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Oneota · 06:21 PM

So I'm currently stuck in the world of Standard-Def - I've got a reasonably nice Sony 32" TV in my living room and a very nice 20" Toshiba TV/DVD/VCR in the bedroom. I've got DirecTV now in both rooms, with an R10 TiVo DirecTV tuner in the living room.

I've been mulling over making the HD move, at least in the living room. I want to get the best picture for my money, though, and it seems like everyone has an opinion on which route to go for content. I'd be interested in hearing the thoughts of this community regarding HD Cable versus HD Satellite.

I've come to love TiVo. I don't have any experience with non-TiVo DVRs, but one way or another going back to live-TV-only probably isn't in the cards. If other DVRs are as good as TiVo, I'll consider them, but everything I've read and heard suggests that TiVo has the only winning formula.

So, I guess I'm curious as to what folks would suggest - Can I use an HD DirecTV tuner with a standalone HD TiVo over HDMI? Would HD cable with a standalone TiVo be the better route? Or a HD DirecTV with its own in-house DVR? Some other option I haven't thought of?

goMac · Jul 7, 2007, 04:51 PM

FIOS if you can get it where you live. And get a TiVo DVR.

Oneota · Jul 7, 2007, 05:09 PM

No FIOS in my area.

SVass · Jul 7, 2007, 05:24 PM

Cable company quality and quantity are determined by area. Ask your neighbors!

Satellite companies have varying levels of compression. Again ask your neighbors. sam

King Bob On The Cob · Jul 7, 2007, 05:32 PM

What do you want to watch in Hi-Def?

If you just want to watch local content, just pick up an ATSC tuner and a UFV antenna. Free over the air for the win. (Satellite will probably provide you with this antenna so you can get the locals in hi def, rather than provide it itself)

Oneota · Jul 7, 2007, 05:37 PM

Yeah, I know about over-the-air content. I'm more interested in things like Discovery Channel HD, Comedy Central, TBS (if they have an HD version, I guess I don't know...) HBO/Cinemax; things like that. Thanks!

UNTeMac · Jul 7, 2007, 05:55 PM

HD is nice but I don't think it's widespread enough to justify it just yet. The best HDTV experience is still in DVD movies. Wait a year and see what kind of channel selection you can get.

goMac · Jul 7, 2007, 08:44 PM

Originally Posted by UNTeMac

HD is nice but I don't think it's widespread enough to justify it just yet. The best HDTV experience is still in DVD movies. Wait a year and see what kind of channel selection you can get.

Yeah, Comedy Central and TBS are not HD networks. I've found the local channels are worth it though. The best choice might be to get a antenna for OTA local HD stuff, and keep Satellite for everything else. My TV actually has dual tuners just for running in this sort of setup.

Teronzhul · Jul 7, 2007, 09:36 PM

TBS is at least slated to go HD around october I believe. There was an announcement somewhere.

A standalone Tivo unit will work only with Cable. It has no component/hdmi input, only QAM and ATSC tuners with dual cablecard slots. If you go this route, remember you'll be paying $5-600 for the tivo and $13-16 monthly for their service on top of your cable bill.

DirecTV's in house HD-DVR the HR-20 has come a long way. I've been using mine since February and haven't had any problems with it in months. The interface is a bit different, but once you're used to it you can set up recordings considerably more quickly than you could with Tivo. It does lack a few features like suggestions (hated them anyway) and Dual Live Buffers (this I do miss) but for the most part is a very capable DVR. This way you pay $5.99 for DVR service and about $200 up front. Less than half of what tivo will charge monthly and up front.

DirecTV's newest satellite, DirecTV10 just went up yesterday, so they are moving toward their promise of lots of HD channels by end of year.

If you really want to look around your local Cableco may be good or bad. Some pass full res 1920x1080i and look better than their satellite counterparts. The cableco in my area is still using analog standard channels and their HD is ridiculously compressed crap. It is very hit or miss. Comcast and Time Warner typically are good.

Dish net right now has the most HD outside of FiOS. They currently downres much of their content to 1440x1080i and 1280x1080i. Of course DirecTV does the same thing, and as of this moment has fewer HD channels (7-13 =/ ), but as I said, that is planned to change by October.

I like DirecTV. I like their HD-DVR. Assuming I've bet on the right horse I'll have more HD available than I could get from any other providers in my area for quite some time.

starman · Jul 7, 2007, 10:46 PM

Cable + Tivo Series 3 = bliss

The DirecTV DVR is sh*t. Utter sh*t.

Teronzhul · Jul 8, 2007, 12:42 AM

When it was released I would have agreed. Random reboots, missed and corrupted recordings, broken season passes etc. There have been lots of software updates for it though, and I haven't had a single issue in the last 5 months.

CaseCom · Jul 8, 2007, 03:14 AM

I have a 32-inch Sony (V32XBR2) and Comcast cable with DVR (Motorola 6412). Overall I'm happy with it, although the Moto sometimes drives me nuts with its poor response time. If you're used to TiVo and can afford a Series 3 I'd go with that. Comcast DVR would be a step down.

I bought my parents a 20" Toshiba combo set a couple of years ago, maybe same as yours. Great set.

villalobos · Jul 8, 2007, 01:39 PM

Originally Posted by UNTeMac

HD is nice but I don't think it's widespread enough to justify it just yet. The best HDTV experience is still in DVD movies. Wait a year and see what kind of channel selection you can get.

Actually, Planet Earth on Discovery HD is worth spending $2000 on a HD TV set by itself. This series is nothinh short of breathtaking.

KeriVit · Jul 8, 2007, 01:51 PM

Originally Posted by starman

Cable + Tivo Series 3 = bliss

The DirecTV DVR is sh*t. Utter sh*t.

Why?

I have Directv HD-DVR, never had Tivo, what am I missing out on? Just wonderin. I love mine, but have nothing to compare it to.