tivo or directv dvr?

[3390]

i've been debating whether to get tivo or directv dvr. i've had directv satellite for many years and i'm thinking of upgrading to their dvr receiver.

i heard the directv dvr doesn't allow you to set a specified time to record, but it can record two programs/channels simultaneously. tivo allows you to set a specific time to record, but it can only record 1 program/channel at a time. since i have the chinese programs/channels, their on-screen guide is always off. sometimes they are early/late by a few minutes or as long as 10-15 mins, sometimes the name of the program change way after the start of the program, sometimes a program is completely finished and a new show has repalced that time slot, but directv doesn't even change it to reflect the new new name. in these cases, i think it would be a problem if i used directv's dvr since they count on the title to record.

[Faustus]

Depends on which DTV DVR the basic one does one channel at a time only. The one with dual tuners can but you have to have two CAbles from the Sat on the roof to the box for it to work and pay for the 2nd connection. (few bucks a month). You CAN set a specfic time to record by the way and it gets its program info directly from the Sat. itself so its kinda cool.

The TIVO on the hand has far FAR better content management because of the way it work, its (for lack of a better way to put it) object oriented. But there are special steps to make one work with DTV or Dish.

My suggestion? Go with whats cheaper. Does DTV charge for their currently? (I'm not sure) but TVIOs are on sale for cheap cheap cheap right now.

[funnel71]

TiVos also allow you to do features that the satellie receiver does not, such as linking to a PC. TiVos are also easier to hack (for features, not service)

[neomaine]

Why not the best of both worlds with a DirectTivo?

[Denvers Dawgs]

Why not the best of both worlds with a DirectTivo?

I agree. Although Directv now has it's own DVR setup, I believe if you ask for the directv tivo DVR they still have to give it to you (they're still under contract with tivo until late 06' or 07' I believe)

[3390]

yeah, i'm aware that a 2nd cable needs to be installed in order to record 2 channels at the same time, which is not a problem for me. i think it's only $5 a month extra..

what is a directv tivo? i never heard of that. i've only heard/seen a directv dvr.. if directv's contract with tivo ends within this year or next year, that means they would not support any tech issues, right? can someone tell me what it is, how it works, etc?

ok.. directv's dvr allows you to set recording at a specific time? i spoke to a cs rep a few months ago and she told me that it must be set by program title, program catagory, etc, but not by a specific time. what type of input and output connections are there, on the directv dvr?

[funnel71]

I was referring to the DirecTivo when I was doing my comparison. I'm not sure what the future holds for DirecTivo, but when I formerly used it, I noticed:

TiVos offered units with DVD burners in them, DirecTivo did not
TiVos offered software for linking to PCs, DirecTivo did not
Although both units can be hacked (again, for features, not service), TiVos are typically easier to mess with than DirecTivos

[Denvers Dawgs]

I was referring to the DirecTivo when I was doing my comparison. I'm not sure what the future holds for DirecTivo, but when I formerly used it, I noticed:

TiVos offered units with DVD burners in them, DirecTivo did not
TiVos offered software for linking to PCs, DirecTivo did not
Although both units can be hacked (again, for features, not service), TiVos are typically easier to mess with than DirecTivos

Totally agree here. I for one do own the series 2 tivo. I upgraded (installed and 160GB harddrive from weaknees, and now my 40hr tivo is now somewhere like 160hrs (estimate can't check tivo at the moment)

My grandmother just got a DVR from comcast (they contracted tivo for the box setup). Although it use the same tivo software the interface/menus are not nearly as clean/easy to navigate as the original series 2.

[nord117]

Is there any way to dump my now showing files from my DirecTV TiVo onto my PC?

[Denvers Dawgs]

Here what I have turned up on TiVO Community Forum about Directivo to PC so far

You'll need a video capture card of some sort, and then you'd simply play the show, and record in real time on the PC. Time consuming, and expensive (for good quality).

[thevoelk]

I connected my settop dvd recorder to it and use that. Works well.

[oldandinthe way]

I believe the DirectTV charge is $4.95 per month for any of their DVR boxes. To record two programs simultaneously, you need 2 LNBs from your dish.

Most of the latest Dishes they install have 3 LNBs and standard deals are up to 4 TV sets so 2 Dishes are included if needed in their standard deal.

It is my understanding that unless you get your DVR from DirectTV, the satellite tuner is not integrated and you have to engage in kludgery

[TBoneit]

DirecTivo is a two tuner that only records from DirecTV service. Tivo series 2 can record from cable, antenna, or from your DirecTV box. But it will cost more per month for the service from Tivo, And since it always must encode you'll get lesser quality than from a DirecTivo that does a straight dump of the Satellite data to the hard drive with no encoding.

Best answers for questions about the DircTivo Pros/cons vs the other DirecTV DVRs would be found at either www.dbstalk.com or www.dbsforums.com whhich deal with the DirecTV specific DVRs or for a more general Tivo forum go to http://www.tivocommunity.com/

Persoanlly I'd probably go with a DirecTivo for dual tuners and no quality hit and least cost per month. Unless you also wanted to record OTA/Cable signals.

[nord117]

I guess I'll just use the DVD Recorder option until DirecTV comes out with their TiVo To Go later this spring/summer. Thanks to all for the info!

[TBoneit]

If DirecTv comes out with the Tivo to go it should just be a software upgrade that gets downloaded as I understand it.