The Switchover for Wales is now complete, and attention is shifting to Scotland.
The Shetland and Orkney Islands will start the switch to Digital TV in May with other parts of the STV North region switching later this year.
Affected transmitters include: Bressay, Keelylang Hill, Rumster Forest, Eitshal, Skriaig, Angus, Durris, Knockmore and Rosemarkie.
If you’re in the STV North region, you can find out details of the Digital Switchover Roadshow and other switchover events at http://www.digitaluk.co.uk/when_do_i_switch/stv_north/stvnorth_events
Need help and advice on the Switchover? Go to http://www.switchhelp.co.uk/
A quick update on the Digital Switchover:
In the Granada region, the Winter Hill transmitter (servings areas including Liverpool and Manchester) has just completed the first stage of the Switchover, with BBC2 analogue being switched off. The remainder of the analogue services will be switched off on the 2nd of December. This also affects around 70 relay transmitters. Freeview viewers served by Winter Hill will be the first to benefit from Freeview HD, when the service is enabled in December.
In Wales, the Long Mountain transmitter (East and Central Wales) has also completed the first round of the Switchover. The North Wales service at Moel y Parc has also switched. The remainder of Wales will complete the switch by March 2010.
Need help on the Switchover? Go to www.switchhelp.co.uk/
Wednesday 30th September, is National Freeview Retune Day.
If you’ve got a Freeview box or TV, you will need to retune sometime after lunchtime on Wednesday to ensure that you have all of the channels. This also affects you if you have BT Vision or Top Up TV.
Reception changes
Many Freeview users in some parts of the UK have struggled to get Five. Part of the changes mean that Five to be available to around half a million extra homes, but those homes may no longer get ITV3 and ITV4 as a result of the change.
The 5% of homes that have completed the Digital Switchover will also find that the BBC radio stations have moved, and many in North Devon and West Cornwall will see some other channels disappear until they retune.
New channels:
Quest documentary channel on channel 38
Freeview channels renumbering:
The following channels will be changing channel number: Price-drop TV, Super Casino, Rocks and Co, Smile TV2, Babestation and Partyland. You’ll find the new lineup, as we understand it, at www.radioandtelly.co.uk/freeviewchannels.html
How do I re-tune?
The changes are expected to be completed at transmitter sites by lunchtime on Wednesday the 30th, and you should rescan for channels as soon as possible after lunchtime, to make sure you can still get all of the channels.
Each Freeview TV or-top box is a little different, so the process is different for each manufacturer. In general, this will mean going into the Freeview menu, and looking for an option like “Channel setup”, “Tuning”, or “Scan for Channels”. BT Vision users should select BT Vision > Settings > TV Settings > Add channels,
If you need help rescanning for channels, see the instructions at www.tvretune.co.uk or you can call the automated National Freeview Retune helpline on 08456 05 11 22. You can also ask for help in our Freeview forum
More on retuning: www.radioandtelly.co.uk/freeviewhelp/retune.html
Good luck everyone!
Thousands of Freeview set-top boxes in Scotland have suddenly become obsolete, after a transmitter upgrade. The same thing happened in the Birmingham area a couple of months back.
Affected boxes include: Daewoo DS608P , Daewoo SV900 , Labgear DTT100 , Portland DP100 and the Triax DVB2000T, which apparently lack enough internal memory to hold the full list of Freeview channels.
The story broke in the Daily Record 5 July 2008, and includes a quite from this site.
There are believed to be between 200,000 and 350,000 affected boxes in the UK, and as the transmitter networks get upgraded ready for the Digital Switchover, more and more boxes are set to beome landfill fodder
