Bit of a hassle, although generally I've been pleased with the performance of BluewinTV.
Yea, I blew a mains fuse and had to restart it. First time round I got zip, so I was more methodical. I turned everything off at the mains, then got the router up first and checked that worked (broadband access OK), then I got the wireless link up (green lights showing), then I turned on the TV box. I had to turn the TV box off again because it didn't come up first time, but then I got the reboot sequence on my TV and in about 15 minutes everything was working OK again.
Can anyone tell me if I can rent movies through and have them featured in english, we dont watch alot of TV but every now and again we would like watch a movie. We are still looking into our options, what would you suggest?
Bluewin on demand, no (only German, French and Italian) but rented DVDs (like the ones you buy) also contain (in most cases) the original language (English).
Doh! As soon as I read your message I realised I had turned off the router too! Thanks Outrage!
Ok, I cannot find anywhere whether the connection between the TV Box and the TV has to be wireless. Does anyone know, as I cannot get the installation video to work and I want to know before ordering. Basically, I would love that connection to be ethernet rather than wireless or via a powerline connection. Does the TV box have this option
Also, note the installation fee has gone up to 290 CHF (if you want someone to come over).
????
It sounds like you're confusing your computer's wireless connection to the router and your TVs connection to the set top box (which plugs into the router via a network cable).
You'll have router ---> STB (set top box) ---> TV , from router to STB a network cable, from STB to TV a Scart cable or HDMI cable.
Thanks much Vwild1. I guess I got confused due to the person needing a wireless repeater.
By the way, Swisscom has a great tutorial you can go through to find out if you can install it yourself and what you need for the layout for your rooms specifically, as it asks questions based on the distance between socket and modem and tv etc., so you will know in advance whether you need to buy expensive accessories like the wireless repeater or optical cable. It also makes understanding the setup much easier. Go to http://www.swisscom.ch/res/tv/zuhaus...lbst/index.htm and then click on Should I install it myself?
I have had Bluewin TV installed and it has developed an extremely annoying habit in that it frequently "freezes" and then the box resets itself - all of which takes 5 to 10 minutes. As this normally happens just as you are getting to the interesting bit of a program or a news bulletin it is very frustrating. Does anyone know if this is a general problem with Bluewin or is it specific to me? (would be good to know before I complain like hell to them!)
Hi
We also have Bluewin, we have had it for a month. When we first got it it used to do that all the time but it seems to have sorted itself out. Another really annoying thing it did was with the channels there was a delay with the sound so somebody would speak and you would see their lips move and a second later you would hear them talk. This is also something that no longer happens. I hope it is soon sorted for you. Good to have English TV though isn't it?
Give 'em a call on their free help line. They are very helpful and last time I experienced a problem, sent me a replacement remote control the very next day by express courier.
The box resetting is not normal behaviour.
Thanks guys - I will try their hotline and see if I get any joy....
I've had Bluewin TV since the first month it was offered, unfortunately I'm on the very outer limits of the reception zone and service has been very spotty on occasion. The problem is I've only got ADSL but really should have VDSL (which would be much faster with a better quality), still waiting for them to upgrade the lines of which nobody can answer me when that will be happening (it should have already happened from what they told me during the initial installation of service).
Time delayed sound was a big issue in the beginning as was dropped packets which caused the picture to freeze from time to time but that's been pretty well sorted out by now.
At present I'm having problems with sound quality with a very annoying hissing sound at the end of many words. Hopefully they get that sorted out soon as well.
And my biggest pet peeve is that recorder..!! In the beginning it lost the end of many shows because it doesn't have record delay start so if a show started even only 1 or 2 minutes late you'd miss the ending because the recorded had already stopped. To compensate they automatically set the box now to continue recording 5 minutes after the scheduled broadcast. Now if you want to record 2 shows that stop/start at the same time you have to first reset the 1st show to stop recording on it's regularly scheduled time so as there is no overlap which would prevent the second show from being set to record. Ok, that's not the really annoying part, the really annoying part is when a show starts and you think, hey, I'd like to record that AND the show that precedes it. If you hit the record button it will automatically record the first show with the extra 5 minute overlap making it impossible to set the recorder to record the second show. OR, if you first set the second show to record (after the first program has already started) and then try to record the show you're presently watching it will reject your record requests because the box thinks you're trying to record 2 shows at the same time again (the overlap from the first). I've been burned so many times wanting to record 2 shows and only ended up getting one..!!
Before I call the helpline, does anyone know whether you have to update for the HD channels. On the phone checker number it says that we should be able to pick up the channels. Since I have had Bluewin TV since launch, maybe I need a new box!
Typical "we didn't think of this use case".
Just if anyone's interested to know about the BlueWin TVbit-rate:
I maxed out my download on my PC with a FTP at 16 Mbps, then I switched on BlueWin TV and the FTP stream dropped to 12 Mbps. I did this several times, and figured BlueWin TV must stream it's channels at about 4 Mbps. My DVD player also streams at about 4 Mbps, so I'll take a guess and say BlueWin TV channels are on par with DVD quality...
Has anyone else made a similar test?
I've solved the problem, a couple of weeks ago I got the digital HD recorder from my local television cable company WWZ ( Wasserwerke Zug ). The quality far exceeds what I was getting on Bluewin TV..! And the best part is..? Not only can I record 2 shows (or channels) at the same time I can watch a 3rd channel while it's recording them..!!! After 19 years of watching not much more than CNN or BBC Prime in English I'm now overdosing on English TV..!
Cancelling Bluewin - Does anyone know what the cancellation time is for Bluewin, had the system for two years and now going FTA on TNT sat, since I mostly only watch the French channels.
Do the take the box back off of you? I guess they do.
Details of the TNT sat (in French) as follows http://www.tntsat.tv/
Looking at getting the new Sagem HD Recorder.
We will shortly be moving to our new flat and want to finally do away with our Sky subscription, and will replace it with either Cablecom or Bluewin digital TV with HD. Since the Cablecom package in Swiss Romand is crap, to say the least, we will probably go with Bluewin. Question is, as the phone jack and TV will be on opposite sides of the living room, what are the best connection options? It seems to be a choice between: Ethernet Wireless Optical Powerline Can anyone give me any hints on the best option re. signal quality, installation, interference, asthetics etc? Also, what are your experiences with picture quality, service quality etc?
Cheers,
Paddy
The installers will run the cable and do the installation for you - no probs.
Bluewin can also supply wireless access points if you can't run a cable from your router to your TV for whatever reason (at a cost). Alternatively you can use your power grid with kit available from Media Markt etc.
A nice byproduct of having Bluewin is that you also can use Zattoo to watch a subset of the programmes available on Bluewin on your PC. Not the same quality as the TV, admittedly, but a useful addition.