly subscription, on top of the cost of a box which is subsidised for new users but existing users have to pay full price.

Agreed - I hope this forces Sky to temper their ridiculous HD prices.

£100 instal looks a bit on the pricey side. Anyone know any sky installers who will do it for a couple of pints and a kebab??

Jimmyswizzle: Channels at launch will be current Freeview channels, plus BBC HD and (possibly, if it launches in time) ITV HD - which will follow the BBC HD format of broadcasting @3 hours a day of selected HD content, including sport and drama.

What's still unclear at the moment is whether Channel 4 HD will be available via Freesat, as there are contractual issues re Sky having exclusive satellite rights, it seems.

Update to that last post - Channel 4 HD deal with Sky ends in October 2008, so it should be on Freesat after that.

Any idea which tv's will work with Freesat? or will early adopters have to buy another box!

Yes, early adopters will need another box. Freesat-equipped TVs from Panasonic and others are on their way in the summer, but until then it's set-top box tastic....

so improved sd on hdlcd, how ? does it improve sd ona hd plasma? i take it the receiver is the box, is the sat dish included in the price or is this in the installation fee?

cheers

If you already have a satellite dish installed (I live in a block of flats with a shared dish), do we need to install another dish?  Also, I have a Pace box that gets BBC HD, will this do for Freesat?

Have the BBC set a date for dropping the current BBC HD channel and having a straight HD version of BBC 1 and BBC 2?

Felicia why not self install?

Some places such as Maplin sell satelitte alignment kits for around £20

This is great news! It's just a shame for DTT, because unlike other countries the UK never grabbed the opportunity of putting HD onto the freed-up analogue channels immediately they become free.

So, I'm getting a dish installed now, and will buy the box at launch.  I'm HD Ready, steady, go...

Play just be aware that Freesat are using 60cm dishes.

Whether or not this is fundamental now or in the future or just precautionary or a marketing move is anyone's guess.

www.joinfreesat.co.uk/.../mines-bigger-than-yours

lv started to phone around for a quot for an aligment for the new

freesat from the bbc/itv, and all i get is ,"what that" you mean freesat from sky." no from the bbc/itv" they say, no can not help you,

what a joke

Re 60cm dish requirement.  Smaller 48cm dish may be OK but possibly open to sparklies in rain or snow dependent on your UK location.  Remember that Astra 2D is not outputting at the same strength of signal as Astra2A..  You may be able to compensate with a more powerful LNB although an adapter arm will be required to permit this.

There is no requirement for dish re-alignment in order to receive FreeSat.  The only difference between a FreeSat  box and currently available FTA receivers from Maplins or the more specialized dealerships is that HD is incorporated together with there ability to manage interactive services.  An obvious plus if your into the forthcoming Olympics

thank for that lesnic

Liberato ......Glad to help.  There may be a problem though if you plan to use a Sky digibox.  I am not sure whether the EPG (electronic programming guide) in the digibox will have any compatibility issues and if so will Sky amend their EPG to cater for FreeSat which isn't "Sky Freesat"?

no will use a freesat hd box as and when bbc/itv  freesat starts, if it starts.

thanks for your help.

Liberato.................Start is confirmed as 5thMay 2008. John Lewis will have Humax HD Boxes (FoxSat-HD) for sale as of 6th of May 2008.  The only other receiver i've noted is the offering from Grundig, but although the Humax appears a more expensive option the specs' seem that much better.   Humax are set to release a PVR version around July.  Features will be similar to the current Freeview model with twin tuner that will permit watching one program while recording another.  A twin LNB and twin cabling will be required for this set up.

Lesnic......   have you read the latest news on the joinfreesat web (joinfreesat.co.uk) . its looks like more delays.

thinking of sky hd now or just wait and see what  freesat(bbc/itv) has to offer when its up and running.

Great stuff! The sooner the better!

However, can anyone say for sure which satellite the service will be using? Will it be the existant Astra2D beam or the Eurobird1 beam? I reckon this is pretty important seeing as the Eurobird has stronger coverage and will probably not need a bigger dish than what Sky uses.

Any info on this would be fab.

Liberato......Seems like the issue maybe that pre-orders were being taken on line by both Comet and John Lewis.  At least this is the reason they are giving for pulling the web pages.  If it's any consolation I can tell you that  my Manhattan FTA Motorized receivers' EPG is listing and receiving most of the channels that will be available and it has been for many months.  Channel 4 has also appeared testing clear.and unscrambled.  Again the only difference between what's available now on current free to air set top boxes and those that are FreeSat specific are HD and the interactive services accessed by the remote red button.  Currently FTA receivers can't access the interactive services although HD standard and PVR sets are available with additional motorized capability.  I am expecting that firmware updates will be available via Satellite OTA or PC download that will allow allocation of a remote button to allow access to interactive services for current  HD FTA receivers.

Stefanus........  FreeSat will be on Astra2D rather than Eurobird as is the current situation with the BBC and ITV.  There will be no problem at all with the signal strength and picture quality in the UK although from south Scotland and above a 60cm dish would be advisable.  I've watched BBC from nr Granada on a 1.25 meter dish with excellent results.  Although a 2.5meter and above was required to get the same results Nr Malaga.