Tivo/HD vs. Directivo/HD

I'm not a DTV subscriber, so take my opinion with the appropriate grain of salt.

The only true HD-DirecTivo is, AFAIK, the HR10-250 which doesn't work with the new DTV "MPEG4" satellite feeds. All the newest DTV HiDef channels being added are MPEG4, and within a couple of years most folks seem to expect the older HD channels to be converted, as the new satellites are brought into service.

The current DirecTV HD unit is the HR20. Attitudes vary about this unit, but mostly seems to do the job pretty well.

One thing you should know: The TivoHD has no video-inputs and no IR blaster control. Meaning, that you can't rig it to a satellite receiver or whatever.

If you were a cable subscriber, I'd probably recommend jumping at the chance. But as a happy DTV user, what would you really be getting for spending $199?

If you have a good cable option available with good selection of HD I see no downside to getting the Tivo HD with the lifetime transfer. That sounds like a good deal to me. And unless you commit to a triple play bundle if you decide to go to DirecTV later on you shouldn't have any contract to break and I'm sure you can easily sell the Tivo HD.

Like mentioned above, the Tivo HD can't be used with DirecTV (or Dish) it's cable and OTA only.

You mention almost none of the shows you watch are in HD, I'm curious, what are some of the show you watch? I'm curious because now with the new HD channels from DirecTV about 95% of everything we watch is in HD and maybe only half are from the networks.

Some really good insights; thanks guys.

We're pretty conservative in our TV watching; a lot of the shows out today just seem like junk to us. We are major Frasier fans, and we like Monk, Shark, House, Jag. And then the really old stuff like Lucy, Dick van ****, Andy Griffith, etc. The current crop of just stupid, insulting, sexy shows just don't do much for us.

I also used to wonder whether the old stuff, made in the 70's and 80's, can even be broadcast in HD. Then I read somewhere that they have to be re-mastered into HD. So, I guess I can rule that out for most shows.
We expect to start motorhoming in a few years, and I have to decide what kind of Tivo to take on the road; either Directv, and we carry the antenna, or Tivo HD and we tap into the park's cable. But if the park's cable doesn't carry HD, what's the advantage of having an HD Tivo? And if Directv is going to Mpeg4 and I have to get a non-Tivo DVR to get Directv's signal. Jeez. Decisions, decisions.....

I wouldn't recommend going tivoHD right now. The HR10 only offers about 6 or 8 high-definition channels. Spending 200 for so little seems like a waste. The new HR20 is not tivo. If you're accustomed to constantly "time-shifting" to avoid commercials . . . you'll really hate the HR20. I do. I love the improved HD lineup, but I'll be first in line when tivo releases a new Directv box. If you don't watch many high def shows, stick with the old tivo.

If your tv has an OTA tuner you could plug in some cheap rabbit ears and watch your local Hi Definition network feeds for free.

smoking_rubber said:

I wouldn't recommend going tivoHD right now. The HR10 only offers about 6 or 8 high-definition channels. Spending 200 for so little seems like a waste. The new HR20 is not tivo. If you're accustomed to constantly "time-shifting" to avoid commercials . . . you'll really hate the HR20. I do. I love the improved HD lineup, but I'll be first in line when tivo releases a new Directv box. If you don't watch many high def shows, stick with the old tivo.

If your tv has an OTA tuner you could plug in some cheap rabbit ears and watch your local Hi Definition network feeds for free.

Click to expand...

Please elaborate on the bolded part if you could. 90% of what I watch is recorded "time-shifted" content and I have no problems with the HR20 for that. Just curious what the nature of the difficulty is.

Don't think he means time-shifting in the traditional sense.

Yea, I'm not sure what he's talking about either. Time shifting is all I do 98% of the time. That's what a DVR does Tivo or HR20. I also think smoking rubber is confused by the question anyway. TivoHD only works with cable, not with DirecTV so the OP is basically looking at TivoHD with cable or HR20 with DirecTV. And as I said if his cable has a decent HD lineup that he'd be happy with and he can get a TivoHD with transferred lifetime I see no reason why not to go that route vs. DirecTV. Sounds like a deal to me.

dshinnick said:

...
We expect to start motorhoming in a few years, and I have to decide what kind of Tivo to take on the road; either Directv, and we carry the antenna, or Tivo HD and we tap into the park's cable. But if the park's cable doesn't carry HD, what's the advantage of having an HD Tivo? And if Directv is going to Mpeg4 and I have to get a non-Tivo DVR to get Directv's signal. Jeez. Decisions, decisions.....

Click to expand...

The TivoHD gets OTA HD so if you were in a park that didn't have it, you might be able to find something from a local station using an antenna. Maybe you could find something that you and your wife would enjoy in HD. PBS has some great shows in HD.