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Who really uses On Demand?

10K views 118 replies 95 participants last post by  jmudukes07 
#1 ·
I have to admit that I've been disappointed by the offerings by DirecTV in relation their On Demand service. I was looking forward to having a Comcast-like type of service where I could go back and watch missed network shows. However, all it appears they have are a few shows from each cable network, and not even complete seasons at that (excluding some of the Premium Networks).

Anyone else feeling this way?
 
#102 ·
I haven't even looked at DoD in 6 months. The user interface for finding shows is horrible. Especially since I don't have premium stations. There are hundreds of shows that I would have to subscribe to the premium stations to watch and no way to easily filter them out.

I just installed Hulu desktop with a Media Center plugin on my HTPC last week. It works great. If only DOD functioned as well.
 
#103 ·
I'm not using DOD much. However, I would if DIRECTV added HD content to Travel Channel DOD (ch. 1277). I'd use that badboy all the time. I know bandwidth plays a big part in what channels we get. However, not an issue with DOD.

How about it DIRECTV?:grin:

If a contract is in place, at least give us HD via DOD.
 
#105 ·
GaryAZ said:
Good topic. It's really been a disappointment for me because of the lack of free HD content. I'm sure this will change with time. There's so much great HD content though my regular D* service that I've stopped checking the On Demand guide because it's always a disappointment.
I agree not enough HD content.
 
#108 ·
Tom Servo said:
It's hard to hit the limit with the low-res You Tube quality SD video they offer.
Then you must be using a different YouTube.com then me(In that I've never seen low-res You Tube quality SD video look as good as DoD.)

barryb said:
Who really uses On Demand?

I do. A lot in fact.
+1
I use it a lot, I have 63 items waiting to downloaded.

It's not slow for me at all(But then I have a 20/2 download speed).
 
#109 ·
We use it every day.

We have the HR22 on HDMI 1
We have the Moto Comcast TiVo on HDMI 2

We prefer the DIRECTV ondemand over Comcast. The simple reason? When you go into OnDemand on DIRECTV, what you were watching is minimized into the PIP window. On Comcast, it switches to a rolling ondemand commercial.

Now, Comcast does have more content ondemand, but 90% of what we watch is identical on both systems. Comcast is a bit faster, but by waiting and extra minute we can watch on DIRECTV.

The method of going to the ondemand offering of a channel is better on DIRECTV as well, 1248 for FX, 1265 for A&E, 1295 for Sprout - makes it easier for us to jump to the offering. In Comcast you have to drill down through many menus to get to the same content.

Considering it use to be a big selling point for Comcast, I'd say DIRECTV has done well and the interface is actually better....

now if only changing channels was as snappy as on the Comcast box... :rolleyes:
 
#110 ·
lee78221 said:
It's not slow for me at all(But then I have a 20/2 download speed).
I have 25/10 Fios and it took 1 hour 10 minutes to download a 1:29 minute HD movie. I wasn't in a hurry to watch it though so I didn't care.
 
#112 ·
lee78221 said:
As it's been said you don't have to wait until it's fully downloaded to start watching it. All I have to do is wait for 5-10 and start watching.
It depends on the size of the file and the speed of the download. If I start watching an HD movie after 10 minutes, it will catch up to the download and I have to wait. What you need to watch for is when the status bar turns green. That's supposed to be an indication that you can start watching, w/o catching up to the file that is being downloaded.
 
#114 ·
mogulman said:
I've checked it a few times, hoping to find something to watch. Never found anything worth watching though. It is a big disappointment for me.

I guess maybe its because I only subscribe to total choice plus HD/DVR.

There is literally almost nothing on the HD program list if you don't have premium type channels.

Also.. the listing of programs in VOD is impossible to look through. There is no way to just look at shows that you can actually watch. 90% of the shows in the listings for HD VOD are either PPV (which I can understand being useful) and then shows from stations I don't receive so I can't watch.
It's like you're me! lol!
 
#115 ·
DirecTV's VOD selection is obviously dwarfed by Comcast's. But WOW!, which is another cable company available in my area, has a completely pathetic VOD selection. They've got the premium channels, a bunch of off-the-wall BS that is VOD-exclusive, and PPV movies. That's about it. It makes DirecTV's selection look amazing.
 
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