AT&T gets official with U-verse Total Home DVR
AT&T U-VERSE INTRODUCES TOTAL HOME DVR, TAKING 'WHEN YOU WANT, WHERE YOU WANT' TV VIEWING TO WHOLE NEW LEVEL
Latest U-verse TV Enhancement - Made Possible by IP Technology - Enables DVR Playback on Any TV Throughout the Home
DALLAS, Sept. 9, 2008 - DVRs have given customers the flexibility to watch TV programs on their schedules, but limited where the programs can be watched by restricting recorded content to certain TV sets and rooms in the home. Now that's about to change for AT&T U-verseSM TV customers. Using the power of AT&T's Internet Protocol (IP) network, families no longer have to plan how or where they watch and record their favorite shows.
AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) today announced the launch of AT&T U-verse Total Home DVR, giving U-verse TV customers the freedom to play back Standard Definition (SD) and High Definition (HD) recorded programs on any connected TV in the home.
U-verse Total Home DVR is now being introduced to customers in the Bay Area at no additional charge and is planned for deployment to all U-verse TV customers by the end of 2008.
"AT&T U-verse is about providing the latest in entertainment and technology for a better TV experience," said Jeff Weber, AT&T vice president of video products. "With our 100 percent IP network, we are able to constantly evolve features and services to match the needs of viewers. Total Home DVR is the latest addition to our portfolio of unmatched features that give U-verse customers more control, on any TV, at a great price."
AT&T U-verse Total Home DVR customers can:
• Watch HD and SD DVR recordings on other connected TVs in the home. In addition to your DVR, you can access, play, pause, rewind and fast forward any recorded SD or HD program on up to seven additional U-verse-connected TVs. All U-verse DVRs and receivers are HD-capable.
• Pause a recorded show and pick up where you left off in another room.
• Play back multiple, independent viewings of the same recorded show on different TVs.
• Play back up to four recorded shows at once. Up to three can be HD recorded programs.
• Watch up to five HD programs simultaneously throughout the home, including two live HD programs and three recorded HD programs.
• Record more of the show you want to see with soft padding, which automatically adds 1 minute to the beginning and 2 minutes to the end of each pre-scheduled recording.
• Organize recorded content by series. Series recordings will be grouped as a single heading in the recorded TV menu, making it easier for customers to manage and select their recorded programs.
• Store up to 37 hours of HD content or up to 133 hours of SD content, which is more storage than most cable providers' DVRs.
• Record up to four programs at once on a single DVR - another feature that is exclusive to AT&T U-verse TV.
• Set the DVR while on the go from your PC or wireless phone. With AT&T Yahoo!® Web and Mobile Remote Access to DVR, you can schedule recordings from any Web-connected PC or compatible mobile phone (wireless service charges apply) by using your AT&T High Speed Internet account.
"While some other providers may claim to offer some form of whole home DVR, AT&T U-verse Total Home DVR is the only one that truly lets you play back recorded programs from a single DVR on any connected TV in the house," Weber said.
Using IP technology, Total Home DVR capabilities will be seamlessly provided to existing customers' DVRs without the need to swap their current equipment. The U-verse network architecture and IPTV service allow Total Home DVR functionality to be enabled by a software update, without any action or hassle for existing customers. The updates occur on a market-by-market basis, and existing AT&T U-verse customers in a market will gain the new functionality as their home equipment receives the update.
Total Home DVR is the latest addition to the constantly evolving suite of features that has been introduced to all U-verse TV customers at no extra charge since the AT&T U-verse launch in June 2006. These include:
• Mobile Remote Access to DVR, which lets you schedule and manage DVR recordings from any compatible mobile phone.
• AT&T U-bar, which brings customizable weather, stock, sports and traffic information to the U-verse TV screen, without interrupting the current program.
• AT&T Online Photos from Flickr, which allows you to simply and conveniently browse the photos you've uploaded to flickr.com and watch slide shows on your U-verse TV screen from the comfort of your couch.
• Yahoo! Sports Fantasy Football, which allows you to track the progress of your fantasy team - including current team matchups and league standings - directly from your TV screen through the AT&T U-bar.
• YELLOWPAGES.COM TV, for fast and easy searches to find local businesses and other information via your TV screen.
• AT&T Yahoo! Games, so you can play your favorite online games - including Sudoku, Solitaire, JT's Blocks, Mah-jongg Tiles and Chess - on the TV screen.
AT&T has also announced today the availability of AT&T U-verse Voice to all U-verse eligible customers in the Bay Area, bringing consumers a next-generation digital voice service with unique integrated features. AT&T U-verse services are currently available to more than 580,000 living units in the greater Bay Area, marking a significant expansion since AT&T U-verse launched locally in December 2006.
In the future, AT&T plans to add to its Total Home DVR service with the ability to schedule recordings and pause or control live TV from non-DVR receivers.
AT&T is deploying next-generation AT&T U-verse services as part of its mission to connect people with their world, everywhere they live and work, and do it better than anyone else. Customers benefit from integrated AT&T services across the three screens they value most: the TV, the PC and the wireless phone.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Vermifuge @ Sep 9th 2008 12:24PM
I got set up with THDVR (also know as WHDVR) last week. I live in the San Francisco surrounding bay area. At the same time my service got a boost from 3 SD / 1 HD (Three SD streams & 1 HD Stream) to 2SD / 2 HD. This allows two people to watch HDTV at the same time or to record and watch HD at the same time. It was an irritating limitation but the new setup is tolerable.
Still no word on Weather On Demand.
Salim @ Sep 9th 2008 1:21PM
Really? AT&T will let you order weather on demand?? I would totally pay for some rain right now, my lawn is very crispy.
dpjax @ Sep 9th 2008 8:32PM
You can watch 2 whole HD channels at a time? Or, record 2 and watch 0 HD channels?
Wow!
Thats so much better than 5 years ago...
(pause)
(pause)
(pause)
NOT!
Newsguy @ Sep 9th 2008 12:29PM
U-verse uses Microsoft IPTV software to run it's services. You can definately tell by the screenshots much of the interface borrows from media center graphics/layout.
OneLove @ Sep 9th 2008 12:32PM
i was gonna say, total media center ripoff? IPTV?
a ham sandwich @ Sep 9th 2008 3:31PM
ergo it doesnt suck like EVERY OTHER DVR offered directly by tv providers? awesome!
chaosrain @ Sep 9th 2008 12:30PM
That interface is Microsoft-built. Everything from the fonts to the red dots signifying recording look exactly like Vista Media Center.
OneLove @ Sep 9th 2008 12:53PM
IPTV has been renamed to Microsoft® Mediaroom™. There is a SDK so third party developers can build media software for DVR's and other platforms. It looks very good! Its the future of Media Center Edition.
kal326 @ Sep 9th 2008 3:37PM
@OneLove
So does that mean you could also make your own DVR box for IPTV? Seems that would be a nice option to increase storage and functionality. 30ish hours of HD storage capacity seems a little on the light side since my Dish VIP722 can do 60. However this might make UVerse a bit more of an option going forward.
Daniel Milner @ Sep 9th 2008 12:37PM
I've had U-verse for almost a year now and of course this comes out as soon as I plan on moving to a location where U-verse isn't available.
TosaDeac @ Sep 9th 2008 12:57PM
From the sound of it you would only need one DVR per house but then all connected TVs would have access to the information which would be great for my house where I have an HD in the basement and then 3 other TVs around the rest of the house. This way I would only need one DVR but could watch the programming anywhere. Is that correct? I guess I'll watch to see how this develops and when it gets rolled out to our area before I consider the switch from Time Warner.
Casper42 @ Sep 9th 2008 1:20PM
Right. They use IPTV and so all they are doing is streaming the data over your home network from the DVRs to the STBs. They use Multicasting from the CO to your house, but I dont know if they will use the same thing for streaming from the DVR to the STB or not. Will have to whip out Wireshark after the feature goes live and see.
Assuming your running at least 100mbps and an HD Stream supposedly takes about 10mbps, you should be able to get 8 or more HD Streams going in the house.
The average UVerse customer gets about 30mbps down from AT&T which is why your capped at 2 live HD Streams per household.
Even though they only support 4 streams total, you could, in theory, have like 6 UVerse STBs in your house if you had alot of TVs. You can only watch 4 live streams at once though. But with Whole Home DVR, there is nothing to say the other 2 boxes couldn't be watching recorded material during that time.
PS: I called them the other day about something else and in the Los Angeles area, they said approx Oct 4th is when this upgrade will be pushed out in my area.
Db @ Sep 9th 2008 1:03PM
only having one HD stream was the reason I did not subscribe to the service.
anthony @ Sep 9th 2008 1:11PM
I agree, that is the reason didn't change. When this new setup rolls out in Michigan, then I might concider giving it a try.
Victor @ Sep 9th 2008 1:16PM
Too bad, since 2-stream HD has been rolled out systemwide for almost a year. It's fully enjoyable.
jr @ Sep 9th 2008 1:34PM
Currently without the Whole Home DVR update you can watch 2 hd streams(live) at once in the same house. After the update any 2 boxes in the house can watch a live HD channel and 3 others will be able to watch recorded HD shows. This will be a great addition but the best thing that I love about Uverse is the price.
I have had it for 1.5 years and am only paying $85 a month for tv and internet. I feel that this is a great deal for what I get:
3 HD set top boxes, a dvr that can record 4 sd shows at once, every sports, movie and hd channel, able to setup dvr over the interent, a wireless router and 3Mb down/ 1Mb up dsl connection.
Before I switched Comcast was charging me 12 bucks a month just for a HD capable dvr that could only record 1 channel and you coudn't watch a diff. channel while it was recording, that was a rip off.
Casper42 @ Sep 9th 2008 1:15PM
EXCEPT if you live in Southern California
I called them the other day because I still cannot get 2 HD streams at once in Simi Valley
After escalating past Tier 2 all the way to the Network Engineers, they found out that someone dropped the ball and the "VHO" (Video Home Office) in Irvine was never upgraded to support 2 HD Streams per household.
So everyone served by that VHO is screwed even though your DVR and STBs all now say that you support 2/2 (HD/SD) rather than 1/3 like it used to say.
If your as happy as I am about this, call AT&T and complain. 1-800-ATT-2020
Matthew Ledger @ Sep 9th 2008 1:36PM
Looks a lot like the BT Vision box you can get in the UK ...... which is awful btw!
Casper42 @ Sep 9th 2008 1:42PM
Not sure about BT Vision, but the box for UVerse is a Motorola VIP-1200 Series running Windows CE 5 with Microsoft's IPTV
one1082 @ Sep 9th 2008 2:16PM
I want integrated slingbox-like ability. Then I'm sold.
jackcutts @ Sep 9th 2008 2:52PM
Echostar bought Slingmedia so my guess is you'll have to switch to Dish Network to get that in the not-too-distant future...
Taylor @ Sep 9th 2008 3:07PM
They already have that. For an extra $10 a month you can watch your Uverse from any computer. I don't know if you have DVR access or not, i think they're basically just streaming the channels straight from their servers just like they stream them to the uverse box.
-Taylor
phlavor @ Sep 9th 2008 2:41PM
They can innovate all they want but just like FIOS, I can't dump Comcast if they don't have it in my area. San Francisco isn't exactly the middle of nowhere.
Kam @ Sep 9th 2008 2:58PM
Has anyone had both TWC or Comcast and switched to U-Verse? I've heard a lot about the lack of quality in the HD broadcast with U-Verse.
Can anyone comment on this?
Scott @ Sep 9th 2008 3:21PM
I had Comcrap and switched to U-Verse. For me, the features, and cost (about $30/month less than comcast, for more channels, better features, and the same speed internet) far outweigh the very slight, but noticeable degradation in HD picture quality. Of course not having to call Comcrap every 3 to 6 month, threatening to leave just so I can get a price that's not really reasonable, but just slightly better than without the "deal" is icing on the cake.
My wife and I actually fought over who got to call Comcast to tell them to pound sand when we got U-Verse. :)
jdog @ Sep 9th 2008 7:21PM
I work for At&t and trust me, rolling out Uverse is pretty much the number one priority for the company. It will make it out everywhere eventually, in fact, most of the fiber is already laid. It's just a matter of running it to homes.
nxp3 @ Sep 9th 2008 11:11PM
Damn it get Uverse to my neighborhood, I'm so sick of comcast. And forget about FIOS, I'll never see the light of day with that. I heard uverse aint even great, but at least i'll have more options.
Justin @ Sep 10th 2008 1:05PM
Is there any mention of TiVo usability with the new service?!?!?!
I would LOVE to use my HD TiVo with U-Verse
And it is two streams, one watching one recording or two recording or two watching.... 2 Streams Total.
:-(
I have U-Verse in Dallas/ Fort Worth area and the sound gets off Very Often. And not being able to see multiple HD Channels isn't good at all.
I hope it gets better Very Soon!
JoeG @ Sep 10th 2008 6:50PM
No, TiVo is not supported. The reasoning is that the IPTV network does not support it, so don't look for it to be supported any time in the near future. As a former TiVo fan I have to say that the AT&T DVR blows TiVo's functionality out of the water.
JoeG @ Sep 10th 2008 6:15PM
I've had Uverse for a couple months now, and I must say it is NICE. For those interested, the Uverse cable boxes (at least the ones I got) are actually Cicso devices, so the quality is there, and I am not at all surprised that they are actually able to do this.
I am eagerly awaiting this feature so I can tell TiVO to pound sand, with their monthly fees and extremely poor customer service.
The Uverse service in my area is a bit slower than Comcast's top speeds, the difference is that it is consistent (I always peg at 10mb down on Uverse, where with Comcast I was usually around 6mb, and often as low as 3mb down - much different than their claims of 16mb!)
However I did have a LOT of issues in getting it hooked up, and my house was built with Fiber to the premise. It was not issues with the Uverse installers, but with the construction division actually getting the signal to my house (something about vandals physically cutting the fiber at the junction - which I am not inclined to believe, I think it is more along the lines of one of their people screwed up).
All in all I am MUCH more satisfied with the service I get from AT&T than what I was getting from Comcast (and MAN does that say something about the crappy service Comcast offers!).