Hopper 3 Usability Issues

[Fadi C.]

I just got my Hopper 3 and 4K Joeys installed. Everything works great; however, there are some usability issues and features that worked better in the old ViP DVRs:

1- Changing picture format (Normal, Stretch, etc...) takes several clicks on the new remote, whereas it used to be simply a click of the * button which doesn't exist on the new remote. Is there a shortcut?

2- When you change picture format, ie from Normal to Stretch, the Hopper 3 does not remember that selection. The ViPs used to store that selection for the different types of channels. That is for example Normal for HD channels and Stretch for SD channels then you never have to change it again. In the Hopper 3 it is not sticky, it always reverts back to Normal. There is no setting to make it remember it.

3- Netflix is not yet active. It says February 11.

4- The DVR recordings are always in Folders for the same shows, no setting to give you the choice of Folders or no Folders. That used to be user selectable on the ViPs.

5- The specs say it has a 2TB drive, but that is not all usable. The free space on mine was 1.231TB. So either the disk is smaller than advertised or there is 769GB of other stuff already taking space on the disk.

Thanks,
Fadi

 

[xfoneguy]

I just got my Hopper 3 and 4K Joeys installed. Everything works great; however, there are some usability issues and features that worked better in the old ViP DVRs:

1- Changing picture format (Normal, Stretch, etc...) takes several clicks on the new remote, whereas it used to be simply a click of the * button which doesn't exist on the new remote. Is there a shortcut?

2- When you change picture format, ie from Normal to Stretch, the Hopper 3 does not remember that selection. The ViPs used to store that selection for the different types of channels. That is for example Normal for HD channels and Stretch for SD channels then you never have to change it again. In the Hopper 3 it is not sticky, it always reverts back to Normal. There is no setting to make it remember it.

3- Netflix is not yet active. It says February 11.

4- The DVR recordings are always in Folders for the same shows, no setting to give you the choice of Folders or no Folders. That used to be user selectable on the ViPs.

5- The specs say it has a 2TB drive, but that is not all usable. The free space on mine was 1.231TB. So either the disk is smaller than advertised or there is 769GB of other stuff already taking space on the disk.

Thanks,
Fadi

New firmware (U303) began "pushing" to users starting last night - Netflix is part of that and is now active with that download. As for remotes, you can purchase the older 40.0 remote ($20) which many people prefer to the new remote. It's larger but has more functions (like screen formatting) that only requires the use of one (* for screen formatting ) button to change. The "folders" issue is something of a hot button and we can only hope that Dish will listen to what many folks are saying.

 

[Brodieb]

I believe the Hopper's hard drives are really 3 partitions - one for users recordings, one for on demand, and one for Prime Time Anytime. The missing GBs are probably being used by on demand and PTAT.

 

[Scherrman]

I just got my Hopper 3 and 4K Joeys installed. Everything works great; however, there are some usability issues and features that worked better in the old ViP DVRs:

1- Changing picture format (Normal, Stretch, etc...) takes several clicks on the new remote, whereas it used to be simply a click of the * button which doesn't exist on the new remote. Is there a shortcut?

2- When you change picture format, ie from Normal to Stretch, the Hopper 3 does not remember that selection. The ViPs used to store that selection for the different types of channels. That is for example Normal for HD channels and Stretch for SD channels then you never have to change it again. In the Hopper 3 it is not sticky, it always reverts back to Normal. There is no setting to make it remember it.

3- Netflix is not yet active. It says February 11.

4- The DVR recordings are always in Folders for the same shows, no setting to give you the choice of Folders or no Folders. That used to be user selectable on the ViPs.

5- The specs say it has a 2TB drive, but that is not all usable. The free space on mine was 1.231TB. So either the disk is smaller than advertised or there is 769GB of other stuff already taking space on the disk.

Thanks,
Fadi

No receiver gives you 100% of the hard drive space. There are settings saved and space reserved for PTAT along with other things.

 

[Fadi C.]

Thanks all. Any advice on making stretch format sticky? My item #2. Thanks.

 

[bnewt]

was initially going to switch from a 2 HWS & 1 wireless joey system to the H3 & 4K joey, but after seeing some of the comments, it looks like that would almost be a step backwards except for the 4K ability.
With such an impressive piece of equipment, why would Dish move backwards on simple things like the recording light, new remote but convenience buttons omitted, shrinking the guide, not being able to disable the banner?

 

[Hall]

I believe the Hopper's hard drives are really 3 partitions - one for users recordings, one for on demand, and one for Prime Time Anytime. The missing GBs are probably being used by on demand and PTAT.

When the first Hopper came out, it was believed to be set up like that. When the networks started suing over Autohop, Dish combined the PTAT and user recordings into one partition. Along with making Autohop not on by default (the customer has to "initiate" the Autohop function), these were done so Dish could tell a judge that it's the customer who is doing most of the work in wanting to skip commercials.

 

[Brodieb]

was initially going to switch from a 2 HWS & 1 wireless joey system to the H3 & 4K joey, but after seeing some of the comments, it looks like that would almost be a step backwards except for the 4K ability.
With such an impressive piece of equipment, why would Dish move backwards on simple things like the recording light, new remote but convenience buttons omitted, shrinking the guide, not being able to disable the banner?

It is well worth the upgrade even with the few items you mention. The new UI will soon roll out to older Hoppers so the guide you are used to will be gone. The recording light (to me) is negated by the 16 tuners - you should be able to watch live TV no matter what is recording. The remote has a few odd choices but feels great in the hand and works very well. And I would bet the banner becomes something that can be turned off in a future update if enough people complain about it. Is it perfect? No but it is a very nice DVR and well worth the upgrade from a Hopper 2k or HWS.

 

[Dudleydog73]

You can pair your old 40.0 remote to the H3 if you really wanted to keep the old school buttons you already know by muscle memory. I prefer the new remote, but there are always options

 

[khemka]

I just got my Hopper 3 and 4K Joeys installed. Everything works great; however, there are some usability issues and features that worked better in the old ViP DVRs:
2- When you change picture format, ie from Normal to Stretch, the Hopper 3 does not remember that selection. The ViPs used to store that selection for the different types of channels. That is for example Normal for HD channels and Stretch for SD channels then you never have to change it again. In the Hopper 3 it is not sticky, it always reverts back to Normal. There is no setting to make it remember it.

It is sticky it for SD channels. So if you set "stretch" for any SD channel, it will remember for all SD channels. If you set a format for a HD channel, it will reset to normal when you tune away from it

 

[ralfyguy]

It is sticky it for SD channels. So if you set "stretch" for any SD channel, it will remember for all SD channels. If you set a format for a HD channel, it will reset to normal when you tune away from it

It doesn't work like that on mine. When I stretch an SD channel, it remembers that setting for a while. But when turned off and back on, it forgets that setting. This setting was always remembered on my 722 non k.
Edit, I guess after U303 arrived it works now. Before it didn't. It also didn't work on the Joey.

 

[Tron2012]

4- The DVR recordings are always in Folders for the same shows, no setting to give you the choice of Folders or no Folders. That used to be user selectable on the ViPs.

Are you confusing folders and show icons here? I understand your idea that multiple episodes are combined into one show icon, but that's not really a folder per se. Folders are different, you create and save recordings to them.

I understand that this may be user preference, but Dish finally got it right. And better not change it! In the old UI you never had the ability to group shows into one icon for all when viewing in the my folders view. View all (and by title/genre I believe) was the only way to see one show icon then open that to a list.

Now you have one icon for each show title and any multiple episodes are in a nice list once you open it. Both in a user created folder and in the main, no folder view if that's where you want to save them. I cringed in the old UI because as a family we had a LOT of recordings and used the "My Folders" option to try and maintain sanity. It was icon hell when I was busy for weeks and couldn't get to shows then in my personal folder would see seven icons for this one show, six icons for another show, and so on.

 

[Fadi C.]

Even after the new U303 firmware, the Stretch settings is remembered when the hopper 3 or 4K Joey are turned off, but... it is not remembered after a reboot. Since a reboot still seems to happen every night around 3 AM, the next day the Stretch format is forgotten and returns to Normal for SD channels regardless what it was before. I tested it with a deliberate reboot, and it gets forgotten.

Also, on my Hopper 3, when you first turn it on it goes to the Home screen, not the last channel it was on. This is very annoying since you always have to press Back or Cancel (depending which remote you are using 40.0 or 52.0). My wife is totally annoyed by that.

 

[xfoneguy]

Are you confusing folders and show icons here? I understand your idea that multiple episodes are combined into one show icon, but that's not really a folder per se. Folders are different, you create and save recordings to them.

I understand that this may be user preference, but Dish finally got it right. And better not change it! In the old UI you never had the ability to group shows into one icon for all when viewing in the my folders view. View all (and by title/genre I believe) was the only way to see one show icon then open that to a list.

Now you have one icon for each show title and any multiple episodes are in a nice list once you open it. Both in a user created folder and in the main, no folder view if that's where you want to save them. I cringed in the old UI because as a family we had a LOT of recordings and used the "My Folders" option to try and maintain sanity. It was icon hell when I was busy for weeks and couldn't get to shows then in my personal folder would see seven icons for this one show, six icons for another show, and so on.

Speaking of "the way it used to be" - is there no way to set up a timer for a program that doesn't exist yet? I know there way. I tried this with a program that I saw advertised - when I got to "not found" there was no where to go. There seems to be some functions missing with the new UI.

 

[xfoneguy]

Are you confusing folders and show icons here? I understand your idea that multiple episodes are combined into one show icon, but that's not really a folder per se. Folders are different, you create and save recordings to them.

I understand that this may be user preference, but Dish finally got it right. And better not change it! In the old UI you never had the ability to group shows into one icon for all when viewing in the my folders view. View all (and by title/genre I believe) was the only way to see one show icon then open that to a list.

Now you have one icon for each show title and any multiple episodes are in a nice list once you open it. Both in a user created folder and in the main, no folder view if that's where you want to save them. I cringed in the old UI because as a family we had a LOT of recordings and used the "My Folders" option to try and maintain sanity. It was icon hell when I was busy for weeks and couldn't get to shows then in my personal folder would see seven icons for this one show, six icons for another show, and so on.

I never used my own "custom" folders with the old Hopper and UI but I could swear that I had episodes grouped together under one "icon" or tile - but - it was an option that could be changed back and forth at will. I don't see the problem with allowing that as the same - an option. Also, it appears that with the new UI, once you put programs into a folder, you're stuck with that. It's a huge pain if you change your mind. I can find no way to remove an individual existing program from a custom folder,

 

[n0qcu]

I never used my own "custom" folders with the old Hopper and UI but I could swear that I had episodes grouped together under one "icon" or tile - but - it was an option that could be changed back and forth at will. I don't see the problem with allowing that as the same - an option. Also, it appears that with the new UI, once you put programs into a folder, you're stuck with that. It's a huge pain if you change your mind. I can find no way to remove an individual existing program from a custom folder,

The option is there but when I tried it the recording I moved from the custom folder to the "no folder" disappeared fortunately I was going to delete it anyway

Edit: checked later and it was where I moved it to.

 

[Tron2012]

I never used my own "custom" folders with the old Hopper and UI but I could swear that I had episodes grouped together under one "icon" or tile - but - it was an option that could be changed back and forth at will. I don't see the problem with allowing that as the same - an option. Also, it appears that with the new UI, once you put programs into a folder, you're stuck with that. It's a huge pain if you change your mind. I can find no way to remove an individual existing program from a custom folder,

It was an option. You had the group by title, genre and then the my folders option. And in anything other than 'my folders' view you had the one show icon with all the recordings listed once you selected the main icon (also showed a number on it with the number of recordings saved). If in the My Folders view that's where it would list EVERY recording as one icon which was horrible to have to sort through.

Not trying to come down on you as I know this is user preference, but honestly how many times would you really keep putting things in a customer folder that you did not want to put them in? Meaning, if on occasion by accident a timer had a custom folder set as the place it was storing it and you had to move it out., but not as a daily thing.

To move out it's not a big pain either. Just press the Options or red button in the folder or screen where the recording is, select Manage Recordings, select the recording(s) you want to move, then move to the No Folder option or whatever folder you want (on the right side of the screen it is option #4 I believe). If you never use custom folder then all this should be moot as you simply have all the recordings on one screen.

Again, user preference but over time if you had 10 shows with maybe 6 recordings of each show, looking at 10 icons is waaaay better than having to look and sort through 60 (plus all the other individual recordings that will probably be there, too) if they were all listed as individual icons!
(4- The DVR recordings are always in Folders for the same shows, no setting to give you the choice of Folders or no Folders. That used to be user selectable on the ViPs.)

 

[xfoneguy]

It was an option. You had the group by title, genre and then the my folders option. And in anything other than 'my folders' view you had the one show icon with all the recordings listed once you selected the main icon (also showed a number on it with the number of recordings saved). If in the My Folders view that's where it would list EVERY recording as one icon which was horrible to have to sort through.

Not trying to come down on you as I know this is user preference, but honestly how many times would you really keep putting things in a customer folder that you did not want to put them in? Meaning, if on occasion by accident a timer had a custom folder set as the place it was storing it and you had to move it out., but not as a daily thing.

To move out it's not a big pain either. Just press the Options or red button in the folder or screen where the recording is, select Manage Recordings, select the recording(s) you want to move, then move to the No Folder option or whatever folder you want (on the right side of the screen it is option #4 I believe). If you never use custom folder then all this should be moot as you simply have all the recordings on one screen.

Again, user preference but over time if you had 10 shows with maybe 6 recordings of each show, looking at 10 icons is waaaay better than having to look and sort through 60 (plus all the other individual recordings that will probably be there, too) if they were all listed as individual icons!
(4- The DVR recordings are always in Folders for the same shows, no setting to give you the choice of Folders or no Folders. That used to be user selectable on the ViPs.)

Thanks for the info - I guess I didnt dig deep enough as I though for some reason I couldn't move programs out of a folder. As for the one view you mentioned - I would probably never use it as it would leave a terribly cluttered screen - I was just noticing that another option seemed to be gone It's possible that someone might use it .....

 

[xfoneguy]

It was an option. You had the group by title, genre and then the my folders option. And in anything other than 'my folders' view you had the one show icon with all the recordings listed once you selected the main icon (also showed a number on it with the number of recordings saved). If in the My Folders view that's where it would list EVERY recording as one icon which was horrible to have to sort through.

Not trying to come down on you as I know this is user preference, but honestly how many times would you really keep putting things in a customer folder that you did not want to put them in? Meaning, if on occasion by accident a timer had a custom folder set as the place it was storing it and you had to move it out., but not as a daily thing.

To move out it's not a big pain either. Just press the Options or red button in the folder or screen where the recording is, select Manage Recordings, select the recording(s) you want to move, then move to the No Folder option or whatever folder you want (on the right side of the screen it is option #4 I believe). If you never use custom folder then all this should be moot as you simply have all the recordings on one screen.

Again, user preference but over time if you had 10 shows with maybe 6 recordings of each show, looking at 10 icons is waaaay better than having to look and sort through 60 (plus all the other individual recordings that will probably be there, too) if they were all listed as individual icons!
(4- The DVR recordings are always in Folders for the same shows, no setting to give you the choice of Folders or no Folders. That used to be user selectable on the ViPs.)

And how about moving existing recordings from one folder to another? I think that's what I was trying to do....

 

[xfoneguy]

And how about moving existing recordings from one folder to another? I think that's what I was trying to do....

I think I found it - you just have to open the folder before selecting OPTIONS. It's called "overlooking the obvious" LOL