New DVR lag free?

What did you have before? On the Genie side, HR44 is the fastest, but I wouldn't go as far as saying it's 100% lag free. Whether the lag is noticable is a different issue. It also depends on if the receiver has to change resolutions etc.

 

The Genie DVR (HR44) is by far the fastest DVR DIRECTV has ever had, from my experience. I don't think you'd be disappointed, but I'm just basing it off of my experience. I've also never had U-Verse so I can't really compare the two.

 

Having both, channel changing is definitely faster with Uverse... they're different technologies.

 

HR44 is a HUGE upgrade from that. I don't need any faster of a DVR than my HR44. I hate even using my HR24 because the HR44 is quite a bit better than that. You just don't want the Genie minis, that's where stuff starts getting slow and lagging.

 

The Genie mini is painfully slow. Thinking about getting rid of it, and getting a HD Tivo for the upstairs tv.

 

which genie model do you have and which client model number do you have?

 

Indeed! We had the Genie mini clients and completely got rid of them. Now we have 1 HR44 DVR, 1 HR24 DVR, 2 H25. We've had a better experience with this setup.

 

HR34-700 and C31-700

 

I have no complaints on speed or anything with my C41 client linked to an Hr44. Then again, I choose to not channel surf or use trick play on the unit.

 

I wish we could have more than one HR44. Any idea when and if we will be able to?

 

Yeah, unfortunately those are terribly slow compared to a hr44 and c41.. ;( The hr44 c41 combo is as fast as my hr24 most the time.

 

HR34 and C31 is still better than my HR23 in speed channel surfing.

IMO HR22-100 is Directv's 2nd worst receiver ever made.
H25 - 600 and R15 are tied for first.

 

I had U-Verse directly before switching to DIRECTV this past winter. I have the HR44 Genie. It seems to me like it takes about twice as long with DIRECTV for the picture to show when you change channels as it did with U-Verse. However, the info banner (which shows the program and channel name) pops up instantly with the HR44 when you change channels -- you just have to wait another second for the picture to show. I'm a big channel surfer, so I do notice the lag, but it's really not that bad. The quickness in changing channels is about the only thing I thought was better with U-Verse. Picture quality and on-demand options are much better with DIRECTV. I'm happy with DIRECTV but don't think I'd ever go back to U-Verse for TV.

 

Uverse is IPTV (sort of like Netflix) and so "tuning" to a new channel is really just asking for a different stream over the same session. As a result, when you change channels you are really sending a message back to ATT who then simply switches the video input for you IP session. It takes no longer that the time for the message to travel from your box to the server and the start of the new video to travel back.

DirecTV is a different system, obviously, and it can take a sizable fraction of a second or more to receive a entire initial frame of video. Most "frames" in the data stream only contain the differences from the previous frame, and full frames are only after a specified number of delta frames. I've seen cable boxes that start showing data instantly, but it is all digital artifacts until it gets a full frame in the data. DirecTV just keeps the screen black until the full frame is received.

 

I've actually seen the black screen go away early on occasion. Then you see the blocky mess.

 

This is true that the HR44 is the fastest DVR that Directv has made - but that's not saying much. There is a major difference between the U-Verse equipment I have seen and the HR44. U-Verse is noticeably faster and less laggy. It's just a fact. I don't care that it's a different technology - Dish is nearly as fast as U-Verse and the newest cable boxes. I am not going to switch over it, but it is certainly a pain and something that one of the few disadvantages to Directv.

 

Yes, I know one of the 7xx versions of the DVR software had a bug that caused that to happen. It is supposed to stay black, but sometimes stuff happens.