Dish Network DVR-721 Review

By Chris Blount

The DVR-721 is the flagship model of Dish Network's fleet of DVR's (but not for much longer with the release of new DVR's in late 2003).  In this review I’m going to touch upon the characteristics,  installation and features of the DVR-721.

Highlights of the DVR-721 Include:

A complete product brochure can be downloaded HERE including a view of the back panel

Like the 508 remote,  it's functionally is laid out for ease of use.  The important buttons are larger than the rest which makes them easy to find.  To help protect the remote,  I seal it in cut-to-size freezer bag (pictured above).  The only real difference between this remote and the remote for the 508 is the added buttons for Picture In Picture (PIP) and a red button that was rumored to be for internet use but for now is disabled.  The remote is programmable which means you can control your TV,  VCR and other equipment by selecting one of the 4 buttons at the top.  It's also an RF remote which allows you to control the receiver from just about anywhere in the house.  A BIG plus in my book.

Installation of the DVR-721 was fairly easy but could become complicated if not done correctly.  Since it's a dual tuner DVR,  both dish inputs must be hooked to the unit to function properly.  Other than that,  the installation procedure is pretty straightforward. When you first turn the receiver on,  you must wait for a software download which can take almost an hour.  Then,  you must allow at least 24 hours for the 721 to become completely stable although it can be used during that time.

I have an SW64 in my system.  After installation,  I was able to check the switch layout using the Switch Matrix Screen pictured above.  When I clicked "Detail" I got basically a different version of the same thing (also pictured above).

Operation of the DVR-721 is fairly simple with one caveat.  When pressing a button on the remote, reaction time varies anywhere from less than a second to several seconds.  This is one drawback about the 721 that really irritates me the most.  Since the software is Linux based,  you would think it would be much more efficient when navigating the menus. Most of the time though,  the receiver is quite responsive so I guess the delay would only get frustrating if you are in a hurry. 

The pictures below show the PVR menu,  the programming guide and the main menu. As with other Dish DVR's, you can skip forward and back 24 hours in the guide by pressing the arrow forward and arrow back buttons (the same ones that you use to skip forward 30 seconds or skip back 10 seconds while watching a program).  This is a very useful feature when manually looking for a show that is a couple of days in the future.

Pressing the cancel button will give you the top menu bar with how much time is left in the current program you are watching.

Pressing the info button once gives you a transparent pop-up of current programming information. Pressing it again will give you a solid info screen.

If you pause a program,  you get a nice little display at the bottom showing how much delay you have between the live broadcast and your current position in the show.

The 721 has auxiliary inputs on the front of the unit.  By plugging any video source into these inputs (composite video and Left/Right audio),  you can select channel "0" to view what you have going to these inputs.  Also included are jacks for a microphone and USB (which can be used for an external keyboard).  There is,  however,  no S-Video input. 

By pressing the "browse" button on the remote,  you get a display showing the current program and the next program scheduled. 

Pressing the PIP button places whatever is being received by the second tuner on the lower right side of the screen.  Press the PIP button again makes it slightly larger and again turns it off.  You can also place the PIP on any corner of the screen or in the middle by pressing the "Position" button.  The "Swap" button on the remote places the second tuner up to the main large screen with sound and the first tuner goes down to the PIP.

Another excellent feature on the 721 is the search function.  To do a search,  you can use the remote or an on-screen keyboard.  Very handy if you don't want to deal with fumbling with the keypad on the remote.

One marvelous feature that was just added in a recent software upgrade is the triple timer conflict screen.  If you try to record 3 programs all at the same time,  a screen will come up asking you which one you would like to delete or change.  This is one feature that was very much needed and long time coming.

Like other Dish DVR's,  the 721 has the ability to record a show from the beginning even when the show is half over by scanning back to the beginning and pressing the record button.

The 721 also has a slow motion playback feature.  While watching a live or recorded program,  simply press pause and use the skip back or skip forward buttons to advance one frame at a time.  The only problem is that you don't actually get single frame advancement.  It's actually more like 2 or 3 frames which is useless if you are trying to find a specific frame.  If you press the fast forward or rewind buttons,  you get 1/15 or 1/4 slow motion playback.  In this case forward slow motion advances wonderfully and you see every frame.  But, when going back,  several frames are skipped.  To this day I don't understand why you get single frame forward  advancement using the slow motion speeds,  but skipped frames when advancing manually.  Go figure.

Hard drive noise from the 721 is almost non-existent.  I usually have to have my ear right up to the unit before I hear anything.  What I do hear though is the internal fan which is much louder than the hard drive.  Sometimes I can hear the fan from across the room. Luckily it's not always running so it doesn't get too bothersome..  

Overall,  I'm fairly pleased with the DVR-721 but not really jumping up and down.  It's a great dual tuner satellite receiver but it has had problems from the get go and Dish never quite got it right.  The receiver uses time based recording (unlike the Tivo which uses name based) so the season pass feature is noticeably absent and if there is a change in the schedule,  the 721 will not adjust to the change and only record the block of time you asked.  The 721 also does not have dual TV outputs for multi-room viewing which would allow each room to independently view each tuner or recorded program.  On the other hand though,  the receiver isn't exactly a bust either.  It does what you ask and to this date I have never lost a recording.  

At this time,  I would be cautious about recommending the 721.  Although it functions well,  someone looking for a dual tuner DVR through Dish Network might want to wait for the new line of receivers containing the DVR-522 which is supposed to replace the 721.

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