TATA Sky HD Plus
- Thread starter Jeffin
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Hassan Khani
Active Member
It is really worth and the HD quality is really good. Especially the movie channels and watching IPL without ads is really good. However the number of HD channels are limited and they are slowly increasing.
just4kix
Well-Known Member
I do not have a first hand experience save what I have seen in TV showrooms. I will comment only on the HD channels.
With the VCR, at least I could extract the content and copy it. No such luck with TataSky+. The adverstisment says, "you can record your cricket/football/tennis match while you are away". But does anyone really enjoy watching a recorded event?
But these are my views. Other may beg to differ.
- Some channels are true HD channels such as NGC HD and Discovery HD.
- Star Gold HD, Star Plus HD, Star World HD are touted as HD but when I was in the showroom, the quality was not up to the mark.
- Star Plus HD: I don't care about such channels. I do not need to see sweat droplets on the foreheads of all those bahus and saas' and neither care how neatly groomed the hair is of all the heros.
- Set-Max, Star Sports, ESPN will show real HD content during specific events such as IPL, Wimbledon, etc. I expect the India-England cricket series to be shown on HD.
- Movies Now, a real HD movies channel is not shown on TS.
With the VCR, at least I could extract the content and copy it. No such luck with TataSky+. The adverstisment says, "you can record your cricket/football/tennis match while you are away". But does anyone really enjoy watching a recorded event?
But these are my views. Other may beg to differ.
well I am glad you mentioned that you do not have first hand experience because the STAR HD channels are absolutely Real as in 'ASLI' HD channels, believe me even their feed is completely different.
the movies sound great in real 5.1, though you have to use optical/coaxial for that.
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just4kix
Well-Known Member
Perhaps. I do not claim to have first hand knowledge of any HD DTH chanells on any provider. Maybe, when I was in the showroom, the content of HD channels may not be up to the mark. Because the difference between NGC HD and Star World HD was noticeable.
I have heard from people and including on this forum that TataSky HD give "asli HD". And perhaps they are right. But non-availability of "Movies Now" which is a real must-have in any HD package is big let down.
I have heard from people and including on this forum that TataSky HD give "asli HD". And perhaps they are right. But non-availability of "Movies Now" which is a real must-have in any HD package is big let down.
Trust me, overall Star World HD or for that matter any Star HD channels usually look better than Nat Geo or Discovery HD on TS. They definitely look better on Dish HD but on TS, too much compression (not sure of other operators). However on these "Asli" HD channels except Star Plus, several movies and programs are still in upscaled 4:3 aspect SD! Worst is, they do not bother converting those widescreen 4:3 letterboxed content like Koffee with Karan to 16:9 before upscaling! This is something really UNFORGIVABLE. However, for Rs.50 you really can not expect more, its almost like getting those channels for free..
Talking of Movies on Star Movies, like in Movies Now, most of them are cropped to 16:9 and worst is, the SPEED is INCREASED from 23.98fps to 25 (PAL) so the Audio can not be from the original Dolby Digital and we hear unnatural higher pitched voices, music, etc. Probably this difference of 4% more speed might not make you uncomfortable, but particularly in Hindi Movies, I can feel that they are playing much faster than the original..
However, you may not miss Movies Now as movies on Star Movies are equally good.. But I also do miss Movies Now.. hope it comes to TS soon
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sanro
Member
touchwood.
Jay5150
Active Member
Am planning to take the HD plunge too. I am a very satisfied TATA Sky subscriber since the past 4 yrs. I already have a multi room connection i.e. 2 digicomps and my question is this
If I opt for the HD box will i able to take it as a third box under the same subscriber ID?
I am already subscribed to the Annual Mega Pack. Will the HD Gold pack be automatically available?
Which is the better choice TataSky HD or TataSky + HD?
A DVR for an additional Rs. 1499 seems like good value.
Thanks
If I opt for the HD box will i able to take it as a third box under the same subscriber ID?
I am already subscribed to the Annual Mega Pack. Will the HD Gold pack be automatically available?
Which is the better choice TataSky HD or TataSky + HD?
A DVR for an additional Rs. 1499 seems like good value.
Thanks
just4kix
Well-Known Member
Excellent move. Having HD service is rather de-facto if you own an HD-TV.
I do not think it works exactly that way. As per the multi-room/multi-TV scheme, the top cost pack becomes the parent. But you should talk to TataSky on this. You want to add one more multi-TV connection? You can simply convert your parent connection to HD.
HD Gold does not become part of the Annual Mega Pack. This is because HD Gold pack does not introduce any new channel.
It totally depends upon the need. While capability to record a program is a good feature, the novelty will wear off very soon. Note that it is not possible to extract the recorded contents from the PVR and store them somewhere. But at Rs. 1,500 it is not a bad deal as you say.
mailalok
Active Member
For me recording is very important feature as now I can pause and listen what my wife is saying
but the best part is I start watching any movies after 1hr of its start time and do fast Forward when the commercials start:lol:.If you are going out for some work and like to watch any movie and show its best option to opt. I agree abt sports activity I also like to watch them live only.
just4kix
Well-Known Member
If that is the case, then go for the '+'. Afterall, Rs. 1499 more is not a really steep price to pay comparing everything else.
If I'm not mistaken, the Annual Mega Pack includes ALL channels and services provided by Tata Sky except Topper. Hence, the HD Gold Pack should automatically become available for Annual Mega Pack subscribers. However, it is best to check with the Tata Sky Customer Service.
The best thing about the DVR, is that you can take a short break from watching TV when YOU want, and you can skip through the ad breaks when they come. That is the most common thing which I use the DVR for. Yes, recorded programmes are rarely watched, but I still enjoy watching the final six that Dhoni hit to win the World Cup, as I have recorded the final in HD.
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no1lives4ever
Active Member
You can either replace one of your existing stbs with the TS+HD DVR or add the TS+HD box as a 3rd box on your system. You need to pay extra for the 3rd connection.
If you have the annual mega pack, you will get the HD channels for no extra cost.
In my case I had the annual mega pack and 2 SD digicomps. I replaced one digicomp with the TS+HD DVR and I do not need to pay anything extra to receive HD content.
If you can afford the 1500 or so extra for the Plus DVR box, then get it. The ability to record programs and pause live tv is a big feature. After getting the DVR, I have mostly stopped watching live TV except for the sports channels. I normally just review the guide and set up programs I want to see and then watch the programs whenever i have the time. No need to wait for a program to start, sit thru ads, arrange your schedule around program air times. And since the Plus DVR comes with a dual tuner, you can watch one recorded program, while 2 on air programs are being recorded or watch one program while another gets recorded. The dual tuner feature by itself can be a big advantage for some.
-- no1lives4ever
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just4kix
Well-Known Member
Since TataSky is charging Rs. 500 as installation charges on HD+ connection, this amount should also be considered as a factor.
Installation charges are waived off for existing Tata Sky subscribers.
That's an ABSOLUTELY UNREALISTIC statement which CAN NOT be true even in the next 2 years! Max which can happen is that we can see about 15 HD (across varies categories) channels IN ADDITION to their SD counterpart in another 6 months.
Would you mind educating the logic you used behind this statement? What do you mean by "HD Gold pack does not introduce any new channel." and how is it going to decide whether it will or will not be included in Mega Pack?? Obviously all channels including HD channels (HD Gold pack have VARIABLE number of channels where channels CAN be added) are included in Mega Pack.
Talking of TS+HD, the difference of Rs.1500 is LESS than even the additional tuner and HDD (which effectively makes one connection as 2 if we use both the tuners at ones in terms of downlinks). Once you get used to the feature, you will terribly miss it if its not available. Hence, some of us who feel that we may get over the + features, I can assure that may never happen.. :yahoo:
It is 4500/- now, as they are charging 500 for installation.
I got the connection last week and happy with quality so far.
Comparing it with DishTru HD which I recently used, it's HD quality is pretty good.
I found StarMovies HD on TS better than MoviesNow on Dish in terms of PQ.
StarGold HD(on TS) and Zee Cinema(on Dish) are on par.
SD channels are better on most of the channels of TS, except Zee network channels. Zee channels & "Ten" network channels & Kids channels look better on Dish. Regional channels (if it matters to you) are better on TataSky.
With recording facility & flexible package options, I liked TataSky as a better product.
Another feature that I was not aware of earlier was TVod/free Showcase. It is automatically downloading movies on DVR for free, and one could watch them at convenient time.
I guess you could compare it with Airtel and then take the plunge. Not many have recommended BIG.
just4kix
Well-Known Member
Best to get this clarified with TataSky. No point us speculating and arguing.
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