R499 DStv HD decoder unveiled

720p / 1080p broadcast

Surprised it took MonoChoice so long to drop SD and only have HD decoders.
HD capable (720p and 1080p) when paired with an HD capable television and connected through an HDMI cable
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AFAIK, DSTV HD broadcast from the satellite is maximum of 720p (what TV's call HD Ready).

Q. Has DSTV started broadcasting in 1080p? :confused:
 
system32 said:
Surprised it took MonoChoice so long to drop SD and only have HD decoders.

AFAIK, DSTV HD broadcast from the satellite is maximum of 720p (what TV's call HD Ready).

Q. Has DSTV started broadcasting in 1080p? :confused:
Click to expand...

I almost crapped my pants laughing :D Here's MC waisting people's money on features they'll never use in the lifetime of their device. They did say there's no 1080p content, but I recently travelled to the US and noticed that contrary to popular belief, there's a lot if 1080p content.
 
system32 said:
Surprised it took MonoChoice so long to drop SD and only have HD decoders.

AFAIK, DSTV HD broadcast from the satellite is maximum of 720p (what TV's call HD Ready).

Q. Has DSTV started broadcasting in 1080p? :confused:
Click to expand...

They are broadcasting non Sports channels at 1080i

1080p uses tripple the amount of bandwidth, there are very few providers in the world broadcasting at 1080p on Sat.

So the comment of max of 720p is incorrect
 
Shirou said:
Question is.. I have 2x DSTV 1131 Decoders, if i leave the primary on 1131 and the new HD decoder on Xtraview will it work? Or do i need to replace them both with the new HD decoder.
Click to expand...

Yes, it will work

Vice said:
I almost crapped my pants laughing :D Here's MC waisting people's money on features they'll never use in the lifetime of their device. They did say there's no 1080p content, but I recently travelled to the US and noticed that contrary to popular belief, there's a lot if 1080p content.
Click to expand...

The decoders come standard 1080p capable, it would cost more to remove a standard feature. If you want a new 3 wheel BMW its not going to be cheaper than a standard 4 wheel model
 
kingrob said:
I'm sure one cable with a splitter will work.
Click to expand...

No, you cannot split LNB.
There are 2 polarisations used Horizontal and Vertical. Each cable carries H/V. In a single view environment the decoder sends 13V or 18V to select the respective Horizontal/Vertical.

In a PVR / multi decoder environment, you need to be able to use both polarizations at the same time. Else you are stuck with channels on the same polarization decided by the decoder. If 2 tuners are sending different voltages, things will go boom and the decoder will not function properly.
 
HD capable (720p and 1080p) when paired with an HD capable television and connected through an HDMI cable
Click to expand...
Vice said:
I almost crapped my pants laughing :D Here's MC wasting people's money on features they'll never use in the lifetime of their device. They did say there's no 1080p content, but I recently traveled to the US and noticed that contrary to popular belief, there's a lot of 1080p content.
Click to expand...
According to the press release/myBB article, the new decoder is HD 1080p capable.
According to Wikipedia, there is No/None/Nada 1080p *satellite* broadcasts in the USA.
Only "BoxOffice" type downloads are 1080p.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1080p#Broadcasts

Most BluRay disks are 1080p.

Is this just a case of MonoChoice advertising another feature (1080p) that they don't have any intention of using?
 
Take every red cent previously spent on dstv and plough it back into internet streaming/downloading. Save half my bucks and am monochoice free = Win!

Incidentally, we went to a braai at a mates a few weeks ago, and they turned on cbeebies for the kids. I was horrified! The EXACT same crap and ads, from when we terminated our dstv (almost a year now)

SO glad to be rid of that rubbish.
 
cueball said:
Does this mean that someone with a plain old decoder, single-LNB installation need only replace their decoder if they already have an HDTV? Add an HDMI cable I assume? Is it a plug-and-play change?
Click to expand...

Precisely, as this is a single-view with no PVR capability. Also perfect for Xtraview when you already have the HD-PVR.
 
Would these be available at Game/Makro yet? Want to try and pick one up today!
 
Sheepbot said:
Would these be available at Game/Makro yet? Want to try and pick one up today!
Click to expand...

I went to Game yesterday and was told they are only getting them from next month. Not sure how reliable that info is as I did see someone mention on the DSTV forums that they have seen them in the shops already.

I am in Cape Town though so maybe Gauteng got them earlier?
 
Hey guys

I see there's been some discussion of the spec that listed the decoders as being 1080p capable. This was a mistake on our side. Our sub-editor thought the "i" was a typo and corrected it to "p".

He has been suitably flayed (and educated about the finer points of HD broadcasting) and the error corrected in the article.

Many apologies.
 
Jan said:
Hey guys

I see there's been some discussion of the spec that listed the decoders as being 1080p capable. This was a mistake on our side. Our sub-editor thought the "i" was a typo and corrected it to "p".

He has been suitably flayed (and educated about the finer points of HD broadcasting) and the error corrected in the article.
Click to expand...
Not that big a deal.

The quality/resolution the decoder can send out its HDMI port (between decoder - TV) has little relation to what is transmitted over the SAT leg. Usually decoders (STBs) up/down convert/scale as necessary.
 
Can it use the same LNB as OpenViewHD, so all that's needed is to re-align the dish with the DSTV satellite? Or does it need a different LNB and/or dish? If realignment is all that's needed, can a schmuck like me do it, or do I still need an expert?
 
satanboy said:
what didn't work?
Click to expand...

My signal strength dropped to 31% when I swopped my single cable + amplifier + splitter for only a single cable going straight into the Explora.

Put my old setup back to how it was with HD PVR2, and signal strength back to 98%.

I honestly don't know why it dropped so low from using the HD PVR2 to the Explora, but not willing to spend a few thousand Rand to find out.

I've made peace with the fact that I cannot use a DSTV Explora in my complex, but so happy that my HD PVR2 works 90%. Can record and watch at the same time, just unable to perform software updates.
 
Awesome - picked up one from Makro in toti (durbs). All setup and running smoothly, in HD :D
 
kingrob said:
My signal strength dropped to 31% when I swopped my single cable + amplifier + splitter for only a single cable going straight into the Explora.

Put my old setup back to how it was with HD PVR2, and signal strength back to 98%.

I honestly don't know why it dropped so low from using the HD PVR2 to the Explora, but not willing to spend a few thousand Rand to find out.

I've made peace with the fact that I cannot use a DSTV Explora in my complex, but so happy that my HD PVR2 works 90%. Can record and watch at the same time, just unable to perform software updates.
Click to expand...

Your single cable setup works? You must have the original software. How do i roll back my damn software. Did that awful fsuckn software upgrade that requires horizontal and vertical input.
 
akescpt said:
Your single cable setup works? You must have the original software. How do i roll back my damn software. Did that awful fsuckn software upgrade that requires horizontal and vertical input.
Click to expand...

DSTV Forum is very informative.
 
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