H20 from Circuit City

1796 Views 5 Replies 5 Participants Last post by rumblefish, Feb 26, 2007

stanwich

Discussion Starter · Dec 28, 2006

A couple of questions from a newbie...

Just got an hdtv for Christmas, but it will be 2 weeks for the installer to get here with HD receiver and 5-lnb dish (currently have 3-lnb). I am thinking about picking up an H20 from Circuit City, but have some questions (sorry if repeated)...

1) should I be concerned what flavor of H20 I get (-100, -600, other)? What are the major differences?

2) can I simply pull an access card out of my R-15 or one of my D10's, slap it into the H20, and hook it up to my HDTV?

3) I think I saw somewhere that the H20 will work with either a 3-lnb or a 5-lnb, so assuming 2) above is valid, can I upgrade my programming to include the HD package prior to the installer hanging my 5-lnb? If so, what does the 5-lnb get me?

4) being 11 months into my current 2 year commitment, will I be able to get the $100 rebate on the H20 from Circuit City? If so, any special instructions to avoid a problem getting the rebate?

Thanks in advance for any responses!

Save

Status: Not open for further replies.

1 - 6 of 6 Posts

bobnielsen

· #2 · Dec 28, 2006

The H20-100 has some HDMI issues with certain brands of televisions (component works fine). The -600 has some heating issues, occasionally causing it to spontaneously reset (placing it where there is adequate airflow helps). Both of these conditions may possibly be corrected by future software upgrades.

The H20 will come with an access card. You will have to call Directv to activate it. It will work fine with a 3-LNB dish, including all of the HD package channels. The 5 LNB dish is required for HD locals and regional sports networks. Additional HD channels to be added next year will also require this dish.

I don't know about rebates, but you might ask a CSR.

Save

crashairlines

· #3 · Dec 28, 2006

bobnielsen said:
The H20 will come with an access card. You will have to call Directv to activate it. It will work fine with a 3-LNB dish, including all of the HD package channels. .

Long time reader, first time poster

Got a lot of useful info here over the last year from guys like Earl and others in the know.

Anyway, my question is, can I buy the H20 and use it as an OTA receiver without calling Directv to activate it? And if I do that, can I avoid their lease program which I'm still a little confused about?

A couple of years ago when I switched to the H10-250 HD Tivo, I kept my old Samsung TS360 and let my parents use it 3 months of the year in their vacation home near me along with one of my smaller HDTV sets. That way they were able to get some HDTV stations for free. This week when I was trying to setup the TS360 for them, it seemed to have died. It acts as if there is no power, but the fuse seems to check out OK. So I think the receiver might be dead.

If I can buy the H20 for $99 and let them use that as a OTA HDTV receiver I will. I have a 3 lnb dish at my house if I would need it for some reason for setup before taking the H20 to their vacation house. But I don't plan to buy the H20 if I have to sign up for their lease program or if we have to sign up for Directv satelite programming. I just want a simple, cheap, OTA digital tuner 3 months a year for OTA HDTV. The TS360 worked fine for that purpose until now. Can the H20 work for me the way the TS360 use to, or did they prevent the newer receivers from being used in that manner? thanks.

See less See more

Save

jonaswan2

· #4 · Dec 28, 2006

No, because they way DirecTV's CA works, you have to "marry" the receiver with the access card and as far as I know, the H20 will not work without a properly married access card.

Save

crashairlines

· #5 · Dec 28, 2006

jonaswan2 said:
No, because they way DirecTV's CA works, you have to "marry" the receiver with the access card and as far as I know, the H20 will not work without a properly married access card.

Darn. Not what I was hoping to hear, but thanks for the info. I guess I'll have to look into other options.

Save

rumblefish

· #6 · Feb 26, 2007

crashairlines said:
Long time reader, first time poster Got a lot of useful info here over the last year from guys like Earl and others in the know.

Anyway, my question is, can I buy the H20 and use it as an OTA receiver without calling Directv to activate it? And if I do that, can I avoid their lease program which I'm still a little confused about?

A couple of years ago when I switched to the H10-250 HD Tivo, I kept my old Samsung TS360 and let my parents use it 3 months of the year in their vacation home near me along with one of my smaller HDTV sets. That way they were able to get some HDTV stations for free. This week when I was trying to setup the TS360 for them, it seemed to have died. It acts as if there is no power, but the fuse seems to check out OK. So I think the receiver might be dead.

If I can buy the H20 for $99 and let them use that as a OTA HDTV receiver I will. I have a 3 lnb dish at my house if I would need it for some reason for setup before taking the H20 to their vacation house. But I don't plan to buy the H20 if I have to sign up for their lease program or if we have to sign up for Directv satelite programming. I just want a simple, cheap, OTA digital tuner 3 months a year for OTA HDTV. The TS360 worked fine for that purpose until now. Can the H20 work for me the way the TS360 use to, or did they prevent the newer receivers from being used in that manner? thanks.

I know it's been a while since your post but I just wanted to say my TS360 also died of a bad power supply over a year ago, maybe Sept 2005? D* would not help. I contacted Samsung, they did not have any refurbished units and knew there was a problem with that unit so they refunded me my purchase price. Thanks Samsung!

Save

1 - 6 of 6 Posts

Status: Not open for further replies.

Top Contributors this Month