Any problems with your DirecTV HR20?
By Erik Hanson 
posted November 10th 2006 12:21PM
posted November 10th 2006 12:21PM
JJ over at PVR Wire has an interesting article up about the quirks and problems people seem to be having with their recently-released DirecTV HD PVR, the HR20. It's the satellite company's MPEG-4-based box which has enabled them to begin shifting customers to the lower-bandwidth codec and hopefully alleviate some of the problems they seem to have with getting enough space for all those HD channels -- without turning others off, of course. The product was launched nationwide just about two months ago -- beta test launches notwithstanding -- so customers have had a chance to mess around with their units and get familiar with its features. Or, perhaps they're doing too much messing around, as the article mentions all the problems and complaints about the device. As Ben will tell you, it's no TiVo, but it should do as well as any other cable or over-the-air box, right? Among the issues mentioned on blogs and forums are freezing and crashes, slowness, and general interface problems.Are our readers having the same problems? Is it just people who don't know one end of the remote from another? Or are we expecting too much from a new (to DirecTV anyway) product and technology launch? Let us know.
nah, I think, they released it to early... beta tests should include the LOCAL device tests BEFORE release...
Well, I've had mine for a few weeks, and while I'm not doing any extreme tests on it, recording just a few shows, and using it for interactive NFL Sunday ticket features, I am really not having any problems. Takes some getting used to in skipping commercials compared to Tivo, but it's not terrible. I am also using a Component video hookup, not HDMI, and it could be that issues others have are HDMI related.
I've had this box for about six weeks. I originally had a problem where it would freeze at the start of playback of a recorded show but that problem seems to be fixed now. My major grip is that the box doesn't support OTA broadcast even though the Box clearly advertises it does. But overall I have to say I'm happy very happy with it considering I get MPEG-4 DVR capabilities, the new Sunday ticket features are nice too.
piil, I agree with you! seems like they've made a thing that works when they try it once, not in different situations...
I have had mine for several weeks and use it extensively. Aside from sometimes slow HD channel tuning and the horribly slow 3x fast forwarding, I have had absolutely no problems with the unit. The picture quality is awesome and the interface isn't as bad as I thought it would be, and that's coming from a longtime Tivo user.
I've been using Tivo from DTV for over 3 years and that is pretty reassuring to hear... it seems like the condition of my HR 10-250 HD Tivo has gotten worse since the 6.3 software upgrade. If it dies, I guess I will be getting an HR20 (not to mention that HD Locals are coming to my area by the end of this year).
Had my HR20 for two months with the normal early adopter issues. A lot of people weren't prepared for the experience of such a new piece of hardware, but I expected it. In general very satisfied. Of course there have been hiccups but nothing catastrophic. I think the PVR Wire review was overly negative compared to my own experiences. Also there are several folks over at DBStalk.com who are extremely helpful in diagnosing probems.
The interface as a whole isn't better than TiVo, but it's much better than the Scientific Atlanta cable boxes my cable company deals with. Definitely usable.
But the bot has SERIOUS issues, not the least of which being MPEG4 decoding, the box just can't handle it. When reading off the HDD in playback only it freezes and pixelates after around five minutes of play. You then have to stop playback and start it again. It's a bad workaround. This is localized only from playlist items. Live MPEG4 display works great. OTA isn't enabled yet which would cure this issue for HD locals. Fast forward can best be subscribed as "buggy", although they say that will be fixed in upcoming patches. The video processor isn't great and when it upsamples 480i to 720p or 1080i it's very blurry.
There's no doubt about it, this is still a beta unit. It functions, but requires a reset at least once a day. (I'm on my third replacement unit.) The boot process takes 10 minutes sometimes as well. Of course DTV csr's aren't always informed of the "known issues" so everytime I call in with a bug they try to send me a new box. I've had to reformat many times as well.
The bottom line is that it's a functional box. If you have an HR10, do not upgrade. You can get most HD locals OTA. Of course it could be worse, it could be an SA8300HD.
DTV must have been under major pressure to get this thing to market because it was released way before it was ready. Glitches galore, freeze-ups, self-deleting recordings, video problems via HDMI, remote control functions randomly not working, etc etc.
DTV is going to start losing customers to cable pretty soon if they don't get the basics working consistently...
I'm not even sure it's all software. Something like not being able to handle real-time MP4 decoding could be a processor or memory problem, couldn't it?
I have been using the hr20 for about 2 months now, and after extensive testing and fiddling have experienced only very minor problems. I have only had to reset a couple times, and both of those were before the latest update. The no OTA is still annoying but that should be fixed eventually. Fast forwarding definitely has some issues, especially in a program that is still recording, however speed of changing channels and picture quality in SD are better then its predecessor. As soon as DTV allows use of OTA and unlocks that ethernet port I think it will be well worth the upgrade.
I've had mine for about a month, and it keeps deleting shows I've already recorded without warning. It also forgets to record scheduled stuff. Sometimes it'll record something, but only the first few minutes of it.
Sometimes when I start to watch a recording, the unit will freeze and I have to reset it and re-download all my guide data (and that takes three days).
Sometimes I'll watch a live show or a recording, and the sound will stop working.
Sometimes I rewind and it'll go past the beginning of the show, into stuff I've already deleted.
Sometimes the stupid thing just reboots by itself for no reason.
A lot of times I'll watch something, and the sound doesn't match the lips.
Decent interface. Poor performance. Data loss on four seperate occasions. Data loss is unacceptable for a device of this type.
It ain't no tivo.
I've had some problems with mine. The 3X FF is very touchy, and sometimes when I hit rewind it jumps back 3-5 min before it starts to do any rewinding.
HD channels lose video signal very often. Almost every week during Lost it cuts to black 4-7 times during the hour. I also get audio glitches on HD feeds, a sound that resembels an audio cable being inserted halfway into a input before going in all the way.
not to happy with the unit. direct tv said they know about the issues, and want to format the Hard Drive before replacing the unit.
I've had mine for nearly two months, and in the beginning, it would freeze up often, and present a black screen rather than recorded programs. It was impossible to release the black screens, so the recordings were lost. Removed the B-Band converters (not needed until 2007 when the launch all those HD channels) and switched to component from HDMI, did a reformat, and since the Oct. 21 software download, box is working. Still get regular audio/video dropouts on MPEG4 channels (MPEG2 works well). They have a new software release coming, but it's causing some early problems with West Coast subs (reported in www.dbstalk.com), so not sure if the rest of the country will get it. I don't want it, since mine is working, but the downloads are forced and unavoidable. Oh, last but not lease, a visible "8mm" strobe-like effect on the 1080i local feeds via MPEG4 (CBS and NBC). Ruins the sports viewing experience. Not the case with MPEG2.
On the subjective side, I like some features, but really want dual buffers again (like the Dtivo) and also would like to have the guide actually come up on the screen when you hit guide. Right now, it's the second button push (the first is a specialized guide by subject, which is worthless). And the FF, REW and slip functions are jerky, at best. Flawed box for a flagship product.
I have 2 of them and one is great and the other I have had a few problems with it but nothing to the extent alot of other people have talked about.
This box is junk - It could be better than the HD Tivo it replaces, but it just can't do basic functionality correctly.
MPEG4 recording is a joke - Which is the main reason this box should be better than the HD Tivo. Partial recordings, skipping during playback, audio issues....Not ready for prime time at all.
I've had mine for about a month. I've had my Directv Tivo for years. There are a two features i would like to see:
Picture in Picture
Ability to toggle between both tuners, like Tivo
1. ONLY 50 ERIES LINKS ALLOWED ( WAY TO LOW)
2. UNABLE RECORD ALL SHOWS VIA A SINGLE SERIES LINK
3. NO SAVED SEARCHES (USELESS SEARCH FUNCTIONS ON HR20)
4. NO GENRE BASED SEARCH FUNCTIONS
5. DOES NOT USE THE FULL TRIBUNE MEDIA DATA STREAM
6. NO OPTION TO PUT A CONFIRM DELETE IN THE MY PLAYLIST AREA
7. NO WAY TO HAVE US DETERMINE THE ORDER OF CHANNELS
8. CAN NOT BE RELIED ON TO RECORD SHOWS
9. THE TO DO LIST HISTORY HAS NO DETAILED INFO
10. NO UNDELETE FOLDER TO REVIVE RECENTLY DELETED SHOWS
11. NO WAY TO KNOW HOW MANY HOURS (IN TIME) LEFT
12. NOT ENOUGH SERIES LINK RECORD OPTIONS
13. DBSTALK.COM VIA DIRECTV CENSORING HONEST FACTS VIA A GUY BEGGING FOR STUFF AND TWISTING THE FACTS
14. NO WAY TO KNOW VIA THE MESSAGE OPTION ON THE RECIEVER TO GET RELEASE NOTES
15. NO DUAL LIVE BUFFERS, BECAUSE DIRECTV WANTS TO SEND THEIR VOD CRAP ALL THE TIME, WHEN ALL THEY HAD TO DO AS ADD A DEDICATED VOD TUNER
16. NO WAY FOR US TO RATE SHOWS, SO IT GIVES US NICE SUPRISES
17. NO 1080P CAPABILTY, DESPITE THE FACT IN NEXT 2 YEARS CHANNELS WILL BE BROADCASTING IN IT
18. NO BETA TEST PROGRAM, THEY DUMP UNRELIABLE CRAP ON PAYING PUBLIC YEARS BEFORE IT IS READY
19. LOCK UPS AND MORE
20. not enough RAM memory in the unit
21. non trained tech people at directv to help customers
22. too slow of a processor
23. lousy interface
24. AND MANY MORE
In response to a non shill uline dbstalk.com
1. ONLY 50 ERIES LINKS ALLOWED ( WAY TO LOW)
Yes, this sucks. I can only pray that they fix this with an update, but I've heard that's how it is on the R15, so I'm not holding my breath.
3. NO SAVED SEARCHES (USELESS SEARCH FUNCTIONS ON HR20)
It saves my recent searches (which I love). Not sure what you mean.
6. NO OPTION TO PUT A CONFIRM DELETE IN THE MY PLAYLIST AREA
I love that the double dash doesn't have a confirm delete. If you want a confirm message, highlight the show and press select. Then highlight delete and then there is your confirmation. Please don't add a confirm delete to the double dash (or make it an option). Just my opinion.
8. CAN NOT BE RELIED ON TO RECORD SHOWS
In 1 month, my unit has missed exactly one show. Well actually it recording it, but it was unwatchable. Is that perfect (as my Directivo has been for 3 years)? No, but not bad.
10. NO UNDELETE FOLDER TO REVIVE RECENTLY DELETED SHOWS
Does any DVR have this? Personally, I think it's a great idea, but who knows how easy it would be.
11. NO WAY TO KNOW HOW MANY HOURS (IN TIME) LEFT
My Directivo had no indication as to how much you have left. I'd gladly take the % full anyday. And don't forget that it depends on what you record, SD, HD mpeg2, or HD mpeg 4. So they'll never be able to tell you how many hours you have.
12. NOT ENOUGH SERIES LINK RECORD OPTIONS
Like what?
13. DBSTALK.COM VIA DIRECTV CENSORING HONEST FACTS VIA A GUY BEGGING FOR STUFF AND TWISTING THE FACTS
I've been there for a couple months and I've never seen this.
14. NO WAY TO KNOW VIA THE MESSAGE OPTION ON THE RECIEVER TO GET RELEASE NOTES
You can get them at dbstalk.com.
15. NO DUAL LIVE BUFFERS, BECAUSE DIRECTV WANTS TO SEND THEIR VOD CRAP ALL THE TIME, WHEN ALL THEY HAD TO DO AS ADD A DEDICATED VOD TUNER
Just record the two things. I know, it's not has easy as tivo, but it works for me.
16. NO WAY FOR US TO RATE SHOWS, SO IT GIVES US NICE SUPRISES
Suggestions is a tivo patent. It will never happend on a Directv box. And what do you mean, "so it gives us nice surprises?" Does yours record stuff you don't ask it to? Because it shouldn't.
18. NO BETA TEST PROGRAM, THEY DUMP UNRELIABLE CRAP ON PAYING PUBLIC YEARS BEFORE IT IS READY
Years? Jeez I hope not.
19. LOCK UPS AND MORE
Yep. My unit has locked up 4 times in 1 month. Not ideal, but not the end of the world.
My response: some of this is just junk blog ...I have two HR20's and they have been good and with the last update ...great!! This unit has the potential to blow the directive away because it is very fast.
2. UNABLE RECORD ALL SHOWS VIA A SINGLE SERIES LINK
Wrong
3. NO SAVED SEARCHES (USELESS SEARCH FUNCTIONS ON
HR20)
Dont care
4. NO GENRE BASED SEARCH FUNCTIONS
dont care because tivo's genre searches always missed some thing..
5. DOES NOT USE THE FULL TRIBUNE MEDIA DATA STREAM
who cares or even know what youre talking about
6. NO OPTION TO PUT A CONFIRM DELETE IN THE MY
PLAYLIST AREA
get a real life
7. NO WAY TO HAVE US DETERMINE THE ORDER OF CHANNELS
You can filterthis must be important to you because you live alone.
8. CAN NOT BE RELIED ON TO RECORD SHOWS
have not experienced that at all
9. THE TO DO LIST HISTORY HAS NO DETAILED INFO
so what...dont you know what you put in YOUR history
10. NO UNDELETE FOLDER TO REVIVE RECENTLY DELETED SHOWS
It asks twice....maybe you need to develop your motor skills mr quick trigger
11. NO WAY TO KNOW HOW MANY HOURS (IN TIME) LEFT
it digital info...is it going to guess whether your going to record HD or SD?... disk space is the only accurate measure
12. NOT ENOUGH SERIES LINK RECORD OPTIONS
dumb there are plenty
13. DBSTALK.COM VIA DIRECTV CENSORING HONEST FACTS VIA A GUY BEGGING FOR STUFF AND TWISTING THE FACTS
You are very wrong here...if you use obscenities, are distasteful, or out in left field maybe
14. NO WAY TO KNOW VIA THE MESSAGE OPTION ON THE RECIEVER TO GET RELEASE NOTES dbs talk has the notes
15. NO DUAL LIVE BUFFERS, BECAUSE DIRECTV WANTS TO SEND THEIR VOD CRAP ALL THE TIME, WHEN ALL THEY HAD TO DO AS ADD A DEDICATED VOD TUNER
agree but I hear its comming
16. NO WAY FOR US TO RATE SHOWS, SO IT GIVES US NICE SUPRISES
what surprises?
17. NO 1080P CAPABILTY, DESPITE THE FACT IN NEXT 2 YEARS CHANNELS WILL BE BROADCASTING IN IT
wrong, too much bandwidth and production costs...are the stations going to throw away there 3 year old stuff? very few stations if any will ever broadcast 1080p ...read some reviews: 1080p is indiscernible from 1080i
18. NO BETA TEST PROGRAM, THEY DUMP UNRELIABLE CRAP ON PAYING PUBLIC YEARS BEFORE IT IS READY
It could have been more ready...but its pretty good now.
19. LOCK UPS AND MORE
Have not experience any in 5 weeks
20. not enough RAM memory in the unit
You didnt say that did you? Dumb
21. non trained tech people at directv to help customers
agree
22. too slow of a processor
This unit is super quick...blows the directivo away
23. lousy interface
Better interface that the directivo
24. AND MANY MORE
how may exactly?
I just want to let ya know that I have had your new 5 lnb hd system for about three weeks now and it completly sucks. I have two of the new receivers and have had nothing but trouble with both of them. I have given up with DirecTV and am now waiting for a install date from Comcast.
Is the HR20 perfect? Nope. But I've had my unit for exactly 1 month today and I am overall very satisfied. It basically does everything I ask it to do and I'm a heavy user (~35 series links; probably 100+ To Do items a week). I have had exactly 1 missed recording in the month and that's it. I have had 4 lockups requiring a reset in the month I've had it. I think the amazing picure quality of HD more than makes up for the few shortcomings, which will hopefully be fixed by the end of the year.
Ignore Matt N. He seems to believe it's okay for a DVR to occasionally miss shows, need to be rebooted, etc.
After all, the incredible picture of high def makes up for it!!!!1!!eleventyone!!!1!
No, Matt, it doesn't. It's a DVR. If it can't reliably do what it's supposed to do -- record video for later viewing -- then it's broken. If it has to be rebooted every week, something's wrong with it.
Matt N @ Nov 13th 2006 8:47AM
In response to a non shill uline dbstalk.com
-------------------------------------------------------
1. ONLY 50 ERIES LINKS ALLOWED ( WAY TO LOW)
Yes, this sucks. I can only pray that they fix this with an update, but I've heard that's how it is on the R15, so I'm not holding my breath.
DIRECTV WILL NOT FIX IT, AS THERE DVRS ARE UNDER POWERED AND CANT HANDLE THE DATA
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3. NO SAVED SEARCHES (USELESS SEARCH FUNCTIONS ON HR20)
It saves my recent searches (which I love). Not sure what you mean.
THAT IS ERASABLE AFTER 25 .. I MEAN A SAVED SEARCH YOU CAN REFER TOO AND NOT HAVE TO WORRY IT BEING ERASED
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6. NO OPTION TO PUT A CONFIRM DELETE IN THE MY PLAYLIST AREA
I love that the double dash doesn't have a confirm delete. If you want a confirm message, highlight the show and press select. Then highlight delete and then there is your confirmation. Please don't add a confirm delete to the double dash (or make it an option). Just my opinion.
IT IS CALLED GIVING THE USER OPTIONS, SO THAT IN PARENTAL CONTROLS WE CAN HAVE A N EXTRA LAYER OF PROTECTION OF LITTLE HANDS GET WLD AND START HITING DASH DASH
I KNOW MAKES TOO MUCH SENSE TO PROGRAMMERS TO GIVE THE USERS OPTIONS AND NOT JUST 1 STATIC NON-CHOICE
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8. CAN NOT BE RELIED ON TO RECORD SHOWS
In 1 month, my unit has missed exactly one show. Well actually it recording it, but it was unwatchable. Is that perfect (as my Directivo has been for 3 years)? No, but not bad.
STOP LYING, IT MISSES ALMOST HALF THE SHOWS
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10. NO UNDELETE FOLDER TO REVIVE RECENTLY DELETED SHOWS
Does any DVR have this? Personally, I think it's a great idea, but who knows how easy it would be.
YES THE TIVO SERIES 3 DOES
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11. NO WAY TO KNOW HOW MANY HOURS (IN TIME) LEFT
My Directivo had no indication as to how much you have left. I'd gladly take the % full anyday. And don't forget that it depends on what you record, SD, HD mpeg2, or HD mpeg 4. So they'll never be able to tell you how many hours you have.
AGAIN, GIVE US AN OPTION TO DISPLAY THE TIME LEFT IN % OR TIME LEFT. AGAIN THE USER COMES 1ST, NOT SOME GOOF PROGRAMMING
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12. NOT ENOUGH SERIES LINK RECORD OPTIONS
Like what?
LIKE, RECORD ALL, RECORD ALL WITH DUPLICATES, REPEATS ONLY, AND ETC
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13. DBSTALK.COM VIA DIRECTV CENSORING HONEST FACTS VIA A GUY BEGGING FOR STUFF AND TWISTING THE FACTS
I've been there for a couple months and I've never seen this.
YES U HAVE, AND I HAZARD THE GUESS U R ONE OF HIS DISCIPLES
HE AND THEM, LIE TWIST FACTS AND MORE
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14. NO WAY TO KNOW VIA THE MESSAGE OPTION ON THE RECIEVER TO GET RELEASE NOTES
You can get them at dbstalk.com.
DBSTALK IS UNRELIABLE, AND SINCE WE ARE PAYING DIRECTV, DIRECTV HAS THE LEGAL AND ETHICAL OBLIGATONS, TO DIRECTLY CONTACT US VIA EMAIL, AND ON THE SITE AND THE RECIVERS, ALL BY MESSAGES,
THAT THEY HAVE THE ABILITY TO DO, BUT ARE TOO DUMB TO DO
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15. NO DUAL LIVE BUFFERS, BECAUSE DIRECTV WANTS TO SEND THEIR VOD CRAP ALL THE TIME, WHEN ALL THEY HAD TO DO AS ADD A DEDICATED VOD TUNER
Just record the two things. I know, it's not has easy as tivo, but it works for me.
YOU ARE NOT TO BRIGHT I CAN SEE, WHAT ABOUT FLIPPERS DURING NFL SUNDAY TOICKET HUH? THAT WAY YOU CAN FLIP, AND SWITCH BETWEEN LAST 2 GAMES YOU VIEWED.
YOUR LAME BS FILED IDEA JUST RECORD 2 SHOWS, ELIMANATES DUAL LIVE BUFFERS AND FORCES US TO NOT FLIP GAMES
WHAT A GOOF U R
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16. NO WAY FOR US TO RATE SHOWS, SO IT GIVES US NICE SUPRISES
Suggestions is a tivo patent. It will never happend on a Directv box. And what do you mean, "so it gives us nice surprises?" Does yours record stuff you don't ask it to? Because it shouldn't.
REPLAY TV HAS IT FOR THEIR PC BASED DVR
AND DIRECTV COULD DO, TIVO ONLY HAS THEIR NAME SUGESTIONS AND THEIR METHOD PATENETED,
THAT DOES NOT PREVENT DIRECTV FROM USIN A DIFF NAME FOR IT, AND USE A DIFF RATING METHOOD
DUH, USE SOME SENSE
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18. NO BETA TEST PROGRAM, THEY DUMP UNRELIABLE CRAP ON PAYING PUBLIC YEARS BEFORE IT IS READY
Years? Jeez I hope not.
YES YEARS, THERE R15 THIS BASED ON SOME WHAT HAS BEEN IN DEVELOPMENT SINCE WHICH HAS BEEN IN DEVELOPMENT SINCE 2004. THAT MENAS 2 YEARS AND THE THING IS WAY UNDER POWERED AND UNRELIABLE
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19. LOCK UPS AND MORE
Yep. My unit has locked up 4 times in 1 month. Not ideal, but not the end of the world.
IT LOCKS UP MORE THAN THAT GENIUS
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25. no real parental controls - they should augment the lame one they have, by letting us lock any channel we set to not display in guides and also not apear when the number is typed in via the remote
After two years with the HR10, the HR20 doesn't seem so revolutionary or awe-inspiring. Its a cut-rate DVR running code farmed out to some halfwit bunch of offshore developers with a serious skill deficit.
The only new trick this pony does is talk to the two new sattelites, and decode mpeg4 content. Not giant leaps as far as I can tell.
The box is widely known to miss recordings, fail to play ones it manages to get, crash, have random UI slowdowns ala crappy cable boxes, display horrible crashing HDMI/HDCP negotiation bugs, and have the worst possible ff/rew/skip functionality I've ever seen in a digital video product.
Add to that the fact that the OTA ATSC tuners are disabled- while the rest of the software is half-baked, the ATSC stuff apparently isn't even close to getting popped in the oven. But try getting a DirecTV CSR to admit that to you before they take $300 from you for the "privelege" of leasing it month to month.
What a disaster. I've been a happy DirecTV customer for years, and have loved their Tivo-based DVRs, especially the HR10. Now the only choice they give me is this load of turd. I used to think dropping $700 on a Series 3 was insane- but now I fantasize about it.
Oh. I nearly forgot. The only place to get any information on what the heck is going on with this clunker is a web forum where the "moderator" is a shill for DirecTV who toes their company line in exchange for free hardware and early access to software releases and release notes. What a pathetic random to sell your soul for.
If you dare disagree with him and his claim that the HR20 is the best consumer electronic device ever, he'll just ban you. Can't be scaring away new customers with all this angry talk!
Why should we put up with this third-person heresay masquerading as corporate communication? Why is it the best source of information on our DirecTV service isnt a DirecTV forum, or their CSRs, but some hokey web forum run by a buch of despotic halfwits?
just chiming in... I've had my HR20 for about a week and I'm so terribly disappointed I can't even begin to tell you.
It's not the menus or UI or anything. It's just that it doesn't work.
I can't record or even pause HD broadcasts w/o it locking up. I have to change the channel and I lose everything I was watching.
This thing is really bad.
(part 1) I am on my 2nd brand new hr-20, its crap. After seven hours of installation by some ex-con (who I watched out the window throw the dish on the ground repeatedly, because he could not get it assembled), the first received started messing up. I called tech support and the guy told me to reset everything, he said this would not erase any previously recorded programs. I did this, and of course it deleted my pay per view shows, and did not fix any problems. Next day I talk to a woman who says DTV will send me out a new hd receiver. Several days later I get there basic, bottom of the line regular receiver, reconditioned none the less. No one at DTV knew why I received this item. After many phone calls to tech support finally I was told I would be sent a new hr-20 receiver, several days later I get a reconditioned hr-20. I decided to give it a try; I had DTV on the phone while I hooked it up. The unit was dirty and would not sit flat (was warped) on a smooth surface. After DTV activated this receiver, I got an on-screen message saying searching for satellite signal, go figure, it was a dud. I packed it back up and kicked it to the curb. DTV said they were 1 to 3 months back ordered on new hr-20 units. Evidently whatever sweat shop full of 9-14 year olds that were assembling these paper weights was behind schedule. Surprisingly 2 days later I received a brand new hr-20. the main problem I am having (which is the same as the other unit) is setting it up to record and not being able to watch the recorded show. Also, not being able to pause, fast, or rewind while watching.
(part 2) One tech actually had the gall to tell me,.well tivo had many problems when they first started , its a good thing this is not a drug company. The latest news is tech support told me tonight 11-15-06, that there would be a new software download on 11-16-06 at 0100. this whole problem would have been solved if dtv would have hired some of the hacks that used to scan their cards, instead of prosecuting them. Not sure where to turn next? One more thing: if you have more than +100 to do items in a week, take some advice: #1 check your blood sugar, your type II diabetes is probably out of control; #2 get your fat **s off the couch, put down the chips, and get a life.
I've had the hr20 for about three weeks now and I can honestly say that compared to my old Tivo, it's a real piece of junk. The product was released with known software glitches, such as frequent freezes and crashes. It also won't work with an off-air antenna until it receives a promised software upgrade. Upgrades may eventually fix these glitches, but the heart of the problem is the awful user interface. With my Tivo, I never had to read the manual and was instantly able to use it. Everything was so intuitive. The HR20 is a nightmare to operate. Even after reading the manual, I can't figure out how to access certain features, such as changing the number of episodes a season pass will hold. Personally, I would be willing to pay extra for the option to switch to an HD Tivo.
Amazing these reviews...so extreme...a nightmare interface?... I have never read the manual its as easy as tivo...You must work for Tivo. Whats amazing for so bad a device is the waiting list...explain that...New users dont listen to these extreme reviews they are probably the people that when they got the device they started hooking up sata drives and modifying other hardware.
I just hooked up my HR-20. So far..it's working.. except for the fact that they have not sent to upgrade for it to acknowledge my off-air antenna.. and of course nobody @ DirecTV told me that. I was warned up front from friends about this unit...but I had no choise to get it as my HR10-250 died last week. I already miss it!
The HR20 is not a competent DVR. My hope is that software enhancements will fix this but I have seen no improvement in all the releases all the way up to 0xEF.
I say it works ~95% of the time and IMO that is a failing grade for a DVR. A DVR needs to record what you program it to. This products suffers from a random bug that will cause lost or corrupted unwatchable recordings. You have no idea when it will happen but if you are counting on it making a recording for you, you might want to hold off a while and see if they can fix the software. It is not ready for prime time. The box also suffers from occasional lockups which require a reboot of the system, again these will happen at random, you could be watching live tv and hit a button and nothing will happen, or it can happen why you are in the menus and it will just lock while video continues to play in the PIL box. There are other strange bugs that pop up here and there, but IMO they are minor compared to the HR20 failing to record or crashing. If you decide to purchase this box be warned that it does have issues, and they will likely present themselves the more you use it and over time. If you are ok knowing that you are likely to have some recording problems and potentil crashes, go for it. If I would of known how bad it was going to be I would of held off and perhaps even of considered a different content provider.
Charlie @ Nov 16th 2006 3:31PM - THIS IS EARL FROM DBS MASQUERADING
My response: some of this is just junk blog ...I have two HR20's and they have been good and with the last update ...great!! This unit has the potential to blow the directive away because it is very fast.
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2. UNABLE RECORD ALL SHOWS VIA A SINGLE SERIES LINK
Wrong
WRONG HUH ? YOU HAVE A SERIES LINK PER CHANNEL MORON
SHOULD HAVE 1 LINK TO RECORD AL SHOWS ACROSS ALL CHANNELS
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3. NO SAVED SEARCHES (USELESS SEARCH FUNCTIONS ON
HR20)
Dont care
SURE SHILL, WHO WANTS TO BE SURE CAN SAVE SEARCHES AND SAVE TIME, O YEA OVER RATED, WHAT A MORON SAYIN WHO CARES
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4. NO GENRE BASED SEARCH FUNCTIONS
dont care because tivo's genre searches always missed some thing..
TIVO MISSED SOMETHING 1 IN A BILLION,
HR20 HAS NO GENRE SEARCH
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5. DOES NOT USE THE FULL TRIBUNE MEDIA DATA STREAM
who cares or even know what youre talking about
INTELLIGENT PEOPLE CARE WHAT I AM TALKING ABOUT, IT IS THE DATA STREAM THAT TELLS THE DVR THE SHOWS, DATES ETC
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6. NO OPTION TO PUT A CONFIRM DELETE IN THE MY
PLAYLIST AREA
get a real life
U GET A LIFE SHILL/EARL
INTELLIGENT PEOPLE WANT THIS AS AN OPTION
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7. NO WAY TO HAVE US DETERMINE THE ORDER OF CHANNELS
You can filterthis must be important to you because you live alone.
WHAT A MORON, ATTACKING PEOPLE HIDING BEHIND A FAKE NAME EARL
NO DONT LIE ALONE YA SHILL
NEED A FILTER, SO WE DETERMINE ORDER OF CHANNELS
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8. CAN NOT BE RELIED ON TO RECORD SHOWS
have not experienced that at all
SURE SHILL,. IT MISESES MOST SHOWS
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9. THE TO DO LIST HISTORY HAS NO DETAILED INFO
so what...dont you know what you put in YOUR history
HETY SHL. IT NEEDS LIKE THE TIVO, SO WE CAN SEE WHY SHOWS NOT RECORD
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10. NO UNDELETE FOLDER TO REVIVE RECENTLY DELETED SHOWS
It asks twice....maybe you need to develop your motor skills mr quick trigger
THERE IS NO WAY TO REVIVE SHOWS THAT MAY BE ACCIDENTLY RELEASED
IT DOES NOT ASK TWICE / DOES NOT ASK AT ALL WHEN U R DELETING A SHOW IN THE MY PLAYLIST AREA, IT ONLY ASKS WHEN WATCHING SHOWS, 2 DIFF THINGS
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11. NO WAY TO KNOW HOW MANY HOURS (IN TIME) LEFT
it digital info...is it going to guess whether your going to record HD or SD?... disk space is the only accurate measure
LIAR, THE VIP622 CAN, SO THE HR20 SHOULD TO
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12. NOT ENOUGH SERIES LINK RECORD OPTIONS
dumb there are plenty
NO THERE IS NOT, LEARN TO READ WAY ABOVE
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13. DBSTALK.COM VIA DIRECTV CENSORING HONEST FACTS VIA A GUY BEGGING FOR STUFF AND TWISTING THE FACTS
You are very wrong here...if you use obscenities, are distasteful, or out in left field maybe
FALSE, THE MOD IS ON THE TAKE
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14. NO WAY TO KNOW VIA THE MESSAGE OPTION ON THE RECIEVER TO GET RELEASE NOTES dbs talk has the notes
THAT S UNACCEPTABLE, WE GET SERVICE FROM DIRECTV, WE DESERVE LEGAL RELEASE NOTES DROM DTV ON THE BOXES AND THROUGH EMAIL
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15. NO DUAL LIVE BUFFERS, BECAUSE DIRECTV WANTS TO SEND THEIR VOD CRAP ALL THE TIME, WHEN ALL THEY HAD TO DO AS ADD A DEDICATED VOD TUNER
agree but I hear its comming
SURE IT IS COMING, JUST LIKE THEY ARE GIVING US MORE THAN 50 SHOWS WE CAN RECORD
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16. NO WAY FOR US TO RATE SHOWS, SO IT GIVES US NICE SUPRISES
what surprises?
ALA SUGGESTIONS
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17. NO 1080P CAPABILTY, DESPITE THE FACT IN NEXT 2 YEARS CHANNELS WILL BE BROADCASTING IN IT
wrong, too much bandwidth and production costs...are the stations going to throw away there 3 year old stuff? very few stations if any will ever broadcast 1080p ...read some reviews: 1080p is indiscernible from 1080i
I HAVE SEEN 10801 AND 1080P IF U HAVE A BRAIN U CAN SEE THE DIFFRENCE
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18. NO BETA TEST PROGRAM, THEY DUMP UNRELIABLE CRAP ON PAYING PUBLIC YEARS BEFORE IT IS READY
It could have been more ready...but its pretty good now.
SHILL, IT IS NOT GOOD NOW, IT IS NOT GOOD, AND IS NOT READY
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19. LOCK UPS AND MORE
Have not experience any in 5 weeks
YOU WOULD BE THE ONLY ONE ON THE NATION THEN
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20. not enough RAM memory in the unit
You didnt say that did you? Dumb
IT DOES NEED MORE RAM SO WE CAN HAVE MORE THINGS BE ABLE RUN AT ONCE
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21. non trained tech people at directv to help customers
agree
EVEN A SHILL ADMITS SOMETHING ONCE IN A WHILE
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22. too slow of a processor
This unit is super quick...blows the directivo away
FALSE, IT IS SLOW
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23. lousy interface
Better interface that the directivo
FALSE
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24. AND MANY MORE
how may exactly?
I have had nothing but problems with my HR20. After poking around and reading some stuff online, the late October update seems to be the cause of a bunch of the freezing issues that people are having. I've had the box lock up on my at least 2 - 3 times a day during normal viewing. At certain times it won't let me pause or rewind live TV, and typically that problem also comes with the "can't watch anything that's in your playlist" problem.
The box has crashed on me when simply switching channels. This has happened with annoying frequency, and I'm trying to figure out if I have a bum box or if this is really a problem that HR20's are having in general.
All in all, this is a really horrible release for DirecTV. I've been happy with them for over a decade, but I haven't had ANY issues with a receiver until this thing. When it is working it's been great. 5 LNB dish coming tomorrow, along with a second HR20 for the bedroom, which I won't be hooking up until they push another update to the box - or maybe I'll decide to test it out and see if it has the same issues as my current one.
I've had my HR-20 for about a month now. Started out great, but have experienced some problems in the last week -- noticeably after the second DVR line was installed.
1. When live TV is paused, it will not start playing again unless channel is changed and then saved data is lost.
2. When trying to play recorded shows from LIST, a black screen appears and the "delete program" box comes up. After a system reset, these programs were lost.
3. Local HD channels are slow to load/appear.
4. All My Children for the wife is not being taped every day. Some days it records, some days it doesn't tape at all, other times it is recorded, but the "delete program" box appears other times and the show is lost.
I did another reset this morning and the programs appear to be taping OK, but who knows how long this will last.
I've had my HR20 since the product was launched.
It's definitely quirky, but most of my problems have been minor. The worst problems have been fixed by recent (automatic) software updates. The FF/RW and 30-second "slip" are now dramatically faster and smoother.
The interface is no TiVo, but once you adjust to its quirks, it does have some niceties that the DirecTiVos don't. I like watching TV while browsing the channel guide. The pop-up quick menu with recent recorded shows is neat. The disk space status bar is very handy. It also has all the right options for stretching/cropping SD shows to fit HD TVs. Oh, and it's very snappy. Whatever processor they put in there is great. I'm very much the impatient type, so that's my favorite feature!
...so although I am satisfied overall with HR20, I cannot say the same about the HD local channels. Here in Philly, the audio and/or video drops out for a few seconds at least once an hour. Naturally, it's usually during the most dramatic moment of the show.
It happens even in the most perfect weather. I suppose it could be an HR20 issue, but since only HD local channels seem to be affected, I suspect it is a service issue.
Shill,
Ever hear of decaffienated coffee? How about the simple netiquette of not typing in all caps unless you're screaming at the top of your lungs, er fingers...whatever...
I stumbled across this board whilst researching the HR20 - I have not yet ordered one - and I must say the single best argument I've seen here for getting one is Shill's invariably shrill diatribe.
Anything that can get a guy/girl/whatever of his/her/its ilk that off balance has to be a lot of fun.
On to more germaine thoughts; I've been using a combination of TiVo standalones, DirecTivos and PC Linux and XP based DVR/PVRs for a number of years and my only serious complaint about DTV's implementationof the various standards has been the inability to network them and share recorded data between units or simply view them across the LAN. That particular limitation looks to still be firmly in place with no good reason given by the never so helpful CSRs at DTV. Pretty big bummer, that.
I'm certain that eventually I'll have to upgrade some of my gear because DTV will stop, dare I say it, "supporting" it at all. In the meantime, I'll continue to experiment with my terabyte SATA RAID and the insane machine to which it's attached, including all of the PC based PVR gear I've been futzing around with and perhaps I'll discover a solution that puts DirecTV's version of this fun behind me for good.
Who knows? I certainly don't, but at least I can face it all with a sense of humor and decorum that apparently Shill's folks didn't instill at an early enough age.