Satt. DVR's better than TW/Cisco Explorer 8640?

[jerund]

I currently have Crime Warner cable and the HD DVR is horrible... Having had Tivo before, this is enough to get me to switch, but I want to make sure it's for the better. The Cisco box is more reliable than the old Scientific Atlanta, but still:
- you can't schedule a show at a given time and day; if it airs at 9pm then you get anytime it airs at 9pm, unless you chose new shows only.
- heaven forbid the network changes the schedule by a minute or two; the show doesn't record then.
- If the network skips a show for a week (or offsets the time) then the DVR decides the show doesn't exist anymore and stops recording it. Ever.

Thanks to this lousy performance I have to use prime time on demand a lot, which is a pain. Are DirectTV and Dish Net better than this? It would be hard to believe they aren't.

 

[teachsac]

Both services DVR's are better than the majority of cable co's. I had Dish for 12 years before I left for Direct. Equipment fees for Dish above the first are pretty unreasonable. You just need to figure out which service fits your needs. I love Directs multiroom capabilities.

S~

 

[navychop]

If you only want a single HD DVR, then Dish may be cheaper. If you are a BIG sports fan, and might be willing to pay $200 or so (varies a lot - plenty special offers for new subs), then DirecTV would be the way to go. Dish has a few more national HD channels and more international channels, and maybe a slight edge in movies. Also, you can get Blockbuster as part of your Dish package. If you plan on multiple DVRs, DirecTV has a whole home system today. Dish's version comes out next year.

If you're in no rush, you might want to see what comes out at CES, running from Jan 10 to 13.

 

[jerund]

Our needs are simple, not a lot of sports or movies (pretty much none), but we do use a number of channels like Food, TLC, Discovery, Science, History & Comedy central along with the big 5. Surprisingly Direct has every station we use, so as long as we can reliably record shows, I'd be happy with that.

 

[harshness]

Surprisingly Direct has every station we use, so as long as we can reliably record shows, I'd be happy with that.

Don't be surprised. Both DIRECTV and DISH have most of the available channels (with some annoying sports exceptions, Comcast Sports Net regions, on both).

I'd like to throw in on the idea that you wait until after CES as there may be some interesting stuff from not only the satellite providers but possibly cable DVRs (or the absence of need of them) as well.