E* to D* - what to expect from 722 to HR21?

[mattopia]

Hi all,

I'm likely switching over here pretty soon. I have the itch for BSG in HD, and it doesn't look like E* is going to scratch it before the premiere.

A SatGuy who happens to be a Bluegrass installer was kind enough to come out and discuss my options with me in advance (you know who you are - thanks!)

I keep hearing about how the HR21 is a step down from the 722. For those who have switched -- what should I expect? Do I still get the 30 second skip ahead / 10 second skip back options? I use the CRAP out of that!

 

[cwbuckley]

I switched from E* to D* last October and I don't regret it at all. I have the HR20 and I was worried because of all the horror stories that I had heard about it. Actually it is a pretty good receiver. With very little problems. Maybe a notch below the 622 ( which is what I had.) The HR21 is about the same without the ota. The HR20 has the slip or skip, you pick which one you want. Not sure if the HR21 has that feature yet. I am sure that it will in the near future.

 

[Minsk1]

Other then different channel numbers, which you will get yse to soom enough, HR20/21 (have both) are very close to 622 (which I had with E*). You will get all you want from DVR.
Also HD picture is better on D* and much more channels in HD too.

 

[Cliff]

I have the HR-21 (had 622 with Dish), my only issues are I don't like the remote button layout, the guide is way slower than the 622, and no OTA connection.

 

[Bob Nielsen]

I keep hearing about how the HR21 is a step down from the 722. For those who have switched -- what should I expect? Do I still get the 30 second skip ahead / 10 second skip back options? I use the CRAP out of that!

I think it is more of a 6 second skip back. I think the 30 second SLIP is still the default for forward, but it is easy to switch to an instantaneous skip.

I switched a few years before upgrading to HD, but haven't regretted it yet (nor do I miss my previous Tivo DVR). The HR21 doesn't have OTA, but the AM21 should be out soon (dual OTA tuners).

 

[Paradox-SJ]

What is D* reason for not putting an OTA tuner in there flagship DVR?

Do their DVR's have caller ID?

 

[rad]

What is D* reason for not putting an OTA tuner in there flagship DVR?

Do their DVR's have caller ID?

What's been said is that D* feels that most of their customers do not need or want OTA support, especially since they're adding a bunch of HD LIL channels/cities. Now if you do need OTA support they have announced the add on AM21 module for the HR21's to add OTA support back in. Once added to the HR21's it makes them look and operate just like the HR20's do.

And yes, they have Caller ID.

 

[Richard Fuller]

Question for you guys with a Directv HD DVR I'm thinking of coming back to Directv from Dish one of the features that I love with my 622 is the ability to do a PIP that is divided equally into two equal size pics. I love to do this with NFL football or if two basketball games are on or if I want to watch 2 things at once. Can Directv's HD DVR's do this?

 

[rad]

Question for you guys with a Directv HD DVR I'm thinking of coming back to Directv from Dish one of the features that I love with my 622 is the ability to do a PIP that is divided equally into two equal size pics. I love to do this with NFL football or if two basketball games are on or if I want to watch 2 things at once. Can Directv's HD DVR's do this?

Nope, no PIP in the D* DVR's for what you want to do. The only PIP is while your're in the guide or menus, not another program/channel.

 

[Richard Fuller]

I love this feature does anyone else think this would be a great feature to have? or is it just me?

 

[rad]

I know a number of folks put this on the wish list poll but IIRC the hardware chipset that D* uses won't support PiP.

 

[Richard Fuller]

I was just picturing this with NFL Sunday ticket I had Sunday Ticket before and found out I wasn't watching games I was hoping around to much so dropped it but a feature like this would keep me on 2 games instead of constant channel surfing, but they don't even have a small PIP in this day and time!!

 

[rad]

Well, there is the game mix channel(s) where they put 8 games up on the screen at one time or the Hot Zone channel where they switch to the game that's close to scoring.

 

[Paradox-SJ]

What's been said is that D* feels that most of their customers do not need or want OTA support, especially since they're adding a bunch of HD LIL channels/cities. Now if you do need OTA support they have announced the add on AM21 module for the HR21's to add OTA support back in. Once added to the HR21's it makes them look and operate just like the HR20's do.

And yes, they have Caller ID.

Is the AM21 OTA modual available today?

 

[rad]

Is the AM21 OTA modual available today?

Nope, early May is what I've seen as when it's supposed to be available. The HR21 software that supports the AM21 has started to roll out nationally so they may want to wait for that to complete before making the hardware available.

 

[Redwoodman]

I am also considering making the switch and have several DVR questions for those who have already switched.

Is it possible to swap back and forth between tuners like the 622? (I like to watch both Leno and Letterman)

How many days ahead are displayed on the D* guide. Cliff mentioned the guide is slower. Do you mean it takes a long time to bring up the listings or scroll through the listings, or both?

My wife has just learned to use most of the features on our 622. Will operation of a D* DVR be significantly different?

How problematic is it to add an external HD? I see many problems discussed on the E* sites.

Do D* DVRs have on-screen caller ID?

Besides the PIP, what features will I lose by going to a D* DVR. What features will I gain?

Does D* have a Charlie Chat?

Thanks.

 

[MikeD-C05]

Hr 21 has no pip features .
Hr 21 has no ota support YET- supposedly an external box for ota coming next month ,cost 59.99 - 99.99 and it uses usb connection to your hr 21 dvr.
Hr 21 is not as intuitive in recording a nightly show like Keith Olberman . I set it for first run only and it records all 3 shows each night including repeats. I had to set a manual timer to accomplish what I can do with my 722 in the timer set up itself.

In short the Hr 21 is not as good as the 722 as far as ota , recording only two things rather than 3 with the 722. IF I could use my 722 with DIRECTV I would be happiest as they do have more HD channels than anyone right now. I hope that the continued software upgrades each week will turn it more into a 722 with time . It already has the option to do skip vs slip , which was something I like with DISH. I don't really know how the external hard drive works with DIRECTV as it is different than DISH with a simple usb connection. They use something called Esata external hard drives. I still like the 722 better for network shows and ota shows and have kept DISH for that mainly. As to more hd content DIRECTV still wins and you can use the Hr 21 to record most everything you wanted can do with DISH , but it requires some time to adapt and learn the receiver. Oh one big bonus for the Hr 21, it has NATIVE RESOLUTION which is something I have wanted from DISH for a while now. THis lets your tv upconvert the picture for sd and looks much better than the receiver does. You can format it better with the tv too.