Adding non-Freesat services to Bush Freesat Digibox

The recent upgrade to the Bush Freesat Digibox's operating system allows the box to receive non-freesat services. This means that you can program the digibox to receive a plethora of other free-to-air television channels over and above the standard ones that the box is programmed to find. In general, free to air services include many channels that you would have received if you had installed any service from Sky. Alternatively, you could purchase third party satellite decoder digiboxes and receive the free to air channels using these boxes. Luckily the freesat boxes all have the ability to receive any television channel that is broadcast via the Eurobird satellite (at 28.5 degrees E) or the Astra 2A, 2B, 2C or 2D (28.2 degrees E).

The original release of the instruction manual doesn't show how to add the non freesat services, and it is a touch un-intuitive, so I'm going to help you out.
First, using your remote, select "Menu", choose "Settings" and then scroll down to Add Non-Freesat Services, click tho "Ok" button and then select "Manual Tune". It should look like this:Now you have a screen where you can add the non freesat services. There are three settings you need to be aware of: Frequency, Symbol Rate and LNB Polarisation. You also have signal strength and quality indicators down the bottom. Here's a screen shot:

Ok, this is a lot less complex than it looks at first. We need a good reference for the various channels that are available to us. Luckily, here it is:
Eurobird
Astra

Lovely. So just type in the frequency and the symbol rate listed on those pages, check the polarisation and then highlight the "Scan" field and hit the right arrow. You'll add your new channels! Wehey!

Now, how to view these channels? Well get to your "TV Listings" and then hit the "Swap" button on your remote and voila......free to air satellite channels to view on your freesat box!

Great stuff.

What's that I hear, you don't want to decipher the frequencies you need.....ok, 'cause I'm a gent, just type these in to your manual tune.....

Astra 2A/2B/2C/2D 28.2 East

Frequency	Symbol Rate	LNB Polarisation
10714	H	22000
10729	V	22000
10744	H	22000
10758	V	22000
10773	H	22000
10788	V	22000
10803	H	22000
10818	V	22000
10832	H	22000
10847	V	22000
10862	H	22000
10876	V	22000
10891	H	22000
10906	V	22000
11052	H	22000
11778	V	27500
11876	H	27500
11914	H	27500
11934	V	27500
11954	H	27500
11973	V	27500
12012	V	27500
12032	H	27500
12051	V	27500
12070	H	27500
12090	V	27500
12110	H	27500
12129	V	27500
12188	H	27500
12207	V	27500
12226	H	27500
12266	H	27500
12285	V	27500
12304	H	27500
12382	H	27500
12402	V	27500
12422	H	27500
12441	V	27500
12460	H	27500
12480	V	27500

Eurobird 28.5 East

Frequency	Symbol Rate	LNB Polarisation
11222	H	27500
11223	V	27500
11259	V	27500
11261	H	27500
11307	H	27500
11307	V	27500
11343	V	27500
11390	H	27500
11390	V	27500
11426	H	27500
11426	V	27500
11469	H	27500
11488	V	27500
11508	H	27500
11527	V	27500
11546	H	27500
11565	V	27500
11603	V	27500
11623	H	27500
11642	V	27500
11661	H	27500
11680	H	27500
12524	H	27500
12524	V	27500
12560	V	27500
12607	H	27500
12607	V	27500
12643	H	27500

1080p or 1080i Which is better?

Television buying can be a bit confusing, especially when you don't know what all those technical looking numbers mean. Sales staff are often only concerned with selling you the TV with the greatest commission so you should do you homework before you purchase your television.

In this article we are going to briefly explain what 1080p and 1080i mean when it comes to television specifications. Well, the number in 1080p and 1080i (i.e. the 1080 part) indicates the number of horizontl lines available on your television. High-definition television is either 720 or 1080. So that means your TV has either 720 lines or 1080 lines that form the picture that you actually watch. This is opposed to standard-definition television which only has 575 lines. So you can see, with High-definition, you get much more horizontal lines making up an image, giving a clearer picture.

So, what does the little "i" or "p" after our number mean? This tells us that an image is either interlaced or progressively scanned. Interlacing is basically a method of creating an image by showing it in two halves, flashed so close together that your eye cannot tell that there have been 2 images and your brain is tricked into thinking there is only one image. This technique is widely used in broadcasting because it saves bandwidth. So, the "i" obviously refer to an interlaced picture. Standard-definition is interlaced - and in fact, interlacing an image is perfect for CRT devices. With plasma screens or LCD screens, interlacing no longer works as well. The "p" refers to progressive scanning. Progressive scanning refers to the technique of drawing each line of an image in sequence.

So, which is better? 1080p or 1080i? Well, the ultimate in HD TV is considered 1080p because it displays a smoother image than 1080i. But, be careful, just because your TV can display 1080p does not mean it will; your signal source needs to be 1080p for you to reap the full benefits of 1080p. Currently, most HD broadcast is in 720p or 1080i, so even if you have a TV that can display 1080p, you won't be getting the full benefit of it from your average television program. Where you will notice the difference is if you play a lot of video games or watch a lot of blu-ray movies. Serious gamers already know the xbox360 and playstation 3 can output at 1080p, and obviously blu-ray dvds can also send a picture in 1080p to your television.

Ultimately, to decide which TV is better for you, you need to take into account your viewing habits.