Why is Dish shutting down the 721?

[Stargazer]

If they would have sent me a 508 in place of the 721 I would have told them to piss off. Everyone else is getting 522's which are much better and have the dual tuner. They do waive the DVR fee and they waive the phone line requirement fee too so even if it is an additional receiver on your account, they dont charge you if you leave the phoneline unhooked. You get 100 hours of recording time on the 522. The 508 gets you 60 hours and the 501 gets you 30 hours. The 625 gets you 150 hours but they will NOT send you one of those in place of the 721. I tried and failed. You will get NOWHERE with these guys. The only thing I got was a free 722 upgrade in addition the 522 (a $75 fee waived) for the hassle.

 

[STDog]

If they would have sent me a 508 in place of the 721 I would have told them to piss off. Everyone else is getting 522's which are much better and have the dual tuner.

721 is dual tuner, so you get a dual tuner replacement.

7200 is a single tuner, so he got a single tuner replacement.

James,
The 508 is a fine receiver. I've had my 501 late 2003 and few complaints. hose were mostly software update issues.
The interface is different, but that's not always bad. Not sure why the picture quality would be any different. Maybe it an issue with you're friends cables/display.

Drive sizes:

• 501: 40G
• 508: 80GB
• 510: 120GB

And the 501/508 can be upgraded to larger drives, though it's not a simple swap. You need the right brand and model drive and need to initialize the disk properly.

 

[Bob Haller]

Ahh my 721 WORST E BOX EVER! Thanks primarily to half baked unfiinished software.

Had 5 here at one time couldnt get any to work, found out the new box software wasnt compatible with my switch setup. reboots grew to 7 minutes, most memorable was the box that started the mess wife entered a gazillion cooking show timers, the software didnt have a limit, but if you exceeded 70 some the box went into ENDLESS REBOOTING.

once the number of timers dropped the box began working again.

if you look back my opinion of E dropped dramatically at that time. I FLAMED THEM DESERVEDLY FOR THE MESS

returned all the refub boxes, and ended up getting rid of the 721

my 522/625s have worked pretty good since.

that 721 experience has discourraged my even considering upgrading to another box.......

it was that bad.

for awhile i bypassed my switch and ran cables thru doggie door, just trying to wach the start of new season.

a local E dealer refused to sell me a LNB saying i wasnt his customer then said 175 bucks for a twin. i drove across town and got one for under 30 bucks brand new. oh yeah they sent two replacement boxes to my MOVED address, which happeed to be a customer of mine. 2 hour drive each way

theres more but the 721 was the low point of my being a e sub..

heck with the legacy dishplayer they had a good excuse, it was brand new technology. the 2nd generation 721 was just a bad dream

 

[JayStil]

I should've searched the inter-t00bz before calling the 800 number. :/ This thread would've been handy if I had seen it prior.


I got 'the postcard' the other day, warning my old, tried-and-true 7200 would be shut down 'soon' if I didn't call and upgrade. I called.

I got the 'free' upgrade (well, still in the mail to me), and it'll supposedly be a 508. Argh. My brother has one of those, it is pretty crummy... flakes out a lot. My old 7200 has been rock solid (I know that's not everyone's experience, but mine was great!). I'm worried now. This 508 is nearly as old as my 7200, and has the ugly interface, and to my eye, the picture quality is not as good.

The guy said 'your bill will not change, but you will not own the 'new' receiver'. So, apparently, the deal is that if I quit or upgrade to something newer, I have to send back the 'new' one. Fine, no skin of my nose.

Sheesh, I imagine I'll be upgrading to one of the new hot-dog receivers in the near future. What a PITA.

For the record though, it's Feb 9, 2009, and my 7200 works perfectly still. All the channels are still there, and it still records things fine. I'm in Houston, Tx.

I'm also upset that I'll surely lose recording capacity in this new one. My 7200 has a 80G drive in it that I put in. I don't think the 5xx's have as much, but I may be wrong (hoping I am). My brother's machine doesn't seem to have much capacity, so that's what I'm going by.

Oh well, wish I'd have read this thread and 'complained' a little more on the call, maybe I'd have gotten a newer 'free' receiver in the process.

I took the bait a couple of months ago. If you had a 80gb drive in your Dishplayer, you'll get more or less the same recording time with the 508. The 2 biggest disappointments for me after switching were losing the unlimited pause buffer and the lack of program info on the guide screen. With the 508 you need to press the "info" button to see the program info. About doubles the time it takes me to surf through channels searching for something to watch. The UHF remote and DishPass feature are improvements from the 7200. It's more or less been a wash, but I still miss the 7200's sometime.

 

[navychop]

I loved my 721, although 6 of them passed thru my home. Performance was excellent, but reliability was lacking. My 508, though rarely used, is just fine, but did not hold a candle to the 721, feature wise.

When the 721 was "retired" I took the opportunity to move up to a second ViP722 at a good deal. This meant I had to replace my 27" bedroom SDTV with a 52" HDTV, a year or more ahead of schedule! DARN the bad luck!

 

[SRW1000]

Just another monthly update, my 721 is still fully functional.

Scott

 

[j8.]

hi guys i kinda got lot info on this 1st off i feal its a big rip off from dish replcing owened ricevers with lease ones. it made me real mad. i love the 721,921,942s i was told from dish about 1yr ago they be discontining them but also was told they will still work but wont be able buy them no more.. so i went out bought 5 of them cause of the liking so much . anyways ive been with dish for about 5-6 yrs allways ran these recivers. i got the dretened letter saying no pic and they told me it will be all black screen sometime in aug 2009 .for these recivers. im pissed off i called dish more than i could remember talked to everyone frm a to z ive been fighting with them for months about this. finaly i got a deal with them there giving me a 622 aLL HD PHONE LINE FEES waved.. for 100 bucks my cost and i will own the reciver. also i can keep my old 721/921 . my grip wat this i recently signed a package deal 2 yr contract with them internet and phone satalite include , also been paying that insurance fee.. i told dish when i started with u guys i owened all stuff and when i signed the 2yr contract i owed stuff also why have 1 been paying the insurance fee if reciver will not get a pic its broke in my book not my falt your disconting them . if u buy a product from stote even if its discontinued it still work.. or if it wont they replacve it with deffrent item no charge.. i feal u guys are breaking contract etc etc 2rep even agreed with me.. also said ill be contacting fcc and beter busness burual wich i did and was told i had a case.. well anyways i seteled owning 1 for 100 bucks hope this may help others

 

[j8.]

Just another monthly update, my 721 is still fully functional.

Scott

yes they still work and dish will let u add 1 but till augest in aug it will be a good door stop/ boat ancor the h- drive is kinda big gueess u can use it in a pc..

 

[thiggin2]

hi guys i kinda got lot info on this 1st off i feal its a big rip off from dish replcing owened ricevers with lease ones. it made me real mad. i love the 721,921,942s i was told from dish about 1yr ago they be discontining them but also was told they will still work but wont be able buy them no more.. so i went out bought 5 of them cause of the liking so much . anyways ive been with dish for about 5-6 yrs allways ran these recivers. i got the dretened letter saying no pic and they told me it will be all black screen sometime in aug 2009 .for these recivers. im pissed off i called dish more than i could remember talked to everyone frm a to z ive been fighting with them for months about this. finaly i got a deal with them there giving me a 622 aLL HD PHONE LINE FEES waved.. for 100 bucks my cost and i will own the reciver. also i can keep my old 721/921 . my grip wat this i recently signed a package deal 2 yr contract with them internet and phone satalite include , also been paying that insurance fee.. i told dish when i started with u guys i owened all stuff and when i signed the 2yr contract i owed stuff also why have 1 been paying the insurance fee if reciver will not get a pic its broke in my book not my falt your disconting them . if u buy a product from stote even if its discontinued it still work.. or if it wont they replacve it with deffrent item no charge.. i feal u guys are breaking contract etc etc 2rep even agreed with me.. also said ill be contacting fcc and beter busness burual wich i did and was told i had a case.. well anyways i seteled owning 1 for 100 bucks hope this may help others

!sadroll

I know I sure missed my 721. They replaced mine with a 522 that I had to get replaced twice.

 

[j8.]

!sadroll

I know I sure missed my 721. They replaced mine with a 522 that I had to get replaced twice.

well i aruged i feal better but not totaly i cant see how alot peeps see how its a good deal the upgrade its ripp off in my book more peeps should call / complane

 

[Stargazer]

Tell me if you get anywhere with the FCC on this. I would like to take action as well if you are able to get something accomplished. I also feel that it is wrong to be forced to take a leased receiver in place of an owned receiver.

 

[STDog]

I also feel that it is wrong to be forced to take a leased receiver in place of an owned receiver.

Again, you are not forced to take the leased receiver. You just won't be able to use the one you own with Dish Network's services anymore.
Go to DirectTV, or even BUD with a 4DTV receiver.
I've got lots of old equipment that is no linger usable, particularly consumer electronics. My Nokia 5125 phone. And try finding a SVHS VCR, or even a decnt laser disc player, never mind new media for the.


Again, be glad Dish is offering fre use of a new receiver. They are not legally obligated to do so.

 

[j8.]

Tell me if you get anywhere with the FCC on this. I would like to take action as well if you are able to get something accomplished. I also feel that it is wrong to be forced to take a leased receiver in place of an owned receiver.

well star senencve i made a deal with them im not going any father less they fall threw i there part.. try doing what i did start bitching, ask 4 someone in loyalty department. ill tell u it was not easey and time consuming but least ill own it now.. fees waved etc .. we acatly shouldf make thread see how many peeps are mad about it get enough names show this to dish or something let em know how many peeps mad/ riped off.. my opion only i cant even see how legel it is for them to do this my case i signed a package deal with 2yr comentment plus insurance ive been paying so i had more to bitch about

 

[STDog]

J8, they would have let you use the leased receiver, with no lease fee and no DVR fee, and you just kept the old, obsolete receiver. That would complete the contract. You get continued service for no extra costs, and you still own the property you actually purchased.

 

[Joe99]

Lease Fees

This is my first post and I want to begin by thanking everyone here for all of the information that I have received in the past by just reading posts. So thank you.

I am writing today to those who have participated in the "Discontinued Receiver Program". I have 5 receivers that fall under this program: one 721, one 7200 and three 7100 models.

With these receivers I do not pay any DVR fees and I do not want to start.

My question is about the "free" nature of the program. I understand that if I accept the replacement receivers that Dish is offering I will not have to pay for them, but they will be leased. All of my current receivers are owned by me.

So, I pay additional receiver fees of $5 for each of the receivers after the first one.
When Dish says that there will be no lease fees on the replacement receivers does that mean that I will not pay the additional receiver fee, which I believe is for owned receivers, and that I will not pay a lease fee on the replacement receivers? Hard to believe, unless Dish is saying that in exchange for closing down the receivers that I paid for I can use one of their receivers for free.

The main problem that I have with the program is that Dish is offering a 508 for each of my 7100 models and my 7200 model. I understand that it is a single tuner for a single turner, but the difference in the interface alone is enough for me to consider it a downgrade. For those of you who have given up a 7100 or a 7200, have you been able to get something other than a 508? Is there another single sat tuner model that I could ask for?

One last question, is it correct that Dish will give you a $10 credit for returning the old receivers and, if so, how long do you have to do so and who pays for the shipping?

Thanks in advance for any help.

 

[STDog]

Joe, I believe both were answered in earlier posts in this thread.

 

[Stargazer]

You are FORCED to take the leased receiver if you want to continue to watch programming in the room that the 721 existed in otherwise your service in that room will be shut off. That is pretty hard to swallow when you have to pay $550 for it. Now if it was a cheaper receiver like $100 then it wouldn't be so bad. I don't understand why the receiver is not able to take the new card when receivers older than the 721 are quite capable of accepting the new cards. They should have swapped owned receiver for owned receiver.

 

[Smith P.]

It's sort of open platform - all system located on disk and could be inspected freely. Same for 921, Dish swallow it for a few years, but now they find a good reason to kill the two models.

 

[j8.]

J8, they would have let you use the leased receiver, with no lease fee and no DVR fee, and you just kept the old, obsolete receiver. That would complete the contract. You get continued service for no extra costs, and you still own the property you actually purchased.

well st thats why i was mad its a ripp off when u get a leased reciver in place of a owned one .. like i stated after fighting with them for so long i now have a 622 for 100 bucks all feeses waved and i own it now its not leased i was also told i can keep old stuff but if u think about it what good is that i gueess h-drive be good for a pc is about it or a boat anchor/ door stop.. The contact is new ive been with dish about 6yrs now at fist i was only getting dish recitly i comited to a contract for package deal threw phone co / interner for 2yrs

 

[j8.]

well there keeping the older recivers on like 3800 3900 2700 for examble. my opion is that law suite with tivo is why thre doing this they lost so much money with suiet and are forced to discontinue certain recivers, also i could be wrong but ive heard dish lost so much money with case and this new hd stuff did not take off like they wanted is another resson. there just so greedy now its not funney.. But again its not coutemers fault why take it out on threre coustmers>> also i just got anothyer call last night i spoke to a rep in higher office the deal with the so called free upgrade fees he said for this upgrade will be only for 1yr he said after 1yr all will need pay fees.. But again who knows i had times i got 4 derrent ansewres off dish with same exact question lol.. after 6yrs with them, also i mod at a satalite site between doing both ive heard seen alot..