February 19, 2009
After using Tata Sky for 2 years here’s my experience.
I’m a satisfied TS customer. I didn’t need to call for repair service even once. The picture quality is excellent. When I was out of town for 4 months I didn’t need to recharge TS. The channel schemes are convenient. The rates are as low as Rs.125/- p.m. and there are savings on Annual schemes. I’ve taken the Annual Super Saver Scheme for Rs.2600/-. (That’s Rs.217/- p.m only.) With e-recharge I can recharge any amount that I want. Through TS comprehensive website I can check my account, recharge, select schemes, add packages, order movies, etc. Obviously I’d like more flexibility in choosing the channels, but for the peace of mind that I gain for not dealing with the cable operator it’s worth it.
April 02, 2007
Recently we have taken a common Tata Sky connection for all the building residents. A common single dish for the entire building with individual set-top box for each TV. The following is my experience.
Each member got a discounted rate of Rs.3250/- (set-top box +installation charge). We had purchased the set-top box in March 2007 so we got 3 months free subscription i.e. Rs.1000/- free.
Picture Quality
Excellent Picture Quality on all channels, not a single dot or disturbance. Even in heavy rains the picture quality is excellent. This is a boon after receiving terrible picture quality from the cable operator for years.
Channels
Over a 100 channels. A few regional and free-to-air channels are not yet covered.
Service
Up until now, I’ve used it for just three month i.e. March-June 2007, I’ve found the service to be good. Interactive help line makes it easy to recharge. I’ve had no problem with the set-top box or quality of picture to make a complain to the service center.
Other Pros.
The most useful feature I’ve found is that you can see what programs aregoing on on other channels without changing the current channel. Youcan also read a synopsis (summary) of the programs you watch orof programs on other channels without having to change the current channel. (Useful for those who would like to know what the program is about before watching it.)
You can choose language Hindi/English for channels such as Discovery, Nat Geo, History, Pogo, Cartoon Network, etc. (useful for science programs when Hindi words become undecipherable)
Active Sport - you can watch Cricket Highlight any time.
Active News - you can watch Star News headlines, top stories anytime of the day.
You can watch 4 Hindi/English news channels at the same time on a single screen. (useful for news buffs)
Seven Day Program Schedule with reminder facility. (useful for the forgetful)
A guide displays all channels and the programs currently going on so you don’t have to keep flipping through the channels. (useful for channel surfers)
You can set upto 20 favourite channels in the order you want. (I wish there were more than 20).
Easy recharge, you can just buy the recharge card in advance and activate it on the phone or internet.
Cons.
Recharge card is not available for Rs.300/- it is either Rs.500 or Rs.1000.
Movies on Demand is not yet attractive as you have only a couple of Hindi Movies, (no English movies as yet), and the cost of movies I find is exorbitant at Rs.75/- per movie.
I’ve heard from other reviews that the set-top box and dish belongs to Tata Sky even though we pay for it, that’s not a good practice. But I haven’t heard of anyone saying that Tata Sky has walked away with their dish or set-top box.
Some reviews complain of the Tata Sky logo on some of the channels, this logo appears on the bottom right side of the screen only on Star TV channels and is 50% transparent, so it is not a disturbance while watching the program; infact most of the time it is hardly noticeable.
Why would anyone go for Tata Sky?
If your cable operator is giving you bad service, your picture quality is not good, and if you want to choose the language you want on Discovery, History, etc..
In short if you can shell out Rs.3000-4000, don’t mind losing a few regional channels, and in return you want excellent picture quality then go for Tata Sky.
*Suggestions for Tata Sky
*- Include regional channels and all free-to-air channels.
- Reduce cost of set-top box and installation charges.
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*My review on winning the ’Watch the ICC World Cup Final with Hrithik Roshan’ on 28th April, 2007.
*I wrote the above review on Tata Sky on 2nd April, 2007, shortly after I installed Tata Sky at my residence. A few days later I took part in the Watch the ICC World Cup with Hrithik Roshan contest, and I was chosen as one of the winners of this contest. I must say that the event far exceeded my expectations.
There were over 70 winners of the contest, the winners like me were mostly from the middle class families across india.
The event (including snacks and dinner) was organised at the Taj Mahal Hotel in Mumbai. Tata Sky must be congratulated for the excellent way they organised the event. Every winner and their family members got an oppourtunity to personally meet Hrithik Roshan, Tata Sky also arranged for a photographer to take the photos. Hrithik shook hands and spoke to each and every person. His patience and poise was remarkable.
I would like to thank all the members/volunteers of Tata Sky who organised this once in a lifetime oppourtunity for it’s subscribers. It is an experience that we will cherish for a long long time.