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Upgrading from Sky to Freesat

It takes less than five minutes to replace an existing satellite box with a Freesat one.

It takes less than five minutes to replace an existing satellit
published on UK Free TV

If you have an existing Sky or fSfS (Freesat from Sky) installation and want to go to upgrade to Freesat, it is a simple process.

First, buy the Freesat box from a Argos, Curry.digital, Comet, John Lewes or your local independent shop:



In the box you will find the Freesat box:



Also included will be a remote control, and this model also comes with a SCART cable, a HDMI cable and a stereo-with-composite cable. Unpack the ones you need:



You old Sky box looks like this:



Unplug the mains first from the Sky box, then pull out the SCART (or SCARTs) and then unscrew the connection to the satellite dish.



Remove the Sky box and fit the Freesat box. Reconnect the satellite cable (take care as to not damage the connection) and then the SCART and finally connect the mains power:



The box will look like this:



The box also contains the manual, which has full installation instructions. Finally fit the batteries into the remote control.



The TV screen first displays the box's logo



The first set-up screen allows you to select the TV type, widescreen mode and resolution:



Next the box checks for the satellite signal:



Then there is a check for updated software:



Then you enter your postcode and the box checks it:



The next step is a scan for channels. This takes about 30 seconds:



And that's it. You can now view channels, like 108 for BBC HD:



Or press the GUIDE button for the EPG:



(Apologies for the photos not being of the top quality)



Help with Free satellite?
What can I do when my Sky Digibox says 'No Signal' or 'Technical fau1
Can I receive UK TV in Ghana?2
What is a CA module?3
My box says "No Satellite signal being received"4
Is there any way I can get free channels via satellite and have the kind of hard5
In this section
Freesat adds a plethora of new channels in time for Christmas including channel 1
A tale of a two Freesat boxes2
Yesterday, Drama and Really joining Freesat this month3
PBS America joins Freesat for Halloween4
Fixing the Freesat Freetime internet connection problem5
Satellite TV operators FRANSAT, TIVUSAT and our Freesat launch FreeTV Alliance 6

Comments
Monday, 19 December 2016
S
StevensOnln1
sentiment_very_satisfiedPlatinum

12:20 PM

Steve Holden: Did you use the same aerial with your previous TV or was it connected to a rooftop/loft aerial?

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StevensOnln1's 3,606 posts GB flag
MikeP
sentiment_very_satisfiedPlatinum

3:44 PM

Steven Holden:

In my experience indoor aerials are not very effective and don't perform as well as expected. You need to connect the TV to either and outdoor aerial on or just above the roof or, if you are close enough to the transmitter, to an aerial in the loft as long as it has a clear line of sight to the transmitter and can be fitted well away from any water tanks or electrical systems.

We would also benefit from knowing your full post code so that we can determine which of over 1000 transmitters you should be using and what the signal reception conditions are like at your location.



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MikeP's 3,056 posts GB flag
Wednesday, 15 February 2017
W
william
5:35 PM

i am thinking of cancelling sky and install a freesat box in place of the sky+ box, i also have an old sky digibox in another room, at the moment i pay sky 12 per month for multiroom after i cancel my digibox will revert to freesat will i then be able to watch a different channel in that room from the one in my other room, thanks

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william's 2 posts GB flag
MikeP
sentiment_very_satisfiedPlatinum

6:37 PM

William:

Please refer to answers given to this question that you posted at Whole house digital TV



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MikeP's 3,056 posts GB flag
Monday, 13 November 2017
M
Martin
5:26 PM

Just tried fitting Zinwell Octo lnb to sky dish to find that I have a no signal error, so removed it from dish replaced with the Sky Q Lnb to find that I have signal at 50 and quality at 90. with picture and channel selection normal, not moved dish at all.So why is the Octo not picking up signal? The angle setting on both lnb's is exactly the same, hope someone can help.

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Martin's 2 posts GB flag
MikeP
sentiment_very_satisfiedPlatinum

5:38 PM

Martin:

I would suspect that the new LNB is faulty. You effectively confirmed that by refitting your original LNB and found all the signals were there again. Try returniong it to wherever you purchased it saying it appears to be faulty. They should either replace it free of charge or refund your money.



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MikeP's 3,056 posts GB flag
M
Martin
6:10 PM

MikeP: Ok mike, thanks for the quick reply will contact amazon asap.

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Martin's 2 posts GB flag
Wednesday, 13 February 2019
R
RichardM
10:22 AM

I'd like to get a portable FreeSat system I can use when touring Europe in our caravan - so we can watch UK TV abroad. I understand I'd need at least an 80cm dish to pick up the satellite signals. What kind of LNB will I need for a simple one TV system? What other considerations should I take into account?

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RichardM's 1 post GB flag
MikeP
sentiment_very_satisfiedPlatinum

10:28 PM

Richard M:

Depending on where in Europe you intend to travel an 80cm dish would be the absolute minimum but you may find a much larger one is needed further South and/or East, areas where the UK footprint either gives poor coverage or none at all. You may in that case need asutable portable mounting assembly. There is no guarantee that any signals from the UK beams will be available as they are deliberately aimed at the UK. Other beams would be available but not carrying UK programming

A good quality Low Noise Block is needed with two outputs at least.



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MikeP's 3,056 posts GB flag
Sunday, 3 March 2019
R
ROY TAYNTON
12:33 PM

Can i pause, rewind & record with Freesat?

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ROY TAYNTON's 1 post GB flag
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