[Dr.Dave]

Welcome tomboy4life.

It sounds like there was some misunderstanding.

You get an Xbox 360 that is yours to keep if you sign up for a 2 year internet agreement. The Xbox can also be used as a Set-Top-Box to access Optik TV.

You get free rental for 3 years for a PVR if you sign up for a 3 year TV agreement.

There was a post in April that said there was a second STB free rental - Here's the link, but I'm not sure if it's still in effect.

The STB and the Xbox with STB software can access the PVR and with "PVR Anywhere" you can watch recorded programs. There is only PVR per home.

So the net effect is like having 3 PVRs.

There may be other offers that the door-to-door people have, but you should ask to see a brochure to be sure they have their facts straight.

 

[BillyL]

Just to clear up some confusion,

I am one of TELUS' door to door guys and YES, we do have different, BETTER deals then what is given at the TELUS call center/office. It's simply just an added incentive to sign up at the door. But let me break it down for you:

If you sign a 3 year with us here's what you get:

1 PVR and 1 STB rental BUT, we also have the power to give you a 2nd STB rental (a total of 1 PVR and 2 STB) but you MUST give up your TV promo in order for us to do so. The TV promo is the reduced price that you pay for the first 6 months. So, for the Optik Essentials, you are supposed to pay $16 for the first 6 months. By giving you the 2nd STB, you would go straight to $26, for example.

Another cool thing us guys can do for you is we can wave ANY STB installation fees. If you check the TELUS website, it says any PVR/STB installation after the 3rd box is subject to $50 per box. This is not true with us.

We can also give you the super channels ($16) free of charge for 6 months.


-TELUS Residential Consultant

 

[pokee99]

Wow - I just switched from Shaw to Optik TV on Friday, and I don't think I 'worked it' hard enough with the Telus rep. to get a good deal.

I got a free PVR + one STB rental free for the duration of the 3 year contract, plus free installation for all 4 of my TVs, and one month of the Move 6-Pack for free. I am still paying for these add-ons each month: Setanta Sports ($17) and Super Channel ($16), plus will have to start paying for the Movie 6-Pack ($17 - $21 less the $4 discount) after one month free.

I've read on this thread that some people have gotten Superchannel free for 3 months. Do you know if I could try to get that?

Also, I also got talked into the 'all-in' package ($82 - for first 6 months), but after analyzing all the channels, it looks like I can get what I want with the 'Your Pick HD' package ($48 - for first 6 months), and save myself $34 a month. Do you know if it will be too late to switch packages and still get the intro 6 month promo of $48 for 'Your Pick HD'? I would assume if my first bill has not been generated yet, I should be able to - but my first bill will probably be really messy and really hard to decipher. Any advice?

Thanks!

 

[digao]

Hi pokee99, here's what I negotiated:

Before negotiation (after the initial 6 month discount for new customers) -
Internet 25 mbps: 57 -5 bundle discount = $52
TV Your Pick with HD: 83 -5 bundle discount = $78
--- Total: $130

After negotiation -
Internet 25 mbps: 57 -5 bundle discount -10 extra discount = $42
Tv Your Pick with HD: 83 -10 bundle discount = $73
Movie Pack 4: 15 - 16.05 = $-1.05 (plus 3 months free but I still get the 16.05 credit in those 3 months).
Hi-Fi HD pack:: 5 -5 tv credit = $0
--- Total: $98.95 (first 3 months), $113.95 (thereafter)

So as you can see as I was able to save around 16 dollars over my previous bills, but at the same time I added $20 worth of programming, which overall gives me around $36 a month in savings. Plus I got almost $50 in credits in 3 months of free Movie channel.

By the way, I do not have a contract. I bough my PVR and HD box from Future Shop and paid 200 for the pair.

Cheers!

Rod

 

[ryankenn]

Man do you have a sweet tongue or what? I have never been able to get a provider ( Shaw or Telus ) to budge one cent until I'm attempting to cancel my service. If that's a price you can negotiate, I'll pay you $20 to negotiate if for me.

 

[digao]

Man do you have a sweet tongue or what? I have never been able to get a provider ( Shaw or Telus ) to budge one cent until I'm attempting to cancel my service. If that's a price you can negotiate, I'll pay you $20 to negotiate if for me.

Hi ryankenn,

It's all about what competitors can potentially offer you... If I'd called and asked for a discount I'm pretty sure they would've said "NO"

 

[atari8472]

new customer to be

Hello all.

I am a current triple Shaw Cable customer (digital phone/ 25mbps internet/ HDTV) with a Triple Play Promotion expiring in about a month and looking into switching all three services to Telus to save a few bucks as a new customer.

Can I please get an advise on a best deal/approach to get a basic digital phone service, high speed internet access (min 15mbps, more better) and a minimalistic HD service where the only goal is to have CBC-HD, TSN-HD, TSN2-HD, Sportsnet Pacific HD and Sportsnet Vancouver Hockey HD

- Yes, a Vancouver Canucks fan . No other TV channels matter whatsoever.

- would like to keep my current phone number, when switching

- I am not interested in contracts and would be OK with non-PVR HD box if the HD-PVR box was too expensive.

- I would probably only keep this setup until June 2012 (when the hockey season ends) and then re-subscribe to Shaw as a new customer.

thank you!

 

[zapperman]

Atari, a couple quick responses. Easy ones first:

1) Yes you can port your phone number over from Shaw.
2) You don't need a contract, so you would either rent the box ($15/ month) or buy it outright. I believe they go on sale at futureshop for ~150 occasionally. I believe you HAVE to have at least the PVR box as your main box. You could get a free PVR if you sign a contract though. Personally, I bought mine and got the other offering from telus instead (new free laptop at the time).
3) To get the channels you mention, you get the Essentials (mandatory), which includes CBC-HD. the sports ones are all in the sports package - $7 + 5$ to get them in HD.
4) My monthly bill is ~$110 for basic phone, Optik internet (3 HD/ 1 SD profile so always 15 Mbps internet speed), and Optik TV. I have Essentials plus the Sports and Sports HD, plus two other packs at $7 each, so you should be able to get what you are looking for easily under $100/ month.
5) I would call Loyalty at Telus (assuming you have been a customer at some point) and tell them you want to consolidate all 3 of your services and you are going with either Shaw or Telus. See what they offer you. That's what I did, but I meant what I said about going either way.

All the above said, I wish you luck trying to go back to Shaw once you have had Optik. It really is that much better and in a class of its own... .

 

[atari8472]

excellent information, thank you.

I've been Telus phone customer, but that was 10+ years ago

it's $90 for Bundle 1 (phone, hs internet and, optik TV) plus $7 plus $5 to get the Sports. So a total of $102.

The cost for the same thing with Shaw is $109, but the Internet is faster (in theory 50 mbps). I like their Rent-To-Own option too.

I'll think about it some more.

 

[Wiremonkey]

atari8472,
Zapperman is correct with the exception of the "I believe you HAVE to have at least the PVR box as your main box." part.

You can have just a 330 if you don't want a PVR. You can have up to 6 STBs. All of them could be 330s without a 430 (PVR), but you would be missing a big part of Optik if you didn't have an Optik whole home PVR.

As previously mentioned the 430 PVR is available for rent @ $15/month or it can be purchased from several retail sources. You can rent or own some or all of your STBs. Service Agreements (contracts) are applied to Optik as STB rental credits. $5/month for 1 year, $10/month for 2 years and $15/month for 3 years.

- another TELUS tech

 

[atari8472]

thanks for the extra information.

what are these "Profile 1", "Profile 2" I keep reading about and people getting frustrated when they have one or the other.
Something to do with speed and the (in)ability to watch/record multiple TV programs ?

 

[Wiremonkey]

I think you're referring to the various profiles that are available depending on a customer’s qualification for service.

Customers must qualify for service to get OptikTV. Not all customers qualify for service and some qualify for lower levels of service than others. The ‘lowest’ level of service is 1HD/2SD with up to 15 mbps internet. The median service level is 2HD/1SD with 15 mbps internet. The highest level of service is 3HD/1SD and up to 25 mbps internet, this is called OptikTurbo. 3HD/1SD is also available with 15 mbps internet to those customers who qualify.

Qualifying is a process of entering your phone number or address into a database that is used to determine the level of service available to that customer.

- another TELUS tech

 

[atari8472]

thanks, is this available online ?

or perhaps it's this: https://www.telus.com/ordertv/
I put my info there and all I got was "Congratulations. Optik TV™ service is available in this area." No profiles or anything. It probably has to do with the fact, that I currently don't have any Telus services.

 

[Dr.Dave]

Check the box that you have Telus internet and you should get the HD/SD info.

 

[atari8472]

cool. thanks for the tip. I did that and this time I got:

"... And you can watch 2 live programs in HD and 1 in standard definition at the same time."

so I am guessing this is the 2HD/1SD profile. hmm, no 25mbps for me then ? bummer.

 

[jhumber]

Telus phone bundle

I currently have optic tv, internet, and home phone bundled together. I am locked into a 3 year contract for the TV. My question is can I cancel my phone line? I currently pay $34.50 ( after a $5 bundle discount) for the phone line. It looks like I also Get a $5 bundle discount for both the optic tv and the internet as well. Will I lose this $10 savings if I cancel my phone line or will I be ok because I will still have 2 services with Telus. Thanks

 

[Wiremonkey]

Bundling is worth $5/month per product. So cancelling your phone will reduce your bundle discount from $15/month to $10/month if you still retain OptikTV and Internet.

Your Service Agreement (3year contract) is for the TV portion only, and does not include the internet portion either. You may also have a SA on your internet.

- another TELUS tech

 

[jhumber]

Thanks for the information Wiremonkey!

 

[Reggie Died]

For what it's worth, Telus doesn't seem to have a great grasp on their profiling system.

I was debating for a soild few weeks about making the switch, since the roomates had the Shaw bill under their name and subsequently moved out.

Online, it said I had the lowest profile. When I called in to ask, they also said I had the lowest profile. I was still interested in the service, and since I live alone and have never used a PVR, I wasn't too concerned about only having accesss to 1 HD feed.

However, when chatting with the Telus installer, he casually let it slip that I had the 3HD feed.

So far I'm happy with the service, and everyone I've talked to employed by Telus has been very helpful. I might trim my package down after 6 months due to cost, but I'll probably stay with Telus for awhile.

Any info on the NFL channel?

 

[Dr.Dave]

@Reggie Died, according to the following thread, NFL Network will be automatically included in the Sports theme pack and Sports HD theme pack on August 29.

http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=134526&page=9