Dish DVR Vs. Cox DVR Vs. TiVo?

[slug420]

Im not sure if this is the right place to post this or not but I will give it a shot.

I think im going to be leaving dish because their HD offering apparently sucks in my area....Dish is the only TV service I have had (lived outin the boonies and went from 2 channels on a crappy antenna growing up to a Dish for the past 10 years or so) so the Dish DVR is all I know, and a unit I am quite pleased with.

Can anyone here from their own experience compare and/or contrast the Cox cable DVR and/or TiVo with the Dish DVRs? I am curious both from a usability and customer satisfaction standpoint as well as features and capabilities.

thanks!

 

[gadgtfreek]

Cox-Dunno what they have because I was with Comcast. If it a Moto box or SA, it is not as good as a VIP622, period. Guides are terrible, no OTA recording. Cant record 3 things at once. SA box only has a 6 day guide.

Tivo-Tivo Series 2 works great, PQ kinda stinks. Series 3 works great b ut will not support SDV which many cable providers are going to be using to expand channel capacity. This means if the channel is SDV, you cannot watch it.

 

[osu1991]

The Cox dvr really stinks. My sister just got the motorola box last month when she moved in with her boyfriend. it is slow and locks up, no skip forward button. What area are you in that you can not get dish's hd. As long as you can see one of the 2 wing satellites you can get all the hd that dish has, which right now is more than anyone else. Unless you are talking about locals.

 

[Sammy033]

No forward button? Meaning there is no way to skip past commercials at all? Or do you mean there is no 30-second skip button? That would suck.. and I would be quite upset if it were disabled or removed from new remotes.

 

[gadgtfreek]

No forward button? Meaning there is no way to skip past commercials at all? Or do you mean there is no 30-second skip button? That would suck.. and I would be quite upset if it were disabled or removed from new remotes.

If I remember correctly the SA8300 only had a skip back buttin, no skip forward. You could fast forward though.

 

[slug420]

What area are you in that you can not get dish's hd. As long as you can see one of the 2 wing satellites you can get all the hd that dish has, which right now is more than anyone else. Unless you are talking about locals.

I am near Hartford CT. I can get their HD programming but its a pretty weak lineup IMO without locals in HD. Also they dont broadcast NESN (red sox network) in HD.

So that means I cant watch my sox, or any football in HD except for the occasional, off hours, obscure, weak matchup game on NFL Network. Most of the shows I watch on a regular basis and DVR each week are on the major networks (locals). HGTV, Food Network, ESPN, ESPN2, A&E, tnt, and although the guy on the phone didnt mention it, I think discovery channel. I cant remember the last time I watched A&E, TNT or ESPN2, and I probably watch one HGTV show per month...so while I love a lot of the shows on discovery channel and watching giada's chest on the food network in HD does sound good, it hardly seems worth 80 bucks a month. I also wasnt too happy to hear that....just after I have come to grips with the fact that they charge you 5 bucks per month for the privilege of using the DVR (wtf?) they were gonna hit me with another 5 dollar per month fee for not having a phone line in the house to keep the 622 connected to.

With cox im not sure how much it will be but I expect it will be the same amount or less and they dont charge for HD service. Their HD lineup includes discovery, ESPN ESPN2 and all the locals.....even PBS and NESN. Now I just need to figure out what to do for a DVR.

Another thing I was surprised about with Dish Network is that they dont offer any kind of waiting list for channels. Seems like it would be pretty easy to take down an email address to notify people when the network they were inquiring about becomes available. Would help them upsell customers into premium packages, would be great for someone not wanting the service until channel X is available and the waiting lists could help DN prioritize what channels to be going after because they would know what channels the most customers have been asking about.

 

[gadgtfreek]

I am near Hartford CT. I can get their HD programming but its a pretty weak lineup IMO without locals in HD. Also they dont broadcast NESN (red sox network) in HD.

So that means I cant watch my sox, or any football in HD except for the occasional, off hours, obscure, weak matchup game on NFL Network. Most of the shows I watch on a regular basis and DVR each week are on the major networks (locals). HGTV, Food Network, ESPN, ESPN2, A&E, tnt, and although the guy on the phone didnt mention it, I think discovery channel. I cant remember the last time I watched A&E, TNT or ESPN2, and I probably watch one HGTV show per month...so while I love a lot of the shows on discovery channel and watching giada's chest on the food network in HD does sound good, it hardly seems worth 80 bucks a month. I also wasnt too happy to hear that....just after I have come to grips with the fact that they charge you 5 bucks per month for the privilege of using the DVR (wtf?) they were gonna hit me with another 5 dollar per month fee for not having a phone line in the house to keep the 622 connected to.

With cox im not sure how much it will be but I expect it will be the same amount or less and they dont charge for HD service. Their HD lineup includes discovery, ESPN ESPN2 and all the locals.....even PBS and NESN. Now I just need to figure out what to do for a DVR.

Another thing I was surprised about with Dish Network is that they dont offer any kind of waiting list for channels. Seems like it would be pretty easy to take down an email address to notify people when the network they were inquiring about becomes available. Would help them upsell customers into premium packages, would be great for someone not wanting the service until channel X is available and the waiting lists could help DN prioritize what channels to be going after because they would know what channels the most customers have been asking about.

Um, dude, do your research. No one has as many HD channels as E*. You are making wrong assumptions.

If you want hd locals, then yes by all means get cable, but for nationals E* is top notch.

It sounds to me like cost is your main issue. I know with Comcast there is not cost benefit over satellite.

You dont need a notification for channels because you find out all you need if you look at this board every now and then. Youll prob hear about a new HD channel well before E* would tell you anyways.

As someone who had Comcast(much better than Cox), I am not looking back.

 

[osu1991]

They have disabled the 30 second skip feature, you have to fast forward thru commercials. The cox hd dvr is 15.25 a month. 9.99 for the dvr fee and 5.25 for the lease fee

 

[slug420]

what is E*? I see that referenced all over on here...im assuming it refers to dish network?

DN might have the largest quantity of HD channels but that doesnt mean its the best offering IMO. I, and im sure thousands of others fall into this category, already have a lineup of shows that I enjoy each week...if I get HD service it stands to reason I would want to watch those shows in HD.

Its great that DN has its own lineup of HD channels but it seems silly to get HD service and then watch these 19 networks you have never heard of before....basically changing what programs you watch so that regardless of the content, at least its being displayed in HD. And if I dont change what I watch just to make sure im watching something in HD, then im watching SD channels 90% of the time. I can understand them not offering NESN HD (i guess..) but locals? yikes.

And cost isnt my main issue...i could pay 100/month for a good service, I just dont like paying for nothing.....as is the case with the DVR fee and the no phone line fee.

 

[riffjim4069]

You also have to do the qualitative analysis when making your comparison. While it is true DishHD offers the most national HD channels, their picture quality is much less impressive than in the past. In many areas cable provides better picture quality and typically offers more HD local and sports choices. Verizon FiOS (if available in your area) clearly offers the best SD/HD viewing experience...and at a competitive rate. Finally, the Dish 622 DVR is superior to anything being offered by Cable at this time.

 

[slug420]

yea...FIOS....i wish

so i guess the question is...how do I h4Xx0r the 622 to work on cable hehe

 

[gadgtfreek]

I agree, im my area Comcast is behind in HD and D* and E*(Echoster=Dish Network) are pretty close, E* having the most. The PQ on all 3 is similar to me. The dvr is the big seller for me because I record a good bit during the week and the Cable dvr's usually are horrible. Another big factor is OTA HD. The cable box would not record OTA channels like the D* and E* boxes. I record OTA HD whenever I can because it offers the best PQ.

 

[smartys]

cox omaha ne stinks my dvr skips,sound goes out recording it cant catch up I have to reboot it all the time. call cox for a signal boost, lousy programming . better stick with dish.Im thinking of going to dish because of the high price of cox and the dvr issue, moto dvr huh.

 

[cjwct]

I live in the Hartford, CT area (Glastonbury) and will never return to Cox. There are several things you can do for now for locals in HD. Best thing to do is go to Radio Shack and buy an OTA; you'll have no problem getting locals in HD. If you want OnDemand, then go with Cox. If not, then stay with Dish because you'll pay the same price between Cox and Dish for the same packages.

 

[Sammy033]

I live in the Hartford, CT area (Glastonbury) and will never return to Cox.

Its not here just yet but ATT cable looks pretty competitive. I have read that there have been hiccups getting it to work right, but that they were being ironed out.

 

[moltomateo]

They have disabled the 30 second skip feature, you have to fast forward thru commercials.

It can be enabled following these steps:

1. Press the CBL button, then press and hold Setup until the CBL button blinks twice
2. Enter 9-9-4. The CBL button will blink twice
3. Hit (Do Not Hold) the Setup button, then enter 0-0-1-7-3 (for 30 second Skip ahead)
4. Press the desired function button for the 30 Second Skip. I use the A button or Locks button.

It's great.

 

[RVD420]

Cox DVR is a 2nd rate knockoff of a Dish DVR, which is a 2nd rate Tivo Knockoff, which is a 2nd rate Knockoff of a Dishplayer 7x00

 

[osu1991]

It can be enabled following these steps:

1. Press the CBL button, then press and hold Setup until the CBL button blinks twice
2. Enter 9-9-4. The CBL button will blink twice
3. Hit (Do Not Hold) the Setup button, then enter 0-0-1-7-3 (for 30 second Skip ahead)
4. Press the desired function button for the 30 Second Skip. I use the A button or Locks button.

It's great.

I tried that several times and it doesn't work in Tulsa with cox and the newer moto hd dvr or I did it wrong about 8 or 9 times before I gave up and told my sister to live with it or get a boyfriend that didn't have to have everything bundled.

edit: part of the problem is I do not believe Cox uses the actual moto remote either but i will try again later this weekend just to be sure.

 

[slug420]

I live in the Hartford, CT area (Glastonbury) and will never return to Cox. There are several things you can do for now for locals in HD. Best thing to do is go to Radio Shack and buy an OTA; you'll have no problem getting locals in HD. If you want OnDemand, then go with Cox. If not, then stay with Dish because you'll pay the same price between Cox and Dish for the same packages.

im about 5 months late with this but here I am looking at moving to an HD DVR setup again and I noticed your post.

What OTA antenna re you using? I have been using a terk indoor antenna for several years and it is VERY tempermental. Like I have to lean it up and out a window at a very specific angle to get WFSB and if i sneeze it loses the signal, i can never find FOX but no matter where it points I get WTNH.

 

[GNASH]

what is E*? I see that referenced all over on here...im assuming it refers to dish network?

DN might have the largest quantity of HD channels but that doesnt mean its the best offering IMO. I, and im sure thousands of others fall into this category, already have a lineup of shows that I enjoy each week...if I get HD service it stands to reason I would want to watch those shows in HD.

Its great that DN has its own lineup of HD channels but it seems silly to get HD service and then watch these 19 networks you have never heard of before....basically changing what programs you watch so that regardless of the content, at least its being displayed in HD. And if I dont change what I watch just to make sure im watching something in HD, then im watching SD channels 90% of the time. I can understand them not offering NESN HD (i guess..) but locals? yikes.

And cost isnt my main issue...i could pay 100/month for a good service, I just dont like paying for nothing.....as is the case with the DVR fee and the no phone line fee.

E* stands for Echostar (Which is Dish Network at this point).