Hopper Poll

[GaryPen]

There should be more choices. I'm looking forward to it, and will probably upgrade soon after it becomes available. But, it's definitely not a "can't wait" situation.
In fact, with Dish, it's usually smarter to wait, no matter how cool the new tech looks, because it's usually missing important features and is quite buggy.

Polls like this would normally have 5 responses:
-Definitely upgrade
-Probably Upgrade
-Undecided
-Probably not upgrade
-Definitely not upgrade

Of those, I would choose probably upgrade. Of course, it depends on reports from the guinea pigs, I mean early adopters.

 

[Stargazer]

I know a lot of people that switch providers to get the new subscriber deals. They will be with Dish for a year or two then Direct then cable then back to Dish or Direct. I bet at least a third if not half the people do this and who can blame them with how good the new promo's are. I think that is where all these extra fees come into play as well. As soon as the promo is over they realize just how expensive the service is then switch (even before the extra fees came into play). Some realize it is a mistake when the new provider does not have as good equipment or software and then they switch back with another promo again and stay. For others it may suffice for them.

Satellite seems to be more aggressive with their promotions than the cable companies in my area though. Just look at the churn rate for satellite. Is it higher than with the cable companies? I think I read it was like 1.5%-2 per month once?

 

[jbernardi]

I will go for the Hopper and three Joeys mainly for two reasons - the PTAT which will take care of a lot of conflicts, and the whole home DVR. My wife and I will no longer be recording the same programs on different receivers, then try to figure out what has been watched and what hasn't. The Hopper will go in my theater so I can use PIP during sporting events. PIP isn't necessary on other TVs.

 

[Brussam]

The Hopper with two Joeys will be a great improvement for my trailer and that is light of the fact that we probably won't have PTAT because the DNS East channels are SD. We currently have a VIP722K and a VIP612.

It seems where everybody is counting tuners and fees, there is a lack of accounting for the value of a central repository of the recorded programs and that has a value.

 

[BigJohn2]

I'm going to wait and upgrade when the two hoppers can see each other. I really don't need PTAT I just need more tuners to record from other channels on different nights.
I would do two hoppers and no Joey's. Only have 2 tv's. Dish needs to drop some of there fee's. First hopper/Joey should be included in the price.

Later,
John

 

[dare2be]

It seems where everybody is counting tuners and fees, there is a lack of accounting for the value of a central repository of the recorded programs and that has a value.

Absolutely it's about value. Here was my take on the value of a central repository that I posted in another thread:

Speaking for myself (and I suspect quite a bit more), I am not against spending more money on my TV service, I can certainly afford it and am willing to. But I want value in return for that outlay. I currently have a 2-TV single intgrated DVR and saw the opportunity with the Hopper/Joey to expand my system to a 3-TV integrated DVR. I certainly could have expanded with the ViP receivers, but the extra $7-17 per month wasn't worth losing the integrated single DVR management. Now with the H/J, I find that expanding to 3 TVs will cost me an extra $18/mo, which once again in my mind is too steep for what I'm getting in return. If that had been $11 a month more, I would be jumping all over it as an early adopter. So I will remain with my 722 and not spend any more money with Dish at this time, and ever consider looking at alternative providers down the road.

So, look at it this way: by including the first Joey free, Dish would actually make $11/mo more from me. Even if I stayed with 2 TVs I would still upgrade to a Hopper/Joey increasing my fee outlay by $4. Dish's overall fee revenue could increase in the long run with less churn and higher sub counts by making that one simple change in their fee structure.

 

[steve4810]

So, look at it this way: by including the first Joey free, Dish would actually make $11/mo more from me. Even if I stayed with 2 TVs I would still upgrade to a Hopper/Joey increasing my fee outlay by $4. Dish's overall fee revenue could increase in the long run with less churn and higher sub counts by making that one simple change in their fee structure.

Great argument and well laid out.

 

[Grandude]

It seems where everybody is counting tuners and fees, there is a lack of accounting for the value of a central repository of the recorded programs and that has a value.

For me that would be a negative value. My wife has her own DVR setup in the alcove off the bedroom and she records all kinds of 'crap' that I would never bother to watch, and I record all kinds of 'crap' that she would never want to watch. Having all these recorded programs in one place would be very troubling to both of us.
I would like to see a separate folder or area on the HDD that would be viewable only by the Joey it was selected to recorded from.
Arbitrarily not allowing a mix of HJ and VIP really kills it for me. If you could still have a VIP with a HJ setup, then all would be well in our household and I would then become a most probably convert.

 

[Teehar]

Just wanted to let everyone know that Scott checked the poll numbers and they are correct.The names somehow don't match up with the numbers but results are still correct.

 

[MikeD-C05]

Still close to 73 % of polled say either disappointed with the hopper or undecided. Doesn't sound promising for DISH's plans to extort $99.00 from each and everyone on this board who wanted to upgrade. By March 15 gas should be rapidly closing in on that $4.00 mark. Not many people will want to PAY to upgrade and PAY more monthly ,in order to have the latest "cutting edge" technology. Bad timing on DISH's part. I suggest that they rethink the first Joey fee,if they want anyone to upgrade . Otherwise they are going to have a warehouse full of "hoppers" standing still. At least for existing subs . New subs will get the joy of putting up with all the beta testing fun, that there is to be had, since they will most likely push this new receiver on them vigorously. A lot of extra FEE money to be charged on them before they figure out they have almost as high a bill in equipment cost as they do in programming.

 

[navychop]

Bull feathers. Most customers aren't here on this board and will LOVE the concept. I daresay many if not most of us here will view it as a good option.

And who says programming should cost more than equipment?

 

[MikeD-C05]

Bull feathers. Most customers aren't here on this board and will LOVE the concept. I daresay many if not most of us here will view it as a good option.

And who says programming should cost more than equipment?

The concept is a wonderful one. Whole house dvr using coax and small thin clients. Hell I love the concept. But I still say the FEE structure is what will do customers in. When new subs get their first bill and see $24.00 or $31.00 in equipment cost, BEFORE the programming is factored in ,and you will have an unhappy sub. Who then has two options : cut programming down or cut equipment out to make up the difference.

IF you remember two years ago DISH was getting hammered because of all their made up FEES that no one else had,like tv 2 connection fee, dvr fee PER dvr receiver. It looked really bad to see all those fees listed on the bill. So DISH decided that they wouldn't get rid of the fees, they would just roll them into the gigantic additional receiver fees we all love to HATE now with a passion. Even though they claim they only have one dvr fee on your account now, it is a lie. If you have two dual tuner receivers, you still get a dvr fee , but its reduced.

Additional dual tuner:

Additional receiver fee $7.00+ tv2 connection fee $5.00+ Dvr service fee $5.98 = YOU only pay $17.00.

So even though they "hid " the extra fees in the additional receiver price, they are still there. Ever wonder why DISH stays under 14 million subs for like 4 -5 years now? The extra FEES are what keeps them at this level and the churn so high. But DISH is gambling that new subs will be so happy to have a whole house dvr, they won't mind the extra fees associated with it. The older subs who know the scams they have pulled all these last few years, now the difference and we know how it feels to use dvrs on our account already. Most of us don't care about that, we care about the extra FEES that DISH continues to churn out ever year. The latest being the $4.00 sling fee on the 922 and now the $4.00 multi - view fee on the hopper. Or what ever they call it now. I don't see many subs who have DISH now wanting to upgrade to this system , just so they can pay more monthly. I already can record my 4 national networks now using my 722k and I have ota support too. Why would I want to upgrade ,just so I could pay $4.00 more a month and so I could wait for months, or ever ,for promised features coming SSOOONNNN!!?

 

[inwo]

Not true...

At inital release the two Hoppers will not see each other. But this will be fixed with a software update sometime after they are released.

Sorry I was misinformed.


Quote:
Originally Posted by inwo View Post
That makes sense.

How will the 2nd hopper share?

All j's can see both hoppers?

Hoppers see each other?


"Yes seamless integration."
__________________
Scott

 

[CFGuy]

I voted "can't wait".

As for the fees, in my case it will only change by $2
I currently lease a 722 and three 612s. The fees are 10 + 10 + 10 + 6 = $36

I am planning on 2 Hoppers and 3 Joeys. The fees would be 10 + 7 + 7 + 7 + 7 = $38
So I go up by $2 but I am adding the hookup of another tv. I can put a Joey on my office tv which doesn't have a reciever currently.

The OTA tuners are a non issue for me. I don't use any now.
The Prime Time feature will be awesome as my wife and I duplicate a ton of the shows we record.
A bit disappointed that the two hoppers won't see each other but I have figured out the best way for us to split the house into two zones.
Once they do get the hoppers seeing each other it will just get that much better.

 

[Tampa8]

The concept is a wonderful one.

...... Just didn't want to quote the whole post again.....

I both agree and disagree with you. I do agree, I bet most current subs will not rush to get it if they are recording/watching what they want. Not just the cost, that's one, but also why fix what's not broken for many too. I'm in that camp, my 612's have been great, I can record on several tuners, and if one dies I have more! I use the EHD often and can watch what was recorded in one room in another if I want to, yes with a little work involved.

I disagree about new subs. I am betting these will fly out the door, and once installed and assuming they work well those subs will think this is the greatest thing since sliced bread. They will for the most part be expecting the fees, though I do agree once it's actually in the bill for some there is sticker shock... What some of you are considering outrageous - $17 for two TV's in HD with 3 (eventually 4) tuners and all the other bells and whistles isn't for most people who are signing up. I maintain you (meaning you all) are looking at it from a VIP older tech SD TV view. If you are happy with that then yes you don't want to pay more. People signing up are not looking at it from that perspective. If I wanted the new technology I would get a second Hopper and to me $17 for two TV's with that scenario is not bad.(Yes I know I would have pay a one time charge for the second Hopper)

 

[dare2be]

It has been pretty well established that for most households with more than 2 TV hookups (not counting the same feed split to multiple TVs), the H/J fees are in line or even slightly lower than current ViP fees. Even for single TV households, the fees for a single Hopper are the same as for a 922. It's the 2-TV outlet, single dual receiver folks that end up with the sticker shock, leaving many to decide not to upgrade or expand. "First Joey included" would go a long way to get those people hopping on the Hopper train, and even willing to expand their outlets and spend more money.

 

[patmurphey]

Can't wait - Two Hoppers and one Joey would be a huge improvement over my current 722, 622, and 211 (no OTA, three HD TVs). When communication between Hoppers is implemented that will be icing on the cake. Fees go from 6+17+7=30 to 10+7+7=24. What is there not to like? Upgrade costs are small potatoes compared to the improvements, MANY more tuners and access to recordings from my kitchen TV (now with the 211) and figuring contract fee savings of 144 over two years.

 

[greeny96]

I voted Can't wait. Although, I will wait a month or so to hear about any bugs/issues. I currently have a 722(with EHD and sling adapter) hooked up to the living room and kids playroom and a 301 in the master bedroom. I plan to get a hopper and 3 Joeys. This will allow me to hook up the tv in the exercise room and have HD on all TV's. We don't currently have a need for more tuners, but I would get a second hopper if they could communicate with each other. For now I'll just get the one hopper. The hoppers not being able to communicate defeats the purpose of the "whole home DVR" for me and I'm not a fan of buying tech with the hope of future improvements. OTA isn't important to me, I haven't used it on the 722 since Dish got my locals in HD. Being able to pick up a show in another room and watch DVR'd recordings from any tv is a big plus for me.

On another note, this is my first post on SatelliteGuys. I've been lurking here since 3/2008 when I was researching Dish because I was leaving Comcast. For at least the last year Ive been reading the boards daily. I've never posted because there weren't any questions I couldn't find the answers to with a little searching, and I never had anything of any value to add to any of the threads.

 

[cosmo_kramer]

I voted Can't wait. Although, I will wait a month or so to hear about any bugs/issues. I currently have a 722(with EHD and sling adapter) hooked up to the living room and kids playroom and a 301 in the master bedroom. I plan to get a hopper and 3 Joeys. This will allow me to hook up the tv in the exercise room and have HD on all TV's. We don't currently have a need for more tuners, but I would get a second hopper if they could communicate with each other. For now I'll just get the one hopper. The hoppers not being able to communicate defeats the purpose of the "whole home DVR" for me and I'm not a fan of buying tech with the hope of future improvements. OTA isn't important to me, I haven't used it on the 722 since Dish got my locals in HD. Being able to pick up a show in another room and watch DVR'd recordings from any tv is a big plus for me.

On another note, this is my first post on SatelliteGuys. I've been lurking here since 3/2008 when I was researching Dish because I was leaving Comcast. For at least the last year Ive been reading the boards daily. I've never posted because there weren't any questions I couldn't find the answers to with a little searching, and I never had anything of any value to add to any of the threads.

to SatGuys!!!

 

[david_jr]

I voted Can't wait. Although, I will wait a month or so to hear about any bugs/issues. I currently have a 722(with EHD and sling adapter) hooked up to the living room and kids playroom and a 301 in the master bedroom. I plan to get a hopper and 3 Joeys. This will allow me to hook up the tv in the exercise room and have HD on all TV's. We don't currently have a need for more tuners, but I would get a second hopper if they could communicate with each other. For now I'll just get the one hopper. The hoppers not being able to communicate defeats the purpose of the "whole home DVR" for me and I'm not a fan of buying tech with the hope of future improvements. OTA isn't important to me, I haven't used it on the 722 since Dish got my locals in HD. Being able to pick up a show in another room and watch DVR'd recordings from any tv is a big plus for me.

On another note, this is my first post on SatelliteGuys. I've been lurking here since 3/2008 when I was researching Dish because I was leaving Comcast. For at least the last year Ive been reading the boards daily. I've never posted because there weren't any questions I couldn't find the answers to with a little searching, and I never had anything of any value to add to any of the threads.

Welcome aboard. I'm thinking if you are interested in a second hopper it might be better to get it now while the promotion prices them at $100 each. If you wait later you might have to pay bust out retail. I would think the communication will come reasonably soon. Just a guess.