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Comcast DVR

  • Artigo

Locally in Seattle, thanks to a Comcast/Microsoft deal, Comcast has begun a broad trial of a digital cable receiver that's also a DVR (a la Tivo). I'd always wanted a Tivo, but the addition of another remote control, the cost of the service, and the fact that it couldn't record high-def TV left me in the cold. So when I heard that Microsoft employees could get a free trial of the Comcast DVR box (granted, I heard about two weeks after everyone else at Microsoft) I leapt on it. Here are my observations:

  • It has two tuners. You can watch one station and record another or record two stations.
  • The DVR experience is quite good. High-definition recording, pretty smart conflict resolution features, a good understanding of channels and programs, and so on.
  • Playback from DVR is great. It doesn't seem to lose any fidelity.
  • The EPG (electronic program guide) experience is much nicer. Picture in picture of the show you're watching, much more flexible ways to search, etc.
  • Pause live TV. Whatever you're watching, it's caching. Hit the pause button and you can come back and it will read off the internal hard drive.

And there some things to improve:

  • Navigation is funky. Some pages have a "last" menu option to back you out of the menu system, some don't, and the "Prev Ch" button on the remote control doesn't navigate channels, so sometimes you have to exit the EPG entirely and go back in.
  • Recording is not smart enough. The box understands show titles and channels, but it doesn't understand that you can have a show that's on multiple channels (e.g. new CSI episodes on CBS and reruns on BRAVO). Plus, though you can set it to record only new episodes, I'm not sure how it defines "new," since it was recording reruns and even rebroadcasts of the same show.
  • Performance is not snappy. It's OK, but especially for things like pausing live TV, there are stutters in the UI. It's much worse when it's downloading something like an OS upgrade or new EPG data.
  • Setup is non-intuitive. The box comes configured for 480i; my set understands only 480p. Not sure how to resolve that, but it required a call to Comcast to get it set up right.
  • Disk fills up fast. It can record a lot of normal-def TV (like 30 hours or something), but high-def just eats it up. Since this is a major feature, I'd love a bigger hard drive.

I'm now wondering what Windows XP Media Center Edition would do to improve on these...

Comments

  • Anonymous
    November 25, 2004
    >I'm now wondering what Windows XP Media Center Edition would do to improve on these...

    Or you could just get a TiVo.
  • Anonymous
    November 25, 2004
    Why bother? I've seen it in action and I can't say it's substantially better (or worth the fees).
  • Anonymous
    November 25, 2004
    Does it record stuff so you can watch it on a PC? For example, I'd love it if I could record TV in WMA to a network share (or just somewhere on the DVR I can access) and then watch it later in WMP on my tablet. I think Media Center supports this, but if the set-top does too then it might be easier to work with.
  • Anonymous
    November 26, 2004
    The comment has been removed
  • Anonymous
    November 28, 2004
    After reading about it's release on the BBC website, I called Comcast and had it installed about 2-3 weeks ago. I found it rather funny that I learned about it via the BBC and not our local news, anyway.. $16 install fee and $5/month is unbeatable for TiVo like functionality. My only gripes so far are:
    1. Sound missing from HD recording (happened 2x)
    2. On Demand menu freezes up occasionally while scrolling through shows
    3. The new universal remote, while a big improvement over the older one - controls one fewer device (3 instead of 4).
    4. Having to press OK before using the nav buttons to browse other shows that are currently playing in the mini-guide, I am constantly rewinding live TV because I forgot to press OK first, or the mini-guide disappears right before I press one of the nav buttons(after the x second delay) and I rewind live TV. Pretty annoying...

    Other than those gripes, it is absolutely awesome.
  • Anonymous
    November 30, 2004
    The comment has been removed
  • Anonymous
    November 30, 2004
    Years ago, I worked with John Montgomery at Ziff-Davis's PC Computing. Now, he's a mucky-muck at Microsoft. And he has a very entertaining blog, in a geeky sort of way. I liked his comparo on the new Comcast DVR. I'm still deciding whether I like the Cox/Scientific Atlanta combo. The HD is awesome, the DVR software is, well, frustrating. Most importantly, it is in imminent danger of failing the WA (Wife Acceptance) test. The Media Center PC continues to impress. It is on the verge of moving into the den, to take over standard-definition TV recording duties from the Tivo. Although I would be much happier if I could get a Media Center Extender instead....
  • Anonymous
    December 01, 2004
    Do local channels come across as digital or only analog. The analog cable signal was so bad in my neck of the woods that it forced me to get satellite. :-)
  • Anonymous
    December 03, 2004
    "I'm now wondering what Windows XP Media Center Edition would do to improve on these..."

    Ahhh.. the billion dollar question.
  • Anonymous
    December 09, 2004
    The comment has been removed
  • Anonymous
    December 12, 2004
    I switched from DirecTV+TiVo to the new Comcast DVR. It doesn't have the usability of the TiVo but the price is right (an HD TiVo is $1K), and I don't need a phone jack for it, which saves me another $25 bucks a month for a landline. Overall, I'm super-happy with it.
  • Anonymous
    December 17, 2004
    The comment has been removed
  • Anonymous
    December 18, 2004
    The comment has been removed
  • Anonymous
    December 18, 2004
    The comment has been removed
  • Anonymous
    December 19, 2004
    The comment has been removed
  • Anonymous
    December 19, 2004
    Anyone knows where I can find the manual to reprogram the remote that came with the DVR, the tech doing the installation did the initial programming for my TV and VCR but I need to reprogram it and haven't been able to figure out how thru trial and error.
  • Anonymous
    December 22, 2004
    To do an auto programm of dvr remote for tv..first press tv one time then hold setup down till tv light blinks. Enter 991 then press power then tv putton do it back and forth untill tv turn on or if tv is on already do it untill it turn off do it slow.Once you find the code press setup again to lock it to remote do the same for vcr but use the aux putton instead
  • Anonymous
    December 23, 2004
    The comment has been removed
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    May 31, 2008
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