Satellite of Love…

Ok, having witnessed a little demonstration at the weekend (the promotional video for N.E.R.D’s ‘Everyone Nose’ magnum opus no less, in glorious HD), i’m seriously considering Freesat now, like seriously.

Sure, Sky Plus (as Felicity Kendall and Ross Kemp are so very eager to tell you) allows the pausing and rewinding of live TV, and I’ll never have to miss another episode of one of ‘my programs’ (Gossip Girl, Ed, anything with Dawn Porter in it) again, but the image quality on Freesat HD is astonishing.

I don’t intend to finish each paragraph with a word in bold incidentally, I’ll stop that now.

I’m about 70/30 in favour of taking a dip in Freesat’s shimmering waters, so what did I learn over the last 48 hours that I didn’t know already? In truth, quite a lot:

• There are no subscriptions or contracts involved with Freesat whatsoever; all I need to pay for is the cost of the equipment, which stacks up at….

• £150 for the HD Box and £80 for installation and dish. Fairly reasonable in my opinion.

• Existing Sky Digital dishes can be used in conjunction with the Freesat box without affecting the service, so I might be able to negotiate a discount on the installation. Tasty.

• By Christmas, the Freesat EPG (electronic program guide, or channel list if you like) will have evolved to 200 channels. Currently, 80 channels (including BBC HD and ITV HD) are on offer.

• In a similar fashion to Freeview, the Freesat technology instantly updates itself each time a new channel is added.

• Freesat is available to 98% of UK households, including mine.

I was especially impressed by how future proof Freesat is. The box allows you to connect to the internet via an Ethernet port for extra services, iPlayer being the most eye-catching. This is exactly what I’m looking for. Moreover, the HD service is effectively free, and you don’t get that with Sky.

As Sting once said, sort of, “If you love someone, get them Freesat”. Or was that Richard Bach?

Either way, I’m getting it.

 This is the Modern World

….or the ‘down low’ should you be so inclined. Or perhaps even ‘the skinny’ for those of you in a Queen Latifah based urban comedy.

So, the latest technology to hit the high street is a HD ready, flat screen plasma TV with inbuilt Freesat. That’s a lot to take in isn’t it?

If, like me, you’re thinking ‘I want that so badly, but I don’t really know what it is’, then you had better read on. There’s a very important requirement that needs to be met.

Freesat is a free to air digital satellite television service launched but six weeks ago. Essentially a step up from existing Freeview technologies, Freesat receivers (be they separates or TV implants) make use of the additional capacity available on digital satellite broadcasting to offer high-definition channels.

Most free to air channels have been made available on Freesat, but due to contractual complications, the Freeview EPG cannot yet be duplicated on Freesat. Effectively, as Freesat evolves, more and more channels will become available.

As of this month however, Freesat viewers get an added bonus not available to Freeview customers, in that the BBC and ITV HD channels will appear exclusively on the service. That’s why Gary Lineker has been getting so revved up about the possibilities of watching Euro 2008 in HD before kick-off in each game, just in case you were wondering where his sudden enthusiasm for digital broadcast systems had come from.

So where do the new plasmas fit in?

Well, the Panasonic PZ81 plasma series is the first in the UK to offer built-in Freesat HD compatible tuners. The PZ81 range is available in 50in, 46in and 42in sizes, and boasts a full 1920 x 1080 HD resolution.

Now, here’s the important bit. Although the plasma comes replete with Freesat tuner, you still need a satellite dish to access the service. This is an issue that still seems lost on most potential Freesat customers.

Before you dive in, consider the full cost and implications. If it helps, production of the PZ81 series is lead-free, and each plasma houses an ‘Eco’ function which moderates power consumption.