Virgin

[juddie]

Anyone use Virgin media for TV? They're drastically cheaper than Sky, but not sure of the service in terms of range of channels, especially HD?

Anyone use it?

[Peter Venkman]

The mother in law uses it and I personally think its crap in comparison to Sky HD as shes only got about 6 or 7 HD channels in total, compaired to around 30 on Sky HD.

[Ginginho]

I switched from Sky+ to Virgin+HD and it's OK.
I preferred the layout and the TV guide on Sky, it was quicker and a bit easier to use.
But you get the added benefit of the On Demand feature which is great.
Some channels are HD (BBC, ESPN, etc) but not Sky Sports or Sky One or anything like that.

If you're not bothered by the On Demand facility then I would choose Sky+HD if you can get an equally good deal.

I'm happy that I switched from Sky+ to Virgin+HD as it's a bit cheaper, but i'm not blown away by it.

[jonny72]

You get a lot less HD channels with Virgin compared to Sky, but you don't have to pay anything extra for them on Virgin. You also get a massive amount on demand and catch up programming (including HD) with Virgin, though you need to go for their TV XL with V+ box to get HD and all the extras.

The only thing I miss not being in HD is Sky Sports, but even if I was with Sky I don't miss it enough to pay the £10 extra a month to get it. The general consensus is that the V+ box upscales SD content a lot better than the Sky box, so that helps a bit.

I use the catch up a fair bit, it saves you from having to record everything and is a big help if there are a few things on at the same time you want to watch. The V+ box allows you to record two channels and watch a 3rd but even that isn't enough at times.

[blah blah]

Agree with most of whats already been said - the other advantage (so I've been told) is that the V+ box belongs to Virgin, so if it goes wrong, they replace it or fix it free of charge whereas with Sky they may charge you for a new one.

And I'd rather give my money to a rich arrogant Englishman (Branson) than a richer even more arrogant Aussie cunt like Murdoch.

(I know Virgin Media isn't actually owned by branson, but its the principle.....)

[Ardiles]

And I'd rather give my money to a rich arrogant Englishman (Branson) than a richer even more arrogant Aussie cunt like Murdoch.

(I know Virgin Media isn't actually owned by branson, but its the principle.....)

Hear hear.  James Murdoch...smuggest man in [where ever he's from].

The area we live in has appalling Freeview reception due to a large hill half a mile to the east.  I think we're going to bite the bullet and get Virgin TV (along with the basic phone and broadband packages).  Do they let you keep your BT phone number?

[Luci]

Virgin is awesome.  Music on demand and catch up TV are ace. Much prefer it to Sky but then again I'm not massively fussy about HD

[suttonred]

I'm not bothered about HD or Sky Football, did look at Virgin and have stuck with my Tiscali TV. Yes Ardiles in most cases you get to keep your BT number.

[Arriba]

if you have sky and dont really want to change it,phone them and say you want to cancel.they will reduce your bill by at least 25%

[Doore]

I just don't get HD.  I have never looked at my quite modern but not HD TV and thought "this is crap, the definition too low".

[JOHNNY REEVES]

£100 back if you sign up using topcashback.com

[jonny72]

I just don't get HD.  I have never looked at my quite modern but not HD TV and thought "this is crap, the definition too low".

I look at HD and sometimes think, ooh that looks really good but that's about it. Except for sports, they really do look that much better in HD on my TV (but still not enough for me to pay extra for it) - though I think that's mainly due to me having a 42" plasma.

[jonny72]

Woo Hoo - Virgin have done a deal with Sky for all their HD channels and their red button.

I'm sure Sky will still have more HD but at least Virgin will have all the important channels.

[The Grim Reaper]

ep

The mother in law uses it and I personally think its crap in comparison to Sky HD as shes only got about 6 or 7 HD channels in total, compaired to around 30 on Sky HD.

Yep, because Living +1 HD is so important to have! Virgin's V+ Box made by Samsung has 3 tuners and is a far smarter piece of kit than the Amstrad Sky HD boxes. In all honesty its all personal opinion for the tv side of things but Virgin Broadband is simply the dogs bollox and is better than anything that BT, Sky, Tiscali  or Talk Talk can give.

[Barry Scott]

I just don't get HD.  I have never looked at my quite modern but not HD TV and thought "this is crap, the definition too low".

This is my attitude. My sister has HD on some 50" Poineer thing and she thinks it's the bollocks and i agree with her because i'd hate to hurt her feelings. In all truth I just noticed the tv was like a fucking huge colourful radiator. Yeah the picture was better (less than VHS to DVD imo), but then i can happily watch a series on videostic.com.