Need Digital TV? Ready to switch over?
Get fair, unbiased advice in a language you understand
so you make the right choice.
Boost your Freeview
If you want an essentially free service but with some added extras to give a bit more variety, then there are a few ways that you can give your Freeview service a boost.
Freeview on its own
There are loads of ways to get Freeview (www.Freeview.co.uk) on its own - from a basic set-top box starting at around £20 to a digital TV recorder (DTR) that will allow you to record, pause or rewind “live” TV, or a digital integrated TV with Freeview built in. in addition to this, Top UP TV (www.TopUp.tv) supplies its own branded set-top DTR and all other digital TV suppliers like BT Vision (www.BTVision.bt.com), Sky (www.Sky.com), Tiscali TV (www.Tiscali.co.uk) and Virgin Media (www.VirginMedia.com) will supply customers with hardware and all subscription customers get the Freeview channels as a bare minimum.
If you decide that you want Freeview digital TV but do want more viewing options then you have two ways in which standard Freeview can be enhanced. The first is Top Up TV - it offers over 600 programmes each month from a range of pay-TV channels covering everything from the Discovery Channel and the Comedy Channel to Living TV and the Disney Channel. Programmes are automatically downloaded to your Top UP TV set-top box - which also works as a DTR - and you can even record a whole series to your hard drive to watch whenever you want.
The Top Up TV set-top box costs £99.99 and then the subscription costs £9.99 a month with no contract. You also get the option of adding Picture Box - a movie service from Universal Pictures - to your subscription for an extra £5 a month allowing you to watch a selection of 30 movies a month and seven at any one time.
Picture Box is also now available to non-Top Up TV customers for £7 a month (plus a £20 connection fee) and details of how to sign up can be found on the Top Up TV website.
Click here to read more about Top Up TV or visit the Top Up TV website at www.TopUp.tv
Boosting Freeview with Setanta Sports
If you’re more interested in sports than documentaries and reality TV then you might want to add Setanta to your Freeview instead. This year, Setanta broke Sky’s monopoly on Premier League football and now offers coverage of 46 live matches, as well as a host of other sports including horse racing, boxing, motor sports, golf, and other football leagues including the Clydesdale Bank Premier League. You also get coverage of American sports - all for £9.99 a month with no annual contract.
Click here for more information on Setanta or visit the Setanta website at www.Setanta.com
An alternative option
You also have BT Vision as an option if you’re a BT Total Broadband customer. BT Vision is, at its most basic, Freeview through a BT Total Broadband connection but transcends free-to-view, on-demand and subscription with a range of services to suit your needs.
You can choose to only ever watch those Freeview channels that are available in your area - in which case you won’t be billed for your TV service, but you also get the option of adding pay-per-view programmes and movies when and how you want. Films start from £1.99 and programmes cost 49p for a children’s programme or 79p for others.
Customers also get the option of boosting their BT Vision Freeview channels with a selection of subscription packages starting at £4 a month for the Sports package going up to £9 a month for the TV on Demand and TV Replay package. These packages have no additional subscription attached to them so they can be purchased on a month-by-month basis allowing you to choose one only for the duration of a particular series or during the football season. BT Vision customers can also get a discount on Setanta Sports, allowing them to combine it with the BT Vision Sports package for a total of £12 a month.
If you’re not currently a BT Total Broadband customer but still want BT Vision, you can sign up to their broadband service by clicking here.
Freeview isn’t the only free-to-view service available so why not read our article on Free-to-view digital TV to see what’s available or read more about all the providers currently offer digital tv with our Provider Guide.
