Choosing Your DirecTV DVR

There are two different DirecTV DVR models. One is the standard DVR version, DirecTV DVR. The other is the newer High Definition model, DirecTV HD DVR. If you are unsure which of these two is the right choice for you, you can compare and contrast the two.

The DirecTV DVR has all the basic features that allow you to record your favorite shows and watch them later. One of those features is the Wish List. The Wish List allows you to select your favorite actors, films, or even directors. Then, the DVR will automatically record the applicable movies.

The Season Pass is another basic DVR feature which allows you to program the DVR to record your favorite shows through the entire viewing season. This way, you can set it to record just once, and it will keep recording each episode as it comes out, without you having to remind it again.

If you are watching your budget and you don’t make a lot of recordings, the DirecTV DVR is the right option for you. You can store up to 100 hours of shows and movies before you have to clear some space for more.

On the other hand, if you have an HDTV and you want to make full use of its capabilities, you might consider the DirecTV HD DVR. It costs substantially more, but the benefits may outweigh the costs.

The DirecTV HD DVR can hold 200 hours of standard definition TV in addition to 30 hours of high definition recordings. If you love to see the sharp clear images you’ve come to enjoy with your HDTV set, you may feel let down if all your recordings are in standard definition.

Even the sound is better with the DirecTV HD DVR high definition recordings. Because you are making a greater financial investment, it may also help to know that the DirecTV HD DVR carries a 1-year warranty, whereas the DirecTV DVR only offers a 90-day warranty.

Finally, the DirecTV HD DVR comes with the TiVo 14-day interactive TV guide. This feature makes it a lot easier to find the shows you want to record. It is interactive and user-friendly. All-in-all, it seems to come down to a question of expense. Is the cost worth it to you, for all you get with the DirecTV HD DVR? Only you can answer that.

 

DirecTV Tips and Tricks

DVR remotes come with more options and uses than most people are aware of. The demand for an ever-improving DVR experience has companies like DirecTV scrambling to produce the latest and greatest features. It is helpful to look through the instructions to find out about a lot of these features, but here are a couple of great tips to get you started.

DoublePlay is a feature you can access with your DVR remote and your DirecTV service, which allows you to watch two shows being broadcast simultaneously without having to miss anything. Start by turning on the first show you want to watch. Then use the down arrow to select another show.

Once you select the second show, you can now toggle back and forth between the two shows just using the down arrow. Oops! Did you toggle back and find that you missed something important? No need to sweat it. Just rewind either show, or pause it at any time, to make sure you catch all the action.

Do you ever get frustrated scrolling through the pages of channel offerings, trying to get to the channel you’re looking for? If you have a few channels that you watch on a regular basis, you can save yourself some time by creating a Favorite Channels list.

With a DirecTV HD DVR, you’ll need to press the menu button on your DVR remote. Then, select “Parental, Fav’s, and Setup.” For a standard DirecTV DVR, just hit the “Menu” button. With either DVR, the next step is to select “Favorites” and “Set up custom 1.”

After that, you can pick your favorite channels for your own custom favorite channels list. The next time you want to watch HGTV or CNN, you can just go to your favorite channels menu and select the channel you want to watch.

 

Advantages of Having Children Use TiVo

There are a lot of good children television shows. Some are more educational than others, but there are plenty of options available for children programming. Using a DirecTV TiVo can be very beneficial if you have children.

Sometimes parents need a short break from their children. Parents are constantly enveloped with their child reading books, playing pretend, and doing children’s crafts. Having a short children’s program can be a nice break.

When you have a DirecTV TiVo there are quite a few advantages. With one click of your DirecTV TiVo remote you can stipulate which shows you want to watch. You can have a ready list of children’s shows that you think are good, educational quality for your children.

TiVo is also beneficial because you do not have to sit through commercials. Commercial content is one worry that parents have. Sometimes commercials are harmless, but the racy ones may make us a little nervous.

Commercial time also adds up. It can be annoying to have to sit through ten minutes of extra programming just because of commercials. Avoid commercials by using your DirecTV TiVo remote and fast forwarding through those commercials.

Research has also been done on the effect that television viewing has on children. Research shows that the fast paced movements on television, specifically with commercials, are linked to facilitating to ADHD and can ruin children’s attention spans. Commercials are meant to be eye catching because that is how they get noticed. That type of eye catching movements can actually hurt your child’s attention span.

That is why it is important to use your DirecTV TiVo remote and fast forwarding those high paced commercials. Children need to avoid that type of programming. If your children just focus on the educational program, for a short period of time from 15 to 30 minutes, they are going to be better able to keep their attention on homework, crafts, and reading.

DirecTV TiVo, as mentioned above, can get rid of unwanted channels and TV programs. You can set the access to TV to being the programs and channels that you want your children to watch. This can eliminate entirely children from having access to programs you don’t want them to watch.

 

The Know How of TiVo

Mike Ramsay and Jim Barton created TiVo in the late nineties.  Originally these two men were working on something called “Full-Service Network Project” that was a large-scale interactive television system.  This project sparked the idea of TiVo.

They realized that they could invent a system that was affordable and intelligent.  A system that was very similar to the large-scale interactive television system.  They invented TiVo.

They wanted TiVo to be an easy to use system.  They wanted the consumer to have control over television programs.  TiVo would allow the consumer to spend their time and television watching how they wanted.

In January of 1999 they announced their invention of TiVo at the Consumer Electronics Show.  Mike Ramsay then announced to his company that on March 31, 1999 the first TiVo digital video recorder would be shipped. The company miraculously made the dead line and called the first digital video recorder model blue moon.

TiVo DVRs started being sold in stores during September 1999.  DVRs were also sold with cable or direct broadcast satellite companies for a subscription fee.  So consumers could either buy the DVR for its life span, or “rent” it from month to month.

Philips Electronics launched a new DVR later in the year of 2000.  This model was the first DirecTV receiver with TiVo DVR built in it.  This model was named DirecTiVo.

There is also a DirecTV TiVo remote.  A DirecTV TiVo remote allows consumers to access their DirecTiVo.  A DirecTV TiVo remote can pause live programs and replays them and can play stored digital signals from the DirecTiVo.

TiVo has reached countries outside of the United States as well.  In October of 2000 TiVo was available in the UK market.  It is also available in Canada, Mexico, Australia, Taiwan, Brazil, New Zealand, South Africa, and the Netherlands.