Agree with no Android, but also would prefer it have a real processor and not an Atom-based one, and run some fairly standard version of Linux - doesn't need to be Ubuntu or anything but at least something with bash scripting capability - and yes, please make it open source. A RTC would be nice but it MUST have a wired GIGABIT ethernet connection, so if it wants to sync with a network time server and fix the clock once or twice a day that's fine as long as doing so doesn't mess up recordings. Speaking of which it should have a USB3 port for connected storage devices, AND/OR the ability to save recordings to a networks share. I do NOT need or want "apps", though - I have other devices that are better for watching YouTube and such. But at the same time it would be great if it had PVR software that is recognized as a PVR backend in Kodi. I know Kodi had a VU+ / Enigma2 PVR client so if the receiver supported that it would be great, but really any PVR backend that Kodi supports would be fine, even if you have to code a new Kodi PVR addon for the purpose. Or alternately, if it can send IPTV streams to another backend on the local network (such as TVHeadEnd) that would work too, as long as it can send multiple streams simultaneously (in case you want to watch/record multiple channels). Basically I just want the receiver to be a receiver BUT I do want to be able to watch whatever it records on any network-connected device that can run Kodi. In my particular usage case, except when setting it up or scanning a satellite, I would probably never actually have a TV or monitor directly connected to the HDMI port (and I sure don't need any other types of video/audio outputs anymore), but that's just me.
Also extremely important: Excellent blind scan capability. I'm not as concerned about how fast it blind scans as I am about whether it will find everything on a satellite and give me as much information as possible about each signal it finds. At a minimum I want to know the frequency, polarity, symbol rate, type (DVB-S, DVB-S2 8PSK, DVB-S2 Turbo 8PSK, DVB-S2 16APSK, DVB-S2 32APSK, etc. and yes I'd like it very much if it could both blind scan and receive all of those), FEC, Channel name, detected PIDs, and any other information it can provide on a given channel. I'd also like to be able to save the information on all detected transponders and channels to a text file (or maybe a comma-quote delimited file) that could be downloaded and used in other applications. It is 2016, there is no reason we should not be able to get a list of channels from our receivers in some relatively user-friendly format. The desire to have this type of functionality would be another reason it should run a relatively standard version of Linux, since it would make it possible to write bash scripts or other types of small programs that would make it easier to interact with the receiver.
It would be great if it had a web-based interface where you could not only do everyday tasks like schedule recordings and control other PVR-related functions, but also that would allow you to perform system functions such as starting a new blind scan on a satellite, or see "live" signal strength and signal quality meters (so I can take a phone or tablet out by the dish and watch the signal strength and quality while making tweaks to the dish and LNB). Really I'd like to be able to do everything from the web interface after the initial setup, including stream channels to my computer. Also if the receiver has an EPG then it should be possible to populate the EPG using an xmltv format file (such as is used with MythTV or TVHeadEnd) so you don't have to put up with a mostly blank channel guide here in North America.
Regarding software editors, the problem with them is that they are typically platform-specific, so that if you don't have a Windows-based machine you are out of luck unless you can get the editor to run under WINE or something like that. So again my preference would be to have a web-based interface, with the option to export and import settings as a comma-quote delimited (CSV) type file that could be edited externally in any CSV editor. BUT I do NOT want to have to use an editor to add a new transponder, that's what blind scan is for. I get that some users blind scan a lot and want speed but to be honest I'd rather it take even as much as an hour or two to scan a satellite and find EVERYTHING, and I mean EVERYTHING, rather than three minutes and miss several of the services. Maybe there should be three modes of blind scanning, "fast" (2-3 minutes), "deep" (10-20 minutes), and "extreme" (30-90 minutes), of course those times are just guesses as to how long each type of blind scan might take. I'd always opt for "extreme" because I want to find EVERYTHING.
Firmware should be upgradeable over the network but in case something goes wrong (unexpected power failure, etc.) there should be a hidden button you can push while powering up that would reload the default factory settings, regardless of the current state of the firmware, so that essentially you have an "unbrickable" device (I am not into electronics, and I don't do JTAG stuff). And please do issue regular firmware updates when necessary to fix bugs. I hate companies that effectively drop all support of a receiver the minute they decide to release a newer version. I don't need a new model every year, but I do want the model I paid good money for to be bug-free. PLEASE MAKE FIXING BUGS A PRIORITY OVER ADDING NEW FEATURES. Programmers should be forbidden from working on new features while there are outstanding bugs, ESPECIALLY in the case of bugs introduced by a new firmware update (if you break it, you fix it, and you don't work on anything else until you fix it!). And there should always be the option to NOT receive automatic firmware updates, so if you don't want to be the guinea pig for new updates you can wait a week and see if anyone else is having problems. And if you say "no" to an update it should not nag you about it! And no stupid crap like having a box pop up saying new firmware is available while you are watching TV; don't be like Microsoft pushing their Windows 10 upgrades!
Finally, it would be great if the receiver had multiple tuners so you could connect more than one LNB. Start with two or four in the basic model, but allow plugging in expansion modules so you can add up to say a dozen tuners (two or four tuners per module). This type of modular design would also allow adding special-purpose tuners such as ATSC or DVB-T tuners for OTA reception (depending on what part of the world you are in), or data stream tuners to allow downloading information sent as data streams, or any new formats that might become popular (DVB-S3?). Actually what I would REALLY like to see is new design LNBs (for both C-band and Ku-band) that instead of sending back RF over RG-6 cables, would instead use underground Cat 5e or Cat 6 cable back to the receiver, so that the tuning would take place in the LNB itself. Each LNB should be capable of tuning multiple transponders simultaneously (at least four) and sending those transport streams down the data cable. So the LNB would only need the wired ethernet connection and a low voltage power connection, unless you can do some type of power-over-ethernet thing. And then the receiver would accept those streams for recording or live viewing. But I digress, you didn't ask about LNB's, you asked about receivers that presumably would work with existing LNB's. But I'm just saying that putting the tuners in the LNB's would avoid coaxial cable losses. and also reduce or eliminate the need for tuning circuitry in the receiver itself.
