Digital TV - not quite right?

I've got a number of ideas for this thread, so I'll just type and see how it sounds!

I assume that most members have this forum have more than one TV at home. Let's say four. That's four analogue terrestrial tellies, so four people can go an watch whatever channel they like at any time (out of the terrestrial 1-5).

You might have a nice Sky box connected to the main TV. (The important bit): because of this, the government sees you as a 'digital TV' household, so you're added to the statistics of how many people have 'gone digital'.

Now look ahead a few years to when analogue terrestrial services are switched off. Now, as I understand it, your other three tellies are defunct (sure you might have RFout2 + a TVlink connected to another TV, but you still can't watch another DSat channel). So now you can only watch one channel - no good for four people?

At the moment (or until recently) when someone wants a telly they pop down to Currys and see loads of 'em. They've all got analogue terrestrial tuners in them, some have other things, (like a teletext tuner), but there are countless ( well, I suppose you could count them if you wanted to ) brands to chose from, at a variety of prices.

Will you be able to do this after analogue terrestrial is gone? Or will Sky be controlling us, as only they license the DSat tuners needed?

At the moment (except for some TV/Video combis) you can view different channels on different TVs and then tape another channel on a VCR! (As many people in this forum are youths, just think how often your parents may, for example, watch ITV1 while you watch BBC1 and tape Ch4).
This luxury will have gone in a few years. You can't watch one channel and tape another. Well, Sky now let us do so, of course with their 'Sky+' - but again it's by Sky, so they're in control - is there loads of competition to choose from? (TiVO doesn't count as I think Sky have their paws in there as well).

But even this Sky+ isn't the answer. Just think how often you tape something (regardless of what's on the TV the VCR is connected to), take the tape out, and then watch it somewhere else - you can't do this with the sky+ thing.

Think how often you:

• lend someone a VCR tape
  
• use teletext in your room
  
• use the freedom of another TV set with its own tuner.
  

With Digital all this is taken away from you . (Unless I've grossly misunderstood). When they switch off that signal I think it will be really awakening. Since you've got a Digital box the government thinks you're OK for an analogue switch-off.

I don't think that's so. (And I didn't even get as far as regional TV, but let's not go there!). Your opinions, please?

You're not comparing like with like.

Anyone with an an analogue satellite system has had the exact same problems for years.

Yes, people will need to have digital set, but they will to be no more of a disadvantage than people who had multiple sets and only one dish before.

All the sets in the house will receive all the terrestrial channels and only one set will get the extra satellite channels.

The point was 'what happens when analogue terrestrial signals are no more?'

By the time analogue terrestrial is switched off, new TV's will have digital tuners built in, and will be cheaper, and in portables.

Then for the existing tv's, there will be a convertor thing I think that will let you watch the FTA DTT channels.

Also by this time, the coverage will have improved I expect, and so it will be as it is now, free channels on the each tv, plus of course any decoder box fed round them all. Or I expect the option of getting a card for the iDTV's and subscribing seperately.

are not they making new videos with digital tuners built in?

Aha, so that's the answer.

I was just getting kinda worried as all I hear about is the big switch off, and nothing about my poor old 14 inch telly.

Thanks!

The thing is, which is my greatest gripe, is for every appliance you need a smart card, and pay for it!

This will have to be addressed before the Govn decide the end is nigh for analogue.

I've already suggested this idea to the boffins at the BBC's R&D department...
You only have one box - this holds the smart card, which holds which channels you are authorised to view.
This box is linked up to add-on 'decoder' boxes plugged to your existing appliances.
These add-on boxes talk to the box with the smart card via pin 8 on the SCART lead to get authorisation.

It's easy, it's simple, and according to the boffins, they'll certainly think seriously about developing such boxes

Does this make sense? I've just typed as I've thought

You don't need a smart-card, or even a SC socket for DTT. The FTA channels will be FTA just as they are now, just the tuner will be digital rather than analogue. By then digital technology will doubtless be cheaper than analogue anyway (that's the way of these things), and things like VCRs will also be digital (either PVRs, digital VHS or DVD-R based). It won't be a problem really, the only difficulty will be the coverage which needs to improve.

Whatever Sky likes to say, satellite and cable will always remain an add-on service, with DTT just taking over from terrestrial analogue and add-on bexes being available for that, or a CAM socket for larger TVs or VCRs where you put the CA module into a slot in the front under a flap, and put the smartcard into that. These devices already exist in continental satellte receivers.

You do, and will, require a smart card if you want to watch Sky1 for instance, or a movies channel

Unless of course it went FTA on terrestrial(some thing which is quite possible when the nation has gone Digital because its prospective audience would be huge)

My point was that not all stations will be FTA, so you'll need a Smart Card to view them.

Yeah I get your point, it will be just like it was before Digital came about, you get your FTA stations, and you get your pay services(which you'll need a card for).