922 is really not a bad receiver

[Mike]

Everyone dumps on the 922, and I have had a few issues, mostly with the remotes, and that is mainly because 2.4 GHz is so damn polluted in an apartment building.

But at least now, 4-5 years after it came out they seem to have almost all of the bugs worked out. In single mode, it is comparable to my old TiVo Series 3.

One of the best features (also available on the 722 I'm sure, and maybe the Hopper), is the "Swap" button. On the TiVo Series 2 DT/Series 3, there is a button labeled "Input" or something, it swaps between the two tuners. The Dish Swap button works the same way with the added feature of PIP if you want it. Basically I like to watch two live shows at the same time. Once the first show comes to some ads, I will pause it, swap the tuners, and watch something else. Once that show gets to ads, I can swap back and the first show will have a lot of buffer. (I really hate ads!)

The TiVo and the Dish receivers so far are the only ones I have seen that can do this. U-Verse can NOT do this at all, if you even accidentally change channels you lose the WHOLE buffer. Dish receiver will actually ask me if I want to change channels.

 

[BBCInc]

Swap is available on the Hopper. Use it all the time to avoid ads, same way you describe (very clearly BTW).

 

[Rangers484]

I can't disagree with your that the 922 is a good receiver, however its bad rap is expected. You even mention it yourself, 4-5 years after release they worked the bugs out....

 

[MikeD-C05]

The 922 dvr was my second worst receiver in my history with DISH . Mainly it failed to fulfill the full potential of tv 2 in HD, that was promised as a feature coming soon! I was really disappointed when they didn't release the sling extender that would of done full hd for tv 2. Traded it back in on a 722k till the hopper came out. The 921 pvr was the worst! Constantly had to reboot it in the mornings and again before prime time to get my recordings to fire. Traded it in on the 942 dvr which was one of the best receivers I have ever had, with built in ota tuner that could do both analog and digital channels. The original webtv/dishplayer 7100/7200 pvr was one of the best receivers and my first digital video recorder - till the legal fallout between DISH and Microsoft then it was my third worst receiver. Software problems that forced me to rma at least 3 of the receivers till I got the 501 pvr. My hopper has been the best most reliable receiver I have had with DISH -except for the ongoing problems with the ota dongle. Mostly the audio hickups and drop outs, when you try to select the ota tuner from the red button screen for all 3 tuners . I often have to turn it off and back on to clear it up. I think that the usb ota tuner should of been the module type that you could physically load in the receiver like the 722k/922 receivers and that would clear up the problems with the ota.

 

[frank c.]

I have to agree,the 922 is a very good receiver. Ive had mines for two years and not a single problem. Being that i work graveyard shifts,i use the sling feature alot to my android phone. If this receiver lasts as long as the 622 thats also still in service in my home from 2006,i'll be very happy.

sent from my HTC EVO 3D

 

[mike123abc]

Saying a receiver that has been out for 5 years and has been working well in the last year or so is not exactly high praise. I have a 922, bought when it first came out,(sitting turned off for the last 18 months or so) that was bug filled for the first 3 years I had it. I had to use a TiVo for OTA of the nets and just limit the 922 to cable shows and hope that it would be able to handle that. It was always missing recordings. It would show in the guide that it was doing a recording, then poof it was gone.

I am glad to hear that they may have it finally working well as they have discontinued it...

 

[frank c.]

It works for me, i cant complain!

sent from my HTC EVO 3D

 

[Scherrman]

I had it for 2 years and I really enjoyed it. I had very few bugs but I probably didn't use all the features it offered. I loved the interface, the built-in Sling and the large hard drive. It was perfect for me up until the Hopper was released and now I have the perfect setup for my house.

 

[3HaloODST]

Dish in general really needs to get their software in order. My Hoppers and 722k still have some annoying bugs.

Sent from my iPhone 4S using Forum Runner

 

[satnewb]

I think the 922 really benefited from the development of the Hopper. The interface and software is pretty similar, and it seems that once dish really started to focus on making the hopper operate correctly it ran downstream to the 922. Not that the hopper isn't prone to some strange behavior but it tends to be smaller one off stuff that the vast majority of users wouldn't even know about. I have no qualms in saying it's the best DVR out there at the moment.

 

[fpembleton]

It was a fascinating receiver in my opinion for its time prior to the introduction of the Hopper. I found it reliable with the exception of the Sling functionality.

 

[navychop]

I am mostly happy with my HWS but I must admit I have more bugs today, and more annoying ones, than I had a few months ago.

 

[Mike]

It's unfortunate that it took so long to work out all the problems. I maybe also have luck on my side since I was able to find an actual brand new receiver.

I wonder which DISH receivers are Linux and which aren't? Are all their modern DVRs Linux now? Certainly the 922 seems like Linux because it takes so long to start up, similar to a TiVo. I know the 721 and 921 were Linux. The 501/etc were proprietary.

 

[navychop]

"...The 501/etc were proprietary."

You sure about that? I thought after they parted with MicroSoft everything went Linux.

 

[Mike]

"...The 501/etc were proprietary."

You sure about that? I thought after they parted with MicroSoft everything went Linux.

The 501 was a 301 with a hard drive, the interface was exactly the same as I remember it, and it was pretty stable. It's the 721 with Linux that had all of the early adopter bugs.

Of course I spoke too soon about the 922 and now I am having a really lame bug where the video draws in the bottom left corner in the guide, instead of the top left corner, and so the guide just covers it up.

 

[MikeD-C05]

Loved the 721 pvr when they first came out, but they used to fail quite often and you would lose EVERYTHING. I had 3 at one time and I spent a lot replacing them as they crashed.

 

[KazooGuy]

Well, I really like the 922 for my viewing needs, when it works properly it is great. I am currently on my 6th replacement within a year each one having its very own personality of how it wanted to act or not. But, I can save myself a good chunk of change by staying with it and not going with a Hopper, which is overkill in my home viewing setup. (lives alone, small bedroom telly that matters little if it is only SD). The India built units seem to last longer than those from China, my India unit however just lost its ability to connect with the Weather Channel app though. DIRT doesn't seem to have any answers and I just use Weather Nation on my Roku instead.

 

[MikeD-C05]

Well, I really like the 922 for my viewing needs, when it works properly it is great. I am currently on my 6th replacement within a year each one having its very own personality of how it wanted to act or not. But, I can save myself a good chunk of change by staying with it and not going with a Hopper, which is overkill in my home viewing setup. (lives alone, small bedroom telly that matters little if it is only SD). The India built units seem to last longer than those from China, my India unit however just lost its ability to connect with the Weather Channel app though. DIRT doesn't seem to have any answers and I just use Weather Nation on my Roku instead.

SIX replacements in less than a year?????? Boy you are a glutton for punishment. If that doesn't convince you to drop the 922 and upgrade to a hopper nothing will.

 

[sethwell]

Well, I really like the 922 for my viewing needs, when it works properly it is great. I am currently on my 6th replacement within a year each one having its very own personality of how it wanted to act or not. But, I can save myself a good chunk of change by staying with it and not going with a Hopper, which is overkill in my home viewing setup. (lives alone, small bedroom telly that matters little if it is only SD). The India built units seem to last longer than those from China, my India unit however just lost its ability to connect with the Weather Channel app though. DIRT doesn't seem to have any answers and I just use Weather Nation on my Roku instead.

my hopper, that I've had since they came out has yet to be replaced and has worked fine. Six? Wow

 

[Scherrman]

I'm a firm believer that if you have any more than 2 replacements in a year with any kind of receiver that there is something else wrong with your setup and not the receiver itself. I have only replaced one receiver in my home do to failure in the years I've had Dish and that was due to hard drive failure.

I had the 922 before it was released to the public and then for another year or so after that and never had to replace it once. That was when it was it's buggiest too. I have never seen any customer replace 6 receivers in one year. Why Dish would even do that without replacing everything else in the house blows my mind.