Sky HD Vs Virgin V-Box

[admin_exported]

Can I get a definitive answer from someone here, please. Sky and their reps are giving me conflicting info.
I like the V-Box because I can record 2 shows simultaneously and watch a third. That's 3 tuners, right? Does the SkyHD box do this too?

 

[D.J.KRIME]

It is possible to record 2 shows simultaneously and watch a 3rd with SkyHD BUT this can only be done if the 3rd program is either on your HDD as in a program you have allready recorded on on Sky anytime. It is not possible to record 2 shows and watch a 3rd live feed at the same time.

 

[fatboyslimfast]

Spot on DJ. Quite a handy feature, and better than the Sky+ in that respect.

Although I do find the V+ a bit "clunky" to operate compared with the S+...

 

[Anonymous]

Correct re. V+ Box. I can record 2 shows simultaneously and watch a third at the same time (very useful indeed).

The Sky HD box cannot do this (only 2 tuners). However, for HD purposes Sky is far superior in terms of content. Virgin only has BBC HD (and ITV HD coming soon!).

 

[D.J.KRIME]

I can't personally think of any situations where there have actually been 3 things on TV at the same time that I actually have wanted to watch all 3, often find it hard enough to find 1 decent program to watch!

 

[Andy Clough]

Maybe I'm too much of a telly addict, but there have been a couple of occasions recently when I've recorded two programmes while watching a third. But never seem to have enough time to catch up with everything on my Virgin TVDrive!

 

[Gerrardasnails]

D.J.KRIME:I can't personally think of any situations where there have actually been 3 things on TV at the same time that I actually have wanted to watch all 3, often find it hard enough to find 1 decent program to watch!

Definitely not two HD channels to record and a third to watch on the V+ box!!

For me, this is the ONLY thing that the Virgin box has over the Sky HD box. I would only ever use the V+ box if I lived somewhere that couldn't supply me Sky. Even then, I would go Freesat.

 

[northantsbloke34]

I have v+ because I find the sd picture superior compared to sky. I also have their internet which I think is very good compared to sky. My mums seems to lose connection alot (sky)

 

[Gerrardasnails]

northantsbloke34:I have v+ because I find the sd picture superior compared to sky. I also have their internet which I think is very good compared to sky. My mums seems to lose connection alot (sky)

Must be the signal she gets. My brother-in-law has the same screen as me and has the Virgin box and my picture is clearly better and I don't get any loss of connection.

 

[northantsbloke34]

Gerrardasnails:northantsbloke34:I have v+ because I find the sd picture superior compared to sky. I also have their internet which I think is very good compared to sky. My mums seems to lose connection alot (sky)

Must be the signal she gets. My brother-in-law has the same screen as me and has the Virgin box and my picture is clearly better and I don't get any loss of connection.

Mmmm maybe but I have viewed it on other peoples sets and I still think Virgin sd picture is better as it is connected via HDMI.

Another issue is why is the menu so god damn slow on sky???. And you can't view the tv at the same time while you are sifting through the menu as you can on virgin.

 

[D.J.KRIME]

SkyHD is also connected via HDMI so can't see your point there mate. As for the now rather dated EPG on Sky this is soon to be replaced with a new EPG that will have PIP and clearly show which programs are in HD.

 

[northantsbloke34]

D.J.KRIME:

SkyHD is also connected via HDMI so can't see your point there mate. As for the now rather dated EPG on Sky this is soon to be replaced with a new EPG that will have PIP and clearly show which programs are in HD.

I was talking about SD picture mate. I I never said HD. I was referring to sky+.

 

[Gerrardasnails]

northantsbloke34:D.J.KRIME:

SkyHD is also connected via HDMI so can't see your point there mate. As for the now rather dated EPG on Sky this is soon to be replaced with a new EPG that will have PIP and clearly show which programs are in HD.

I was talking about SD picture mate. I I never said HD. I was referring to sky+.

Look at the title of the post Northantsbloke. I was talking about the HD boxes for both companies.

 

[northantsbloke34]

Gerrardasnails:northantsbloke34:D.J.KRIME:

SkyHD is also connected via HDMI so can't see your point there mate. As for the now rather dated EPG on Sky this is soon to be replaced with a new EPG that will have PIP and clearly show which programs are in HD.

I was talking about SD picture mate. I I never said HD. I was referring to sky+.

Look at the title of the post Northantsbloke. I was talking about the HD boxes for both companies.

My apologies.

 

[Anonymous]

I've got the Virgin V+ Box and find it excellent, and the 3 tuners is an excellent feature could do with 4th though Lol and the SD broadcast pictures are much better than on the non HD box. But as your question is targeted at HD content at this moment in time Virgin only has the BBC HD test channel and pay per view films (very poor) Sky I believe has about 30 so it's the clear winner, though I'm sure these will start to filter through to Virgin now that they're friends again!

ÿ

 

[Anonymous]

There's little or no chance of the Sky HD channels filtering down to Virgin, I'm afraid. Sky see them as a USP and a subs driver; they'd never dilute their offering by giving anything else to their competitor. At the moment, the sheer level of HD content is a real differentiator for Sky. Virgin don't have the bandwidth for anything like the level of HD channels available on Sky, either.
Yes, ITV HD will arrive on Virgin when their exclusive contract with FreeSat expires, and maybe C4HD will come on board at some point, but Sky will have the others tied up with water-tight long-term exclusive carriage agreements, so don't hold your breath waiting for MYV HD or Discovery HD, I'm afraid.

 

[Anonymous]

You clearly seem to have some insider knowledge, but in my opinion Sky and Virgin have a symbiotic relationship, I agree that the Sky HD content is a USP for Sky but is less than the Sky movie & sports channels and they have found their way onto Virgin, it is still a revenue stream for Sky and I think the same will be true of the Sky HD channel variants. How long before Sky 1 as an example, is only available in HD? Money talks and if Sky can make money by making their HD content available to Virgin they will.

 

[Anonymous]

Casca:There's little or no chance of the Sky HD channels filtering down to Virgin, I'm afraid. Sky see them as a USP and a subs driver; they'd never dilute their offering by giving anything else to their competitor. At the moment, the sheer level of HD content is a real differentiator for Sky. Virgin don't have the bandwidth for anything like the level of HD channels available on Sky, either.
Yes, ITV HD will arrive on Virgin when their exclusive contract with FreeSat expires, and maybe C4HD will come on board at some point, but Sky will have the others tied up with water-tight long-term exclusive carriage agreements, so don't hold your breath waiting for MYV HD or Discovery HD, I'm afraid.

It's more that virgin have absolutely no intrest in providing HD services at the mo, the service has the bandwidth. Also like you say sky don't "have" to provide HD to virgin, unlike the regular channels which it's obliged to under anti-monopoly ruling stuff.

while the V+ is theoretically capable of triple decoding/twin recording the reality is it seems overloaded when doing so, recordings may come out with breakdowns when other channels are switching or stop/starting recording, and I've had the thing reboot itself in the middle of a dual record before now. It crashed both times I attempted to record 1 HD and 1 SD programme simultaneuously so virgins lack of HD services is perhaps somewhat irrelevant anyway...

 

[pete321]

Both have their advantages and disadvantages, I've just renewed my contract with Virgin despite the tempting offer from Sky HD.

My Virgin deal: 1 x V+ Box & 1 x V Box both on XL TV pack, Phone talk evenings & weekends & Large Broadband 10mb (and 10mb means 10mb!) = £43.75. In addition, as Virgin Media customer I get a mobile SIM, contract free for £10 pcm - 300mins & 300 texts.

There's no difference in picture quality between the V+ and Sky HD, the HDMI connection gives better SD broadcast pictures on both. Yes Sky HD has more HD channels, but you have to pay £10 per month to get them. If you want an HD movie, watch it properly with 1080p and HD audio on a blu-ray with the unlimited rental packages available from Blockbuster or LoveFilm.

The V+ benefits from an extra tuner and when it goes wrong as mine did after 3 years, you get a free replacement, not so with Sky HD unless you take out a rather expensive insurance.

Sky's customer service is poor once they've got you, on the other hand Virgin Media seem more eager to please (certainly an improvement over the Telewest days). You're more likely to get a better deal with Virgin every 12 months than you are with Sky.