Check out today’s GlobalTV Sunday Morning News Tech Talk on the best TV Provider Services: http://www.globaltvedmonton.com/video/may+27++tech+talk/video.html?v=2239873493&p=1&s=dd#newscasts
Shaw Gateway, left and TELUS Optik, right Despite
technology improvements on the web and fast Internet, nothing can match quality
video on your home HDTV screen like subscription cable, fiber-based or
satellite TV providers.
Unlike
the web, it’s not free, unless you are lucky enough to live in Canada’s larger
cities, especially ones near US cities too for over-the-air free HD TV viewing.
For
the rest of us westerners, we can choose between Shaw, TELUS and Bell for TV
service.
I
spent a few months with the newest high-tech TV service from cable-based Shaw
and fiber-based TELUS amid several HD screens at home.
I
left Satellite options out as they are not up to the cool tricks from Shaw and
TELUS.
The
winner? Not that fast folks. Choosing your TV service is more complicated than
buying the right TV. That’s because both providers also offer Internet and home
phone service, in addition to TELUS mobile phone service. Both also offer
package plans for all their services saving you money and only one bill to pay.
Here’s
the skinny on what rocks for each TV service.
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-If
you record/watch lots of TV simultaneously, SHAW EXO TV wins hands down with a
receiver system on steroids. It uses one main Gateway main receiver and one
smaller portal receiver for each TV in your home. It can handle a combination
of six HD live or recorded programs at the same time. This means that if you
have three TVs at home, each with its own portal, each TV can play a live HD TV
show and record a separate HD channel at the same time. Or, if you only have
one TV connected to one portal, you can watch a live HD show and simultaneously
record five more HD shows. The downside is pricier hardware, but SHAW still
offers its older HD PVR system for low budgets but minus all the cool features.
-For
additional computer-like smart features, I liked TELUS Optik which offers Twitter
and Facebook which work onscreen while watching a show. For Xbox 360 owners with
the Kinect accessory, you can use gesture/voice control giving verbal
instructions or hand gestures to change channels, adjust volume, pause,
fast-forward and rewind. For busy folks, Optik-on-the-go let’s you watch
on-demand TV on your mobile device like an iPad, iPhone or other smartphones.
Set PVR recordings remotely with a smartphone, tablet of PC on Apple iOS, Android,
BlackBerry or Windows Phone 7. It also offers free picture sharing through
Black’s photo but requires Internet and
-SHAW has an edge for picture
quality, especially HD channels, noticeable if you are watching both systems
side-by-side, which I think no one but yours truly will. If you walked from one
room with Shaw TV to another room with TELUS Optik, you wouldn’t notice or
remember. Still, Shaw simply has more bandwidth to pump more digital
information to your TV and maintain its advertised Internet performance, which
no one else can match (but for a price) regardless of how much HD TV you are
watching. TELUS Internet is fast enough for most consumers, but you do
experience a slower Internet speed while watching HD TV simultaneously. TELUS
users should subscribe to the fastest Internet speeds to avoid slowdowns if
they have more than one TV at home.
-Compared to SHAW’s brute power,
Telus Optik has more built-in upgradeability as it runs on an IP (Internet
Protocol) technology which gives it a combination of Video-Computer smarts. For
example, if you have a Telus home phone, the TV screen shows incoming calls.
For the same reason, it reacts faster onscreen, especially searches.
-TELUS edges out Shaw on WiFi speed if
you plan to add an Internet package. I found the technical support from either company
went out of their way to ensure their modem placement and adjustment suits your
needs. In some cases, both companies will install an extra WiFi to secure
better Internet reception for folks adding Internet in their package.
-For channel packaging, the bane of any
TV watcher, I liked TELUS more flexible plan. Check online with both providers
and judge for yourself.
SOME CHANNEL OPTIONS AT A GLANCE:
Shaw: 74 HD channels, newest movie
rentals $4.99, HD $6.99, small selection of 1024p (better than HD) movies
$6.99, adult $11.99, with the exception of French, Shaw has better foreign
country channel selection. Shaw’s Gateway PVR records 60 HRS HDTV or 300 HRS
SD. An optional external drive doubles that.
TELUS: 100 HD channels, standard
definition newest movie rentals SD $5.00, HD $6.00, adult $10.00 (TELUS has
much more adult content), more flexible subscription packages and al la carte
channel selection. Note that TELUS has much cheaper six month intros on
packages which increase by about 60 per cent after six month still edging out
Shaw. Their PVR records 198 HRS HD or 490 HRS in SD.
Both providers have parental
control, feature more than 50 advertising-free music channels, endless movies
(although neither had all movies, each featuring unique titles of their own)
and you can continue watching recordings or VOD from where you left off from
one TV room to another. They also have 14 day advance programming.
For more information go to: www.shaw.ca and www.telus.com
Bottom line:
If you want the ultimate six HDTV
home screen setup each with six channel record/watch simultaneously and an edge
on HD resolution, go Shaw.
If smart apps, more options for
setting recordings away from home, faster menu displays, more content and
cheaper hardware, go TELUS.
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