# Finally got my 510 - My thoughts.



## halfportion (Jul 13, 2003)

Being a Stand Alone Tivo owner (still use it in addition to the 510), my review of the 510 is probably tainted. 

-I knew there was no name based recording on the 510, but I still miss that function.  The machine is great for recording reguarly scheduled programs but not too useful for recording shows on varying schedules. (I am not one to sit anf study the TV schedule to find shows)
-When I do a Mon-Fri schedule for an after midnight show, shouldnt there be a schedule Tues-Saturday ? It seems Mon-Fri would miss shows. 
-Another Tivo feature missed . "ToDo" list. A way to see what will be recorded in the upcoming weeks.

Other than that, the 510 is good for what it is.... a glorified digital VCR. I am not dissappointed as I got what I expected and hope for increased functionality in future releases.


----------



## bunkers (Dec 16, 2002)

I agree with your assessments for the most part -- but "most" shows don't have or need the flexible schedules you speak of. I agree name based is better.

You made no mention of the huge increase in recording capacity. Most of those non upgraded TIVO(s) start out at 40 hours vs. 100+ with the 510, right? At least you could record your Mon->Sat show on all days and then delete the ones you don't want. 

My wife seems to enjoy deleting shows -- its the gratification of seeing your capacity go up and just that power you get when blowing away stuff...

I really wish Charlie would just license TIVO and build it into the 721 and 921 in a future release. Or better yet, buy the company and really put DTV in an awkward position. He didn't look very happy in the latest chat.


----------



## Chris Blount (Jun 22, 2001)

Hi halfportion and welcome to DBSTalk! :welcome_s

Thanks for your assessment. I don't think it's tainted at all. What you said is pretty much true. 

To get around the Tuesday thru Saturday timer problem, simply setup Mon-Fri and then set a weekly timer for the Saturday show.

I know what you mean about the "To-Do" list. It's a nice feature because it shows you exactly the schedule of what the Tivo is planning to record. On the other hand the timer listing on the 510 is a good substitute, just harder to comprehend at times.


----------



## scooper (Apr 22, 2002)

I think my new 510 maybe winning the wife over - I showed her some of the features available, and she had already discovered that the Favorites List could be larger than our 4900's.. Reading here and other places - I knew what I was getting, and I'm satisfied with it I've setup some of my favorite shows to be recorded, and my auto-tune timers for the local news. Can't wait until I show her that we can record one show while watching a previously recorded show. 

The PIP/guide works REALLY well with the 510 over the 4900 - I'd given up on it on the 4900, because it was essentially useless.


----------



## dishrich (Apr 23, 2002)

halfportion said:


> Other than that, the 510 is good for what it is.... a glorified digital VCR. I am not dissappointed as I got what I expected and hope for increased functionality in future releases.


And paying $5 a MONTH, month after month for a "glorified VCR" (which I totally agree with ) is NOT disappointing in itself???    
I mean, if you have a 508 that DIDN'T require a monthly is one thing - THIS is something totally different.


----------



## retiredTech (Oct 27, 2003)

dishrich said:


> And paying $5 a MONTH, month after month for a "glorified VCR" (which I totally agree with ) is NOT disappointing in itself???
> I mean, if you have a 508 that DIDN'T require a monthly is one thing - THIS is something totally different.


Of course you know the "reason" for the fee.

TO help defray the cost of the 510. (like it's free)

As for VCR comparison, That's weak, never had a VCR (and I've

had at least 20 over the years), do what a 510 will do.

AS for name based, there is a "sort of" work around for that.

USE the search (#) to find the show for the "9 days" and select

them yourself for recording.

I think Tivo is sorta like AOL, you know for the "baaaa sheep".LOL

(but hey that's just me)


----------



## AppliedAggression (Aug 16, 2003)

you know its getting damned annoying hearing the "glorified vcr" phase. if that's what you really think, then you're a complete idiot, if not then stop using the term. 


just to prove my point before you ask. can you watch live tv and all of a sudden skip back 10 seconds on a vcr? none, i've ever used. How about record something with a click of a button on a guide? No? What about record something and and start watching the beginning while it's still recording? What do you mean it can't do that? 

The 508 is faaaar from a VCR and is a lot more comparable to a tivo. Doesn't anyone realize all a tivo does is have a constant search in the background to decide which shows to record? jesus, let it go.


----------



## halfportion (Jul 13, 2003)

Of course is has more than a VCR ever had, thus the name "glorified VCR". Do you have a tivo you use consistently? It is a timesaver when it comes to finding and recording shows I want to watch. Granted, when it comes to playback time, the 510 is good. (Did not see an option for progress bar.. I might have missed it. Something that shows me how far along I am into a show.. Nice feature to have.)


>Doesn't anyone realize all a tivo does is have a 
>constant search in the background to decide which 
>shows to record? jesus, let it go.

To me that is one of the best features of a PVR. So just let go of what I consider the BEST feature? I don't think so. LIke I said in my review, the 510 is good at what it is suppose to do. Since my wife watches reguarly scheduled programs, her shows go into the 510. My shows are on at varying times so I use the Tivo. I do not have the time to sit and go through tv guides searching for my shows. I pay tivo to do that for me.


----------



## halfportion (Jul 13, 2003)

retiredTech said:


> AS for name based, there is a "sort of" work around for that.
> 
> USE the search (#) to find the show for the "9 days" and select
> 
> ...


 If increased functionality and convenience is for sheep, and you don't consider yourself a sheep, why do you have a PVR at all? Why not just use a VCR?


----------



## AppliedAggression (Aug 16, 2003)

I'm not doubting that the tivo is better. For the record the 508 does have a progress bar. If you hit the select button it'll tell you the time remaining in the recorded show or if you fast forward or rewind the progress bar will show up. All i'm saying here is that you can call the 508 a tivo, because it's much closer to a tivo than a vcr. If the 508 is a "glorified vcr" then a tivo is a "glorified vcr+".

As for what retiredTech says, that's exactly what i do. Once a week I search for the shows I wanted recorded, it's no big deal. Yes, I'd prefer name-based recording, but it's not the end of the world. I think the 508 is great.


----------



## David_Levin (Apr 22, 2002)

Every Sunday I spend an hour going through the TV guide looking for moved shows (especially now with all the cancellations going on) then reviewing the timers on my 508s.

If E* had name based recording this would be unnecessary. It's annoying having to babysit the box knowing that the TiVo people don't have to.


----------



## Chris Blount (Jun 22, 2001)

David_Levin said:


> Every Sunday I spend an hour going through the TV guide looking for moved shows (especially now with all the cancellations going on) then reviewing the timers on my 508s.
> 
> If E* had name based recording this would be unnecessary. It's annoying having to babysit the box knowing that the TiVo people don't have to.


That is one big plus that I'm really enjoying. Also the wishlist feature is nice. You can place movies and shows in the "queue" even if they are not in the guide but when they do finally show up, the Tivo automatically records them.

As far as the progress bar, I am actually liking that feature more on the Tivo than the progress bar display on the 5XX series. The Tivo version is much more accurate.


----------



## AppliedAggression (Aug 16, 2003)

Hmm, why do you looking through the tvguide for an hour? There's zap2it.com which has 2 weeks of info and there's the search on the 508. Just ouf of curiosity how long of a guide does the tivo display?


----------



## dishrich (Apr 23, 2002)

AppliedAggression said:


> Just ouf of curiosity how long of a guide does the tivo display?


Two weeks.

FWIW, the new Hughes HAH-SA receiver, which is NOT a PVR, stores 2 weeks of guide as well, w/out a hard drive, w/instant access.


----------



## dwforslund (Feb 2, 2003)

What are the screens of the 510 like? Are they the same as for the 501/508?

The one think I really like about the 721 is that the screens are much nicer than the 301/501/508.

Dave


----------



## AppliedAggression (Aug 16, 2003)

the 510 is the same as the 501/508. just a bigger drive.


----------

