If your over-excitement at the prospect of getting your hands on a YouView set-top box turned to swift outrage at the thought of being relieved of £300 for a tardy prism you'll be delighted to learn there is another way.
Landline and broadband purveyor TalkTalk -- one of YouView's backers -- is offering the box for free, provided you sign up for more than a year of its broadband and telephone service.
YouView is an all-in-one TV service that lets you watch live TV, catch-up TV or on-demand web-based services like iPlayer -- whatever you fancy -- all in one handy box squatting next to your TV. It's a cross-channel collaboration with backers including the BBC, ITV, Channels 4 and 5, and BT -- so you can watch programmes made by the Beeb, but also eyeball a spot of Sky, should you so desire.
The TalkTalk YouView service offers seven-day catch-up, 74 Freeview channels and more than 5,000 free films and TV shows. But the freebie box does come with a cost (or rather costs) attached. Specifically you'll have to shell out for broadband and line rental. The basic cost for TalkTalk's broadband service up to 14Mbps is £14.50 a month, plus £9.50 for line rental -- so the 'free' box will cost you £24 a month.
If you want additional channels not included in the basic package you'll need to fork out a bit more each month. For example Sky Sports costs an eye-watering £30 extra per month.
Oh and there's a one-off £50 engineer 'installation' fee -- if you can call turning up and plugging something in 'installation'.
To bag a box, existing TalkTalk customers have to agree to lock themselves in for a further two years with the oft complained about broadband provider. TalkTalk is hoping to lure fresh meat with the offer of a mere 18-month long lock-in for newbies.
TalkTalk's broadband is not capped but peer-to-peer filesharers should fully appraise themselves of the following para from the T&Cs: "TalkTalk slows down non-time critical peer-to-peer file sharing at peak times, to ensure the best Internet experience for all of our customers. Promotional unlimited download allowance is subject to availability and maybe withdrawn at any time. Fair usage policy applies to unlimited download allowance."
The package also includes unlimited calls to UK landlines.
Are you effervescing with excitement at the thought of a free YouView box? Or would you rather stick a fork in your eye than sign up for TalkTalk's lock-in? Let us know what you think by posting a comment below or sounding off on our Facebook page.
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Comments 26
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anonymous 26 July, 2012 14:05
TT have one of the worst customer service records... although I'm a customer of theirs, but not for much longer. Can't see the point of Youview myself - I have youtube, and 'on demand' via my Freesat decoder.
anonymous 26 July, 2012 15:41
I have been with talktalk from the beginning. Best broadband we had. Never drops, customer service is brilliant, options to have boosts for extra stoof! Amazing. I will be locking in for another 2 years. Cheaper than the rest, no bull or pushy selling. They do what they say.
anonymous 26 July, 2012 15:51
Talk Talk has the worst customer service ever. I'm so glad I ditched them last year.
anonymous 26 July, 2012 15:58
I was on Pipex which got bought by Tiscali then bought by Talk Talk - I suffered from intermittent problems which when i actually complained TT sent roubnd an engineer and then got BT involved - problem fixed and great customer service.
Then BT put fibre in our area so i moved to them - in the six months since then i have had no internet for days on end (biggest down time on TT was about 10 minutes) - half the speed I was promised - four engineer visits where they contradict the previous enginner and undo all they have done. After all this I have a broadband that says it is 36 Mbs but which will not stream hi def video (like it promises) - I cant wait to get out of the contract abd go back to TT
FaisalMiah 26 July, 2012 17:54
Been with Talk Talk for years, they have great cheap deals and I haven't actually called their customer service because I never had a problem with them.
anonymous 26 July, 2012 20:17
But can you keep the box after the lock in? No one seems to know, not even TT!
anonymous 27 July, 2012 11:16
Looks like half of the people commenting work for Talk Talk...
anonymous 27 July, 2012 12:06
Can you get a box if your already with TalkTalk?
anonymous 27 July, 2012 15:02
I've been with TalkTalk for a couple of years and never had any problems. The broadband is much more reliable than Virgin Media, who I was with for a few years before. I'll upgrade to their Fibre Optic service soon, and although I don't really watch TV much I'd be a fool not to bag a free YouView box while I'm at it.
anonymous 28 July, 2012 20:05
My, so many TalkTalk employee comments on this blog. Who would have thought?
The worst customer service and ISP provider in the UK for two years running. And they got an award for that non-distinction too!
The YouView service looks good. But from these cowboys? No thanks.
billfred 28 July, 2012 22:56
My rents have had TalkTalk for years and they've seemed brilliant.
My experience wasn't the best as they didn't hook my house up but they did send two routers... instead of just sending an engineer. Oh well, a HELL OF A LOT better the Sky.
anonymous 30 July, 2012 13:26
I was with BT for many years , moved to T T over three years ago because it is a lot cheaper and so far have no complaints. I have problems twice at the beginning and phoned the customer service and they gave me the right advice to sort them out. Before having Broadband and telephone contract with TT I wanted cable but Virgin messed me about so I gave up. Now TT offers fibre optic in my area I am considering to upgrade. I am not a TT employee!
anonymous 28 August, 2012 18:33
Talk talk are a strange outfit - for £19.50p per month which includes line rental i get totally free 24/7 local and national calls including 0870 & 0845, plus unlimited broadband with a consistant speed just over 8 mbps - this is of course not even close to the initial promise of up to 24mbps however it is quick enough to stream hd vids etc. Now they want to give me a free youview box if i extend a further 2yrs - count me in i say !!! Customer service and tech help calls are routed to their call centers in India and South Africa and remain dire though - i've had to call 4 times in the previous 12 months firstly regarding a phone fault and then an inacurate bill and finally a temp (24hr) loss of internet x2 however ALL issues were resolved. Yep, they do get things wrong more than pretty much all of their direct competitors BUT they are very cheap and they do give very regular freebies for loss of service or faults - i've had 4 £10.00p credits! I PS, i too DON'T work for TT.
anonymous 16 September, 2012 00:13
Promise I don't work for TalkTalk! I have had TT for several years. At first the front line customer service was rubbish - I have spent nearly an hour just waiting to get through to a person - but now it's hugely improved) after all the bad publicity. Also if you get through to the tech guys they have always been great - if they can't sort your problem immediately they make an appointment to ring back and keep it. I'm seriously thinking about YouView, although I have TT Essentails + Fibre at the moment so it would mean an upgrade.
anonymous 18 September, 2012 15:31
customer service is rubbish but the actual service is great - i had their plus package plus some boost for intl calling for more than a year now, in two different location.
when I moved home they basically forced me into a 18-mo lock-in (or leave) - and i hated this, but took it because again, i'm happy with the level of service for Net and phone. they gave me a 6-mo discount (half fees) for agreeing to renew. again, very bad customer service BUT i inly called them when I first signed up and moved home so..
i'm tempted to try the youview thing - i don't watch to much tv so i'm happy with the free channels (some on HD) plus £5 kids boost for my daughter.
FaisalMiah 18 September, 2012 18:10
Their service is great but, despite my previous comment, I agree, their customer service is as bad as the 3 Network!! I got a question, can you watch anything from the internet on it or is it limited to a few websites.
anonymous 20 September, 2012 11:45
Trouble is it's not free...£50 installation fee stuck in a contract for 18 months...if you don't want cabling round your house from router to box it's extra for the powerline adapters.
anonymous 28 October, 2012 01:29
BT's bills were literally crippling us so we have just joined TT. We've had the phone and internet for about 2 weeks now....no problems. Bit different when we got our YouView box though. The chap who came to fit it was very pleasant and spent time showing us how to use it....great!.....As soon as he left it packed up!...completely!....nothing! After several exasperating hours on the phone to someone in the Phillipines we were offered another visit from an engineer but not for another week and a half.....not on! Eventually we got to speak to someone resembling management in Britain and after some firm talking an engineer arrived 3 days later and fixed it. Needless to say, we don't think much of their customer service and the YouView box is nowhere near as efficient as BT vision but at least we'll be able to eat now!.....we shall see!
anonymous 8 November, 2012 14:10
can you give your free box away tho cos it said free i thought i could give it to my daughter and she can use it in her house
anonymous 13 December, 2012 15:31
I have been through the mills with ISP's, way back in the early broadband days, BT, Tiscali, Bulldog, back to BT and now with Talk Talk, all the times I have moved have been the same reason, bad customer service or bad service overall. I had a real stinker of a time with BT in the end especially as I was on a business contract. Now I have found myself in the position where I am back with my old suppliers in the guise of TalkTalk, I have two accounts with them, one for business and one for residential - surprisingly the cost comes out as what I used to pay for BT business alone!
I guess that they are 'budget broadband', something isn't going to be 100% what it should be, but so far no issues (yet), the actual service is fine, no outages, customer service is UK based, so so far so good.
PS - NOT a Talk Talk employee!
anonymous 28 January, 2013 21:47
I had a youview box installed on 22 December 2012. I have already called TT 3 times. Once the box would turn on - they sorted that out quickly. Two weeks later it wouldn't record. They sent an engineer out. Today, again it has not recorded, I telephoned them, they told me there was a glitch in the system and I would have to turn my router off for a few seconds every couple of days to refresh!!!
I would only wish TT on my worst enemy.
anonymous 1 March, 2013 23:09
TT's service (when it's working!) is great. The equipment supplied is slowly improving which bodes well for the new youview box. Have still to invest in some extra cabling before i can setup the new box. TT's customer service on the other hand is simply terrible. We had an outage the other week, which took out TT, Sky, and BT customers in our area. Not strictly TT's fault but phoning them to try and find out what was going on cost me £15 in mobile credit and got me nowhere. Customer service in India are all like coporate robots repeating it over and over and they never phone you back like they say they will. I like the look of the youview box and hope it will work when i eventually plug it in.
anonymous 14 March, 2013 18:11
unfortunately i have a TT youview box..well it’s the second one actually, i complained that the recording all playback in mono, a “bright spark” was sent and replaced the 1st box ,I still have the same issue!
there’s about 20 people on the TT forum complaining about the same mono playback issue since November 2012, but guess what.... no fix,
are they working on the issue? i doubt it, we just get evasive answers such as “oh we don’t know about this issue”..or Unfortunately we do not have any timescales, apologies for this.
anonymous 22 March, 2013 13:08
My youview talktalk box want let me record the memory isn't full so it's not that does anyone know what it could be??
anonymous 2 April, 2013 12:55
Seems to good to be true! Ill sre though.
anonymous 10 May, 2013 21:09
I have been with TalkTalk Broadband & Phone for a number of years & have recently entered a new 18 mth contract to include YouView TV. The contract only cost £4-£5 more than I was paying for my Broadband, phone & calls, and for that I got the full TV, Broadband & phone package including unlimited UK calls which had I just added it to my existing package would have cost £5 a month on it's own. The system was easy to set up, which you can do without paying for an engineer and so far is working well. I am happy with the functions the YouView box offers, my only criticism is the EPG (program guide) is too dark and the small writing makes it hard to read, which might be a drawback for someone with poor eyesight. Otherwise I think if offers excellent value for money.