Mass Media & Technology

Virgin Media reveals it's "V6" UHD set top box

(August 2016)

This site closed in March 2021 and is now a read-only archive
NW
nwtv2003
It looks like they have copied the EE TV box..

*
VM
VMPhil
I don't think designing something to compliment the Xbox One is a good idea, considering it was widely panned for the way it looked.

Yeah, but they can't change the way the Xbox looks… that's the style now and it fits in
LL
Larry the Loafer
I don't think designing something to compliment the Xbox One is a good idea, considering it was widely panned for the way it looked.

Yeah, but they can't change the way the Xbox looks… that's the style now and it fits in


They just have with the Xbox One S Wink
VM
VMPhil
Not exactly a radical redesign!
RE
Rex
It's really slow my TiVo box I am generally quite disappointed with virgins service way too expensive for telly.

Days after the reveal of the 'V6', Virgin decides to dampen up hopes by announcing a new price rise for November. Customers will be paying at least 5% more than they are now.

Line rental going up by £1
Packages are going up by £3.49

As for the V6, while I'm sure that it will be leagues ahead in speed compared to the current TiVo, it's a major step down in regards to design aesthetics. It just feels...bland.
Stuart and Larry the Loafer gave kudos
PI
picard
It's rushed, just like Q, although the design of Q is much better.

I am currently on BT 4k and the box is pretty good in design. But if it works who cares what it looks like?... Many do.
NG
noggin Founding member
It's rushed, just like Q, although the design of Q is much better.


What makes you think the Sky Q is rushed? It's been in development for quite a while AIUI (and the use of Unicable LNBs is a very neat development)
PI
picard
It's rushed, just like Q, although the design of Q is much better.


What makes you think the Sky Q is rushed? It's been in development for quite a while AIUI (and the use of Unicable LNBs is a very neat development)


Err, it does not work properly. Many bugs and issues reported over on Sky forums. A mate has it, works ok most of the time, but it gets pink screens and the extra box is unreliable.

Did Sky have anything to do with Unicable LNBs? thought these started before Q.
NG
noggin Founding member
It's rushed, just like Q, although the design of Q is much better.


What makes you think the Sky Q is rushed? It's been in development for quite a while AIUI (and the use of Unicable LNBs is a very neat development)


Err, it does not work properly. Many bugs and issues reported over on Sky forums. A mate has it, works ok most of the time, but it gets pink screens and the extra box is unreliable.


I suspect, like VM's Tivo roll-out, however rushed or un-rushed, stuff will only surface when properly hammered by users. I was an early Sky+HD adopter and that had its fair share of issues. (And a nasty hardware design fault in the Thomson PSU capacitors...)

That doesn't mean it was rushed... (I know some of the people who worked on it - it certainly wasn't a last-minute development) At least the box appears to be powerful enough to cope with most demands.

There IS an issue with the Sky Q Mini boxes though. They don't support H265/HEVC - only H264/AVC and MPEG2. So you can't record UHD shows (which are H265/HEVC) on your main box and then watch them on the Mini apparently, even if you were happy with an HD or SD downscale...

Quote:

Did Sky have anything to do with Unicable LNBs? thought these started before Q.


No - but I think they are one of the first to use them in this way (to allow large numbers of tuners to be provided in a single receiver fed by only two rather than 4 LNB cables) rather than for multi-dwelling distribution over a single cable (which was, I think, the original aim) The real reason for this is presumably to avoid having to recable existing Sky+ set-ups. (Only the LNB needs to be changed in these installs)
PI
picard
Yes I remember HD I was also an early subscriber, I bought a new PSU off Ebay and the Thomson box ok then until I got the 1tb. My 1TB box is six years old and still going strong, never had any issues at all.

Q just really seems to wind people up, as its billed as a premium product. You expect it to work. Lots of people have the hump over it.
NG
noggin Founding member
Yes I remember HD I was also an early subscriber, I bought a new PSU off Ebay and the Thomson box ok then until I got the 1tb. My 1TB box is six years old and still going strong, never had any issues at all.

Our 1TB is a little newer but has started to lock up a bit more frequently, and increasingly is downscaling 1080i to 576p until it is power-cycled (I'm sensitive to HD resolution, some people might not notice). I think this MAY be connected with the box thinking it doesn't have an HDCP connection as occasionally we get an error message like that (again fixed by a power cycle)

Quote:

Q just really seems to wind people up, as its billed as a premium product. You expect it to work. Lots of people have the hump over it.


Anyone buying something like this within the first 12 months of launch should expect the odd niggle. They haven't rolled out all the functionality yet have they?
PI
picard
Yes I remember HD I was also an early subscriber, I bought a new PSU off Ebay and the Thomson box ok then until I got the 1tb. My 1TB box is six years old and still going strong, never had any issues at all.

Our 1TB is a little newer but has started to lock up a bit more frequently, and increasingly is downscaling 1080i to 576p until it is power-cycled (I'm sensitive to HD resolution, some people might not notice). I think this MAY be connected with the box thinking it doesn't have an HDCP connection as occasionally we get an error message like that (again fixed by a power cycle)

Quote:

Q just really seems to wind people up, as its billed as a premium product. You expect it to work. Lots of people have the hump over it.


Anyone buying something like this within the first 12 months of launch should expect the odd niggle. They haven't rolled out all the functionality yet have they?


I would expect the odd niggle, but Sky sells it with glossy adverts, lots of people will expect it to "just work", that is modern society for you. Q is a lot more complex than HD was when it started, the box etc, sure you know that. One of the problems they have is that the extra box mostly relies on wireless signals unless they use the cable, and wireless is still not reliable enough. Its nearly there. I have run cables anyway for BT so if I ever get Q should be ok. I do ask why BT did not build wireless into its 4k box that came out last year, perhaps that tells us something?

Newer posts