ViP211® and ViP211k® DVR Conversion Feature Now Available to Customers

Foxbat

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The feature I wish for most on the ViP 211 is being able to skip back to re-watch something I missed due to interruptions. Scheduling recordings will be the icing on the cake. 9 days of EPG will be nice, too.

Interesting that Dish is capping the EHD to 750GB. Isn't that the largest internal hard drive capacity on the ViP DVRs?
 

dlsnyder

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On the tech chat they said that the issue is the inability of the software to address more than one hard drive, and often EHDs larger than 750GB have more than one HDD. They said to look for EHDs that are about 2 inches wide, which would be a good indicator that it only had one HDD inside. There are some 1TB models that work just fine - as long as they only have one physical drive inside.
 

Ray S

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Sep 7, 2003
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I have a 722 and connected to the same High Definition television. I often record two channels and want to watch a third. That is impossible with the 722. Yet I want to be able to fast forward, pause or rewind the third channel. The addition of the hard drive to make the 211 a DVR makes this a perfect solution. I have already made some modifications to the 211. I purchased a "IR-to-UHF Pro" from Dish Network to be able to use it to operate a television in another room. I also have it connected to a DVD recorder via a S video and bought a Y adapter for the audio out so I can split the audio.
 

mrschwarz

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I have a 722 and connected to the same High Definition television. I often record two channels and want to watch a third. That is impossible with the 722.

You can do this if one of the channels you want to record or watch is the OTA tuner.
 

Islandguy43

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Oct 24, 2006
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Probably the same $5.98 DVR fee for the other receivers.

Who stated there will be a $5.98 monthly dvr fee for 211 conversion? I didn't get that from the Tech Chat.

If that is the case, why would anyone bother? You would just be better off upgrading to another 722 and save the cost of the EHD and the $40 activation fee.
 

dmag

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Who stated there will be a $5.98 monthly dvr fee for 211 conversion? I didn't get that from the Tech Chat.

If that is the case, why would anyone bother? You would just be better off upgrading to another 722 and save the cost of the EHD and the $40 activation fee.
Yesterday I sent an email out to the dish support line asking if a monthly fee will be required along with the $40 activation fee and still have not received a reply.

I don't think the CSRs even know the answer yet.
 

RandallA

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Who stated there will be a $5.98 monthly dvr fee for 211 conversion? I didn't get that from the Tech Chat.

If that is the case, why would anyone bother? You would just be better off upgrading to another 722 and save the cost of the EHD and the $40 activation fee.

I said probably. :) I read at the other site that there won't be a dvr fee.
 

ontwowheels

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I don't think there are additional monthly fees, that is what I got out of the tech forum broadcast the other evening.

Along these same lines, about what size external disk would give the 211K say, 30 hours of HD recording?
 

KAB

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I don't think there are additional monthly fees, that is what I got out of the tech forum broadcast the other evening.

Along these same lines, about what size external disk would give the 211K say, 30 hours of HD recording?
Prior to MPEG 4, a 320 GB would get you 30. But now, you would get considerably more. I'd suggest just getting a 500GB.
 

Foxbat

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Heck, the new notebook external drives have gone up in capacity and down in price, so they might make a better match with the slim appearance of the ViP211 than an older 3.5" drive enclosures. Does anyone know if the ViP211 can power an external hard drive through its USB connector?
Prior to MPEG 4, a 320 GB would get you 30. But now, you would get considerably more. I'd suggest just getting a 500GB.
Remember, OTA is MPEG-2 and can be up to 19Mbps, or maybe 8.5 GB per hour of 1080i programming. 500Gb is a good starting point, and I've seen major brand 500GB drives for under $80.
 

KAB

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Heck, the new notebook external drives have gone up in capacity and down in price, so they might make a better match with the slim appearance of the ViP211 than an older 3.5" drive enclosures. Does anyone know if the ViP211 can power an external hard drive through its USB connector?
They do not work with the 622/722, so my assumption would be NO.
 

lakebum431

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No, they said on the tech chat that you need an external drive with an external power source.
 

Jim5506

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It would be a nightmare to administer a DVR fee for the 211.

Let's say I have 3 211's and pay the CS $40 fee and buy one EHDD, do they charge me for 3 DVR fees, or 1? Suppose I buy two more EHDD's, how do they know when I plug in the EHDD? Does the fee go away if I unplug the EHDD?

Administration of such a program would cost more than the fee, let's hope they skip it.
 

Foxbat

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I DVR'd the Tech Chat but haven't watched it yet. That makes perfect sense. Thanks, everyone.
 

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