HDTV

[Jeebus]

Still, you have to pay $500.00+ upfront for something that will eventually be outdated? That seems like a high premium just for a service that is "marginally better".

[BWSchultz]

Still, you have to pay $500.00+ upfront for something that will eventually be outdated? That seems like a high premium just for a service that is "marginally better".

Well, the current $500 receiver will not be outdated soon. As the article implied, if you buy now, you'll be good for quite some time. It's the old HD receivers, like Red has, that are now obsolete for new HD programming. The new ones use mpeg4 standard.

As for "marginally better" it's certainly the opinion of the user. I had TWC for nearly three years here and their prices went up about 40% and their services or quality did not improve. Besides the latest news that TWC will be showing Rangers/Astros in HD, they have done very little in three years to improve their product. After using DirecTV, Tivo, and TWC DVRs there is no comparison. TWC is as reliable and has the same level of quality/sophistication as a VCR. I can't tell you how many times TWC DVR decided to not record a program because it felt like it.

But yes, I'll agree that DirecTV is more expensive because of the upfront costs on HD. You can either live with that or not. The monthly costs are about the same.

[RedScare]

Aside from paying an extra $500 for a new satellite receiver, you do not get local weather from the Weather Channel with DirecTV. However, as I've mentioned previously, the Over the Air antenna picks up local HD, as well as local weather on all 3 major network channels.

The storm that just blew through made it clear that I am better off with the OTA antenna than a new $500 receiver. While DirecTV could not find a signal through the storm clouds, my $60 antenna worked like a champ, and I was able to get non-stop weather from Channel 13. The flexibility of OTA and satellite, and saving $440, is worth it.

I don't use TiVo, so my wants and needs may be different from others.

[westguy76]

if direct tv wants people to lease their hd recievers now, why are they charging full retail price for them? because they can maybe....

i have a feeling they are leasing these things so when people hack them as they do, they have a way to go after them legally as it is not equipment the person owns. i may be grasping at straws just an idea.

is the benefit of leasing that they will upgrade or replace your unit when it becomes outdated?

[Trophy Property]

I don't use TiVo, so my wants and needs may be different from others.

I do not understand your caveman ways. Tivo / DVR is the bomb. Of course I am lazy and watch hours of TV a week. Skipping commercials is kick A.

[travelguy_73]

is the benefit of leasing that they will upgrade or replace your unit when it becomes outdated?

A few reasons:

-Americans seem to value 'small' monthly payments versus 'large' initial cash outlay. The fact that it could eventually a lot more in monthly payment doesn't seem to factor into the equation.

-Equipment breaks, and if you don't own it, the company will usually replace it at no cost.

-Finally, I think a lot of people are concerned about how quickly electronics become obsolete. I am probably not willing to spend $500 for an HDTivo when I can lease one for a couple of years (total $250) and then trade up to the next big thing.

[skwatra]

TWC is as reliable and has the same level of quality/sophistication as a VCR. I can't tell you how many times TWC DVR decided to not record a program because it felt like it.

I've had TW DVR for a couple years now. i've never had a problem, with it not recording a program. the SW has been updated a few times since i've had it, and the box i had originally was slow and sucked, but they came out with a new box within a month of when i got it, which i upgraded to for free.

the only issue i have is DVR is not very smart when things change. it will always record the Program i want it to, but if there is some breaking news or Presidential speach that pushes things back, the DVR doesn't figure it out. also if there's a game that goes to OT, it won't keep recording it. i've learned to always record the program after the game.

Does the DirectTV DVR figure this stuff out?

I've never had DirectTV in my home, but i've used it at friends. It seems less reliable, and slower between channels. though i have to admit i haven't used it in a while.

Also, TW just added WB HD as well.

[RedScare]

I do not understand your caveman ways. Tivo / DVR is the bomb. Of course I am lazy and watch hours of TV a week. Skipping commercials is kick A.

See, while you are laying around watching TV, I am out foraging for nuts and stalking my next meal. I have little time for watching television.

[skwatra]

that's why i got a DVR. so i can watch the shows i want during my next meal.

[BWSchultz]

See, while you are laying around watching TV, I am out foraging for nuts and stalking my next meal. I have little time for watching television.

See, that's the idea! By skipping commercials, you leave yourself with more time for hunting and gathering.

The DirecTV recordings are higher quality than TWC DVRs, without question. It still does have a few pet peeves of mine that TWC still had:

1) Say a show is on at 8pm and you start watching at 8:30. Now, even skipping commercials, you won't catch up by the time it's over. At 9pm, the DVR blips and goes live because the show is done recording. You now have to go back into the list and fast forward to where you are. This absolutely kills me when I'm trying to "catch up to live" on a show and I miss it by about 2 minutes. Then I have stop and fast forward for what seems like ages only to watch 60 seconds. The good news is that DTV DVR Fast forward is much faster than TWC. So you can get there quicker. From what I remember, Tivo Series 2 did not have this problem, seemlessly making the transition between live buffered program to previously recorded program.

2) Shows that run long, such as live events, NBA playoff games, National Spelling Bees... stuff like that. TWC and DTV can't figure that out so you could miss the end of something great. Don't remember if Tivo handled that.

From what I've seen so far, DTV DVR is more capable of finding a show if it switches nights or times. Another thing I really like about DTV over TWC is when a show you're recording is in progress, TWC will start you from live point and you have to rewind to the beginning - really bad for sports where you can catch a glimpse of the score. DTV starts you at the beginning so you don't have any spoilers.

The other big Tivo advantage: It could detect when commercials were over so if you pushed play roughly when the show came back, it would flip for a second and then start right on time meaning you had to watch zero commercials. TWC and DTV are more akin to trying to fill up you gas tank so it ends in a round number, say exactly $30 (the perfect pump from Seinfeld fame) - you could get lucky but more likely you'll be off by a few pennies. Thank goodness for the few seconds snap back button.

[Jeebus]

The DirecTV recordings are higher quality than TWC DVRs, without question.

I have a question: How are you measuring the quality of the two recordings to determine that DTV is infact recording at a higher quality than TWC?

[BWSchultz]

I have a question: How are you measuring the quality of the two recordings to determine that DTV is infact recording at a higher quality than TWC?

I don't measure anything... I use my eyes. TWC (standard, not HDTV) looked pixelated compared to the broadcast. For instance, I could walk into a room where someone was watching a standard definition program on TWC and IMMEDIATELY tell them if they were watching a recorded show or live broadcast. My feeling so far is that the two are nearly identical on DirecTV. That's all. HDTV could be different but I have no experience with that. Again, this is just what I see with my own two eyes.

[Jeebus]

What kind of TV do you have? I've noticed that since I've gotten a 42" plasma HD, that all standard programing looks pixelated & "smudged" compared to HD programing, recorded or not. I do partially blame this on TWC though.

I've also noticed that unless you're running a 1080p, you're going to get pixelation on all your programing as well. I only notice it on certain things however, like fast motion video or certain eletronic scoreboards that are being filmed.

[BWSchultz]

What kind of TV do you have? I've noticed that since I've gotten a 42" plasma HD, that all standard programing looks pixelated & "smudged" compared to HD programing, recorded or not. I do partially blame this on TWC though.

I've also noticed that unless you're running a 1080p, you're going to get pixelation on all your programing as well. I only notice it on certain things however, like fast motion video or certain eletronic scoreboards that are being filmed.

Ok, so we're looking at an apples and shoes comparison (worse than apples and oranges). I just have a standard definition 27 inch tv. Nothing fancy. Using the same cables and the same tv, I feel the directv recording quality is very close to standard broadcast quality. In other words, TWC degrades/compresses the recording more, or so it appears. But like you said, everything on a 42 inch plasma that isn't HD looks kind of crappy. One of the reasons why I don't have HDTV yet. More channels are coming but it's slow.