Flatscreen television The Saga Digital TV Comparison Service will help you choose the best digital TV package to keep the family entertained and save you time and money into the bargain, whether you're looking for a high definition package, sports, movies or just the basics.
We are launching the Saga Digital TV Comparison Service in association with Simplifydigital. The new service offers free and impartial advice via experts over the phone. The service is accredited by Ofcom as comprehensive, accurate and impartial and is designed to let you tell us what you want and we do the hard work. We’ll find you the best deal that meets your needs and, what’s more, our experts will be on hand to ensure that the installation goes ahead with minimum of fuss.
Saga's Digital TV Comparison Service has access to the top deals from all the top UK digital TV providers including Sky, Virgin Media, BT Vision, Tiscali TV, TopUpTV, Freeview, Freesat and more. And there are also some cracking exclusive offers for Saga customers.
So whether you’re looking for a top-of-the-range package with sports, movies and high definition TV – or just the basics – Saga's Digital TV Comparison Service can help.
In addition, if you are looking to get digital TV for the first time – maybe as a result of the Digital Switchover – do call Saga's Digital TV Comparison Service experts who can help you choose the best deal.
Meanwhile, here is our guide to the top digital TV deals this Christmas.
Top-of-the-range digital TV packages – Sports, Movies and high definition TV (HDTV)
High definition TV (HDTV) is the big seller this Christmas. It provides stunning pictures in 4 times the detail of a standard TV programme. HDTV is particularly impressive for sporting events, documentaries and movies and dramas.
Football in HD for example is a huge improvement on the standard TV experience – with players (and the crowd!) visible in extraordinary clarity. In addition, HDTV signals are also broadcast in surround sound making for a much richer sound, as well as visual experience.
In a nutshell, to enjoy HDTV you will need to make sure you have an HD Ready TV; a receiver that can decode the high definition signal, (such as a Sky+HD box, HD Freesat box, or Virgin's V+ box); and a TV package that includes high definition programming.
Virgin Media’s top of the range digital TV package costs £38.50 per month for the first two months and £60 per month thereafter (a total of £677 per year including line rental). For this you get their XL TV package with over 160 channels (including 7 high definition TV channels), Sky Sports, Sky Movies and their V+ box. There is a £75 upfront cost.
Sky’s equivalent package costs £68.25 per month (£819 per year including line rental), but you get a broader TV channel selection and 35 high definition TV channels, including Sky Sports and Sky Movies in HD).
For anyone who is serious about watching in HD, Sky offers by far the largest selection of HD channels (35 HDTV channels including Sky Sports and Sky Movies in HD), relative to Virgin Media which offers 7 HDTV channels.
The Sky+HD box also has all the features of a Sky+ box so that you can pause and record live TV. Virgin Media’s HD channels, include ESPN HD, which shows live FAPL action in high definition. In addition, they have a wide variety of on-demand content in high definition.
Middle-of-the-range digital TV packages with premium movies
If you are not interested in paying for premium sports and high definition TV (HDTV), then you will pay significantly less.
We do however strongly recommend including a PVR (personal video recorder) in your package. It is no exaggeration to say that PVRs absolutely revolutionise how you watch TV. You can record whole series of TV programmes at the touch of a button and you can pause live TV (to answer the phone for example) and then resume your viewing where you left off. Sky+ is perhaps the best known PVR, but all the major providers offer similar devices.
Again, in this price bracket the two key choices are Sky and Virgin Media. Tiscali and BT also offer mid-priced digital TV packages, but you would need to subscribe to their broadband services too, in order to buy the package.
Of the two, Sky comes out a little cheaper, offering their Sky 6 Mix with Sky Movies and a Sky+ box for £49.50 per month (including line rental), with a £30 set up cost. Virgin Media’s equivalent package is £41.50 per month for 2 months and £51.50 per month thereafter, working out a shade more expensive. The Virgin Media set up cost is £75.
Budget digital TV packages
For households on a budget, there is the option of going with a subscription free service, like Freeview or Freesat – or choosing a budget pay-TV service. The pay TV providers offer excellent value for money, particularly if you bundle in your broadband and home phone calls.
Freeview boxes start at about £20 and gives you access to over 70 digital TV and radio channels, though many are of questionable interest.
Freesat on the other hand offers over 140 channels with no monthly subscription, including ITV and BBC in high definition. The Freesat boxes start at £68 with a further £80 install charge.
So, whatever your needs, the Saga digital TV comparison service can help you find the best deal. Simplifydigital’s friendly experts are UK based and are on hand to talk for free from 8am until 8pm Monday to Friday; 9am until 5pm on Saturday and 10am until 4 pm on Sundays.
And remember Simplifydigital’s Ofcom accreditation ensures that you will get accurate and impartial advice and access to the pick of the digital TV deals this Christmas and beyond.
Article published November 23, 2009. Prices and details correct at the time of publication. Please check with service providers for up-to-date prices and other necessary details.
Charlie Ponsonby is CEO of Simplifydigital.