DIRECTV's HR20 - DVR Debate Rages On

[chuckken2]

I have three HR20's and three HR10-250's and have had absolutely no problems with any...ever.

[joed32]

I have two of each and like them all. I am sorry to hear that some of you are having such bad luck.

[akirby]

I spoke too soon. I've lost 3 recordings the last week. They show recorded but when you play them they immediately stop and ask if you want to keep or delete.

[jimgross]

I purchased an HR20S from circuit city a few days ago. This unit was manufactured on 12-15-06. Used the hdmi cable supplied with it. Downloaded the lasted software release, not the beta one and spent two and a half hours with tech support trying to get this thing working with an outside antenna to no success. Tried different zipcodes. The unit would only allow one local out of four that all have strong signals and one of the secondary local channels out of three. And the secondary one is my weakest channel. All of the channels I wanted to receive in both my primary and secondary locals were listed in the guide. Makes no sence what so ever. Very Dissappointed.......Luckily I bought the unit from circuit city and was able to return it and get a refund. So here I sit watching and using the R15 dvr with my nice new hd flatscreen lcd. What a bummer. I can't put into words how dissappointed I am. By the way I knew more about the HR20 than the hd dvr advanced tech support guy. That really sucks.

[jchumbley]

Tom, very well written article. Thanks for the information. I do have a question though. I currently own the HR 10-250, and have only recently began experiencing problems with signal loss. I just have to unplug it, wait a minute or so, and then power it back up and it works fine. Since I started having these problems, I thought that I should explore upgrading to the new equipment. As a result, I just recently contacted Direct TV and upgraded to the new 5 LNB dish and the new HR 20 DVR for $99. However, after reading all the problems people from around the country are having with this product, would I be better off calling them back, canceling my order, and just waiting for these technical issues to be worked out? Or, should I just take my chances with the new order? I plan on moving my HR 10-250 to another room, and not getting rid of it just in case. I'd like your opinion on this. Thanks in advance for any ideas. Jeff

[aaronwt]

Bye Bye DirecTv. After spending $110 a month for 5 years because of HD programming I'm going to leave you because you don't have an HDTiVo any more and your new HD DVR(and SD DVR) is lousy. I've already dropped most of my programming and the only reason I still have DirecTV is for the HDNet channels. I gone back to Comcast because they have embraced TiVo instead of shunning it like DirecTV.

[jhecondevsys]

HDTV Magazine needs to camp on Direct TV's doorstep until they receive some plausible answers and solutions to these problems. Especially since the TIVO units were a godsend to those of us that still use them error-free. This deniability, secrecy and lying about a product is unbelievable. Who does Direct TV think they are...the Bush administration?

[andrewleblanccox]

Concerning the problem with the Direct TV DVR
I don't know if they are still in business, but an alternative to
recording and/or archiving with Direct TV in HD is to contact
the 169 Time Company in California. They can provide receivers
which connect via firewire to a JVC D-VHS recorder. This also solves
the problem of being limited to X number of hours of HD tv recording
capability of the DVR. D-VHS recordings done in this manner are
virtually undistinguishable from the live broadcast. The JVC D-VHS
also records excellently local HDTV OTA broadcasts, using a local
antenna. Blank D-VHS tapes are readily available from mail order sources
such as Edgewise Media (on both coasts) and Tape World in Pennsylvania
and cost under $7 for 2

[ralph43]

I recently had the HR20 installed and had it freeze up on the second day. I had to unplug it to get it to startup again- now one week later it is still operating correctly, lets hope this will last. I moved my HR10-250 to another room. I also moved the standard Tivo unit. I have had the HR10-250 also freeze and have to unplug to reset but it always comes back but it is frustating. Ralph

[tallsweet]

I had all the problems mentioned in dbstalk.com , called DirecTv several times plus emails. They had me do a hard boot a couple of times to no avail. Before the 90 days was up, I asked for a replacement which was sent to me with a return FedEx slip. New one works great so far. They also gave me credit for 3 recorded PPV movies I lost in the reboot process.