All in one Set top box! Does one exist? (1 Viewer)

[Brad Gable]

Hi all,

I am looking for a good high quality STB with the following features:

HD decoder
DirectTv or DISH
Tivo or replay TV
5.1 audio output.

I know that the PVRs currently do not record HD signals so I am not worried about that. I would just like to be able to record when I want for playback later.
I may be dreaming here but wanted to find out if one exists or not. If one does not exist then I would consider dropping the HD requirement as unfortunately there is not a ton of programing currently available. Having said that which box does everyone recommend for satellite/tivo functionality with 5.1 audio output.

Thanks for the help.
Brad

 

[Ken_F]

No shipping boxes with what you want are currently available in the US market. However, both Dish Network and DirecTV showed HDTV satellite receivers with HDTV PVR last week at the Consumer Electronics Show. Moreover, the PVR functionality on these boxes works not just for standard and HDTV channels on satellite, but it works for HDTV locals (from an antenna) as well.

The Dish 921 PVR (you can find more details in other threads) is slated for May, while the DirecTV HDTV Tivo products are slated for the 4th quarter of this year.

Of course, if you drop the HD requirement, there are plenty of boxes from which to choose right now.

 

[Bill Gato]

I learned some interesting info about the Dish Network 921. It is a HD receiver with PVR capability. It has a 120 GB hard drive (for 80 hours of standard television recording/25 hours of HD recording) and it will have two tuners so you can record two programs at the same time on different channels, utilize picture in picture, record on one station while watching another, or record two different programs while watching another pre-recorded program.

I was told that it will be due out in a month and a half and might carry a price tag of around $700-800 (really just a guesstimate).

I'm looking forward to getting one of these puppies.

 

[Robert_J]

I was told that it will be due out in a month and a half and might carry a price tag of around $700-800 (really just a guesstimate).

That's only $100 to $200 more than their regular HD receiver. I've seen rumored pricing at anywhere betwenn $1,200 and $2,000. If it can record two HD shows at the same time, it will have the equivalent of two HD receivers built into it.

-Robert