Current DirecTV customer looking for advice
 

Hello,

I am a current DirecTV customer with two DirecTV receivers. I'm
looking to get TiVo and I hoping someone here can let me know what my
best option is.

I see my two options are the DIRECTV DVR with TiVo or a standalone
Series2 DVR. Without any offers, the DIRECTV DVR is much more
expensive - and I already have the receiver anyway. I'm not worried
so much about recording time, because I probably would upgrade the
hard drive if I needed to.

What are the pros and cons of each? I would suspect that the DIRECTV
DVR with TiVo would be easier since there's no IR for channel
changing? But is it a waste of money (even with the extras like dual
recording) since I already have the receiver?

Walt

"Walt Schmidt" wrote in message
om...
Hello,

I am a current DirecTV customer with two DirecTV receivers. I'm
looking to get TiVo and I hoping someone here can let me know what my
best option is.

I see my two options are the DIRECTV DVR with TiVo or a standalone
Series2 DVR. Without any offers, the DIRECTV DVR is much more
expensive - and I already have the receiver anyway. I'm not worried
so much about recording time, because I probably would upgrade the
hard drive if I needed to.

What are the pros and cons of each? I would suspect that the DIRECTV
DVR with TiVo would be easier since there's no IR for channel
changing? But is it a waste of money (even with the extras like dual
recording) since I already have the receiver?

Walt

DirecTV DVR with Tivo (Series 2) ... all the way.

DTV DVR w/Tivo Series 2:
1. $4.99 / month (covers all DTV Tivos on your account)
2. Two tuners built in ... very useful for recording multiple programs
at the same time. I can't overstate this ... this is very useful.
3. The satellite data is stored directly to disk, so there is no
recompression required as there is with an SA Tivo. This means
a better quality picture than an SA Tivo hooked to a DirecTV
receiver.
4. Receives guide data from satellite
5. Dolby Digital

Tivo Series 2:
1. $12.99 per month per Tivo unit (or a lifetime fee ... $299??)
2. Single Tuner
3. Recompresses (quality level selectable) video from any source
4. Dolby Digital ... I am not sure ???????

Tom Veldhouse

"Thomas T. Veldhouse" wrote
DirecTV DVR with Tivo (Series 2) ... all the way.
DTV DVR w/Tivo Series 2:
1. $4.99 / month (covers all DTV Tivos on your account)

Just to be clear, that's the TiVo fee. You still have to pay $5 a month
for additional DTV receivers regardless of whether they have TiVo.


2. Two tuners built in ... very useful for recording multiple programs
at the same time. I can't overstate this ... this is very useful.

Even if you don't need to record two things at the same time (or so
you think), two tuners allows overlapping shows to be recorded.
This comes up when you have one show on 7:00-7:30 and another
from 7:30-8:00 on another channel. With only one tuner, you can't
pad extra minutes at the beginning and end of each show in case
the network decides to not show things at the even half-hour. (7:02-
7:32, 6:59-7:27, etc.)


3. The satellite data is stored directly to disk, so there is no
recompression required as there is with an SA Tivo. This means
a better quality picture than an SA Tivo hooked to a DirecTV receiver.
4. Receives guide data from satellite
5. Dolby Digital
Tivo Series 2:
1. $12.99 per month per Tivo unit (or a lifetime fee ... $299??)

Correct. $300 basically for a unit-lifetime subscription.


2. Single Tuner
3. Recompresses (quality level selectable) video from any source
4. Dolby Digital ... I am not sure ???????

No Dolby Digital.

In article ,
(Walt Schmidt) wrote:

Hello,

I am a current DirecTV customer with two DirecTV receivers. I'm
looking to get TiVo and I hoping someone here can let me know what my
best option is.

I see my two options are the DIRECTV DVR with TiVo or a standalone
Series2 DVR. Without any offers, the DIRECTV DVR is much more
expensive - and I already have the receiver anyway. I'm not worried
so much about recording time, because I probably would upgrade the
hard drive if I needed to.

What are the pros and cons of each? I would suspect that the DIRECTV
DVR with TiVo would be easier since there's no IR for channel
changing? But is it a waste of money (even with the extras like dual
recording) since I already have the receiver?

Walt


I was like you a year ago. I bought 2 DirecTivos (and paid more than the
$99 you can get them for now) and sold my 2 old Sony DirecTv units on
eBay.


DirecTv with Tivo is better because

(2 tuners - record 2 shows at once) Call DirecTv and they'll give you
new dish and install, or maybe charge $50.

Only $5/month Tivo program guide charge for 2 units, as opposed to 2
$12.95 charges for SA Tivos.


Only gotcha is if you don't get your local channels from DirecTv.

While strolling through alt.video.ptv.tivo, Walt Schmidt was overheard
plotting:

Hello,

I am a current DirecTV customer with two DirecTV receivers. I'm
looking to get TiVo and I hoping someone here can let me know what my
best option is.

I see my two options are the DIRECTV DVR with TiVo or a standalone
Series2 DVR. Without any offers, the DIRECTV DVR is much more
expensive - and I already have the receiver anyway. I'm not worried
so much about recording time, because I probably would upgrade the
hard drive if I needed to.

What are the pros and cons of each? I would suspect that the DIRECTV
DVR with TiVo would be easier since there's no IR for channel
changing? But is it a waste of money (even with the extras like dual
recording) since I already have the receiver?

Walt

I just got a DirecTiVo, dont hesitate.

If you have the Premium Platnium package there is no monthly Tivo fee
(of course the $5 per box mirror fee is still applicable.) Record 2
programs on different channels at the same time while wathching a 3rd.

There is no way to beat it IMO.

Since you already have DirecTv you should be able to enter code FFDVR
at the website and get a 35 hour unit installed for $99. Then you can
either upgrade it your self or pay $200 for a kit to increase capacity
to 144 hours.

Do Not hesitate. Are you still reading? What are you waiting for? ;)

--
David

Walt Schmidt ) wrote in alt.video.ptv.tivo:
I see my two options are the DIRECTV DVR with TiVo or a standalone
Series2 DVR. Without any offers, the DIRECTV DVR is much more
expensive - and I already have the receiver anyway.

Wait for a few weeks. DirecTV is going to start a major push to get DVRs
into the hands of all subscribers--both old and new. The price point will
be around $149 at the absolute worst, and likely to be $99.

--
Jeff Rife |
301-916-8131 | http://www.nabs.net/Cartoons/RhymesW...orkingDogs.gif

How about waiting for HDTV DTV/Tivo??

"SINNER" wrote in message =
. 130...
While strolling through alt.video.ptv.tivo, Walt Schmidt was overheard =

plotting:
=20
Hello,
=20
I am a current DirecTV customer with two DirecTV receivers. I'm
looking to get TiVo and I hoping someone here can let me know what =
my
best option is.
=20
I see my two options are the DIRECTV DVR with TiVo or a standalone
Series2 DVR. Without any offers, the DIRECTV DVR is much more
expensive - and I already have the receiver anyway. I'm not worried
so much about recording time, because I probably would upgrade the
hard drive if I needed to.
=20
What are the pros and cons of each? I would suspect that the =
DIRECTV
DVR with TiVo would be easier since there's no IR for channel
changing? But is it a waste of money (even with the extras like =
dual
recording) since I already have the receiver?
=20
Walt
=20
I just got a DirecTiVo, dont hesitate.
=20
If you have the Premium Platnium package there is no monthly Tivo fee=20
(of course the $5 per box mirror fee is still applicable.) Record 2=20
programs on different channels at the same time while wathching a 3rd.
=20
There is no way to beat it IMO.
=20
Since you already have DirecTv you should be able to enter code FFDVR=20
at the website and get a 35 hour unit installed for $99. Then you can=20
either upgrade it your self or pay $200 for a kit to increase capacity =

to 144 hours.
=20
Do Not hesitate. Are you still reading? What are you waiting for? ;)
=20
--=20
David

On Tue, 30 Sep 2003 20:31:13 +0000, Phill. wrote:

Only gotcha is if you don't get your local channels from DirecTv.

There are available for some (most?) for $5/mo.

--
Lenroc

In article ,
(Walt Schmidt) writes:

I see my two options are the DIRECTV DVR with TiVo or a standalone
Series2 DVR. Without any offers, the DIRECTV DVR is much more
expensive - and I already have the receiver anyway.

In most cases, the DirecTiVo is LESS expensive than the SA TiVo. The
price for a DirecTiVo at a B&M retailer is likely to be about $250, which
is the same as the price for the bottom-of-the-line SA TiVo, IIRC. If you
do some checking, though, you can find Internet retailers who'll sell
DirecTiVos for less. There's also a way to get one direct from DirecTV
for ~$100-$150, IIRC. It's something about a promotional code of "FFDVR"
on the Web page, but I don't recall the details. I've also heard rumors
of a massive new promotion in the next few weeks.

I'm not worried
so much about recording time, because I probably would upgrade the
hard drive if I needed to.

Keep in mind that DirecTiVos have a single recording quality, which
directly records the digital DirecTV stream. Thus, there's no loss of
quality. Programs typically consume ~1GB/hour, although this has gone up
and down in the past as DirecTV monkeys with its compression, and it also
varies depending on the channel and type of material. In any event, SA
TiVos re-encode the signal, so you'll lose some quality. Worse, the
consumer-grade MPEG encoders take more space to produce worse results. To
get ~1GB/hour, you'd need to record at the worst quality setting. To
record at higher qualities, you'll consume more space -- perhaps
~3.5GB/hour. Thus, upgrading a DirecTiVo will get you more "bang for the
buck" than upgrading an SA TiVo -- at least, unless you don't care about
your image quality.

I would suspect that the DIRECTV
DVR with TiVo would be easier since there's no IR for channel
changing?

Correct; IR blasters are a pain. If your current receivers have serial
control ports, though, you could use those with an SA TiVo.

But is it a waste of money (even with the extras like dual
recording) since I already have the receiver?

If you've got two receivers in one room (say, one for viewing and one for
use by a VCR), you might want to consider decommissioning both of them in
favor of a single DirecTiVo. That way your monthly DirecTV bill will
remain the same -- you'll pay $5/month for TiVo and no mirroring fees, vs.
$5/month in mirroring fees and no TiVo fees. (If you subscribe to the
Total Choice Premiere tier, the TiVo fee is waived, so your monthly fees
would actually go down in this situation.) You could keep your receivers
as backups or sell them on eBay. Combined, they might pay for half or more
the cost of the DirecTiVo.

If your two receivers are in different rooms, chances are you'd retire
just one of them and your monthly bill will go up $5/month. This compares
to a $13/month increase if you get an SA unit.

All in all, the advantages of a DirecTiVo substantially outweigh those of
an SA TiVo. The main downside of the DirecTiVo is that it can't record
over-the-air signals. This is most important if you get your locals OTA
or via cable TV. If so, the SA starts looking better, but you might want
to look into getting waivers or even "moving" as a workaround. DirecTiVos
also don't yet support TiVo's Home Media Option (HMO) features. IMHO,
that's not a great loss, but if you really want those features, it's
another minus for the DirecTiVo.

--
Rod Smith,
http://www.rodsbooks.com
Author of books on Linux, FreeBSD, and networking