chino77

ok im sick of this dvr lately. it is constantly freezing up. i will pause and it will stutter for 5 minutes before it pauses. when watching a recorded show it will stop and then go black. so i have to restart the show and fast forward to the point i was at. its gotten really bad lately. also the dvr has started freezing completly to the point i have to unplug it and reset it. anyone else have this problem? heres the thing i called them before about pixelation and they wouldnt let me return the box. they said i had to have someone come and look at it. well the pixel problem was fixed on my end i had to wrench the cable connects tight.
anyways i dont think this is due to that. i checked my connections and they are fine. anyways i want to just take my box and switch it for a new one but i know they wont agree to that. i dont have time to wait 6 hours for the guy to get to my place. maybe its time to go back to satelite.

Jimmy James

Tell them the box keeps freezing up and that they have two options: swap you boxes or accept the box back along with your cancellation. I'm guessing you'll get what you want.

ETA: If you don't get the swap that way, escalate the call to a supervisor. They're even more likely to get you what you want. You may even want to up your demand to a service credit for the hassle at that point, just so you can drop that demand once they give in.

Philly30

same thing happens with mine

nevermind

They are truly shit. I have been through 7 of them in the last 3 years (although this current one has lasted ~6 months).

Just go to one of their storefront "stores" and swap it. I've done it every time, and haven't even called the last 3 times.

I wonder if it's the software. They keep saying Tivo software will be available by 3Q 2007 on them, but I don't know if that will ever happen.

chino77

nice (but not really) to see im not alone. im going to check where a storefront is near to me.

Tommy Ceez

Cablevision uses the SA8300HD and the last 2 Ive gotten have been total shit.

I think its the fact that we're far enough along into the penetration of the DVR in the market thet we're no longer each getting brand new boxes, but even after multiple trips to the walk-in center, im still swapping out in exchange for used boxes.

Jimmy James

I'm still on my first, and I have had it for around a year. The only real annoyance is the latency from time to time on my commands. It is pretty frustrating when you're racing through commercials to get to the last scene of a show you love only to race through that scene and have to go backward, only to overshoot and then finally just give up and watch the commercials.

Chew

I don't mean to threadcrap, but it's these complaints I always think of when people compare the cost of their cable DVR to a TiVo.

Luckily, Comcast isn't that far away from their own TiVo branded box. You have that to look forward to. (tivocommunity.com even has screenshots)

stevevt

Unfortunately, the Comcast Tivo box will use the exact same cable box as they currently do. On the plus side, people will be able to download the Tivo software update and not switch hardware. On the huge minus side, these boxes suck, and I doubt more complex software is going to make them run more smoothly.

I guess it's possible that the Tivo software will make them work better, but remember that this is Comcast we're talking about.

By the way, my cable service is now Comcast, but they took over for Adelphia, so I still have my old Adelphia HD/DVR box. Works pretty well -- or at least better than what most people experience with the Comcast Motorola box -- and doesn't have stupid ads on the Program Guide screen. I've had it for 1.5 years, and I'm hoping it doesn't die any time soon.

Red Dog

Only the Motorola Comcast boxes will be getting TIVO software. If you have a Sci Atlanta, like I do, you're stuck with that crappy software. I've gone through many Comcast DVR boxes.

Jimmy James

Until TiVo got dual tuner capability, it was a more complex set of factors to consider. Even now that they have dual tuner, the cable DVR has an advantage when it comes to recording digital channels.

Chew

Not anymore: Series 3

Red Dog

Also, up until recently if cable customers wanted to record HD, their only option was the cable HD-DVR. Even now, the standalone HD-TIVO is pricey.

Jimmy James

I'm speaking for the non-HD crowd who won't pay more than their TV cost for a DVR.

Tygan

As much as I hate TimeWarner, I miss my TimeWarner HD-DVR. The Comcast Motorola one is pure crap.

The Time Warner one had a feature that when you fast forward and then hit play, it jumped back 2-3 seconds so that you wouldn't have to rewind backwards if you mistakenly went beyond the place you wanted to start playing. I wish this feature was available on the Motorola box.

I had the Time Warner box for over 1 year with no problems. I've had the Comcast/Motorola box for 6 months now and have had latency issues, even had it suddenly reboot on me while watching a program...had it turn on mute out of nowhere and no button on the remote or cable box would turn it off (had to wait on hold for 40 minutes before someone at customer service could help remedy the situation).

Comcast sucks bad. And today I'm going to get another box from them for my new tv...suck.

If I didn't want a box for the new TV - any suggestions for an OTA HD Antannae?

Red Dog

I get good reception with a double-bowtie antenna. Really, any antenna could work to pull in the HD OTA broadcast channels.

Jimmy James

When I got my DVR, it already had the mute issue (I'm guessing somebody traded it in out of frustration). I spoke with somebody in the Comcast call center for a half hour about it, and they were totally clueless. I actually figured it out and explained it to them in hopes they might document it and run people through the process.

Since then, it has gone mute on me one other time. The only thing that sucked since I knew how to fix it was that I was in the middle of a 3 hour recording when it happened.

chino77

i just got my mom a tivo for christmas. i had never used one before and personally i dont like it very much. if the comcast box wasnt so damn buggy i would think that its layout was far superior to a tivo.

also does anyone know when comcast is making the tivo software upgrade?
where do i go to find out where a storefront is near me? im on the nwside of chicago if anyone knows where one is.

DVD Josh

It's well known that comcast DVRs are pieces of shit. Thankfully, the FCC did us a favor by ruling that comcast must allow third-parties to manufacture boxes that can be used with their cable services.