DirecTiVo Delayed Again?

[BrettStah]

No shots, just different opinions based on different needs/wants/experiences. I had 2 standalone Tivos for a couple of years, then 2 DirecTivos for 5-6 years, then the HR10-250 HD DirecTivo for a couple of years (along with the SD ones), so I'm not exactly ignorant on tbe topic.

I also loved the list guide, and would like to jave it back. I haven't seen problems with the Keep Until I Delete feature on the HR2x DVRs.

I don't miss the 30-45 minutes it would take whenever I re-sorted the Season Pass Manager. I don't miss not seeing what shows are scheduled to record. I prefer the 90 minute buffer over the Tivo 30 minute one. I like how i can switch between the last two shows I've been watching with one button, even if both shows have previously been recorded (i.e., not live). I like how the multiple episodes of a show are grouped together on the HR2x's.

 

[Optimist]

You can get a version of the TiVo List Guide in the DIRECTV receivers to see what's coming up next as follows: GUIDE* > LEFT > INFO.

This moves the highlight left into the channel number column and INFO then brings up a list of the shows coming up next on that channel.

To jump to the next higher channel, hit BACK, DOWN, INFO. To jump to the next lower channel, hit BACK, UP, INFO.

It's not as quick or convenient as the TiVo, but it's there...

*This assumes you have the receiver configured to display the grid guide on the first press of the GUIDE key.

 

[Optimist]

As someone who's had the HDVR2 (SD-DIRECTV TiVo) and the HR10-250 (HD-DIRECTV TiVo) for many years, and now has many HR2x receivers, I will just add my 2¢ about the delayed MPEG4 HD DIRECTV TiVo ... I have no plans to lose sleep waiting for it!

Not only do I currently have the HR2x receivers from DIRECTV, but I also have a TiVo Series 3 Premiere with a cable card, and let me tell you ... this TiVo software is so bloated and inconsistent I'm surprised TiVo released it. It's got an HD menu that exists only on the surface... If you want to look at your To Do List, for example, you are tossed from the HD menu into the SD menu that hasn't changed since the TiVo Series 1. They finally added the Picture-in-Graphic (live TV) in the HD menu, but again, as soon as you drill down, you are thrown to SD menus and can't continue to view TV.

It also takes way too many steps to set up a recording for a one-off show and mark it as Keep Until I Delete. On the HR2x receivers, I can just hit RECORD, as usrs can define default recording parameters once, and they are always used. on the TiVo, it's [REC], [Down] to the "other options", [SELECT],

to Options, [Select], [Down] to Keep Until, then 8 hits on

until "Until I Delete", then [Select], then [Select] again. That's 16 key presses for what takes ONE key press on the HR2x DVRs!!!!

I hate that the Guide on TiVo doesn't show an indicator for what is pre-set to be recorded... it's so easy on the DIRECTV receivers to hit GUIDE and see at a glance what is being recorded tonight.

I hate that the TiVo buffer is 30 minutes... so what it's always on for both tuners, it's still only 30 minutes each! I've been saved more times than I can remember with the 90 minute buffers on the HR2x than you can know, and love the flexibility it offers.

I never used suggestions - always turned that off immediately on the TiVo.

One of my FAVORITE features on the HR2x is the automatic recording padding, where when it's possible the DVR will set a recording to start 30 seconds early and end 2 minutes later, ensuring the user in almost all cases never misses anything if a program runs a little early or late. This is just a great feature, especially given that you can record shows back to back on the same tuner and each show will have that same buffer added...

About the only thing TiVo had that I miss is the TiVo History list. It was built to show the history of user and system actions as soon as the action occurred. If it's 5 PM and a user cancels a program scheduled to record later tonight at 9 PM, as soon as the user cancels the program it's in the History list. Someone else looking at the To Do List at 7 PM might recognize the title missing and can go to the History list to see that a user canceled it. On the HR2x in this same scenario, the record indicating that the show was canceled by the user will not appear until 9 PM, when the original recording was scheduled to occur. I don't find that helpful at all...

So anyway, that's my take on the two platforms. To me, hands down, the HR2x wins all the time. I find as a tool for recording and allowing me to watch recordings, it's much more convenient in almost all cases for me to use the HR2x interface than the TiVo interface.

My 2¢, rounded to $100 and 2¢ with inflation. ​