All posts by MikeB
Below are all of MikeB's postings, with the most recent are at the bottom of the page.
Nigelj: There is an article here:
Has BBC3 online been a success? We compare iPlayer and viewing figures and talk to controller Damian Kavanagh
- figures I've seen elsewhere suggest something like a 20% drop overall, but that pretty good for what is now an online channel.
Its wasn't so much a test as a means to save a lot of money after the government had decided to put the boot in to the BBC. It was easier because a) Its target audience was already web literate, and used to streaming, and b) unlike BBC4 (which actually had a smaller broadcast audience), its viewers generally didn't write to the Telegraph, the Times and their MP about how wonderful it was.
The chances of subscription and web based TV have been discussed many times on this site, and the chances of doing it in the next decade are nil - technically and socially. And your paying the licence fee to own a TV - nobody has to watch gambling ads, and the BBC doesn't show them anyway.
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Brian Scott: You can check the transmitter for yourself, but its unlikely. Everyone blames the transmitter or the weather, but its seldom the case.
On the other hand, the thin bit of coax cable that makes your system work is highly likely to suffer from the effects of the weather, old age or simply falling of the back of the TV.
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Nigelj:
'On investigation, it appears that a least one of those that have moved to DVB-T2 is not actually transmitting in HD. ' - yes - using a T2 tuner does not mean it has to be in HD, but without using one, you can't get HD at all.
'Do you know if DVB-T2 can be used to reduce the channel bandwidth if not transmitting in full HD? '
Does it matter? Once T2 tuners are univerally used, the higher frequencies can be used for mobile signals, and the remaining spectrum be used more efficently.
'Is DVB-T2 equipment compatible with the new higher contrast ratio transmissions or will some receivers need a further upgrade: A) or lose the signal completely.
B) just not be able to see the enhanced contrast resolution. '
There is no such thing as 'enhanced contrast resolution' - what you mean is 4K/UHD - which is 4 times HD's screen resolution. In theory, a T2 tuner could take 4K (and the Koreans have experiemented with that), but even if everyone goes to T2 tuners, the fact that 4K in theory means 4 times the bandwidth means a single 4K channel where there were 4 HD channels. Compression will help, but the moment, its via a dish, cable or the net for 4K.
'I have an number of televisions, none very old, but some do not decode DVB-T2. The question is when is the best time to replace the older receivers? I am sure that other will be in a similar position and some may not realise that their televisions may soon be obsolete. '
If your TV was more than 4-5 years old, it simply would not have had a T2 tuner, and TV's with just a DVB-T tuner are still legally allowed to be sold (I've long argued it s a con, but there you are). However, as I said over and over again, the TV is not 'obsolete'. As long as you can fit a T2 receiver into a TV, your good. Even the cheapo HD box I have has a scart on the back, and the latest Humax has RCA's, so there is no great problem fitting it to a 20 year old CRT.
However, if the TV has an HDMI input, you just connect via that, and thats it. 44 quid at present, and of course PVR's do exactly the same thing. And you only need to replace when the old TV dies, is too small, gets struck by lightening, etc - exactly the same way you would normally decide to replace or upgrade a set. I sell TV's, so I'm happy if people do buy new, but I get annoyed when people think they are compelled to - they are not. And of course there has been no announcement as to when DVB-T only transmissions would be stopped anyway.
'1) this constant upgrade process of relatively expensive home equipment such as televisions will put a strain on many household budgets and given that this equipment is almost certainly imported, it will also put a strain on the UK economy, not to mention the environmental damage of the huge pile of electronic waste it will generate.
No - if people want to dump TV's, thats up to them. And they dont need to do any more in essence than buy a small relatively inexpensive box. And since the average time cycle for upgrading a TV is roughly 5-7 years, they are buying something perfectly usable well into the future even 4 years ago. And those older TV's just normally end up in another room, with a relative, etc - they get used, not just dumped.
'What will happen to the G4 spectrum that will no longer be required? ' - I can bet the mobile companies are not going to let that go - what you have you hold.
I understand that there plans to use G5 as a method of broadcasting 8k internet based television,' - good luck with that. The amount of bandwidth needed for a single episode of Corrie on a Tuesday night if even half of its audience wanted to watch it live is huge. Broadcasting via 5G is just inefficient and expensive.
Pretty much all the above points have been rehashed again and again on this site - look around the archives. In reality, how we watch, and the resolution in which we watch it has changed a lot less than anyone thinks - most TV is still watched live (only 25% is even recorded), and most of it is still in SD, and that includes BBC1 etc, even when people have a T2 tuner, etc.
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Nick Anderson: And you dont have to replace it at all, unless you want to (BTW - if you are, I suspect you'll probably be roughly a 40in). Your TV has HDMI slots, and all you need to do is to attach a 44 pound HD receiver to it, and problem solved. Since your TV will be HD ready anyway, its worth it just for that. And when you replace your OVR, that will have two HD tuners, so that you can watch in HD in one and record on the other. As I said before, any upgrade is minor, easy and cheap.
Nigelj: HDR gives you a better colour palate in 4K, but doesn't really do anything for SD or HD, and not all providers are showing material with HDR yet anyway. And yes, most 4K TV's from the big 4 brands have it, and its nice to have, but since the chances of broadcasting any time soon in 4K on terrestial are zero (even if we all change to T2 tuners is going to be limited), it makes little odds for most in terms of the main channels.
Yes, you end up with extra boxes, and thus remotes (I've got 6 currently) but if you've got Sky, your largely using the Sky remote, and if you've a non-digital TV (which I had until last year), your just using the remote to switch it on and off, change the input and the volume (and the last can be done via the addon box). And of course those new boxes tend to replace older boxes - the blu ray replaces the DVD, the new PVR replaces the old one, etc.
Frankly, the only reason I use the remote on my Freeview TV is to change the inputs and the volume, and switching it on - the rest is done via the other boxes. And if I had a more up to date set, the HD box, and Now TV box would disappear (although I did buy a Chromecast really cheap on Monday, so I'd add that!), and I'd probably retire the old multi region DVD.
Your TV is largely a panel, and stick whatever you like into it. In fact a decent TV will have enough inputs to allow you to do this, replacing or supplanting boxes as and when. You can even get universal remotes.
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Glyn Sloman: Its a Light transmitter, so no, unless you can convince the commercial channels to do so, which is unlikely.
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Mr Harry Blake: You havn't given a postcode, so we have no idea what your signal should be like. However, look at the rest of the questions over the last two days - complaining about much the same thing, which is likely due to a high pressure system 'bending' the TV signals, hence problems with reception. The weather should go back to normal fairly soon.
You can check the status of the transmitter yourself on this site, and although there is sometimes a bit of a lag in information, usually its accurate. Biggest reason why your getting 'no signal' (when its not the odd high pressure system) is that there is something wrong with your system, and the TV is getting either no or very little signal. If the problem persists, check your system.
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Doug Ferguson: Plug a Chromecast audio into the input of a radio, etc, and you can easily stream from your phone - 20 at the moment. Or if the radio has bluetooth, just use that.
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Stuart Tier: Firstly, your loft aerial (which we assume you 'inherited' when you moved in) might just have been knocked, bodged, etc. By all means just point it towards Rowbridge (if you look at the DigitalUK site, you'll see the compass bearing in 191 degrees - having the postcode makes life much easier!).
The reason why it basically still works is that your just 28km from the transmitter, and Freeview is pretty forgiving. Obviously check signal strength (not too high, not too low), but moving it a little will hopefully get you that extra mux.
Since your only 28km away from the transmitter, and its apparently 45 degress off as well, wait until you've moved it to see what sort of signal strength/quality you'll get first, before worrying about a booster, etc. Frankly, the signal could be too powerful already, in which case you can stick a couple of extra points on with no worries, and still have to kill the signal a little.
If its too low, then perhaps you might need to get another aerial, but if its working fine, why worry? This site will tell you loads about loft aerials, how to split the signal, etc Loft and indoor aerial installations for TV, FM and DAB
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john sambells: The fact that its says 10 is your answer - sounds like your signal is too high. Search for 'too much of a good thing' on this site.
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Monday 28 November 2016 4:13PM
Stephen: It sounds like the phone mast was being upgraded to 4G, and they gave you a filter to stop any problems - thats not the same as reducing the signal strength of your TV.
Yes, aerials can degrade, as can the connections, etc. However, start with the easiest - check the aerial lead from the back of the TV and the socket into the wall. Corrosion in the socket box, a lose cable, or a duff aerial lead can all cause problems - which are generally easily fixable. See this website for info on aerials etc Online Satellite/TV/FM/DAB Cable, Leads and Connectors sales. , and they do aerial leads to order if you like, but the 4 quid ones sound like a good deal. If it cures it, great, and no need to go up a ladder! If not, at least you know what the problem is not.