In November, the Disney Channel announced it’s joining the Picnic TV lineup. If you’re not sure what Picnic is – this is a proposed pay-TV service backed by Sky.

Picnic is pending approval from Ofcom. If it gets the go-ahead, the service, that can be received via a TV aerial, will offer subscribers premium Sky content, including Sky Sports 1, Sky Movies, Sky One and Disney. Sky’s current Freeview channels, Sky News, Sky Sports News and Sky Three, will vanish to make way for this new service.

Are you pro-Sky One coming to Freeview, or anti-Sky’s plans for TV dominance? Ofcom are after public opinions on this, but hurry as the consultation ends on 14th December - See http://www.ofcom.org.uk/consult/condocs/dtv/. We’re also after your thoughts, so please add your views which may feature in the next show.

The two videophones we reviewed in Show 08 have had massive price reductions. The BT Broadband Videophone 2000 with wi-fi is now less than £50 (previously £200). More at http://www.frequencycast.co.uk/voip.html#bbv

Some changes to Top Up Tv Anytime, the service that provides extra content on a special set-top box. Broadcasting hours for UKTV Gold on the TopUp TV service have dropped (again), this time to make way for some new content. Boxes will now be able to get programming from The History Channel, the Crime & Investigation Channel and the Sci-Fi channel – but you have to go Menu > Customise to get this new content.

We reviewed Top Up TV in Show 10 - See http://www.frequencycast.co.uk/topuptvanytime.html for more.

In front of your PC and at a loose end? Download the free 4oD player from Channel 4. 4oD on your PC provides access to 30-days of Channel 4’s schedule free of charge, plus a stack of classic Channel 4 shows including Black Books, Peep Show, Father Ted, Brass Eye and stacks more.

Download the free 4oD player from www.channel4.com/4od

The FrequencyCast team has been busy with Apple’s much-hyped iPhone. Launched in the UK on the 9th of November 2007, the iPhone boasts an amazing user interface, a full web browsing experience, seamless integration with iTunes, and powerful iPod media playback. However, the iPhone’s not cheap, and lacks the features found on other much cheaper phones. So, is the iPhone a hit, or a miss?

On the day of the iPhone’s UK release, FrequencyCast presenters Carl and Pete got together to put the iPhone through its paces, and we’ve produced a special iPhone show.

In this 33 minute “Unofficial Guide”, the lads cut through the hype and go through each application, one by one. They then explain how to activate one (it’s different to how you get connected with other mobiles), and finally, compare Apple’s UK iPhone with two of the other leading handsets out on the market.

If you’re interested in this new phone, take a listen to our iPhone special and let us know your views. You can download the show as an MP3 file from http://www.frequencycast.co.uk/iphone.html

We hope you enjoy our iPhone special. We had fun putting it together… Thanks for listening!

 

 iPhone UK Audio Guide [33:22m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Users of the low-cost home security system “Homesight” from will be pleased to know that manufacturer Motorola has now released drivers for the Windows Vista operating system.

The updated software is available from It’s available for download from Motorola Support and from the downloads section at MyHome247.

There’s more on Homesight on our Homesight page, or you can listen to Show 12 for our review.

A new version of Top Up TV Anytime software began being rolled out on 8th November 2007. This reportedly offers: EPG & VOD Search, an expanded Synopsis window, stability improvements to Series link and VOD downloads, and some other user interface changes. Updates should be received on your Anytime box automatically.

www.frequencycast.co.uk/topuptvanytime.html

A new episode of FrequencyCast, the UK’s online TV and Tech radio show, has just been released ready for your listening pleasure.

Show 20 of FrequencyCast, released on the 1st of November, covers the following topics:

• News Updates: The UK digital switchover is upon us, news of two new Slingbox products, Dave’s a hit, and a UK phone firm’s just launched a mobile phone that offers totally free Skype calls over the ‘net.
• DVD Recorders: Carl and Pete look at the advantages of recording to DVD, what to look for in a new DVD recorder, and explore the various DVD recording formats.
• New BT Home Hub: BT’s soft-launched a new version of their Broadband and wi-fi router - we take a look at the Home Hub v1.5 changes, and what the new BT Fon service has to offer.
• Your Questions: DVD connections, TomTom settings, energy-saving bulbs, Sky in other rooms, and mobile phone acronyms.

You can download Show 20 direct to your MP3 player, listen online, or view the show notes at http://www.frequencycast.co.uk/cast20.html

Our RSS feed is http://feeds.feedburner.com/frequencycast

 

 FrequencyCast Show 20 [31:14m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download