DISH or DirectTV???

[DIRECTV_Mole]

...it [Tivo] is missing some basic features such as a stop button, a "start over" option for viewing recordings...

Pressing the "Advance" button on the TiVo remote once while watching a recorded event will put you to the end of the recording. Press it a 2nd time and you will be returned to the beginning of the show.

As to a "stop" button, I'm not sure what you mean by that, but if you are referring to an ability to stop watching a recorded event, go watch something else (live tv/another recorded event), then return to the program where you left off, you can accomplish that by either pressing the Live TV button, or the Left arrow button, which will stop the playback at that exact moment. You then have the ability to resume playing from that exact spot by going back to it. (You may already know all this, in which case I apologize for being so spectacularly obtuse. I personally have never had a DISH PVR, and if you had another function in mind, please let me know)

 

[dbronstein]

I will gladly take Season Pass (Name Based Recording) over a stop button and a start over button any day.

How about actually being able to browse the guide? It's pretty much impossible on the Tivo because it takes so long to load. And the loss of color bug is as bad or worse than any bug I ever encountered on my 721.

True it may be slow but you have to remember it's a hard drive. Your computer would do the same thing over time.

My 721 had a hard drive and it was much faster than the Tivo in every aspect - loading the guide, changing screens, creating timers, etc. If the much-maligned Dish DVRs can be that fast, there's no reason the Tivos can't do it as well.

Dennis

 

[dbronstein]

Pressing the "Advance" button on the TiVo remote once while watching a recorded event will put you to the end of the recording. Press it a 2nd time and you will be returned to the beginning of the show.

As to a "stop" button, I'm not sure what you mean by that, but if you are referring to an ability to stop watching a recorded event, go watch something else (live tv/another recorded event), then return to the program where you left off, you can accomplish that by either pressing the Live TV button, or the Left arrow button, which will stop the playback at that exact moment. You then have the ability to resume playing from that exact spot by going back to it. (You may already know all this, in which case I apologize for being so spectacularly obtuse. I personally have never had a DISH PVR, and if you had another function in mind, please let me know)

This is what I'm finding fascinating now that I've gone to "the other side". I spent the last 2 years reading posts from Tivo users bashing Dish DVRs whenever anyone posted a problem. Now that I read the DirecTV/Tivo forums, whenever anyone dares to point out a flaw in Tivo, they get a bunch of replies saying that it's really not an important thing anyway and then telling what the workaround is (often it's something quite convoluted like the suggestions for determining your free disk space).

To point #1, I know how to quickly rewind a recorded event, but there still should be a "start over" option along with the "resume" option like the 721 has. Everyone complains about the 721 defaulting to start over instead of resume, but at least it has the start over option. There's no excuse for Tivo not to have it.

And yes, that's what I mean by a stop button. I have been informed already about the left arrow doing the same thing, although I have not seen an easy way to just stop recording like you can on the 721 by pressing the stop button.

Dennis

 

[jcarr]

sorry, it wasnt an attack or even personal. why is the rf remote so important???

I have my receiver located in an equipment rack in the theater room where it feeds a distribution network to the rest of the house. I keep a RF remote in every room that has a TV. I can change the channel from anywhere in the house. It is a big deal for me. However not big enough to toss E* for not having a solid HD PVR. I will buy add on RF extenders to keep my setup working but it is an extra cost and more pain to get set up.

 

[robert luzzi]

rf remotes

for gods sake , how MANY people have a distribution network at home?

you dish heads are really something :shocked

 

[Neutron]

What kind of site do you think you're posting on??

 

[robert luzzi]

ill bet only 1% have a distribution network , which would a baby smat system

 

[8ohms]

Mr Luzzi has turned this survey poll into a debate on RF remote which it is not. I simply want to hear from those here that have switched from E* to D* and to get their opinions whether or not they feel they made a mistake or not based on the service, quality of the equipment, price, PQ, and overall satisfaction received.

 

[hancox]

8ohms - I agree on your comment on Mr Luzzi. I'm going to try to steer this back.

As for D* vs E*, I'm on the same ledge as you. It really depends on what you're looking for.

For me, I'm *probably* dropping my dual cable / E* setup (E* AT120, Cable HD locals only) for D*. I'm impressed by the HD Tivo. I live in the NYC DMA, and would get any of the O&O broadcast HD networks that D* puts up without issues. E* has a couple of problems, most notably the DVR fiasco they have right now. I don't have LOS to 61.5, so if E* buys Voom (or expands the other broadcast networks on the wing sats), I'm stuck. D* should be able to give me everything I need on one dish.

Only holdups for me are:

1) Significantly viewed channels. I need CT locals! I would expect D* to get this faster, if nothing else because gorillas appear to be running E* at this point.

2) D* needs to fill out their broadcast O&O with at least FOX to 100% replace cable for me (I have good ABC OTA).

 

[hancox]

Ah - forgot the hardware issue. Neutron should be able to tell you about D* / E* hardware. IIRC, he had the 811 and an HTL-HD. He's, ahem, fairly convinced D* is *slightly* better.

 

[*mad_professor*]

The stop button is not all you think. I had several E* PVR's before switching to DirecTivo. I can't tell you how many times I was watching a previously recorded event while recording something and I pressed the stop key to stop what I was watching but instead, it stopped what I was recording and what I was watching.

It was a real pain in the a**. IMHO, E* PVR's are junk.

I kick myself when I think how long I stayed with E* and buggy equipment when I could have been enjoying D* and a DirecTivo.

If RF remotes are important, One For All has an RF remote that can be programmed to work with DirecTivo and 7 other devices.