# HR20 can be swapped for the HR10



## marcello696 (Jun 18, 2004)

For those of you that are worried about the $399 price go ahead and stop worrying. D* just called me and apologized for the $399 mix up and told me that since I have a leased HR10 they will and should be swapping it out for a leased HR20 free of charge. I just looked at my account and the work order reflects this. So in short it looks like D* will live up to their promise of swapping out the HR10 for the HR20 free of charge. Now if you own your HR10 then you will have to pay $399 to get a HR20 if you want to keep your HR10.


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## gio1269 (Jul 27, 2006)

I was told the same thing when I got my HR10 a few weeks ago and it has been "noted" in my account. 
I just need to wait for the until to be available here. 
BUT I might wait and give it a few months to see how the reviews go. Also I need the OTA tuners to work. Nothing worse than a rain storm inn the middle of a Football game and not have the OTA available. 

Also you cannot diplex the OTA. So until I run another line, I will wait.....


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## ebonovic (Jul 24, 2001)

They Called you?

Cool.

Marcello... would you please post that in the HR20 forum at www.dbstalk.com (in a new thread)...

Thank you much.


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## pdawg17 (Mar 1, 2003)

marcello696 said:


> For those of you that are worried about the $399 price go ahead and stop worrying. D* just called me and apologized for the $399 mix up and told me that since I have a leased HR10 they will and should be swapping it out for a leased HR20 free of charge. I just looked at my account and the work order reflects this. So in short it looks like D* will live up to their promise of swapping out the HR10 for the HR20 free of charge. Now if you own your HR10 then you will have to pay $399 to get a HR20 if you want to keep your HR10.


Damn...so you're saying if you purchased an HR10 you have to pay $399? Forget it...some people here paid $1000 for the HR10 and now they have to turn it in or pay $399 to lease an HR20?


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## dbett (Aug 13, 2001)

I have no doubt that Directv will provide me a free swap and dish install when the time comes (ie MPEG4 locals in my area). 

If not, they will be losing one of their most profitable customers. Not to mention going back on the express promise they made to me before I bought the HD-Tivo and signed up for a 2 year deal to get various refunds/incentives.

But, I guess we'll see.


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## darthrsg (Jul 25, 2005)

So you can turn in your owned HR10 to get a leased HR20?


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## tazzmission (Oct 15, 2002)

pdawg17 said:


> Damn...so you're saying if you purchased an HR10 you have to pay $399? Forget it...some people here paid $1000 for the HR10 and now they have to turn it in or pay $399 to lease an HR20?


That is BS. I paid $1000 for my first HR10-250 the day it came out and another $400 for the second one. I will not be swapping anything until I see the reviews on the HR20-700 and will not swap until it is free including the dish. If I can not get this, I will go to Comcast when the Series 3 is out.

For now, I will stay where I am at. 6.3 update, where the heck are you?? Wasn't that supposed to be out before the HR20 Earl???

Not being a jerk here, just asking.


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## annenoe (Oct 19, 2003)

marcello696 said:


> For those of you that are worried about the $399 price go ahead and stop worrying. D* just called me and apologized for the $399 mix up and told me that since I have a leased HR10 they will and should be swapping it out for a leased HR20 free of charge. I just looked at my account and the work order reflects this. So in short it looks like D* will live up to their promise of swapping out the HR10 for the HR20 free of charge. Now if you own your HR10 then you will have to pay $399 to get a HR20 if you want to keep your HR10.


I'm still assuming I can refuse the HR20? I don't want it.


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## yunlin12 (Mar 15, 2003)

darthrsg said:


> So you can turn in your owned HR10 to get a leased HR20?


Why do you have to turn in the HR10 you already own? Can you just call DTV and lease a HR20? I can't imaging DTV charging people $399 for leasing a HR20.


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## btwyx (Jan 16, 2003)

annenoe said:


> I'm still assuming I can refuse the HR20? I don't want it.


I'm fervently hoping so. But then I'll never get HD locals of the satellite.


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## Sir_winealot (Nov 18, 2000)

gio1269 said:


> Also you cannot diplex the OTA. So until I run another line, I will wait.....


Really? For the HR20 you _hafta_ have *3* lines coming in and cannot use a diplexer at all? Whyizatt?

There's no way I can run another line to my family room setup... the diplexer I'm currently using works perfectly for my OTA locals.

Is there no way around this?


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## morgantown (Mar 29, 2005)

yunlin12 said:


> Why do you have to turn in the HR10 you already own? Can you just call DTV and lease a HR20? I can't imaging DTV charging people $399 for leasing a HR20.


The CSR I spoke with a few days ago told me that the lease fee for the HR20 was $399 (quickly offering it to me as a "good customer" for $299). To own it, they want $749.

I'd expect the deals on the HR20 to roll out in the not too distant future. I'll give it a few months and see how it is then...


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## A J Ricaud (Jun 25, 2002)

Sir_whinealot said:


> Really? For the HR20 you _hafta_ have *3* lines coming in and cannot use a diplexer at all? Whyizatt?
> 
> There's no way I can run another line to my family room setup... the diplexer I'm currently using works perfectly for my OTA locals.
> 
> Is there no way around this?


Sorry, but OTA signals conflict with MPEG-4 signals.


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## mr.unnatural (Feb 2, 2006)

> I will not be swapping anything until I see the reviews on the HR20-700 ...


Ask and you shall receive:

http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=61862


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## gio1269 (Jul 27, 2006)

Yep, MPEG-4 and the AT9 dish have some type of frequency difference. So if you OTA, that 3 lines coming. I know this sucks, but I will NOT give up OTA. Not with football during a real nice rain storm, then lose my signal.....


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## ebonovic (Jul 24, 2001)

Sir_whinealot said:


> Really? For the HR20 you _hafta_ have *3* lines coming in and cannot use a diplexer at all? Whyizatt?
> 
> There's no way I can run another line to my family room setup... the diplexer I'm currently using works perfectly for my OTA locals.
> 
> Is there no way around this?


There is some technology in the works that will allow you to just use two cables.
One for the DirecTV signal, and one for OTA..

Not sure of a timeline for it.... But it is definently in the plans for DirecTV.

(It has to do with the FTM marker on the HR20)


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## teasip (Aug 24, 2002)

Must be the same idea as FiOS. I was told that for my FiOS install this coming Friday that only one run is needed to each box, even with dual tuners.


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## kbohip (Dec 30, 2003)

morgantown said:


> The CSR I spoke with a few days ago told me that the lease fee for the HR20 was $399 (quickly offering it to me as a "good customer" for $299). To own it, they want $749.
> 
> I'd expect the deals on the HR20 to roll out in the not too distant future. I'll give it a few months and see how it is then...


HA HA HA! If that's true then goodbye Directv. I'm sorry, but they day I spend $300 for the privelage of renting something..... Hopefully this is just wrong information. I can see them wanting you to return the HR10's though before they give you an HR20 for free. This is why I'm glad I spent $200 for my HR10.

Does anyone but me ever wonder what satellite companies do with all of these returned DVR's? I'm not talking about the ones that can still be used and refurbished either. What I mean is what will Directv do with the I'm sure thousands of outdated HR10's once the MPEG2 sats get switched off?


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## DTVPro (Jun 24, 2005)

I've never understood the hard on some people have about leased equipment.

There are many positives, including upgrades in equipment for cheaper, if it fails a replacement for only the shipping cost, etc etc


Boxes are useless w/o the DTV service anyways, so only thing you're missing out on is selling the thing when you leave d*


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## Todd (Oct 7, 1999)

There is no way I'm giving them my HR10 to get the HR20. Period. While it has a few nice new features, why would I want a box that in many ways is a big step backwards in functionality??


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## cheer (Nov 13, 2005)

teasip said:


> Must be the same idea as FiOS. I was told that for my FiOS install this coming Friday that only one run is needed to each box, even with dual tuners.


Not at all. FIOS is essentially cable technology, and thus can be split like any cable feed.


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## cheer (Nov 13, 2005)

Todd said:


> There is no way I'm giving them my HR10 to get the HR20. Period. While it has a few nice new features, why would I want a box that in many ways is a big step backwards in functionality??


Mainly, if you want/need the MPEG4 feeds, the HR20-700 is your only alternative.


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## cheer (Nov 13, 2005)

DTVPro said:


> I've never understood the hard on some people have about leased equipment.


In general, I'd rather own than rent. However, D*'s leasing scheme is so wacky it's hard to get a handle on for some people.

Probably the biggest objection is that D* didn't reduce the startup cost. Cable leases HD DVRs but doesn't charge $399 for the privilege.


> There are many positives, including upgrades in equipment for cheaper,


There's no indication (so far) that D* gives cheaper upgrades.


> if it fails a replacement for only the shipping cost


This is probably the only tangible benefit D* gives so far.


> Boxes are useless w/o the DTV service anyways, so only thing you're missing out on is selling the thing when you leave d*


Given that these boxes sell for hundreds of dollars, this is not an insignificant consideration. (And they're not totally useless; the HR10-250 can continue to be used as an ATSC tuner w/30 minute buffer.


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## Brewer4 (May 6, 2004)

I dont get the negative leasing thing either. I got an HR10 free and I pay a lease fee per month which equates to the extra receiver charge. What am I missing?

I wouldnt want to pay 400 bucks to lease something but as most have proven, a couple of calls to retention should net you something substantially lower if not free. Sucks to do it that way but isnt that why we have the forums to let folks know there are ways to "get er dunn".


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## tazzmission (Oct 15, 2002)

Todd said:


> There is no way I'm giving them my HR10 to get the HR20. Period. While it has a few nice new features, why would I want a box that in many ways is a big step backwards in functionality??


How do we even know that it is a step backwards? It just came out. Give it some time in the field and lets see how well it works. Who knows, it might be better than our TiVo's.

Don't get me wrong, I love my TiVo's. Heck I only have DirecTV because of the HR10-250 TiVo.

Time will tell how good or bad the HR20 is.


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## LionsAholic (Jul 14, 2006)

I just received my mostly free HR10-250 about 6 weeks ago. The Installer would only put up the 3lnb dish. I will wait at least 6 months to a year before I upgrade to the HR20 and 5lnb. I get all Detroit locals OTA. It would be nice for the FSN HD feed though!


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## BillyT2002 (Oct 19, 2002)

I only care about one thing. I cannot miss *ANY* scheduled recordings (short of the President overstepping his prime time welcome, the ballgame going into overtime or the guide data just being wrong). If it turns out that the concensus on the HR20 is that people are not missing *ANY* recordings, than I will happily get one and use it. However, I will not swap for my HR10-250 and I will also not pay $399.00 (or anything over $50) to D* for the right to lease the equipment from them. At that time, I will play retention supervisor roulette until I get a body at D* who is willing to give me the HR20 on my terms. In a worst case scenario I will give them my long decommission HDVR2 for the HR20 as long as there is no $399.00 charge. They probably don't check the incoming swap out receiver anyway for what model it is. They probably only check that they received a swapped receiver.


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## gregftlaud (Jun 16, 2004)

i'm not worrying about upgrading until the 2007 nfl season starts. i mean i get my local ota hd's just fine with my hr10 and the nfl sunday ticket hd's will still be in mpeg2 this year so screw dtv and their 399 bucks after i paid 1000 bucks for my hr10. i wrote them about a year ago about this upgrade and they emailed me back assuring me that the entire upgrade including equipment would be free. seems like they are going back on their word now with these huge lease fee. screw that!


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## harley3k (Jul 19, 2006)

pdawg17 said:


> Damn...so you're saying if you purchased an HR10 you have to pay $399? Forget it...some people here paid $1000 for the HR10 and now they have to turn it in or pay $399 to lease an HR20?


Exactly! It's crap.
The reality is that if you call them and say, I can have Fios/TWC/Comcast at my house next week to install their stuff for free, and have more HD channels, cheaper monthly service w/no 2 year committment BS.............or D*, you can send someone out to install a new dish, and the HR20 for free... which do you prefer? They will definately do it not wanting to lose your $100+ monthly sub. It is sad if we have to b!tch like this to get the deal we deserve though. It is in D* best interest to get us converted to MPEG4 equipment and off Tivo, and if they really want me to buy into the 2 year committment then they should offer proactive service to me to do just that. I mean if I really am one of their "most valued customers" like they always say when I call. Sheesh.

-h


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## AstroDad (Jan 21, 2003)

I think we all need to settle down a bit. I have seen a lot more people over at dbstalk saying they were offered a free swap out than those that weren't. 

Yes, you will have to lease it for the swap out, but that is something we should just get used to, it isn't going to change. I don't remember seeing one person have success getting a free HD unit and having it be owned since they instituted the new leasing policy.


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## slacker9876 (Sep 1, 2004)

Pardon me folks, isn't the HR20 the new HD DVR? If yes ... WHEN was this actually released? As far as I have read this is still not released.


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## bkdtv (Jan 9, 2003)

> Pardon me folks, isn't the HR20 the new HD DVR? If yes ... WHEN was this actually released? As far as I have read this is still not released.


It was released *yesterday* in the LA market. Some customers elsewhere have been able to call DirecTV and order, but widespread availability and the free "swapping" option may not be a choice until it officially hits your market next month.


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## Charlutz (Apr 7, 2005)

Would anybody on this forum actually pay $399 for it?  You all know you are going to cut a deal with retention to get it for free or nearly free, probably get some programming thrown in, and maybe some other credits. And if you own your hd tivo, I suspect you'll probably be able to keep it or sell it. Seems a lot of complaining without anyone actually being turned down, or at least turned down repeatedly after playing csr roulette. 

I was thinking I'd hold off trading in my 2 hd tivos until the sunday ticket went to mpeg4, but I may trade in my leased unit for the hr20 so I can use the interactive features. Not to mention, my OTA reception is spotty in my basement HT so the mpeg4 locals will be nice. I'm at least going to try it before I start complaining.


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## bkdtv (Jan 9, 2003)

It would be crazy to pay $399 when DirecTV will swap it out for free to everyone, once it is available in your market. From what I understand, free swapouts are really meant for LA customers this month, and for everyone else next month.

Paying an extra $399 (or $299) to get the box one-month early isn't worth it, imo.


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## newsposter (Aug 18, 2002)

Todd said:


> There is no way I'm giving them my HR10 to get the HR20. Period. While it has a few nice new features, why would I want a box that in many ways is a big step backwards in functionality??


ditto....if i gotta, i will fork out 400 for the new box when they have usa/sci fi/fx etc in HD. Then it will be worth it. But now...no way jose

(except you unlucky folk that can't get OTA...then you will want this box i'm sure)


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## slacker9876 (Sep 1, 2004)

btwyx said:


> I'm fervently hoping so. But then I'll never get HD locals of the satellite.


OTA is far better anyway. I have an H20 and my HD locals drop out every time there is *FOG* in Denver ... this with a signal level of 91+ across the board. My antenna on the other hand delivers crystal-clear, non-pixilated, HDTV, will little to no problems.

To the source of the topic:
Aren't we getting ahead of ourselves here? Theoretically ... the unit needs to be "released" before a swap-out can occur.

Not that they are fountains of reliable information, but the installer here at my home said that they just announced a pushback to Q1, 2007. Do we have a dealer to confirm/deny this?

FWIW, if this unit won't **** my unit, I think I'll be sticking with my HR10-250 anyway. The R15 (I think) was a disaster for the 3 weeks it was in my home, I mean dang, it does not even FFW right and I'll not tolerate that from an HD unit.


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## slacker9876 (Sep 1, 2004)

bkdtv said:


> It was released *yesterday* in the LA market. Some customers elsewhere have been able to call DirecTV and order, but widespread availability and the free "swapping" option may not be a choice until it officially hits your market next month.


 Holy CRAP! I just talked with a Tech Rep at D*, activating another HDVR2 on my account and they said it had NOT been released , thus my accidental double post.


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## yunlin12 (Mar 15, 2003)

newsposter said:


> ditto....if i gotta, i will fork out 400 for the new box when they have usa/sci fi/fx etc in HD. Then it will be worth it. But now...no way jose
> 
> (except you unlucky folk that can't get OTA...then you will want this box i'm sure)


Would anyone actually shell out $400 just to get the MPEG4 local? For just basically ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, and maybe PBS? And it's down rez'd HD-Lite? Why wouldn't someone go cable then? Even if cable is $30/month more expensive, this $400 would still be worth it to try cable for 1 year, and see if DTV understands that gauging their customers don't pay.



morgantown said:


> To own it, they want $749.


Why not by a S3?


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## kbohip (Dec 30, 2003)

DTVPro said:


> I've never understood the hard on some people have about leased equipment.
> 
> There are many positives, including upgrades in equipment for cheaper, if it fails a replacement for only the shipping cost, etc etc
> 
> Boxes are useless w/o the DTV service anyways, so only thing you're missing out on is selling the thing when you leave d*


And I've never understood how some people could spend so much money to rent something. The only positives are to the lessor. As far as my owned HR10 failing goes, I have the protection plan. I didn't get the protection plan until the 1 year warranty went out. The first year I owned it, the box was under warranty. 3 months after I bought it the hard drive went out and Directv sent me a new HR10 under warranty. I paid $200 for it a year ago. Hmmm, I wonder what I could get for it if I sold it on Ebay today? A quick check on sold HR10's over the last few weeks shows them going for $250-$300.

So what sounds better? Buying something for $200, using it for a year, then selling it for $50-100 more than what you paid for it or spending $400 for the privelage of renting it. I don't even know what Directv charges extra per month to lease, if anything, so I won't count that against it. One way you make $50-100, the other way you lose $400. Hmmm, easy decision for me anyway.

Remember, a lease is just renting with the stigma of a large upfront cost.


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## kbohip (Dec 30, 2003)

Brewer4 said:


> I dont get the negative leasing thing either. I got an HR10 free and I pay a lease fee per month which equates to the extra receiver charge. What am I missing?
> 
> I wouldnt want to pay 400 bucks to lease something but as most have proven, a couple of calls to retention should net you something substantially lower if not free. Sucks to do it that way but isnt that why we have the forums to let folks know there are ways to "get er dunn".


If you can rent it without the upfront cost, this is a great deal for sure. My problem is with the huge upfront cost. I really can't even believe Directv can get away with that in today's market anyway, what with all the cable companies who will let you rent their HD-DVR's with no upfront costs. Granted, these boxes pretty much suck.


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## Charlutz (Apr 7, 2005)

Jeezus. Just look at the 'hr10-250 for free' threads and see how many people are actually paying the upfront charge on their leased hd tivos. Hardly anybody. Everyone's screaming about the huge fee, but nobody here will actually pay it. Are you the same people that said $400 was a great deal for the Hr-10 when they dropped the price last Summer? I understand the loyalty to tivo, but it sounds like the hr20 is not the disaster that the R15 was and that the biggest missing feature is the dual tuner cache, while you get the interactive features and the ability to add more channels via mpeg4 decoding. There are tradeoffs, but the complaining is over the top.


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## slacker9876 (Sep 1, 2004)

yunlin12 said:


> Why not by a S3?


 I am with you, I am actually preparing for this in 2007 when I may actually HAVE TO make a choice, lest D* make it for me. I am sick bas**rd becuase I am at the point where I am question the ability to make a better product than the TiVo software ... open source is grand, I run 4 Linux distros at home and love them all more than WinBloze and open source is the reason.


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## AstroDad (Jan 21, 2003)

Charlutz said:


> Jeezus. Just look at the 'hr10-250 for free' threads and see how many people are actually paying the upfront charge on their leased hd tivos. Hardly anybody. Everyone's screaming about the huge fee, but nobody here will actually pay it. Are you the same people that said $400 was a great deal for the Hr-10 when they dropped the price last Summer? I understand the loyalty to tivo, but it sounds like the hr20 is not the disaster that the R15 was and that the biggest missing feature is the dual tuner cache, while you get the interactive features and the ability to add more channels via mpeg4 decoding. There are tradeoffs, but the complaining is over the top.


 :up:


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## Mr. Bill (Jan 18, 2006)

ebonovic said:


> There is some technology in the works that will allow you to just use two cables.
> One for the DirecTV signal, and one for OTA..
> 
> Not sure of a timeline for it.... But it is definently in the plans for DirecTV.
> ...


That is awesome news... thanks Earl!

Let's hope that the testing is moving along much faster than the 6.3 update, too.


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## gfb107 (Jul 16, 2001)

Understand that the current software on the HR20 doesn't support the OTA tuners. I'm sure it won't stay that way, but for now it's HR10 if you want any OTA (but you can't get MPEG4), or HR20 if you want MPEG4 (but you can't get OTA).


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## gregftlaud (Jun 16, 2004)

so basically what u all are saying is that in order to get the new hr20 dvr i will have to GIVE them my hr10 250 that i paid 1000 bucks for? why exactly do they need my hr 10 250 anyway??????


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## joed32 (Jul 9, 2005)

I just ordered this morning and I'm sending them back my leased H20 non Dvr because I don't need it anymore, but they didn't ask for anything in exchange. I'm keeping an owned HR10 and a leased one that I got for free. You don't have to give up anything! 
As for price it's $399 and they will give $120 credit if you ask for a better deal. They also waived shipping. For other credits you have work a little harder.


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## cheer (Nov 13, 2005)

kbohip said:


> I don't even know what Directv charges extra per month to lease, if anything, so I won't count that against it.


Not one dime.


> Remember, a lease is just renting with the stigma of a large upfront cost.


Well...yeah. I suppose. In this case, you're not paying a monthly rent, so it's more like paying $400 for something you have to give back eventually.


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## Todd (Oct 7, 1999)

tazzmission said:


> How do we even know that it is a step backwards? It just came out. Give it some time in the field and lets see how well it works. Who knows, it might be better than our TiVo's.
> 
> Don't get me wrong, I love my TiVo's. Heck I only have DirecTV because of the HR10-250 TiVo.
> 
> Time will tell how good or bad the HR20 is.


That is definately true and I'm sure it will get better over time with software updates. But what really irks me is this no dual buffer thing. That's insane. I use it all the time. Even cheap cable TV DVRs have that feature. And according to Earl, it may well not ever get that feature. That and not having a Suggestions recording feature (which I don't know if anything other than TiVo will ever get...  ), makes it a showstopper for me. I do have some issues with OTA reception so it would be nice to have MPEG4 LIL (along with a supposedly better OTA tuner), but that doesn't outweigh these other problems. If I don't switch back to COX with a Series 3, I might be up for replacing my SDTiVo with the HR20, but my HDTiVo stays for the forseeable future. I wonder if D* will offer any discounts to those of us who want to keep our HDTiVos??

Also, where the heck is that media center DVR??


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## gregftlaud (Jun 16, 2004)

i have been a customer for 7yrs. i paid 1000 bucks for my hr10 250. they sent me an email saying this upgrade, including hardware, would be completely free. i will not stoop to paying 399 bucks....will not settle for getting a credit on that.....i will pay nothing or i will switch to comcast. this is a forced upgrade (well, eventually for all)..... charging customers to get equipment that will work with their new mpeg4 format is ridiculous. this cannot be good for dtv if this is how they are going to treat customers.


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## RunnerFL (May 10, 2005)

gregftlaud said:


> i have been a customer for 7yrs. i paid 1000 bucks for my hr10 250. they sent me an email saying this upgrade, including hardware, would be completely free. i will not stoop to paying 399 bucks....will not settle for getting a credit on that.....i will pay nothing or i will switch to comcast. this is a forced upgrade (well, eventually for all)..... charging customers to get equipment that will work with their new mpeg4 format is ridiculous. this cannot be good for dtv if this is how they are going to treat customers.


Why not just wait and see how they handle it when it's in wide release instead of just assuming the upgrade won't be free?

All these people with this militant stance of "I will not pay anything" make me laugh... Have you personally been told by D* that you have to pay anything?? No... How do you know it isn't actually a free upgrade if you don't have the ability to even get it yet?

Why give yourself an ulcer instead of just waiting to see what happens?


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## gregftlaud (Jun 16, 2004)

YES I HAVE. if you read my post i said i received an email (after emailing dtv regarding this issue) late last year and they told me this upgrade of hardware would be free.

here is a copy:

Sent: Saturday, November 26, 2005 8:11 PM
Subject: mpeg4 upgrade [Incident: 051125-002726]

Dear Mr. Hatfield,

Thanks for writing. Please be advised that customers who have DIRECTV HD equipment will be eligible for a no-cost equipment replacement when we launch HD locals in their area.

Should you have any other concerns, please feel free to call us at 1-800-531-5000 and one of our Customer Service Representatives will be happy to assist you.

Thanks again for writing and please stay tuned to DIRECTV.com for the latest news and information about our service.

Sincerely,

Abi
DIRECTV Customer Service


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## JimSpence (Sep 19, 2001)

Since it will be a few years before my DMA (156) gets MPEG4 locals, I wonder if DirecTV will swap my Hughes HTL-HD for the HR20? Or maybe the HR30 by then.


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## plehrack (May 7, 2002)

BillyT2002 said:


> However, I will not swap for my HR10-250 and I will also not pay $399.00 (or anything over $50) to D* for the right to lease the equipment from them. At that time, I will play retention supervisor roulette until I get a body at D* who is willing to give me the HR20 on my terms. In a worst case scenario I will give them my long decommission HDVR2 for the HR20 as long as there is no $399.00 charge. They probably don't check the incoming swap out receiver anyway for what model it is. They probably only check that they received a swapped receiver.


That's what I did yesterday. My HR20-700 will be installed on 8/20. I could not get them to cover the installation of a new line for my antenna, I'm going to try to get the installer to do it for free since a 2 cable run is part of normal installation. As far as OTA and recording reliability, I will continue to run my HR10-250 right next to the new box. The new box will replace an old SAT-T60, no swap out was necessary. I spend aprx $130 a month for my DTV service, a two year commitment is far better for them than me switching to cable due to me not having the latest and greatest hardware.

As far as the lease fee is concerned, there is no monthly fee. The monthly fee is a mirror fee and applies whether you lease or own a box.

Peter


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## johnfl (Jan 25, 2005)

Hi plehrack, which state are you in...CA?
I just tried to get one in MA...not available yet...I'll try again on Monday


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## newsposter (Aug 18, 2002)

JimSpence said:


> Since it will be a few years before my DMA (156) gets MPEG4 locals, I wonder if DirecTV will swap my Hughes HTL-HD for the HR20? Or maybe the HR30 by then.


You probably answered before somewhere...but why would it take that long? I thought by the end of next year the new birds will be operational. Still a long wait but almost tolerable.

Or are they gonna use them for the 150 nationals lol


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## plehrack (May 7, 2002)

johnfl said:


> Hi plehrack, which state are you in...CA?
> I just tried to get one in MA...not available yet...I'll try again on Monday


yup, I'm in LA. The woman I talked to said that I was the first to request one. As far as I know, LA will be the only region getting them for the time being.


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