Uk TV Asia has merged with Thai expat tv. – effective 1 March

[BenCrew]

would anyone be able to post a link to the old UKTV-Asia player, I uninstalled it to try the new one and I don't like the new one at all.

Cheers

k.

Just Google UKTV-Asia.com

However, as they have now been taken over, you might only be able to download the new Ex Pat player

I don't like the new one, but got an email today saying it needed changing so I uninstalled and changed it.

Seems slower than the UKTV player

Check it out

I've stayed put. They keep going on about this ITV3 that I already have. I've had 5 e-mails today advertising the new download!

[properperson]

Indeed. 600B to watch on average one or two programmes per day is just far too high, especially as nearly all the programmes can be found elsewhere for free with a little effort. The 1000B/3-month offer they had at Christmas was already at the top end of what the service is worth.

It's up to the individual what they like to watch, and decide for themselves whether there's value for money here. I took out a years subscription in August, and I'm delighted with the quality. The added bonus is the Brazil World Cup coverage in June, covered by ITV and BBC...and will be much better than any of the amateurish alternatives.

Benny baby...... you can download all the decent tv shows broadcast by bbc, itv, channel 4/5 for free on TV Chaos, X Speeds, torrenting and the like.....

As well as watching i player / itv player by using Media Hint add on....

And like Kittenkong says, there's only a couple of decent programmes being broadcast each night from the above channels...

but if you want to fork out 600b each and every month for the same programmes i'm watching for nowt - "Up to you"......

[BenCrew]

Indeed. 600B to watch on average one or two programmes per day is just far too high, especially as nearly all the programmes can be found elsewhere for free with a little effort. The 1000B/3-month offer they had at Christmas was already at the top end of what the service is worth.

It's up to the individual what they like to watch, and decide for themselves whether there's value for money here. I took out a years subscription in August, and I'm delighted with the quality. The added bonus is the Brazil World Cup coverage in June, covered by ITV and BBC...and will be much better than any of the amateurish alternatives.

Benny baby...... you can download all the decent tv shows broadcast by bbc, itv, channel 4/5 for free on TV Chaos, X Speeds, torrenting and the like.....

As well as watching i player / itv player by using Media Hint add on....

And like Kittenkong says, there's only a couple of decent programmes being broadcast each night from the above channels...

but if you want to fork out 600b each and every month for the same programmes i'm watching for nowt - "Up to you"......

Properbaby, the sites listed are crap, proper people want reliability, quality, and balls to waiting for downloads, I'll be watching by then.

[properperson]

Indeed. 600B to watch on average one or two programmes per day is just far too high, especially as nearly all the programmes can be found elsewhere for free with a little effort. The 1000B/3-month offer they had at Christmas was already at the top end of what the service is worth.

It's up to the individual what they like to watch, and decide for themselves whether there's value for money here. I took out a years subscription in August, and I'm delighted with the quality. The added bonus is the Brazil World Cup coverage in June, covered by ITV and BBC...and will be much better than any of the amateurish alternatives.

Benny baby...... you can download all the decent tv shows broadcast by bbc, itv, channel 4/5 for free on TV Chaos, X Speeds, torrenting and the like.....

As well as watching i player / itv player by using Media Hint add on....

And like Kittenkong says, there's only a couple of decent programmes being broadcast each night from the above channels...

but if you want to fork out 600b each and every month for the same programmes i'm watching for nowt - "Up to you"......

Properbaby, the sites listed are crap, proper people want reliability, quality, and balls to waiting for downloads, I'll be watching by then.

bloke - you're talking pants - i would suspect 5,000 times more people are downloading from the sites i mentioned compared to what your paying for.....

and if Kittenkong says paying 600b a month is a waste of money, that's good enough for me....

Edited March 14, 2014 by properperson

[uptheos]

The Thai Expat interface is not as good as UKTV's.

Fast forwarding a minute or 5 takes ages, it was almost instant on UKTV.

I'm a bit surprised that if they merged with UKTV they didn't go with UKTV's superior interface.

[Pattaya Pat]

Must admit I have it but I barely watch it, sometimes I won't watch a single programme in a whole week.

I will keep it though as I no longer subscribe to True, so saving money there, and as already mentioned the world cup isn't far away now so will be very useful for that.

I'm still using the UKTV platform.

[KittenKong]

...... you can download all the decent tv shows broadcast by bbc, itv, channel 4/5 for free on TV Chaos, X Speeds, torrenting and the like.....

As well as watching i player / itv player by using Media Hint add on....

Properbaby, the sites listed are crap, proper people want reliability, quality, and balls to waiting for downloads, I'll be watching by then.

Actually the various sites/methods mentioned all provide much better AV quality than either UKTV or ThaiExpat offer. There is an extra layer of compression added to both the local services that is very noticeable, particularly on the non-HD source channels.

One of my main objections to the local pay services is that the AV quality is so low for a relatively high cost.

[KittenKong]

Must admit I have it but I barely watch it, sometimes I won't watch a single programme in a whole week.

I will keep it though as I no longer subscribe to True, so saving money there, .....

If it was a choice between having to spend 600B on True or CTH or ThaiExpat/UKTV then I would also go with the latter. True and CTH are both very lacking in UK non-sport programming.

[KittenKong]

It's up to the individual what they like to watch, and decide for themselves whether there's value for money here.

Obviously. Is anyone suggesting otherwise?

The added bonus is the Brazil World Cup coverage in June, covered by ITV and BBC...and will be much better than any of the amateurish alternatives.

Not everyone is interested in sport but those who like it are probably happy with the 600B price. Personally I wouldn't watch any sport even if I was paid to do it.

[piston broke]

...... you can download all the decent tv shows broadcast by bbc, itv, channel 4/5 for free on TV Chaos, X Speeds, torrenting and the like.....

As well as watching i player / itv player by using Media Hint add on....

Properbaby, the sites listed are crap, proper people want reliability, quality, and balls to waiting for downloads, I'll be watching by then.

Actually the various sites/methods mentioned all provide much better AV quality than either UKTV or ThaiExpat offer. There is an extra layer of compression added to both the local services that is very noticeable, particularly on the non-HD source channels.

One of my main objections to the local pay services is that the AV quality is so low for a relatively high cost.

so, pay for it and get poorer quality ?

doesn't make sense to me.

[Mobi]

Of course everyone’s viewing habits are different, and I accept that for some, the entire UK terrestrial output of daily TV programmes, (15 terrestrial channels plus Sky News), may only provide ‘1 or 2 programmes per day worth watching’.

For me, there is so much I would like to see on UK TV that I have to ration what I watch and record, and even then I sometimes delete stuff without watching it as there is simply too much.

I suppose if you are only watching TV dramas and movies then there probably is only 1 or 2 progs per day, but if you just browse the list of excellent documentaries that are shown on BBC 2, 3 & 4, ITV1 and Channel 4 and even the odd one on Channel 5, then you are spoiled for choice.

There are documentaries and factual programmes to satisfy every possible taste from, historical, to wild life, to arts to reality, to investigative and God know what else – mostly of very high quality.

Then there are the comedies, comedy/ dramas, reality shows, chat shows, review shows, concerts, (classical and pop) educational, to say nothing of the in- depth news and political programmes.

Even the daily news broadcasts from Sky and BBC beat most of what you get on BBC World and CNN into a cocked hat.

Incidentally, some flagship news programmes such as News night, Question Time, etc are not available on BBC iPlayer, but are on UKTV.

Before I found UKTV I used to download a lot of my viewing through torrents, which was OK, but as stated above, much of what I like to watch was not available for download.

I also used to use BBC iPlayer and ITV player via a vpn, which I can now obtain for free.

But for me, the sheer convenience of having 99% of what I like to watch on one media player, which provides reliable, good quality, user friendly viewing is well worth 600 Baht per month. All I have to do is switch on and watch.

It matters zilch in my book that they obtained the content for nothing. It is all about supply and demand... if I could design my own TV player software that gave me trouble free, zero buffering viewing on live programmes, I would do it - but I can't.

Also, there is no noticeable difference in quality between the out put on UKTV player and the out put on BBC iPlayer or the stuff I download via torrents. My daughter is currently visiting from the UK, (she has the very latest TV Equipment back home including giant screen which even has 3D) and thinks that the quality on my TV is absolutely fine so I really can't understand why some feel it is so inferior.

Long may it continue, say I….

[BenCrew]

Of course everyone’s viewing habits are different, and I accept that for some, the entire UK terrestrial output of daily TV programmes, (15 terrestrial channels plus Sky News), may only provide ‘1 or 2 programmes per day worth watching’.

For me, there is so much I would like to see on UK TV that I have to ration what I watch and record, and even then I sometimes delete stuff without watching it as there is simply too much.

I suppose if you are only watching TV dramas and movies then there probably is only 1 or 2 progs per day, but if you just browse the list of excellent documentaries that are shown on BBC 2, 3 & 4, ITV1 and Channel 4 and even the odd one on Channel 5, then you are spoiled for choice.

There are documentaries and factual programmes to satisfy every possible taste from, historical, to wild life, to arts to reality, to investigative and God know what else – mostly of very high quality.

Then there are the comedies, comedy/ dramas, reality shows, chat shows, review shows, concerts, (classical and pop) educational, to say nothing of the in- depth news and political programmes.

Even the daily news broadcasts from Sky and BBC beat most of what you get on BBC World and CNN into a cocked hat.

Incidentally, some flagship news programmes such as News night, Question Time, etc are not available on BBC iPlayer, but are on UKTV.

Before I found UKTV I used to download a lot of my viewing through torrents, which was OK, but as stated above, much of what I like to watch was not available for download.

I also used to use BBC iPlayer and ITV player via a vpn, which I can now obtain for free.

But for me, the sheer convenience of having 99% of what I like to watch on one media player, which provides reliable, good quality, user friendly viewing is well worth 600 Baht per month. All I have to do is switch on and watch.

It matters zilch in my book that they obtained the content for nothing. It is all about supply and demand... if I could design my own TV player software that gave me trouble free, zero buffering viewing on live programmes, I would do it - but I can't.

Also, there is no noticeable difference in quality between the out put on UKTV player and the out put on BBC iPlayer or the stuff I download via torrents. My daughter is currently visiting from the UK, (she has the very latest TV Equipment back home including giant screen which even has 3D) and thinks that the quality on my TV is absolutely fine so I really can't understand why some feel it is so inferior.

Long may it continue, say I….

DITTO

[Mobi]

would anyone be able to post a link to the old UKTV-Asia player, I uninstalled it to try the new one and I don't like the new one at all.

Cheers

k.

Just Google UKTV-Asia.com

However, as they have now been taken over, you might only be able to download the new Ex Pat player

I don't like the new one, but got an email today saying it needed changing so I uninstalled and changed it.

Seems slower than the UKTV player

Check it out

I've stayed put. They keep going on about this ITV3 that I already have. I've had 5 e-mails today advertising the new download!

I assume you are referring to this:

"...The new version of our software player V1.37 is ready for installation."

i've ignored it and am staying with my UKTV player, (which I was advised I can do indefinitely), but I worry how long it will continue to be operational as clearly the EXPAT TV software is inferior.

I assumed they would migrate EXPAT TV subscribers to the UKTV software platform, but the opposite seems to be happening.

[Pattaya Pat]

would anyone be able to post a link to the old UKTV-Asia player, I uninstalled it to try the new one and I don't like the new one at all.

Cheers

k.

Just Google UKTV-Asia.com

However, as they have now been taken over, you might only be able to download the new Ex Pat player

I don't like the new one, but got an email today saying it needed changing so I uninstalled and changed it.

Seems slower than the UKTV player

Check it out

I've stayed put. They keep going on about this ITV3 that I already have. I've had 5 e-mails today advertising the new download!

I assume you are referring to this:

"...The new version of our software player V1.37 is ready for installation."

i've ignored it and am staying with my UKTV player, (which I was advised I can do indefinitely), but I worry how long it will continue to be operational as clearly the EXPAT TV software is inferior.

I assumed they would migrate EXPAT TV subscribers to the UKTV software platform, but the opposite seems to be happening.

Yes, it worries me that that will happen. We would then be paying more money every month for an inferior software. Not good.

[PoolHustler]

would anyone be able to post a link to the old UKTV-Asia player, I uninstalled it to try the new one and I don't like the new one at all.

Cheers

k.

http://122.155.6.210/UKTVSetup.exe

[01322521959]

I have had the new set top box for 4 days now and am enjoying it's versatility, though I would say that when watching any program I notice it hanging and the speech missing a beat, so to speak, for a fraction of a second, now and again, though overall I am happy with it. I also have UKTV installed on my PC and I would say that it is indeed smoother than ThaiEXpat, you can also record from UKTV. It does seem odd that they haven't changed to the UKTV platform. For myself unless I chuck my 15 year old JVC TV away, I shall probably get BOTH UKTV and EXpat come renewal time.I must get out more...

[BenCrew]

Now that UKTV and Expat have merged, you will only have one subscription to renew.

[worgeordie]

would anyone be able to post a link to the old UKTV-Asia player, I uninstalled it to try the new one and I don't like the new one at all.

Cheers

k.

Just Google UKTV-Asia.com

However, as they have now been taken over, you might only be able to download the new Ex Pat player

I don't like the new one, but got an email today saying it needed changing so I uninstalled and changed it.

Seems slower than the UKTV player

Check it out

It does not matter if you have UKTV player installed as when you click it just takes you to

Expat TV player ,at least for me ,and its not half as good as UKTV player , maximum 5 mins

buffer , where UKTV always went up to 15 mins. too clunky to navigate.

regards Worgeordie Sorry my mistake, not the EXPAT tv version of UKTV player, but the new EXPAT TV player, thats the one i don't like

Edited March 16, 2014 by worgeordie

[KittenKong]

It does not matter if you have UKTV player installed as when you click it just takes you to

Expat TV player ,at least for me ,and its not half as good as UKTV player , maximum 5 mins

buffer , where UKTV always went up to 15 mins. too clunky to navigate.

regards Worgeordie Sorry my mistake, not the EXPAT tv version of UKTV player, but the new EXPAT TV player, thats the one i don't like

Strange. My ThaiExpat software has always got up to 30+ minutes buffer within a few minutes of starting to watch something.

But in the last couple of days I have noticed that this seems to have dropped down to about 24 minutes, and it also seems that the compression is not as high as it used to be. So maybe the buffer size has stayed the same and the bitrate has gone up?

[Mobi]

I'm not exactly sure what is meant by 30+minutes+ buffer.

Does this mean that what you are watching is 30 mins behind real time?

If so, this is much worse than what I get on UKTV. I just checked on Sky News and it was about 6 mins behind real time, but when I used the fast '1 minute forward' facility, it moved up to only 3 mins behind real time. Ditto other channels. In the past I have noticed that live broadcasts tended to be 10 mins behind real time (without invoking fast forward), which is no problem at all.

Actually is good to be about 20 + mins behind real time so that you can fast forward through ads, delays in play in sports events and anything that you don't want to see.

Apart from this, there is no buffering at all (i.e. frozen screens while the stream stabilises) on any channel.

[pomozki]

can anyone tell me if there are plans for the Expat player to allow for saving entire programs to hard disk as with UKTV (as opposed to recording as you're watching)?

if not, it will always be a waste of money and I'll stick with UKTV player

also, I've always had prompt email replies from Peter at UKTV - how's the service at Expat?

it would be good to know what they're planning for the future

Edited March 17, 2014 by pomozki

[Mobi]

Here is the transcript of an email I sent to Peter of UKTV and his reply thereto:

Hi Peter,

Since the merger, there has been much discussion on Thai Visa about the UKTV software as compared to the ExpatTV software.

There seems to be unanimous agreement that the UKTV software is far superior, and even after recent upgrades, the ExpatTV software still lags far behind.

Do you happen to know if the UKTV software will eventually be phased out, as if so, you will have a lot of very unhappy customers - me included.

As The UKTV software is so much better, I don't understand why this is not made the standard for everyone, rather than trying to fix the Expat TV software.

Your comments would be much appreciated,

Kind regards,

Mobi

Hello Mobi,

I have been told and believe that the UKTV software will not be phased out and you can continue to use it.

As for you other points, without trying to duck the issues raised, I think you should redirect them to Expat TV.

My roll (sic - presumably role) with what was UKTV is somewhat limited now and I can’t honestly give the answers to your questions.

I have supplied a link to Expat TV where you can voice your concerns.

[email protected]

Best Regards

Peter

Edited March 17, 2014 by Mobi

[KittenKong]

I'm not exactly sure what is meant by 30+minutes+ buffer.

Does this mean that what you are watching is 30 mins behind real time?

If so, this is much worse than what I get on UKTV. I just checked on Sky News and it was about 6 mins behind real time, but when I used the fast '1 minute forward' facility, it moved up to only 3 mins behind real time.

No, the buffer figures I mentioned relate to programmes that are not live. You start watching a programme from (say) 2 days ago and at the top left of the screen it shows you how big the buffer is in minutes. It starts at zero and then (on my connection) rapidly goes up to the maximum which was previously 30+ minutes and now seems to be a bit less. Once this buffer has been filled you can in fact turn off the internet connection completely and still view the remaining x minutes in the buffer. This is also the feature that allows for fast stepping forward of 1 or 5 minutes.

The time delay on "live" transmissions is about 3 minutes, as you mention, and of course it is impossible to have a big buffer on "live" transmissions, but even when viewing "live" I have no problems with slow connection speeds and never get the breaks in viewing that worgeordie seems to be getting. In fact I very rarely view "live" TV and havent done for many years. It's much more practical to view with a delay as then you can skip forward through the crap parts (of which I find there are many in all programmes). Even when watching the news I prefer to watch from an hour ago so that I can skip past all the sport and celebrity nonsense and get to the few interesting bits.

[Mobi]

Thank you, I now understand.

I rarely watch time delayed programmes in this manner as I invariably 'record' the day's output earlier when I am at my computer. The software can record my daily choice of up 5 - 6 programmes very quickly, usually in about 30 mins or less, and when I sit down in the evenings they are all ready to watch, with or without an internet connection. They are also there indefinitely if I cannot watch them within the 7 day deadline.

I sometimes watch stuff without recording it in advance (usually news progs), but even then I have the internet on so it is not an issue. But I am currently running a time delayed programme to check the buffer, which I now understand, (and which is on the top right corner of the UKTV screen), and it has slowly increased from zero (like you stated) and seems to have finally settled at 15.1 minutes.

But as I said, the 'record' facility is so easy use that I invariably just click from my list of pre-recorded programmes.

I'm totally with you on live programmes, for the same reasons as you have stated. Indeed, on news programmes I sometimes even delay them more so that I can fast forward through all the crap.

The buffer has definitely stabilised at 15 mins, which seems a bit better than yours on the ExpatTV software.

Edited March 17, 2014 by Mobi

[KittenKong]

The buffer has definitely stabilised at 15 mins, which seems a bit better than yours on the ExpatTV software.

For the buffer figure higher is better as the more buffer you have the greater length of programme you can skip through quickly if desired, and the longer you can keep viewing should your internet connection go down unexpectedly. I cant remember what figure I used to get with the UKTV software back when I used it, but I regularly used to get 30+ mins with ThaiExpat and now get around 24 mins.

The "record from programme guide" function on UKTV was quite handy but I found that sometimes it didnt work properly and would only record part of the programme, or with glitches and so I never liked to rely on it. For the few programmes I watch I have no trouble viewing them whilst they are still in the 7-day planner.

[Mobi]

The buffer has definitely stabilised at 15 mins, which seems a bit better than yours on the ExpatTV software.

For the buffer figure higher is better as the more buffer you have the greater length of programme you can skip through quickly if desired, and the longer you can keep viewing should your internet connection go down unexpectedly. I cant remember what figure I used to get with the UKTV software back when I used it, but I regularly used to get 30+ mins with ThaiExpat and now get around 24 mins.

The "record from programme guide" function on UKTV was quite handy but I found that sometimes it didnt work properly and would only record part of the programme, or with glitches and so I never liked to rely on it. For the few programmes I watch I have no trouble viewing them whilst they are still in the 7-day planner.

Thanks for clarifying that, I now understand.

I always record from the 'quick search' and in the early days I had a couple of glitches recording some channel 4 documentaries, but since then everything has been 100% fine, and as previously stated ,I record quite a lot every day.

[01322521959]

Hi, wonder if anyone is having this problem. I am running Expat TV box using the red, white and yellow AV cable through my trusty JVC cathode tube set 19 years old.Picture is perfect but every so often the sound "Hiccups" I have been told this is because I am using the AV connection and there is no problem when using the HDMI connection.Does anyone have any ideas about how to sort this out without going out and buying an LED TV?

[HullyGully]

My take on the take over

UKTV software is better than ExpatTV

UKTV price 3800Baht

ExpatTV have nearly doubled the price and no additional channels

Not sure if UKTV is suitable for windows 8.1

[properperson]

My take on the take over

UKTV software is better than ExpatTV

UKTV price 3800Baht

ExpatTV have nearly doubled the price and no additional channels

Not sure if UKTV is suitable for windows 8.1

and they laughed when i said i download my uk TV for free via TV Chaos, X Speeds, Torrenting, I P Torrents, Torrentday etc....

and of course they also got a whole lot more available besides uk tv......

Off to Watch Corrie in HD......

[paul1970]

I'm considering either 365Sports or ThaiExpat Tv for the world cup, I would prefer commentary from BBC?ITV which is with ThaiExpat TV but have concerns that the FAQ on their website says they don't stream HD;

"At present it is not possible to view HD channels with our system. We have the capability to provide a HD stream, the problem is the minimum requirement for stable HD streaming is 10MB. Once enough of our customers have sustainable internet at the speed, we will be launching a full HD service.

I wanted to connect through an Android box to my 61" HDTV set but from the sounds of it the picture would be terrible, can anyone confirm the picture quality on Thai Expat onto a big screen?