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TV licence rises to £154.50!!

Discussion in 'News from the UK, Europe and the rest of the World' started by Bootsonground, Feb 2, 2019.

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  1. bigmac
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    bigmac Well-Known Member Trusted Member

    ive paid by DD for 25 odd years now--and the 6 months double payment was the case even back then. i moved address in 2014--and every few months got a reminder that there was no licence on the flat i rented. i ignored it. eventually--i found my previous paper licence--and sure enough i had never changed the address on it.

    i'll be 75 in 4 years--i get it free then
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  2. graham59
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    graham59 Banned

    If I make it to 75 I'll be happy to give somebody 154 quid. lol :D
  3. Anon04576
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    Anon04576 Well-Known Member

    Regards the Breeze, maybe you can confirm your region in your account or explicitly ask Alexa for Breeze UK.

    I don't have the Phillips Hue bulbs as I'm sure I read at the time that a hub is required for them. I have some cheap Chinese bulbs, think they were £20 for two, of which both are controlled by Alexa. I initially plugged them in, at which point they start flashing. I then used the Chinese App eFamilyCloud (as I was already using that with my Smart Socket (WiFi enable socket). In the App you search for new devices, a bit of a communication then happens between the App and the WiFi enabled device (the bulb in this instance). The bulb then glows constant once it has been detected. You can then set timers, and dimming level (10 - 100%) output. The Phillips Hue one you have , I think, also change colour. With the bulb on the landing, it is under a "Smart Scene", meaning it can be programmed a bit more intelligently, in my case the bulb is purely used as a night light, so, it knows my location and will turn the bulb on/off at sun rise/set, running at just 20% output.

    I can also say to Alexa, "Alexa turn the landing light on" or "Alexa turn on the light in xxxxxx's bedroom", or in the case of the socket, "Alexa socket1 on".

    I have more than one so the Alexa's are also assigned a group called "Everywhere", so I can say "Alexa play the Beatles everywhere", the music is then played throughout in a synchronised fashion.
  4. oss
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    oss Somewhere Staff Member

    Oddly enough I have been using Edge and Bing for almost all searching for the last 2 or 3 years, Bing manages to do what Google did for me before they are on par with each other these days and I suspect the technology is fairly close although implemented differently.

    I occasionally ask for a second opinion Google can still be better at looking up phone numbers for example but it is close.

    I will need to look into these Amazon devices, I have a FireTV box so I am familiar with Alexa and I think the voice recognition is pretty much the best but then again I only use it in the context of movies and TV mostly, she still impresses if you ask her another question outside those genres.

    What appeals to me is the kids being able to say 'Alexa call dad' and we are suddenly connected through Skype, what also appeals is the kids being able to ask 'Alexa what time is it in the UK' as then they know when it is ok to call me :)
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  5. oss
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    oss Somewhere Staff Member

    If I make it to 65 I would be happy to do the same :)
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  6. Dave_E
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    Dave_E Well-Known Member Trusted Member


    Send it to me please! :like:
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  7. Jim
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    Jim Well-Known Member Trusted Member

    Thinking of doing the same, got cignal but more repeats than ever.
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  8. Anon04576
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    Anon04576 Well-Known Member

    I must admit that I don’t give any other search engine a chance. On any new setup/install be it Windows or IOS, Chrome is immediately installed pointing at Google.

    I’ve been misinformed (or misunderstood) about the Dot devices. With her taking one I assumed it is operational in Pinas... after speaking with her last night that’s not quite the case. She mentioned something about an .apk, as we know that being Android and of course this being Pinas I should have realised it wasn’t that clear cut. So there seems to be some sort of “work around” (yea we will call it a workaround :) ) and seemingly her bro is on the case in order to get this Dot working. It’s more fun blah blah :D

    I will report back on the success/failure of this implementation in due course.
  9. bigmac
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    bigmac Well-Known Member Trusted Member

    i have the alexa phone app installed. tried to find the bulb--it asks what brand--phillips round type--then it tells me i need a hub.

    why do i get the impression the whole thing is to get me to buy more gadgets--which i wont--or subscribe to music--no chance.
  10. oss
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    oss Somewhere Staff Member

    I used Chrome for ages but it started to feel bloated this last few years, plus since the recent re-skin I don't really like the look of it, I find Edge looks better and cleaner these days, it is also very slightly faster.

    However it will be academic soon as Microsoft is abandoning the EdgeHTML and Chackra engines in favour of the Chromium Blink and V8, they already use Chromium in the mobile version of Edge.

    Will be interested to hear the results of your Dot experiment :) one thing I do know is that a UK Amazon account will work in the Phils as I used mine last year to watch movies in my library which I had purchased on Amazon.
  11. Anon04576
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    Anon04576 Well-Known Member

    Yea as I said previously that was my suspicion. Like I say I bought ‘generic’ Wi-fi bulbs to save on that issue.
  12. bigmac
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    bigmac Well-Known Member Trusted Member

    I still can't figure out whether I need a bridge / hub or plug adapters. Will one bridge operate several lamps ?
  13. Anon04576
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    Anon04576 Well-Known Member

    Yea had read about the Chromium changeover. I read that the development was none stop due to Google putting in ‘fixes’ that other browsers were struggling to deal with, one being a frame inserted on YouTube which made the video acceleration disabled within Edge.

    Ok on using your account in Pinas, that may prove useful.
  14. Anon04576
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    Anon04576 Well-Known Member

    I’m guessing the one bridge/hub will suffice for multiple devices. How much are the Phillips hubs for controlling bulbs?
  15. bigmac
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    bigmac Well-Known Member Trusted Member


    £80
  16. Drunken Max
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    Drunken Max Well-Known Member Trusted Member

    I have Hive and Google Home. The Hive devices need the hub but I have added some smart plugs that do not need a hub ( Teckin bought of Amazon). They also sell light bulbs which do not need a hub. They work from their own app or indeed will work with Google Home or Alexa. I have three Home devices now, two normal and a mini. I have to be honest, the mini is really quite good if you do not try and play music loud.
  17. bigmac
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    bigmac Well-Known Member Trusted Member

    i have a gut feeling the cheapish plug in adapters are merely to switch on and off whatever is plugged into them--be it a lamp--kettle--tv--whatever...whereas a bridge will control certain functions--like changing a bulbs colour--hence the silly high price of those that do. i can live without that luxury

    i think i will buy a couple of the plug ins--to see if i'm right......or do i stay old school and turn the damn lamp on with my finger. bah.
  18. Markham
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    Markham Guest

    What is this mad dash to home automation all about? No wonder obesity is on the increase if people can't be bothered to get up on their hind legs and walk over to the light switch. And how long will it be before Alexa is named as a co-respondent in divorce proceedings.
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  19. Anon04576
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    Anon04576 Well-Known Member

    Hmmmm

  20. Dave_E
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    Dave_E Well-Known Member Trusted Member

    Every time @bigmac 's wife sweetly calls his name, Alexa calls McDonalds home delivery.
    :lol::lol:
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    • Winner Winner x 1
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