No, not at all. You can find the official dstv one here : http://www.dstvmobile.com/dstvmobile/content/en/south-africa-plus/south-africa-plus-faqs

This FAQ is a work in progress and has been prepared based on my original review of the drifta (http://j-j.co.za/?p=327) and the numerous questions and comments that arose from that review. Please feel free to contribute to this. All contributions will be attributed and welcomed. Either add in the comments at the bottom or mail me : driftafaq@j-j.co.za

There seems to be 3 services, each with it’s own coverage (thanks to Maiyo Simapungula, Public Relations and Communications Manager at DStv Mobile for clearing some of this up). These are the DVB-H broadcast coverage, the general streaming service and the N8 specific service.

The DVB-H broadcast coverage includes:

• Ghana
• Kenya
• Namibia
• Nigeria
• South Africa

DSTV mobile has a streaming service available via Vodacom Live!. This service is currently available only in South Africa with more countries expected to follow. It has 11 channels, and for R59/month (or R19/week) you get to watch up to 3 hours (45m weekly). For more information check the “Streaming  Tab” from the DSTV mobile website or click here.

A second streaming service is available exclusively for the Nokia N8. The website  lists +- 50 countries where this service works (full list here). This is however a streaming service and not a broadcast service so you PAY FOR THE DATA, which makes it very expensive. It also only has 3 channels, SuperSport Blitz, Euronew and SawSee.

Haa haa. Welcome to the club.

Despite their terms of use allowing them to decide who they wish to use the forums and who they wish to exclude, one would think that the forums would be a good way to engage with customers, answer queries, deal with concerns being raised. It seems that DSTV would rather use the forums to spread propaganda messages, excluding those who ask questions they would rather not answer.

In my case

• my ban is indefinite : “Date the ban will be lifted: Never”
• for reasons unknown : “You have been banned for the following reason: No reason was specified.”
• I mailed them to ask them the reason and never received a reply.

If you wish to see what is going on in the forums (and there never seems to be much) just log out of your account and you can read the forums. If they spent a bit more time answering questions honestly, providing customer support and sorting out their promises with respect to service delivery they would have a whole lot more customers. Oh what a pain it is to have to deal with monopolies.

No, I am in no way affiliated with any of the above. There was a comment (accusation) to that effect on the original review, thanks again to Su Stokes (from Multichoice) for confirming that I am not affiliated with them.

You need to activate the Drifta with DSTV and get a DSTV account (if you don’t have one). Phone them and they will get it sorted for you.

Customer Care

email:  care@dstvmobile.com

Johannesburg
(011) 289 2222

Pretoria
(012) 422 2222

Durban
(031) 710 2222

Cape Town
(021) 508 2222

Port Elizabeth
(041) 395 2222

Bloemfontein
(051) 503 2222

Try the dstvmobile forums (http://forum.dstvmobile.com/), call them or visit them (see below),  or post questions here.

141 Bram Fischer Drive
Randburg
South Africa
email:  care@dstvmobile.com

Johannesburg
(011) 289 2222

Pretoria
(012) 422 2222

Durban
(031) 710 2222

Cape Town
(021) 508 2222

Port Elizabeth
(041) 395 2222

Bloemfontein
(051) 503 2222

Reviews of drifta :

• Right here on j-j.co.za (http://j-j.co.za/2010/12/some-thoughts-on-dstv-mobile-and-the-drifta-in/)
• High on IT (http://www.high-on-it.co.za/2011/01/quick-review-of-dstv-drifta.html)
• BrYan’s Blog  (http://brattex.blogspot.com/2011/03/dstv-drifta.html)
• David Ajao – Review of Nigerian DSTV Mobile on Nokia 5330 (http://www.davidajao.com/blog/2010/06/20/a-review-of-dstv-mobile-and-nokia-5330-mobile-tv-edition/)
• Marc Forrest (http://www.marcforrest.com/2010/12/01/dstv-mobile-with-the-drifta-iphone/)
• Financial Mail (http://www.fm.co.za/Article.aspx?id=129059)

Each country has it’s own channel list, for example Ghana has BBC and CNN which we don’t have in SA, as well as a different set of Supersport channels.  Go to the DSTV Mobile website and select the country on the opening map, then take a look at the channel list to see what is available in each.

This seems to happen even when the reception is good (it can be 100%) and indicator is green proving that it is picking up signal but no picture or sound is available. After clicking “OK” the Drifta decoder then continually tries to connect but does not manage to do so.

Solution :
1. You have to phone the DSTV call centre to ask them to resend the signal to you and then it should work.

2. You can also sort out the problem without phoning the help desk by logging on to the care website. Look for the error codes “how to” on the right hand side of the page (look for error code E16).

3. In theory you can reset the error code by SMS using : SMS “error code + smartcard number” to 32472 just not sure what smarcard number you would use. If you are having to do resets often ask the call centre for the “smartcard number” of your Drifta, they should be able to sort you out with it.

Content supplemented with information from the DSTV mobile forums : http://forum.dstvmobile.com/

Just give customer care a call. You will need the following information :
1. your ID number
2. the seller’s ID number
3. proof of purchase

Haa haa. Welcome to the club.

Despite their terms of use allowing them to decide who they wish to use the forums and who they wish to exclude, one would think that the forums would be a good way to engage with customers, answer queries, deal with concerns being raised. It seems that DSTV would rather use the forums to spread propaganda messages, excluding those who ask questions they would rather not answer.

In my case

• my ban is indefinite : “Date the ban will be lifted: Never”
• for reasons unknown : “You have been banned for the following reason: No reason was specified.”
• I mailed them to ask them the reason and never received a reply.

If you wish to see what is going on in the forums (and there never seems to be much) just log out of your account and you can read the forums. If they spent a bit more time answering questions honestly, providing customer support and sorting out their promises with respect to service delivery they would have a whole lot more customers. Oh what a pain it is to have to deal with monopolies.

Well, despite what might be advertised to, and expected by us, the customer,  the Cartoon Network and E! channels are not the full channels you see on dstv. They are a “dumbed down” version on a 2 hour repeat cycle of week old stuff. Don’t expect the real thing.

To quote from a DSTV spokesman “Note that E! & CN’s content is customised for the mobile environment and unlike the rest of the channels, content on these 2 channels is not the same as content on “normal” DStv. On mobile, E! & CN’s content is meant to repeat 4-5 different clips within a 2 hour loop and also it’s content that played out last week (one weeks old content). ”

And in response to a question on false advertising around it not being the full channels :

” We will escalate the matter in regards with advertising to Marketing and investigate accordingly. For information on DStv Mobile products and the riveting content available, please visit our website.”

Um ya right. Ok then.

Updated 26/11/2011

The application is compatible with the following BlackBerry devices:

• Bold 9000
• Bold 9700
• Curve 8520
• Curve 8900
• Curve 9300

The application is available at http://appworld.blackberry.com/webstore/content/64226?lang=en

Because the BlackBerry application is a public beta, no minimum performance can be guaranteed.

No support is available for OS7 devices or the latest devices, so no luck for the owners of the Torch or the new Bold 9900. If you follow the appworld link from one of these devices (eg 9900) app world just gives an error message saying the software is unavailable for the device.

DStv say they are working on getting support for these devices. Let’s hope this doesn’t take as long to get sorted as the Beta did.

I would have thought not, however, the following is found in the latest version of the Drifta Client software (1.3.1) for Windows :

0x00114EA8	0x0000006E	https://mo-dev.dstvmobile.com/DStvMobile.UsageMonitoring.Collector.Web.IISHost_Drifta/Drifta.aspx/MetaData?id=
0x00114F18	0x00000071	https://mo-dev.dstvmobile.com/DStvMobile.UsageMonitoring.Collector.Web.IISHost_Drifta/Drifta.aspx/UsageMonitoring
0x00114F90	0x00000064	https://mo-dev.dstvmobile.com/DStvMobile.UsageMonitoring.Drifta.Activator.Web/Manage.aspx/Status?id=
0x00114FF8	0x0000006D	https://mo-qa.dstvmobile.com/DStvMobile.UsageMonitoring.Collector.Web.IISHost_Drifta/Drifta.aspx/MetaData?id=
0x00115068	0x00000070	https://mo-qa.dstvmobile.com/DStvMobile.UsageMonitoring.Collector.Web.IISHost_Drifta/Drifta.aspx/UsageMonitoring
0x001150E0	0x00000063	https://mo-qa.dstvmobile.com/DStvMobile.UsageMonitoring.Drifta.Activator.Web/Manage.aspx/Status?id=
0x00115148	0x0000006E	https://mo-uat.dstvmobile.com/DStvMobile.UsageMonitoring.Collector.Web.IISHost_Drifta/Drifta.aspx/MetaData?id=
0x001151B8	0x00000071	https://mo-uat.dstvmobile.com/DStvMobile.UsageMonitoring.Collector.Web.IISHost_Drifta/Drifta.aspx/UsageMonitoring
0x00115230	0x00000064	https://mo-uat.dstvmobile.com/DStvMobile.UsageMonitoring.Drifta.Activator.Web/Manage.aspx/Status?id=
0x00115298	0x0000006B	https://ums.dstvmobile.com/DStvMobile.UsageMonitoring.Collector.Web.IISHost_Drifta/Drifta.aspx/MetaData?id=
0x00115308	0x0000006E	https://ums.dstvmobile.com/DStvMobile.UsageMonitoring.Collector.Web.IISHost_Drifta/Drifta.aspx/UsageMonitoring
0x00115378	0x00000061	https://ums.dstvmobile.com/DStvMobile.UsageMonitoring.Drifta.Activator.Web/Manage.aspx/Status?id=

This surely seems to indicate that DSTV is indeed monitoring Drifta useage. I haven’t seen anything anywhere which specifically allows this, perhaps its time to review the terms and conditions again. See them here.  I see nothing in there which gives DSTV the right to monitor what I am doing with the software.

I also found that the Windows application created two files in user/AppData/Roaming/DStv/DStv Mobile Decoder/Logs.

• last_time.log
• 2011-07-06, 21:42:19    (The date and time of last useage)
• tmp.gz
• Snagit32/CamRecorder/HyCam2/SSRecorder/VODRecorder/HiNetRecorder/wmrecorder/Easy_WebCam_Recording/VideoCap/debut/Screen Recorder 5/My Screen Recorder/bdcam/H264WebCam/smrecorder/Taksi/WebCam Monitor/SplitCam/WVC/MobiGarda/openvcap/Cam Wizard/procguard/SaypeCap/fraps/Jing/FreeScreenVideo

The tmp.gz seems to contain a list of applications which can record the video stream, and which (maybe) they intend to (or already) check for and block.

Running a network traffic sniffer while decoder.exe starts up shows that a DNS lookup is done for ums.dstvmobile.com and that an HTTPS encrypted session is then established through to the server confirming that there is some level of monitoring going on and that the URLS found in the executable are more than just coincidence.

I mailed Maiyo to ask what this was all about, and after consulting with technical came back to tell me that they have a trial running where they monitor the useage of certain users. The traffic we are seeing above (according to DSTV) arises as the client checks in with the server to see if it is one of the smart cards involved in the trial. While this provides a small amount of comfort, it also confirms that my identifiable details are sent through to DSTV every time I use my Drifta while being connected to the internet. That is cold comfort.

The USB Drifta is a new Drifta that looks rather like a USB 3G Modem or a Memory stick. It is a small dongle like device that plugs directly into your computer USB port and then works pretty much the same as the previous generation Drifta. No wires, no charging, less hassle. Only supports computers though, no mobile devices.

You can take a look at what it looks like and what is delivered here in the unboxing post.

The advertising and documentation around this is a bit confusing.

The deal was that it was free until 31 March 2011. Then, if you were a Compact Subscriber and activated before 31 March 2011, you could have it free until 31 March 2011.

If you are a Premium subscriber you could have one free Drifta Subs until 31 March 2012.

The USB Drifta documentation still says that if you are a Compact subscriber and activate before 31 March 2011 you can have it free until 31 March 2012. I assume this an oversight and just poor editing of text for the website since we have already passed 31 March 2011, and the USB drifta was released to the public after this date. Poor show.

The DStv Mobile website has quite a decent coverage map which shows whether you are likely to have coverage. Check your coverage here.

If you are way outside a covered area you probably won’t have much luck. If close to or within an area you are likely to be ok. You can of course always use extended aerials and the like. See the FAQ question on boosting signal.

Yes, you do need a DSTV account to use a Drifta. You don’t have to have a R600/month account, but they need an account so they can bill you the R36/month fees (there is no prepaid option). DSTV can create an account quite easily so this shouldn’t be too much of a problem.

If you are a DStv premium subscriber you will get access to this channel. If you are just a Drifta (R36/month) subscriber you will not get access to it and there is no way to buy access to just this channel without paying the full premium subscription.

Currently :

• iDevices (iPod touch, iPad, iPhone) (Download the “dstv mobile decoder” app from the Apple Appstore)
• Windows based computers (Get the software from www.dstvmobile.com)

Rumoured :

• Android devices (promised support by 1 April)
• Blackberry (promised support by 1 April – now appears delayed to 31 May – Now June sometime? Nope, maybe July)
• Nokia/Symbian (promised support by 1 April)
• Windows mobile / 7 (unclear)

There is no clear feedback or timelines on the above. We are just a few days away from the promised release date and DSTV seem to be hedging their bets and pushing out the dates. The DTSV FAQ lists the above as being “Early 2011″.

All deadlines have been missed, people are ignored on the DSTV forums when asked, misinformed by call centre staff when they ask, and told “We never said that” when reminding DSTV of the April date.

Don’t expect the software to appear on any new devices anytime soon. Seems DSTV bit off more than they could chew with this and aren’t prepared to make it right with their customers whom they misled.

Slight update from a 13th June posting on the mybroadband.co.za forum (link here) : (slightly edited)

• There is an Android client in the works (no timeline yet)
• There is a blackberry client in the works ( no time line yet)
• There is a Nokia S60 version in the works (sooner than the other 2, but will only be ready when the coding is done). This version will utilize the Drifta with wifi support but the CPU needs to be above 700mhz.

The Nokia E71 runs at 381Mhz, the N95 at 330Mhz, the E72 runs at 600Mhz, N97 runs at 434Mhz. So, if the statement above is true, then only Nokia S60 phones released in late 2010/2011 like the N8 and E7 (only 680Mhz) may well work with the Drifta. So don’t hold out much hope then. This also makes me worry about which Blackberry Devices will be compatible with the Drifta. I wish they would just come out and say what is planned. The waiting sucks when after the wait you still probably won’t be able to use the device.

The drifta device sell for around R599, but can be bought on special offers for a little cheaper (R549). There was originally no monthly subscription fee but this is to change from the 1st April 2011. The monthly cost will be +- R36. DSTV premium subscribers will not be charged extra for DSTV mobile for another year (1st April 2012). There is no data cost, the device doesn’t use an internet connection.

The Nokia N8 (streaming service) is listed on the website as being a free application (which it is). So there is no upfront cost. Be aware that as it is a streaming service you will be paying the (high) data costs of your cellular service provider. This can be very very expensive.

For the DVB-H broadcast option (this is what the Drifta uses), just the monthly subscription of R36. No data charges or any other charges. R5 optional extra insurance if you want it. (More info to be added on pricing in other African countries)

For streaming via Vodacom Live! it costs R59/month (or R19/week) and you get to watch up to 3 hours of programming (45m weekly). Anything over that is considered outside of the acceptable useage policy. You do NOT pay for the data using this service, it’s included in your subscription.

The Nokia N8 (streaming service) will cost you a whole lot more depending on useage as it is a streaming service. You will have to pay your per MB  fees to your network cellular provider. Be careful of this, you could rack up high bills quickly.

There are currently 15 channels (Changes 14 July 2011) :

1. Supersport 1
2. Supersport 2
3. Supersport 3
4. Supersport Blitz
5. M-Net Series Mobile **
6. Sony MAX
7. Africa Magic
8. E! Entertainment Mobile **
9. Cartoon Network Mobile (now the full version)
10. Channel O
11. Trace Urban
12. The eNews Channel
13. CNNi
14. Big Brother Amplified
15. Idols Extra

** These are mobile versions of the channel and may not match the content of the full channel on DSTV. Cartoon network was most affected by this, but is now the full channel. See the comments at the bottom of the post.

As of 1st April 2011 there were 13 channels (Up from the original 10 at launch)

1. Africa Magic
2. Channel O
3. Trace TV
4. The eNews Channel
5. SuperSport Blitz
6. SuperSport 1
7. SuperSport 2
8. SuperSport 3
9. SuperSport 6 (temp for world cup)
10. Cartoon Network
11. CNNi
12. E!Entertainment
13. Sony Max

Just be careful though, the Cartoon Network and E! channels are not the full channels you see on dstv. They are a “dumbed down” version on a 2 hour repeat cycle of week old stuff. Don’t expect the real thing.

To quote from a DSTV spokesman “Note that E! & CN’s content is customised for the mobile environment and unlike the rest of the channels, content on these 2 channels is not the same as content on “normal” DStv. On mobile, E! & CN’s content is meant to repeat 4-5 different clips within a 2 hour loop and also it’s content that played out last week (one weeks old content). ”

And in response to a question on false advertising around it not being the full channels :

” We will escalate the matter in regards with advertising to Marketing and investigate accordingly. For information on DStv Mobile products and the riveting content available, please visit our website.”

Um ya right. Ok then.

And just to prove that DStv does listen, the Cartoon Network being broadcast has been upgraded to the full version. No more complaints from the kids

This seems to be quite a contentious issue. Some people like the selection, others don’t.

The channel selection is aimed at people on the move. 5 (half) of the current channels are sports channels, great for those who don’t want to miss the game when they are on the move. In the DSTV forums it is claimed the channel selection is based on “wide market research”. The forum members think it has more to do with DSTV wanting to keep the costs low for the licensing of the channels, hence no decent movie or entertainment channels. To be honest, the quality (low resolution) doesn’t really justify watching a movie on this. I would however like an additional news channel, though etv news is quite decent.

With effect from 1st April a few changes are in store. Supersport 6 is dropped (was always only temporary for the world cup) and CNNi, E!Entertainment and Sony Max are added. This does give more balance to the lineup.

There are nine channels on the DStv Mobile bouquet and a maximum of six can be accommodated on the eTV bouquet. This is due to how the frequency was allocated by ICASA. Therefore the DStv Mobile bouquet cannot have more than 9 channels at any one time.  (from answer on the DSTV mobile forum).

As of 14 July 2011 there are a total of 15 channels available on Drifta, including the eNews channel. It therefore looks as though eTV have made a deal with DStv whereby DStv are using the channels allocated to eTV. This would suggest the number can’t grow beyond the current 15.

Yes there is a delay. Watching on a dstv decoder on SS2 and comparing the broadcast timing to the Drifta I have found a delay of +- 13 seconds. The delay may vary per channel.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DVB-Hhttp://www.dvb-h.org/http://www.dvb-h.org/technology.htm

When you click the button it synchronises to the next channel. Can take anywhere from 5-10 seconds depending on signal strength etc. Normally takes around 6 seconds.

The native resolution of the transmission is 320×240, and is limited to this by the bandwidth available in the DVB-H spectrum. The specification of DVB-H was agreed back in 2002, when cell phones had tiny tiny screens so don’t be surprised at the poor resolution, it was considered quite high back then.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DVB-H

Technically the resolution of the transmission is limited to 320×240. DSTV have chosen to artificially restrict the size of the picture on-screen to double this resolution. It gives you a picture that takes up about a quarter of the size of a normal laptop screen. There is an unofficial patch to work around this. (See How do I make the picture larger).

While the application allows a zoomed in view, it just doubles the pixels. There is no full screen mode available. You can use the windows magnifier to zoom in further but it looks terrible. Better just to watch in the smaller window and enjoy it for what it is – a mobile service.

Don’t expect an upgrade in the resolution any time soon, it seems this is not technically possible (limited by the DVB-H spectrum). If the broadcast standard changes and the devices can be updated then perhaps one day this could be improved. Don’t count on it.

Inside areas marked as having signal this normally isn’t a problem. In low signal areas there are things you can do to improve your signal. See “How can I improve my signal?”

If you have moved location a lot, sometimes a channel scan will sort this out. The decoder keeps the details of the channels and tries to use those when connecting. I have noticed that when travelling between Durban and Capetown I always need to do a channel scan in the next city. Only takes 3 minutes then you are back online.

The other African countries seem to indicate in the FAQs that you have to have a DVB-H enabled cell phone, and they don’t mention the Drifta device at all. I suspect this means each country will need its own subscription so is effectively a different service. So no, Drifta probably won’t work outside of SA and roaming is highly unlikely.

The Drifta seems to be a rebadged (and modified?) Valups Tivit.  More info on the Tivit is here including the technical specs, which are all pretty much the same as the Drifta. The device even looks the same.

The Tivit has software for the devices below (mmm sounds familiar):

• Phone / iPod Touch
• Nokia N81/N95/N96/N97/E72/E75/E90
• Blackberry Curve/Bold
• PC

Sadly the software doesn’t seem to work with the Drifta, see this posting on mybroadband : “Can’t get this software to work“.

The software can be downloaded here :

• http://www.valups.com/eng/tivit/download/091230/viewer/Tivit%20Mobile%20TV%20Viewer_httplive_valups_dvbh_umc_E033RC02_Setup.exe
• http://www.valups.com/eng/tivit/download/091230/viewer/TivitMobileTV_Blackberry_20091230.zip

Some other titbits about the tivit:

• The app is called ‘Tivit Mobile TV Viewer for DVB-H’, although it actually uses the US mobile DTV standard and not DVB-H (Digital Video Broadcasting-Handheld), the standard used in Europe, Arland said.
• The Tivit can only send video to one Wi-Fi device at a time, though it could be adapted to serve multiple devices in the future, Arland said.
• It includes a slot for a micro-SD card, which could be used to give a consumer access to subscription-based programming.

Extract from interview with David Arland, a spokesman for the OMVC and Valups.

Update :

Just had a look inside the update ROM for the Drifta and noticed :

• The first string in the ROM is “Tivit(DVB-H) 2.1.183 2010/11/30-14:53:58″

As soon as you plug your Drifta into a PC (which has the Drifta device driver loaded) the Wifi on the Drifta is disabled to prevent you using the Drifta on the PC and a wireless device at the same time.

I couldn’t find a way in the client software to enable the Wifi (and disable the client), but there is a way. Not convenient but it does work for me.

Here goes :

• Plug in the Drifta
• The Wifi light goes out
• Right click on “My Computer”
• Choose “Manage”
• Click on Device Manager
• Expand the “Network Adaptors” grouping
• Right click on “DStv mobile decoder”
• Select “Disable”
• Now unplug the Drifta
• The Wifi light goes on
• Plug the Drifta back in
• It should now charge and stay WiFi enabled.

However, if you now load the Windows software it won’t detect the device.

To enable again :

• Repeat the above procedure
• In the final step choose “Enable”
• Unplug and plug back in
• Wifi now goes off
• You can now use the Windows software.

This seems to happen even when the reception is good (it can be 100%) and indicator is green proving that it is picking up signal but no picture or sound is available. After clicking “OK” the Drifta decoder then continually tries to connect but does not manage to do so.

Solution :
1. You have to phone the DSTV call centre to ask them to resend the signal to you and then it should work.

2. You can also sort out the problem without phoning the help desk by logging on to the care website. Look for the error codes “how to” on the right hand side of the page (look for error code E16).

3. In theory you can reset the error code by SMS using : SMS “error code + smartcard number” to 32472 just not sure what smarcard number you would use. If you are having to do resets often ask the call centre for the “smartcard number” of your Drifta, they should be able to sort you out with it.

Content supplemented with information from the DSTV mobile forums : http://forum.dstvmobile.com/

Just give customer care a call. You will need the following information :
1. your ID number
2. the seller’s ID number
3. proof of purchase

There are 3 lights, from top to bottom:

Battery indicator

• Steady green = battery full (will show only when plugged into USB or charger)
• Steady red = battery recharging (will show only when plugged into USB or charger)
• Flashing green = 70-100% charged
• Flashing orange = 30-70% charged
• Flashing red = 0-30% charged

Signal strength

• Fast flashing green – Drifta has been switched on. (It takes about 20 seconds to boot up).
• Slow flashing green – Drifta is searching for DVB-H signal.
• Steady green – DVB-H signal searching complete and ready to connect to a device.
• Steady orange – Drifta failed to lock onto a signal. Try moving the device or extending the aerial.
• Steady red – Error state – reset the device (use a pin with the pin-hole reset button)

Wifi

• Off – device  is connected to a PC via USB
• Steady green  - device is ready to transmit data to a pairing device over Wi-Fi.
• Slow flashing green – device is sending data to a paired device over the Wi-Fi network

The PDF user manual is here.

Sometimes after doing an upgrade you need to reset the drifta, unplug it (from the USB) and then plug it in again, especially if you have done a firmware upgrade.  You also need to make sure you use the right client software with the matching firmware (on the Drifta) otherwise you can also have problems. The client software should prompt you to update when needed.

Updated 26/11/2011

The application is compatible with the following BlackBerry devices:

• Bold 9000
• Bold 9700
• Curve 8520
• Curve 8900
• Curve 9300

The application is available at http://appworld.blackberry.com/webstore/content/64226?lang=en

Because the BlackBerry application is a public beta, no minimum performance can be guaranteed.

No support is available for OS7 devices or the latest devices, so no luck for the owners of the Torch or the new Bold 9900. If you follow the appworld link from one of these devices (eg 9900) app world just gives an error message saying the software is unavailable for the device.

DStv say they are working on getting support for these devices. Let’s hope this doesn’t take as long to get sorted as the Beta did.

I am no expert on the subject, however, the new version of the client software (since 1.2) has been obfuscated (or encrypted) and it also checks to see if any system debuggers are running (such as Softice). If it detects any the application then aborts with an error. I am sure an expert in this field will be work around these challenges, it does however remove less experience hackers from the equation. If you know someone with the necessary skills, ask nicely and then please share the results

It seems Skype also employs similar anti-debugger methods, and a method exists here : http://gcasiez.pagesperso-orange.fr/ using a in-process loader which loads the process, suspends it, patches it, then sets it running again. A similar method may well work for the Drifta client. Someone with a dev environment want to give it a go ? mail me.

When you upgrade the Windows client past 1.2 a newer version of the firmware (2.1.266)  is required. This is installed onto your Drifta during the install of 1.2 / 1.3.  This newer firmware doesn’t work with the older 1.1 clients (which were able to be patched to allow larger screensize). At this point there is no way to downgrade the firmware back to the older (2.1.183) .  If I find a way I will post it here. If  you know of a way to force a downgrade let me know. I have tried the Tivit firmware upgrader, which is a separate app from the DSTV decoder.exe but sadly it doesn’t pick up the decoder.

If the main reason for wanting to downgrade is to get a large picture read this.

It depends.

If you want to use your Drifta with an ipod/iphone/ipad, or if DStv eventually release the software, other mobile devices such as Android, Blackberry or Nokia, then you will need the Original Drifta. The Original drifta is a standalone device that has its own battery power and connects through to your mobile device via a wi-fi connection. It will also connect to a computer via a USB connection.

If you only wish to use the Drifta with your PC/Laptop, then the new USB drifta is better. It doesn’t have a battery, cables, need to be paired with the computer. It is smaller, lighter and cheaper. If you are sure you aren’t going to want to use it as a mobile device then go with this one.

The advertising and documentation around this is a bit confusing.

The deal was that it was free until 31 March 2011. Then, if you were a Compact Subscriber and activated before 31 March 2011, you could have it free until 31 March 2011.

If you are a Premium subscriber you could have one free Drifta Subs until 31 March 2012.

The USB Drifta documentation still says that if you are a Compact subscriber and activate before 31 March 2011 you can have it free until 31 March 2012. I assume this an oversight and just poor editing of text for the website since we have already passed 31 March 2011, and the USB drifta was released to the public after this date. Poor show.

The DStv Mobile website has quite a decent coverage map which shows whether you are likely to have coverage. Check your coverage here.

If you are way outside a covered area you probably won’t have much luck. If close to or within an area you are likely to be ok. You can of course always use extended aerials and the like. See the FAQ question on boosting signal.

Yes, you do need a DSTV account to use a Drifta. You don’t have to have a R600/month account, but they need an account so they can bill you the R36/month fees (there is no prepaid option). DSTV can create an account quite easily so this shouldn’t be too much of a problem.

The following is the list of servers and IP Addresses that the DStvmobile sites currently use :

• mo-dev.dstvmobile.com 196.25.48.77
• mo-qa.dstvmobile.com 196.25.48.77
• mo-uat.dstvmobile.com 196.25.48.77
• ums.dstvmobile.com 196.25.48.79
• apps.dstvmobile.com 196.2.137.108

To block them, locate your hosts file and then  insert the following lines at the bottom:
127.0.0.1    mo-dev.dstvmobile.com
127.0.0.1    mo-qa.dstvmobile.com
127.0.0.1    mo-uat.dstvmobile.com
127.0.0.1    ums.dstvmobile.com
127.0.0.1    apps.dstvmobile.com

To locate your hosts file :
Windows 7/Vista/XP = C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\DRIVERS\ETC
Windows 2K = C:\WINNT\SYSTEM32\DRIVERS\ETC

This will block all of these sites from being accessed by your computer and therefore stop any spying and/or forced upgrades from happening. Just be aware that if you want to upgrade the software yourself, you will either need to temporarily remove the entry from the hosts file and download your update from : http://apps.dstvmobile.com/decoder/windows/latest.htm

To test you have it working, try and access the URL above after making the changes (and rebooting your computer).
What it does …
The Hosts file contains the mappings of IP addresses to host names. This file is loaded into memory (cache) at startup, then Windows checks the Hosts file before it queries any DNS servers, which enables it to override addresses in the DNS. This prevents access to the listed sites by redirecting any connection attempts back to the local (your) machine. Another feature of the HOSTS file is its ability to block other applications from connecting to the Internet, providing the entry exists.

You can use a HOSTS file to block ads, banners, 3rd party Cookies, 3rd party page counters, web bugs, and even most hijackers. This is accomplished by blocking the connection(s) that supplies these little gems.

Extract from : http://winhelp2002.mvps.org/hosts.htm

Neither the Drifta nor the USB Drifta make use of a smartcard. Both of the devices have a unique ID which is used for subscription purposes, but you don’t have any kind of card that needs to be inserted into the devices.

Yes, The Mac OS X version is compatible with the Drifta and the Drifta USB (Excerpt from DStv press release).

The Android version of the Drifta requires an internet connection. It checks back with the server that the software is being run on an authorised device.

If you have no signal then you won’t be able to load it, but once it’s loaded you don’t have to maintain an internet connection. If it crashes and you need to reload it, you need to disconnect from the Drifta (wifi) and reconnect to the internet so it can authenticate then start the process over again. It does not use the internet connection for any of the video feeds.

The PC version doesn’t require internet, but if you have a connection it will check back with the server (sending your personally identifiable decoder details) to the server to see if you have elected to take part in their programme monitoring. If you have made this election it will then send details back to the server on what you are watching. Again, no actual video feed is sent via the Internet.  It will also check with the server to see if a new version of the software is available and then “encourage” you to update.

The Wifi drifta has a battery which lasts around 2.5 hours. When used with a laptop or mobile device it is fairly mobile physically.

I have used it with a laptop in Cape Town driving from the Waterfront to Blouberg with no major problems, and with my Android phone driving in Durban from Westville (Dawncliffe) through to La Lucia Ridge with no problems or signal loss.

No, not for the Drifta or USB Drifta, however, the Walka is considered a TV so does require a TV license.

No, you don’t need a premium subscription for a normal Drifta service. You can take a standalone Drifta subscription for R36/month.

To get the MNET Mobile channel you do however have to have a premium subscription.

From 30 November 2011, subscribers can activate their DStv Mobile device ONLINE by visiting www.dstvmobile.com and following a few simple steps.

Previously, devices could only be activated telephonically through the MultiChoice call centre. With the introduction of online activations consumers now have a convenient, quick way to activate their device at any time.

To access the online activation service, a DStv Connect account is required; this can be created by visiting  http://www.dstv.com/Register.aspx. The activation service is available to all DStv Mobile subscribers and can be used to activate the Drifta, Drifta USB and the Walka TV.

(Extract from press release received from DStv mobile)

If you are a DStv premium subscriber you will get access to this channel. If you are just a Drifta (R36/month) subscriber you will not get access to it and there is no way to buy access to just this channel without paying the full premium subscription.

This comes up if your service is not activated, or if you are trying to access the Mnet Mobile channel and you don’t have a premium DStv subscription. Call the DStv / Multichoice call centre or visit their web page to activate your service.

Ok, this seems an odd question at first.

To eliminate the obvious, a Drifta won’t ever work on an e-ink Kindle, so presumably the question relates to the Kindle Fire which runs an Amazon fork of Android.

The immediate answer to the Kindle Fire question is No, it is not a device whitelisted by DStv and only whitelisted devices will work with their software.

However, IF you could sideload / install a hacked version of the software onto the Kindle Fire, theoretically it may work. Don’t know of anybody who has done this yet. If you try please let us all know how you get on with this.

Currently :

• iDevices (iPod touch, iPad, iPhone) (Download the “dstv mobile decoder” app from the Apple Appstore)
• Windows based computers (Get the software from www.dstvmobile.com)

Rumoured :

• Android devices (promised support by 1 April)
• Blackberry (promised support by 1 April – now appears delayed to 31 May – Now June sometime? Nope, maybe July)
• Nokia/Symbian (promised support by 1 April)
• Windows mobile / 7 (unclear)

There is no clear feedback or timelines on the above. We are just a few days away from the promised release date and DSTV seem to be hedging their bets and pushing out the dates. The DTSV FAQ lists the above as being “Early 2011″.

All deadlines have been missed, people are ignored on the DSTV forums when asked, misinformed by call centre staff when they ask, and told “We never said that” when reminding DSTV of the April date.

Don’t expect the software to appear on any new devices anytime soon. Seems DSTV bit off more than they could chew with this and aren’t prepared to make it right with their customers whom they misled.

Slight update from a 13th June posting on the mybroadband.co.za forum (link here) : (slightly edited)

• There is an Android client in the works (no timeline yet)
• There is a blackberry client in the works ( no time line yet)
• There is a Nokia S60 version in the works (sooner than the other 2, but will only be ready when the coding is done). This version will utilize the Drifta with wifi support but the CPU needs to be above 700mhz.

The Nokia E71 runs at 381Mhz, the N95 at 330Mhz, the E72 runs at 600Mhz, N97 runs at 434Mhz. So, if the statement above is true, then only Nokia S60 phones released in late 2010/2011 like the N8 and E7 (only 680Mhz) may well work with the Drifta. So don’t hold out much hope then. This also makes me worry about which Blackberry Devices will be compatible with the Drifta. I wish they would just come out and say what is planned. The waiting sucks when after the wait you still probably won’t be able to use the device.

It has been confirmed that a Mac OS X version is well under development. I have seen and played with this (briefly) and it looks really slick, taking the best elements of the Windows and iPad versions. It is almost ready for release. Hold thumbs and you will get it soon.

No good news for Linux. There is no indication a Linux version is under development or will be developed.

Inside areas marked as having signal this normally isn’t a problem. In low signal areas there are things you can do to improve your signal. See “How can I improve my signal?”

If you have moved location a lot, sometimes a channel scan will sort this out. The decoder keeps the details of the channels and tries to use those when connecting. I have noticed that when travelling between Durban and Capetown I always need to do a channel scan in the next city. Only takes 3 minutes then you are back online.

1. Get a Drifta and get it activated

2. Install Software & Update via internet on you notebook. Use USB connection.

3. Buy a cheap outdoor TV antenna. I bought an antenna at a Chinese Shop – it looks like a death-ray device. It even has a remote control and built in booster, It cost R160. Install it on your roof to point in the direction of your regular Sentech TV transmission tower.

4. Get a FM wire antenna (Co-ax) and plug it into this antennae socket. Strip the wire and connect it to the telescopic antenna of the Drifta.

5. Switch on the power switch of Drifta and the the (cheap Chinese) outdoor antenna.

6. Start the drifta software on your notebook – make sure that devices and everything is recognised properly. The drifta software should display TV after it found the signal. Use your antenna remote control to rotate until a signal is found if it’s not working.

Others on the thread indicated you can use most putdoor antennas, or even just place the Drifta antenna against a metal item (such as a fan cover). When connecting the antenna, use the copper braiding (mesh) and not the central core.

(Thanks to JohanB for the original posting and others for their comments – see his posting and other discussion here :
http://mybroadband.co.za/vb/showthread.php/298157-DSTV-Drifta-Getting-it-to-work-where-the-signal-is-weak )

People have been trying to get VLC and the like to work, in the hope of having more control and being able to make use of the Drifta on Linux and other platforms.  So far limited success, and of more interest from a technical rather than practical point of view. You can read some more here (mybroadband forum) but don’t expect to find anything useable. Yet.

No, if you plug in the Drifta to the USB of your PC it turns the wifi off. The wifi allows one device to connect and stream the channel.

+- 3 hours. When using it with a laptop it charges over the USB cable so this isn’t relevant.

iPhone battery life isnt a whole lot better when displaying video streaming over wifi so it is a fair match to the Drifta battery life.

See question on spare batteries if you need more.

Yes the battery is accessible and could be changed. However, DSTV won’t sell you a spare at this time so it doesn’t really help. You can probably buy a compatible one. See battery type.

It is a 1050mAh 3.7V Li-ion Battery, product code VP-BL-5C, made by Valups Corp.
A number of Nokia phones also use a BL-5C battery which also happens to be a 1050mAh 3.7V Li-ion Battery and from the photos online it looks identical.

Chances are this will work just fine. If buying one of these off ebay (or a local phone shop) just be careful of the mAh. A number of the online ones were advertised as “high capacity” but were only 700mAh.

I find that it doesn’t need to be fully extended to work, so generally leave it only partially extended which keeps it much more study and doesn’t expose the flimsy bit.

I also took the R5/month insurance option just incase I snap the thing off. Definitely worth it in my mind. Maybe a future version of the device will fix this problem.

Windows

The windows client software checks automatically to see whether a newer version of the client software exists (without your permission nogal). It reads a text file at the following url : http://apps.dstvmobile.com/decoder/windows/version.txt

Just the version number is present in the file. As of 2011/7/7 it shows 1.3.1.

1.0.3

• launch software

1.1.0

• updated version (no release notes – binary install dated 30 November 2010) (DStvWindowsInstall_1130.zip)
• get it here : http://www.dstvmobile.com/ or here apps.dstvmobile.com

1.2.11

• Still waiting to determine what has changed
• Will only work with firmware 2.1.266
• Full screen patch not available yet
• Binary may be packed/encrypted

1.3.1

• Released June 2011 (decoder.exe Binary dated 27/5/2011)
• Mention of MacOS X in the install, yet to confirm if an OS X version is actually included

iphone/ipad/ipod touch

1.01.00

• official version
• works on jailbroken devices
• available here

1.01.01

• improved application stability
• Interface enhancements
• Embedded firmware update
• Tests to see if jailbroken device and then doesn’t work
• Unofficial patched version which works with jailbroken devices here

1.01.02    27 May 2o11

Official release notes per iTunes

• Improved stability of application
• Enhanced user experience
• General bug fixes
• Unofficial patched version for jailbroken devices here : http://fileape.com/dl/SmBlzqIptb1EwAfF as linked from this page.

I suspect it also includes the new firmware update.

Get the latest official version from the appstore

Android 

1.1.19 September 5, 2011

Drifta firmware (Original)

Install location : C:\Program files\DStv Mobile Decoder\firmware\tvnb.bin

• Original launch version : Unknown (Does anyone have a copy or extract of the title from the file?)
• Tivit(DVB-H) 2.1.183 2010/11/30-14:53:58 (from firmware extract) , 2.1.183 (from status window)
• Tivit(DVB-H) 2.1.266 2011/04/20-17:03:51 (required for Windows software 1.2.11 to work)
• Tivit(DVB-H) 2.1.312 2011/06/23-19:41:55 (required for Android software 1.1.19 to work)

USB Drifta firmware

Install location : C:\Program files\DStv Mobile Decoder\firmware\tvnb_usb.bin

• Drifta2(DVB-H) 2.1.277 2011/05/03-14:09:23  (required for Windows software 1.2.11 to work)

Differences in Windows clients

1.2.11 vs 1.1.0

Existing files:

• Decoder.exe  2011/05/10 06:57      1 512KB
• infcopy.exe    2010/12/06 02:34          79KB
• tvnb.bin           2011/04/20 08:39    8 288KB

New files:

• IPSetup.exe      2011/03/18 06:21           58KB
• tvnb_usb.bin   2011/05/03 02:09    5 840KB

This new tvnb_usb.bin has an interesting identification string “Drifta2(DVB-H) 2.1.277 2011/05/03-14:09:23 ”  vs the older style tvnb.bin identification string “Tivit(DVB-H) 2.1.266 2011/04/20-17:03:51″. Is this a hint at a new Drifta decoder to come?

Thanks Dennis for providing some of the above information.

The USB Drifta is a new Drifta that looks rather like a USB 3G Modem or a Memory stick. It is a small dongle like device that plugs directly into your computer USB port and then works pretty much the same as the previous generation Drifta. No wires, no charging, less hassle. Only supports computers though, no mobile devices.

You can take a look at what it looks like and what is delivered here in the unboxing post.

It depends.

If you want to use your Drifta with an ipod/iphone/ipad, or if DStv eventually release the software, other mobile devices such as Android, Blackberry or Nokia, then you will need the Original Drifta. The Original drifta is a standalone device that has its own battery power and connects through to your mobile device via a wi-fi connection. It will also connect to a computer via a USB connection.

If you only wish to use the Drifta with your PC/Laptop, then the new USB drifta is better. It doesn’t have a battery, cables, need to be paired with the computer. It is smaller, lighter and cheaper. If you are sure you aren’t going to want to use it as a mobile device then go with this one.

You can :

• Download the user manual here
• Read the press release on DSTV.COM here. There is a cute picture here.
• Read the info on DStvMobile.com here.

The intial press release implied that you could just plug in and use the Drifta. This led to the hope that the software would be preloaded onto the USB device and could install from there. This is not the case. The USB Drifta retail pack includes an install CD. This software must be installed first and then the Drifta can be plugged in and used. (Confirmed through the USB Drifta Quick start user guide.)

The advertising and documentation around this is a bit confusing.

The deal was that it was free until 31 March 2011. Then, if you were a Compact Subscriber and activated before 31 March 2011, you could have it free until 31 March 2011.

If you are a Premium subscriber you could have one free Drifta Subs until 31 March 2012.

The USB Drifta documentation still says that if you are a Compact subscriber and activate before 31 March 2011 you can have it free until 31 March 2012. I assume this an oversight and just poor editing of text for the website since we have already passed 31 March 2011, and the USB drifta was released to the public after this date. Poor show.

Sadly it isn’t. It uses the same DVB-H technology and the broadcast is identical to the original drifta. No improvements here.

The DStv Mobile website has quite a decent coverage map which shows whether you are likely to have coverage. Check your coverage here.

If you are way outside a covered area you probably won’t have much luck. If close to or within an area you are likely to be ok. You can of course always use extended aerials and the like. See the FAQ question on boosting signal.

Yes, you do need a DSTV account to use a Drifta. You don’t have to have a R600/month account, but they need an account so they can bill you the R36/month fees (there is no prepaid option). DSTV can create an account quite easily so this shouldn’t be too much of a problem.

It’s rather like an oversized memory stick, but that doesn’t really do it justice. Take a look at the unboxing post here for more pictures of it.

See more pictures here in the DStv USB Drifta unboxed post.

Or in the review post here.

The following is the list of servers and IP Addresses that the DStvmobile sites currently use :

• mo-dev.dstvmobile.com 196.25.48.77
• mo-qa.dstvmobile.com 196.25.48.77
• mo-uat.dstvmobile.com 196.25.48.77
• ums.dstvmobile.com 196.25.48.79
• apps.dstvmobile.com 196.2.137.108

To block them, locate your hosts file and then  insert the following lines at the bottom:
127.0.0.1    mo-dev.dstvmobile.com
127.0.0.1    mo-qa.dstvmobile.com
127.0.0.1    mo-uat.dstvmobile.com
127.0.0.1    ums.dstvmobile.com
127.0.0.1    apps.dstvmobile.com

To locate your hosts file :
Windows 7/Vista/XP = C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\DRIVERS\ETC
Windows 2K = C:\WINNT\SYSTEM32\DRIVERS\ETC

This will block all of these sites from being accessed by your computer and therefore stop any spying and/or forced upgrades from happening. Just be aware that if you want to upgrade the software yourself, you will either need to temporarily remove the entry from the hosts file and download your update from : http://apps.dstvmobile.com/decoder/windows/latest.htm

To test you have it working, try and access the URL above after making the changes (and rebooting your computer).
What it does …
The Hosts file contains the mappings of IP addresses to host names. This file is loaded into memory (cache) at startup, then Windows checks the Hosts file before it queries any DNS servers, which enables it to override addresses in the DNS. This prevents access to the listed sites by redirecting any connection attempts back to the local (your) machine. Another feature of the HOSTS file is its ability to block other applications from connecting to the Internet, providing the entry exists.

You can use a HOSTS file to block ads, banners, 3rd party Cookies, 3rd party page counters, web bugs, and even most hijackers. This is accomplished by blocking the connection(s) that supplies these little gems.

Extract from : http://winhelp2002.mvps.org/hosts.htm

Neither the Drifta nor the USB Drifta make use of a smartcard. Both of the devices have a unique ID which is used for subscription purposes, but you don’t have any kind of card that needs to be inserted into the devices.

Yes, The Mac OS X version is compatible with the Drifta and the Drifta USB (Excerpt from DStv press release).

The Android version of the Drifta requires an internet connection. It checks back with the server that the software is being run on an authorised device.

If you have no signal then you won’t be able to load it, but once it’s loaded you don’t have to maintain an internet connection. If it crashes and you need to reload it, you need to disconnect from the Drifta (wifi) and reconnect to the internet so it can authenticate then start the process over again. It does not use the internet connection for any of the video feeds.

The PC version doesn’t require internet, but if you have a connection it will check back with the server (sending your personally identifiable decoder details) to the server to see if you have elected to take part in their programme monitoring. If you have made this election it will then send details back to the server on what you are watching. Again, no actual video feed is sent via the Internet.  It will also check with the server to see if a new version of the software is available and then “encourage” you to update.

The Wifi drifta has a battery which lasts around 2.5 hours. When used with a laptop or mobile device it is fairly mobile physically.

I have used it with a laptop in Cape Town driving from the Waterfront to Blouberg with no major problems, and with my Android phone driving in Durban from Westville (Dawncliffe) through to La Lucia Ridge with no problems or signal loss.

No, not for the Drifta or USB Drifta, however, the Walka is considered a TV so does require a TV license.

No, you don’t need a premium subscription for a normal Drifta service. You can take a standalone Drifta subscription for R36/month.

To get the MNET Mobile channel you do however have to have a premium subscription.

From 30 November 2011, subscribers can activate their DStv Mobile device ONLINE by visiting www.dstvmobile.com and following a few simple steps.

Previously, devices could only be activated telephonically through the MultiChoice call centre. With the introduction of online activations consumers now have a convenient, quick way to activate their device at any time.

To access the online activation service, a DStv Connect account is required; this can be created by visiting  http://www.dstv.com/Register.aspx. The activation service is available to all DStv Mobile subscribers and can be used to activate the Drifta, Drifta USB and the Walka TV.

(Extract from press release received from DStv mobile)

If you are a DStv premium subscriber you will get access to this channel. If you are just a Drifta (R36/month) subscriber you will not get access to it and there is no way to buy access to just this channel without paying the full premium subscription.

This comes up if your service is not activated, or if you are trying to access the Mnet Mobile channel and you don’t have a premium DStv subscription. Call the DStv / Multichoice call centre or visit their web page to activate your service.

Windows

The windows client software checks automatically to see whether a newer version of the client software exists (without your permission nogal). It reads a text file at the following url : http://apps.dstvmobile.com/decoder/windows/version.txt

Just the version number is present in the file. As of 2011/7/7 it shows 1.3.1.

1.0.3

• launch software

1.1.0

• updated version (no release notes – binary install dated 30 November 2010) (DStvWindowsInstall_1130.zip)
• get it here : http://www.dstvmobile.com/ or here apps.dstvmobile.com

1.2.11

• Still waiting to determine what has changed
• Will only work with firmware 2.1.266
• Full screen patch not available yet
• Binary may be packed/encrypted

1.3.1

• Released June 2011 (decoder.exe Binary dated 27/5/2011)
• Mention of MacOS X in the install, yet to confirm if an OS X version is actually included

iphone/ipad/ipod touch

1.01.00

• official version
• works on jailbroken devices
• available here

1.01.01

• improved application stability
• Interface enhancements
• Embedded firmware update
• Tests to see if jailbroken device and then doesn’t work
• Unofficial patched version which works with jailbroken devices here

1.01.02    27 May 2o11

Official release notes per iTunes

• Improved stability of application
• Enhanced user experience
• General bug fixes
• Unofficial patched version for jailbroken devices here : http://fileape.com/dl/SmBlzqIptb1EwAfF as linked from this page.

I suspect it also includes the new firmware update.

Get the latest official version from the appstore

Android 

1.1.19 September 5, 2011

Drifta firmware (Original)

Install location : C:\Program files\DStv Mobile Decoder\firmware\tvnb.bin

• Original launch version : Unknown (Does anyone have a copy or extract of the title from the file?)
• Tivit(DVB-H) 2.1.183 2010/11/30-14:53:58 (from firmware extract) , 2.1.183 (from status window)
• Tivit(DVB-H) 2.1.266 2011/04/20-17:03:51 (required for Windows software 1.2.11 to work)
• Tivit(DVB-H) 2.1.312 2011/06/23-19:41:55 (required for Android software 1.1.19 to work)

USB Drifta firmware

Install location : C:\Program files\DStv Mobile Decoder\firmware\tvnb_usb.bin

• Drifta2(DVB-H) 2.1.277 2011/05/03-14:09:23  (required for Windows software 1.2.11 to work)

Differences in Windows clients

1.2.11 vs 1.1.0

Existing files:

• Decoder.exe  2011/05/10 06:57      1 512KB
• infcopy.exe    2010/12/06 02:34          79KB
• tvnb.bin           2011/04/20 08:39    8 288KB

New files:

• IPSetup.exe      2011/03/18 06:21           58KB
• tvnb_usb.bin   2011/05/03 02:09    5 840KB

This new tvnb_usb.bin has an interesting identification string “Drifta2(DVB-H) 2.1.277 2011/05/03-14:09:23 ”  vs the older style tvnb.bin identification string “Tivit(DVB-H) 2.1.266 2011/04/20-17:03:51″. Is this a hint at a new Drifta decoder to come?

Thanks Dennis for providing some of the above information.

The Walka Handheld TV is a slim, lightweight portable TV for DStv mobile with a built in 3.5” viewing screen

The Walka is a portable TV with no other devices required to view. Unlike the Drifta devices which need an Android, Blackberry or idevice this is completely standalone. It won’t use up your phone battery life and you can still use your phone or tablet for doing other things. Unlike the Android Drifta this doesn’t need internet access either.

The device will be available at MultiChoice centres and select retail outlets from 1 December 2011 (just phone around first, don’t forget Makro has an online stock checker, makes life easy to find one when launched).

It has a recommended retail price of R649.

Yes, the Walka is considered to be a TV so does require that you own a TV license. The Drifta devices are considered decoders and do not require TV licenses.

The Walka is  a standalone device and cannot be plugged into a TV, PC, or mobile device.

No, you don’t need a premium subscription for a normal Drifta service. You can take a standalone Drifta subscription for R36/month.

To get the MNET Mobile channel you do however have to have a premium subscription.

From 30 November 2011, subscribers can activate their DStv Mobile device ONLINE by visiting www.dstvmobile.com and following a few simple steps.

Previously, devices could only be activated telephonically through the MultiChoice call centre. With the introduction of online activations consumers now have a convenient, quick way to activate their device at any time.

To access the online activation service, a DStv Connect account is required; this can be created by visiting  http://www.dstv.com/Register.aspx. The activation service is available to all DStv Mobile subscribers and can be used to activate the Drifta, Drifta USB and the Walka TV.

(Extract from press release received from DStv mobile)

If you are a DStv premium subscriber you will get access to this channel. If you are just a Drifta (R36/month) subscriber you will not get access to it and there is no way to buy access to just this channel without paying the full premium subscription.

This comes up if your service is not activated, or if you are trying to access the Mnet Mobile channel and you don’t have a premium DStv subscription. Call the DStv / Multichoice call centre or visit their web page to activate your service.

As soon as you plug your Drifta into a PC (which has the Drifta device driver loaded) the Wifi on the Drifta is disabled to prevent you using the Drifta on the PC and a wireless device at the same time.

I couldn’t find a way in the client software to enable the Wifi (and disable the client), but there is a way. Not convenient but it does work for me.

Here goes :

• Plug in the Drifta
• The Wifi light goes out
• Right click on “My Computer”
• Choose “Manage”
• Click on Device Manager
• Expand the “Network Adaptors” grouping
• Right click on “DStv mobile decoder”
• Select “Disable”
• Now unplug the Drifta
• The Wifi light goes on
• Plug the Drifta back in
• It should now charge and stay WiFi enabled.

However, if you now load the Windows software it won’t detect the device.

To enable again :

• Repeat the above procedure
• In the final step choose “Enable”
• Unplug and plug back in
• Wifi now goes off
• You can now use the Windows software.

If you are experiencing an issue where you have no sound on the iPad, but have full signal and nothing else seems to be wrong.

The only thing that seems to work is a full reset of the iPad and then re-synching it to the Drifta. Not ideal but at least it works.

Drag and drop the ipa into itunes under Apps. And then sync your apps with your ipad apps and it should allow you to drag and drop as you please.

If it doent work, you might need to go into Cydia, go to sources and find appsync for your iOS version and install it.
there’s a youtube vid on how to install IPA files. its not hard. I haven’t tried these methods, but they provide details on installing .ipa’s. From what I can see all of these require jailbroken devices and the use of Cydia. I am assuming if you have jailbroken your device you already have Cydia installed so this shouldn’t be a problem. If your device isn’t jailbroken then you wouldn’t be needing to install an unoffical .ipa.

Installing ipa on an iPhone (link here)

Installing ipa on an iPad (link here)

The process the call centre took me through to get the sound back on my iPad was to toggle the Mute/Lock rotation switch under General, then power cycle the iPad. That did the trick for me.

(Thanks Franz)

No, if you plug in the Drifta to the USB of your PC it turns the wifi off. The wifi allows one device to connect and stream the channel.

No, the dstvmobile software disables the tv out option. In the forums they claim this is due to licensing.

Somewhere I read that on a jailbroken device you can. The latest official iPhone software doesn’t work on jailbroken devices, the older version does, and patched versions do. See jailbreak question for more detail.

The software does a check and won’t work on jailbroken devices. There are older versions of the software which don’t have this check and they can be found if you google for them (or check here ).

There are also unofficial patched versions (try here ) and the newer v1.01.02 available here as linked from here.

DSTV claim this is due to licensing (again), and it is also likely they dont want jailbroken devices using it as they can then also bypass the output to TV restriction.

+- 3 hours. When using it with a laptop it charges over the USB cable so this isn’t relevant.

iPhone battery life isnt a whole lot better when displaying video streaming over wifi so it is a fair match to the Drifta battery life.

See question on spare batteries if you need more.

Your iPhone connects to the Drifta over wifi and can only have one connection at a time.  Sorry.

The wifi signal is prone to interference. In my review period I found I lost signal when the microwave was switched on. The closer the Drifta device is to the iPhone the less likely this is to happen.

Windows

The windows client software checks automatically to see whether a newer version of the client software exists (without your permission nogal). It reads a text file at the following url : http://apps.dstvmobile.com/decoder/windows/version.txt

Just the version number is present in the file. As of 2011/7/7 it shows 1.3.1.

1.0.3

• launch software

1.1.0

• updated version (no release notes – binary install dated 30 November 2010) (DStvWindowsInstall_1130.zip)
• get it here : http://www.dstvmobile.com/ or here apps.dstvmobile.com

1.2.11

• Still waiting to determine what has changed
• Will only work with firmware 2.1.266
• Full screen patch not available yet
• Binary may be packed/encrypted

1.3.1

• Released June 2011 (decoder.exe Binary dated 27/5/2011)
• Mention of MacOS X in the install, yet to confirm if an OS X version is actually included

iphone/ipad/ipod touch

1.01.00

• official version
• works on jailbroken devices
• available here

1.01.01

• improved application stability
• Interface enhancements
• Embedded firmware update
• Tests to see if jailbroken device and then doesn’t work
• Unofficial patched version which works with jailbroken devices here

1.01.02    27 May 2o11

Official release notes per iTunes

• Improved stability of application
• Enhanced user experience
• General bug fixes
• Unofficial patched version for jailbroken devices here : http://fileape.com/dl/SmBlzqIptb1EwAfF as linked from this page.

I suspect it also includes the new firmware update.

Get the latest official version from the appstore

Android 

1.1.19 September 5, 2011

Drifta firmware (Original)

Install location : C:\Program files\DStv Mobile Decoder\firmware\tvnb.bin

• Original launch version : Unknown (Does anyone have a copy or extract of the title from the file?)
• Tivit(DVB-H) 2.1.183 2010/11/30-14:53:58 (from firmware extract) , 2.1.183 (from status window)
• Tivit(DVB-H) 2.1.266 2011/04/20-17:03:51 (required for Windows software 1.2.11 to work)
• Tivit(DVB-H) 2.1.312 2011/06/23-19:41:55 (required for Android software 1.1.19 to work)

USB Drifta firmware

Install location : C:\Program files\DStv Mobile Decoder\firmware\tvnb_usb.bin

• Drifta2(DVB-H) 2.1.277 2011/05/03-14:09:23  (required for Windows software 1.2.11 to work)

Differences in Windows clients

1.2.11 vs 1.1.0

Existing files:

• Decoder.exe  2011/05/10 06:57      1 512KB
• infcopy.exe    2010/12/06 02:34          79KB
• tvnb.bin           2011/04/20 08:39    8 288KB

New files:

• IPSetup.exe      2011/03/18 06:21           58KB
• tvnb_usb.bin   2011/05/03 02:09    5 840KB

This new tvnb_usb.bin has an interesting identification string “Drifta2(DVB-H) 2.1.277 2011/05/03-14:09:23 ”  vs the older style tvnb.bin identification string “Tivit(DVB-H) 2.1.266 2011/04/20-17:03:51″. Is this a hint at a new Drifta decoder to come?

Thanks Dennis for providing some of the above information.

Android : As of the morning of 6/9/2011 the Android software is available on the Google Android market place.

Mac OS X : As of the 21/11/2011 the Mac OS X version is available in the Mac App Store :

• Launch the app store from you Mac.
• Search for DStv Mobile decoder in the search field
• Click on the free/install button once the app is found.
• The application will now be installed on your computer

Keep watching  j-j.co.za and dstvmobile.com for updates on further support devices.

Accurate as of 04/03/2012  

Currently the application works on the following devices, running Android 2.1, 2.2 or 2.3:

• Sony Ericsson Play (R800i)
• LG Optimus Black (LG P970)
• Motorola Defy (MB 525)
• HTC ChaCha
• HTC Desire
• HTC Desire S
• HTC Desire HD
• HTC Wildfire S
• Samsung Galaxy S (GT-I9000)
• Samsung Galaxy Tab (7″ All models including GT-P1000, GT-P1010)
• Samsung Galaxy S II (GT-I9100)
• Samsung Galaxy Note

That’s it for now.

What we do know :

• Phones and Tablets will be supported
• Specific white listed devices only, the ones listed above, more supported over time
• No Honeycomb or Ice-cream Sandwich for now
• Not all Android devices meet the minimum specifications required
• Rooted devices will NOT be “officially” supported just as jailbroken iDevices are not
• If you have a supported device but is is rooted, use OTA Rootkeeper in order to be able to use the official client on your rooted device without problem.

No, as with iPhones, rooted devices are not supported.

There is a hacked version. Take a look at the question on getting it to work on unsupported devices : j-j.co.za/gofaq

If you can’t get the hacked version  there may be another way, I have unconfirmed information that using something like I  OTA Rootkeeper from Supercurio (link here) will temporarily unroot the phone and get you past the root check. I have not had confirmation that this actually works. Please let me know if you get it working.

The Android version of the Drifta requires an internet connection. It checks back with the server that the software is being run on an authorised device.

If you have no signal then you won’t be able to load it, but once it’s loaded you don’t have to maintain an internet connection. If it crashes and you need to reload it, you need to disconnect from the Drifta (wifi) and reconnect to the internet so it can authenticate then start the process over again. It does not use the internet connection for any of the video feeds.

The PC version doesn’t require internet, but if you have a connection it will check back with the server (sending your personally identifiable decoder details) to the server to see if you have elected to take part in their programme monitoring. If you have made this election it will then send details back to the server on what you are watching. Again, no actual video feed is sent via the Internet.  It will also check with the server to see if a new version of the software is available and then “encourage” you to update.

Officially get it from the Android Market Place : here

Someone has already uploaded the APK here : here. No reason to take this version, use the official one.

Samsung and HTC devices supported officially as of 9/9/11

The official app now supports a handful of Samsung and HTC devices. Try search from your phone or market place and see if your device comes up as compatible before trying the methods below. https://market.android.com/details?id=com.valups.tivit.app.finaldstv&feature=search_result

Update : A version which works on rooted devices and fakes the server check

On threat from Multichoice the links to the versions which work on more devices than the official version have been removed (temporarily). I have some questions around the validity of the takedown notice which I have mailed to Jannie Delport, Technology Risk Manager, Broadcast Technology Division, Multichoice. The response from Jannie will determine whether the links are reinstated or removed permanently.

for fear of dstv actually prosecuting me, i’ll use a different account. (PeterJoe on MyBroadband.co.za)

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=xxxx (mega upload link removed on threat from Multichoice)

http://www.filesonic.com/file/xxxx (filesonic link removed on threat from Multichoice)

This version skips the root check and fakes the authentication token it sends to the dstv servers; so no build.prop modification required. works on my htc device. please let me know if your device works.

Some comments on the Compatibility

The current version (1.1.19) is a 27.97Mb download, and installed takes around 19.33Mb

App2SD (version 2.32 - 1409) cannot move any of it to SD.

Install Estrong (ES File explorer , then use Estrong’s backup feature to backup the app (a button that looks like a set of gears). The app will be copied to your storage card’s download folder. Then just copy the apk file to your computer. (Source : Androidforums.com link)

This will allow you to install the application onto other devices without having to use up valuable on-device bandwidth. Works well.

Copy the .APK file onto your device’s memory card, then use a file explorer such as ES File Explorer (link here) to run it, it will then install. You may need to change a setting on your device to allow it to install applications that have not been directly downloaded from the Android App store.

I am sorry I can’t do that. Although the application is free and you can download it directly from the Android App store DStv mobile seem to think that one person making it available to another infringes their copyright. If you need to get it onto a device that isn’t directly supported by the app store then you will need to download it onto one device you own, create yourself a backup (or .APK file) and then move it to your other device. Just be aware, if you are putting it on an unsupported device that it will then probably fail the authentication check unless you are spoofing your device ID.

See other questions in the FAQ on creating a .APK file and installing it.

There is a lot of uncertainty around this. Conversations with numerous people have elicited different responses. Here is what I do know :

The Android client

• does a DNS lookup for wl.dstvmobile.com
• This returns the IP address 196.25.48.79 (via ns2.mweb.co.za)
• An HTTPS connection is then established
• Certificate sent through from server (issued to : *.dstvmobile.com by Entrust Certification Authority – L1C valid from 2010/2/15 to 2013/2/10)
• Handshaking and cipher exchange
• two data block sent of 342 bytes and then 1318 bytes

Here is a copy of the build.prop from my HTC Desire. 

http://j-j.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/build.propHTC_Desire.txt

Hope it helps. 

If you have one of the other supported devices feel free to send me your build.prop files, will be happy to share, maybe it helps out some others.

Windows

The windows client software checks automatically to see whether a newer version of the client software exists (without your permission nogal). It reads a text file at the following url : http://apps.dstvmobile.com/decoder/windows/version.txt

Just the version number is present in the file. As of 2011/7/7 it shows 1.3.1.

1.0.3

• launch software

1.1.0

• updated version (no release notes – binary install dated 30 November 2010) (DStvWindowsInstall_1130.zip)
• get it here : http://www.dstvmobile.com/ or here apps.dstvmobile.com

1.2.11

• Still waiting to determine what has changed
• Will only work with firmware 2.1.266
• Full screen patch not available yet
• Binary may be packed/encrypted

1.3.1

• Released June 2011 (decoder.exe Binary dated 27/5/2011)
• Mention of MacOS X in the install, yet to confirm if an OS X version is actually included

iphone/ipad/ipod touch

1.01.00

• official version
• works on jailbroken devices
• available here

1.01.01

• improved application stability
• Interface enhancements
• Embedded firmware update
• Tests to see if jailbroken device and then doesn’t work
• Unofficial patched version which works with jailbroken devices here

1.01.02    27 May 2o11

Official release notes per iTunes

• Improved stability of application
• Enhanced user experience
• General bug fixes
• Unofficial patched version for jailbroken devices here : http://fileape.com/dl/SmBlzqIptb1EwAfF as linked from this page.

I suspect it also includes the new firmware update.

Get the latest official version from the appstore

Android 

1.1.19 September 5, 2011

Drifta firmware (Original)

Install location : C:\Program files\DStv Mobile Decoder\firmware\tvnb.bin

• Original launch version : Unknown (Does anyone have a copy or extract of the title from the file?)
• Tivit(DVB-H) 2.1.183 2010/11/30-14:53:58 (from firmware extract) , 2.1.183 (from status window)
• Tivit(DVB-H) 2.1.266 2011/04/20-17:03:51 (required for Windows software 1.2.11 to work)
• Tivit(DVB-H) 2.1.312 2011/06/23-19:41:55 (required for Android software 1.1.19 to work)

USB Drifta firmware

Install location : C:\Program files\DStv Mobile Decoder\firmware\tvnb_usb.bin

• Drifta2(DVB-H) 2.1.277 2011/05/03-14:09:23  (required for Windows software 1.2.11 to work)

Differences in Windows clients

1.2.11 vs 1.1.0

Existing files:

• Decoder.exe  2011/05/10 06:57      1 512KB
• infcopy.exe    2010/12/06 02:34          79KB
• tvnb.bin           2011/04/20 08:39    8 288KB

New files:

• IPSetup.exe      2011/03/18 06:21           58KB
• tvnb_usb.bin   2011/05/03 02:09    5 840KB

This new tvnb_usb.bin has an interesting identification string “Drifta2(DVB-H) 2.1.277 2011/05/03-14:09:23 ”  vs the older style tvnb.bin identification string “Tivit(DVB-H) 2.1.266 2011/04/20-17:03:51″. Is this a hint at a new Drifta decoder to come?

Thanks Dennis for providing some of the above information.

Updated 26/11/2011

The application is compatible with the following BlackBerry devices:

• Bold 9000
• Bold 9700
• Curve 8520
• Curve 8900
• Curve 9300

The application is available at http://appworld.blackberry.com/webstore/content/64226?lang=en

Because the BlackBerry application is a public beta, no minimum performance can be guaranteed.

No support is available for OS7 devices or the latest devices, so no luck for the owners of the Torch or the new Bold 9900. If you follow the appworld link from one of these devices (eg 9900) app world just gives an error message saying the software is unavailable for the device.

DStv say they are working on getting support for these devices. Let’s hope this doesn’t take as long to get sorted as the Beta did.

Sorry, it works only on a limited number of Blackberry Devices and none of these are included.

Sadly none of the new devices are supported. If your contract is up for renewal and you are getting a shiny new Blackberry you will be out of luck.

The following are all OS 7 devices :

• BlackBerry Bold 9790/9900/9930,
• BlackBerry Curve 9350/9360/9370/9380, and
• BlackBerry Torch 9810/9850/9860.

No the Drifta application doesn’t work on the Blackberry Playbook.

If you are feeling adventurous you could try this :

http://crackberry.com/how-install-android-market-and-other-applications-your-blackberry-playbook

And then try get hold of the “patched” version of the application. There is a slight chance this may work. Sadly I don’t have a Playbook to try this out on. If anyone gets this working please let us know.

Version 1.1.3.0

End User Software License Agreement

1. SUBJECT MATTER
1.1 This Software License Agreement (“Agreement”) is between MultiChoice Africa (Pty) Ltd. (“MultiChoice”) and You (either an Individual or an Entity), the End User.
The Agreement authorises You to download, install and use the Software specified in clause 2, under the terms and conditions set out below. This is an agreement for end user rights and not an agreement for sale. MultiChoice continues to own the copy of the Software, any other copy that You are authorised to make pursuant to this Agreement, and all the relevant documentation or materials provided.
1.2 MultiChoice grants You a licence to use the Software specified in clause 2 (the “Licence”) only if You agree to all of the terms and conditions of this Agreement.  Read this Agreement carefully before downloading, installing or using the Software. By clicking on the “I Agree” button while downloading, installing and/or using the Software, You agree to the terms and conditions of this Agreement. If You do not agree to all or some of the terms and conditions of this Agreement, promptly click on the “Cancel” button, cancel the downloading or installation, or destroy or return the Software, all the copies and accompanying documentation and/or materials in Your possession to MultiChoice. YOU AGREE THAT YOUR USE OF THE SOFTWARE ACKNOWLEDGES THAT YOU HAVE READ THIS AGREEMENT, UNDERSTAND IT AND AGREE TO BE BOUND BY ITS TERMS AND CONDITIONS.
2. SOFTWARE
2.1 The Software may be provided in the form of an installation disk or CD, sent to You by electronic mail, downloaded from Servers or from other sources.
2.2 As used in this Agreement, the term “Software” means the software product named “DStv Mobile Decoder”.  The term “Software” shall include:
2.2.1 all the contents of the disk/s, CD-ROM/s, electronic mail and its file attachments, or other media with which the Software is provided; 2.2.2 digital images, stock photographs, clip art, or other artistic work; 2.2.3 related explanatory materials, instructions manual and any other documentation and/or materials related thereto (the “Documentation”); 2.2.4 upgrades, modified versions, adjustments, updates, additions (the “Updates”).

3. END USER RIGHTS AND LIMITATIONS
3.1 MultiChoice grants to You, the End User, a non-exclusive, non-transferable and non-sublicensable end user right to download, install and use the Software according to the terms and conditions of this Agreement and subject to the restrictions and the permissions described in this Agreement.
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3.3 You may make one copy of the Software as an archival back-up copy, provided Your archival backup copy is not installed or used on any computer. Any other copies You make of the Software are in violation of this Agreement.  You may install the Software on a single hard disk provided that the original Software is stored only for back-up purposes.
3.4 You may not, partially or in whole, copy, adapt, transform, modify in any way, translate, reproduce, distribute the Software or parts of it, make derivative works or incorporate it or part of it in other software, except as expressly provided in this Agreement. You may only use the Software in accordance with the provisions of this Agreement.
3.5 You may not sell, transfer, assign, sublicense, rent, lease or lend the Software or otherwise dispose of it, with or without consideration. You may not assign or transfer the present Agreement, nor the rights and obligations arising out of it, or otherwise dispose of it.
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3. 7 You may not reproduce the Documentation related to the Software, which is solely owned by MultiChoice and/or its licensors.
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4. COPYRIGHT AND OTHER INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS
4.1 The Software and all rights, including, without limitation, copyright and intellectual property rights therein, are owned by MultiChoice and/or its licensors and are protected by international treaty provisions and all other applicable national and international laws of the jurisdiction in which it is being used.
4.2 The structure, organization and code of the Software, techniques, algorithms, processes contained in the Software are the valuable trade secrets and confidential information of MultiChoice and/or its licensors.
4.3 Any copies which You are permitted to make pursuant to this Agreement must contain the same copyright and other proprietary notices that appear on the Software.
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5.1 If the Software supports multiple platforms or languages, if You receive the Software on multiple media, or if You otherwise receive multiple copies of the Software, the number of computers on which all versions of the Software may be installed shall be one computer. You may not sell, rent, lease, sublicense, lend, assign or transfer, any title, versions or copies of the Software You do not use.

5.2 MultiChoice may update or modify the Software, in which case all the terms and conditions of this Agreement shall apply. If the Software is an update to a previous version of the Software, You must possess a valid end user right to such previous version in order to use the update and You may use the previous version for ninety (90) days after you receive the update in order to assist You in the transition to the update. After such time You no longer have a right to use the previous version, except for the sole purpose of enabling You to install the Update.

6. COMMENCEMENT AND TERMINATION
6.1 This Agreement is effective from the first date You install the Software. You may terminate this Agreement at any time by permanently deleting, destroying or returning, at your own cost, the Software, all the copies and all related Documentation and/or materials provided by MultiChoice, by giving written notice to MultiChoice to the address set out in clause 12.
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13.   APPLICABLE LAW AND GENERAL PROVISIONS
13.1 This Agreement is governed by the laws of the Republic of South Africa.
13.2 All disputes arising out of, or in connection with, this Agreement shall be referred to the Magistrate Court regardless of the amounts involved.
14. MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
14.1 If any part of this Agreement is found void or unenforceable, this will not affect the validity of the rest of the Agreement.
14.2 You will keep all information given by MultiChoice in relation to the Software strictly confidential and will use all necessary attentions not to divulge them to non authorised third parties.
14. 3 MultiChoice confirms that all end user personal data shall be processed only for purposes connected to the management of this Agreement.

Tried to install the Windows Drifta software on a new Windows 7 Professional 64 bit machine, the software installed fine but when the Drifta was plugged in it said device driver could not be found. Tried to do a “repair install but this did not help.

Solution :

• Downloaded and install 7-zip (Winzip or any other zipping / unzipping tools will work)
• Extracted the archived files  from the “Dstv Mobile Decoder” windows installer file to folder Dstv Mobile Decoder
• Opened the newly created folder Dstv Mobile Decoder
• Ran infcopy.exe
• Allowed the install of unsigned drivers when prompted
• Unplug (if its plugged in) and replug in the Drifta
• The device driver should now load

Problem solved.

As soon as you plug your Drifta into a PC (which has the Drifta device driver loaded) the Wifi on the Drifta is disabled to prevent you using the Drifta on the PC and a wireless device at the same time.

I couldn’t find a way in the client software to enable the Wifi (and disable the client), but there is a way. Not convenient but it does work for me.

Here goes :

• Plug in the Drifta
• The Wifi light goes out
• Right click on “My Computer”
• Choose “Manage”
• Click on Device Manager
• Expand the “Network Adaptors” grouping
• Right click on “DStv mobile decoder”
• Select “Disable”
• Now unplug the Drifta
• The Wifi light goes on
• Plug the Drifta back in
• It should now charge and stay WiFi enabled.

However, if you now load the Windows software it won’t detect the device.

To enable again :

• Repeat the above procedure
• In the final step choose “Enable”
• Unplug and plug back in
• Wifi now goes off
• You can now use the Windows software.

Sometimes after doing an upgrade you need to reset the drifta, unplug it (from the USB) and then plug it in again, especially if you have done a firmware upgrade.  You also need to make sure you use the right client software with the matching firmware (on the Drifta) otherwise you can also have problems. The client software should prompt you to update when needed.

I am no expert on the subject, however, the new version of the client software (since 1.2) has been obfuscated (or encrypted) and it also checks to see if any system debuggers are running (such as Softice). If it detects any the application then aborts with an error. I am sure an expert in this field will be work around these challenges, it does however remove less experience hackers from the equation. If you know someone with the necessary skills, ask nicely and then please share the results

It seems Skype also employs similar anti-debugger methods, and a method exists here : http://gcasiez.pagesperso-orange.fr/ using a in-process loader which loads the process, suspends it, patches it, then sets it running again. A similar method may well work for the Drifta client. Someone with a dev environment want to give it a go ? mail me.

I would have thought not, however, the following is found in the latest version of the Drifta Client software (1.3.1) for Windows :

0x00114EA8	0x0000006E	https://mo-dev.dstvmobile.com/DStvMobile.UsageMonitoring.Collector.Web.IISHost_Drifta/Drifta.aspx/MetaData?id=
0x00114F18	0x00000071	https://mo-dev.dstvmobile.com/DStvMobile.UsageMonitoring.Collector.Web.IISHost_Drifta/Drifta.aspx/UsageMonitoring
0x00114F90	0x00000064	https://mo-dev.dstvmobile.com/DStvMobile.UsageMonitoring.Drifta.Activator.Web/Manage.aspx/Status?id=
0x00114FF8	0x0000006D	https://mo-qa.dstvmobile.com/DStvMobile.UsageMonitoring.Collector.Web.IISHost_Drifta/Drifta.aspx/MetaData?id=
0x00115068	0x00000070	https://mo-qa.dstvmobile.com/DStvMobile.UsageMonitoring.Collector.Web.IISHost_Drifta/Drifta.aspx/UsageMonitoring
0x001150E0	0x00000063	https://mo-qa.dstvmobile.com/DStvMobile.UsageMonitoring.Drifta.Activator.Web/Manage.aspx/Status?id=
0x00115148	0x0000006E	https://mo-uat.dstvmobile.com/DStvMobile.UsageMonitoring.Collector.Web.IISHost_Drifta/Drifta.aspx/MetaData?id=
0x001151B8	0x00000071	https://mo-uat.dstvmobile.com/DStvMobile.UsageMonitoring.Collector.Web.IISHost_Drifta/Drifta.aspx/UsageMonitoring
0x00115230	0x00000064	https://mo-uat.dstvmobile.com/DStvMobile.UsageMonitoring.Drifta.Activator.Web/Manage.aspx/Status?id=
0x00115298	0x0000006B	https://ums.dstvmobile.com/DStvMobile.UsageMonitoring.Collector.Web.IISHost_Drifta/Drifta.aspx/MetaData?id=
0x00115308	0x0000006E	https://ums.dstvmobile.com/DStvMobile.UsageMonitoring.Collector.Web.IISHost_Drifta/Drifta.aspx/UsageMonitoring
0x00115378	0x00000061	https://ums.dstvmobile.com/DStvMobile.UsageMonitoring.Drifta.Activator.Web/Manage.aspx/Status?id=

This surely seems to indicate that DSTV is indeed monitoring Drifta useage. I haven’t seen anything anywhere which specifically allows this, perhaps its time to review the terms and conditions again. See them here.  I see nothing in there which gives DSTV the right to monitor what I am doing with the software.

I also found that the Windows application created two files in user/AppData/Roaming/DStv/DStv Mobile Decoder/Logs.

• last_time.log
• 2011-07-06, 21:42:19    (The date and time of last useage)
• tmp.gz
• Snagit32/CamRecorder/HyCam2/SSRecorder/VODRecorder/HiNetRecorder/wmrecorder/Easy_WebCam_Recording/VideoCap/debut/Screen Recorder 5/My Screen Recorder/bdcam/H264WebCam/smrecorder/Taksi/WebCam Monitor/SplitCam/WVC/MobiGarda/openvcap/Cam Wizard/procguard/SaypeCap/fraps/Jing/FreeScreenVideo

The tmp.gz seems to contain a list of applications which can record the video stream, and which (maybe) they intend to (or already) check for and block.

Running a network traffic sniffer while decoder.exe starts up shows that a DNS lookup is done for ums.dstvmobile.com and that an HTTPS encrypted session is then established through to the server confirming that there is some level of monitoring going on and that the URLS found in the executable are more than just coincidence.

I mailed Maiyo to ask what this was all about, and after consulting with technical came back to tell me that they have a trial running where they monitor the useage of certain users. The traffic we are seeing above (according to DSTV) arises as the client checks in with the server to see if it is one of the smart cards involved in the trial. While this provides a small amount of comfort, it also confirms that my identifiable details are sent through to DSTV every time I use my Drifta while being connected to the internet. That is cold comfort.

The preferences are stored in a preferences.xml file, in c:/users/username/AppData/Roaming/DStv/DStv Mobile Decoder/Settings,  as follows :

<tvnb_preferences>
  <UIFont>Arial</UIFont>
  <PanelSideStatus>0</PanelSideStatus>        Channel indicator panel active (or not)
  <STH4003571>0</STH4003571>                  Unknown
  <TUNER_CHINDEX>6</TUNER_CHINDEX>            Active Channel
  <FramePositionX>-5</FramePositionX>         Position (X) of the window
  <FramePositionY>-5</FramePositionY>         Position (Y) of the window
  <ContentWidth>344</ContentWidth>            Width of the window
  <ContentHeight>359</ContentHeight>          Height of the window
</tvnb_preferences>

Check out your preferences file and let me know if you come across anything different.

When you upgrade the Windows client past 1.2 a newer version of the firmware (2.1.266)  is required. This is installed onto your Drifta during the install of 1.2 / 1.3.  This newer firmware doesn’t work with the older 1.1 clients (which were able to be patched to allow larger screensize). At this point there is no way to downgrade the firmware back to the older (2.1.183) .  If I find a way I will post it here. If  you know of a way to force a downgrade let me know. I have tried the Tivit firmware upgrader, which is a separate app from the DSTV decoder.exe but sadly it doesn’t pick up the decoder.

If the main reason for wanting to downgrade is to get a large picture read this.

The following is the list of servers and IP Addresses that the DStvmobile sites currently use :

• mo-dev.dstvmobile.com 196.25.48.77
• mo-qa.dstvmobile.com 196.25.48.77
• mo-uat.dstvmobile.com 196.25.48.77
• ums.dstvmobile.com 196.25.48.79
• apps.dstvmobile.com 196.2.137.108

To block them, locate your hosts file and then  insert the following lines at the bottom:
127.0.0.1    mo-dev.dstvmobile.com
127.0.0.1    mo-qa.dstvmobile.com
127.0.0.1    mo-uat.dstvmobile.com
127.0.0.1    ums.dstvmobile.com
127.0.0.1    apps.dstvmobile.com

To locate your hosts file :
Windows 7/Vista/XP = C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\DRIVERS\ETC
Windows 2K = C:\WINNT\SYSTEM32\DRIVERS\ETC

This will block all of these sites from being accessed by your computer and therefore stop any spying and/or forced upgrades from happening. Just be aware that if you want to upgrade the software yourself, you will either need to temporarily remove the entry from the hosts file and download your update from : http://apps.dstvmobile.com/decoder/windows/latest.htm

To test you have it working, try and access the URL above after making the changes (and rebooting your computer).
What it does …
The Hosts file contains the mappings of IP addresses to host names. This file is loaded into memory (cache) at startup, then Windows checks the Hosts file before it queries any DNS servers, which enables it to override addresses in the DNS. This prevents access to the listed sites by redirecting any connection attempts back to the local (your) machine. Another feature of the HOSTS file is its ability to block other applications from connecting to the Internet, providing the entry exists.

You can use a HOSTS file to block ads, banners, 3rd party Cookies, 3rd party page counters, web bugs, and even most hijackers. This is accomplished by blocking the connection(s) that supplies these little gems.

Extract from : http://winhelp2002.mvps.org/hosts.htm

A number of people are having problems using the magnifier software.

I am using a combination of QZOOM and ZoomIt.

What I have found out :

Windows 7

With Windows 7, just press Windows key and + to zoom in and Windows key and – to zoom out. No special software needed. Took me a while to figure this out after messing around with all this other software. Duh.

ZoomIt

ZoomIt needs at least Windows Vista for the live view to work. There are also some aero/windows advanced settings that need to be active (which are by default). Take a look here if you are having problems.

” He tried minimize the resources used by the sytem by going into “advanced system settings”, selecting the “Advanced” tab, select “Visual effects”, and selecting “Adjust for best performance”. I did the same thing on my Vista Business 64 computer, but this disables Aero and many of Vista appearance functions and makes it look more like XP. One of these Vista functions was disabled which I guess is needed for LiveZoom. Once I changed the setting to “Let Windows choose what is best for my computer”, LiveZoom started working! ” SysInternals Forum : Source.

QZOOM

QZOOM seems to work just fine on my laptop (single display). 32 Bit Windows 7. QZOOM doesn’t work on my desktop (two displays), 64 Bit Windows 7. ZoomIt live view works just fine on this setup. On the desktop, as soon as I press the shortcut the screen which has the pointer goes black, the other screen stays visible. Move the mouse across and the other screen goes black and the original comes back live.

QZoom seems to work better using keyboard shortcuts to do the zooming. I also set mine to a minimum and maximum of 4X zoom. Just press the shortcut key to do the zoom and centre the picture.

(will add more here over the weekend. Please share and info and insights you may have)

The Android version of the Drifta requires an internet connection. It checks back with the server that the software is being run on an authorised device.

If you have no signal then you won’t be able to load it, but once it’s loaded you don’t have to maintain an internet connection. If it crashes and you need to reload it, you need to disconnect from the Drifta (wifi) and reconnect to the internet so it can authenticate then start the process over again. It does not use the internet connection for any of the video feeds.

The PC version doesn’t require internet, but if you have a connection it will check back with the server (sending your personally identifiable decoder details) to the server to see if you have elected to take part in their programme monitoring. If you have made this election it will then send details back to the server on what you are watching. Again, no actual video feed is sent via the Internet.  It will also check with the server to see if a new version of the software is available and then “encourage” you to update.

The native resolution of the transmission is 320×240, and is limited to this by the bandwidth available in the DVB-H spectrum. The specification of DVB-H was agreed back in 2002, when cell phones had tiny tiny screens so don’t be surprised at the poor resolution, it was considered quite high back then.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DVB-H

Technically the resolution of the transmission is limited to 320×240. DSTV have chosen to artificially restrict the size of the picture on-screen to double this resolution. It gives you a picture that takes up about a quarter of the size of a normal laptop screen. There is an unofficial patch to work around this. (See How do I make the picture larger).

While the application allows a zoomed in view, it just doubles the pixels. There is no full screen mode available. You can use the windows magnifier to zoom in further but it looks terrible. Better just to watch in the smaller window and enjoy it for what it is – a mobile service.

The latest version 1.3 of the client software doesn’t yet have a patch available. When one comes out I will link it here.

NB If you have Windows 7 there is an easy solution, just press Windows key and + to zoom in and Windows key and – to zoom out. No special software needed. Took me a while to figure this out after messing around with all this other software. Duh.

For other users, try and use something like ZoomIt (link here) or QZOOM (link here). I prefer ZoomIt but try a couple of options and see what works for you.

Not the most elegant solution but it works. Dennis suggests using QZOOM as follows :

” Just install it, double click on the icon at bottom right of taskbar to see instructions. It will fill your Screen! I’m using XP and if you hold “Windows” Key + Alt + ‘ your desktop will “zoom in”. Then position over the DRIFTA window. Note: Leave the DRIFTA window at it’s SMALLEST size before using QZoom to prevent flickering. It work quite well. ”

If you still have the original 1.1 client software then an unofficial, unsupported, use at your own risk patch is available which lets you resize the picture to whatever shape and size you like. You can get this patch here http://forum.dstvmobile.com/showthread.php?t=281

DSTV keep blocking out the links to the patches, Dennis has kindly mirrored it here : http://caretech.isotope25.com/Decoder.zip

This does not improve the resolution of the picture, just lets you make it bigger (and more blocky).

Release notes from the patch :

DStv Mobile 1.1.0Video Window Resize PatchBy Moe1

Note:

This will only work for DStv Mobile v1.1.0 decoder for Windows.

Install Instructions: Copy Decoder.exe to C:\program files\DStv Mobile Decoder\ overwriting the existing file. You might want to backup your original file first, in case you want to revert back to the original.

Wasted Text:

Alot of people have been moaning about the fact that they limited to the video size they can resize the DStv Mobilewindows decoder screen. Well here is a quick patch to break out of that limit I won’t recommend resizing to a very large screen, the resolution gets pretty crappy! (Hence the reason for the limit)
Enjoy!

There is also a second patch available here :

http://hotfile.com/dl/110906714/020e99f/Decoder.exe.html

Apparently this patch is a little different to the first on listed above :

• it maintains the aspect ratio
• keeps the channel and volume buttons below the windows functional
• doesn’t interfere with the programme guide
• it doesn’t however let you make the picture “widescreen” on widescreen monitors and laptops

I am not using this patch currently. Anyone care to add some more about it?

Not with the official software as it is supplied by DSTV, however, it seems the functionality may be in the software just currently disabled (see bottom of the entry).

“Screen scraping” type solutions may work. I haven’t heard of anyone doing this effectively yet. Have a good solution? Please  share.

There is some more info here : http://mybroadband.co.za/vb/showthread.php/294833-How-to-record-from-DSTV-Drifta/page2

TonyB suggested a tool called Debut on the forums “I downloaded a brilliant set of free tools called Debut at: http://www.nchsoftware.com/capture/ ”

While looking through the DSTV windows application the following strings were found :

• Cannot switch channel while recording. Play the TV of currently being received. Stop video of currently being played.
• ### TVNBWEBAPPCLIENT 192.168.16.30 9941 http://%s:%u/tvnb? <tuner_start_receiving channel=’%d’ channel_name=’%s’ program_title=’%s’/> Cannot create recording %s (disk space too tight)
• RTSP rtp_receiver_tvnb_thread Cannot create recording %s Recording to %s
• <cas_event event_id=”%d”> stop_channelscan save_partial=1 %s\DStv\DStv Mobile Decoder % \ Recordings \ DStv Mobile Decoder Recordings \ RecordingSpaceLimit RecordingSpaceLimit \ Settings \ \ tvnb_preferences tvnb_preferences tvnb_preferences %d %08x: %08x: ### ### Could not find %s Failed to load %s preferences.xml \
• PanelSideStatus PanelSideStatus ### Could not start recording ###
• AVrecordings_finder / AVdirectory_walker
• AVmg_rtp_AES_recorder AVtvnb_recorder AVFILE_recorder
• AVCPanelPlay@@ AVCPanelRecording AVCRecordingBitmapButton@@
• Record Files (*.ert)|*.ert|All Files (*.*)
• Play Normal, Fast Forward x 2, Fast Forward x 4, Fast Forward x 8, -10 sec +10 sec, Seek to 30 seconds before, Seek to 10 seconds before, Seek to 10 seconds after, Seek to 30 seconds after

This seems to suggest that recording is possible – and probably even , the trick is to figure out how to activate it. Time to haul out those tweakUI apps and see if any of the elements exist. If we lucky it can all be activated through changes in the registry or config files, if not, perhaps the .exe can be hacked as the resize hack was done.

Sadly, I took a look at the UI using WinSpy++ 1.7 and I could not find any hidden “record”  button. Looks like it isn’t going to just be as easy as enabling something.

No, if you plug in the Drifta to the USB of your PC it turns the wifi off. The wifi allows one device to connect and stream the channel.

My work laptop has software to enforce encryption on USB devices which I can’t bypass as the end user. This clashes with the Drifta so I can’t use it. Some friends have tried on theirs and they don’t have admin rights so device drivers won’t install. Be careful if you intend only using this with a work laptop,  talk nicely to your IT guys and check with them that they are happy with it before you buy it –  then they are more likely help you install it and get it running.

Windows

The windows client software checks automatically to see whether a newer version of the client software exists (without your permission nogal). It reads a text file at the following url : http://apps.dstvmobile.com/decoder/windows/version.txt

Just the version number is present in the file. As of 2011/7/7 it shows 1.3.1.

1.0.3

• launch software

1.1.0

• updated version (no release notes – binary install dated 30 November 2010) (DStvWindowsInstall_1130.zip)
• get it here : http://www.dstvmobile.com/ or here apps.dstvmobile.com

1.2.11

• Still waiting to determine what has changed
• Will only work with firmware 2.1.266
• Full screen patch not available yet
• Binary may be packed/encrypted

1.3.1

• Released June 2011 (decoder.exe Binary dated 27/5/2011)
• Mention of MacOS X in the install, yet to confirm if an OS X version is actually included

iphone/ipad/ipod touch

1.01.00

• official version
• works on jailbroken devices
• available here

1.01.01

• improved application stability
• Interface enhancements
• Embedded firmware update
• Tests to see if jailbroken device and then doesn’t work
• Unofficial patched version which works with jailbroken devices here

1.01.02    27 May 2o11

Official release notes per iTunes

• Improved stability of application
• Enhanced user experience
• General bug fixes
• Unofficial patched version for jailbroken devices here : http://fileape.com/dl/SmBlzqIptb1EwAfF as linked from this page.

I suspect it also includes the new firmware update.

Get the latest official version from the appstore

Android 

1.1.19 September 5, 2011

Drifta firmware (Original)

Install location : C:\Program files\DStv Mobile Decoder\firmware\tvnb.bin

• Original launch version : Unknown (Does anyone have a copy or extract of the title from the file?)
• Tivit(DVB-H) 2.1.183 2010/11/30-14:53:58 (from firmware extract) , 2.1.183 (from status window)
• Tivit(DVB-H) 2.1.266 2011/04/20-17:03:51 (required for Windows software 1.2.11 to work)
• Tivit(DVB-H) 2.1.312 2011/06/23-19:41:55 (required for Android software 1.1.19 to work)

USB Drifta firmware

Install location : C:\Program files\DStv Mobile Decoder\firmware\tvnb_usb.bin

• Drifta2(DVB-H) 2.1.277 2011/05/03-14:09:23  (required for Windows software 1.2.11 to work)

Differences in Windows clients

1.2.11 vs 1.1.0

Existing files:

• Decoder.exe  2011/05/10 06:57      1 512KB
• infcopy.exe    2010/12/06 02:34          79KB
• tvnb.bin           2011/04/20 08:39    8 288KB

New files:

• IPSetup.exe      2011/03/18 06:21           58KB
• tvnb_usb.bin   2011/05/03 02:09    5 840KB

This new tvnb_usb.bin has an interesting identification string “Drifta2(DVB-H) 2.1.277 2011/05/03-14:09:23 ”  vs the older style tvnb.bin identification string “Tivit(DVB-H) 2.1.266 2011/04/20-17:03:51″. Is this a hint at a new Drifta decoder to come?

Thanks Dennis for providing some of the above information.

Android : As of the morning of 6/9/2011 the Android software is available on the Google Android market place.

Mac OS X : As of the 21/11/2011 the Mac OS X version is available in the Mac App Store :

• Launch the app store from you Mac.
• Search for DStv Mobile decoder in the search field
• Click on the free/install button once the app is found.
• The application will now be installed on your computer

Keep watching  j-j.co.za and dstvmobile.com for updates on further support devices.

Yes, The Mac OS X version is compatible with the Drifta and the Drifta USB (Excerpt from DStv press release).

The minimum system requirements are an Apple Macintosh computer with :

• Mac OS X 10.6.8
• an Intel Core 2 Duo processor
• 1 GB Ram
•  a minimum disk space of 100MB

There seems to be 3 services, each with it’s own coverage (thanks to Maiyo Simapungula, Public Relations and Communications Manager at DStv Mobile for clearing some of this up). These are the DVB-H broadcast coverage, the general streaming service and the N8 specific service.

The DVB-H broadcast coverage includes:

• Ghana
• Kenya
• Namibia
• Nigeria
• South Africa

DSTV mobile has a streaming service available via Vodacom Live!. This service is currently available only in South Africa with more countries expected to follow. It has 11 channels, and for R59/month (or R19/week) you get to watch up to 3 hours (45m weekly). For more information check the “Streaming  Tab” from the DSTV mobile website or click here.

A second streaming service is available exclusively for the Nokia N8. The website  lists +- 50 countries where this service works (full list here). This is however a streaming service and not a broadcast service so you PAY FOR THE DATA, which makes it very expensive. It also only has 3 channels, SuperSport Blitz, Euronew and SawSee.

The other African countries seem to indicate in the FAQs that you have to have a DVB-H enabled cell phone, and they don’t mention the Drifta device at all. I suspect this means each country will need its own subscription so is effectively a different service. So no, Drifta probably won’t work outside of SA and roaming is highly unlikely.

Yes, but be careful.

The service listed on the DSTV mobile home page, with it’s coverage across 50 African countries is a streaming service, not a broadcast service. This makes it very expensive (not free as stated) and it has very limited channels.

With a headset adaptor you can get DVB-H on the N8. This is the “proper” DSTV Mobile broadcast service with all the channels and without the very high data costs.

DVB-H phones available in South Africa are:

• ZTE F900
• Nokia N96
• Nokia C7,C6 (requires headset, sold separately)
• Nokia 5330 (requires headset and comes prepacked with headset)
• Nokia N8 (requires headset, sold separately)

You can order the headset via your service provider from Celcom for around R580 (Thanks Luke7777)

You can read a little more about the headset and see some pictures of it here at NokiaFanBoySA. There is further information in NokiaFanBoySA’s followup post on availability here.  Price is down to R395

The Samsung P910 was enabled through the simcard, in other words, it accessed the DVB-H signal through the simcard. The DStv Mobile network is no longer enabled to accept simcard technology. It is only accessible through DVB-H enabled phones and devices. (from DSTV Mobile representative).

It appears that DVB-H devices requiring a USIM (such as the P910) are NOT supported.

No. Apparently the HDMI output gets disabled when the DVB-H headset is plugged into the phone. Thanks NokiaFanBoySA.

The Nokia Mobile TV Receiver (SU-33W) receives the DVB-H signal and then sends it via bluetooth to compatible devices (rather than the WIFI of the Drifta). I haven’t tested this out with the DSTV Mobile service but can see not reason from the Nokia site why it shouldnt work.This device is compatible with a whole host of Nokia phones including:

• Nokia 5230
• Nokia 5235 Ovi Music Unlimited
• Nokia 5530 XpressMusic
• Nokia 5800 XpressMusic
• Nokia 6220 classic
• Nokia E75
• Nokia N73
• Nokia N79
• Nokia N8
• Nokia N85
• Nokia N86 8MP
• Nokia N97
• Nokia N97 mini
• Nokia X6 16GB
• Nokia X6 32GB
• Nokia X6 8GB

For Nokia N73 software PR4 version required. Check Nokia Software Updater for details.Also compatible with the following accessories:

• Nokia Travel Charger AC-3
• Nokia Travel Charger AC-4
• Nokia Mobile Charger DC-4
• Nokia Charger via USB port CA-100

See more details about the device at the Nokia website here.

This seems to happen even when the reception is good (it can be 100%) and indicator is green proving that it is picking up signal but no picture or sound is available. After clicking “OK” the Drifta decoder then continually tries to connect but does not manage to do so.

Solution :
1. You have to phone the DSTV call centre to ask them to resend the signal to you and then it should work.

2. You can also sort out the problem without phoning the help desk by logging on to the care website. Look for the error codes “how to” on the right hand side of the page (look for error code E16).

3. In theory you can reset the error code by SMS using : SMS “error code + smartcard number” to 32472 just not sure what smarcard number you would use. If you are having to do resets often ask the call centre for the “smartcard number” of your Drifta, they should be able to sort you out with it.

Content supplemented with information from the DSTV mobile forums : http://forum.dstvmobile.com/

Well, despite what might be advertised to, and expected by us, the customer,  the Cartoon Network and E! channels are not the full channels you see on dstv. They are a “dumbed down” version on a 2 hour repeat cycle of week old stuff. Don’t expect the real thing.

To quote from a DSTV spokesman “Note that E! & CN’s content is customised for the mobile environment and unlike the rest of the channels, content on these 2 channels is not the same as content on “normal” DStv. On mobile, E! & CN’s content is meant to repeat 4-5 different clips within a 2 hour loop and also it’s content that played out last week (one weeks old content). ”

And in response to a question on false advertising around it not being the full channels :

” We will escalate the matter in regards with advertising to Marketing and investigate accordingly. For information on DStv Mobile products and the riveting content available, please visit our website.”

Um ya right. Ok then.

The DStv Mobile website has quite a decent coverage map which shows whether you are likely to have coverage. Check your coverage here.

If you are way outside a covered area you probably won’t have much luck. If close to or within an area you are likely to be ok. You can of course always use extended aerials and the like. See the FAQ question on boosting signal.

Be careful, although it is advertised as though there is coverage everywhere this is not the case. It also doesn’t use the cell phone network so having cell signal doesn’t mean anything.

Initial launch coverage was in Jhb, Pretoria, Bloem, Durban, PE and Capetown. There have been upgrades since.
Even in these covered areas, coverage is NOT universal. The coverage map on the dstv website works quite well, so go and plug in your likely addresses of useage and see if you are covered.

Interactive coverage map