Back 2 basics....

[pinkhelmets]

]]Satellites in Space[[

TV broadcast satellites are placed in orbit directly above the equator at a height of around 36000km. They travel through space at the same speed the earth's rotation - so to us on the ground the satellite appears to be stationary. This is known as a geo-synchronous (or geo-stationary) orbit.

Ground controllers fire on-board jet thrusters occassionally to keep the satellite in the specified position in space. This is the major factor in determining the 'life' of a satellite, as onboard fuel does eventually run out.

In Europe the orbital location of a satellite on the Clark Belt is given by the number of degrees to the East or West of due South (for example: Astra 1 = 19.2°E, Hispasat = 30°W). This is the Azimuth.


]]The Clarke Belt[[

The idea of geo-stationary satellites was first suggested by Arthur C Clarke in an article written for Wirless World magazine in October 1946.
The region in space occupied by these satellites is commonly referred to as 'The Clarke Belt'


]]Getting signals to and from the Satellite[[

Television and radio programme signals are sent from the various originating studios to an Earth up-link station. From there the gathered 'bouquet' of programmes is transmitted into space using a dish aimed at the orbiting spacecraft. This is known as the 'up-link'. The frequency is about 14GHz (in Europe)

The satellite receives these signals, amplifies them and transmits them back towards earth on a different frequency. This work is done by a transponder. This 'down-link' operates at about 11GHz (in Europe), in the so-called Ku microwave band).

A group of satellites in the same orbital position (such as Eutelsat's 'Hotbird') may have a combined total of more than 70 transponders. A transponder rebroadcasts 1 analogue TV channel or as many as 14 digital TV channels (this depends on the digital compression techniques used:- lower compression = less channels = better pictures).

This kind of broadcasting is known as DTH (Direct-to-Home broadcasting).

Each satellite has a massive array of solar cells. Some satellites are cube-shaped and have huge wing-like solar cell arrays extending from the main body, while others are cylindrical and have their entire surface coated with solar cells. The cells convert sunlight into electricity to operate the satellite, providing power for the transponders and to maintain the charge on the standby batteries for the times when the satellite is in the shadow of the Earth.

The satellites used for radio and television broadcasting are not usually owned by the broadcasting companies.
Broadcasters lease the technical facilities from the satellite owner. In Europe the two major satellite providers are Eutelsat and SES-Astra.
The earth stations required to send the programmes up to the satellite (called the 'up-link') are provided by a variety of organisations in many many different countries. Some of these are commercial organisations (eg BT in UK) and some are government agencies (eg national PTT authorities).

 

[pinkhelmets]

continued.....

]]The Footprint[[

This is the actual signal strength map (or Footprint) of the Astra 1G and 1H satellites (as published by the owners of the satellites, SES-Astra). Both 'birds' are located in the same orbital position in space at 19.2°E.

The antenna on the satellite directs the signal down to a specific land area. Just as the beam from a flashlight gets wider and weaker over distance so does the satellite radio signal.

Contour lines on the map show the required dish size for satisfactory all-weather reception.

 

[pinkhelmets]

moving on....

]]Tuning into Satellite TV and Radio[[

To tune in to satellite TV some specific receiving equipment is needed.

The most obvious item is the dish. The dish is the antenna (aerial). It works like a curved mirror to collect, reflect and concentrate the radio energy from the satellite and focusses it into the throat of the LNB (Low Noise Block).

The LNB amplifies these very weak signals and converts them to a lower frequency (from about 11GHz down to less than 2GHz), the so-called intermediate frequency. This signal travels along the coaxial cable to the Receiver unit in the home.

The Receiver (often called the set-top box, STB, or Digibox etc) performs all the electronic signal processing that is required to recover the TV signal. In addition it sends power and control signals up the cable to the LNB. The Receiver is connected to the TV set either by an antenna (aerial / RF) lead or SCART cable. Operation of the receiver and channel selection is normally done with an infra-red remote control unit.

This basic principle of getting the satellite TV signal is the same whether an analogue or digital system is being used. However, the electronic processing of digital and analogue signals is very different indeed.
Digital signals comply with the DVB-S (Digital Video Broadcasting - Satellite) protocol. Look for the DVB logo. For an analogue signal, the signal strength is very important, but for digital reception as much care must be paid to maximizing signal quality (the higher the quality number the less bit-rate errors the receiver will have to cope with).

 

[pinkhelmets]

]]More Dishes, More Satellites[[

For a greater choice of programming it is possible to 'look' at several satellites. This can be done by using a motorized dish or a combination of several fixed dishes and LNB's.

To use multiple dishes a simple switching system called DiSEqC (Digital Satellite Equipment Control™ - developed by Eutelsat) is all that is needed, but the receiver must be DiSEqC compatable. The DiSEqC switch is usually fitted near the dishes and a single cable feeds to the Receiver. The Receiver box sends control signals along the cable to the DiSEqC switch to automatically select the correct combination of dish/LNB and satellite.

Upgraded versions of the DiSEqC protocol allow for control of motorised dishes (DiSEqC 1.2 and 2.0).

A different type of motorized system is the horizon-to-horizon (H-H) method. Here an electrically operated screw-jack pushes and pulls the dish which pivots on a special mounting bracket. This makes the dish accurately follow the position of the satellites along the Clark Belt. Receivers incorporating this type of motor drive will usually have 'Positioner' included in the name/description.

For even greater flexibility LNB's are available with single, dual, quad or octo (8) outputs. Each output is totally independent from the others. This allows multiple receivers (living room, bedroom, kitchen, etc) to connect to a single dish/LNB.
If 'looking' at two closely spaced satellites (eg Hotbird [13°E] and Astra-1 [19E°]) it is possible to use one dish and two LNB's mounted on a special extension arm. The dish and one LNB is focussed on the weaker of the two satellites. The second LNB is moved along the extension arm until a satisfactory signal from the second, stronger satellite is received (this picture shows a single output LNB 'looking' at Hotbird and a quad output LNB 'looking' at Astra-1 - note that one output from the quad LNB is not in use).

 

[pinkhelmets]

]]Pointing the Dish[[

To receive a strong and reliable signal in all weathers the dish must be pointed directly at the satellite.
Select a position where the path to the satellite is clear and unobstructed (for example a tree without leaves in winter will cause no problem - but in summer virtually no signals will get through to the dish).

"Pointing the dish" means setting the Azimuth and Elevation correctly.

* Elevation is the angle between horizontal and the satellite in orbit on the Clarke Belt.
(In the UK this ranges from about 21° in the far north of Scotland to about 27° in the south of England [for Astra 1]).

* Azimuth is the position (east or west of south) where the satellite is located (19°E, 1°W, etc).

* Skew (or polarization offset) is the final little tweak required to get the strongest possible signal from the satellite. Instead of having the LNB fixed vertically in it's holder, a few degrees of clockwise (right) or anticlockwise (left) twist from the vertical is applied to compensate for the position of the satellite being either east or west of due south (in the northern hemisphere). The skew applied in northern UK for Astra-1, 19°E, is 10° clockwise. This increases to 16.5° for viewing Astra-2 at 28°E


]]Satellite Transponders[[

See 'SatTV_Transponder' diagram below.
Transponders are interleaved using opposite polarity

Adjacent transponders are transmitted with alternate polarity. This allows more transponders to be used within the frequency band(s) allocated to satellite DTH broadcasting. The LNB is capable of switching between signal polarity, ie. Vertical and Horizontal.

Each transponder on a satellite has a typical bandwidth of 27MHz.
A single analogue channel will occupy this whole space. Up to 14 compressed digital TV channels can be fitted into the same space.

Symbol Rate represents the data rate (typically 27500Kbps) - see below.
FEC is the Forward Error Correction factor inserted by the broadcaster. The data stream can include TV, Radio and/or computer data.

 

[pinkhelmets]

]]Encryption (Scrambling)[[

The television and radio programmes which can be watched by anyone with a basic receiver are known as Free-to-Air (FTA).

Many broadcasters charge a subscription for their programmes, and to prevent unauthorized viewing the signals are scrambled (encrypted). There are several digital encryption systems - for example Cryptoworks, Conax, Irdeto, Mediaguard, Viaccess, etc. In Europe the majority of the few remaining analogue encrypted channels are beamed towards Scandinavia. These services use the MAC TV standard, and the scrambling system is Eurocrypt.

To unlock a channel the viewer needs a Receiver with a Conditional Access Module (CAM) that matches the encryption system being used. On payment of a fee the programme provider will supply the viewer with a viewing card containing special codes (called keys) to unlock only the subscribed channels. Copyright and other legislation normally does not allow the purchase and viewing of programmes in one country which are intended for another country (for example: it is not permitted for viewers in Spain to watch encrypted programmes 'aimed' at the UK by SkyTV).

Some Receivers are dedicated to one television network and one encryption system (for instance in the UK, SkyTV can only be picked-up on a receiver with an embedded (built-in) Videoguard CAM). In this case the subscriber's viewing card is linked electronically to one specific receiver.

Many Receivers are available with a common interface (CI). This is a single or double 'slot' into which one or more CAM's can be inserted. Once the CAM is in the receiver the necessary viewing card is inserted into the CAM.

The CAM has been designed to have the same physical format as a PCMCIA Card (which are extensively used in lap-top computers (Modems, etc)).

For the satellite enthusiast a wide range of experimental CAM's are available (Magic Module, Reality, Dragon, Matrix, etc). Many operate on several of the encryption systems.

There are a few Receivers on the market which have an embedded programmable CAM (so-called UCAS - Universal Conditional Access System). These Receivers usually have at least one additional slot for another CAM.

 

[chrome307]

General Information about Satelittes

This took me ages to type up !!

Hope it's of use to members here!

EURO SATELLITE TV

Common Questions – and the answers you need!!

What are the different types of receiver?

Free-To-Air

Receivers can only pick up TV channels which are not scrambled. As there are thousands of these out there, you won’t be short of anything to watch.

Common Interface

Receivers can be upgraded to receive scrambled channels, if you find you want a particular foreign TV service.

Conditional Access

Receivers have extra hardware which allows you to insert a viewing card for scrambled subscription TV channels.

Can I use my PC or MAC to pick up satellite TV?

Yes. There are several makes of digital TV receiver card or USB device for PC users, which can tune in satellite TV and display it on your monitor, make recordings to your hard disc, and receive high speed internet-by-satellite.

MAC users are currently limited to Elgato’s EyeTV300, a Firewire based external tuner. PC and MAC users have the advantage that their software can be easily upgraded to the latest broadcast video formats such as MPEG 4:2:2 and high definition TV. You can even do it yourself.

How can I get more than one satellite?

You can have more than one dish, or have up to four ‘offset feed’ LNB’s on the same dish, but at most these can only be for satellites within 10-15 degrees of each other.

A motorised dish will provide a greater selection of satellites form across the whole sky. Users of small dishes up to 90cm can use a simple DiSEqC 1.2 motorised mount. Dishes of 1m and above will need a more powerful and complex 36V motor drive.

We have recently seen some radical new dish designs such as the Cybertenna and Force Frontier, using unusual materials and shapes, which enable a fixed dish to pick up 10 or 15 satellites within a 40 degree arc. Even greater improvements are expected.

What size of dish am I allowed on my house, and how many can I have?

Current planning regulations state that every home is allowed a single dish up to 90cm diameter. In conservation areas this may be reduced to 60cm diameter or dishes may be banned altogether (although this may infringe your human rights under EU law). Larger dishes are only allowed if you apply for planning permission.

These regulations are under Government review and we expect an announcement later in 2005.

In practical terms, if you have a large dish and don’t ask for planning permission, you’ll only land in hot water if your neighbours report you to the Local Authority. Take care when siting the dish, using chimney breasts and eaves to disguise it – if possible ask for your neighbours blessing – and you shouldn’t have any trouble. There are several ‘dishes’ around designed to be discreet: the Globedish, the Cubsat and flat panel dishes are all more bearable – and you can paint your dish with non-metallic car paint to match the brickwork.

What are DiSEqC and USALS?

Digital Satellite Equipment Control is a standard created by Eutelsat for receivers to select between LNBs and control motorised dishes. A DiSEqC compatible receiver sends pulses at 22 kHz, along the LNB cable to control a DiSEqC switch or motor.

Mini-DiSEqC switches can select between two LNBs, DiSEqC 1.0 is used for up to four LNBs, DiSEqC 1.1 for up to 16 LNBs, using two sets of pulses. DiSEqC 1.2 uses the pulses to instruct a ‘smart’ monitor to move East or West, or go to a preset position.

USALS (also known incorrectly as DiSEqC 1.3 or Goto X) uses an even smarter mount which can find any position in the sky based on a single reference bearing and the user’s longitude and latitude.

How can I get encrypted channels?

You’ll need a viewing card and the hardware to use the viewing card, either built into your receiver or with a conditional access module.

What are pirate viewing cards?

Pirate viewing cards are blank cards programmed with the keys for one or more subscription TV channels or packages (usually obtained on the internet). It is not illegal to own or produce viewing cards for personal use, but all activities relating to commercial production are illegal.

What is a Conditional Access Module?

A Conditional Access Module (or CAM) contains the technology needed to unlock encrypted subscription TV channels, using a viewing card. A CAM may be built into a receiver, or a separate unit the size of a credit card. CAM’s are available for most types of encryption, except the VideoGuard system used by Sky Digital.

What is a Common Interface?

Receivers with a Common Interface (or CI) can accept external CAM units of any kind, giving the user a broad flexibility.

What is a Magic CAM?

Magic CAMs, Joker CAMs and Global CAMs contain the software for several types of encryption, for use with viewing cards containing keys to disparate packages. Most retailers maintain that these CAMs should be legal.

What are Feeds?

Broadcasters often use satellite links – ‘feeds’ – to transfer programming from remote locations before broadcast. Feeds may be unedited, containing bloopers and footage unsuitable for broadcast. Many are unencrypted, although sports feeds are becoming rare, and broadcasters are moving to the technically superior MPEG 4:2:2 format.

What about analogue?

Germany still broadcasts around 60 analogue TV channels on Astra 1 to satisfy the millions of analogue TV users over there, and France continues its analogue Secam broadcasts of the national TV channels at 5 degrees West. Analogue signals are a rarity on other satellites, as digital broadcasting is vastly cheaper than analogue, and the receivers are cheap enough for anyone to upgrade.

What about high definition?

HDTV programmes can only be picked up using a dedicated Hi-Def receiver.

 

[backinthegame]

Installing your kit - very newbies to satellite

Ok so you have bought your Dream box, hummy technomate or a Lidll offer,youve bought cams and proggers and trawled the net. Whatever your start point never mind you have joined a great hobby.
Itching to get the dish up and start to watch whats on free to air or whatever, but the question is how well is your primary kit installed??
many threads include problems resulting from bad installs.
Following information is related to my experience of the mechanics of a good equipment installation.
1/. get yourself a big roll of self amalgamating tape it has 1000 uses beyond satellite and worth every penny, it needs stretching to twice its length to get a sealing bond eg a 2 inch piece stretched to around 4 inches when applied to connections will shrink back and bond to and absolute water tight bond. I have seen the stuff applied like pvc electrical tape that is the incorrect method. Try to tape joints to LNBs before final fixing to the dish it is easier to see what you are doing and more manouverable.

2/. Soak all the nuts bolts and any fixings in a container of thickwax based rust prevention fluid (car rust preventer wax - Waxo*l). when you come to remove bolts and screws in years to come you will thank yourself you took the trouble. Especially when trying to free rusted bolts when at the top of a long ladder.

3/. Use rawl bolts (not plastic plug types) on dish installs (especially big dishes) and drill into the brick well away from edges of the brickwork structure, cranking in rawl bolts can crack the structue and dont be tempted to take the easy option of going in at the cement joint, a big dish takes a hell of a battering in wind and depending on support pole size etc they will break away and can rip brickwork etc to bits. If you dont believe me - stand with a large piece of board facing a strong wind and see the effect. Get good brackets and a strong pole. U bolts when tightened will nip alluminium broom handle (god forbid) and will eventually be the fail collapse point of your install (remember your kids playing underneath something which could come down at a hell of a pace)

4/. Plan the route of your cables - as short a run as possible, no kinks only smooth curves and preferably no or few joints between lnb and receiver. I prefer to get Disecq switches as near to the dish end as possible. Best cable is solid foam covered centre core with copper insulation and copper solid cover. The only problem with the very heavy top end cable types is that they can put strain on connections at the recever end. a bit of care and a good curve and length on the cable should end up with no problems.

5/. Use the best cable you can afford or get some off your S*Y tv mate, also get the correct sized F connectors, yes they are designed to fit different thicknesses of cable, take a bit of your cable to (ma**ins) and try some before buying.

6/. When fitting F connectors (lots of threads re how cut and trim etc) but in addition nip them tight with a small correct sized spanner, no dont crank them on. This will stop them backing off over time. Add your self amalgamating tape from the Lnb / disecq threads down onto the F nut and continue well on to the cable. If you go in the direction of thread rotation this can help stop the cable unwinding out of the F connector and possibly preventing signal problems.

7/. Cable clips will deteriorate in sun shine, I use the plastic metal covered type designed to hold mineral insulated fire alarm cable (orange or red stuff) bend them around a dowel or thick pencil rather than trying to get the best fit direct on the cable - you will get the jist if you decide to take the trouble and use them, they only need a small screw (waxoiled) into brickwork to mak a lasting hold. Plastc clips will also break, go in on the wonk or nip the cable when belted into brickwork with a hammer. also belting your expensive cable in the process can flatten / damage it etc. If you must use plastic type buy the best size or even ones just a little bit larger than the cable (not the ones that might just do) and take your time.

8/. Cable ties will deteriorate over time in sunlight - use self amalgamating tape it causes no nip up damage on the cable and is I believe is a better solution.
When your metal ware /hard ware is fixed brush the lot (not LNB and electrics) with waxoil including wiping it over the metal dish (my mitre dish has been out for 12 years plus with no sign of rust at all, the other day I had to do a slight adjustment and every bolt moved easily.

9/. Add different colour tapes to distinguish several cables eg at the Lnb end and the receiver end - it makes life easy when doing any checks in the future. I label all cables at the house end and on entry into distribution units etc with a label type label maker. carefully brush waxoil on to the screw / tightenings of your lnbs - no I didnt say splash it all over the thing.
If the end cap of an LNB cracks in sunlight a workable replacement is a plastic coffee jar top (find the nearest fit in the bin) take the old plastic one off, wrap a suitable turn of amalgamating tape around the end (a bit of trial and error) and push the jar top on to a tight fit and then wind tape around the joint in amalgamating tape to make it water tight - it does work - I did a temporary repair which ended up lasting years.

10. If you have several plugs to different receivers in the same electric sockets or extension block mark them with the receiver name, it makes distinguishing easier when isolating a receiver eg for LNB maintenance - removing an LNB from the non disconnected live receiver is likely to cause a fuse blow in the receiver.

11/. You may not enjoy housework but dusting your receivers with a damp (not wet) cloth will help stop shit from getting into your kit. Do not use silicon type sprays any where near your kit - warning if you have a keen cleaning housemate.

12/. We could talk for days about cooling receivers with fans etc (may be another thread) but an easy way to improve air flow in stacked kit is to cut 4 small blocks of wood or plastic and stick them with double sided tape under each unit, when they are stacked you can increase the air flow quite well. Just dont cover any air vents with your blocks or spacers. Latent heat will cause a large amount of fail problems in any delicate equipment.

And as a last thought i am not sure of the science fact but does white cable reflect ultraviolet sunlight out side better than black?? - cable does break down in time especially in full sunlight.

I am sure some may say OTT and others may have thier own methods to add. I can say that I have never had problems caused by bad installation. If done badly poor installation will cause often difficult to trace problems and heartache and lots of FFFFS when you need to do maintenance in the future.

Now enjoy the hobby and dont fall off the ladder, the NHS dont need any more business.

BITG

 

[krazylegz]

must've took a while typing all that............digidudes excellent guide has been here for ages https://www.digitalworldz.co.uk/index.php?threads/119254/

thanx for your time tho m8

 

[pinkhelmets]

satellite tv, in easy steps

Another thread, another way to explain some basics of satellite tv.

Firstly, what level are you at, what level do you want to be?

=Level 1= Receive free uk channels only.
This will suit many uk viewers, gaining all the mainstream channels plus more multichannel choice than freeview. Free-sat-from-sky ; freesat ; non-branded service free-to-air reception are your choices.

=Level 2= Free channels plus Sky Digital.
The most common form of satellite tv reception in the uk. You simply pay monthly subscription to gain more channel choice, with various levels of cost to suit. Almost everyone will be familiar with this level but the high majority will perhaps not realise it sits at such a low level in the 'satellite reception' scale, with no clue that there are many many more satellites broadcasting in our skies.

=Level 3= Free channels from the Uk, plus other free channels from satellites broadcasting in Europe.
This is where larger dishes become relevant, with perhaps the option of a motorised dish. A small 'sky-type' dish can be used to aim in other directions but its just not going to gain much. You really need a dish upgrade to reach this level. Feeds and foreign language channels can be of interest, but this stage is usually temporary and becomes the route to higher levels of satellite tv.

=Level 4= Multi-satellite free channels, plus the 'clearing' of some premium channels with 'keys' or 'firmware patch' or 'softcam'.
This tends to be the start of a hobby, and not just about watching tv. Constantly changing keys and available emulations mean channels come and go, and many find it more fun to follow changes than the telly content they originally wanted to watch! Either way this method of watching content without paying for it is illegal, but many choose this method because the choice is phenomenal, with great movie, sport and full hardcore content which cannot be found with uk subscriptions.

=Level 5= Additional added hardware.
If you realise that things regularly change you realise the need for 'motors' as it means you can easily move to the latest place of fashion. Motorising your dish isnt compulsory but its the biggest gain for least amount of money. To gain even more channels than just those available by latest keys or firmware patches there are usually addons manufactured and sold for commercial gain. These include items like pirate smartcards, multi-encryption cams such as the Diablo, and special receivers that offer more than others. The biggest problem with buying the extra hardware is that there's no guarantee on how long it can offer the extra 'hacked channels'.

=Level 6= Additional added subscriptions.
So you have all the hardware but want more channel choice. The option here is to add subscription to premium channels. Many foreign subscriptions are just not expensive when compared with those in the Uk. You do sometimes find it cheaper to officially pay to clear channels rather than keep buying the latest commercial hardware as in 'Level 5' above, or at least the stability of clearing those channels is worth the cost of the package. Not everyone wants to 'pirate' tv content so this is the next best way to get the extra choice and pay copyright. Additionally at this level you can also add an official sky subscription to the mix if that suits your needs & budget.

=Level 7= Cardshare networking methods.
Although this can be implimented as early as 'level 2' it does sit as the top level method to gain most choice. It is totally illegal to 'share' a subscription with anyone over a network but that is what this method is all about. An official subscription card (or pirate smartcard) can be 'shared' to many people at the same time, so that all those connected are able to view channels. Expand this to more than 1 official subscription and everyone gets everyone else's subscriptions, and added with multi-satellite reception and you can easily understand why its the current top level. All the channels working, no channel loss when keys/encryptions change, just minimum cost for maximum gain.
Lots more about the basics of 'cardshare' found here- https://www.digitalworldz.co.uk/index.php?threads/194924/

==============================================================
~The Back to basics thread goes right back to scratch to explain more about satellite tv and what it is - https://www.digitalworldz.co.uk/index.php?threads/30994/

 

[pinkhelmets]

re: satellite tv, in easy steps

What about dish, what stage are you at?

=Stage 1= Sky type, small fixed dish.

=Stage 2= Larger fixed dish, possibly with added lnb's to receive more than 1 satellite cluster. Monoblocks can receive 'Hotbird & Astra1', but arms can hold several lnbs for reception of Astra2-Astra1-Eurobird-Hotbird for instance.

=Stage 3= Larger dish with added motor, for ability to move to face each satellite cluster.

=Stage 4= Multiple dish setup. More than 1 dish, more than 1 size, more than 1 of the options above.

=Stage 5= Even larger dish(es) to gain more than standard common sizes with the above options included.

The bottom line is that the bigger the dish then the more reception & channel choice will become available, but adding more lnb's or motor importantly gains the extra satellite positions you need.

 

[pinkhelmets]

re: satellite tv, in easy steps

What option of receiver suits you?

=Option 1= Sky Digibox & freesat receiver.
Obviously the most limited receivers, but made to be user-friendly & simple.

=Option 2= Free-to-air satellite receivers.
Limited in function, due to maybe not having card slot or no Conditional Interface (CI or CAM) slot, no firmware patch or ability to add 'keys'.

=Option 3= Patchable free-to-air box. Just a cheap option that has support to provide a 'patch' to open additional channels.

=Option 4= Receiver with card slot and/or CI slot, with or without patch abilities.
The Technomate range is the most popular that fits into this level, with great support and a large range to suit everyones needs.

=Option 5= Specialised budget receiver. Usually offering extra channels that other rivals do not offer.
Many of these special receivers will provide access to a cardshare type server to give access to more choice, or they perhaps give the latest hack which may not be long lasting. Support may not be as long lasting but immediate function is above that of other receivers on offer.

=Option 6= Linux type, or networkable receiver.
Most popular examples would be the dreambox dm500, the Eagle, and technomate tm9100. These types have the ability to be networked to other receivers and cards to gain more. This category is expanding with some patchable receivers (such as Technomate) gaining support for networking ~maybe with the use of a pc & software.

=Option 7= Networkable, with cardslot, CI, special extra support, dual tuners, pvr 'plus' capabilities, basically any or all of the above.
Dreambox lead the way, but the more the receiver can offer tends to result in the less user-friendly the machine becomes. You have to find a balance that suits you, so instantly going for the top level just doesnt suit everybody and its the reason why limited function Technomates are equally as popular as full function Dreambox type satellite receivers.