[nocturnalis]

So I got the HR20 two nights ago and my wife pretty pissed off and told me to send it back We have a Samsung SIR-TS160 and that use to be the main reciever in the livingroom. It had no DVR and she wanted to record shows. So I'm picky about my hardware and decide to get the HR20. It's nothing like the Samsung when it comes to ease of use. Anyway what she wants that the Samsung has is the ability to schedule a show (can't really put it into words it's early morning ) She want to set the reciever to jump to a show that she programs ahead of time. If it's 8pm and a show starts at 9:30pm we can go to that 9:30 show and set the clock icon go. Once 9:30 rolls around we get a message to OK to jump to that channel.

I don't use this much my wife LOVES this feature and wants the HR20 to go if it can't do it amongst other things.

I'm sure this has been noted before. I'm trying to calm an unhappy wife.

 

[wakajawaka]

Welcome nocturnalis,

Keep in mind that what you have now is an almost completly different animal than a standard receiver. For one thing the HR20 has 2 tuners and it is a DVR. Just set the HR20 to record what you want to watch (See Manual) then when you are ready to watch go to MyVOD (I usually just hit List on the remote) select your show and start watching. Forget about your old way of watching TV Live. Once you get used to it you will wonder how you ever watched TV the old way.

 

[nFavor]

I have to agree with the previous poster. You're seriously going to need to invest some time to learn the unit. Even for us PVR veterans, it takes awhile to learn the new DVR. Many things are/were similar to my Tivo and other things are completely different.

Please give the HR20 some time. If you have questions, please feel free to search the forums or post. Most people say to give it 2 weeks before making your finial opinion on the HR20 and I'd say that they are right.

 

[patsrule316]

I don't know what the "amongst other things" are, but once you learn how to record a show, the not automatically jumping to the show when it starts, will be a useless feature. When you can watch a show when you want to watch it (including starting the show at the beginning even while the show is recording), who cares if it jumps to it right when the show starts?

 

[lguvenoz]

I would tend to agree that this is a low priority feature for a DVR. On the flip side though I'm pretty sure that our UltimateTV DVR had this capability. There are people that actually just watch live shows when they're home and record them only when they would miss the show (I know it's not the full power of a DVR, but hey different strokes for different folks).

If enough people squawk about this, I'm sure that D* might consider adding the capability. It definitely is not there today.

 

[dkd]

I thought the "Tune" option does this for both DVR or non-DVR receiver. It jumps to the channel you want at specified time.
Also, if you leave the receiver on or watch a show, at 9:30 there will be a popup message in lower right corner asking for permission to jump to that channel 10 secs ahead. At least, that was what I saw while watching a live HDD show last night, and a 9:00pm recording for "The Unit" on CBS kicked in. If I pressed "No", then it would not jump to CBS.

 

[Guindalf]

This is typical of new DVR owner thinking. What you have is NOT a VCR. It does far more.

Try pausing live TV for a while (about 15-20 minutes for a one hour show) and demonstrate how to skip through the commercials. You can do this with a pre-recorded show too.

Also show her how you can watch another channel while her show is being recorded - or even record two things and watch a third, pre-recorded show

Once she (and you) stop thinking of it as just another way of recording, she'll soon come round.

 

[glennb]

I wonder if the OP has even looked at the manual yet ?

 

[houskamp]

I too miss that function.. would even be nicer if you could set a playlist..possibly across recorded and live

 

[Rob55]

It had no DVR and she wanted to record shows.

Not for nothing, but if you want HD and she wants to record, then she doesn't have much of a choice, it going to have to be either the HR20 or the HR10-250 (if they're still available). And, employing some kind of out-board recording solution to satisfy her recording wants would just be silly. I agree with the other posters, show her some of what the DVR can do (pause live TV, fast-forward through commercials, dual tuners ,etc...) and I think you'll convince her. Good luck.

 

[nocturnalis]

Thanks for the comments all.

As for reading the manual. Been there done that. We do know how to set the HR20 to record shows at a set time and we did get the message to switch. BUT why do I have to set it to record for it to do that? Why can't I just go to a future show and set it to jump to that show at the start time. Just jump there not record. If anything this feature that I'm talking about is more of a reminder that a show is about to start that I would like to see if you are caught up in a 2 hour movie to kill time until said show starts.

I'm not looking for a VCR but in it's current state that is what it seems to be. If I record a show I have to watch the show while it's recording. I know about the other input but I have not tested if mine even works.

I am a new DVR owner after all these years so please bear with me.

 

[pappasbike]

Thanks for the comments all.

As for reading the manual. Been there done that. We do know how to set the HR20 to record shows at a set time and we did get the message to switch. BUT why do I have to set it to record for it to do that? Why can't I just go to a future show and set it to jump to that show at the start time. Just jump there not record. If anything this feature that I'm talking about is more of a reminder that a show is about to start that I would like to see if you are caught up in a 2 hour movie to kill time until said show starts.

I'm not looking for a VCR but in it's current state that is what it seems to be. If I record a show I have to watch the show while it's recording. I know about the other input but I have not tested if mine even works.

I am a new DVR owner after all these years so please bear with me.

The Ultimate TVs did this and I've missed this feature ever since. You could set it to record and remind you, set it to remind and not change channels or set it to change to the channel.
John

 

[wakajawaka]

Maybe I'm missing something here, but isn't having the show recorded for you to watch at any time better than jumping to the show? Plus you can finish watching that 2 hour movie you are caught up in. One statement you made, that you have to watch the show while it's recording is false. The recording gets put into your MyVOD list, which is a list of all the shows you have recorded, for future playback at anytime after the show has started including before it has ended!

As for two inputs, just look behind your unit to make sure you have 2 satellite feeds hooked up. (It should be fairly obvious) Or try recording two shows at the same time, if they both record, you have both tuners hooked up.

 

[iceman2a]

DAMM! How hard is it to pick up your remote at a certian time and change to the channel you want to watch

 

[matto]

DAMM! How hard is it to pick up your remote at a certian time and change to the channel you want to watch

More importantly, if you have a DVR, why the heck would you want to watch TV live?
Does the OP really like watching commercials?

 

[walters]

I'll have to echo, I can't think of a single time when I'd even care what's on "now", much less be prompted to switch to it.

 

[rlgold88]

Thanks for the comments all.

As for reading the manual. Been there done that. We do know how to set the HR20 to record shows at a set time and we did get the message to switch. BUT why do I have to set it to record for it to do that? Why can't I just go to a future show and set it to jump to that show at the start time. Just jump there not record. If anything this feature that I'm talking about is more of a reminder that a show is about to start that I would like to see if you are caught up in a 2 hour movie to kill time until said show starts.

I'm not looking for a VCR but in it's current state that is what it seems to be. If I record a show I have to watch the show while it's recording. I know about the other input but I have not tested if mine even works.

I am a new DVR owner after all these years so please bear with me.

It takes one second to hit the record button on all the shows you watch in the guide. Just record the shows you want and watch, then watch them when you want.

It seems to me that you dont want to take the huge advantages a dvr has over a standard box. Once you get to know the functions the hr20 can do compared to your samsung you will be wondeing why you waited so long to try a dvr.

Also you should have two cables connected to it for the ability of recording two shows at the same time and watching a previose recorded show. Try to pause live tv on your samsung and then continue the show. That function alone beats the standard box. Just play around with the box for a couple of weeks the dvr will grow on you and your wife.

 

[kencc]

My wife was unsure at first took a few days to teach her & myself but she is very happy with it now. There are some nice forums here that are a big help. Don' be too quick to give up on this.

 

[Canis Lupus]

This is typical of new DVR owner thinking. What you have is NOT a VCR. It does far more.

Try pausing live TV for a while (about 15-20 minutes for a one hour show) and demonstrate how to skip through the commercials. You can do this with a pre-recorded show too.

Also show her how you can watch another channel while her show is being recorded - or even record two things and watch a third, pre-recorded show

Once she (and you) stop thinking of it as just another way of recording, she'll soon come round.

Totally. Once I showed my wife these features a number of years ago (early adopter), she was hooked. In fact, I'll bet once she sees the power of how it changes TV watching habits, she'll never want to go back. If she's someone who likes to "sit down at the appropriate time" to watch a show live, show her that recording a 1 hour show gives her an extra 20 minutes or so to finish up something else, then she can watch the same show in 40 minutes and skip all of the commercials.

 

[wakajawaka]

nocturnalis, I tried to convince my wife for months to get a DTivo, no sale, she just couldn't understand the benefits. As it turned out one of her friends got a DTivo and she was raving about how cool it was. Only then did I get the green light to get the thing (Which I did pretty much on the spot). After about a week she apologized for giving me a hard time about getting it. Now we have 3 of them.

Just wondering if you have any friends with a DVR unit of any kind? If so maybe they could walk you through all the benefits and basic operation. If not, spend some time with it and be patient. Sooner than later you'll "get" how to use the thing and you won't regret it. You'll probably become absessed with it like so many on these forums are.