HELP! BT TV

[NickiW27]

@ links to members

Hi all, new here and trying to find my way around. We joined BT TV and have NOW TV as part of their package. Long story short, BT TV have turned out to be rubbish and we want to leave but want to keep NOW TV. Do we have to order a Smart Box if so how? Can't see an option to do this anywhere! Our TV isn't up to date enough to have a stick instead. Do we have to close our NOW TV account through BT and open up a new account? Very confused!! Help needed please!

[schnapps]

Hi @NickiW27 

You can still use your BT Youview box if you do manage to cancel your BT TV subscription.

Not sure about once you leave BT TV if you have to create a new NOW account or just use your existing email address and password.

If you are referring to a different television in your home, rather than the television connected to your BT Youview box, then the television needs a spare HDMI socket on it and you need a decent wifi coverage in the room (unless you are going to use Ethernet or powerline adapters).

[schnapps]

Hi @NickiW27 

Forgot to mention when you use the BT Youview box and not being a BT TV customer anymore you will not be able to watch NOW via the main BT TV Guide and won't have the live NOW recording feature.

Where you will have to watch all NOW content both live and on Demand via the NOW App on the Youview box which is what i do on my BT Youview box.

[gavs82008 · Accepted solution]

@NickiW27 

Just to follow up from the sound advice by @schnapps  NOW no longer produce the “Smart Box” up until late last year they were selling a Smart stick on the website. However stock has been extremely limited and regularly out of it.

If you are able to spend roughly £40-£50 as a recommendation I would strongly suggest to purchase an Amazon fire stick if you choose not to stick with using the BT YouView box based on the information given by @schnapps . The Amazon fire stick has a vast array of apps and has proven to be a hit with running the app NOW smoothly, in fact more smoothly than NOW branded devices.

[NickiW27]

Thanks that's good to know. Our TV doesn't have a USB stick port 😕 so this might be difficult. Don't BT take back their equipment if you cancel your contract with them? So the YouView box wouldn't be available to us either 🤔

[schnapps]

Hi @NickiW27 

You might be right about you have to return the BT Youview box where their policy changed when i left BT a few years back and kept my BT Box.

Maybe look on Gumtree , Free Ads, Ebay for an ex BT or TalkTalk Youview Box or look at a new retail Youview box.

Make sure the Youview box you pick up has the SCART output on it.

I am guessing you must be using SCART on your old television ?

[schnapps]

Hi @NickiW27 

if the box was supplied on or after the 13/12/2019 then it looks like it needs to be returned according to this

https://www.bt.com/help/tv/how-to-return-and-recycle-your-bt-broadband-hub-and-bt-tv-box-fo 

[schnapps]

Hi @NickiW27 

If you open this NOW help article below and click on the set top boxes section it will show which older Youview boxes are no longer supported if you are going down the second hand route.

You will have to do some research on the Youview box specification on which Youview box offers SCART output to your television (just in case any of the Youview boxes only supports HDMI only with no SCART where i am not familiar with all Youview box models).

https://help.nowtv.com/article/what-devices-can-i-use-to-watch-now 

Maybe consider the same BT Youview box model you currently have via the second hand market (i seen loads going cheap on Gumtree over the years).

[schnapps]

Hi @NickiW27 

Because i haven't used SCART in about 10 years, i am assuming you have used the NOW App on your existing BT Youview box and not watching NOW via the main BT TV Guide (because i am not familiar with SCART on Youview boxes if all Apps work over them)?

I am just asking to make sure the NOW App on your BT Youview box works over SCART before splashing out on a replacement Youview box.

Can't test my Youview box NOW App over SCART, because i haven't got a SCART cable in the house to test my box out on.

if you have been using the Youview NOW App on your television then you should be fine with SCART.

Its a shame your television doesn't support HDMI where you would have more hardware options and the picture would look much better than standard definition watching over SCART.

[schnapps]

Hi @NickiW27 

Another thing to mention is none of the discontinued NOW Boxes have a SCART connection on them like your Youview box.

If you are tied to SCART because of the age of your television, then a Youview box is the only option i can think of (unless you get a HDMI to SCART converter box which is messy or a newer second hand or new television that has HDMI on it).