# Top 10 Reasons NOT to buy a 921 till March 1st



## scottchez (Feb 4, 2003)

EDITED: 3/21/2005 Someone dug up this old post. Lets see how my source did ONE YEAR LATER just for fun.
======================================================

I am not under a NDA with Dish, so I can tell it like it is. 

Here is my Comentary "for what its worth" 


I am not saying you should or should not buy a 921 now. What you do need to do is gather all the info you can and make a wise buying decision base on what you think are the facts. 

EDITED: 3/21/2005 with all the bugs, we should of all waited one year ago.

1. Price- Save $300-$500 on March 1st. 

There is no competition yet. The HDTV Direct Tivo is scheduled to be released March 1st for $699 with a 1 year contract for existing customers and $499 for new Customers. The press release is Jan 8th at the Consumer Electronics Sore. In stores March 1st. Its in Pilot right now. 

EDITED: 3/21/2005 right on the price drop, just got the date wrong. The HD Tivo was released for $899 through VE and also $750 if you called and got User credits one year ago. So the Tivo was a lot cheaper than the 921.

2. No free Switch- Save $40 to $130 more. Since many will need new switches so they can add the required 2nd line to the dish, if you wait till March they may be free when Dish Matches Direct TVs pricing. Dish has also made them free when going through there 1 year plans in the past. 

EDITED: 3/21/2005 reports are that YES today they do give you free switches as the Dish Pro and Dish Pro plus line is out. Today it does not seem that important though as all switch prices are lower.

3. No discount for being a Production Beta Tester- there are many small bugs. You should get a discount for helping test the box. Over the last couple of years Dish has laid off several programing and testers and for some the left they never hired replacements. They are short staffed so they hope you can help test for free. 

EDITED: 3/21/2005 look at all the bugs over the last year, we were all beta testers and still are.

4. No Firwire output for DVHS. Why pay full price and not get all the features, yes it may be added later, but its a matter of principal. The price should be reduced till this feature is avl. Things are missing, why pay full price? 

EDITED: 3/21/2005 it was in fact pulled

5. Boycott factor- if few are buying them at the full price, Dish may lower the price sooner, before March 1st. 

EDITED: 3/21/2005 yes they did lower it, yet they did have to come out with a new box that works better, the 942

6. No new HD- Dish is adding more Locals right now. This is there main concept for Super Dish, it used to be HD on Super Dish. If few buy HD Equipment Dish may realized that they need to add more like cable is doing. Cable converts are growing. Dish does not want to loose any to Voom and Cable. Direct TV is also talking about adding Starz HD next week. 

EDITED: 3/21/2005 looks like Direct TV and Dish both only added a couple of channels as many ended up buying HD Receivers.

7. Local Channel mapping and Guide info. Why pay full price for something that is not all there yet. Local Channel maping works on Tivos (they already have the data from there non DBS line of product. Dish is contracting out for it and we are paying full price for something that is not there yet? 

EDITED: 3/21/2005 true- it did not work for a long time

8. Upgrade options- This box can do many things. If few buy it, they may realize the need to add the missing features like the USB keyboard, Video Streaming, and Web scheduling, ALL features that the Tivo is working on. (see Tivo 4.0 and HMO Home Media Option for streaming Video and Digital Camera pics). 

EDITED: 3/21/2005 I guess they missed this one, as people did buy HD Receivers. Direct TVs HD Tivo never did add HMO either.

9. Never Buy the 1st Release- 

New buy a computer product or software when it first comes out- This thing is a LINUX Based IDE Hard Drive Computer (it just does not have a Keyboard or mouse (yet). 

Any computer person will tell you, never buy anything when it first comes out. Wait for Service Pack 1 (March 1st) 

EDITED: 3/21/2005 thing of all the bugs you were warned about, it happened. Many are fixed a year later now.

10 Mark Up- Something does not sound right here. The profit is way too high. Computer based products normal are around 10% 

Right now Dealers are making over $120 per unit on this and Dish is also making about $50 (marked up before retailer cost). 

There is also a large market for those that need an new Switch. 

Thats $170 profit total or %17 profit. Extra 5% each year. 

EDITED: 3/21/2005 The mark up was in fact very high. This shows in that the price is way way down today.

But they also make on the average $120 per year for the HD Pack that most will get, cost that over several years and Echo Star is making money off the Retailers and the Customers. With out a discounted price on a One year contract its not the right price to buy at. 

Disclaimer: 
The above is a personal comentary. I do not work for Dish or Direct TV. 
I am not under any NDAs.

EDITED: 3/21/2005 seems like the source was right on a lot of things, close on others.


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## Mark Lamutt (Mar 24, 2002)

Scottchez, you are absolutely welcome to your opinion, and that's what you have presented in your post.

I would be very careful, however, about equating _opinion_ to _facts_...which you may not have yet.


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## mattyro (Nov 26, 2002)

if nobody buys the first issue of any product,commerce in America will cease as we know it. That first service pack is isuued upon information gained thru customer feedback,reports,beta tests, examinations of returned products, and so on. How is all this to take place if every unit manufactured is stacked in a warehouse??


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## wcswett (Jan 7, 2003)

scottchez said:


> The HDTV Direct Tivo is scheduled to be released March 1st for $699 with a 1 year contract for existing customers and $499 for new Customers. The press release is Jan 8th at the Consumer Electronics Sore. In stores March 1st. Its in Pilot right now.


The only problem I see with the DirecTIVO is that you have to subscribe to DirecTV, which I will likely not do again. I had DirecTV from May 1998 until September 1999. I dropped it when they refused to carry WB or UPN, and bought my first DISH receiver. I'm glad I did because my D* hardware (Hitachi) was never upgraded to multisat, though it cost me about as much as my 921 will. It would take a large change in HD content for me to invest in D* hardware again.

--- WCS (hoping DishDepot gets at least twenty 921's in their first shipment)


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## DonLandis (Dec 17, 2003)

But the best reason for all of you to NOT buy the 921 when first out is that it will allow more units to be available for those of us who don't give a R. A. about reasons 1 thru 10. LOL! 

WE just want the 921 and will have fun with what works great now and understand that we bought it caveat emptor. WE are not afraid of being first to try out something new. WE are not disappointed because we do not expect perfection in everything we do. 

My biggest disappointment and anger will come if I can't get one and some whiny whiny perfectionist get's one of the first ones out and all he can find to complain about is it doesn't have 1394, he can't program his pronto yet or, he thinks it should record the NTSC OTA TV channels to his hard drive.


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## Mark Lamutt (Mar 24, 2002)

Well said, Don!


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## Capmeister (Sep 16, 2003)

I won't buy the 921 until March for one EXCELLENT REASON....

I won't be getting an HDTV until March!


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## JohnMI (Apr 2, 2002)

DonLandis said:


> he thinks it should record the NTSC OTA TV channels to his hard drive.


On a side note, is the 921 supposed to do that eventually even or not at all? I didn't think it was supposed to, but the new 921 info at Dish has a Yes mark/check for the "Records Off-Air Broadcasts?" line.

- John...


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## RAD (Aug 5, 2002)

I was #5 on the waiting list at the other guy's site and I cancelled it. Based on how the 811 has performed that I purchased there's no way E*'s getting $1K from me until we see if they actually fix the bugs and roll out the 'promised' features, or do things end up like having OpenTV on the 6000. So you have at least one person that's allowed someone to move up on the list, I'm hope you're not disappointed with getting it.


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## tnsprin (Mar 16, 2003)

jgoggan said:


> On a side note, is the 921 supposed to do that eventually even or not at all? I didn't think it was supposed to, but the new 921 info at Dish has a Yes mark/check for the "Records Off-Air Broadcasts?" line.
> 
> - John...


The Broadcom chips it is based on include plenty of mpeg2 decoding capability. It will record Digital off-air broadcasts. It doesn't have the necesary hardware chips to encode (or the computing power needed to encode just with software) the analog to mpeg(2, 4 whatever) so that it can be placed on the hard drive.


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## JohnMI (Apr 2, 2002)

Interesting. I think the generic "Records off-air broadcasts" is a bit deceiving then. Dish really should clarify that. Like I said, I didn't think it did any OTA recording, so I'm glad that it'll at least do OTA HD. But, other people that just go to the web site, could easily think that meant all OTA broadcasts...

Then again, the same chart says the 811 doesn't have Component Outputs, so it isn't like the chart is that accurate. heh.

- John...


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## ibglowin (Sep 10, 2002)

In 1980 I bought my first VCR. I paid $800 for it. It weighed 100lbs and did nothing in comparision to todays VCR's that sell for $70.

In 1984 I bought my first CD player for $500. It was a joke compared to my 300 disc changer I now have and cost 1/3 the price.

24 years later I have the chance to purchase the worlds first dual tuner HD PVR for $200 more than my first VCR???? This is a no brainer in comparision folks. Complain all you want. I'll be enjoying my 921.


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## RAD (Aug 5, 2002)

ibglowin said:


> In 1980 I bought my first VCR. I paid $800 for it. It weighed 100lbs and did nothing in comparision to todays VCR's that sell for $70.
> 
> In 1984 I bought my first CD player for $500. It was a joke compared to my 300 disc changer I now have and cost 1/3 the price.
> 
> 24 years later I have the chance to purchase the worlds first dual tuner HD PVR for $200 more than my first VCR???? This is a no brainer in comparision folks. Complain all you want. I'll be enjoying my 921.


When you look at the price of what the 921 will cost vs. the VCR and DVD, I understand completly, except I was paying $1,200 for VCR's (Hi-FI then S-VHS) or $600 for a CD or $900 for a DVD. But you know what, all those products worked and all the features that were documented in the sales flyer and operations manual were there, not something to come at some unspecified future date. If E*'s hardware was better then maybe I'd stick it out and take the 921 I had on order, but if the 811 I've had 2 weeks is an indication of what the 921 will be like it will not be worth the money.


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## Big Bob (May 13, 2002)

ibglowin said:


> Complain all you want. I'll be enjoying my 921.


Unfortunately, some people get enjoyment by complaining. 

(much like I get enjoyment by complaining about people who complain)


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## Frank Z (Nov 15, 2002)

Top 10 Reasons To Buy The 921DVR Right Away.

1) I want It!
2) I want It!
3) I want It!
4) I want It!
5) I want It!
6) I want It!
7) I want It!
8) I want It!
9) I want It!
10) I'm better than you! :grin:

(Just kidding about #10)


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## wcswett (Jan 7, 2003)

RAD said:


> I was #5 on the waiting list at the other guy's site and I cancelled it. Based on how the 811 has performed that I purchased there's no way E*'s getting $1K from me until we see if they actually fix the bugs and roll out the 'promised' features, or do things end up like having OpenTV on the 6000. So you have at least one person that's allowed someone to move up on the list, I'm hope you're not disappointed with getting it.


I hope some folks cancel off the front end of Dish Depot's waiting list because I'm in the top 20 and want my machine in time to get the full early adopter experience! 

--- WCS


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## RAD (Aug 5, 2002)

wcswett said:


> I hope some folks cancel off the front end of Dish Depot's waiting list because I'm in the top 20 and want my machine in time to get the full early adopter experience!
> 
> --- WCS


Whip me, beat me, hurt me, show me you care. :sure:


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## ibglowin (Sep 10, 2002)

RAD said:


> When you look at the price of what the 921 will cost vs. the VCR and DVD, I understand completly, except I was paying $1,200 for VCR's (Hi-FI then S-VHS) or $600 for a CD or $900 for a DVD. But you know what, all those products worked and all the features that were documented in the sales flyer and operations manual were there, not something to come at some unspecified future date. If E*'s hardware was better then maybe I'd stick it out and take the 921 I had on order, but if the 811 I've had 2 weeks is an indication of what the 921 will be like it will not be worth the money.


You know what, if the 921 I receive works like the one Mark currently has I will be just happy as a clam to have it from day one. I may purchase a DVHS in the future to archive a few shows (not available on DVD) and replace my old analog VCR but that feature (or lack of at the start is NOT a show stopper and neither are any of the other little bugs).

Now as far as the 811 and its reported problems, I must say I am a bit shocked at this fact, I mean after all, this is just an updated 6000 so the reported bugs are surprising since I have 2 6000's that may be a bit slow and no PIP but damn, they work great. I haven't been on this board long enough to know if the 6000 had its share of bugs when it first debuted but I do trust Dish will do everyhting it their power to fix things ASAP.

I would MUCH rather give my hard earned $$$ to Charlie still than switch over to the dark side and evil Rupert.


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## Mike Richardson (Jun 12, 2003)

From what I've gathered from Mark's review and reports about the 811, is that the 921 works better than the 811 at this time. I guess we'll see though when the 921 is out.


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## Flyboy917 (Oct 25, 2003)

My gosh, scottchez was merely posting an an opinion...and some valid thoughts...only to get bashed for it. Many of you act as though he was insulting your mother. Much of his opinion is worthy of consideration.

Further more, like many other posters here, I have paid a premium to be the first guy on the block to have new technology. I have also been a beta tester for a few products and yes, actually paid MS to beta test a few of their products. Most of us in this forum understand product development and if we want a new toy bad enough, we're will to accept some problems. 

As for the whiners comment, when you pay $999 for a product, you bought the right to whine. Granted when you shell out that cash, you KNOW your getting an unrefined product...or you at least better....but you still have some whining rights....and hopefully some positive inputs.

Chill all...


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## BobMurdoch (Apr 24, 2002)

Here's the #1 reason you all should wait until March 1st.

Because then it will be available to me as soon as I want to get one. Which is now. And if too many of you want want now, it decreases my chances of getting one faster. And I finally have just about all of my shows caught up (thankfully December had a lot of reruns). I've got a couple of 24s and Alias left and that's it.

So yes, you all SHOULD wait til' March. It means I have to check less people out of the way.


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## wcswett (Jan 7, 2003)

RAD said:


> Whip me, beat me, hurt me, show me you care. :sure:


Yes, definitely... give me that full 721 experience all over again! I'm so confident of getting a 921 real soon now that I moved the 6000U from the living room to the bedroom today. Now all I have for satellite in there is a 510 and a BEV 6000. 

--- WCS


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## SParker (Apr 27, 2002)

I can't really buy this receiver now anyways so it won't hurt me to see if after March 1st this comes to fruition.


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## JM Anthony (Nov 16, 2003)

#1 reason to buy - Because it's there.

My wife has gone through 4 motorcycles in 3 years, completely redone HER living room, so I figure a grand for a 921 is the least she can do for me. Of course, the way she looks at it, the new receiver would be only the latest of our technology investments, but what the hell, no sense leaving all of our money to the kids!!

Carpe diem!!


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## BobMurdoch (Apr 24, 2002)

DonLandis said:


> But the best reason for all of you to NOT buy the 921 when first out is that it will allow more units to be available for those of us who don't give a R. A. about reasons 1 thru 10. LOL!
> 
> WE just want the 921 and will have fun with what works great now and understand that we bought it caveat emptor. WE are not afraid of being first to try out something new. WE are not disappointed because we do not expect perfection in everything we do.
> 
> My biggest disappointment and anger will come if I can't get one and some whiny whiny perfectionist get's one of the first ones out and all he can find to complain about is it doesn't have 1394, he can't program his pronto yet or, he thinks it should record the NTSC OTA TV channels to his hard drive.


Can I get an "A"-men, people!

Ditto.


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## Chris Blount (Jun 22, 2001)

wcswett said:


> I hope some folks cancel off the front end of Dish Depot's waiting list because I'm in the top 20 and want my machine in time to get the full early adopter experience!
> 
> --- WCS


I was on the top of their list but canceled so you are at least one up. 

I envy everyone here who will get their 921 soon. Judging from Mark's review, it looks to be a fun toy. Early adopters are so misunderstood.


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## ibglowin (Sep 10, 2002)

Mark at DishDepot said this AM that he could receive notice of his first shipment of 921's to him as early as today. If this happens, he could have them in stock at his place as early as Christmas eve!

If they don't ship until tomorrow, then it will be Friday at the earliest due to the Holiday.

Either way, its sounding close folks!


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## JohnMI (Apr 2, 2002)

If anyone is interested, I'll trade you TWO like-new 811s and a 501 for your 921. 

- John...


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## JMikeF (May 2, 2003)

My days of "cost no object' early adopter "NOW NOW NOW" mindset are over.

I'm looking for long term *value* in my HT purchase approach (notice I did not say _price_). And the purchase of a 921 I'd consider as a long term investment. But consider this:


> EchoStar Chief Executive Charlie Ergen, whose own bid for Hughes was disallowed by regulators last year, worries about what News Corp. will do in the U.S. market. "There's no company in the world today that knows more about satellite TV," he says. "In this business ... they are the best."


Sounds like good ol' boy Charlie is ready to throw the towel in.  
What do you think?


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## dtcarson (Jan 10, 2003)

I agree with Flyboy; it seems like ScottChez is being slammed for *not* being an early adopter. Most of his points are valid. I know that this is a tech-oriented board, and as such, it has a higher proportion of early adopters than the general public, but there are still people who think like Scottchez or JMikeF: How much value am I getting for my dollar [or many dollars]? I'm not at all averse to spending money, if I get my money's worth [which of course is very objective.] I haven't gotten a Playstation 2, but I'm getting one for Christmas--200 bucks is reasonable, and many of the good games can be found for less than 20 bucks. I am watching HDTV, because when we switched to cable, they offered the HD box for no add'l charge. I had to buy a switchbox because my tv only has one component input, but the switchbox was less than 100$; the cheapest OTA receiver I saw was about 200, so I'm still saving money. 
Those of you who have the thousand dollars to buy a 921, more power to you; the more of you there are, the quicker the bugs get fixed up, and the quicker the price drops so more 'average consumers' can buy the units. I don't have a problem with that, and the technology fields do have a lot of 'mine is bigger/better/faster/smaller than yours', which if that's important to you, then go for it. But many of Scott's points, while opinion, are based in historical trends, and maybe the dollar amounts are slightly off, but surely most of the points will come to pass. If point 11, 'I Want One Now,' is the most important to you, then fine. [Of course, to me, I Want It Now sounds like what a lot of kids are saying around this time of year, and it's not real pretty]. It's up to the individual consumer to determine cost versus benefit, and since a lot of people might get all hyped up and excited about this unit [which it definitely is exciting], Scott's 10 points are merely to show the 'other side.' I do the same thing when buying most things--weigh the good versus the bad, or the positive versus the negative, and see which is more important to me. 
I appreciate and respect Scott's post, just as I appreciate and respect the very in-depth review of the 921, while boggling at the fact that someone who is suggesting people considering *not* jumping like lemmings to drop a grand on a new toy is being called a 'whiny whiny perfectionist.' I have previously been impressed with the level of respect shown by most members of this board, but this thread really brought out the instant-gratification, self-oriented, materialistic, elitist side of many people, unfortunately.


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## greggg (Dec 3, 2003)

What a riduculous comment for Chuck to make. I mean he basically just said the competition is better, so I guess I had better switch. What a puddin' head.


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## BobMurdoch (Apr 24, 2002)

dtcarson said:


> I appreciate and respect Scott's post, just as I appreciate and respect the very in-depth review of the 921, while boggling at the fact that someone who is suggesting people considering *not* jumping like lemmings to drop a grand on a new toy is being called a 'whiny whiny perfectionist.' I have previously been impressed with the level of respect shown by most members of this board, but this thread really brought out the instant-gratification, self-oriented, materialistic, elitist side of many people, unfortunately.


Actually, I have no beef with the "non" early adopters either, just the non early adopters who feel they have to ridicule early adopters. There will always be times when I am ahead of the curve, when I am behind the curve, and when I choose not to play at all. I REALLY want the PVR that can record HD. I have a PVR. I DON'T have an HD receiver although I do have an HD monitor without a built in HD tuner. So I am foaming at the mouth trying to get one as I have previously refused to give up my PVR to get the HD. Now I won't have to. THAT is why I am crazy intent on getting one of the first ones. Eventually I may like D-VHS for archiving. But I don't need it now. If that is the biggest beef, I'm not concerned. I'l shortly be putting up a roof antenna so I can pull in local HDTV from new York and Philly which are both 45 miles from my house in opposite directions. So the OTA recording is a big plus too (wife will finally see her beloved Eagles..... Congress says I am only allowed to see New York games due to my zip code being in an arbitrary New York DMA).

So I hereby swear not to ridicule anyone for waiting. As long as you also agree not to ridicule ME for not wanting to wait. As for your PS2, good luck (I would have gone with an XBox myself for Dolby Digital sound with gameplay, broadband internet gaming, and HDTV capability but the PS2 definitely has more games......). You're jumping in late, but you have also deprived yourself of three years of enjoying it. In two years the PS3 will come out, shortly followed about 6 months later with the drying up of new product for the PS2. You will be able to buy many games in the discount bin however as many users will have moved on to the newer system. But to each his own. Use it in good health.

As for your lament about the loss of civility...... Most of us start out civil, but many of us weaken when attacked and counterpunch back at aggressors (I'm guilty myself).

Sooo..... I respect all constructive opinions that bring something new to the debate. I do hold an extra measure of scorn for those who choose to pick 5 negative topics and find a way to hijack ANY topic to push their own agenda and hammer away at those same tired arguments....


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## dtcarson (Jan 10, 2003)

BobMurdoch said:


> Actually, I have no beef with the "non" early adopters either, just the non early adopters who feel they have to ridicule early adopters.


I never have done that; like I said, if it weren't for those folks, we would have no advances in tech, or decreases in price.



BobMurdoch said:


> So I hereby swear not to ridicule anyone for waiting. As long as you also agree not to ridicule ME for not wanting to wait.


Again, I never have; if any of my posts were interpreted as such, it was unintended and for which I apologize. The best thing about almost all tech, other than day-of-release-brand-new-prototype stuff, is that there is something that can be bought and enjoyed by almost every consumer who's interested in it. I don't mind seeing guys in overalls and dirty boots coming into Best Buy and buying a computer, PC game, console game, whatever, but I have seen posts [not here] from other people who seem to think 'their' tech toys shouldn't be played with by Joe Farmer.



BobMurdoch said:


> As for your PS2, good luck (I would have gone with an XBox myself for Dolby Digital sound with gameplay, broadband internet gaming, and HDTV capability but the PS2 definitely has more games......). You're jumping in late, but you have also deprived yourself of three years of enjoying it. In two years the PS3 will come out, shortly followed about 6 months later with the drying up of new product for the PS2. You will be able to buy many games in the discount bin however as many users will have moved on to the newer system. But to each his own. Use it in good health.


Not to hijack the thread too much, but I did look at the Xbox, but there just weren't many games that appealed to me that much. All the sound and visuals and whatever can't make up for a game that's not fun for me. That's in part why I waited--were there enough games, reasonably enough priced, for me to buy a new console at this time? Also, in the last three years, I've played a lot of excellent PS1 games, some of which I still haven't finished, gotten into 'home theater, and in the last 1.5 years, we've moved into a new house and had a baby, both of which obviously take a lot of time and energy that I couldn't and didn't want to spend on gaming at that time.



BobMurdoch said:


> As for your lament about the loss of civility...... Most of us start out civil, but many of us weaken when attacked and counterpunch back at aggressors (I'm guilty myself).


Agreed....Especially on a text forum, it's hard to not perceive some things as ad hominem attacks, which add nothing to an intellectual 'discussion' or debate, and it's hard for some people to avoid using them. And it's even harder not to respond to them! It's funny, 'You're stupid' or whatever is about the lowest form of communication, but it always gets a response.



BobMurdoch said:


> Sooo..... I respect all constructive opinions that bring something new to the debate. I do hold an extra measure of scorn for those who choose to pick 5 negative topics and find a way to hijack ANY topic to push their own agenda and hammer away at those same tired arguments....


Ditto. If the 'agenda' is relevant, I can see it having a place, but it does get old having 'Yeah, but don't forget this!' interjected into any even semi-related topic. And of course the more one person sticks 'Standard Complaint number 4' or whatever into various threads, ironically, the more people tune him/her out as just spouting off the same tired rhetoric, just wasting his/her and our time.


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## tm22721 (Nov 8, 2002)

After previous PVR disasters, E* is trying to salvage their sullied reputation by holding back the 921 until it is ready. 

I am at the head of the Dishdepot list so I applaud their reticence if my unit JUST WORKS.


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## wcswett (Jan 7, 2003)

tm22721 said:


> After previous PVR disasters, E* is trying to salvage their sullied reputation by holding back the 921 until it is ready. I am at the head of the Dishdepot list so I applaud their reticence if my unit JUST WORKS.


According to Mark, I'm somewhere in the top 20 of Dish Depot's list, so I'm hoping they start shipping soon. I don't have any OTA channels here, digital or analog, so I'm not worried about THE BUG.

--- WCS


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## scottchez (Feb 4, 2003)

More reasons.

A post over in the Sat Guys boards says He has now had TWO 921 go out on him. Wont boot anymore.

There is also a very very long list in the AVS forum. Here is the link

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=340659

The Tivo rep at CES said they now have over 200 HD Tivos in Beta in poeples homes right now. It sounds like the 921 is only in a hand ful of homes.

Tivo has a bigger public beta. Dish and the 921 has only a few eyes looking at the product.

The 921 is not going to be ready till March. I would not buy one till then. Too many bugs.

Does the Over the Air OTA Menu for recording even work? The HD Tivo does, I saw it in action. It was perfect in recording and with Guide data.

Dish needs to Hire more I.T. folks to work these projects. You get what you pay for.

I am not under a N.D.A and I am not a moderator on this board worried about sponsors or Dish reps looking in, so I can tell it like it is. Wait


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## kstevens (Mar 26, 2003)

Good for you... Jut means I'll get mine a little faster.


Ken


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## Throwbot (Dec 24, 2003)

DonLandis said:


> But the best reason for all of you to NOT buy the 921 when first out is that it will allow more units to be available for those of us who don't give a R. A. about reasons 1 thru 10. LOL!
> 
> WE just want the 921 and will have fun with what works great now and understand that we bought it caveat emptor. WE are not afraid of being first to try out something new. WE are not disappointed because we do not expect perfection in everything we do.
> 
> My biggest disappointment and anger will come if I can't get one and some whiny whiny perfectionist get's one of the first ones out and all he can find to complain about is it doesn't have 1394, he can't program his pronto yet or, he thinks it should record the NTSC OTA TV channels to his hard drive.


Amen


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## Jerry G (Jul 12, 2003)

scottchez said:


> The 921 is not going to be ready till March. I would not buy one till then. Too many bugs.


By now, there isn't a single person in the world who has Internet access who doesn't know that you won't buy one. And at this point, no one really cares what you will or won't do. You post the same song on multiple forums every time you read about a problem with the 921. Guess what, I'm really enjoying mine. Sure, I'll enjoy it more when some of the major problems are fixed, which shouldn't be too long. But I'm able to record and time shift those programs that I want to. And you can't!


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## Dave (Jan 29, 2003)

I have been watching and doing a few post on this forum from time to time. I am one of the go ahead and check out the new receiver types. I was one of the first to get the Dishplayer 7200. Some of you may have heard of it or even purchased one. I believe the going price when I purchased it was $ 400 or $ 500 dollars. There has to be some of us willing to take the chance and get the new equipment and break it in. We all know about this Dishplayer now from so many postings in the past about the problems with it. But I still enjoy the Dishpalyer and its capabilities that it can do. I also added a 510 DVR. When I spring for the HDTV I want, I will not hesitate on the puchase of the 921. Maybe if more of us has more constructive critisicsm instead of just complaining it would help the product and make it even better. Has anyone actually called Dish Network with an idea on updating or making a product better for the rest of us. Or is all you do sit at home and complain and bash the product. Try calling tech support at Dish and give them an idea instead of just doing your ranting and raving here and other places. Unless you are just a cry baby all the time and that is your goal in life.


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## tm22721 (Nov 8, 2002)

Sorry to rock the boat but so far (one week) my 921 is working flawlessly. But I don't have OTA HD stations in my area so I can't speak for that. 

I am usually one of the first to whine about E* problems so my endorsement of the 921 is a bit out of character.


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## Richard King (Mar 25, 2002)

scottchez said:


> 1. Price- Save $300-$500 on March 1st.
> 
> There is no competition yet. The HDTV Direct Tivo is scheduled to be released March 1st for $699 with a 1 year contract for existing customers and $499 for new Customers. The press release is Jan 8th at the Consumer Electronics Sore. In stores March 1st. Its in Pilot right now.


Everything that I have seen from "reliable" sources without agendas has pointed to a price of $999. If you can prove your price point me to a site.


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## 928gt (Dec 17, 2003)

> Sorry to rock the boat but so far (one week) my 921 is working flawlessly


Same here, I haven't had any problems. I turn it on, I use it, set timers, they record, I watch them, I turn it off. No big deal.

Sure the aspect modes need work, caller ID is non functional, and the transparent guide needs tweaking, BUT all in all a great product with a lot of potential.

FYI, I don't use OTA and could care less, have had my locals via Dish for over 3 years.

BTW, not a single crash or reboot ... yet 

Dave


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## Stosh (Dec 16, 2003)

>1. Price- Save $300-$500 on March 1st. 

Please provide some proof that this statement is fact, and not just conjecture on your part. If you have no proof, then your entire premise is worthless.


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## hildred (Aug 19, 2003)

yes the 942 be out next month will the 921 be cut down if so how soon / how much


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## pangderx (Jan 8, 2004)

scottchez said:


> I am not under a NDA with Dish, so I can tell it like it is.
> 
> Here is my Comentary "for what its worth"
> 
> ...


I got my 921 a few months ago from Dish network. I called and told them I was so unhappy with their service that I was going to leave for D*. The sold me a NEW 921 for $250 w/ a free switch. Plus, I have never had a problem with it...yet.


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## JohnH (Apr 22, 2002)

Old thread popping up again!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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## Darkman (Apr 16, 2002)

Old .. but not forgotten


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## JohnMI (Apr 2, 2002)

pangderx said:


> I got my 921 a few months ago from Dish network. I called and told them I was so unhappy with their service that I was going to leave for D*. The sold me a NEW 921 for $250 w/ a free switch. Plus, I have never had a problem with it...yet.


Can you give more details? What did you have previously for a receiver?

What plan do you have?

Also -- what were you unhappy with? Were you complaining about the service in general -- or some other receiver specifically? If the service in general, then how does getting a 921 make that service any better? If it was the receiver specifically, then did the 921 make it worth it for you?

- John...


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## scottchez (Feb 4, 2003)

First post edited today to see how the source did one year later- just for fun.


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## invaliduser88 (Apr 23, 2002)

If we can just get past the ZSR of death. Most of us will be more than happy until the mpeg4 hw starts to show up.


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## Jacob S (Apr 14, 2002)

Yep, I think people should wait till MPEG-4 comes out. Why buy something that is not going to last that long?


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## JohnMI (Apr 2, 2002)

Jacob S said:


> Yep, I think people should wait till MPEG-4 comes out. Why buy something that is not going to last that long?


I think the reason people do is because no one knows how long it will be. For some people, if we are talking a year or more for MPEG-4, then something like a 942 is worth it for that year.

Knowing Dish, I think it could easily be over a year before we see an MPEG-4 DVR.

- John...


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## BobMurdoch (Apr 24, 2002)

I'm keeping the 921 until Mpe 4 comes. I hope they have a decent upgrade path setup.


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## bavaria72 (Jun 10, 2004)

jgoggan said:


> ...Knowing Dish, I think it could easily be over a year before we see an MPEG-4 DVR. - John...


I concur with your statement and that is why I will probably lease a 942 once it becomes available for existing Customers.


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## AVJohnnie (Jul 27, 2004)

scottchez said:


> First post edited today to see how the source did one year later- just for fun.


Dude! Scary thread this&#8230; 942 - 921 déjà vu? :lol:


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## tnsprin (Mar 16, 2003)

jgoggan said:


> I think the reason people do is because no one knows how long it will be. For some people, if we are talking a year or more for MPEG-4, then something like a 942 is worth it for that year.
> 
> Knowing Dish, I think it could easily be over a year before we see an MPEG-4 DVR.
> 
> - John...


knowing dish, it could be 3 years before we see a mpeg-4 DVR.


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## RAD (Aug 5, 2002)

tnsprin said:


> knowing dish, it could be 3 years before we see a mpeg-4 DVR.


No, you'll see one sooner then 3 years, it will just take that long to get it to work.


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## Jacob S (Apr 14, 2002)

Its just not worth the $249 upgrade cost or the full retail cost for a receiver that is only going to fulfill its purpose for a year.


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## Jerry 42 (Feb 25, 2003)

People will get or not get a 942 based on their own situation and needs. In my case DNS with OTA HD Locals the 942 will do the job I need paticularly as it seems to work better than the 921. Others may not need the functions the 942 can do at this time. 

The info and discussions here certainly help every one to make their choice. The 942 may not be worth it to some but will be worth it to others. 

Keep the info flowing it helps.


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## hildred (Aug 19, 2003)

yes it pass 4/1/05 no hdtv by directv tivo for 699.00 when how long for this


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