[jorhett]

So I've grown tired of being insulted by the incredibly poor customer service over at Dish Network. It's time to upgrade to HD, and I figured I'd give DirecTV a try.

I called customer service with some totally made up questions, and got much better response from them than I've ever gotten from Dish. I'm happy with that.

Anything I should do or avoid with D?

Also, it seems that I can pay $199 for the HD DVR or $0 for the SD DVR but not both. It's $298 to get both of them. Any better/cheaper way? What if I break up the order and get the HD unit first and then order the SD unit later?

 

[Tom Robertson]

So I've grown tired of being insulted by the incredibly poor customer service over at Dish Network. It's time to upgrade to HD, and I figured I'd give DirecTV a try.

I called customer service with some totally made up questions, and got much better response from them than I've ever gotten from Dish. I'm happy with that.

Anything I should do or avoid with D?

Also, it seems that I can pay $199 for the HD DVR or $0 for the SD DVR but not both. It's $298 to get both of them. Any better/cheaper way? What if I break up the order and get the HD unit first and then order the SD unit later?

Interested in any of the sports subscriptions? Or the higher priced packages? Those kinds of things can get you some leeway. Or call back in 6 months after buying the packages and see if you can a small rebate for being good.

Lastly, IIRC, you can sometimes get new deals every 6 months or so, again depending on your spending level.

Welcome to directv. I've been fairly happy for many years now. (Just wish they weren't forcing the HR20 before its time...but I got a heck of a deal.) :welcome_s

Happy New Year,
Tom

 

[magellanmtb]

try calling back again and again. You will get the right deal if you get the right person on the phone. Tell them you are considering switching from Dish.

 

[shaun-ohio]

one thing you might consider is with directv, if you buy any type of receivers from directv, best buy, cc, walmart etc. and you decide you dont like directv, well you dont own them, you are only leasing them, and you are just out of money , if you decide to cancel directv, because they will want you to send back the receiver you bought

 

[Milominderbinder2]

Anything I should do or avoid with D?

Welcome!

The Standard Def DVR products are stable and have many features the HD DVR + (HR20) is missing. But HD is amazing and the future.

Installation is key just like with Dish. Make sure you get your free professional installtion with new cables, proper grounding, etc. The HR20 Installation Tips has more details. Make sure you have good surge and UPS protection.

If you are a TiVo lover, you may be miserable with anythig but a TiVo. The TiVo to HR-20 Survival Guide helps translate the terminology. It also tells some of what you will lose and gain.

If you are considering the HR20...

Check out the Catalog of Bugs to see some of the problems HR20 users are having. The HR20 Troubleshooting Guide helps deal with some of those problems.

The UNOFFICIAL HR20 Tips and Tricks gives 46 undocumented featues of the HR20.

One thing that you will not have is a backup unit. If you check out the Results of the Wish List Survey you will see that some of the features detailed in the manual do not work right or at all. For instance, the HR20 program info is often bad so it does not know that a show is first run and may not record it.

Whether or not you should take the plunge is as much a question about you as the HR20. Do you like adventure? Do you find testing a new product fun? Will you be excitedly waiting for the next software release? If your answers are YES, get your HR20 installed!

I don't work for D* but if I did, I would say Buy Both!

- Craig

 

[Tom Robertson]

Whether or not you should take the plunge is as much a question about you as the HR20. Do you like adventure? Do you find testing a new product fun? Will you be excitedly waiting for the next software release? If your answers are YES, get your HR20 installed!

- Craig

HR20, it's not just a DVR, it's an adventure!

Well said, Craig.

Have a Happy New Year,
Tom

 

[Humnahey]

Just order the HD-DVR and then after you're all set up go to the web page and use the "dvr4u2" code to get the SD DVR for free.