sky+ viewing card

[tickle1510]

My freeview box recently stopped working so a neighbour gave me their old sky+ box as they have just upgraded to HD, I get all the free channels itv 2, bbc 3 ect ect..
I have read a lot of things about getting a sky viewing card so that I can record, I dont want any other channels I dont watch enough tv to sign up for sky but would like to record the channels I get.
Will buying a viewing card allow me to do this? and where is the best place to get them from?
I read something about them costing �20 but then I read about a one off payment of over �100.

[Buenchico]

(2 par post):

This first bit might seem a bit pedantic, but it is relevant. You state that you currently get all of the free channels. Actually you're almost certainly getting all of the 'free to air' channels, but not the 'free to view' channels.

'Free to air' channels are unencrypted, so you can receive them with any satellite digibox. 'Free to view' channels are encrypted, so they require a valid viewing card to watch them. Currently the only 'free to view' channels, on the Astra satellites which Sky uses, are the 'Five' group. (i.e. 'Five', 'Fiver', 'Five US' and their '+1' versions). I'd be extremely surprised if your Sky+ box currently gets those channels.

Up until recently, Sky were advertising their 'Freesat from Sky' service. Customers who didn't have a satellite dish could get one installed, together with a Sky box and a 'Freesat from Sky' card, for (originally) �150. At various times the offer price was cut to either �100 or �75. It's almost certainly where you've seen the �100 figure quoted in your post.

[Buenchico]

Customers who'd already got a satellite dish and a Sky box were able to buy the viewing card for a one-off payment of �20. (So that's where you've seen that figure). Originally there were quite a few channels using the encrypted 'free to view' format (e.g. Channel 4) but most of them gradually switched over to the unencrypted 'free to air' format, rendering the 'Freesat from Sky' card virtually pointless. Because of this, Sky have now discontinued their 'Freesat from Sky' offers for new customers. So you can no longer purchase the �20 viewing card.

Unfortunately the Sky+ service (or, more accurately, the recording function included within it) has always been a strictly 'subscription only' service. A Sky+ box loses its recording function when there is no valid subscription associated with it. Even if you could get hold of one of the �20 cards (to watch the very limited number of 'free to view' channels) it wouldn't enable the recording function of the box.

Chris

[tickle1510]

thanks for your answer and explaining to me the difference between free to view channels.. my kids have a very old amstrad sky box with a viewing card still in and after you saying about fiver and five us I remembered the kids had those channels...I have just took it out and put it in the sky+ box and I dont know how but I have fiver, five us and the +1, but now the kids do not, so your answer was very helpful to me still as it gained me extra channels if nothing else...
so thanks again...
the record still doesnt work which I had a feeling it wouldn't after what you said, I just get the message recording not available phone sky to upgrade, might phone them tommorow and see what they can do for me...