722k external hard drive "activation"

[mjstraw]

Stumbled on a good deal on a 1TB usb hard drive so I thought I'd add one to my 722k. Plugged it it, formatted, moved stuff to it, played stuff from it, life is good.

Then I remembered that you needed to get an external HD "activated" and that there was a $35 fee for doing so. hmm.

Went to the dishnetwork web site - big "advertisement" about calling them up when you get a HD and they'll activate for free. "my equipment" under "my account" showed HD not activated.

Even though mine was working fine, I thought I'd give them a call - perhaps there were some "extra" features that required activation.

They acted like I was calling from another planet. After being bounced to 3 different reps, got one who [lied to me?] and said he'd activate. But still couldn't tell me why it was necessary and what benefit I'd gain.

"my equipment" still says not activated, everything still works fine, and I've since located a posting here that indicates the fee was eliminated Feb 1st.

Sounds like E* needs to do a better job of educating their support reps. They could really improve their efficiency and cost effectiveness if they didn't waste time dealing with issues like this one - 3 different reps, total of about 0.5 man-hours.

 

[harshness]

The fee was $40.

That you felt compelled to poke at the CSRs is a shame. The CSRs are there to help when you're having a real problem, not explain what's wrong with the website.

 

[dwarren2]

The fee to activate an EHD on the 722 series was dropped in Feb. Still in effect for the211 series.

 

[KAB]

Stumbled on a good deal on a 1TB usb hard drive so I thought I'd add one to my 722k. Plugged it it, formatted, moved stuff to it, played stuff from it, life is good.

Then I remembered that you needed to get an external HD "activated" and that there was a $35 fee for doing so. hmm.

Went to the dishnetwork web site - big "advertisement" about calling them up when you get a HD and they'll activate for free. "my equipment" under "my account" showed HD not activated.

Even though mine was working fine, I thought I'd give them a call - perhaps there were some "extra" features that required activation.

They acted like I was calling from another planet. After being bounced to 3 different reps, got one who [lied to me?] and said he'd activate. But still couldn't tell me why it was necessary and what benefit I'd gain.

"my equipment" still says not activated, everything still works fine, and I've since located a posting here that indicates the fee was eliminated Feb 1st.

Sounds like E* needs to do a better job of educating their support reps. They could really improve their efficiency and cost effectiveness if they didn't waste time dealing with issues like this one - 3 different reps, total of about 0.5 man-hours.

If you spent a little more time around here, you could have avoided your frustration.

 

[TG2]

The fee was $40.
That you felt compelled to poke at the CSRs is a shame. The CSRs are there to help when you're having a real problem, not explain what's wrong with the website.

Its not a matter that the website is "wrong" ... its that EHD is something that has been around for several years. It doesn't just effect the 722k, the 211k requires the fee still (or did) and requires activation still, so this "EHD" shouldn't have been some mythical question from some loopy customer ...

the CSR's should have known what the EHD was, known that some models still require activation (and that customers have to call for that) and should have seen that no activation or fee was required once they looked at the customer's account and matched up what equipment they had.

The first rep could have been new, and so gets the "newbie pass", but the 2nd rep, as a supervisor should have damned well known what the EHD was, AND if they didn't know that the EHD was no longer charged for, could have seen it and understood it when they looked into the account. Why they had to pass it onto a 3rd rep is unknown, but it calls into question that even the level 2 support people have no clue about several of the Dish product lines.

As to the compelled to activate nature of our O.P. ... I'm sure you wouldn't want to find an errant 35 (or 40) dollar fee on your bill for having activated something the wrong way on your account.. *AND* that if you had done your due diligence and checked support/dish's site before hand, and it gave you explicit instructions to call them to activate, that you wouldn't question beyond that point whether you need to call them or not.

And to this:

If you spent a little more time around here, you could have avoided your frustration.

Where do you draw the line for support? Who's responsibility is it to have current updated information about a product they sell? Dish? Or a 3rd party website that you have to search the internet to find?

And I'd like to be very clear on that last part.. there's currently *no link* from Dish's site to SatGuys ... no reason to think that support for dish's products should be found outside dish's web site, other than having one time searched and found something when dish was already unhelpful .... or on the off chance you just "searched" via google or what ever engine of choice.

And again, to point out, that Feb 1 was only a month and a half ago ... the 722 line has been in existance for over 2 years, and has required activation fees in all that time.

 

[mjstraw]

If you spent a little more time around here, you could have avoided your frustration.

I know how to search, and did so before calling E* - both here and using Google. I wonder how many other E* customers, who may not be involved (however infrequently) with satelliteguys.us, will experience similar "frustration" before the web site is updated and CSRs trained.

BTW - dear Harshness: please note that my comments never disparaged CSRs, but rather their training - which is not their "fault". It's a management issue.

 

[JimVT]

Since I activated my 211K last month I can tell you that I didn't go through a CSR. When I connected an EHD, a screen came up that told me to call a DishNetwork equipment activation hotline to "activate an EHD". I believe it was 888-241-2205and after only a couple prompts the system told me my 211K DVR and EHD was activated. Also explained here http://www.dishnetwork.com/SupportSection/setup-ehd and in Step 4 it says to call 800-333-DISH while the screen that comes up on your TV when you do it shows the 888 number. Just to explain at least in the case of a 211K that CSR's don't need to know how to activate and perhaps this was also true of other models!

 

[TG2]

Just to explain at least in the case of a 211K that CSR's don't need to know how to activate and perhaps this was also true of other models!

Very true .. and I tried to do so too ... however ... mine failed to activate, I had to call in, and had no problem with the very first tech I got, or so I thought. My situation is more complex, I've 3 receivers, 2-722k's and the 211. As it turns out the previous tech that had "activated" my account for EHD only did so for the 722's, they hadn't for the 211 and it caused some sort of problem for the activation step on the 211. AND they'd charged me the 40 bucks.. a huge "cluster foxtrot" .... it wasn't *My* fault that the problems happened.. and it needed a Rep to fix it...

I was lucky that time.. as I have usually been when I call the reps ... but I only call when I really really have to.

That's not been the same case for getting issues with the SlingAdapter, and the Dish Website (Dish Remote Access) fixed.. or even acknowledged .... two phone calls, four tech chats, and several threads here, two of which specific to several public/private dish represntatives..

Its like they say.. build the next best foolproof thingy-ma-jiger, and I'll find you the better fool.

 

[Bobby]

The 211s always have a $40 activation fee. Activating the 722s is free. They are entirely two different animals.

 

[TG2]

The 211s always have a $40 activation fee. Activating the 722s is free. They are entirely two different animals.

I'm sorry, What? Different Animals? Its like trying to say Cheeta's and Tigers can't both be called "Cats".

Both are dish receivers, both have the ability to do DVR (with EHD for the 211k) and while they are different receivers with differences in performance and options, they are still both receivers that *did*, up until FEB 1 of 2011 .. require a 40 dollar fee be paid on your account to activate EHD.

So its only since Feb1 that the 722's have been free ... a month and a half ... hardly worth wootin' about ... and as for the 211 ... like I said.. I was given mine as gratis (considering some of the screw-ups, and stupid DishRemoteAccess issues I've complained about, maybe they thought I was due a freebie, I asked, they gave).

 

[Bobby]

The 722 is an HD DVR, the 211 is a solo HD receiver. When you add an EHD to a 211 it becomes a DVR. That's why you are paying the $40...... So, they are not from the same cat family. The 722 is a Siberian tiger. The 211 is a house cat that has been genetically altered to become cheetah.... It costs a few pennies to make that happen.

 

[GaryZ06]

Activating the 722s is free. They are entirely two different animals.

I have the 622...is there a activation fee? Thanks

 

[HIFI]

I have the 622...is there a activation fee? Thanks

nope.

 

[GaryZ06]

nope.

Thanks........I like free .....oh how do I do this? Just hook it up and follow instructions or do I have to call up Dish?Thanks again......and one more question. What is the largest EHD that I can use?

 

[TG2]

So, they are not from the same cat family. The 722 is a Siberian tiger. The 211 is a house cat that has been genetically altered<snip>

Right then and there, the arguement ends. Cats are cats are cats. Some can only manage to nibble your finger, others can nibble off your entire head, but they're still in the "cat" family.

The points being made ...

1. The fee being 40 dollars not 35, insignificant, a lapse of OP's memory or having reacalled it wrong,
   .
2. having to pay the fee for the 211, again *not* the issue,
   .
3. again note, that PRIOR to Feb 1, an activation fee *was* required for 722's! So it hasn't been *that* long ago that customers might have called (in fact I called in January and was originally charged for the 722 activation *seperately*, which was also gracefully taken off the account by the dish rep *i* had gotten)
   .
4. attempted use of activation of an EHD by just plugging in, sometimes works sometimes fails and when it fails you have to call customer service regardless.
   .
5. Customer (OP) looks at the online account information, finds *wrong* information, and wants to make sure *OP* didn't do something wrong and finds 3 CSR's that don't know the product. That *don't* go into a correct explanation of said "activation" and still the "activation" isn't showing on O.P.'s account.

The points argued against.. that O.P. "felt compelled to poke the CSR's" as if the CSR's he had been in touch with *weren't* worthy of being blamed for having no knowledge of the product.

Again, Training. If you don't know it.. look it up. And as I said ... the first CSR our O.P. talked too, perhaps that CSR was new, so he/she gets the "newbie pass" ... the second CSR not having known is bad ... but not having looked it up for themselves is even worse and then to put the soured icing on the cake, the 3rd rep, that didn't find it within their power to make sure O.P. understood what they were doing, that the EHD still shows inactive, etc..

I really take issue with people giving the dish reps (DishNetwork proper not here on SatGuys) a clean slate as if they shouldn't be held accountable for the messes they make. Additionally to make someone feel bad for calling it out to let others know they could run into the same incompetence, is also a big no no in my book.

AND lastly that thought that someone should be here at SatGuys looking for information ... remember no one at dish tells new customers on the phone, or in chat, or even via the marketing emails coming from Dish, that "oh ... for *BETTER* support you need to go outside of the dishnetwork websites" ... I belive its by chance alone that many people arive here .. and all of us being in this boat should be helping each other, as well as trying to get Dish to understand where they fail repeatedly. And its to *that* end I stive to fight on till the world of Dish is roses and daises with never a fart to be smelt.

(harshness I see a lot of your posts go "that way" with newbies I would bet you were new once ... how did it feel to be treated "harshness"-ly?)

 

[HIFI]

Thanks........I like free .....oh how do I do this? Just hook it up and follow instructions or do I have to call up Dish?Thanks again......and one more question. What is the largest EHD that I can use?

just hook up and let it format. I believe up to 2TB is supported at this time.

 

[GaryZ06]

Great thanks again for the info.....I guess any EHD will work ?

 

[TonyT@DISH Network]

Make sure it has its own power supply and works off USB. Single platter drive. Western Digital and Seagate come up frequently as names synonymous with compatibility. Also, fairly priced.

http://www.dishnetwork.com/SupportSection/setup-ehd

Training is a topic that has been pushed a lot. I will escalate the need for EHD training, along with accessories, up to the trainers. I have to concede there has not been a "how to" in a while for EHDs and accessories. Lots of new employees since the last one. There are weekly training items, but some people need the hands on to actually learn.

For those of you who have found this internet oasis on Satguys, it is likely the most helpful place for information out there. If you know someone with issues, pass the word on or shine the search light.

 

[GaryZ06]

Make sure it has its own power supply and works off USB. Single platter drive. Western Digital and Seagate come up frequently as names synonymous with compatibility. Also, fairly priced.

Expanding DVR Storage Capacity

Training is a topic that has been pushed a lot. I will escalate the need for EHD training, along with accessories, up to the trainers. I have to concede there has not been a "how to" in a while for EHDs and accessories. Lots of new employees since the last one. There are weekly training items, but some people need the hands on to actually learn.

For those of you who have found this internet oasis on Satguys, it is likely the most helpful place for information out there. If you know someone with issues, pass the word on or shine the search light.

This is what it states for #5..
Once activated, a message will appear on the TV screen asking to format the drive. This will permanently delete all content that is currently saved on the hard drive. Select ""Yes"" if you want to delete all of the content on the drive.
....Does this mean that all my current programs on the DVR will be deleted and transfered onto the new EHD?

 

[Bobby]

No, it will reformat your EHD to accept any DVR content that you elect to send to it. Everything on your DVR will stay intact. Nothing is automatic unless you ask the DVR to send content to the EHD....