Direct Satellite Television in Belize ??

xcaret Active member

78POSTS

12 years ago

I understand there is Satellite tv in Belize ,and It's American.. Can someone tell me how that works? In Canada they won't sell u recievers or program them ( I mean Direct and dishnet) My friend has a motorhome with satellite tv, he got it installed in US and watches it here in Canada year round( moves it to his house) . He pays like anyone else .. Just that he isn't suposed to be watching it in Canada ( for some strange reason) ..

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Molari Active member

42POSTS

12 years ago

You should look into SlingBox which is a very awesome workable option!

You can surely get family to help to keep a cable subscription with a Canadian Cable company and the SlingBox device kept at their home working. ^^

To those that want to see and understand how SlingBox works:

Wikipedia on SlingBox: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slingbox

Canadian SlingBox site: http://ca.slingbox.com/

US SlingBox site: http://slingbox.com/

Video description of SlingBox: http://ca.slingbox.com/go/slingbox?disp Q7qXmd3tmo

Anyone else have any alternatives to add to this helpful thread?

Thanks
Cheers!

Edit: Found this forum where if you create a second "guest user account" on your SlingBox and exchange it with someone in Australia, UK, Canada, USA and etc... who will create a guest account on his for you.

You will be able to watch English tv from all over the world. ^^
http://placeshiftingenthusiasts.com/for -exchange/

Also, there seems better streaming quality on another box that I heard is slightly better than SlingBox called "Vulkano" http://www.myvulkano.com/index.html

xcaret Active member

78POSTS

12 years ago

That slingbox sounds great.. At the moment I want to watch direct tv here in Canada..
Thanks.

Molari Active member

42POSTS

12 years ago

Then with a slingbox, you can trade guest accounts with someone in USA who has a subscription with Direct TV who would like to watch Canadian tv.

xcaret Active member

78POSTS

12 years ago

Good idea , but no one in their right mind wants to watch canadian tv, if they can have Direct instead lol.
Thanks.. How bout if I knew someone in US ,could I not just get another receiver added to their acct and use it in Canada ?

Molari Active member

42POSTS

12 years ago

If you know someone in USA, and they had a SlingBox and a DirectTV cable subscription, they can create a guest account for you and you will be able to watch all the DirectTV channels he is subscribed to, right on the internet...and it will be very easy for you to hook your internet up to the tv.

Also, there are forums where people trade guest accounts ...you would be surprise at how many people in USA with SlingBoxs missing their Canadian tv.^^

There are people trading multiple guest accounts with Australians, UK etc..

I believe FutureShop/BestBuy sells Slinboxs...just click on the links below:
futureshop.ca/en-CA/product/slingbox-slingbox-500-media-streamer-with-hdmi-wi-fi
bestbuy.ca/en-CA/product/slingbox-slingbox-500-media-streamer-with-hdmi-wi-fi

xcaret Active member

78POSTS

12 years ago

Wow , I never thought of that , I'll check those sites out ,thanks
Neil

xcaret Active member

78POSTS

12 years ago

Hey Molari! Thanks for the great information.. This is slightly off the topic of tv in other countries.. I live in Calgary and the cable company( shaw) is changing the signal so everyone who doesn't want their chanles cut by about half , have to buy a cable box for each tv in the house and have each one programed ,plus pay monthly subscription for each box..
If I bought one box from the cable company and paid for the subscription for that one box, could I sling it to my other tv's?
You mentioned creating a quest account, do you create this on the sling box? ( not with the cable company)..
Thanks ,Neil

Molari Active member

42POSTS

12 years ago

xcaret wrote:
If I bought one box from the cable company and paid for the subscription for that one box, could I sling it to my other tv's?

If you had a PC for each room, nothing stops you from installing the SLingBox program on each pc and then logging in for each tv.

This is a type of good question you can discuss with any knowledgeable PC store...even a PC tech at Futureshop ...just ask at the counter to speak to a tech for a sec on a technical question..theu will usually take a sec to talk with you. Don't be shy.

xcaret wrote:
You mentioned creating a quest account, do you create this on the sling box? ( not with the cable company)..
Thanks ,Neil

Not the Cable company...on your SlingBox...which is connected to a pc..its purpose is to transmit your tv channels you get by your cable Company to you anywhere on the net with a password...

You can also create guest accounts....and trade with someone for a guest account on their Slingbox in USA. This is not the intended purpose...but many many people do this and trade...I would do a google search on "trade slingbox guest accounts" and I am sure you will find some offering to trade. Never give you main Password...always only guest accounts.

I hope this helps explain a little.

xcaret Active member

78POSTS

12 years ago

#10

Thanks My tv's are already hoked to pc's. Thanks..
Neil

2flyaway Contributor

178POSTS

12 years ago

#11

Slingbox works great where there is good internet speeds. Will it work well in Belize where internet has higher latency, much lower bandwidth, lower data limits, and higher cost?

xcaret Active member

78POSTS

12 years ago

#12

Thanks , Yeah, I wondered about Belize.. And bandwidth,plus limited usage of the web..
One thing I wonder about is If a person moved to Canada with a US satellite ststem it will work because the foot print of the sat covers canada ( and Belize too) So why are people not moving with their satelite sat systems along too ?
Next here in Canadae can get internet via satelite. Same thing , why cant a person just pack it with them and pay the bill as usual and avoid the monopoly choke hold the Belize provider has on the citizens? I used to sell "grey area " satellite systems here in Canand installed them too. We hacked into the us Satellites back when it was legal.. The only thing about installing a dish is getting locked onto the right satellite up in the sky, theres lots of them.. Once you know how to do it ,it's easy . I had a signal finder ,still have . It makes it easy
Many things to think about regarding using a slingbox.. I'm just starting my reseach...
Thanks for the help
Neil

xcaret Active member

78POSTS

12 years ago

#13

Is there any reason why a peron with satellite tv who wants to move to, or have a vacation home in Belize , couldnt simply take the sat dish and receiver along and inbstall it and continue watching tv as always ??

2flyaway Contributor

178POSTS

12 years ago

#14

xcaret, as you know you would need to see if the satellite would cover the area. I believe that DirectTV does 'spill over' and cover Belize, but the Shaw satellite I access in Edmonton does not spill over into Belize.

I have read somewhere that there is a yearly charge in Belize for having a satellite dish. I suppose it is a form of tax for not using the government owned BTL services. With such a small population I expect that they cannot afford to put in the kind of infrastructure we have in the USA and Canada. There is a big difference between Canada and the USA. In Dallas I have way better internet at 50% of the price of my connection in Edmonton. Competition does that too - something that Canadian governments seem to not like to have. The bug guys tell them too much competition would be bad, and they believe it.

xcaret Active member

78POSTS

12 years ago

#15

Thanks for telling me Shaw satelite doesn't reach Beize.. I have always thought they were circling the equator , obviously not..
When first hacking Direct and dishnet up here some people who thouight it was illegal hid the dish by covering it with silk, apperenly the signal isn't affected..
Thanks..
Neil

2flyaway Contributor

178POSTS

12 years ago

#16

I should have stated that differently about Shaw. I don't know if Shaw signal can be reached from Belize or not. I certainly don't know that and others may. You sound like you have more knowledge than I on this topic - or at least the ability to figure it out.

Sorry that I mislead you on that.

xcaret Active member

78POSTS

12 years ago

#17

Thanks 2flyaway, I'm glad that was a mistake lol. I was worried .
I havn't been fooling with satellites for several years , you can't get free sat tv anymore , They used to show the footprint of all the tv satellites I'll have to see if I can find the site .. Thanks ..

Nichi Active member

94POSTS

12 years ago

#18

Most of the homes on Consejo Shores use Shaw/Canada for TV. They keep a Canadian billing address and pay via canadian credit card. If you are going to bring in a satellite dish, you need to apply for a permit for it before it arrives in the country. If you don't have the correct paperwork for it then you can expect delays at customs. You will also have to pay the Belize duty on it if you don't qualify for duty free household goods under one of the immigration plans.
I've been told that the US satellites are too low on the horizon, so much so that they can only pick up a few channels. Canadian ones are much higher. There is a company here that can help with the set-up, but they are difficult to get a hold of. Most people have just set it up by themselves. You just need to know the azimuth and declination of the Shaw satellite, other Shaw users here should be able to give you that info.

corozal dave Active member

66POSTS

12 years ago

#19

I think I can help with some information. I currently use Shaw Direct in Belize as I have an account in Canada, with a charge to my credit card each month for billing. You can have up to 6 receivers on your account. There is no way for them to know where the receivers are located as long as you don't connect a phone line. So yes, you can share. Reception of Shaw in Belize is great, using the 75cm oval dish you can purchase for $129.00 CDN includes LNB's. In Belize you have to go to the Utilities Dept. I use the one in Belize City, took 5 minutes and $150.00 Belize, to get the permit. I must admit I have not renewed it since I got it a few years ago.

As for Dish and DTV, not all that good signal to try to cover only the USA. It is still doable in Belize, but you're looking at an 8 foot dish at least, for any reliable signal.

As for the slingbox, I tried it a few years ago, but the bandwidth and data usage made it pretty much useless for me.

xcaret Active member

78POSTS

11 years ago

#20

Hey Dave , thanks for the info regarding shaw satellite in Belize. I just spoke to a friend of mine in the Orange walk area , he said he heard they can hack the satellites in Belize now. We used to get free direct, dish, and bell, here in Calgary untill gradually they put a stop to us hacking. Have you heard of anyone doing it on any satellite in Belize? I dont mean the "free to air" as I only got 50 year old movies and news.
Thanks Neil