I believe that U204 has been released to some customers. In any case, I will be terminating my Dish service in a few days as soon as I decide between DirecTV and Comcast. Here's what happened.....
The tech arrived and he was very nice and very knowledgeable. He told me from the start that he was keenly aware of the multiple recording fiasco that I was dealing with. It turns out that the Super Joey is NOT compatible with a Hopper that has the CUI installed. And apparently Dish cannot figure out how to resolve the problem. He said that, as field technicians/installers, they are aware of many issues before it becomes generally known, including the customer service reps, etc. It may be a few weeks before this issue is well known among them all.
So he arrived knowing that another HWS would not solve the multiple fake timer recordings. So he came equipped with the HWS that was ordered by the phone guy last night. He also came with a Hopper 3 and also another HWS. He was prepared to install any of these three options. The Hopper 3, of course, would have solved the problem along with a standard Joey (instead of a Super Joey). There is no compatibility problem with the standard Joey.
The problem was customer service. The installer explained that this was going to be my 5th Hopper in the past 15 months, etc., but customer service refused to give me much of a deal. He tried to arrange for free installation of the H3, with no 2 year agreement because of the circumstances surrounding my situation. The best CS would do was to bill me only half of the $150 installation fee and I'd also have to agree to a new 2 year agreement.
The only other option was installing a secondary Hopper to replace the SJ and work along with my current Hopper. But they insisted I'd have to pay an extra $5 a month for it. I told them that I was not going to pay anything extra every month as a result of their technological incompetence. I'm on a fixed income, have been having horrible experiences for months with all these Hoppers -- and they want ME to pay extra to get things working properly again??? I think not.
So I advised that I will reluctantly be switching either to the Geni or Xfinity as my only options. The installer felt bad that I was treated this way and said he's seen them give $300 waivers in the past and that they were losing a customer over a mere $5 a month. One of the reps I first spoke with had spoken about the $5 waiver for 10 months and I asked if they could make it for 12 months. She put me on hold and I was then connected to a higher level rep who consulted with his supervisor -- and they would not even allow the $5 waiver for the original 10 months.
So, it almost goes without saying that I am saddened, surprised and very disgusted with Dish Network's customer service, especially with all the turmoil I've been through with their equipment. But I clearly cannot continue watching this HWS change channels in front of my eyes as yet another unplanned timer activates and begins recording against my wishes. And I'm sure as hell not going to pay them more every month just to get the service that I'm already paying for.
So, in a nutshell, I'll sit & relax over the weekend and then start contacting Dish's competitors next week and replace them as my TV service. My Mother, at my urging, has been with Dish since 2003. I have a feeling that she'll end up following wherever I go. LOL
In any case, there DEFINITELY IS a known compatibility issue that causes these unwanted recordings. And Dish isn't yet sure what to do about it.
Thanks again to everyone for their help & comments.
Sad to be leaving, but I don't see much choice in the matter.
