SBS Korea Takedown October 1, 2005

[SummitAdvantageRetailer]

Since you updated, I'll update too. Glad you got DirecTV to get your SBS back though your troubles with TiVo is more in adjusting to it than less functionality. TiVo assumes many things to make it simple so if the program is not structured with distinct info in the program, I can see how the TiVo can screw up the recordings. The R15 from this forum and others have gotten bad press over its many bugs. It has a few enhancements but we've yet to get a R15 from our distributor so I'm not sure what the real-world experience is like.

And if you don't like the interface of the TiVo, you can download other software to make it "better". That's probably one of the key reasons why TiVo is so popular in that like Xbox video game machines, you can mod them to do a lot of other things. But TiVo namely has had the key "Named-based recording" that DISH DVR's only recently added.

Now with regards to MBC, it's very, very close to coming. It's more of a legal issue than anything. It's literally 99% certain that MBC will come to DirecTV and should happen very shortly.

 

[SummitAdvantageRetailer]

Stay tuned to the uplink reports every week for possible new Korean channels on DISH Network that may uplink and made available shortly thereafter.

 

[bomool]

The dealer told me that DirecTV will start broadcasting MBC starting in December.
I will probably stick with Dish Network but take down two current dishes and upgrade it to SuperDish and subscribe a basic package that includes KBS for $31.
And then add another dish for DirecTV for basic 50 channel ($9.99) + SBS/YTN ($14.99) with one Tivo receiver ($99 with $100 rebate).

I am curious to find out how things are going for you. Do you get both SBS and MBC on D*? How are the qualities? How do you like the standard Tivo DVR? How did you hook up 2 separate satellites to your TV? ANT1 and ANT2? I find hassle to change ANT input on my TV so I wonder if there is a workaround/trick that you might want to share to make this easier on "technically challenged" wife?
Thanks for any input. :

 

[tru64ufs]

Feedback

Hi.
No MBC yet, but very close.
I found SBS quality is much better on DirecTV than Dish.
YTN is OK.
Tivo is colorful, but as far as functionality, I don't think it is better than Dish DVR.
I have lots of complain. I called DirecTV about all these, but they simply blame Tivo.
Guide display doesn't show if shows are to be recorded or not.
There are lots of space for that but it doesn't show the particular information.
Season pass doesn't simply work on SBS. I think it is SBS's fault.
If it I set them to record only "first-only" shows, it will record all duplicates since SBS doesn't include those information for their programs.
So some shows will be recorded three times a day.
And default season pass will not keep more than 5 shows, so if you are away for more than a couple of day without changing the option, older shows will be deleted.
Why there is no default template that I can change default settings so next time I set up season pass, I would simply press button without going into deeper setting to change those options.
Beside other complain I listed above article, when I push "Pause", it shows a progress bar at the bottom and cannot remove it, so if I pause to see what's written at the bottom the letters are hidden behind the progress bar. So I need to go back and hit "play" it to see those. Lots of SBS or Korean show programs displays descriptions or comments at the bottom.
And guide fonts are really small.
And there is no automatic "All subscribed" channel list. There is a channel list called subscribed, but you need to manually set up all channels.
And Dish DVR has four or five favorite channels, so we set up one for me, one for my son, and one for my wife. And changing them between them is really easy.
Well on top of the fact that DIrecTV only has one favorite channel list except subscribed, changing between them is a pain. Maybe five or six key punch at the remote.
I can go on and on. There seems to be more options for customization, but none for what I want.
Well we have set up DirecTV in first-floor living room and moved DIsh DVR to the second floor. So switching is easy.
As far as some tips on Tivo.
I have not found anything that will change font size or other GUI.
Only thing I could add was to add "timestamp and clock" at the bottom right hand corner, and change "catch-up" button to "30 second skip"
Tivo doesn't have 30 second skip or some other type of forward skip. All you have is 1,2,3 speed forward. And the speed is too slow, so if you need to skip forward to about 1 hour mark in 2 hour program, you may easily fall asleep doing that.
I know there are ways to change the back/forward speed, but they are only for older version of Tivo firmware.
ps. I wonder why there is no "Oh God", "Ha-neul-i-si-yeo" on SBS.

I am curious to find out how things are going for you. Do you get both SBS and MBC on D*? How are the qualities? How do you like the standard Tivo DVR? How did you hook up 2 separate satellites to your TV? ANT1 and ANT2? I find hassle to change ANT input on my TV so I wonder if there is a workaround/trick that you might want to share to make this easier on "technically challenged" wife?
Thanks for any input. :

 

[bomool]

Hi.
No MBC yet, but very close.
I found SBS quality is much better on DirecTV than Dish.
YTN is OK.
Tivo is colorful, but as far as functionality, I don't think it is better than Dish DVR.
I have lots of complain. I called DirecTV about all these, but they simply blame Tivo.
Guide display doesn't show if shows are to be recorded or not.
There are lots of space for that but it doesn't show the particular information.
Season pass doesn't simply work on SBS. I think it is SBS's fault.
If it I set them to record only "first-only" shows, it will record all duplicates since SBS doesn't include those information for their programs.
So some shows will be recorded three times a day.
And default season pass will not keep more than 5 shows, so if you are away for more than a couple of day without changing the option, older shows will be deleted.
Why there is no default template that I can change default settings so next time I set up season pass, I would simply press button without going into deeper setting to change those options.
Beside other complain I listed above article, when I push "Pause", it shows a progress bar at the bottom and cannot remove it, so if I pause to see what's written at the bottom the letters are hidden behind the progress bar. So I need to go back and hit "play" it to see those. Lots of SBS or Korean show programs displays descriptions or comments at the bottom.
And guide fonts are really small.
And there is no automatic "All subscribed" channel list. There is a channel list called subscribed, but you need to manually set up all channels.
And Dish DVR has four or five favorite channels, so we set up one for me, one for my son, and one for my wife. And changing them between them is really easy.
Well on top of the fact that DIrecTV only has one favorite channel list except subscribed, changing between them is a pain. Maybe five or six key punch at the remote.
I can go on and on. There seems to be more options for customization, but none for what I want.
Well we have set up DirecTV in first-floor living room and moved DIsh DVR to the second floor. So switching is easy.
As far as some tips on Tivo.
I have not found anything that will change font size or other GUI.
Only thing I could add was to add "timestamp and clock" at the bottom right hand corner, and change "catch-up" button to "30 second skip"
Tivo doesn't have 30 second skip or some other type of forward skip. All you have is 1,2,3 speed forward. And the speed is too slow, so if you need to skip forward to about 1 hour mark in 2 hour program, you may easily fall asleep doing that.
I know there are ways to change the back/forward speed, but they are only for older version of Tivo firmware.
ps. I wonder why there is no "Oh God", "Ha-neul-i-si-yeo" on SBS.

Thanks for your input. Oh well - after hearing all that, I wonder if I should "reconsider" ditching DISH completely. As far as cabling, did you have to run another coax to accommodate two satellite feeds OR was there a magic splitter that transport both signals over the same coax? My installer for DISH gave me diplexer (?) that carries both satellite signal and OTA signal over one coax and that works great. So it would be great if I can add D* signal to it as well. If not, I will have to ditch someone as I can't see myself pulling another coax from the attic to the main outlet.
I just wish there was a Korean dish provider (TAN, KISB, etc.) that has all 3 channels (KBS, MBC, SBS) with easy to use DVR. That would win me over!

 

[tru64ufs]

DirecTV

Well, I needed to run two more coax for DirecTV.
(Tivo can record two shows at the same time).

My recommendation is to wait until everything is settled down.
Then either move to DirecTV completely or remain in Dish.

If you get both at the same time, too much trouble.

Thanks for your input. Oh well - after hearing all that, I wonder if I should "reconsider" ditching DISH completely. As far as cabling, did you have to run another coax to accommodate two satellite feeds OR was there a magic splitter that transport both signals over the same coax? My installer for DISH gave me diplexer (?) that carries both satellite signal and OTA signal over one coax and that works great. So it would be great if I can add D* signal to it as well. If not, I will have to ditch someone as I can't see myself pulling another coax from the attic to the main outlet.
I just wish there was a Korean dish provider (TAN, KISB, etc.) that has all 3 channels (KBS, MBC, SBS) with easy to use DVR. That would win me over!

 

[stevelite]

Stay tuned to the uplink reports every week for possible new Korean channels on DISH Network that may uplink and made available shortly thereafter.

Anxiously waiting.. Pls keep us updated. Thanks. !sadroll

 

[SummitAdvantageRetailer]

Update:

It's looking more and more like the new Korean channels on DISH will come around January than in December. Also, you should see another $10 monthly credit if you still have Korean Basic or Korean Variety Packs. That's because of the lack of new channels in December.

No news on D* but supposedly it's up to MBC to sign the last contract and let D* carry it. So we can see MBC either this month or next. Very, very soon. Plus a new DirecTV KoreanDirect package to launch, with SBS, MBC, and YTN. I guess YTN will not be free preview when this package launch.

 

[tru64ufs]

Think twice about switching to DirecTV

Hi, folks.
It's been sometime since I added DirecTV SBS package.
You may remember my complains about Tivo.
I am beginning to think that this was a bad move.
I can never get use to Tivo. ONE biggest thing that bugs me is that there is no free disk space indicator so I just cannot figure out how much I can record in near future.
Two days ago many of shows I recorded (not yet seen) went away without any warning. I only had about thirty shows recorded (averages about 40 hours). I am guessing 30 hours free space left. But some shows were deleted. Each season pass I need to set how many shows to keep and when it is supposed to be deleted (without) warning. If I set to "keep until I delete", new shows will not be recorded.
How is it so difficult to put free remaning space indicator in there?
Controlling Dish DVR as opposed to Tivo makes a world difference. Everything is so easy and intutive. My Dish DVR has about 50 shows recorded and 50 hour remaining. setting up weekday recording for a particular show is so easy.
I have complains against Dish DVR but nothing like against Tivo.
Since name based recording never works for SBS (part Tivo and part SBS problem) we constantly need to delete re-run recordings (remember most shows have two three re-runs a day, news being notorious).
I called DirecTV, and they only blame Tivo and SBS. Nothing is their fault. When I asked this question, he said "oh it is Tivo".
Now I am only keeping about 20 shows and we need to bookkeeping the recorded show many times a day.
Remember we never watch live programs.
One more important thing about SBS. I though I watched SBS more than KBS. It actually turns out that I only miss "X-man" and "Yashimmanman". All other shows we don't watch. Dramas comes and go. So now we spend more time watching free KBS shows (I upgraded to Superdish so KBS is in the basic package).
So at this point, I am stuck with SBS with two years (I didn't know DirecTV has two year mandatory contract with free installation and Tivo).
Does anyone know how to bail out on DirecTV without paying hundreds of dollars at this point? (I think I can sell Tivo on ebay).
So, really think twice about switching to DirecTV.

 

[SummitAdvantageRetailer]

I've gotten similar complaints of customers defecting to D*. I haven't had issues of people complaining of DVR problems per se but rather that the program offered on the Preferred Choice and Basic Choice has very little to be watched. Many customers preferred Top 60 on DISH over DirecTV's Preferred Choice, both around $30 each.

You may change your mind about DirecTV once they get more channels like MBC but we'll definitely know what the Korean subs want when D* gets MBC and E* get other secondary channels mentioned earlier.

 

[SummitAdvantageRetailer]

Update:

DISH Network will most likely issue 2 more $10 monthly credits to those who have Korean Basic and Korean Variety Packs. This may be a sign that the new channels coming to DISH are being delayed. But in any case, if you have either of these packages, look forward to 2 more $10 monthly credits come mid Jan. and mid Feb.

 

[bomool]

So, really think twice about switching to DirecTV.

Sorry to hear about your D* experience. I have been anxiously waiting for MBC to be on D* so I can sign up - so your candid input is very much appreciated.
I used to (still have the machine) use ReplayTV with cable and I thought Tivo's user interface was similar to ReplayTV. My experience was the opposite - when I switched to Dish DVR (921), I really missed ReplayTV (name recording, commercial skip, etc.). Also the buggy software on 921 drove me nuts! But now I am used to it and the software seems stable.
I agree that SBS itself is weak - if D* adds MBC, then I will jump. I talked to my dealer (Southern California Korean dealer who recently signed up as D* dealer - used to be only E* dealer) and they are waiting for MBC to be on as well to launch their marketing program.
I just want SOMEONE to carry all 3 stations with a nice DVR functionality! Hey maybe we can create a web service where we "push" SBS/MBC/KBS entertainment program to local "ReplayTV"s - I know there are many OpenSource programs that move back and forth programs between PCs and ReplayTVs. I would pay $20/month for that service - wouldn't you?

 

[tru64ufs]

Replay

Well I did some comparison research long time ago, and the consensus is that ReplayTv is superior in almost every respect. Tivo is all marketing.

Once you get Tivo, upgrade your Tivo with additional hard drive so that you don't have to worry about Tivo constantly deleting your shows.

If you like hacking, there are a number of books on Tivo hacking. I am just too tired of doing that for TV.

Sorry to hear about your D* experience. I have been anxiously waiting for MBC to be on D* so I can sign up - so your candid input is very much appreciated.
I used to (still have the machine) use ReplayTV with cable and I thought Tivo's user interface was similar to ReplayTV. My experience was the opposite - when I switched to Dish DVR (921), I really missed ReplayTV (name recording, commercial skip, etc.). Also the buggy software on 921 drove me nuts! But now I am used to it and the software seems stable.
I agree that SBS itself is weak - if D* adds MBC, then I will jump. I talked to my dealer (Southern California Korean dealer who recently signed up as D* dealer - used to be only E* dealer) and they are waiting for MBC to be on as well to launch their marketing program.
I just want SOMEONE to carry all 3 stations with a nice DVR functionality! Hey maybe we can create a web service where we "push" SBS/MBC/KBS entertainment program to local "ReplayTV"s - I know there are many OpenSource programs that move back and forth programs between PCs and ReplayTVs. I would pay $20/month for that service - wouldn't you?

 

[leejp]

Got the Superdish 121 upgrade...

I sat on this one for awhile... Like a fool I've been paying $37/month for the Korean Variety Pack even after the SBS takedown when I was only watching KBS. Who watches ArirangTV anyway?

So $60 for the Superdish 121 upgrade. I cancelled the Korean Variety Pack since gets KBS included with AT60 subscription if one has the Superdish 121.

Everything went very smoothly... I called up 2 days ago and scheduled for this afternoon. The new dish is bigger but it replaces 2 dishes. CS didn't give me a hard time about cancelling... overall a very pleasant experience.

I did voice a strong complaint regarding their Korean Programming. The pricing seems to be ridiculously high compared to other international packages. I may pick up MBC is that deal ever happens but for now I'm satisfied with my "free" KBS.

 

[SummitAdvantageRetailer]

Update:

BTN - Buddhist channel according to my sources
ongamenet - Gaming channel according to my sources

It's uplinked now and you can see the channel numbers here: http://www.satelliteguys.us/showthread.php?t=53168&page=2

There's also rumor of programming price and package changes coming very soon. Stay tuned.

 

[Sarang]

Jeez I THOUGHT Dish would be smart enough to keep it the same since they lost two of the major channels. If they're SMART they'll lower it but I doubt that's gonna happen.

 

[SummitAdvantageRetailer]

Update:

There will be ONE Korean language package called Korean Variety Pack on 2/1/06. The price will be $24.99. Subs that have the Korean Basic Pack will be grandfathered and will need to change their programming to the Korean Variety Pack if they want it for $24.99.

Korean Variety Pack channels

-KBS World
-Arirang TV
-JSTV
-Wow TV
-BTN (new)
-ongamenet (new)

More channels as mentioned previously are still in negotiations therefore not ready to come to DISH just yet. The other big news is that the BTN and ongamenet will ONLY be on the wings and NOT on the SuperDISH121 orbital slot.

 

[Sarang]

Update:

There will be ONE Korean language package called Korean Variety Pack on 2/1/06. The price will be $24.99. Subs that have the Korean Basic Pack will be grandfathered and will need to change their programming to the Korean Variety Pack if they want it for $24.99.

Korean Variety Pack channels

-KBS World
-Arirang TV
-JSTV
-Wow TV
-BTN (new)
-ongamenet (new)

More channels as mentioned previously are still in negotiations therefore not ready to come to DISH just yet. The other big news is that the BTN and ongamenet will ONLY be on the wings and NOT on the SuperDISH121 orbital slot.

Wow this is truly a shock considering 121 has always been the slot International programming has been filled up on so are we talking 61.5 and 148 here because I really don't feel like having to shift it round to 148 when I wanna watch HBO-HD and Showtime HD without a sh!tty bitrate.
I'd care about ongamenet if they talked about Korean PC and import PC, non-FPS regularly but since it's a game competition channel it sounds stupid. I will say the price change is kind of pleasant though everything but Arirang and KBS World sounds like crap. I look forward when they at least bag m-net and KMTV, now if only they could offer both in HD since I could care less about the U.S. talentless hacks parrading around MHD.

 

[Korean_Dude]

Frankly, whoever is in charge of the Korean channels should be fired. Their belief is that we want to watch the Jesus channel, the Buddist channel, weather, and news? There is no way I'm paying for that. It's insulting that they ask us to pay anything. I wouldn't watch these channels if they were free.

 

[bomool]

Does anyone have any current status of MBC coming to either D* or E*? It's painful to wait any longer - if neither one is stepping up, then I might have no choice but to sign up with either TAN-TV or KISB. Any thoughts? I will simply hook up a DVR and send IR signal to change either TAN-TV/KISB setup box channels and do manual programming/recording. Arrrggghhh.... Come on D* or E* - someone get it right. Please.