# 26 Hours to download a HD movie



## narrod (Jul 26, 2007)

I downloaded "The Hoax". It took 26 hours. I have slow DSL with no plans to upgrade because it only costs $10 a month. Without a cable modem or a 6meg
DSL connection I feel that DOD is nothing more than an impractical curiosity.


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## machavez00 (Nov 2, 2006)

Some of it will delivered via the sat. I don't know if it will tagged as such.


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## veryoldschool (Dec 10, 2006)

Sounds like a 1.5 Mb/s connection.
A 3 Mb/s connection will just about do SD at 1:1 [min of programing/min of download] .
My 5 Mb/s connection did HD at about half speed or 1:2.


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## narrod (Jul 26, 2007)

veryoldschool said:


> Sounds like a 1.5 Mb/s connection.
> A 3 Mb/s connection will just about do SD at 1:1 [min of programing/min of download] .
> My 5 Mb/s connection did HD at about half speed or 1:2.


Yeah, I know the problem is my connection. A DS-3 would be ideal. Fortunately, I don't have any real interest in VOD. If I did, I would leave DirecTv for cable where it really works. Any feature that requires a user to have another service from a different provider is fatally flawed. Of course, just my opinion.


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## vollmey (Mar 23, 2007)

narrod said:


> Yeah, I know the problem is my connection. A DS-3 would be ideal. Fortunately, I don't have any real interest in VOD. If I did, I would leave DirecTv for cable where it really works. Any feature that requires a user to have another service from a different provider is fatally flawed. Of course, just my opinion.


What?? So the computer you are using is fatally flawed because you have to an internet connection to access DBStalk, provided from ANOTHER service.

Or your car runs on gas not manufactured by who built your car, so your car is fatally flawed??

Or, your TV you watch has Direct TV, so your TV is fatally flawed because you use a different provider than who ever built your TV to put a picture on that TV.

I can go on and on and on.. Unreal!!!


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## narrod (Jul 26, 2007)

vollmey said:


> What?? So the computer you are using is fatally flawed because you have to an internet connection to access DBStalk, provided from ANOTHER service.
> 
> Or your car runs on gas not manufactured by who built your car, so your car is fatally flawed??
> 
> ...


Hope you feel better.


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## veryoldschool (Dec 10, 2006)

narrod said:


> Hope you feel better.


Clearly VOD won't be of use to all.


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## Steve Mehs (Mar 21, 2002)

$10 DSL? As the old saying goes, you get what you pay for. The way it sounds there are much faster broadband options available to you, if that be the case, upgrade to a faster connection, if you want to pay a low price for what I consider hardly qualifies as broadband, then don't use DirecTV On Demand, simple as that. It's not DirecTVs fault you don't want to pay more for faster internet access.


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## JM Anthony (Nov 16, 2003)

I gotta agree with Steve. If you're not willing to pay for decent connectivity, don't whine about the service.

John


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## narrod (Jul 26, 2007)

JM Anthony said:


> I gotta agree with Steve. If you're not willing to pay for decent connectivity, don't whine about the service.
> 
> John


I wasn't whining. I shared an experience and observed that it is because of my slow DSL and that it isn't important enough for me to upgrade. I love paying $10 a month for DSL which is one half of what I paid for my
first dialup service almost twenty years ago. Clearly DOD is not for those of us who are unwilling to pay for faster broadband. If I want it, I will go to cable.


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## Steve Mehs (Mar 21, 2002)

I'm just making observations and stating the obvious. If you don't mind having a slow DSL connection, that's your business, but it's not any fault or negative of DirecTV, especially if you don't want to upgrade. DBS satellite is a one way technology are requires a third party provider for On Demand functionality, obviously high def video content requires a lot of bandwidth, if you want to take advantage of that technology, you need a higher bandwidth broadband option.


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## narrod (Jul 26, 2007)

Steve Mehs said:


> I'm just making observations and stating the obvious. If you don't mind having a slow DSL connection, that's your business, but it's not any fault or negative of DirecTV, especially if you don't want to upgrade. DBS satellite is a one way technology are requires a third party provider for On Demand functionality, obviously high def video content requires a lot of bandwidth, if you want to take advantage of that technology, you need a higher bandwidth broadband option.


Steve,

Reread my original post. Where do we differ? Again, DOD is an impractical curiosity without a fast broadband connection. That's all I said.


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## lwilli201 (Dec 22, 2006)

In the long run, having a faster Internet connection will not help download any faster. More and more content providers are putting their stuff on the Internet. I see gridlock eventually. In reality it is already happening. With a 3 mb connection you are lucky to get 2 mb downloads. If my 3 mb connection was running at full speed, downloading an HD movie would not take that long. Web congestion is the problem and it will not get any better unless there is a major upgrade to the Internet infrastructure. IMHO


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## Tom M (Jan 4, 2007)

We recently moved and the area we are now in ONLY has 1.5 DSL available due to the distance to the CO. Not everybody has access to cable or FIOS or want to pay for satellite broadband. I'd be on cable if it was available but the nearest drop is currently over a mile away.

As stated earlier, DoD will not be for everybody and in some cases there will be users that would like it but don't really have a cost effective choice in the matter.


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## vollmey (Mar 23, 2007)

narrod said:


> Steve,
> 
> Reread my original post. Where do we differ? Again, DOD is an impractical curiosity without a fast broadband connection. That's all I said.


That's not your original post, your original post is quoted in my post.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

narrod said:


> Hope you feel better.


You didn't deserve that. :icon_kiff

Rich


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

narrod said:


> Reread my original post. Where do we differ? Again, DOD is an impractical curiosity without a fast broadband connection. That's all I said.


I just reread your OP after reading it twice the first time I found it and I agree with you. Sometimes I wonder at the responses posters get. I don't think anybody in his right mind starts a thread with the intention of doing anything but expressing his opinion. A "heated argument" is a great way to learn. I had never given any thought to using VOD just for the reason that you need a computer to use it. Seems to me like the HR20s should be able to do it, but I don't pretend to understand the technology.

This thread you started caused me to rethink my view on the VOD issue, mainly because I have (I think, VOS will correct me if I am wrong, please?) a cable modem that has a download speed of 16 Mbs. And a large HD that has nothing on it. I have to look into this. Another "learning curve". I hate them.

Anyhow, I thank you for causing me to rethink an opinion,

Rich


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

lwilli201 said:


> In the long run, having a faster Internet connection will not help download any faster. More and more content providers are putting their stuff on the Internet. I see gridlock eventually. In reality it is already happening. With a 3 mb connection you are lucky to get 2 mb downloads. If my 3 mb connection was running at full speed, downloading an HD movie would not take that long. Web congestion is the problem and it will not get any better unless there is a major upgrade to the Internet infrastructure. IMHO


So, how will my 16 Mbs cable modem do? (And so, the hated learning curve begins.)

Rich


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

Tom M said:


> We recently moved and the area we are now in ONLY has 1.5 DSL available due to the distance to the CO. Not everybody has access to cable or FIOS or want to pay for satellite broadband. I'd be on cable if it was available but the nearest drop is currently over a mile away.
> 
> As stated earlier, DoD will not be for everybody and in some cases there will be users that would like it but don't really have a cost effective choice in the matter.


I'm just waiting for FIOS to get to my house. Hopefully this year. Just for the modem. 30Mbs. For about the same price I pay for my 16Mbs cable modem. I hope I'm thinking about this correctly. The FIOS should download VOD really quickly, no?

Rich


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## cforrest (Jan 20, 2007)

Yes, FIOS does a good job with DOD stuff! I have the 20/20 package, I am happy with it coming from OOL Boost and the 30 Mbps download.


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## narrod (Jul 26, 2007)

rich584 said:


> I just reread your OP after reading it twice the first time I found it and I agree with you. Sometimes I wonder at the responses posters get. I don't think anybody in his right mind starts a thread with the intention of doing anything but expressing his opinion. A "heated argument" is a great way to learn. I had never given any thought to using VOD just for the reason that you need a computer to use it. Seems to me like the HR20s should be able to do it, but I don't pretend to understand the technology.
> 
> This thread you started caused me to rethink my view on the VOD issue, mainly because I have (I think, VOS will correct me if I am wrong, please?) a cable modem that has a download speed of 16 Mbs. And a large HD that has nothing on it. I have to look into this. Another "learning curve". I hate them.
> 
> ...


Some folks get really upset when someone expresses and opinion that runs counter to their belief. None of this stuff is important enough to get upset about. This DOD experience has been educational for me. I've been looking forward to AT&T's Uverse (i'm a AT&T retiree) but, considering it is a IP based service, I have my doubts about the ulimate quality. I understand why they chose a cheaper solution than FIOS but, I suspect, Verizon has made the best long-term decision.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

cforrest said:


> Yes, FIOS does a good job with DOD stuff! I have the 20/20 package, I am happy with it coming from OOL Boost and the 30 Mbps download.


How long does it take to download a two hour movie. Rough guess.

Thanx,
Rich


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## bakerfall (Aug 23, 2006)

narrod said:


> I downloaded "The Hoax". It took 26 hours. I have slow DSL with no plans to upgrade because it only costs $10 a month. Without a cable modem or a 6meg
> DSL connection I feel that DOD is nothing more than an impractical curiosity.


I have Comcast's top tier service. I downloaded the hoax in about 3 hours. When I downloaded Evan Almighty, I waited about 30 min and then watched straight through.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

narrod said:


> Some folks get really upset when someone expresses and opinion that runs counter to their belief. None of this stuff is important enough to get upset about.


Agreed, but I have come to the conclusion that some people just like to argue and bait posters who are looking for info or want to share info. The great problem I have with this is that you never know who you are talking to. I have a friend who has a deadly disease, he has already lived twice as long as the doctors gave him, is in a wheelchair and takes great delight at attacking people on forums (he is not on this forum as far as I know). I can understand his frustration, he got a crappy deal right from birth.

Because of him, I try to be careful what I say to people. Suppose you got aggravated enough to invite someone to meet you face to face. And the guy rolled up in a wheelchair. How terrible would that be? Take a long time to get over a blunder like that. I've seen pictures of Doug Brott, Earl, Stu Sweet and Tom and Chris, but everyone else on the forum is a mystery to me. Hard to tell gender, even.



> I suspect, Verizon has made the best longterm decision.


What scares me about Verizon is the support. Their support for cell phones is really bad. Been a customer since 1994 and I have pretty much had to figure everything out myself. I just hope that they have a trial period for their modem. Cablevision's support is superb for Internet related problems and I can't imagine Verizon having a support system that will equal theirs. But 30 Mbs is something Cablevision doesn't offer. And I want that extra speed. MORE POWER!

Rich


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

bakerfall said:


> I have Comcast's top tier service. I downloaded the hoax in about 3 hours. When I downloaded Evan Almighty, I waited about 30 min and then watched straight through.


How fast is your modem? Just the download speed.

Thanx,
Rich


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## veryoldschool (Dec 10, 2006)

rich584 said:


> How long does it take to download a two hour movie. Rough guess.
> 
> Thanx,
> Rich


For SD a 3 Mb/s will give you almost instant viewing [so a two hour movie takes about 1:50], if you get it 100% of the time. My cable service would vary from 10%-100% depending on how many other users were online.
My 5 Mb/s DSL is 100% so, for SD, I get 1.4 min of programing/min.
Testing one HD program, I got 0.5 min of programing/min. 
You haven't been interested in VOD because you need a computer? Not really since the computer isn't in the loop. The HR handles everything.
If you have a 16 Mb/s cable modem [80% of the time], I doubt FIOS will give you faster downloads, as the server isn't "unlimited". SD seems to be capped at 7 Mb/s.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

veryoldschool said:


> For SD a 3 Mb/s will give you almost instant viewing [so a two hour movie takes about 1:50], if you get it 100% of the time. My cable service would vary from 10%-100% depending on how many other users were online.
> My 5 Mb/s DSL is 100% so, for SD, I get 1.4 min of programing/min.
> Testing one HD program, I got 0.5 min of programing/min.
> You haven't been interested in VOD because you need a computer? Not really since the computer isn't in the loop. The HR handles everything.
> If you have a 16 Mb/s cable modem [80% of the time], I doubt FIOS will give you faster downloads, as the server isn't "unlimited". SD seems to be capped at 7 Mb/s.


What are you doing up so early?

All I would want to do is download HD material. How fast would a 16 Mb/s modem download a one hour program. Roughly.

Had a forecast for up to nine inches of snow starting late last night. Wife was all ready to "work from home" and my son was ready to stay home from school. All we got was rain and Fred is almost beside himself with frustration.

Rich


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## veryoldschool (Dec 10, 2006)

rich584 said:


> What are you doing up so early?
> 
> All I would want to do is download HD material. How fast would a 16 Mb/s modem download a one hour program. Roughly.
> 
> ...


Still on my "first cup".
Since my 5 Mb/s downloads .5/1, I would guess, your 16 should beat 1:1 enough to be able to watch HD after a min or two of buffering.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

veryoldschool said:


> Still on my "first cup".
> Since my 5 Mb/s downloads .5/1, I would guess, your 16 should beat 1:1 enough to be able to watch HD after a min or two of buffering.


Thanx Geoff.

Rich


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