An Amstrad Digibox with Viewing Card Inserted

A Sky Digital Viewing Card

The Digibox is a device marketed by British Sky Broadcasting in the UK and Republic of Ireland to enable home users to receive digital satellite television broadcasts (satellite receiver). An internet service is also available through the device, similar in some ways to the American MSN TV. The first Digiboxes shipped to consumers in mid-1998, and the hardware reference design is unchanged since. Compared to other satellite receivers, they are severely restricted. Look up device in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... Artists impression of a Boeing 601 satellite, as configured for digital television transmission by SES Astra Satellite television is television delivered by way of communications satellites, as compared to conventional terrestrial television and cable television. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Year 1998 (MCMXCVIII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1998 Gregorian calendar). ...

Base technical details

The Digibox's internal hardware details are not publicly disclosed, however some details are clearly visible on the system. All feature dual SCART outputs, a PC card-based expansion port, an RS232 serial port, a dual-output RF modulator with passthrough, and RCA socketed audio outputs, as well as a 33.6 modem and an LNB cable socket. A VideoGuard card slot, as well as a second smart-card reader are fitted to the front (this is for the Sky Credit card). All share an identical user interface and EPG. This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... The PCMCIA is the Personal Computer Memory Card International Association, an industry trade association that creates standards for notebook computer peripheral devices. ... RS-232 (also referred to as EIA RS-232C or V.24) is a standard for serial binary data interchange between a DTE (Data terminal equipment) and a DCE (Data communication equipment). ... RF may mean: RF, the IATA code for Florida West International Airways RF, NYSE ticker symbol for Regions Financial Corporation Royalty free Rf or RF may stand for: Radio frequency Volumetric flow rate/rate of flow (Rf) RF connectors, electrical connectors designed to work at radio frequencies Red Faction, a... For the musical use of modulation, see modulation (music). ... RCA, formerly an initialism for the Radio Corporation of America, is now a trademark owned by RCA Trademark Management S.A. [1], owned by Thomson SA. The trademark is used by two companies for products descended from that common ancestor: Thomson SA, which manufactures consumer electronics like RCA-branded televisions... A modem (from modulate and demodulate) is a device that modulates an analog carrier signal to encode digital information, and also demodulates such a carrier signal to decode the transmitted information. ... A low-noise block converter (LNB, for low-noise block, or sometimes LNC, for low-noise converter) is used in communications satellite (usually broadcast satellite) reception. ... VideoGuard, produced by NDS, is a digital encryption system for use with conditional access television broadcasting. ... The Sky Digital EPG in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland. ...

All Digiboxes run on OpenTV with Sky's EPG software and NDS VideoGuard conditional access. The Digibox receives software updates over the air, even when in standby mode should an update be available. The software features Sky-controlled channel numbering, the ability to view OpenTV or WapTV applications provided as "interactive" or "teletext" content on channels, parental controls, the ability to order PPV events and some basic control over lists of favourite channels and show reminders. The current version of the article or section reads like an advertisement. ... NDS, originally known as News Datacom is a DRM and conditional access firm. ... VideoGuard, produced by NDS, is a digital encryption system for use with conditional access television broadcasting. ... WapTV is an interactive TV technology platform comprising a microbrowser, a markup language, and a significant collection of associated software tools and services. ... This does not cite its references or sources. ...

The digibox, notably, cannot be turned off without removing all sources of power. The "off" control disables video and sound output and changes the colour of the front LED but leaves all other hardware running, amounting in as little as a 1w power saving over the box being fully on.

Digibox remote control

The Standard Sky Remote

The Digibox remote control comes in three physical designs - black with old Sky logo, black with new Sky logo (oddly, this version was being issued from around the first year of the Sky Digital service, despite the fact that logo fell out of use before it launched), and silver with new Sky logo. However, all have multiple variations at present with a new version of Sky remote control being produced every year, to support the addition of new televisions to its universal remote control capabilities. A television remote control A DVD player remote control A remote control is an electronic device used for the remote operation of a machine. ... A universal remote is a remote control that can be programmed to operate various brands of one or more types of consumer electronics devices. ...

Use outside Sky's system

The units are DVB-S compatible, and usually carry the DVB logo on the front. However, their use as a DVB-S receiver for anything other than Sky services is seriously limited by their reduced choice of symbol rates (22,000 and 27,500; additionally 28,250 and 29,000 on Sky HD), and their inability to store more than about 20 non-EPG channels without losing them. Additionally, once any form of parental controls are enabled, the "Other Channels" menu requires PIN entry on every use DVB, short for Digital Video Broadcasting, is a suite of internationally accepted, open standards for digital television maintained by the DVB Project, an industry consortium with more than 300 members, and published by a Joint Technical Committee (JTC) of European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI), European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization (CENELEC... In digital communications, the symbol rate is the bit rate divided by the number of bits transmitted in each symbol. ... The Sky HD logo Sky HD is the brand name of the HDTV service launched by BSkyB on 22 May 2006 in the UK and the Republic of Ireland to enable high definition channels on Sky Digital to be viewed. ...

The box also refuses to let users view channels which are free-to-air but displaying flags claiming encryption, which locks out some channels even on the satellites Sky use themselves, such as AXN. AXN is a satellite television network owned by Sony Pictures Entertainment, which was first launched on 21 September 1997. ...

Manufacturers and non-common features

Digiboxes have been made by Amstrad, Sony, Thomson, Panasonic, Grundig, and most commonly, Pace. Despite the reference designs being identical, a number of digibox lines have specific faults or traits, such as failing modems on Grundig units, and unstable tuners on older model Pace boxes. Some units add features not found on other models, such as S-Video sockets on some Grundig units, and TOSLINK output on Sony's. Amstrad is a manufacturer of electronics based in Brentwood in Essex, England and founded in 1968 by Sir Alan Michael Sugar in the UK. The name is a contraction of Alan Michael Sugar Trading. ... Sony Corporation ) is a Japanese multinational corporation and one of the worlds largest media conglomerates with revenue of $68. ... This article concerns the media and entertainment company. ... Panasonic is an international brand name for Japanese electric products manufacturer Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. ... Grundig AG was a West German manufacturer of consumer electronics for home entertainment. ... Pace Micro Technology is a British manufacture of set top boxes for digital and analogue satellite television, founded in 1982. ... S-Video (also known as Y/C) is a baseband analog video format offering a higher quality signal than composite video, but a lower quality than RGB and component video. ... TOSLINK is a standardized optical fiber connection system. ...

For a long period of time in 2004 and 2005, only one Digibox was in production, the Pace DS430N, but Amstrad and Thomson have resumed production with the DRX500 and DSi4212 boxes respectively. Digiboxes for new customers are assigned randomly, and cannot be chosen, creating an after market for specific boxes due to their individual features. shelby was here 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Standardised design

In late 2005, it was announced that all future Digiboxes would have a standardised cosmetic design, although retain the three current makers, and have a slightly redesigned remote control, which would be recoloured white with some blue keys. 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Thomson and Amstrad began supplying these boxes in late 2005, with Pace following in late 2006. The standardised design is known as the "Flow" design, although the boxes also retain separate version numbers from their makers, such as the Pace DS440.

Other Digiboxes

A second generation of Digibox exists, marketed as Sky+. These PVR units have three versions: the 40GiB PVR1, the 40GiB PVR2, and the PVR3 which is fitted with a 160GiB HDD with 80GiB disabled. All have dual LNB inputs and an optical digital audio output, as well as all other features of the Sky box. These units are manufactured by Amstrad, Pace and Thomson only, and use a different remote control. USB ports are fitted to the PVR3. When Sky+ was launched, there was an additional £10 monthly charge to access the Sky+ functionality if two or more premium packages were not subscribed to. Sky have recently announced that this charge will be removed from July 1st 2007. Should these conditions not be met, the Sky+ box reverts to the functionality of a normal Digibox, albeit without Autoview modes. This article needs additional references or sources to facilitate its verification. ... Foxtel IQ, a digital video recorder and a satellite cable set-top box. ... The term gib may refer to: a castrated male cat or ferret an abbreviation for gibibyte (GiB) or gibibit (Gib) an abbreviation for Gibraltar an abbreviation for Gib Board, itself an abbreviation of Gibraltar Board, all Winston Wallboards[1] tradenames for drywall (plasterboard). ...

The Sky+160 box has 160GiB to record to and is manufactured solely by Thomson. This unit is also fitted with USB ports. (this unit has been discontinued) This article needs additional references or sources to facilitate its verification. ... The term gib may refer to: a castrated male cat or ferret an abbreviation for gibibyte (GiB) or gibibit (Gib) an abbreviation for Gibraltar an abbreviation for Gib Board, itself an abbreviation of Gibraltar Board, all Winston Wallboards[1] tradenames for drywall (plasterboard). ...

A third generation of Digibox also exists, with the additional ability to receive DVB-S2 HDTV signals in the MPEG-4 format. The current (and only) manufacturer of these Sky HD boxes is Thomson, and made their debut on 22 May 2006 with the launch of HDTV channels on Sky Digital. Although around 17,000 digiboxes were initially produced, they could not meet demand and some had to wait for longer for their SkyHD Digibox. Pace already make DVB-S2 receivers and are expected to make a SkyHD digibox shortly afterwards. DVB-S2 is a newer specification of the DVB-S (Digital Video Broadcasting) standard. ... High-definition television (HDTV) means broadcast of television signals with a higher resolution than traditional formats (NTSC, SECAM, PAL) allow. ... MPEG-4 is a standard used primarily to compress audio and visual (AV) digital data. ... The Sky HD logo Sky HD is the brand name of the HDTV service launched by BSkyB on 22 May 2006 in the UK and the Republic of Ireland to enable high definition channels on Sky Digital to be viewed. ... May 2006 : ← - January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December- → May 1, 2006 (Monday) Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association outraged Vatican by planning to ordain another bishop, Liu Xinhong in Anhui Province. ...

These boxes have all the features of a Sky+ box, as well as a HDMI output, and component video output. Both SATA and Ethernet ports are also supplied, but are currently disabled. As well as requiring a Sky+ subscription or qualifying premium packages, HD output is not possible without the payment of an additional £10 (or €15), even on free-to-air services such as BBC HD. The High-Definition Multi-media Interface (HDMI) is an industry-supported, uncompressed, all-digital audio/video interface. ... BBC HD is the high-definition television channel launched by the BBC on a trial basis from May 15, 2006, with the first HD originated programme, Planet Earth, shown on May 27. ...

Card Pairing

All Sky Digital boxes, whether Digiboxes, Sky+ or SkyHD incorporate card pairing. This involves the 'marrying' or 'pairing' of a viewing card to one particular STB, thus preventing one card (and indeed subscription) being used on multiple digiboxes. During installation the engineer will initiate a 'callback' from the STB to Sky via modem and telephone line, transmitting details of the viewing card number and the box in which it is installed. Once this step has been completed it is no longer possible to view premium channels such as Movies or Sports on any other box besides that which the card was paired with. Notably, the card can still be used to view non-premium channels such as Sky One but will display an error message when attempting to watch a movie channel or sports channel with an unpaired box and card combination. A card can be 're-paired' in some instances such as STB replacement or multiroom relocation, however this must be initiated by Sky and cannot be completed by an installer or end-user.

External links

• http://www.heyrick.co.uk/ricksworld/digibox/index.html