Customer Reviews

DirecTV HD DVR DWO2-10020 Satellite TV Receiver

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

On a good HDTV monitor with an HDMI connection, the video from this receiver is just stunning.

There are several things you should know:

1 - '30 hour' refers to HDTV recording capacity. For normal, non-HDTV programming, you'll get much, much more than 30 hours.

2 - For some reason, DirecTV has not upgraded the software to Tivo Series 2. That means no folders grouping together saved programs, no support for the USB ports (no broadband connection, you MUST use a modem), no Home Media Option or video sharing.

3 - There's a bug in the digital audio output which causes digital audio to fail with some amplifiers. Fortunately, my amp was firmware-upgradeable to be more forgiving about the audio format. From what I've read, the receiver fails to send proper headers on the audio and sometimes (when you're changing channels, going forward or backward) this causes audio to cut out completely. I found that I needed to restart my amp to get audio back. DirecTV does not acknowledge this problem.

4 - Over time we've seen more little audio and video glitches than I've ever seen with any other model Tivo or DirecTV receiver. Nothing serious, but kind of annoying.

5 - There is very little HDTV programming available on DirecTV at the moment. Unless you live in LA or NY or you're rural enough to qualify to receive distant stations, you're unlikely to be allowed to get the LA or NY HDTV feeds of local channels. This is a government restriction, not DirecTV's fault. There's one PPV channel in HD format, and there are HD feeds of HBO and Showtime plus a few other things. Definitely check with DirecTV to see what you'll be able to receive before jumping on this.

6 - DirecTV is working on bringing out lot more HDTV programming, including local network stations, but the rumor is that in order to do this they're going to switch to a new compression format that this receiver won't support. It's too early to say whether they'll provide a graceful upgrade path or will stick you with a thousand dollar receiver/recorder that can't receive the bulk of their programming, but consider yourself warned.

I have had TiVO for several years now. With separate TiVO/receiver units, channels can occasionally not change properly (like getting channel 8 instead of 80 -- this used to happen with a separate unit we had.) The integrated units solve this plus the picture is wonderful because it hasn't been reinterpreted (the picture is the same after recording as it would have been watching it live.)

We use ours with DirecTV plus an indoor antenna which we mounted in our attic. This totally surprised me -- the indoor antenna works great and gets additional HD channels! To our delight, the Hdvr handles this beautifully (even with duplicate channels!)

Be sure to activate the 30 second skip feature (so you can skip commercials) and give yourself some time to get used to a TiVO -- our first one really changed the way we watch TV. We never worry about missing our favorite shows -- we just sit down when we feel like watching a show and select a show we actually *want* to watch instead of channel-surfing. When we are excited to watch a new episode we'll just start watching it 20 minutes or so into the episode so that we can skip commercials -- you can record *while* you are watching the same program.

If you have multiple HD DirecTV inputs, you can record two shows at once while you are watching a third previously-recorded show.

For the kids, we keep a selection of their favorite shows (non-HD) and there is no need to mess with a VCR or DVD player! They never even watch live TV, which means they can skip the commrecials which I'd rather they not see anyway!

The one improvement I would like to see is for "series 2" TiVO, which would allow groupings into folders, but I think it's worth it to have the TiVO integrated!

Like many, I had an HDTV that I watched little HDTV on. Not because of lack of programming available, but because having to watch commercials or watch TV on the network's schedule prevented me from watching LIVE HDTV (we owned three low definition Tivos prior to this purchase).

Yes, DirecTV doesn't office some of the home media options or folders on their Tivo boxes, but those are mostly peripheral offerings. Nothing does what this unit does as well as this unit does it period. This unit takes Tivo and HDTV to the next level! Two recording sources. Real-time conversion to all TV formats. Same Tivo interface we all love plus a more traditional satellite box guide view. Off-air and satellite reception. There's a reason why this unit won best of show at CES. And something I wasn't aware of, you don't have to purchase the $300 lifetime subscription with DirecTV DVRS.

When I first purchased this unit, I thought I would have trouble justifying a $1000 spend. Now that I have it, even my frugal wife understands why I bought it and the HDTV I purchased last year.

If you are looking for HD, tivo and surrond sound, this is it. It is excellent when it is working propoerly, but ther are issues:
1. No series 2 software, so no networking, or nice folders to organize your programs.
2. Poor quality. I'm on my 4th unit, BUY the extended warranty, well worth any price. The HDMI port failed 3 times!
3. Processor is VERY slow at times, compared with TIVO series 2 stand alone unit. Long pauses at time when changing season passes and making taped show switch to "never delete" mode.
4. No direct HD local channels, only via antenna.
5. Few HD channels available, plus pay [...] extra per month

Good points:
1. Surround sound.
2. HD taping
3. 30 hours HD and 200 hours regular programming.
4. You can hook up a HD antenna to get local HD broadcast and tape them with TIVO!

I bought my first one a year ago. I spent close to a cool thousand on it. Ouch! However it was well worth it. I was watching HDTV on TiVo. I live in Orange County, CA and receive several HDTV programs plus DirecTV is getting good with the HDTV service as well with Fox, NBC, ABC, and CBS all in HD (I got in under the radar screen a few years ago and get both east and west coast feeds--they don't allow that anymore though).

This unit allows you to record two HD programs at the same time. You can choose your output resolution as either 480i (for recording to DVD for example), 480p, 720p, and 1080i. I have it setup with my 70" Grand Wega XBR Rear projection LCD and I love it. I have the second one hooked up to my 36" 4:3 CRT Wega. As the price comes down I will get another for my Sony 21" 16:9 LCD Panel.

If you own a nice HDTV, have DirecTV, and don't have this unit. You are just an idiot. Suck it up son, by it. You will love yourself for doing it within minutes.

Note: The USB Ports are just holes in the back of the unit. So don't expect to set it up to your network or use TiVo via the internet. That was the only let down but . . . who cares. I am watching Leno at 7pm, Smallville at 10pm, and CSI on the weekends--all in HDTV. CSI is the most beautiful experience in HD.

This was a very good product when the technology was around but recent mpeg 4 technology has since replaced this receiver. Directv has since started upgrading the number of hd channels they provide so it is best not to get this receiver and instead it is recommended to go with a Directv plus hd-dvr receiver from Directv, such as the hr20 or newer model of receiver (The hr10 with tivo that is being advertised here is only mpeg 2 compatible) While there are currently no mpeg 4 compatible Directv hd-dvr's with Tivo software, Directv is currently working with Tivo to produce a future generation box that will be compatible. It is expected for relase sometime in 2009. My advice is to not get this receiver and instead get the Directv plus hd-dvr receiver from Directv (see Directv.com)or wait until an mpeg 4 compatible hd-dvr with tivo software is released in 2009 through Directv. Visit there website for more information.

I have been waiting for a high-definition integrated DirecTV TiVo box for a long, long time. I held back on buying a separate TiVo box, held back on buying a third-party product. Well, I can definitely say this was worth the wait and lived up to my expectations so far.

The menus are very intuitive, as they are with all TiVo products. Mine was up and running within minutes after unpacking and activating it. I immediately began surfing through the current TV listings, giving movies and shows thumbs-up, double-thumbs-down, triple-thumbs-up, etceteras, ordering season passes, and setting recording schedules for a few movies.

Since then, I have never had one problem whatsoever with the system. It has recorded probably 300 shows, some of them high-def, some standard, and all that I have watched have been flawless in terms of picture quality and simplicity of operation. I have only felt the need to watch live TV a few times since then, mostly for current news.

I have it hooked up to an OTA antenna for local high-definition programming. It has recorded fine from there at 1080i, and integrated the local channels into my listings seamlessly.

If I had to identify some flaws, what would I say? One thing is that when you are selecting a program for recording, or a season pass, the system will tell you if there is a scheduling conflict, which is good, and you can at that point select "Find other Showings." However, you cannot see which of the other showings does NOT have a scheduling conflict without selecting one, and waiting for the system to compute this. It would really be helpful to have a feature where, once it knows the show you want to record, it would automatically find showings that have no schedule conflicts, or if it cannot find any, shows you what conflicts exist for each showing so you can pick the most convenient one without the trial and error. It's a small complaint overall.

The system is slow at first, while it builds your database of suggestions and of showtimes. However, once everything is loaded, response time was perfectly acceptable. This can take a couple of weeks.

Also, this system has a dual tuner, so you need two connections coming in from your satellite, plus one from your antenna if you have one. This is a lot of wiring. Luckily not an issue for me, but this bears noting for those looking to buy one. All TiVos are the same from this standpoint, otherwise you would not be able to watch live TV while recording another channel. HOWEVER, you CAN watch ANY already-recorded programming on your TiVo while it records another show on another channel, even if you only have one cable running to the TiVo. This means, once your system has a bunch of stuff recorded, you may find you don't need to watch live TV very often, and thus the inconvenience of using just the one tuner would not be the worst thing in the world.

I don't see how you could go wrong with this machine. I guess a terabyte of storage would be better than just the 250 gigabytes, but I have not run out of storage yet, and you can always send it away for more capacity through one of the third party companies that soup these things up. One other criticism I have with the system is that they could if they wanted make it possible to hook your TiVo to an external hard drive. I did not see any instructions on doing that, but that would be such an easy fix to the storage problem.

A final complaint: You can record in standard definition from the unit onto a VHS or a recordable DVD. But there is no capability to output in high definition yet. Hopefully we will find a way to get around this at some point, but we are waiting for Blu-Ray or HD DVD to become available and hopefully to standardize before the recording part is enabled, and then for Hughes to allow outputting to such a recorder. Also, the recording is done realtime, there is no way to record (dub) at double or quadruple speed, or even faster. Bummer.

A final compliment: I love the TiVo suggestions section. I have found more movies and shows that I like by scanning through the TiVo suggestions and getting it to record at least some of them. Of course, there are also those suggestions that you wonder "what was it thinking?" but at least for me that's part of the fun of owning a TiVo generally. If you have not taken the TiVo plunge, this is the machine to do it with if you are a DirecTV customer. If you are not, I suggest you become one.

Equipment I Have

DirecTV HR10-250 Receiver

2 DirecTV R10 Receivers

Terk 3-LNB HD Satellite Dish

Sony KD-34XBR960N 34" Widescreen HDTV (HR10-250 connected)

Sony RDR HX715 DVD Recorder

Sony 27" Standard Definition TV

Sony 13" Standard Definition TV

Info

DirecTV HR10-250 is a high-definition receiver for DirecTV customers only. It also has a DVR with TiVo. With DirecTV, the DVR/TiVo service is only $4.99 per month. If you have up to four other DVR receivers in your home, you only have to pay the $4.99 one time per month.

250GB Hard Drive

Approx. 33 hours of high-definition recording space, 225 hours of standard-definition recording space.

Praise

I tried many different receivers for DirecTV at Circuit City and Best Buy. This was the best HD receiver that I found. Best features, better picture and sound.

The menu speed has been improved in the Series 2 Tivo. I runs pretty smoothly for me.

Nice Features

Dual Tuners

Record one program while watching another program with dual tuners (twin incoming cables). Or you can record from two channels at the same time, while you watch something that you previously recorded. You would need three VCRs to do this with VHS.

Wishlist

A great feature. Save Wishlists for your favorite films, actors, or directors. Examples in my Wishlist: Stanley Kubrick, The Godfather, Stephen King, Gone with the Wind, Roots. You can have programs in your Wishlist automatically recorded.

Jump-Back Feature

An exclusive feature of the TiVo system (as far as I know). Since the fast forward and fast backward speeds are so fast, you may go slightly beyond the desired point in the program. The jump-back feature compensates for this by jumping either forward or back slightly. When you skip through commercials, you can usually hit the exact spot right before the program returns.

Recording a Program

When you press the Record button, the DVR does not start the recording from when you pressed the record button. It takes the entire program from the latest saved half-hour block of programming. If you change to a certain channel, then press Record before the end of a half hour, the DVR will save the entire half hour of programming to your hard drive.

Criticisms

When I set up an alternate `Favorite Channels' list in `Channels You Receive', the receiver seems to automatically include a few channels all by itself, channels that I do not want. I hope DirecTV can fix this bug sometime. It seems to include a new channel every 4 or 5 days. I find myself deselecting these channels every weekend. These channel inclusions do not occur immediately following the receiver's call-out to upload more guide data. They just seem to occur every 4-5 days or so.

In the Spring or Summer of 2006, DirecTV will introduce the MPEG4 encoding. This means that every receiver will have to be MPEG4 compatible to receive all the local channels. The new upcoming DirecTV H20-250 receiver (also set for the Spring or Summer of 2006) will have a DVR, will be MPEG4 and HD compatible, but it will NOT have the TiVo system (heartbreak). It will be more along the lines of the R15 receiver, which makes me wonder what features I'll have to give up besides TiVo. Time will tell. Perhaps other manufactures can come to the rescue (please) and come out with a great HD MPEG4 receiver just in the nick of time.

Auto-Tune

On other DirecTV receivers, you could use the guide and have the tuner change to a certain channel at a certain time. The H10 has no auto-tune. In order to go to a certain program at a certain time, you need to set it up to record the program. Then if you don't really want to record the program you need to stop the recording.

Picture-in-Guide and Picture-in-Picture

Even the basic DirecTV receivers have a small picture of the current channel when you're in the guide. And with dual tuners, a picture-in-picture of both channels makes sense. The H10 has neither of these features.

Suggestions

A stop button on the remote would be nice.

A delete button on the remote would also be nice, since all deletions are verified before they're executed.

A 10-second advance button would be good. Sometimes it would be nice to skip ahead by 8 or 10 seconds without having to use the forward button. An advance button that skips ahead 30 seconds would not be needed. I wouldn't use it to skip through commercials, unless there was only one commercial. I use the forward button on the 3rd speed to skip commercials.

Back and Forward

Skipping back or forward through a program that is being temporarily recorded is pretty fast. When you are watching something that you previously recorded, or watching something that you are currently recording, you can use the forward and back buttons with the advance button and instantly go to the tick marks (the small white lines) in the status bar. You cannot do this while temporarily recording though. An even faster way to go back and forth would be great.

Mix Channels

The `Mix Channels' feature is about the only feature on the DirecTV R15 that is really worthwhile, and would have been great on the H10. I would like to see an expanded version of this feature. Imagine having a mix channel feature to view all of your `Channels You Receive' and/or your `Favorite Channels'. Hopefully other manufacturers will take a cue and include a feature like this in their future receivers for DirecTV.

Tivo Suggestions

Get rid of the Thumbs Up and Thumbs Down buttons. There is really no such thing as a "similar type of program" for most programs. In most cases a Tivo suggestion for a certain program is really nothing like the program that was given a Thumbs Up. For example, what similar program can you compare The West Wing to?

Hints

Skip Through Commercials

For those who did not realize this after using the DVR on the first day: Instead of watching a live TV program from the very beginning, start watching it 10 or 15 minutes after it begins. Make sure you're set to the correct channel for the program that you want to temporarily save. Since the DVR is temporarily recording the program for you, just use the back button in the 3rd speed to scan back to the beginning of the program. Then when the commercials come along, you can use the forward button to skip through them. Eventually you may catch up to the live broadcast (depending on the length of the program), but usually you may be able to see the entire program without any commercials.

TiVo Menu Sound

I was a little tired of the TiVo sound effects after the first few hours of using the receiver. It wasn't until the next day when I found the volume setting for the sound effects.

DirecTV Button -- Messages & Setup -- Settings -- Audio -- Sound Effects Volume. You can select Off, Low, Medium, or Loud.

Watch Two Channels with a Single Tuner

Even with a single tuner, you can stay on the current channel while the DVR records from another channel. When the message comes up asking you if you want to change channels to record from another channel, just say yes, or don't select anything. While you're still on the original channel, use the back button to go back a few minutes. The DVR will start recording from the other channel on time, but it will not change channels. It will also continue to temporarily record on the current channel. If you want to change channels to the new channel that is being recorded, press the List button and select the program from the list.

Season Pass

If you don't want to use the guide and set up the DVR to record the same program every day or every week, use the Season Pass feature. Set a Season Pass for a program and the DVR will record it every time it's on for up to 28 days. You can even specify the DVR to record First Run episodes and Repeats, or only First Runs.

Known issues with recording series, recording HD content, recording at all.
Mine get about 40% of what is programmed. DirecTV refuses to replace saying, and this is a quote, "the inability of the DVR to record series is normal therefore we are not authorized to do a replacement" Spent 3 hours on the phone, was hung up on 3 times. By far the worst customer service I have ever experienced in my entire life. I will be paying the 300 dollar fine to end my service early.

DO not get it.

I was informed by Directv that I would be able to get my HD local channels. NOOOOO! Be careful when signing up for directv, if you plan on using the hd-dvr, you will not be able to receive locals. Directv did not tell me until after I signed the contract. I called cust. serv. and after speaking with a supervisors supervisor, I was finally told that the HD-dvr does not get locals and that the upcoming DVR will be able to receive locals. Back to adjusting an atenna for every channel for now.