Uk TV

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linda w
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Uk TV

Postby linda w » Mon Mar 12, 2018 9:17 pm

I wondered whether there is a tv box or similar we could buy to access uk tv, we have been using an I pad with a lightning cable to tv with a vpn but would prefer something simpler with a remote control -is this possible ? I've read some of the older posts but I don't understand some of the technical stuff so simpler the better ! Thank you !

markwilding
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Re: Uk TV

Postby markwilding » Mon Mar 12, 2018 10:37 pm

A Now TV box is the about cheapest and would give you access to more or less what you have now, except Netflix and the TVplayer
An Amazon Fire TV stick or box would give you access to both of them as well as the apps you have plus Amazon Prime. Other apps can be installed giving you access to films and sport. The official Sky channels can't be seen this way.
You would need either a router with a VPN or a DNS server set up in the router, easily done or in the case of the Fire TV, it is also possible to set one up in the box itself

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Re: Uk TV

Postby Pamela1 » Tue Mar 13, 2018 9:06 am

What can be viewed without an internet conextion? When we bought our property the previous owners used a sky dish & had uk tv but i know they changed the satalites etc and uk tv was lost in many parts of Spain...We bought a new tv but we were told that we needed a spanish box to go with it...All we get is a few Spanish chanels and lots of German ones...One of our neighbours said he gets full Spanish tv as he has an ariel...Not having a clue when it comes to technology i dont want to spend a fortune on something that wont be of much use...Hubby would like his sport but i dont know if we are able to get it without having internet which im not sure if we can get where the house is located in the campo..

elusive
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Re: Uk TV

Postby elusive » Tue Mar 13, 2018 9:25 am

Theres intelsat satalite. You get it off a dish ala sky. You can get bbc1,2,4 news channel parliment Cbeebies itv,channel 4. Its taken from the freeview backup beam. Im the past the codes where changed which ment the pics been scrambled and waiting for the codes to be hacked but that hasnt happened in a good two plus year.

The weather effects the signal if theres heavy rain and low cloud but otherwise it just works as a normal t v would. Sky have been blocking their channels through a dish so tmk thsts not available anymore.you would have to look at the options above for anything more than the basic channels but that would require a decent internet connection.so thats the first thing to check

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Re: Uk TV

Postby ajtg1952 » Tue Mar 13, 2018 9:31 am

I use an old Hudl and FilmOn. It costs me 15 euros per month and that includes 11 hours of recording time. No remote control but I appreciate the excercise!

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Wicksey
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Re: Uk TV

Postby Wicksey » Tue Mar 13, 2018 9:54 am

The Intelsat 907 is the simplest way if you don't want to watch via the internet and you want to just watch as usual via your TV. I get all the BBC channels, including radio, ITV , CH4, CH5 and Film4+1. You can use an existing Sky dish but it has to be re-aligned and you also need a digital box to pick up the signal which should just be a one-off fee to install.

It is true that the signal is encrypted and very occasionally gets changed, but it is easy to input the new code and continue watching. The only question mark over it is that it is quite old now and we wonder if it will be replaced or scrapped. It is an engineering back-up satellite so not intended for the public to watch. It does not have the EPG or subtitles.

This is fine for us, although we now also have a SmartTV set up with Smarty DNS in the router so I can watch catchup, although that may be a bit more complicated for you to set up.

Pamela1
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Re: Uk TV

Postby Pamela1 » Tue Mar 13, 2018 5:17 pm

Thanks for the replies, very useful :thumbup:

linda w
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Re: Uk TV

Postby linda w » Tue Mar 13, 2018 8:30 pm

Thank you for your replies , so if I buy a now tv box, how do I set up a VPN on a router supplied by Jet net , do I buy a new router or is this something I could do with our existing router, could you explain what a DNS is please ?

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firsttango
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Re: Uk TV

Postby firsttango » Tue Mar 13, 2018 8:57 pm

Rule of thumb....a VPN will Slow your internet connection down whereas DNS Doesn't. Have a read here and this will give you advice and info for you're particular needs. A few here use Smarty as I do and I find their service superb, there are various other available to you.

https://www.smartydns.com/support/

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Re: Uk TV

Postby El Cid » Tue Mar 13, 2018 10:06 pm

linda w wrote:Thank you for your replies , so if I buy a now tv box, how do I set up a VPN on a router supplied by Jet net , do I buy a new router or is this something I could do with our existing router, could you explain what a DNS is please ?
Most routers will not be set up to use a VPN. Some of the more expensive ones do. Thats why a Smart DNS is a much better approach and as FT said, there is no significant speed loss.

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ajtg1952
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Re: Uk TV

Postby ajtg1952 » Tue Mar 13, 2018 11:43 pm

I just love the simple answers you get on the technical area of this Forum! I have no idea what that meant Cid. Maybe I am subject to the old Dunning–Kruger effect !!!

markwilding
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Re: Uk TV

Postby markwilding » Wed Mar 14, 2018 10:48 am

Most of us have the same problem especially when doing something for the first time. It might be the jargon that is putting you off but it shouldn't.
Changing the DNS numbers on a router sounds difficult but if you can type some numbers in your browser address box, enter a user name and password, navigate as you do on a normal web page and enter more numbers into a defined box, then you can change the DNS settings in a router.

There are great picture instructions on most DNS web sites to take you through the process step by step.
Last edited by markwilding on Wed Mar 14, 2018 11:16 am, edited 1 time in total.

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Re: Uk TV

Postby Manchesteral » Wed Mar 14, 2018 10:52 am

Well, I bought an Apple tv box about six months a go, €144.00 euros from Media market in Las Palmas. the free stuff you get on it, minor news channels etc are not really value for money everything else, of any substance costs money.
I can get a lot of stuff free from my laptop which is connected to my tv via HDMI 1/DVI.
In my opinion I was ripped off, I wouldn't recommend this product !

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Re: Uk TV

Postby Manchesteral » Wed Mar 14, 2018 10:54 am

I too would be interested in a "legal" system to watch uk tv.

markwilding
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Re: Uk TV

Postby markwilding » Wed Mar 14, 2018 11:07 am

An Apple TV box would not be my first choice to watch UK TV unless you have an Apple phone tablet or Mac.
However, on the newer ones it is possible to watch quite a lot of UK TV.

For it to work, you would need to, if you don't already have one, set up an UK Apple account to enter the UK App store. I know the IPlayer is definitely there and I think TV player is available too, giving you access to the normal live channels but for it to work in Spain you will need to use a VPN or DNS. Sky TV can also be viewed with a subscription as well using the Now TV App.

Apart from that, for a small subscription both Netflix and Amazon Prime, which is only 20 euros per year, have plenty of films and TV series in English and a DNS wouldn't be necessary.
Last edited by markwilding on Wed Mar 14, 2018 3:06 pm, edited 2 times in total.

northandsouth
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Re: Uk TV

Postby northandsouth » Wed Mar 14, 2018 12:52 pm

Manchesteral wrote:Well, I bought an Apple tv box about six months a go, €144.00 euros from Media market in Las Palmas. the free stuff you get on it, minor news channels etc are not really value for money everything else, of any substance costs money.
Yup my daughter was an Apple only afficionado and had an Apple TV box. She ditched it and it is now a pretty cup coaster on her office table, because as you say most things you want to watch had a sub to pay even including BBC iPlayer stuff. Not sure if that's still the case now though.

Back to the OP's question, do you have a Samsung or LG smart TV?

The UK TV catchup apps, Amazon prime and NowTV apps can be accessed, again using a smart DNS server.

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GerryinCajiz
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Re: Uk TV

Postby GerryinCajiz » Wed Mar 14, 2018 12:56 pm

Manchesteral wrote:I too would be interested in a "legal" system to watch uk tv.
I do not think that one exists for watching UK free to air channels ( by the letter of the law), but subscription channels ( Sky, Netflix)from April will be a different story.
Gerry

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Re: Uk TV

Postby ajtg1952 » Wed Mar 14, 2018 4:42 pm

Manchesteral wrote:I too would be interested in a "legal" system to watch uk tv.
That's a difficult question. Do you mean you doing something illegal or the company you subscribe to doing something illegal.

I have used FilmOn for nearly 3 years. Rarely had a problem and I sleep at night!

markwilding
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Re: Uk TV

Postby markwilding » Wed Mar 14, 2018 4:54 pm

Yes, but you are paying I5 euros for a sub standard service.
Netflix plus a DNS server would mean BBC, ITV, C4 and 5 catchup for free and no neeed to record, higher quality playback, using the free TV player for live terrestrial TV, also better quality than Filmon, plus Netflix’s library of HD movies and TV series and you would still be quids in

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Re: Uk TV

Postby El Cid » Wed Mar 14, 2018 8:45 pm

The Apple TV is a really good box if you understand exactly what it does and doesn’t do. It’s a very expensive alternative to a Firestick or NowTV if all you want is a cheap device to convert your TV to a Smart TV.

Like most Apple products it is designed to be complimentary to other Apple products and services. If you don’t have any of the other Apple products and services it is not for you. If you think it is a “rip off” then you clearly did not understand what you were buying.

I have had one for a few years now. The first one I bought was simply to be able to connect my iPad to my TV wirelessly using the Apple Airplay facility. I didn’t have a Smart TV so I could use the iPad to run BBC iPlayer and the other catchup services and beam them to my TV via the Apple TV. It also allowed me to mirror whatever was on the iPad screen to the TV, in both cases with no cables involved. At that time the ATV was a lot cheaper and there were not the plethora of other similar devices available. The apps that were available on the ATV were pretty limited and of very little use - nothing like the range available on the iPad.

Thinks have moved on with the later ATV versions. My current box (not the very latest version) is way better. All the UK. Catchup apps (except C4) are available. Netflix, NowTV (for access to the Sky products if you subscribe) and Amazon Prime are there and there is a new TV app which brings them all together. I also subscribe to Apple Music which gives me access to almost every music track ever recorded. All the sound from the system goes through a 1000w AV surround sound receiver so it is a great way to listen to really high quality music.

I have around 10000 photos now stored in the Apple iCloud and these are all available through the ATV. It will also link to my iMac and any other media stored there is available including loads of videos. Even the remote control has been improved. It is minimalist with very few buttons. Most controls are accessed via the top half of the control which is a touch sensitive area. It responds to verbal commands using Apple Siri so you can select apps and even individual music tracks directly.

This is not intended to be an advert for the ATV, I am just pointing out that assuming you take the trouble to understand what it reallly does and have the other Apple products and services, there is absolutely no reason to describe it as a “rip off”.

Sid


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