Brand New Sky Plus HD Box (300GB Model)

Brand New

Sky Plus HD Box (300GB Model)

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Item Info

Sky+ HD is the brand name of the HDTV service launched by BSkyB on 22 May 2006 in the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland to enable high definition channels on Sky Digital to be viewed. For the first 2 years after launch, the service was branded Sky HD. The service requires the user to have a Sky+ HD Digibox and a HD ready TV. On 30th April 2009, Sky announced that the number of homes with Sky+HD had passed the 1 million mark

Here are some of the benefits of the Sky+ HD service and Sky's HD digibox

ü  Over 30 channels of HD - more than any other provider

ü  Amazing HD picture quality - 720p and 1080i formats supported

ü  Record up to 80 hours of TV, or 30 hours of HD TV onto its built-in disk

ü  Watch one digital channel while recording another

ü  Record two different channels at the same time, while watching a recorded show

ü  Browse through a week's worth of TV with the on-screen programme guide, selecting which shows to record

ü  Pause and rewind live TV (handy for when the phone rings).

ü  Use 'Series link' to keep track of your favourite shows

ü  A collection of "on demand" content with Sky Anytime

ü  Take remote control of your Sky HD set-top box over the Internet or from your mobile phone.

The first generation of Sky+ HD Digibox’s were produced by Thomson. Sky have since added Samsung, Pace and Amstrad as manufacturers, and the Thomson box has been discontinued (though it is still available/supplied as an A grade refurbished item from Sky). A manufacturing fault led to a batch of up to 90,000 units manufactured by Pace being replaced in February 2009.

For connectivity with HD ready televisions, the box outputs via a HDMI connector (adapters to Digital Visual Interface are available). The box is High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection (HDCP) compliant. Sky boxes manufactured prior to Jan 2008 also had analogue component connections (YPbPr), but as the HDCP copy protection cannot be applied to this type of output it is no longer included. Traditional standard-definition (SD) connections are available via SCART and S-Video. All programming is currently output from both HDMI and SD connections, although individual broadcasters have the option to require HDCP (and therefore HDMI) in the future. The digibox also comes with a new slim line version of the Sky+ remote control.

All HD channels are broadcast in 1080i format (though the box can be set to scale this to 720p if the user wishes), using the H.264/MPEG-4 AVC compression standard, from Astra 2A, Astra 2B and Eurobird 1 satellites at 28.2°E and 28.5E in a new DVB transmission standard, DVB-S2. BBC HD is however DVB-S.

The Version 5 EPG (electronic program guide) is almost identical to the one found on Sky+, with the exception being that by pressing TV Guide and then number 2 on the remote control, listings for only the HD channels are shown. An update was sent to the HD boxes early on March 20, 2007, which also included code for Sky Anytime. Sky Anytime TV is accessed by pressing "TV Guide" and then the red button. The very latest EPG version 8 software as totally revamped the EPG adding the option of a mini TV screen amongst many changes. The Thomson boxes are the first brands to receive it the other makes will be getting before the end of spring.

Sky Anytime Service

On 27 March 2007, Sky launched its Sky Anytime on TV Push-Video on Demand service for owners of Sky+ HD set top boxes. Programs in high definition and standard definition are recorded overnight to a reserved 140GB of disk space, to give the effect of video on demand.

This has also been used to bring viewers high definition programs from channels that do not currently broadcast in HD. These have included Sky News (Technofile, Diana: The Last Word), The Disney Channel (High School Musical 2) and Nickelodeon (iCarly)

Sky+ HD Box Specifications

Dimensions:                 380 x 245 x 80 mm (leave plenty of room for ventilation)

Hard disk capacity:       300GB (160GB personal space storage)

Aerial:                          RF aerial in , 2 x RF aerial outputs (modulated)

Video output:                HDMI socket, 2 x SCART (Composite, RGB), S-Video, component HD

           Analogue (Y, Pr, Pb). (Note that component video support on newer

           boxes is set to be dropped)

Audio output:               Optical digital audio, 2 x stereo phono

Other connectors:        Telephone line (RJ11) socket, RS-232 female socket, 2 x USB sockets,

                                  Ethernet (RJ45), SATA (external HDD)

Video On Demand

Sky has so far announced few details on their plans for a full Video on Demand service. However, they have made it clear that they plan to use the Ethernet port on the HD box for VOD in the near future, and that the forthcoming EPG update is designed to "lay the groundwork" for this service. If a new VOD service was to be launched it would require the content to be delivered via a user's broadband connection, as the satellite technology cannot deliver content truly on demand. James Murdoch has been referenced saying that due to the acquisition of Easynet, Sky has a "backbone" for a delivery network of IPTV (Video on Demand Services).

The service will probably be similar to DirecTV's (a subsidiary of Liberty Media) Video on Demand service, which delivers content through an Ethernet port connected to a user's home network; however DirecTV does not provide its own broadband service, and does not have the "backbone" which Sky gained from Easynet.

Box Contents

- Sky HD Box 300GB Model
- Sky HD Remote Control
- Scart Lead
- HDMI Lead
- Power Cable
- User Manual

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