FrequencyCast's look at BT Vision

Top question is "what channels do I get on BT Vision?"

BT Vision is essentially a Freeview receiver with a hard-disk, and the ability to get extra TV shows and movies over Broadband.

Live programming: Delivered via a TV aerial. The default channels available over-the-air, are therefore the same as the Freeview lineup - around 35 TV channels including BBC3, ITV3, Film 4, More 4, Sky 3, UK History, Fiver, Five US, BBC News, Sky News, CBBC, CBeebies and Sky Sports News. There's a full list of the free channels here

Internet content: Over Broadband. The on-demand content available for download is listed in categories: TV shows, movies, kids and music. There are no downloadable TV channels as such, or live programming that can be watched online. Instead, you use the on-screen programme guide to browse through lists of programmes, or search for programmes or films to watch over your Broadband connection. To get a feel for the type of content available for download, listen to show 12.

Sport: Live football from Setanta via a TV aerial, as well as Premier League matches available to view over Broadband on match day. Also, Coca-Cola Football League and Carling Cup matches and live US PGA Tour golf.

On-demand TV content is available from a number of TV channels. As of January 2008, a selection of TV programming is available for download from the following channels:

• BBC Hits, Paramount Comedy, 4 on Demand, HBO, MTV, Warner TV, National Geographic, Discovery on Demand and The History Channel.

The answer is yes... mostly. The BT Vision box is "HD ready", so will support connection to an HD TV. The box has a male HDMI socket for connection to an HD TV. Freeview itself isn't currently broadcasting using high definition technology, so you shouldn't expect Freeview to be available in high definition with BT Vision at this time... however, the box is HD Ready, so content streamed over Broadband could well be available in HD. We're not aware of any specific info about BT Vision's plans for High Definition content at this time.

If you're looking for high-definition cables and adapters, such as HDMI leads, or HDMI to DVI cables, we recommend either TV Cables or Maplin Electronics

• It has a 160gig hard disk
• It supports HDTV (up to 1080i resolution, via HDMI socket)
• It has a dual-tuner, so it's possible to record one digital TV channel whilst watching another digital TV channels. Two can also pause live TV whilst recording another channel.

The BT Vision box is made by Philips, as is known as the Philips DIT9719 Hybrid IP Freeview Receiver and Recorder. A non-BT branded version was briefly on sale from retailer AdvancedMP3players in Feb 2007, but we've subsequently been told that this item was listed in error, and the only source for this box in the UK, is direct from BT.

Site visitor Jaike asks: "Does the BT Vision box receive Freeview channels via the Broadband connection?

The BT Vision gets its live Freeview channels via a TV aerial, and not over Broadband. To get live TV, you need to connect the BT Vision box to a TV aerial.

A number of on-demand TV programmes are available over Broadband via the BT Vision V-box, but live Freeview programming is not streamed over Broadband. See our Channels FAQ for more.

If you're looking for live TV over Broadband, try Tiscali TV.

Theresa Catterall asks: "I'm interested in BT Vision. Does the TV have to be in the same room as the computer? I have BT Total Broadband Option 2 but I do not have the BT Home Hub. I use the BT Voyager 2091 Wireless ADSL Router".

Firstly, you don't need a computer to get BT Vision. The BT Vision box plugs into your TV, and into a BT Home Hub. The BT Home Hub plugs directly into a telephone socket. The phone line must be BT Broadband enabled.

If it's not appropriate for you to have your BT Home Hub sited close to your BT Vision V-box, you may find you're able to use a HomePlug or Powerline kit - These plug in to your home's mains sockets and allow transmission of of data using your home's mains power cabling. We've heard of some instances where BT will provide you with one of these if it's not practical for them to run networking cables. You can buy HomePlug and Powerline kits from Maplin, Dabs.com and BT Shop.

We had the following question from site visitor Martyn: "Can I access the TV recordings on my BT Vision from my PC, or do I have to go downstairs to watch everything?"

There are a couple of ways that you can watch the output of your BT Vision box on a PC, as follows:

• Get yourself a PC TV receiver (USB or PCI), which is capable of getting an analogue signal, then run a co-ax aerial lead from the BT Vision box to the input of the PC TV card. You'll be able to tune in the PC TV receiver to the output of your BT Vision box, and watch the output of your V-box on your PC. PC TV cards are available from PC World , Maplin or Dabs.com. More on our TV on PC page, or in Show 18 of our podcast
• You can copy programmes that have been recorded on the BT Vision box onto a DVD, which can then be watched using a DVD player on the PC. To do this, you'll need to connect your BT Vision V-box to a DVD recorder via a SCART lead. Note that it's not likely that you'll be able to dub off copy-protected content, such as "on demand" videos, onto DVD.
• Consider getting a video-sender to send the output of your BT Vision's SCART socket wirelessly, then connect a receiver to your PC. AV senders are available from Argos and Maplin
• If you want to view your BT Vision box while away from home, you can view the output of your BT Vision box over the Internet (or a home network)... using a Slingbox

At the present time, you can's access BT Vision's On-demand content directly over the Internet - you need to have a BT Vision V-Box. Also, there's no way to extract the data on the v-box hard disk in a digital format that can be read on the PC.

A further question from Steve Eagle: "Is it possible to control viewing and recording of BT Vision from my PC assuming the PC is connected to the set top box and TV? I hate fiddling with the remote and on TV screen instructions.".

In the above set-up, all you're doing is connecting the audio and video output from the BT Vision box, into a TV card on a PC. There's no direct data link between the BT Vision box and the PC, so you can't control the BT Vision box from the PC. At the moment, there's no other way to control the BT Vision box, other than using the BT Vision remote control. If you're looking for a system you can programme from a PC or mobile phone, see Remote Controlling Sky.

A BT Vision box connects to one of your home's TV sets, and to a Broadband connection (via a Home Hub). If you want to watch the output of your BT Vision box on another TV set in your home, here are the options:

• Connect an aerial (co-ax) cable from the BT Vision box RF output socket to the aerial input socket on the other TV in the house. For co-ax connectors and extension leads, try maplin.co.uk
  
  
• Get an AV sender - These connect to the SCART socket on the BT Vision box and transmit the output wirelessly to a receiver that can be connected to a second TV. Wireless AV senders are available from Argos and Maplin
  
  
• If you have a home network, you could look at getting a Slingbox to send your video over an Ethernet network

Note that if you are using the BT Vision box to feed two TV sets - the box can only 'play' one thing at a time, so it's not possible to watch an on-demand video in one room whilst watching a live TV programme from the BT Vision box in another room. If you're not happy watching the same thing in two rooms, you may want to consider getting another Freeview box for the other TV set (remember, BT Vision gets it's live programming over Freeview).

We've been asked if it's possible to have two V-Boxes in the same house. We're guessing, in theory it's possible - although both will have to be directly connected to the BT Home Hub by Ethernet, and it's likely that only one will be able to access on-demand content at a time due to the bandwidth needed to get video.

Q. If I go for BT Vision, can I get Sky Sports? (Ben Hastings)

A. No - Sky Sports and British Eurosport are not available on BT Vision at this time. The channel 'Sky Sports News' is available on a BT Vision box (as it is part of the Freeview lineup). BT Vision offers a sports service, BT Vision Sport using content from the Setanta Sports channel. This includes live FA Premier League and Scottish Premier League games, live Nationwide Conference games and other European football Leagues. There will also be access to PGA golf and many other sporting events. More on Sport on UK TV.

Q. Will I be able to get Sky One on BT Vision? (Adrian Routledge, May 2007)

Sorry, but no. For Sky One, you'll need Sky Digital

Q. What are the USB slots, especially those at the front, used for? (Mick Crammer, Apr 07)

A. Nothing yet... but we can expect these to become useful in the future - perhaps for a webcam, or USB memory card (for photos)? We'll add to this section when we have something concrete - we'll also shout about it in our podcast, so sign up!

Q. Do I have to use the Home Hub, or can I use my existing broadband router? (Andy Granger, May 07)

A. From what we've been told, BT Vision doesn't officially support anything other than the BT Home Hub, is the Hub is apparently designed to share broadband bandwidth, so there's enough for video, with some reserved for surfing. That having been said, we've seen reports in the BT Vision forum that other routers have been able to connect a BT Vision box.

Q. I already have a Freeview Box, but reception is variable, and signals break up in windy conditions. Would a switch to BT Vision make any improvement? (Mike Jordan, Jun 07)

A. The BT Vision box gets its live TV content via Freeview and a TV aerial, so if your aerial isn't capable of getting a decent Freeview signal, then this will affect your viewing of live Freeview programming, and recordings of Freeview programmes onto the drive. See our Freeview Advice page, or listen to Show 14, for advice on improving your reception. The on-demand TV shows and movies downloaded over Broadband aren't affected by your Freeview aerial reception.

Q. Is it possible to surf the web on my telly using the BT Vision box? - (Daniel Underwood, Jul 07)

A. Not as yet. There is no web browser and no way to install extra software onto the V-Box. There's a chance that web surfing may be offered in the future.

Q.Will I be able to record other digital TV channels, such as satellite? (Mark Brock, Sept 07)

A. The BT Vision box doesn't support recording to its hard disk from external equipment.

Q. Can I use the BT Vision box as a receiver and recorder without using my BT Broadband connection? (Robert Atkinson, Sept 07)

A. According to the BT Vision site, the Freeview and DTR functionality currently won't work without being connected to a BT Broadband account. With BT Vision, you're getting a subsidised digital recorder (apparently worth £199), and BT can only afford to do this by tying you to a broadband subscription. This can be compared with a free mobile phone offer... where you get a free handset if you enter a 12 month contract, so the company can get back the hardware cost.
The BT Vision situation may change in the future - as there's a note on BT's site that, in the future, BT will release a software update to enable V-boxes to work as dual-tuner Freeview recorders even when they're not connected to BT Broadband.