Can my Dish Network DVR Pal record shows to an external storage device?

[jakestealth]

Hello,
I have a DishNetwork DVR Pal and I want to record my shows on an external USB 2.0 500GB hard drive. I want to be able to transfer my shows to my computer. On the back of my dvr, there is a usb port and I can't figure out what it's for. So I plug in my usb hard drive and turn it on and my dvr says something like "A USB device has been detected. Mass sorage device detected. Manufacturer LaCie." How do I get it to record shows on my usb drive? Is there any other possible way to transfer my shows to my pc without buying any capture cards or anything? My dvr also has an ethernet port and I also can't figure out how to use it. Why the heck do I have a usb port and an ethernet port if I can't use it!!!Any help would be greatly appreciated!

 

[MattG@DISH]

I'm guessing that you are not able to backup recordings from a DTV Pal Plus, but am getting a definite answer for you.

 

[Mr Tony]

I use to have one of those (damn wish I still had it) but no you cannot move anything to the external drive. It was one of those "built but never implemented"

 

[navychop]

I believe both portals are for updating firmware. Well, "were" for updating firmware. No longer supported. No other features or future updates will be released.

Yes, you will have to buy something to do what you want, and it won't be a trivial process.

 

[osu1991]

It would be nice if it did, but alas it is no longer a supported product. Mine stays about half full. I need to pull it apart and put a larger hard drive in it, but for now it has enough space for what I use it for.

 

[MattG@DISH]

I believe both portals are for updating firmware. Well, "were" for updating firmware. No longer supported. No other features or future updates will be released.

Yes, you will have to buy something to do what you want, and it won't be a trivial process.

I was able to confirm that the USB port on them was only for software updates. EHD use is not supported

 

[Islandguy43]

I was a beta tester for it. Both the usb and the ethernet port were used for upgrade of the firmware. If you did not have access to a ethernet connection at the dvr, you could download the update from the beta tester site on your computer and the transfer it to a usb drive. I always updated by ethernet. It's too bad Dish didn't keep the product in development. It would have been great if they implemented iptv with blockbuster on it. I still have two of them.

 

[pabeader]

heck, i still use mine.

 

[navychop]

Same here. Use it out in the boonies where we RV and OTA is the only option.

 

[OneFore9]

I use mine every day. The fast forward, rewind and skip functions work much better than the 722K. Too bad it was discontinued. I do most local recordings with the PAL.
By the way, they're selling for upwards of $400 now on Ebay, same with the CM7000 twin. I wish I had purchased a few more of them when Sears was blowing them out for $125.