High Definition has been a long time coming in the United Kingdom; we’re years behind when it comes to getting new technology out to the masses. Last year a full blown HD Ready Television initiative was introduced into lots of UK stores, if the TV on show had “HD Ready” on the information sheet, this meant it was ready for Sky HD, BluRay and HD-DVD players. While we’re still waiting for any HD-DVD or BluRay players to hit the market over here, we finally have the first full blown HDTV experience in the form of Sky HD – with Sky once again being the catalyst for pushing UK TV forward.

Sky HD consists of a brand new Sky box, this new look (in black) box does everything that Sky + could do, while also running a number of High Definition channels. The channel list consists of around 10 channels; here is the full line up:

• Sky Sports HD
• Sky Movies HD (2 Channels)
• Sky One HD
• Artsworld HD
• National Geographic HD
• Discovery HD
• Sky Box Office HD (2 Channels)
• BBC HD

First things first, let’s get the installation of the new Sky service out of the way. I had a call early in the week to say that my review installation was available and that it could be up and running here at home in 2 days time. I jumped at the chance because not only am I a fan of High Definition, I also use Sky + at home to record all the programs I miss during the evening when working or writing reviews!  The installation was set for the Thursday afternoon at 3:30