Gizmodo Australia » foxtel hd+

Long-Term Review: Foxtel HD+ (Verdict: Needs More Channels)

Nick Broughall — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 02:00:39 +0000

Foxtel created a bit of a stir earlier this year when they launched their iQ2 PVR alongside their new range of HD channels. Even though the free-to-air networks all had HD channels broadcasting, there wasn’t a lot of content available in HD that really took advantage of the growing trend for homes to have Full HD TVs in the home. With their HD+ service, Foxtel hoped to bring HD content to the mainstream. And after more than three months of watching their HD channels, I can happily say the future looks bright for HD+, but at the moment it’s held back by a lack of variety in its content.As a quick reminder for non-Foxtel subscribers, there are five channels (at the moment) that make up the Foxtel HD+ service: Fox Sports HD, ESPN HD, BBC HD, National Geographic HD and Discovery HD. There’s also HD movies available through Foxtel’s Box Office service.

You need to upgrade to the iQ2 PVR in order to receive the HD channels, and despite the fact that Foxtel has an installation cost of $200 for the iQ2 plus an ongoing subscription fee, the PVR itself almost makes the whole setup worth it. You can record two seperate programs while watching a third, while a fourth tuner downloads on demand programs straight to your box that you can watch at your leisure. Next year, Foxtel promises to update the box to enable the ethernet port for viewing IPTV content as well, offering even more content.

When you first get the HD+ service setup, you’ll almost certainly spend the better part of the first week watching nothing but the HD channels. But then, after a while, you’ll find your interest waning, especially if you don’t watch a lot of sport. In the three months I’ve been trialling the service, I watched ESPN HD once, just to check it out. It looks fantastic, but is very US-centric in its sports coverage. Fox Sports HD is better for Aussie content, but (and this is a very personal preference) lacks Rugby Union coverage, which is my football code of choice. Which essentially adds up to two sports channels I practically never watched.

Box Office HD is nice – $6 for a HD movie rental is a pretty good price. As with all the HD channels, video quality is pretty spectacular, and the On Demand aspect works an absolute treat. Despite the disappointment of the film itself, I Am Legend was enjoyable to watch thanks to the graphic detail you get from watching films in HD.

Discovery HD and Nat Geo HD were switched on a lot more frequently than the sports channels, and some of the documentaries they showed were breathtaking – one particular show on the Ice Hotel in northern Sweden had me sitting there with my mouth agape for an hour, so amazing was the picture. BBC HD, on the other hand, doesn’t know what it wants to be, jumping from documentaries to BBC series like Robin Hood to opera concerts… and it’s obviously very British. Aside from the magnificent Planet Earth documentaries, BBC HD just seemed to want to be something for everyone and ended up not offering too much at all.

And that’s the biggest problem with Foxtel’s HD+ at the moment. There’s a lack of variety – it’s all sport and documentaries, with a little bit of British thrown in. And there are repeats: I saw BBC’s Planet Earth air probably three or four times over three months, and that’s just what I actually noticed myself.

Where are the classic TV shows like Lost or Heroes in HD? In fact, where’s any of the American and Australian entertainment programming? For Foxtel customers who get their Pay TV via underground cable, there’s at least access to the free-to-air HD channels through the iQ2. For people like me who get their Foxtel via a satellite on the roof, we have to wait until next year after the launch of the Optus D3 satellite before we can enjoy the FTA HD channels through the iQ2. If you want to be entertained with comedy or drama from the US or Australia, the HD+ is sorely lacking at the moment.

Foxtel have already announced that they plan to launch even more HD and SD channels once that Optus D3 satellite is launched into orbit and activated in 2009. And that will be the point that Foxtel’s HD+ service really becomes an attractive proposition. At the moment, despite the amazing picture quality the five channels on offer and the ability to watch HD movies on demand is not enough to justify the expense, no matter how good the iQ2 PVR is or how much you love HD…

[Foxtel on Giz]

Foxtel Activating That 4th Tuner In Your iQ2

Nick Broughall — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 03:04:29 +0000

Back when the latest iteration of Foxtel’s iQ launched, one of the most interesting aspects was that there was a 4th HD digital tuner inside, except it was just lying there like some kind of fairytale princess waiting to be woken up by a digital Prince Charming.

Well, the good news is that the digital prince will be rolling out to iQ2 boxes around the country starting next week to activate the sleeping 4th tuner. Once it’s been woken up, Princess Tuner Number 4 will allow you to record two channels at the same time as watching a third channel live (at the moment you can only record two and either watch one of them, or watch something already recorded to the HDD or watch one of the On Demand movies or shows).

All iQ2 subscribers should be getting the update rolled out by December 1, but you won’t be notified when it’s been upgraded. It’s also a staggered rollout, so you’ll just have to keep trying to record Futurama at the same time as The Daily Show and Star Trek Voyager to see if you’ve been updated yet.

[Foxtel]

Freeview Officially Launching In 2009. Yawn.

Nick Broughall — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 03:45:04 +0000

The free-to-air networks this week got together and officially announced that they are planning on bringing the Freeview brand to Australia. ~~Awesome~~. My hands are fighting back the urge to start clapping as I type this.

For those not in the know, Freeview is a UK branding exercise that covers free-to-air digital television. It essentially offers all the FTA networks digital TV offerings under one easy to remember brand name, essentially so that it can compete better with pay TV.

Considering the success Foxtel is experiencing at the moment, this is actually a good move for the FTA networks. Freeview will act as a standard that various DVR manufacturers will be
able to adopt to ensure that they can provide an accurate EPG for home
entertainment recording. This will allow other PVRs to seriously compete with the likes of TiVo and Foxtel’s iQ2 box.

Freeview will incorporate 15 channels from the FTA networks, including the high-def channels and the upcoming SD multi-channel offerings, and is tasked to drive up the digital offerings available on free-to-air TV.

The only problem with the Freeview concept is that it’s only launching in 2009. It should have launched at least 4 years ago. It launched in the UK in 2002, and even New Zealand has used its masthead as a driver for FTA TV since last year. The reasons behind the delay are probably too numerous to mention, but the fact that Channel 7, 9 and 10 were so precious about their EPG information for so many years certainly wouldn’t have helped.

So, get ready for an onslaught of phone calls next year from your less tech-savvy mates asking what the hell Freeview is. You’re going to get a few calls.

[Via TV Tonight]

Foxtel HD+ Official Launch Date: June 22, 2008

Nick Broughall — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 23:48:53 +0000

Even though we’ve known about the pricing for a little while now, and Ty from CNet was even lucky enough to get an early model for review, the HD+ service from Foxtel gets its official launch on Sunday June 22.

15,000 Foxtel subscribers have already been upgraded to the new service, according to the press release that just landed in our inbox. That’s a pretty big number for a service that hasn’t officially launched yet.

We’ll be testing out the new service in the weeks to come, so stay tuned for that. In the meantime, press release junkies can read this one below the fold:

CNet AU Reviews Foxtel iQ2, Verdict: Worth the $200

Nick Broughall — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 04:04:12 +0000

Ty over at CNet AU got his hands on the new Foxtel iQ2 box a little bit before everybody else, and was kind enough to post his thoughts on the CNet site.

Overall, he was impressed by the new Foxtel offering, rating its performance in presenting both SD and HD channels, although the HD was where most of the love was projected, especially with the programs that offered 5.1 surround sound.

There are some advanced options in the setup menu that allow you to cater for lip-sync issues, and the On Demand service worked a treat.

It wasn’t all smooth sailing – the system did lock up a few times and require hard resets, but he was playing with a pre-release version, and Ty wasn’t a big fan of not knowing the start and end times of programs he was recording.

But for the most part, the HD offerings of the iQ2 were enough to convince him that the $200 installation fee was worth the money. Hit the jump for the full review, and stay tuned for Giz AU’s own opinions in the coming weeks.

[CNet AU]

Foxtel HD Pricing Unveiled: $10 Per Month For iQ2 and $15/Month For All Four HD Channels

Nick Broughall — Mon, 19 May 2008 03:08:31 +0000

UPDATE 2: We just had a phone call from a Foxtel spokesperson who said that the pricing below has been sent out to people who registered their details on the Foxtel HD site. When asked if the pricing would be the same for regular peeps, we were told “You could presume so”.

We also asked about when the service would be available, both to people who registered and the rest of us. They wouldn’t give us a firm date for either other than “before the end of the financial year” although they did say that the registered people would get priority. Commenter “Jones” has told us that he’s got his installation booked for June 2, so it looks like that’s the earliest it’s going to happen.

UPDATE: ~~Although we still haven’t heard from Foxtel~~, this is looking legit – the info came from the Foxtel newsletter, and according to members on the DTV forums, you can sign up to have the iQ2 installed from the first week of June.

We’ve been hanging out for some pricing info on Foxtel’s HD service since January, and eagle-eyed reader David just received some fairly detailed HD pricing on the Foxtel HD website. Sadly, when I went to check on the site myself, the HD pages wouldn’t load, and Foxtel themselves haven’t confirmed or denied the pricing yet. So at the moment, take these figures as rumour, although hopefully we’ll get some confirmation soon.

From the looks of things, it will set you back $200 to upgrade to the iQ2 box, then $10 per month to keep it, which isn’t too bad considering the original iQ is $10 per month for platinum subscribers or $15 per month for everybody else. For a fresh install it’s a $299 fee for your first month of HD+, including the Platinum package.

Package-wise, you’re looking at $9.95 per month for the HD sports channels (includes Fox Sports HD, ESPN HD and access to HD movies On Demand), which interestingly requires you to have the My Sport Package to be eligible. For the complete HD lineup, it’s $14.95 per month, but it appears to also require subscription to either the My Escape, My Playtime or My World SD packages.

The other alternative is to opt for the HD Platinum package, which gives you everything – all Foxtel channels, the full range of HD channels and the iQ2 Box, plus two On Demand Movies – for $130.90 per month.

Hit the jump for a shot of the (rumoured) pricing details:

Or here’s the original Foxtel_Pricing_and_Packaging.pdf
[Thanks David!]

Foxtel Wants An iQ For Every Subscriber

Nick Broughall — Sun, 03 Feb 2008 23:18:49 +0000

One of the interesting things mentioned at the Foxtel HD+ launch last week was that Foxtel hope to put an iQ box into every subscribers home later this year.

When I asked for clarification, I was informed that later on in 2008, Foxtel will be launching another iQ box, which will essentially be a slightly higher-specced version of their current offering (maybe with an HDMI output and a bigger hard drive – or maybe not). It will also have a more appealing price structure to try and entice more people over to the joys of their PVR (as opposed to the $15 per month it costs at the moment).

There’s no more information available than that, but if they do offer an iQ box that doesn’t require a $15 per month subscription fee, I am so there.

[Foxtel]

Foxtel’s HD Channels Dissected, Guts Thrown Around Room

Nick Broughall — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 00:46:08 +0000

After yesterday’s unveiling of Foxtel’s HD+ service, I thought it would be a good idea to take a closer look at the channel menu. Some of you were disappointed by the selection of only four dedicated HD channels. In reality there’s a little bit more on offer than just four channels, and a plan to roll out even more channels next year. Hit the jump for a closer analysis of the HD offerings.

BBC HD
Because the BBC has such a wide variety of programming, you can expect BBC HD to be just as eclectic in its selection. Some of the programs you can look forward to watching include comedies and dramas like Bleak House, Robin Hood, Torchwood, Hotel Babylon, Lead Balloon and Sensitive Skin. Plus you’ll get awesome documentaries like Planet Earth, Galapagos, Hannibal, Supervolcano and Who do you think you are? (If you haven’t seen Planet Earth in HD, you should go out, buy a Blu-ray player and the Blu-ray disc and watch it today – it’s spectacular). Finally, there will also be musical shows and operas, like The Proms, Glyndebourne, Aida and Tosca.

While not every thing there sounds completely enjoyable, it offers a pretty good variety. And with the BBC hoping to produce all its primetime programs in HD by 2010, the amount of content is only going to grow in the next few years.

Fox Sports HD
Last year, Channel 10 showed their key AFL matches and the Rugby World Cup in HD. If you didn’t get to experience it, you were missing out – HD is pretty much made for sport. Fox Sports HD is going to join the other four Fox Sports Channels as a dedicated station, showcasing a selection of Australian and international sports.

The press release says local coverage will include the “AFL, NRL, Rugby Union Internationals, Socceroos matches, The Hyundai A-league and the Ford Ranger Cup”. At the launch, they also mentioned the Super 14 in that list.

On top of that, look for international HD coverage of sports like tennis, cricket, golf and motorsports including NASCAR. Local sports panel shows NRL on FOX, Total Football and Inside Rugby will also be filmed in HD.

I’m not entirely sure whether Fox Sports HD will be filming their own coverage in 1080i, although it would seem logical, considering half of those are currently only filmed in SD. I’ve put the question to Foxtel and am currently waiting for a response.

ESPN HD
Continuing the sports theme, we’ll also get ESPN HD which will show a massive array of US international sports. Think Indy Car racing, NBA, baseball, American Football, Soccer, Lacrosse, Horse racing, X Games plus news and entertainment. Oh, and Poker – the toughest sport of them all.

ESPN HD will generally be transmit at 720p – Foxtel HD+ will broadcast in the standard the program was filmed at, and most US sports is filmed in 720p.

Discovery HD and National Geographic HD
These two channels get grouped together because, well, they’ll be broadcast as a single documentary channel. At least initially – once that D3 satellite goes online next year, expect them to branch off into two separate entities.

Content-wise, the mega documentary channel is fairly self-explanatory. You can expect to see lots of documentaries.

Foxtel Box Office HD
The new iQ2 box that’s a necessary part of the HD+ package lets Foxtel improve their Box Office / On Demand offerings into one super service. Box Office HD will offer a selection of 1080i HD movies with 5.1 surround sound that can be watched instantaneously.

It works exactly the same as On Demand does in the current iQ box – movies will be pushed to the iQ2’s hard drive via a built-in 4th tuner, so that when you press play, the movie starts immediately. It also offers full DVD functionality – you can pause, rewind and fast forward through the film.

Purchased movies are available for a full 48 hours and the service is on offer for all iQ2 subscribers.

The Future
As mentioned earlier, Foxtel are planning on expanding content when the D3 satellite goes online in May next year. The most obvious moves would be to separate the National Geographic and Discovery HD channels, plus add more standard entertainment HD channels – think Fox8 HD, Arena HD, TV1 HD and so on.

The fact that they’ve only launched with four HD channels may turn some people off subscribing initially, but it isn’t necessarily a bad move. Remember, HD is still in its infancy in Australia – it was only November/December last year that channels 7 and 10 launched their own HD channels, which still spend a lot of time showing the same content as the SD channel. Channel 9 is still fart-arsing around with their HD offering, and despite the fact HD panels are selling more and more, most people still only have CRTs in their lounge rooms, making HD irrelevant to them.

The good news is that with everybody moving towards an HD future, content is going to become more readily available. This move from Foxtel is just the start.

Foxtel Uncover Foxtel HD+ — Because Sometimes HD Just Isn’t Enough

Nick Broughall — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 03:03:18 +0000

Today is a happy day for Hi-Def lovin’, flat-panel TV-totin’, gadget-obsessed Australians everywhere. And yes, that does mean you. The reason it’s such a happy day is that Foxtel has officially unveiled its new HD service, including the new Hi-Def box, at a media conference in Sydney. At which I was lucky enough to attend.

So strap yourself in, get yourself comfortable and hit the jump for all the info you can possibly imagine.

The new service is called Foxtel HD+. Why the ‘+’? We think it might have something to do with the extra dollars you’ll have to pay. Maybe – pricing and release date haven’t been announced yet, so that’s just us having a friendly rib at Foxtel’s pricing structure at the moment.

The core component of the Foxtel HD+ service is the Foxtel iQ2. As the name suggests, its the successor to their successful iQ box. It works in much the same way, by letting you record content to its internal hard drive (which, as we announced previously, is a “massive” 320GB). That will give you about 30 hours of HD recording or 90 hours of SD, with some capacity reserved for Foxtel’s on demand services.

Inside, there are three HD tuners (so you can record two shows while watching a third), plus a fourth tuner for Foxtel to push content onto your device at their leisure. What kind of content, you ask? Well, it’s all about the On Demand programming – HD movies will be available on demand, and will start instantly thanks to this 4th tuner.

Like the previous iQ, there’s no connection to external storage or the ability to burn content thanks to licensing requirements from their content partners, but there is an HDMI output (only 1.2, I’m afraid), and an ethernet port for future services (potentially IPTV, although that isn’t confirmed at this stage) once broadband speeds in Australia improve.

Content-wise, Foxtel will launch their new service with 4 dedicated HD channels. They include BBC HD, Fox Sports HD, ESPN HD, Discovery HD and National Geographic HD, plus HD movies on demand. These channels will broadcast content in both 720p or 1080i, depending on how the content is recorded (US sports on ESPN HD, for example, are recorded at 720p, whereas the AFL is recorded at 1080i). For those of you who can count, at launch Discovery and National Geographic will be a single channel.

These four channels will be expanded in May 2009 when the D3 satellite goes online and increases their bandwidth. They also plan to show the 2010 Commonwealth and Winter Olympic games in HD, multichannelling up to eight different channels in Hi Def for each tournament.

Although pricing / release dates haven’t been announced, they assure us we’ll be seeing it before mid 2008. The full press release is below, and there were a few other interesting tidbits I’ll put up over then next day or so, but feel free to go comments crazy!

MEDIA RELEASE: January 30, 2008
FOXTEL UNVEILS NEW FOXTEL HD+ SERVICE
FOXTEL today unveiled details of its new High Definition (HD) service – which will be known as FOXTEL HD+ – and revealed the initial exclusive channel line-up at launch would comprise the world’s strongest subscription television brands, namely BBC HD, Discovery HD, National Geographic HD, FOX SPORTS HD and ESPN HD, plus for the first time the introduction of blockbuster movies in HD and On Demand through FOXTEL Box Office.
FOXTEL HD+ will deliver FOXTEL subscribers a complete HD service with:
•Stunningly beautiful HD pictures and immersive surround sound +
•The introduction of the new generation iQ2, delivering incredible iQ functionality and technology +
•Four dedicated, exclusive 24/7 HD channels – the most expansive HD program offering in Australia +
•True On Demand, High Definition movies +
•Exceptional customer care, lifetime service and support
This all adds up to FOXTEL HD+ and will be the most comprehensive HD service available to Australian consumers. FOXTEL HD+ will provide the ultimate experience for subscribers with increased choice to access HD entertainment in addition to FOXTEL’s standard definition service.
It is the next step in the progressive evolution and expansion of FOXTEL which currently provides a full digital offering of more than 100 channels and interactive services, an intuitive and intelligent iQ set-top-unit with a fully integrated electronic program guide and complimentary services available on mobile and the internet.
FOXTEL Chief Executive and Managing Director Kim Williams AM said: “FOXTEL is the home of HD and we can expect consumer demand to be high. FOXTEL HD+ will deliver HD TV the way it should be. It’s about watching what you want and when you want. FOXTEL’s HD+ service will optimise viewer experience, ensure more consumer choice, and provide unequalled customer and technical support and programming for Australian viewers.
“Today marks a significant step in our HD journey. We’ve outlined the programming and channels that FOXTEL will have available at our mid-2008 launch. We’ve also released details about the new iQ2 set-top-unit and secured the world’s leading subscription television brands.
“FOXTEL has cemented its position as the leading innovator and provider of choice in television entertainment in Australia. FOXTEL HD+ will provide consumers with a complete, innovative HD solution with the best pictures and sound that is very simple to use.
“And in 2010, FOXTEL will also showcase its coverage of the Vancouver Winter Olympics and the Delhi Commonwealth Games and in 2012 the London Summer Olympics in stunning HD,” Mr Williams said.
FOXTEL HD+ will launch mid-2008 (with the official launch date to be announced shortly), along with full pricing and packaging details.
FOXTEL is also committed to expanding the FOXTEL HD+ service from as early as 2009 with the launch of a brand new satellite and access to increased cable capacity that will allow FOXTEL to provide a range of new standard definition and HD channels.
FOXTEL Executive Director of Content, Product Development and Delivery, Patrick Delany said: “High Definition is the future of television and provides viewers with a true to life experience with amazing pictures and immersive surround sound that puts you in the centre of the entertainment. If you have a HD ready plasma or LCD TV, you will just have to have FOXTEL HD+.
“FOXTEL has secured some of the biggest brand names in television for the launch of FOXTEL HD+, providing Australian consumers with the most comprehensive HD content that is available covering sport, general entertainment and documentaries.
“FOXTEL is not just dipping its toe in the HD pond, we are immersing ourselves by delivering Australian viewers four, 24 /7 HD channels of some of the greatest television brand names who are the leaders in HD content and delivery.
“To have BBC HD, Discovery HD, National Geographic HD, FOX SPORTS HD and ESPN HD on board for our
launch will deliver a truly fantastic high definition experience for our subscribers with thousands of hours of must see HD programming.
“In addition our subscribers will have access to the latest FOXTEL Box Office movies in HD and for the first time available On Demand, meaning they are ready to watch instantly with a 48-hour viewing window,” Mr Delany said.
www.foxtel.com.au/hd
ENDS