You recently went to a friend’s house and noticed that the quality of the programs broadcast on his TV is much better than what you usually see on yours: when asking for an explanation, your friend told you about HD channels, i.e. broadcasters that transmit content in high definition and, consequently, with superior quality than the standard.
Now, as you would like to be able to enjoy them on your TV as well, you took advantage of your free time and searched the Internet for news on how to watch channels in HD and ended up here, on my website. Well, if things are like this, know that you are in the right place! Below, in fact, I will explain in detail how to activate the visualization of HD channels on your TV (or decoder), whether it is enabled for viewing channels via satellite or available in terrestrial digital.
So, without waiting any longer, feel free and carefully read everything I have to explain to you on the subject: I am sure that, after reading this guide, you will have acquired the necessary skills to succeed brilliantly in your “venture” guys. “. Let him bet?
How to see channels in HD with the satellite dish
To be able to watch channels in HD with the satellite dish, it is necessary to meet very specific requirements (in addition to those imposed by the chosen satellite service), regarding the devices used to use the contents: to begin with, the television must be compatible with at least the HD Ready standard (720p) and/or support Full HD resolution (1080p/1080i) or higher (some Ultra HD/4K content can also be found on the satellite).
In addition, it is necessary to have a satellite decoder that supports HD resolution, or a CAM equipped with the same feature. All information is easily found in the technical data sheet of each device.
If you don’t have an HD Ready/Full HD television, an HD satellite decoder or an HD CAM, you won’t be able to enjoy high definition channels unless you replace the device in question: if that’s your case, they can cost you a lot, my buying guides dedicated to the best televisions and best HD satellite set-top boxes are helpful, full of sound advice on the subject.
How to watch HD channels with satellite TV
If you have an antenna available and don’t want to subscribe to expensive pay TV subscriptions, you can consider the tivùsat service: this, with the help of a special smart card, together with a CAM to insert into the television or a decoder compatible with the service allows access to a large bouquet of satellite channels (142 at the time of this writing), without having to pay any subscription fees. In fact, the only expenses to be incurred are those related to the card and the decoder (if necessary).
Once the tivùsat card has been obtained, it is necessary to insert it in the decoder (or in the CAM of the television) and, after connecting the device to the satellite dish through the illuminator, carry out the first tuning of the same and the procedure to activate the card: if If you are interested in learning more about the tivùsat service and tuning your decoder or television, I refer you to my tutorial on how to activate tivùsat , in which I have provided all the relevant details.
After performing the initial configuration of the decoder and activating the card, you will be able to watch the HD channels available on the platform, just tune in to the dedicated numbers: 101 for Rai 1 HD, 102 for Rai 2 HD, 103 for Rai 3 HD, and so on. road. In general, HD tivùsat channels are stored from number 101 to number 199.
The complete list of channels is available on this page: to view the numbering of each station, just click on the dedicated box.
How to watch Sky channels in HD
If you have a Sky subscription with a satellite dish, you will know perfectly well that the list of available satellite channels is automatically updated by the decoder you use to access television programmes.
However, to enjoy high definition broadcasts via the Sky platform, you must first have a Sky decoder compatible with the use of high definition channels ( My Sky HD or Sky Q ), connected to the TV via HDMI, and it is essential that Sky HD service is active in your package.
If you do not wish to subscribe to Sky HD which, at the time this guide was written, costs €6.40/month, you will be able to watch in high definition only the channels outside the Sky bouquet and broadcast, by specific choice of the broadcaster, with HD resolution ( such as Mediaset channels, for example).
Once you subscribe to Sky HD, all you have to do is restart your set-top box and tune to the high definition channel you want to watch (e.g. 108 for Sky Uno HD, 110 for Sky Atlantic HD, 112 for Fox HD and so on). onwards): You can find the complete list of Sky satellite channels on this page.
How to see Mediaset channels in HD
Regardless of the satellite TV service provider you choose to adopt, you can watch Mediaset channels in HD simply by tuning into the dedicated numbering (e.g. 104 for Rete 4 HD, 105 for Canale 5 HD, 106 for Italia 1 HD and so on). onwards via ): from January 1, 2021, in fact, Mediaset has chosen to transmit, via satellite, only and exclusively the channels in HD. More information here.
How to see other channels in HD
In general, the argument made in the previous sections of this guide is valid to some extent for all the high definition channels available on the various satellite platforms: all you need is a decoder/CAM and a suitable television to use HD programs (I talked about this at the beginning of this chapter) and know the channel number to tune to.
The easiest way to view all available HD channels is to access the cable box/television’s built-in channel list or the Electronic Program Guide (EPG): usually just press the List or Guide button on the remote control. Alternatively, you can always Google search for phrases like channel number [HD channel name] [platform] (e.g. Rai 1 HD tivùsat channel number ).
If you encounter a problem while watching programs (intermittent or missing signal) or cannot find a specific channel, try to remedy the problem by reorienting the satellite dish or retuning the decoder.
How to watch HD channels on digital terrestrial
Over time, more and more television stations decided to make HD channels available in digital terrestrial as well. To be able to use it, however, it is necessary that the television is equipped with support for at least HD resolution (720p) to Full HD (1080p/1080i) or higher; Furthermore, if the TV is not equipped with a digital tuner and you use an external decoder, it is essential that it also supports the reception of HD channels.
In the absence of these requirements, it is not possible to watch channels in HD and, for this, it is necessary to proceed with the replacement of the devices involved: if this is your case, my guides dedicated to choosing a new television can be useful for you and a new one terrestrial digital decoder. Please at least check them out!
How to watch HD channels online
If your television/decoder cannot reproduce HD channels correctly, because the device does not support this resolution or the antenna cannot “capture” them, you can always resort to online TV: you should know, in fact, that countless television stations also stream their shows, often in high definition.
Also in this case, in order to be able to view content with the highest quality, it is essential that the screen of the device chosen to use it (smartphone, tablet, computer or television) supports HD resolution or higher; in addition, it is essential that the Internet connection has an effective download speed equal to or greater than 7 Mbps, in order to avoid problems with slowness, blockage or transmission of inferior quality.
To be sure of the effective speed your connection can provide, you can run a speed test, using one of the tools I’ve indicated in this guide; if you don’t know how to watch free TV on the Internet, take a look at the tutorial I dedicated to the subject.