meauxna

Does anyone here have Dish or DirectTV service and a DVR? Do you have only one TV?
If yes, how do you rate it.. do you think it's a valuable extra to have? Would it be worth $25 to you? What if you were a notorious cheapass like me?

Dish has a promotion on now to give me what I have now, plus a DVR (and its $6/mo fee) for the same price as I have now (god this kills me---$50/mo!). The price is only fixed thru Jan 09.

Here's the catch that made me ask my Q. When I called to place my order, they're going to charge me the discounted price of $25 for the DVR receiver. I never took the free one they were giving when I first signed up. I think they should give me a free one now! New customers get a free one, why not your good customer who has been with you for years?

I've never even used/seen a DVR & don't know if it's worth it with just the one TV. It's not like I could record one thing and watch another at the same time, is it? The only thing prompting me to get it is that you can't record from the dish with the VCR anymore. They scramble the signal, or something nefarious, daily, so if I set it to record in the future, it only records the Dish splash screen.

Anyway, thoughts?

Moonshadow_Girl

Get it! Get it fast! See if they'll give it to you for free...

I used to have Dish, but moved and my new place doesn't allow a dish to be affixed to the complex. I really miss my DVR. I also only had one TV. The best thing is being able to set to record only new programs in a series (no repeats), or all if you like. The great feature with one TV is that you can use the picture in picture feature (not useable with 2 TVs)-great for flipping back between programs and sports. I also enjoyed the repeat and pausing live TV feature (stopping or rewinding if I happened to get a phone call or to answer the door).

No, I am not an employee of Dish or any other type media company.

Good luck and happy recording!

MG

Pharrya

We have DirecTV and have had the DVR for about 6 months. And it's great. I tend to record stuff that comes on at 4 o'clock in the morning and watch it at a proper time.

Oh but you can, and I do. Provided you have a compatible dish with a dual cable coming from it, that is, so it functions like a double tuner.

I tend to be a cheapskate too, and it's six bucks a month very well spent....

sime303

I don't have a dish (too many tall pine trees) but I do have a DVR with my cable, I have found this beats the old VCR hands down. I can record 2 shows at a time and watch another already recorded, setup series recording I never have to remember when a show is on (if they change times, has happened), also rewind or pause live tv (great for a smoke break and then FF through adverts) and it will also look for the same show across many different channels (this works great for the Family Guy for example). I would recommend it if the dish DVR's work like this.

Knight

We got Dish in the middle of January with the DVR and I think it's fantastic. The small monthly charge is worth what you get, imo. When we signed up we opted out of the 18 month contract and had to pay $50 activation. We didn't get charged for any equipment however. Even if we had to pay $25 for the DVR box, I'd have gone for it.

I'm sure if you talk to them, they'll waive the fee. You might just have to do a little haggling first.

I'd never used anything like it before either, but even with one TV it's very good to have. Mine acts as a dual tuner so you can either record one show and watch another, or record two shows and watch something stored on the box. With a single TV you can also have Picture-in-Picture. I think that feature is kind of pointless, but it's there. The Dish DVR also lets you pause live tv for up to 2 hours (even if you're recording to the DVR, it's a seperate recording function). This allows you to pause the show you're watching, and even rewind the show (for as long as you've been watching it, up to a max of two hours).

As for recording, my friend has a DVD recorder/player connected to his cable dvr and can burn recorded shows to DVD. I've not fully grasped how he's got it rigged up, but it is possible in some setups. I am sure you could find some information online when you have the make/model of your DVR box.

Overall, I say go for it.

component

Just don't get the HD DVR they are offering with DirecTV now - they had a spat with TiVo and are now conning their customers to "upgrade" to their crappy TiVo-a-like which really takes the biscuit in terms of difficulty of use, reduced functionality and all-round rubbishness in comparison to any other DVR I have used before.

As far as getting a DVR in general goes, DO IT! - your life will be changed by the experience and unless you are an HD DirecTV customer, that change will be for the better. I'm not bitter or anything.

Irn-bru

OH no question get a DVR! Its amazing. Its like going from a typewriter to a computer - you'd never go back.
I have mine with cable (the one they give you).

geeandtee

We're with DISH and I got the DVR for free, by just phoning up and asking for it, I told them a colleague of mine was with DirectTV and they had received a free DVR
Me being technologically challenged, it took me a while to figure out that I couldn't record one thing and watch something else However, it is great to be able to record things, fast forward through commercials, pause, etc. and it comes in handy if I happen to be out on a Saturday night (very rare, I know) and need to record Torchwood

bevinva

Get one! Only problem I have is now I can record all the things on at odd times that really interest me, I don't have enough time to watch them. Only downfall has been when watching sports and we pause for various reasons, some bugger will find a way to tell you the final score before you get to it.

Irn-bru

You can't with dish? Thats a shame I can with cable (sorry thats not helping you much!)
I agree starting watching your programme 15 mins in live and fast forwarding the ads is the most blessed relief (I hate ads!!)

AmerLisa

We have Direct TV and last year we bought a DVR, because we like to record on occasion. We have two tvs......but the upstairs one is primarily for young daughter (who doesn't watch it very often) and the DVR isn't hooked up to record while we watch another channel. That can be a hassle at times - but not enough to have someone come out and do it.

I personally like the DVR. If I'm watching a show and I've got to check on something, I can pause it......or if I'm watching something and don't feel like finishing it, I can record the rest of it. Also, we can program favorite shows and record all the episodes, especially if they come on during the middle of the night or during the day when we're at work.

AmerLisa

You should be able to record and watch.....you just have to have them come out and hook it up that way. We're too cheap to pay the extra charge.

Knight

If you just did a straight switch between the normal dish box and the dvr box yourself, then no, you won't be able to. You need to get a technician out to install the additional cabling so you can record while you watch.

meauxna

Wow, you guys are convinced and you've convinced me too. It sounds like we will get our use out of it!
Thanks for the feedback, all!

geeandtee

and I'm going to phone Dish to get that extra cable hooked up.
Thanks for the info, peeps