Using a SKY satellite receiver abroad

I have read recently that using a SKY satellite receiver abroad will get reception over a bigger footprint than a standard free-to-air receiver such as in an Avtex TV.

1. Is this the case?
   
2. Does the SKY satellite receiver  need a SKY subscription card to get normal BBC/ITV channels? I don't have SKY at home
   

I would be interested to know if anyone has experience of such set-up. I intend to use it with the Maxview VuQube 2

We Love Hugo wrote:I have read recently that using a SKY satellite receiver abroad will get reception over a bigger footprint than a standard free-to-air receiver such as in an Avtex TV.
Is this the case?

I very much doubt that, it's more to do with the sensitivity of the receiver and size of the dish. I would even potentially expect the Sky receiver to have poorer sensitivity, (as it's designed for a limited set of known conditions),  than one designed specifically for mobile or multiple satellite use.

Does the SKY satellite receiver  need a SKY subscription card to get normal BBC/ITV channels? I don't have SKY at home

It used to be the case that some non-pay channels were designated 'free to air', which meant that, like the BBC channels, they could be viewed even without a card in a Sky box.
Some channels were designated 'free to view', which meant that they could be viewed only with a card in the slot, even an expired card would work for these. Alternatively you could buy a 'free to view' card for those channels from Sky for a one off £20 payment.

I would be interested to know if anyone has experience of such set-up. I intend to use it with the Maxview VuQube 2

I haven't done it with a mobile installation, but I used to use an old Sky card in a Sky box before I got a FreeSat box many years ago.
I have used a cheap ALDI box and dish to watch the World Cup matches while on holiday in the van in France, as far South as the Vendee.

My new van came with a Snipe Selfsat and I now have an Avtex L188DRS, so we'll see.

The requirements for free to air and free to view may well have changed since I was au fait with this, so best to check. I'm able to get all the non-pay channels on my cheap ALDI receiver and on an Avtex TV, but it's possible that a Sky receiver may refuse to tune to the unencrypted versions of the free channels by design.

the answer to ypur wuestion is yes....but qualifoed...
satellite chan els are broadcast on specific 'beams' which have finite foltprints in which they can be received...
most Home channels (bbc/itv etc) are broadcast on the UK Spot Beam aimed at the uk which can be picked up here on a 40 cm dish...by using a bigger dish (say 85cm) these chan els can be picked up all over France on ANY satellite receiver, Sky or other...
now the tricky bit....
Sky broadcast most of their Premium Sports and Movies channels on the Pan European Beam which is easily received well into Spain......HOWEVER, ypu need a Sky box and valid card in order to receive them...
jence, why Sky subscribers may take their boxes and cards with them, so as to watch sports and movies in Spain....

We Love Hugo wrote:I have read recently that using a SKY satellite receiver abroad will get reception over a bigger footprint than a standard free-to-air receiver such as in an Avtex TV.

1. Is this the case?
   
2. Does the SKY satellite receiver  need a SKY subscription card to get normal BBC/ITV channels? I don't have SKY at home
   

I would be interested to know if anyone has experience of such set-up. I intend to use it with the Maxview VuQube 2

1. For the UK Sky bundle - no, its on Astra 2 and will only get the limited European coverage that UK Freesat gets

2. Yes you need to subscribe to get the decoder card for the receiver.

Astra 1 has pan European coverage and includes BBC World News and Sky News as free to air channels. Its mainly German channels and they produce some good shows and show many UK/US made programs/films.

I did think some of the Sky UK premium channels were on Astra 1 but can't find any evidence of that.

A friend has the VuQube 2 on a new van. I cant tell you how it performed in France and Germany as it ceased to function - on return found to be water ingress. Its sorted now and works fine on Astra 1 (German RTL for live F1 coverage) and Astra 2 in the UK.