Anyone used BBC i player?

[bubble2bubble]

Is it as great as they claim?
Fancied downloading some TV I can't be at home to see - does it take ages to do or is it hideously complicated?
Apologies - I'm kind of new to ipodding...

iPlayer works well I find in streaming mode - so when you have a net connection and watch it online. My broadband speed is 1.5mbps download (tested via www.speedtest.net). I did not work so well with my previous broadband provider, as I was only getting around 0.5mbps.

Downloading works - how long it takes to download a programme will be dependant on your broadband connection speed.

What device will you be using to download/playback the video? A computer (desktop/laptop) or something else?

Just downloaded Timmy Time. Took 11 minutes to download - so about 10% longer than the programme is in duration. That is using BBC iPlayer Desktop (running on my laptop).

Other download formats are available - such as Windows Media and Portable Device. Those have smaller file sizes, so quality will be lower but download time will be quicker. Though speed you get will depend on your internet connection.

What are you trying to achieve? If you are just wanting to watch a prog that you have missed, then I suggest using the iPlayer website directly, watching the streaming video - rather than downloading it for watching later. If you find that keeps stopping (this is due to your internet connection not being fast enough for streaming video) then download using iPlayer Desktop application.

That's helpful, thanks nannynick, youj=have probably saved me from wasting my time

What I was intending was to download from desktop and then to ipod....

However I know my broadband is really slow as we're in the sticks. I will do a speedtest & see what happens. What you say makes sense, for when I have watched clips on the PC it stops & starts constantly

When you're watching a programme via the iPlayer website there's a link near the bottom labelled "use lower bandwidth version". Try that if streaming is a bit choppy.

bubble2bubble - there is an option to download to portable device. I think that is what you need to use to download to ipod. Try it with a small file first - such as Timmy Time - the file size even for that though will still be 50+MB. So if your net connection is slow, it will take a long time.

Waswondering - have you noticed the new interface BBC are trying out? Big Version so you can navigate the iPlayer website if you have your computer attached to a large screen. Probably only really usable if you have a remote control hooked up to your laptop... I remember Packard Bell having remote controls for their computers years ago!

Something else to watch for is whether your ISP account has set limits on how much data traffic is allowed (some of the cheapest offer 1 GB a month, 3 GB a month and so on).

Not used iPlayer for much in the way of video, but if you also use Channel 4's "4oD" (4 on demand) or similar service for five.tv then some programmes are quite big. Grand Designs and other 30-60 minute shows can be 250 to 400 MB (which obviously will take some time to download, but also eats up ISP allowance.)

(I have a 5 GB limit each month, but may switch to opal.co.uk which only charges a fiver a month in the first year, tenner in the second, with a 'fair use' policy but no fixed download limit. It's part of TalkTalk/ Carphone Warehouse, and unfortunately not on all exchanges.)

As for slow speed, there's a site about getting Faster Broadband and a petition on the number 10 website to do with connecting the BT cabinets (green boxes on the pavements - probably near a village post office, or where PO used to be!) linked up with fibre to exchange, which would allow 15 to 40 Mbps for people even if their exchange is 3-4 miles away.

Thanks for the big screen link, nannynick - something geeky to check out