Sky Q box and mini box

[Derfel]

I am thinking of having sky Q at home. I have three Sky+ boxes wired to my dish. I have two televishons connected with Magic eyes. The three sky boxes do get used at the same time. How many sky Q mini box can I use the same time? Also can I have mini boxes wired to my sky dish? And also is that a clever way to connect the sky Q boxes like I have at the moment with Magic eye?

Many thanks

Derfel

[Daniel0210]

@Derfel 

I will cc in one of the other Superusers who has compiled a very helpful guide for those thinking of transitioning from Plus to Q which may provide some insight into something you hadn't considered.

cc @nigea99 

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@Derfel wrote:

How many sky Q mini box can I use the same time?

You can have a maximum of 4 mini boxes loaned to you by Sky. You can watch Sky content on two minis and the main box at the same time. You may be able to use a third mini box if the first one in use is being used for a streaming app ie: Netflix or DIsney+. It’s worth mentioning that UHD content can’t be viewed on a mini box.

All 2TBs and the UHD/HDR 1TB permit two mini boxes. Each mini box which is loaned to you may be subject to a one off upfront charge but you only need one Sky Q monthly Multiscreen subscription.

Also can I have mini boxes wired to my sky dish?

Mini boxes connect to the main Sky Q box, not directly to the dish. 

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[nigea99 · Accepted solution]

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@Daniel0210 wrote:

@Derfel 

I will cc in one of the other Superusers who has compiled a very helpful guide for those thinking of transitioning from Plus to Q which may provide some insight into something you hadn't considered.

cc @nigea99 

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@Derfel wrote:

How many sky Q mini box can I use the same time?

You can have a maximum of 4 mini boxes loaned to you by Sky. You can watch Sky content on two minis and the main box at the same time. You may be able to use a third mini box if the first one in use is being used for a streaming app ie: Netflix or DIsney+. It’s worth mentioning that UHD content can’t be viewed on a mini box.

All 2TBs and the UHD/HDR 1TB permit two mini boxes. Each mini box which is loaned to you may be subject to a one off upfront charge but you only need one Sky Q monthly Multiscreen subscription.

Also can I have mini boxes wired to my sky dish?

Mini boxes connect to the main Sky Q box, not directly to the dish. 

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hi @Daniel0210 

As @Daniel0210,  you may wish to read some notes I have made for people considering switching from SKY +/HD to SKY Q

SKY +/HD to SKY Q  which cover a variety of things.

As mentioned in the notes SKY Q does not have any RF connections for relaying into other rooms & using the remotes from them.

The SKY Q remotes do use bluetooth and can be used in another room but to watch in another room you need either a mini or get creative with HDMI splitters or HDMI to RF converters etc. 

Any further questions, do not hesitate to ask

Edit BTW do note the limitations of all recordings being on the main box  with no user  profiles  (also note even a 2TB may be less HDD space) 

[Chodley]

So the two televisions on magic eyes are connected to 2 of the 3 Sky+ boxes?

Minis work by having a local hdmi connection to the TV and a network connection to the main Q. And each of them can operate independently at the same

time (max of 2 plus the Q, plus 2 tablets)

So no need for magic eyes but also as mentioned above, no individual recording list, all a big shared one.

[Derfel]

How difficult is it to get creative with HDMI splitter? I have heard about this before

[nigea99]

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@Derfel wrote:

How difficult is it to get creative with HDMI splitter? I have heard about this before

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@Derfel I have no personal experience but you do need to make sure they are fully HDCP compliant & gets more niche if you require 4K on the main box. Cable length can also be an issue with long runs requiring HDMI  Fibre Optic cables or  HDMI over ethernet or other solutions

I have a friend who does (or at least did when we spoke about it a couple of years or so ago) manage to run a 2nd TV using an HDMI splitter - I can't remember which solution he used for the long run to the furthest room  - he did post about his solution here but it was archived & probably then deleted a long time ago

[Chodley]

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@Derfel wrote:

How difficult is it to get creative with HDMI splitter? I have heard about this before

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You then lose the ability to watch different content on each TV