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Does Freesat carry regional programming?

Freesat logo
  • Posted at 3:45pm
  • 31 May 2008
  • by DoctorDigital-RT
  • 14 comments

Q Does the new Freesat carry regional programming?
Michael Bates, Bristol

A Yes. When you first set up your digibox, you're asked for your postcode: that sets the correct BBC1 and ITV1 regions for your area. But all available regions are still accessible wherever you are. Just as with Sky, you can find them listed at the bottom of the channels' EPG, should you fancy watching news or other programming from a different part of the country.

**

Do you have a question for Doctor Digital? Just get in touch using the form below.

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Comments

  • Posted on 11 November 2009
  • at 11:39am
  • by DoctorDigital-RT

FAO Jackie - Do you subscribe to something like Sky's movies or sports package? If you do, are those channels okay?

There's a possibility that it's not a technical problem per se, that it's something to do with your subscription or with your viewing card. I'd check out the connections between all the cables, both at the LNB and at your Sky box, then whether the phone line is still connected properly to the box. But then I'd call Sky about it. You sound as if you've done everything correctly so it may need an engineer to test your system.

  • Posted on 10 November 2009
  • at 6:43pm
  • by Jackie

We have recently added a cable to the sky lnb in order to view freesat channels on our new panasonic viera. We subscribe to sky. All the freesat channels are fine as well as the sky channels apart from Sky1 and nat geog and nat geog+1.It states on the set that there is no signal when we try these channels. Is it possible that the dish/lnb needs to be realigned for just these 3 channels? Thanking you in anticipation.

  • Posted on 19 October 2009
  • at 2:42pm
  • by DoctorDigital-RT

FAO John - Check your manual for information about terrestrial broadcasts: it's likely that the drive is only rigged to record Freesat data but the TV will, of course, be able to receive terrestrial, so it may be routed in such a way that the PVR can take it.

  • Posted on 09 October 2009
  • at 8:02am
  • by John

I have a Panasonic Viera with integrated freesat but I have not the dish. My question can use the hard drive to record films or do I need a dish? Tks in advance

  • Posted on 01 September 2009
  • at 12:06pm
  • by DoctorDigital-RT

FAO Brian - You need a freesat box. While Freeview and Freesat offer many similar channels, they're entirely different.

  • Posted on 31 August 2009
  • at 1:23pm
  • by Brian

I have a sky dish set up, can I directly plug the cable coming from the dish into my freeview tv and receive freesat??? or do I need a set top box

  • Posted on 20 July 2009
  • at 9:52am
  • by DoctorDigital-RT

FAO skid - Yes.

You should check what channels you'll be losing by switching from Sky and what EPGs you get from the TV's inbuilt Freesat and your hard disc recorder but really all you're doing is using the Sky dish for Freesat and that's perfectly fine.

  • Posted on 18 July 2009
  • at 4:05pm
  • by skid

Can I use a new panasonic television with feesat installed along with my panasonic dvd recorder, and my Sky satellite dish without any alterations to receive HD and do away with expensive sky?

  • Posted on 12 February 2009
  • at 2:55pm
  • by DoctorDigital-RT

So many things influence the signal and quality strength that it's quite rare to see 100% strength on either of them. You'll probably have found that the quality dips to 70% in poor weather, for instance, but so long as it's above 70% and the picture looks good to you, it's fine.

If you suddenly find that it's persistently low then you could check that your dish hasn't inched out of alignment.

  • Posted on 12 February 2009
  • at 11:45am
  • by David S

Just had dish professionally fitted & I have now bought Humax HD Freestat receiver. All works ok but on checking the signal strength it is 100% but quality is only 70% occasionally flashing to 80%, is this normal?

  • Posted on 21 January 2009
  • at 2:15pm
  • by DoctorDigital-RT

You can almost certainly use the same dish: Freesat does recommend that you consult a local dish engineer and you would invalidate your Sky warranty but the dish is the correct size and is pointing to the correct position.

Live pause and record is a feature of the digiboxes that are available and that is changing all the time. Look for a hard disk recorder and if you're able to, check it out in person: as well as the actual features like recording and live pause, the overall software varies enormously. What you find straightforward and obvious may well seem awkward to others and vice versa.

  • Posted on 21 January 2009
  • at 1:59pm
  • by LJ

we currently have sky+ but want to cancel and replace it with freesat. Can we use the same satellite dish? And how do we still get the features of livepause/record that we get on sky+. Wehave a oanasoic viera which is a about a year old that has freeview (but not freesat).

  • Posted on 13 January 2009
  • at 3:35pm
  • by DoctorDigital-RT

In the vast majority of cases, Freesat will work with your existing satellite dish, so you should be able to simply connect the cable running from the satellite dish straight into your Panasonic TV. However, if the dish is still under warranty (typically 12 months) it is recommended that you confirm with the company that supplied your dish that the terms of the warranty aren't affected.

  • Posted on 02 January 2009
  • at 11:26am
  • by JohnS

I am a sky subscriber with a sky+ box I will be buying a Panasonic Viera TV with inbuilt freesat soon,will I be able to use my sky dish to receive BBC/ITV freesat,if so will there have to be any alterations to the dish or connections.

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