When Foxtel launched their iQ2 box back in 2008, the HD PVR had an Ethernet port on the back that the PayTV network promised would be unlocked in the future. Well, the future is apparently almost here, with Foxtel CEO Kim Williams telling Sky News that they’ll be launching Internet On Demand products launching from October. More »
Foxtel iQ2 subscribers who were disappointed that they weren’t getting to enjoy the delights of the new free-to-air 3D trial channel can now take some solace in the fact that the Pay TV operator will be re-transmitting 15 of the 25 3D matches from the World Cup on Channel 200. More »
Since it launched, I’ve been using Foxtel’s iQ2, and I’ve been happy. But for the past few weeks I’ve been playing around with a TiVo – in particular the new(ish) CASPA service, and I have to say that I’m really impressed. More »
If you own an iPhone and have a Foxtel iQ, head to the app store on your phone RIGHT NOW and download the free Foxtel app, which lets you remotely program recordings for your DVR. More »
Last month, Foxtel announced that they were launching 30 new channels on the back of the Optus D3 satellite. What they didn’t mention was price. Now they have, and if you were crossing your fingers that they were going to just give you those bonus channels for free, you’re going to be a bit disappointed. Although it’s not all bad… More »
We’ve all been there – you’ve set the DVR to record your favourite program via the EPG. The next day you sit down to watch it and about 5 minutes from the end, right at the moment of climax, the recording ends, because the networks couldn’t care less about you and run their programs over time. Well, now the Foxtel iQ2 (but not the iQ) will let you extend the recording time up to 20 minutes after each program. More »
IceTV has a very, very good point on their blog today about planning your scheduled recordings around this week’s introduction of the One HD sports channel. As in, ‘If you don’t change your scheduled recording before March 26, you’ll probably miss the next episode of House in HD’. More »
And the battle for PVR of choice in your living room rages on, growing more and more violent with each passing week. This time, Foxtel has sent a mortar in the shape of an enhanced online EPG into TiVo’s camp. Foxtel have expanded their online EPG to 14 days, meaning you can check out upcoming TV shows and movies up to two weeks in advance. Plus, they’ve added a whole raft of new advanced search functions to help iQ subscribers find more of the shows that they want to watch, and then send the order to record directly to their iQ remotely.
Unfortunately, the TV EPG is still restricted to 7 days in advance, but watching the way this war is really building up, surely it can’t be too long before we see 14 days become the norm for all EPGs…
Not content to sit back and watch TiVo take all the headlines in the PVR department, Foxtel snuck out a quick one-two at the Telstra Investor’s Day last week regarding their upcoming IPTV offering and a service called iQ2Go.
The IPTV service, which uses the currently disabled ethernet jack on the back of the iQ2 box, will let users download video on demand over the internet, and will be launched in the first half of next year. Of course, we’ve known that IPTV was coming to Foxtel sooner rather than later (why put an ethernet port in the back if you’re not going to use it?), but this is the first definitive timeframe we’ve heard.
The service will be available to all iQ2 subscribers, but at the moment they haven’t worked out any agreements to have content unmetered, meaning you’ll probably end up paying for the content twice.
But the more exciting news was the announcement of the iQ2Go device, which will let you take programs stored on your iQ and play them back on a portable device. More »
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.
