Yet another thinking of switching to D* thread

[db2]

Sorry to add to the pile but I went through all of the old swithing to D* threads and I still have a few questions if I may. I'm really interested in getting the Big Ten Network and I don't feel like waiting six months or a year while E* continues their p*ssing match.

1) I thought I read that you cannot, "lock out" channels with the D* DVR, is this true? If I create a favorites list, can I keep it on favorites at all times?

2) Does D* have HD channel mapdown feature like E*?

3) I'm interested in loading up on D* programming (Sunday Ticket, Setanta, sports pack, HD) where would I get the best deal? Would it help to call D* and tell them all the programming that i want and that I'm thinking of switching from E*? Would they "deal" on prices or are they set?

4) I've read that the SD PQ is very poor on D*. For those that watch on large displays (50" or larger) are you able to watch SD programming?

Thanks for putting up with another switching thread!

[markrubi]

1) I thought I read that you cannot, "lock out" channels with the D* DVR, is this true? If I create a favorites list, can I keep it on favorites at all times?

I have a favorites list with only the channels I select. When I goto the guide they are the channels only shown.

2) Does D* have HD channel mapdown feature like E*?

If you are referring to the show HD, or movies, or childrens programming yes it does have this.

3) I'm interested in loading up on D* programming (Sunday Ticket, Setanta, sports pack, HD) where would I get the best deal? Would it help to call D* and tell them all the programming that i want and that I'm thinking of switching from E*? Would they "deal" on prices or are they set?

Call them it's the only way to find out what deals you can get.

4) I've read that the SD PQ is very poor on D*. For those that watch on large displays (50" or larger) are you able to watch SD programming?

I have a 55 inch rear projection and SD is ok, but SD is getting replaced by more HD as time goes by. Also maybe once the new sats are up they can allow for better SD.. More bandwidth?

[Bob Nielsen]

If you use "search" to find a program, it will look at all channels, not just a favorites list. If autorecord is selected with this, that could cause the DVR to try to record something not received. Hopefully this will be fixed soon.

SD quality varies from channel to channel. A lot of this is probably from the source, however. Some look very sharp.