Fezmid Posted February 3, 2005 Share Posted February 3, 2005 analog cable is not of the same quality as DTV. You need to compare digital cable with DTV. 227527[/snapback] Yeah, what he said. You're also not getting as many features, such as the interactive guide. CW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pine Barrens Mafia Posted February 3, 2005 Share Posted February 3, 2005 Yeah, what he said. You're also not getting as many features, such as the interactive guide. CW 227530[/snapback] If you get Comcast you are, or if you built a media PC with a radeon all-in-wonder as I did you will. And it'll be gratis. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fezmid Posted February 3, 2005 Share Posted February 3, 2005 If you get Comcast you are, or if you built a media PC with a radeon all-in-wonder as I did you will. And it'll be gratis. 227537[/snapback] No, you don't get a guide if you use your TV's internal tuner. Thus the "compare digital cable to DTV." CW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plenzmd1 Posted February 3, 2005 Share Posted February 3, 2005 Thanks for the heads up on the rate increase. Also, the customer retention piece is a good idea, as I have been contemplating moving into the DVR world as well. I have a question on that too. Why do people pay monthly charges for Tivo or other DVR service? Could one not just buy a box outright and use it in the same fashion as a VCR? Or is the cable or satelite provider actually enabling some service, such as on-line scheduling or something? Or is the monthly charge for DVR is simply to subsidize all or part of the hardware cost. For example, I see with DirecTV you pay $X for the box and a $5 monthly charge, and with Comcast, there is no cost for the actual DVR box but one pays $10/month. Could one go buy a DVR through Circuit City or someone like that and have DVR capability without their provider being any the wiser? Also, this morning's paper said Comcast is about to jack up their packages $4/month, so that'd more than offest DTV's increase even if I can't lock the current rate. 227386[/snapback] Mike, Directv DVRs have dual tuners that allow you to watch one program while recording another. Standolone Tivo does not have this feature. As Fez said earlier, call customer retention and really ask for a DVR for free as cable gives it to me. Also, be aware that you will most likely need a new dish installed if you do not have a triple LNB now. Last note, if HD is important, be aware that D* will be changing their encoding for the HD streams(do not know about the Sd streams, little help Fez) from MPEG-2 to MPEG-4 starting this summer for the twelve largest metro areas. Also, be awrae that D* will be releasing new DVRs soon that are not Tivo, as Murdoch owns a comapny that has their own DVR technology, and why pay Tivo the royalty. FWIW, If you own tivo stock. time to bail. Without D* or cable, they are fried Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fezmid Posted February 3, 2005 Share Posted February 3, 2005 Mike, Directv DVRs have dual tuners that allow you to watch one program while recording another. Standolone Tivo does not have this feature. As Fez said earlier, call customer retention and really ask for a DVR for free as cable gives it to me. Also, be aware that you will most likely need a new dish installed if you do not have a triple LNB now. Last note, if HD is important, be aware that D* will be changing their encoding for the HD streams(do not know about the Sd streams, little help Fez) from MPEG-2 to MPEG-4 starting this summer for the twelve largest metro areas. Also, be awrae that D* will be releasing new DVRs soon that are not Tivo, as Murdoch owns a comapny that has their own DVR technology, and why pay Tivo the royalty. FWIW, If you own tivo stock. time to bail. Without D* or cable, they are fried 227544[/snapback] I've heard about the conversion from MPEG-2 to MPEG-4, but it's all just rumor at this point. I've also heard a rumor that the current boxes can be modified with a firmware upgrade. No idea yet... Regarding the triple-LNB dish, you only need that if you want HD. Regarding the 'death of TiVo,' currently DirecTV is saying that they will offer both. The deal between the two companies goes through 2007, so the hardware will be here for awhile. Heck, Ultimate TV is still supported by DirecTV and it hasn't been available efor sale for years. So don't worry about the hardware thing. However, I do agree with you about TiVo going bye-bye. Their president screwed up big time when he didn't sign a deal with Comcast last year because he didn't feel that TiVo was getting enough of the money... Oh well... CW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stuckincincy Posted February 3, 2005 Share Posted February 3, 2005 Mike, Directv DVRs have dual tuners that allow you to watch one program while recording another. Standolone Tivo does not have this feature. As Fez said earlier, call customer retention and really ask for a DVR for free as cable gives it to me. Also, be aware that you will most likely need a new dish installed if you do not have a triple LNB now. Last note, if HD is important, be aware that D* will be changing their encoding for the HD streams(do not know about the Sd streams, little help Fez) from MPEG-2 to MPEG-4 starting this summer for the twelve largest metro areas. Also, be awrae that D* will be releasing new DVRs soon that are not Tivo, as Murdoch owns a comapny that has their own DVR technology, and why pay Tivo the royalty. FWIW, If you own tivo stock. time to bail. Without D* or cable, they are fried 227544[/snapback] Seems so. An article a day or so ago in my n'paper's business section said that the CEO is bailing. The gist was that the cable giants are offering boxes with DVR capability at no significant cost increase, if any (TW for one, for me). Tivo might have some technical advantages, but for most folks, the ability to record 24/7 with a few remote button pushes is appealing, with the equipment supplied by their current provider. Most users just like convenient tv, not being on some sort of cutting edge. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SDS Posted February 3, 2005 Share Posted February 3, 2005 BTW, TiVo software upgrades are being rolled out Feb/Mar/April.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fezmid Posted February 3, 2005 Share Posted February 3, 2005 Seems so. An article a day or so ago in my n'paper's business section said that the CEO is bailing. The gist was that the cable giants are offering boxes with DVR capability at no significant cost increase, if any (TW for one, for me). Tivo might have some technical advantages, but for most folks, the ability to record 24/7 with a few remote button pushes is appealing, with the equipment supplied by their current provider. Most users just like convenient tv, not being on some sort of cutting edge. 227555[/snapback] The TiVo boxes have a lot of extra features that cable DVRs don't. As you said though, if users don't know about the features, they can't miss them. (features such as season passes and wishlists). Regarding the monthly fee for TiVo service; on the DirecTV side, you're paying for the guide data which isn't free. Yes, there's stuff you can get online for free but it's not as inclusive; with a TiVo, you can record all movies that have a particular actor in it. That requires a database to get the info from. Cable can't do that. With a standalone TiVo, it costs $13/month because you have to pay for TiVo's infrastructure to actually get the data to you. With DirecTV, it's only $5/month because DirecTV beams it down with the sattelite; no infrastructure means cheaper costs. DirecTV/TiVo is much better than anything the cable companies have, but the gap is narrowing quickly. CW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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