Tuesday, April 22, 2008

22-Apr-08 TV/Cable connections

Very busy today, so I only have time for a simple blog.

The UK telly's actually use the NTSC format for video connections, and the connector is a triangle end with lots of pins sticking out the end (unlike US coaxial cable). So, I'm having to get a UK tv to be able to watch cable.

In addition, I had to bring my US DVD player to play my US DVD's, as they are regionally aligned for formats, and it is connected to my US tv so the connector works. While it is possible, the US DVD's do not play well in UK DVD players. And all of those US components are plugged into my voltage converter!

I am set up for Sky cable, although BT (British Telecom) and a few others provide cable connection as well. It is not as easy to just plug in the box to the wall socket and to the tv; you have to connect a phone cord into the cable box and do a dial-back routine to authenticate you. It is insane. There are various packages you can get (I have combo cable/DSL, and movie/lifestyle/education/nature/entertainment channel packs). You can also pay-per-view for lots of tv shows. (By the way, US tv shows appear in UK at least 6-18 months later that originally aired, so I'm told.)

Now, you also have to pay for a TV license.....for color tv's, this is 139 GBP/year (another tax!). It covers the 4 basic free tv channels (which aren't worth 139 GBP). If you do not have a license and you have a tv in your place, you will get fined. There are people who roam the country, where their job is to ferret out people who have tv's but no license. What a boon!

No comments: