Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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187 of 191 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
comparison with dtvpal plus, November 17, 2008
I purchased the two major timer event schedulable/programmable converter boxes available as of this date: the Zinwell and the DTVPal Plus (enhanced version of the DTVPal or TR-40 CRA). These are some of the major problems and advantages of each.
The biggest problem I have with the Zinwell is that the remote control is the flimsiest and cheapest control I have ever seen with any product. The down arrow button is already having problems responding to pressing after only a few days. It usually takes several years before buttons on a remote control begin to go bad, and I am concerned that this one will not even be working a year from now.
The biggest problem with the DTVPal Plus is the reception. The Plus is supposed to have enhanced reception over the prior models which were famous for bad reception (and you pay $20 more for the 'enhancement'), but in my area it gets a couple less UHF channels than the Zinwell and often has severe breakup on the ABC affiliate and two other channels (even with an amplified antenna). Perhaps this will be less of an issue if digital signals get boosted in February.
Both devices get the clock time automatically from the digital signal but both devices keep erratic time occasionally, and the Zinwell is especially bad. (The DTVPal Plus usually keeps the correct time in my area. May not be true in all areas.) After a few days, the Zinwell became stuck at 62 minutes behind the correct time and the DTVPal Plus became stuck at 53 minutes ahead. If you are buying this to schedule timed events, this is obviously going to be a problem. Attempts to remedy do not help, but after a couple of days the devices go back to the correct time for awhile. The Zinwell has no daylight savings on/off, while the DTVPal Plus does allow you to control daylight savings. The Zinwell has the advantage that you can manually set the time, while the DTVPal Plus does not allow you to. Even after manually setting the time in the Zinwell, I found it loses 1-2 minutes per week and also loses the clock time completely if power goes out even for a second (most devices will hold the time for 2-3 minutes in a power outage). I have mine on a UPS (backup battery) to keep it from losing time in a brief power outage. At least the Zinwell allows you to control the time.
I have had a problem with the Zinwell mysteriously changing the number of channels (ch. 5 suddenly became 31) with no way of changing the numbers back-even re-recognizing does not help. This is a huge annoyance that makes browsing channels and scheduling events very difficult.
As someone else has noted, the Zinwell has 8 timer events to 5 for the DTVPal Plus. The Zinwell lacks a recurring M-F weekday scheduling option. Both devices make you go through several menus to get to the timer scheduling. The DTVPal Plus has an awkward event scheduling process that takes you through two screens. The Zinwell has its own awkwardness-it makes you choose a channel from a list of station call letters rather than channel numbers. The Zinwell also requires confirmation at the end of the timer scheduling process that makes it easy to accidentally cancel your timer event, so watch out.
The analog pass-thru of the DTVPal Plus provides a strong signal but shuts off digital operation if you go into analog pass-thru mode. The Zinwell puts a little interference on the analog signal, but if you connect all cables (both RF/coax and RCA/composite) it keeps digital operation alive while in pass-thru mode so it is easy to switch back and forth between digital and analog channels. If you turn off the DTVPal Plus, it will automatically go into pass-thru mode, but if you turn off the Zinwell pass-thru is not active: the Zinwell must be powered on in order to get a good analog signal.
If you like on-screen program guides, the DTVPal Plus has a better one than the Zinwell, and you can even schedule timer events direct from the program guide with the DTVPal Plus. However, it takes awhile to download each time you turn on the converter box.
If you get a Zinwell, do not throw out the manual. Zinwell has unfortunately set a password on some of the channel functions, so you will need to look up the default password in the manual if you try to access these functions.
Do not expect much support. Both companies took several days to respond to an inquiry and gave canned answers that did not address my question. After supplying follow-up information, neither company got back to me. There are several other issues and quirks with both devices.
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59 of 62 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
VCR TIMER - good to keep your DVR or VCR working, September 13, 2008
The main reason I bought this product was for the DVR/VCR Timer. This feature allows you to program your favorite shows, and the box will automatically change channels to that show. You can then use your DVR or VCR to capture the video off the box.
Other boxes like the Zenith DTT901 have better reception capability, but lack the ability to operate with DVRs or VCRs.
The Zinwell also has analog passthru for people who will be watching Low Power or "clear air" stations after the February 2009 analog shutdown. If you're like me, and don't have any analog stations post-transition, then this feature has no real relevance.
The Zinwell's guide is rather poor, since it only tells you what program is on now, and what program will be on next hour. The Dish DTVpal has a full=featured guide upto 12 hours into the future, but I don't recommend that device due to poor quality build & software bugs that make it almost unusable.
Overall I'm satisfied with the Zinwell's DVR and VCR capability, although I still use the Zenith as my main box when watching live television.
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25 of 25 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Very Nice. You can record different stations while away from home. Works great with a VCR, March 10, 2009
I only have an outdoor TV antenna. No cable or satellite. I too bought this converter for the built in timer. You can record different channels at different times while you're away from home with your VCR and TV antenna (However, you can not record one station and watch another station "at the same time"). You have to set your TV and VCR to channel 3 (always) and the timer in this converter is what you set for the time and channel to record. Make sure the clock time on the converter box matches the clock time on your VCR. Or you may miss part of your show. There is one problem that I haven't figured out yet. I hooked this converter to the TV in my living room. My outdoor antenna cable line continues on and goes to the bedroom and the TV in the bedroom only plays the channel that the converter box is on in the living room. I have 2 of these converter boxes and so I hooked the second one up in the bedroom. It receives no channel signals. Well, that didn't last long since I received my DVD recorder in the mail (Toshiba DR560 1080p Upconverting DVD Recorder with Built-in Tuner, bought on Amazon) and this DVD recorder has a built-in ATSC/NTSC/QAM digital/analog tuner. Meaning, I don't need a converter box in my living room now. This DVD recorder allows me to record one station and watch another station at the same time from my over the air, outdoor antenna. Just like a VCR. Awesome! Now the converter box works on the bedroom TV. Since the DVD recorder is allowing the signal to continue on through to the bedroom. I am a happy camper. I now have an extra converter box. Maybe I'll sell it on Amazon.
Over 3 years ago, I got rid of my cable (yes, the first 3 months was very difficult). I bought an outdoor TV antenna and lived with that for about a year. The reception wasn't good, lots of white specs or lines. Then I bought a "booster" for the antenna. A big improvement almost like receiving paid cable. This converter box allows me to receive more TV stations then the outdoor TV antenna alone. I haven't figured out yet what these stations are. I think they're cable or satellite channels. This converter box also improved the reception of all the TV stations. My new DVD recorder, as I mentioned above, also improved the reception even better then this converter box.
By the way, so far I've saved over 2 thousand dollars by getting rid of my paid cable and going to an outdoor antenna. Add up your monthly cable bill and times it by 12. That's what you're paying a year for paid cable.
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