Reply With QuoteIt looks no better or worse than the PVR facility on a Strong Terrestial STB, so long as it works and the stations keep the programs within the times does me.
The only worse menu system is the WDTV Live. Seriously they should employ a graphic artist to design the menus, not an uber geek thats never seen daylight :-)Originally Posted by Smacca
It looks no better or worse than the PVR facility on a Strong Terrestial STB, so long as it works and the stations keep the programs within the times does me.
I stand unequivicably behind everything I say, I just dont ever remember saying it !!
$43 For a remote when you can buy replacement remotes for an openbox S9 for $13 delivered.
I don't have vast but I would be filthy if I had to pay $43 on top of the premium price of the receiver.
I've been watching this thread with interest ever since I got the UEC box. We were able to get them activated in Alice Springs before the DTV was turned on. I'm a lover of everything radio, being a HAM I'd rather get the signal via satellite than the antenna up on the hill about 800M from my house.
In saying that when they turned on the DTV the tuner card in the media center finally became usefull, I bought a HD Homerun box so we have 3 tuners and more media centric information than I can poke a stick at.
I'd love to do the same via Satellite as it means you can get it anywhere in OZ (VK). Alas we are early adopters of the Sat TV system (VAST ANYWAY), I used to have the Aurora when I was playing with PAYTV goldies 10+ years ago and this system while it provides additional clarity still offers an extremely basic service.
The UEC box IMHO is junk, its such a pity its the face of something that is quite brilliant (Sat TV). I have a strong appreciation of the end to end process of getting us a picture via Satellite however my family wont use it as it simply has no features. On goes the Windows Media Center every night, the interface is richer with information and more intuative....Believe me I am no windows fanboy, nor an apple uber geek however this stuff is built to work and provide an interface that the majority of folks use and enjoy.
I'll leave the VAST on here purely out of my own self interest but I wont buy the remote. Maybe in years to come when Carol and I become grey nomads will we get something thats more in the 21st century as far as useabilty goes. Till then I'll switch it on once per month and see if there is a new software update :-)
Sandman
Softek2 (20-11-11)
You could always use a powered hub, they do the job of powering hard drives quite well.
Tiny (20-11-11)
Good point. I'll get hold of one and test it out.You could always use a powered hub, they do the job of powering hard drives quite well.
Tiny (20-11-11)
Hey petez69,
you've been quiet for a while, good to here from you again, totally agree that the UEC box needs to be beter for the position it holds.
The platform deserves more, specially for the price paid subsidised or not, we all pay.
Cheers, Tiny
"You can lead a person to knowledge, but you can't make them think? If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem.
The information is out there; you just have to let it in."
Will it be possible to fast step through the adds with this new remote PVR thing.
Currently have a Beyondwiz dp-2?? at home on terrestrial tv, and the add skip setting is great.
Last edited by banjo; 20-11-11 at 07:57 PM.
Nope. The DSD4121 is Freeview 2 compliant, which means no ad-skipping.
Grrr. Why did Govco have to make it so hard for everyone by insisting on having to use these boxes.
Too bad if you've got other boxes that are far superior (which I'm sure quite a few on here have). It's just as bad as the stupid paytv companies, the only difference is, you own the crappy UEC box that you need to buy to get VAST service.
The sooner there's a way around this 'only 1 choice of box' thing the better.
Apologies if this was in the wrong section.
I rang a store today in the Central West of NSW to see if they were still a VAST retailer re purchasing a VASTSTB and when I asked about the PVR 'model' I was advised they had received an Email from UEC that the PVR version was 'Available from Today' (assumingly from UEC) but they didnt have a counter price on the email so they made a 'Guestimate of $359.
They sell the current STB for $279, a 'Government Fixed Price' they said.
I stand unequivicably behind everything I say
Read my first post.
It may be a good idea to switch it on regularly. Recently we have had reports from three differenct councils in Queensland that VAST boxes sent to residents who didn't get around to setting them up for a few months would not work at all. When they were switched on there was an error code saying the unit would not connect.
Apparently if you don't set these up within six months of the card being activated the box will not work at all. When the councils contacted Optus they were told neither the box or the VAST card could not be reactivated and the client would have to buy new ones.
I know this happens if you buy a wireless internet dongle and don't put credit on it for a few months. You end up having to buy a new wireless modem/dongle but if this is happening to VAST boxes it is an outrage.
Has anyone else had this happen?
"the one with the sugar coating is the one that would otherwise taste worst".
Thats the price they quoted me saying that they only had a cost price from UEC, not the RRP available....................
This asks the question of is the PVR version price regulated as the 'standard' one is or not?
I stand unequivicably behind everything I say
Log on to accessantennas.com.au and look it up for your answer.
PVR probably comes under Luxury accessory, so maybe not regulated.
Gordon,why not ring the shop & tell them Access Antennas is selling for $322 & see if they will match it, sometimes you've got to haggle.
Don't forget to factor in that you also need an external powered hard drive. Possibly around the $200 mark for 1TB externally powered.
Campersat/Videosat have UEC 4121PVR plus 1TB Hard drive as a package for $549.
I'm not saying that's a good price as hard drives are in a very wide price range.
Actually the price of the UEC sucks when you consider that a Strong twin HD satellite tuner PVR costs only $359 excluding hard drive. The Strong of course is not a VAST capable unit, although it could be if the Gov't relaxed the card sharing rules on VAST.
We really are prisoners to the Gov't card sharing & price fixing regs.
Last edited by Tiny; 22-11-11 at 06:27 PM.
Cheers, Tiny
"You can lead a person to knowledge, but you can't make them think? If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem.
The information is out there; you just have to let it in."
Tiny,
I am not basicaly interested in the PVR model but I asked about it while I had the opportunity.
I have seen 1TB self powered HDD for $70 and a 2TB for under a $150 and untill someone tries it out, there may be the option of using a powered Hub for the HDD which means USB Pen drives might work too.
I stand unequivicably behind everything I say
So, this comment on the SatPlus site is wrong?It must be an externally powered hard drive. Any drive that draws power from the USB will not work (like a thumb drive, memory stick or larger pocket drives). It must be one that can be plugged into mains power. A good rule of thumb is to avoid using anything that says 2.5" or USB 3.0 as these are usually USB-powered.
Russell.The DSD4121PVR
decoder will now be able to record to a hard drive – single tuner only
– 1 channel recording (must be a powered drive) or USB flash drive.
Yes.
I really shouldn't quote this, but the question was raised in the field trial. Here's what the head UEC technician reckons:
1. The usb port on the back of the DSD4121 will not provide enough current for
the 2.5" drives we have tested to spin up. The startup current is typically
over 500mA. Most PC's have biefier power supplies and can handle this spike for
long enough for the drive to spin up. The 4121 will not provide this current
long enough for the drive to spin up. The 4121 is already past it's design
phase and already deployed so changing the hardware is not an option. There is
no intention to specifically limit the box to 3.5" drives, and if a low power
2.5" drive works the box will accept it. Bus powered drives will however not be
officially supported. You will notice that most 2.5" drives come with two usb
ports for this very reason. The 4121 also does not have 2 USB ports so that
option is not open to us either.
2. With regard to flash drives we have taken the stance that these do not
provide the reliability in terms of sustained writes to allow them to be used
as a PVR. While it will appear to work just fine, remember that each block in a
flash stick can onyl be written to a finite number of times before it is marked
as bad and no longer usable. The primary function of the PVR functionality will
be to pause and rewind live TV. In order to do this it is required that the
disk is always being written to. In a flash device this could mean that people
who do not power their boxes after viewing, will have video being streamed to
their flash disk all day and night which will ultimatly end up in the disk
being used up. Obviously, to most users who dont understand the technological
limitations, this will be percieved as the box breaking the memory stick.
Because of this we have decided that supporting flash based drives is not
feasible for PVR functionality. You will notice by looking on the market that
even the high end PVR products do not use SSD hard drives yet even though they
are low power, low heat devices. This, and the cost, is the reason for that.
Last edited by Smacca; 23-11-11 at 11:11 PM.
And that all seems fair enough, Point 2 in particular. Besides, a USB stick is never going to be large enough really if you want to use the PVR seriously. I only had an old 160GB Freeagent drive anyway.
Anyway, you know what they say, fools rush in...... I've just ordered one of these
LONG LIVE THE EARLY ADOPTERS!!
*EDIT*
Oh, and for those looking for an even better deal, that I missed out on as I couldn't find it before I made my eBay purchase, try this . Note I am not giving any endorsement on this, it's simply the cheapest place I found. Caveat Emptor!
Last edited by 8DashP; 23-11-11 at 09:33 PM.
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