Macopinion

Tivo versus DirecTV HDDVR, Part 5

by Marc Zeedar macopinion@designwrite.com

Managing Schedules
Again the two units are similar. Both offer a "To Do" list that shows what the DVR is planning to record, and a "History" list which tells you what happened to shows (they were recorded, the recording was cancelled, the show's been deleted, etc.). That is handy if you're wondering why a show didn't record (sometimes there's a late schedule change).

Unfortunately, both units have severe flaws in schedule management. Scheduling is not the easiest thing in the world to do and at times it can get incredibly complicated. With either device it's sometimes confusing and hard to tell why a show isn't scheduled to record.

For instance, Tivo's info is occasionally incomplete. This can happen when there is more than one reason to not record the show, such as a repeat episode (when you've told it not to record repeats) and a show conflict (another show at the same time). Tivo will report only one of the reasons and I've been fooled into canceling a conflicting recording only to still not see the favorite show scheduled. When I investigate further, I find out it's a repeat and I canceled the other show for nothing!

Other times the reverse happens: Tivo thinks a show's a rerun when it's not. That's worse.

But at least Tivo gives you more information than DTV, which just gives you one word explanations ("Canceled"). Tivo will say stuff like "This show won't record because a user canceled it on 2/28/08 at 4:22 p.m."

I also find DirecTV's episodic recording (what Tivo calls a "Season Pass") more confusing. It seems to work fine, but I have several shows scheduled to record and it shows that none are scheduled and I can't tell why. I think it's because the episodes are repeats, but since they don't show up in History or To Do, I can't tell. Tivo lists shows like that in History with the explanation that you've told it not to record all episodes.

The bottom line is that managing shows on any DVR is worlds better than a VCR, but it's not perfect and if you really want every show recorded you need to do a little babysitting just to make sure the device is obeying you (I always double-check my To Do list periodically). In my case the DTV unit has the advantage of being able to record two shows at once which eliminates a lot of conflicts and potential cancelations, but Tivo's interface is a little better. In the end, I'm voting this one a tie. Both work for 90% of the situations out there: it's only the truly obsessive (like me) that will find occasional frustrations.

Winner: Tie

Searching for Programs
Both devices offer powerful search features where you can find shows by title, actor, or keyword. DirecTV does not separate directors and actors but just calls them "names," which could be a disadvantage if you want to record just the movies of director Ron Howard, for instance, not things he acted in.

Another potential difference is that it seems to me -- and I haven't verified this so I could be wrong -- that DirecTV only lists names within current shows. So if you wanted to set up an auto-record for all Hitchcock films but none happen to be available in the current programming schedule, Hitch's name wouldn't even be listed. Tivo lists the name even if there are no current shows with that person.

But in general these both work fine. The difference is in the interface, and here Tivo shines. Both give you a grid of letters over which you move a cursor with your remote and press Select to "type" that letter. Yes, it is slow and painful, but it works. However, it is much easier to painfully type letters on Tivo, in part because it includes some handy shortcuts. Pressing the Fast-Forward button inserts a space and Rewind deletes the previous character. With DirecTV I couldn't find any such shortcut -- which meant a slow trip through the alphabet grid down to the "SPC" or "DEL" option each time I needed one of those. Tivo also seems faster and more responsive, with the DTV slightly sluggish at times, though both occasionally have irritating pauses while the unit "thinks."

(Oddly, DirecTV includes a completely different method of text entering for searching their digital download service: there you use the numeric keypad to type letters just like you do on an old-fashioned cell phone. I actually found that faster than scrolling through the alphabet grid, but it's bizarre there are two different text input methods. Surely that would be confusing to users!)

Another advantage for Tivo is that you can search by category, such as movies or sitcoms, instead of all shows which might have more matches than you'd like. Tivo's searches can even be combined with and/or/not logic (though I've had such inconsistent results with that feature I stopped using it).

DirecTV does have two outstanding features Tivo does not. First, like I mentioned earlier in terms of the device's interface, you can continue to watch the playing show (or live TV) in a small box in the corner while you search for shows. That is a lot more convenient (great when an ad on the current show reminds of a show you wanted to record) and takes some of the sting out of the weaker search interface (since you're pleasantly distracted by the show).

Another unique DTV feature is Channel Search. When you get hundreds of channels it can be a pain remember which number is the "Do It Yourself" channel. With DTV I type in "DIY" and it shows me it is channel 230. With Tivo, I'm forced to scroll through hundreds of channels looking for the one.

Unfortunately, one bit of lameness wipes out all goodness of the DTV device: its searches bring up shows on channels you don't receive!

Yes, it really is that unbelievably stupid. I suspect this is a marketing ploy: the company wants you to upgrade to more channels, especially premiums, so when you search by actor, for example, you'll get hits on HBO and other channels you may not pay for. (I don't think it would actually attempt to record, but I didn't test that.) The result of this is that the search can produce useless results. (Another flaw: in the list of matching shows, channels are listed by number, not name, so unless you know your channel numbers, it's hard to tell if it's a premium or not. You can press More Info to see the channel name, but that's an extra step on each show instead of being able to tell by glancing at the list.)

Even more disturbing, on the DTV unit searches automatically bring up the contents of premium sex channels (they are not treated any differently than any other channels you don't receive).

There are parental control features you can turn on to limit these titles, but I found the parental controls awkward. When I turned on parental controls set to hide adult channels but display all movies (including NC-17), it still blocked R-rated or unrated movies on IFC (Independent Film Channel) for some unknown reason. It didn't block the recording of these films, only the display of the title!

Apparently you can manually block channels, but that means literally checking/unchecking the 500+ channels in the DirecTV lineup (all are enabled by default). I suppose if I had kids and it was a real concern for me I might take the trouble, I've got better things to do other than play with a remote control for two hours.

Winner: Tivo

Next Time: Playing Video

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