Activating USB port on Dish 622 Receiver Questions

[ju421019]

Hi, I have not been able to find any new info other than what was in 2007 about the USB port on the 622.

I know you can add a external hard drive.

My questions are:

1. What is the cost Dish charges for that feature?

2. What are the advantages of the external hard drive - does it add more recording time? Or is it to transfer saved shows as a back up?

3. Can you move the shows and watch it on the PC or you are only able to watch it on the Receiver when plugged in?

4. If there is a fee they charge - anyway to get that waived - it seems ridiculous the amount of fees they charge for nothing - DVR fee, HD fee, etc.

 

[Hemi 6.1]

It cost a one time fee of $40. And you buy your own Portable 2.0 Hardrive. Make sure it has its own power supply. and yes it adds to your DVR capacity,and you can use it between ,VIP 612,622and 722 Receivers

http://www.dishnetwork.com/receivers/expandYourDVR/default.aspx

 

[kstile]

1. One time activation charge. $40.
2. Space space space. You can't record directly to it, but when your internal drive is getting full, you can send programs to the EHD. This *moves* them (doesn't copy). You can play back directly from the EHD.
3. All shows on the EHD can only be played back on receivers on your account. (Someone correct me if that's wrong and it's limited to the receiver on which the show was originally recorded.) You cannot plug the drive into a PC and watch (or copy) shows.
4. You can always ask, but most likely not. It's a one-time charge, however, and is good for all receivers (and I assume future receivers) on your account.

 

[Visitor]

I just had this activated this past weekend. Yep, kstile is right - you can playback the EHD on any of the receivers on your account, which is great. I wonder if it would work on someone else's account that is also USB enabled. I guess not but haven't tried that. I like how it works and the fact that you can play directly from the EHD and not have to transfer it back. The transfer speed is not that bad IMHO either.

 

[theoak]

Do the parental locks still work for the EHD? For example, I have my kids locked to G. If they try to access something that was recorded on the EHD that is higher than G, will they get blocked? They currently do now with my 722.

 

[Foxbat]

Do the parental locks still work for the EHD? For example, I have my kids locked to G. If they try to access something that was recorded on the EHD that is higher than G, will they get blocked? They currently do now with my 722.

Yes, the Program Info is moved over to the Archive EHD intact.

 

[burtburt69]

Is it possible to transfer recorded shows to the external hard drive and then burn them to DVD? I have about 10 football games recorded that I'd like to burn to DVD to free up some hard drive space on the DVR.

 

[TheKrell]

No. Programs are encrypted when moved to the external hard drive.

 

[Cold Irons]

Actually, you CAN burn to DVD - just not in a full digital sense. Play off the external (or internal) Hard Drive & record DVD from S-Video.

 

[nicknageli]

Doesn't DirecTV offer this service for free with their HD DVRs?

 

[Voyager6]

Doesn't DirecTV offer this service for free with their HD DVRs?

I believe that an EHD hooked up to a D* HD DVR will replace the internal hard drive, not supplement it like on E*.

 

[HDRoberts]

Indeed, Dish has a much better implementation. Worth the $40.

 

[theoak]

Keep in mind that the EHD (at least for the 722) can only do one thing. If you are transferring programs back (or forth), you will not be able to watch a program on it until the transfer is complete. Similarly if you are watching a program off of it from TV1, you will not be able to watch a program off of it from TV2.

 

[denisincalif]

Quick Question On EHD Usage

I finally hooked up an EHD to my 622 today. I had a minor problem and had to call Dish to get some tech support. The lady I talked to didn't seem to know much about EHDs. She told me that shows transferred to the EHD are copied, not moved. I know this is untrue. She also told me that if you are transferring a completed recording from the receiver to the EHD, the receiver cannot record any new material while the transfer is in progress. Is this true? I thought I read in an old thread (which I cannot find) that you can record a new show while an old recording is being transferred.

Unlike "Visitor" in a previous post, I am not happy with the transfer rate. I am using a WD 750 GB MyBook Essential drive. It took about 30 minutes to transfer 90 minutes of HD material. That is why my previous question is so important to me. We record a lot. I am wondering when we are going to have time to transfer. I don't want to do it overnight because you never know when a software update is going to come down.

 

[theoak]

If you think about it an hour program OTA HD can be 5GB plus. How long does it take for you to burn 5GB? How about transfer? The 10 or 20 minutes that it takes it I feel is completely reasonable.