Which WD EHD is better?

[KKlare]

Some possible wrong thoughts:

The EHD is useable even with the bug. So you might as well get started. Just follow the advice to not play off the end of the recording nor to stop the playback. Just DVR out. Fix soon.

The DVR usage is not hard as it is only used to archive, unlike a 211 where it would be giving you rewind and skip back/forward while viewing continuously.

The Dish recordings only require a 5400 rpm drive for full usage. They do not make use of more speed. Potentially less heat.

By the time you need the warranty you will not find your receipt.

The "Free Agent" model has had a problem with sleep mode. If not disabled it will lose connection. If still enabled it will run more. Most suggest WD drives, although I have 3 other 1TB models (1 raw) vs 5 750GB WDs and 1 1.5TB WD raw.

-Ken

 

[inazsully]

I'm wondering what good a warranty will do you if you EHD takes a dump. They may replace it but not likely fix it so you'll lose whatever you have recorded. I would rather have a drive with a proven track record than one with a longer warranty. FWIW Costco automatically doubles any products factory warranty. You're talking a $100 replacement price compared to a warranty that still won't replace the programming you've lost.

 

[yaz96]

Well, I bought the 1.5TB WD Elements yesterday and it seems that this model is perfect for the Dish 722. Installation could not have been easier. I plugged in the power cord and the USB wire Then I called the number indicated and a recorded voice asked me if I wanted to install a new DVR or a EHD. When I said EHD I was asked if it was OK to charge $39.99. I said yes and I was told the EHD is ready to go. A screen popped up telling me that the EHD was being formatted and several minutes would be needed (15 for the 1.5) and the DVR would reboot automatically. It worked perfectly. For those who do not know this, in the next step you go to menu, then Multimedia. You are then led to USB storage then select My Media. Item 1 is labeled Manage Device which brings up the list of programs on your EHD. You highlight the recording you want to watch and select the recording just like off the 722 recording list. Item 2 is labeled Send to Device. This brings up your DVR's recorded list, you then highlight the selected recording and the choices of what to do include selecting Archive. This transfers the recording to the EHD. A message come up telling you how long it will take and would you like to switch back to watching TV. When the transfer is complete a short message pops up telling you it's done. You can also watch one recording while transferring another.
I don't know if the Essential is any better of faster but with the Elements there is no "smartware to delete and the Elements is cheaper. The 1.5 Elements is on sale at Fry's throughout this week for $99.99. So far I have transferred 8 of the "Life" episodes as well 5 concerts, 8 hours of boxing, and 6 movies. It's fast and easy and I highly recommend the WD Element

Sure would have been nice if you would have put the price info in the EHD Bargain Watch thread last week. I just paid 89.99 for a 1tb Elements drive. :rant:

 

[inazsully]

Lots of people could have done that. At least I put it in this post. The price was good for the entire week that I posted. They have that price quite often.

 

[radtech]

[QUOTEI have been reading this thread with interest, since I will be adding an external hard drive to my VIP 722K once the delete 'bug' has been confirmed to be fixed. Anyway, price is less of an object to me than warranty. Simply put, I'd rather spend $20 or $30 more and get a drive that has a 3 or 5 year warranty. Especially since dvr service will beat these drives to death.

That said, I have noticed that the Seagate 'Free Agent' models seem to have a 5 year warranty. They also have a 7200rpm spindle speed, which should make them pretty fast. Has anyone had success with one of these? I'm thinking of getting the 1.5 Tb or the 2 Tb. Are there any other drives you can suggest with the longer warranties?][/QUOTE]

OK, so I went ahead and purchased the WD Elements 2tb drive on sale last week from Fry's for $129. I installed it today and so far all is good. After it was formatted and activated, it was recognized as 1.81tb, which is what my pc saw it as too. As a starter, I just transferred about 10 hours worth of programs. I will keep you all posted if any issues come up.

Thanks for the advice,

Ed

 

[MikeD-C05]

I have the 722k and the latest software L 661, and I can tell you I haven't lost any programs on my external hard drive, since I got it last week. I think it is fixed.

 

[Tomboy257]

I've been peeking in and out of this thread for awhile now because i think I want to add DVR service to my 211. But I'm not sure of its value. After arciving (is that right?) a program what next? If I've recorded every episode of "Lost", do I then spend all winter watching them? And then what? Start over with "24"? I can't transfer them to DVD, right? I did the VCR thing years ago just so I wouldn't miss those programs that were on different channels at the same time. Is that why I need a DVR now? And if so, why would I need one that is 1TB in size?

 

[howie14]

I've been peeking in and out of this thread for awhile now because i think I want to add DVR service to my 211. But I'm not sure of its value. After arciving (is that right?) a program what next? If I've recorded every episode of "Lost", do I then spend all winter watching them? And then what? Start over with "24"? I can't transfer them to DVD, right? I did the VCR thing years ago just so I wouldn't miss those programs that were on different channels at the same time. Is that why I need a DVR now? And if so, why would I need one that is 1TB in size?

With the 211, you only have one DISH tuner and one OTA tuner. You can watch DISH while recording OTA, watch OTA while recording DISH, or watch something on your DVR while recording both DISH and OTA.

I use it mainly for time shifting and watching commercial free. With a large enough EHD, though, you actually can keep things archived indefinitely for future viewing. I have several entire NFL games on mine.

I've never had any problem transferring anything I recorded to my DVD recorder yet. Of course, they aren't in HD anymore once I do that.

 

[inazsully]

[QUOTEI have been reading this thread with interest, since I will be adding an external hard drive to my VIP 722K once the delete 'bug' has been confirmed to be fixed. Anyway, price is less of an object to me than warranty. Simply put, I'd rather spend $20 or $30 more and get a drive that has a 3 or 5 year warranty. Especially since dvr service will beat these drives to death.

That said, I have noticed that the Seagate 'Free Agent' models seem to have a 5 year warranty. They also have a 7200rpm spindle speed, which should make them pretty fast. Has anyone had success with one of these? I'm thinking of getting the 1.5 Tb or the 2 Tb. Are there any other drives you can suggest with the longer warranties?]

OK, so I went ahead and purchased the WD Elements 2tb drive on sale last week from Fry's for $129. I installed it today and so far all is good. After it was formatted and activated, it was recognized as 1.81tb, which is what my pc saw it as too. As a starter, I just transferred about 10 hours worth of programs. I will keep you all posted if any issues come up.

Thanks for the advice,

Ed[/QUOTE]
So far I've had the WD Elements 1.5 for about a month with nary a single problem. All of "Life". entire season of "24", seven "IN Focus", at least a dozen movies and concerts. It's great. Now if Thursday nights would not have four shows on at the same time that I want to record>

 

[Tony S]

I recently purchased a Western Digital Elements 1TB External Hard Drive (WDBAAU0010HBK-NESN). I have transferred about 400GB to the drive and have had absolutely no problems. Previously, with my other EHD, I had been having the 'delete a show after watching it' problem. So far, with the new Western Digital Elements EHD nothing has been erased!

Based on my experience I would highly recommend it!

 

[inazsully]

This week at Fry's Electronics, WD 1.5TB EHD $89.99. Perfect for USB port DVR's