Do you still use a DVR like Sky+?

Fed up talking videogames? Why?

Do you still use a DVR?

Poll ended at Thu May 18, 2017 3:33 pm

Yes (Sky+, Virgin Tivo, YouView, Freesat etc.)
24
73%
Yes, through a HDD connected to my TV.
0
No votes
No.
9
27%
 
Total votes: 33
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KK
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PostDo you still use a DVR like Sky+?
by KK » Mon May 08, 2017 3:33 pm

What with on-demand, I was just curious as to how many people still bother using one to manually record shows as they air. The big selling point of Virgin and Sky these days is that you can now record multiple shows at once - up to 6 while watching a 7th! - but I rarely find 2 programmes that clash or aren't repeated anyway, let alone trying to find 6 on at once.

I find one positive to Sky's on-demand offering though is that it's downloaded onto the HDD and not streamed, which means it looks the same as watching it Live. A bugbear of mine when viewing the UK on-demand streamers is that either the quality isn't there yet or they force you to watch adverts. I tried to watch an episode of Britain's Got Talent through the ITV Hub and everything about it was horrible. It's barely fit for purpose. I'm not surprised millennials don't watch ITV when their tech is so antiquated (well, that and the programmes are generally shite).

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PostRe: Do you still use a DVR like Sky+?
by Preezy » Mon May 08, 2017 3:41 pm

KK wrote:I tried to watch an episode of Britain's Got Talent through the ITV Hub and everything about it was horrible.

I prefer sticking rusty nails in my eyes, much more enjoyable.

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PostRe: Do you still use a DVR like Sky+?
by Lagamorph » Mon May 08, 2017 3:41 pm

The one thing that annoys me about pretty much every DVR is that when you record a live program (Say using the planner/series link) you're stuck with several minutes of additional footage before and after the thing you wanted to record, usually adverts or the end/start of the previous/next program.
You'd think that they could send a signal to only start recording when the actual program starts rather than just at "exact time x", it's such a huge waste of disk space. That or they should give you the ability to edit out parts at the start/end of recordings.

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PostRe: Do you still use a DVR like Sky+?
by bear » Mon May 08, 2017 3:42 pm

I still use Sky+ a lot as I'm on a metered connection and I'm living in Ireland so I don't have access to the BBC iPlayer unless I go mucking around with a VPN.

I still don't understand why the BBC never offered a decent way for those outside the UK to simply pay for access to iPlayer. Stuff like sport would be off limit but they still have a massive content library.

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PostRe: Do you still use a DVR like Sky+?
by Saint of Killers » Mon May 08, 2017 3:43 pm

Yup. Everyday. I did used to watch a lot of stuff via on-demand a while back but I've since disconnected my Sky+HD box (from the net), preferring instead to give that connection to my Roku.

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PostRe: Do you still use a DVR like Sky+?
by Lagamorph » Mon May 08, 2017 3:45 pm

bear wrote:I still don't understand why the BBC never offered a decent way for those outside the UK to simply pay for access to iPlayer. Stuff like sport would be off limit but they still have a massive content library.

There was talk of this happening a little while ago, but I suspect the BBC have found it's easier and cheaper to just sell their shows to pre-existing streaming services in other countries.

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PostRe: Do you still use a DVR like Sky+?
by abcd » Mon May 08, 2017 3:45 pm

Don't use it. Stop paying many years ago.

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PostRe: Do you still use a DVR like Sky+?
by Saint of Killers » Mon May 08, 2017 3:46 pm

Lagamorph wrote:The one thing that annoys me about pretty much every DVR is that when you record a live program (Say using the planner/series link) you're stuck with several minutes of additional footage before and after the thing you wanted to record, usually adverts or the end/start of the previous/next program.
You'd think that they could send a signal to only start recording when the actual program starts rather than just at "exact time x", it's such a huge waste of disk space. That or they should give you the ability to edit out parts at the start/end of recordings.


Annoying but necessary. So much so that I go with the maximum "buffer" of 5 minutes just to make 110% certain the beginning of shows aren't cut out by the box starting the recording later than it should.

Last edited by Saint of Killers on Mon May 08, 2017 3:48 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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PostRe: Do you still use a DVR like Sky+?
by Lagamorph » Mon May 08, 2017 3:47 pm

Saint of Killers wrote:
Lagamorph wrote:The one thing that annoys me about pretty much every DVR is that when you record a live program (Say using the planner/series link) you're stuck with several minutes of additional footage before and after the thing you wanted to record, usually adverts or the end/start of the previous/next program.
You'd think that they could send a signal to only start recording when the actual program starts rather than just at "exact time x", it's such a huge waste of disk space. That or they should give you the ability to edit out parts at the start/end of recordings.


Annoying but necessary. So much so that I go with the maximum "buffer" of 5 minutes just to make 110% certain the beginning isn't missed.

But like I said, that could be solved with a little "start recording now" and "stop recording now" signal that goes out along with the program.

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PostRe: Do you still use a DVR like Sky+?
by Ironhide » Mon May 08, 2017 3:48 pm

I briefly used a Sony freeview recorder a few years back but it was so terrible that I returned it and never bothered getting a different one.

I very rarely watch anything on 'live' TV as there's very little worth watching that I can't get on Netflix/Amazon video or buy on Bluray.

I don't watch sports either so I generally don't miss out by no longer having Sky.

Last edited by Ironhide on Mon May 08, 2017 3:52 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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PostRe: Do you still use a DVR like Sky+?
by Saint of Killers » Mon May 08, 2017 3:49 pm

Lagamorph wrote:
Saint of Killers wrote:
Lagamorph wrote:The one thing that annoys me about pretty much every DVR is that when you record a live program (Say using the planner/series link) you're stuck with several minutes of additional footage before and after the thing you wanted to record, usually adverts or the end/start of the previous/next program.
You'd think that they could send a signal to only start recording when the actual program starts rather than just at "exact time x", it's such a huge waste of disk space. That or they should give you the ability to edit out parts at the start/end of recordings.


Annoying but necessary. So much so that I go with the maximum "buffer" of 5 minutes just to make 110% certain the beginning isn't missed.

But like I said, that could be solved with a little "start recording now" and "stop recording now" signal that goes out along with the program.


Is it the same on the newer boxes as well, then?

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PostRe: Do you still use a DVR like Sky+?
by Lagamorph » Mon May 08, 2017 3:49 pm

Saint of Killers wrote:
Lagamorph wrote:
Saint of Killers wrote:
Lagamorph wrote:The one thing that annoys me about pretty much every DVR is that when you record a live program (Say using the planner/series link) you're stuck with several minutes of additional footage before and after the thing you wanted to record, usually adverts or the end/start of the previous/next program.
You'd think that they could send a signal to only start recording when the actual program starts rather than just at "exact time x", it's such a huge waste of disk space. That or they should give you the ability to edit out parts at the start/end of recordings.


Annoying but necessary. So much so that I go with the maximum "buffer" of 5 minutes just to make 110% certain the beginning isn't missed.

But like I said, that could be solved with a little "start recording now" and "stop recording now" signal that goes out along with the program.


Is it the same on the newer boxes as well, then?

Yep, my Sky Q Silver box has a huge amount of wasted disk space because of stuff before/after whatever I wanted to record.

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PostRe: Do you still use a DVR like Sky+?
by Saint of Killers » Mon May 08, 2017 3:50 pm

Lame.

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PostRe: Do you still use a DVR like Sky+?
by Return_of_the_STAR » Mon May 08, 2017 3:52 pm

I still record the shows as for a long time shows wouldn't appear until a day later on demand and would possibly only be available for a week but I have noticed that it has got a lot better. Shows are appearing straight away, sometimes before their first airing and they are available for longer than before.

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PostRe: Do you still use a DVR like Sky+?
by KK » Mon May 08, 2017 3:55 pm

I know someone who just recently bought a new 4K TV and doesn't even have it connected to an aerial or dish. He watches Sky News' stream on YouTube (which has the adverts removed), occasionally watches iPlayer Live when sport is on, and subscribes to Netflix, Amazon Prime and NowTV on and off. Linear TV is practically dead to him.

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PostRe: Do you still use a DVR like Sky+?
by Rax » Mon May 08, 2017 3:56 pm

Yeah I use Sky+ all the time, my home internet connection isnt up to the task of heavy streaming so Im pretty much stuck with Sky for my tv.

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PostRe: Do you still use a DVR like Sky+?
by bear » Mon May 08, 2017 3:59 pm

Lagamorph wrote:
bear wrote:I still don't understand why the BBC never offered a decent way for those outside the UK to simply pay for access to iPlayer. Stuff like sport would be off limit but they still have a massive content library.

There was talk of this happening a little while ago, but I suspect the BBC have found it's easier and cheaper to just sell their shows to pre-existing streaming services in other countries.

There was an international version you could get on iOS but the content selection was very limited and they very rarely added anything.


Lagamorph wrote:
Saint of Killers wrote:
Lagamorph wrote:The one thing that annoys me about pretty much every DVR is that when you record a live program (Say using the planner/series link) you're stuck with several minutes of additional footage before and after the thing you wanted to record, usually adverts or the end/start of the previous/next program.
You'd think that they could send a signal to only start recording when the actual program starts rather than just at "exact time x", it's such a huge waste of disk space. That or they should give you the ability to edit out parts at the start/end of recordings.


Annoying but necessary. So much so that I go with the maximum "buffer" of 5 minutes just to make 110% certain the beginning isn't missed.

But like I said, that could be solved with a little "start recording now" and "stop recording now" signal that goes out along with the program.

Where's the incentive for those running the channel to add that feature though? No one would want to pay for the ad space between shows.

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PostRe: Do you still use a DVR like Sky+?
by Lagamorph » Mon May 08, 2017 4:00 pm

I think I'd be regretting it now if I cut myself off from terrestrial TV and only had Netflix and Amazon Prime.
Prime has always been pretty poor in terms of content, but lately Netflix's increased focus on original stuff has seen something of a drop off in variety and I find myself missing when it was getting bigger and more popular films.
I keep considering trying to get a Hulu subscription back by tracking down some gift cards, but then I'm just falling into the trap of having a huge amount of subscription services on the go at once.

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PostRe: Do you still use a DVR like Sky+?
by Garth » Mon May 08, 2017 4:03 pm

I watch the occasional bit of live TV, but use on demand services to catch up on stuff I miss.

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PostRe: Do you still use a DVR like Sky+?
by jawafour » Mon May 08, 2017 4:04 pm

I have only ever had Freeview and I use a Humax hard drive recorder. Never had Sky or any on-demand options such as Netflix. I'm lucky that a mate has Sky Sports / BT Sport and so I watch football at his place occasionally.

I'm quite happy with the core Freeview channels and if there is a Sky series that i want to watch - like Lost, Breaking Bad or Walking Dead - I wait until I can get it on disc.


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