HR22 or HR24 versus HR54 Genie

I created this thread for others to consider before they swap their HR2x (HR22, or HR24) for an HR54 (Genie). I say HR22 and HR24 as those are the two models I have first hand experience with. The pros and cons are my opinion and how I think a DVR should work. I understand other users will have different opinions on usage.

I'm going to explain in hopefully, not-too-much-detail, what I like and don't like.

Quick Back ground:
- I've been with DTV since 2004.
- I had 2 HR22's for maybe 10 of those years, if not more.
- Over time the HR22's became very slow to respond to remote commands, sometimes it was OK, but too often is took as much as 20-30 seconds to respond. Extremely frustrating! The poor remote took a lot of abuse during those times. Can you say anger management?

So I replaced my 2 HR22's for an HR 54 Genie and Genie mini. Initially I was thrilled! The response to remote commands was virtually instantaneous..

But, within a few hours of usage, I discovered some functionality issues with the HR54 that I found unacceptable (YMMV):

1. Autoplay: The HR54 has a "feature" called autoplay. If you have 2 or more episodes of a program in what is known as a folder on the HR2X DVRs, and select one of those episodes in the folder to play, when that episode ends, you have about 5 seconds to try and stop the next episode from playing or the next episode in that folder will start automatically. Some people like this, and I understand the concept for binge watching, but I do not like it and there is no way to disable it. Netflix and Youtube have an option to disable autoplay. As of this writing, the HR54 has no option to disable this. I want to decide if I want to watch the next episode or not. Not scramble to stop it from playing. On the HR54, I have to scramble to press buttons to stop the next episode from automatically playing. You only have about 5 seconds to stop that next episode. If you are alert, and quick with the remote, this may not be an issue, but sometimes I watch recorded shows later in the evening and fall asleep. With the HR54 autoplay, I would wake up and find some or all of the episodes had played. Then I needed to figure out where/when I lost consciousness. With an HR2x, if I fall asleep, I only have to search one episode to determine where I lost consciousness. (If you keep multiple watched episodes e.g. Game of Thrones so you can rewatch later, if autoplay played all your new episodes, it may be a bigger deal to fins where you were.)

2. Overshoot correction. This turned out to be a bigger issue for me than autoplay. I use this all the time. For those of you that fast forward through commercials (or rewind), be aware that the HR54 has little to no overshoot correction (the ability to automatically back up several seconds to compensate for overshooting the resumption of the program when in fast forward). On the HR54, I always had to hit the instant replay button 3 to 5 times after pressing play when coming out of 3X FF. The HR2x rewinds perhaps a bit too much, but I prefer that. I don't mind seeing the end of the commercial because I then know that I am seeing the entire resumption of the program. The amount of instant replay "backup" on the HR54 seems to be much less than that on the HR2x's.

3. GUI (Graphical User Interface). In a nutshell, HR2x has a GUI that requires less button presses to move around than the HR54. From what I have read on this forum, most people think the GUI on the HR2x's is a lot better than the GUI on the HR54.

4. Progress bar; the bar you see at the bottom of your screen when you press play, >>, <<, pause, etc. On the HR54 it is very hard to see where you are, the timeline is in a light gray, the position of the program, whether a recording or delayed live tv is in a slightly darker gray. Also, when viewing a recorded program it is not obvious that it was recorded (I think there was some indication, but I can't recall before I got rid of the HR54, it was that poorly indicated). On the HR2x's, if you are watching a program that has not been recorded, you can clearly see where you are on the progress bar, the bar is green up to the current time (the rest is gray to the end of the program scheduled ending). If you are watching a recorded program or a recording, the progress, bar is red. I have no idea why DTV made the progress bar so hard to discern on the HR54.

Summary (my opinions):

HR54 Genie advantages:

1. Number of tuners: HR54 wins! 5 vs. 2 for the HR2x's. (Note: each Genie mini "steals" a tuner from the HR54). I will miss this, I could have 2 shows recording and still use double play on two other programs. 2 HR24's, in order to get 4 tuners, will be more cumbersome to manage.

HR2x advantages:

1. No autoplay. Huge issue for me. If DTV would offer an option to disable this on the HR54 then this would be a wash. I hate autoplay! DTV could easily add an option to disable this. Simple branch instruction.

2. Superior overshoot compensation. You don't have to press instant replay 3-5 times (as is the case with the HR54) when coming out o FF. DTV could also correct this issue with a simple firmware upgrade. (I miss the days when DTV programmers monitored/participated in this site and improved their product based on comments posted here).

3. From most posts I have read, the HR2X GUI is superior to the HR54 GUI. I absolutely agree that the HR2x GUI is easier to use than the HR54 GUI.

4. Progress bar clarity. No mistaking where you are or whether you are watching live or delayed live tv, (it's clearly green), or a recorded or recording program, (it's clearly red). Rhetorical question: Why did they change this to a hard to discern scheme?

"Why is my HR2x so slow? What am I to do? I'm going crazy!"

This is why I made the swap to the HR54 Genie. But once I used the HR54, I hated it. I had to see if there was a way to get back to a responsive HR2x. So I logged on to DBSTALK (I've been a member since 2005, but didn't think to research before I switched DVRs) and discovered this thread by Rich. What happens if I put a 1TB SSD in my HR44-700? Thank you Rich! Note: The solution will cost you around $125- 150 per HR2x, but for me, that is a small price to pay for the functionality that works best for me. I read that thread from post 1 to the end, it was very exciting, like reading a novel, how will it end?

What did I do? After getting the HT54 and a Genie Mini at no cost, I paid DTV, that's right, paid DTV to get the HR54 out of here and replace them with 2 HR24s. Could not be happier. When the HR24's slow down, and they will (reports are your HR54 will slow down too), see the link I posted above. Rich (and others in that thread) did us all a great service by experimenting with SSDs. Read it!

I created this thread to hopefully help others consider the pros and cons of giving up their HR2x's for a "supposedly" better DVR.