No audio problems here. My gripe is the hd picture quality which has been downrezzed since the newer hd box has come on line. I am considering dropping the hd package very soon.

I just started experiencing bad audio dropouts on my HR10-250. It's been happening for several days now, on HD and SD playback, live tv and recorded.

I checked my optical cable to make sure it was well seated on both sides. I also switched from DD5.1 to stereo PCM playback, and nothing helped.


Is anyone else having audio problems, or is it just me?

No problem with mine, although I don't use it much. I moved it to the bedroom and only use it for SD programming since I reluctantly upgraded to the HR20. With that being said, I love the HR20 now, especially with the new HD channels.......D* seems to have worked out most of the bugs......

I refuse to go with the HR20. Cable+TivoHD will be my next move.

Thanks for the responses. I wonder if my HR10-250 is crapping out. The video is fine, and it otherwise seems okay. Only the audio is behaving poorly.

I guess the next test will be to use the analog audio output of the Tivo, to see if it's an issue with the optical audio module.

I'll also try swapping out the optical audio cable. But, I doubt that would just suddenly start failing.

Thanks for the responses. I wonder if my HR10-250 is crapping out. The video is fine, and it otherwise seems okay. Only the audio is behaving poorly.

I guess the next test will be to use the analog audio output of the Tivo, to see if it's an issue with the optical audio module.

I'll also try swapping out the optical audio cable. But, I doubt that would just suddenly start failing.

I had similar issues when the 6.3x updates came out. I eventually had to change the power supply for an unrelated reason. After the PS change I'm watching with no issues on sw version6.3b.

My HR10-250 is dying too, but all along I've been assuming it's a hardware problem. After playing back for a few minutes, it begins stuttering, ignores commands, and ultimately restarts. Elsewhere I have a thread on "rescuing my HR10-250". I'm hoping a disk replacement will keep it in service for a while.

I can't go to cable because I need NASA-TV. My only available cable service doesn't offer it.

Mojo

I connected an analog audio cable, and switched over to that. After the change, I got perfectly solid audio, no dropouts. Of course, I lose the surround sound that way..

So, it looks like the digital audio output is failing.

Maybe that means it is time to move the HD Tivo upstairs, and get a new DirecTV DVR downstairs. As much as it pains me to lose the Tivo interface on the primary TV.

Hi, I have an original HR10-250 from the first month they were offered. It's had a second 300GB drive added from WeaKnees.

This month it started a death spiral of stutters and reboots.

I ordered a new A drive from WeaKnees, but before just dropping it into the box, I thought I would attempt to recover the data from the old disk.

First I did a backup of the new pristine hard disk in case I needed it.

I used the dd_rescue utility from mfslive.org. My PC only had one available IDE port, so I wrote the failing disk image to a file on a large USB drive, then back to the fresh new disk. It took about eight hours total. Unfortunately the attempt was futile -- the new drive wouldn't boot.

Back to the drawing board. I needed to reset both disks using my pristine backup image, and this time I added a card to my PC to get me another IDE port. I restored to my two disks, put them back in the HR10, and voila -- up came the guided setup.

All seems well. Tonight I'll add back my season passes, and spend no more than a few seconds mourning the lost episodes and movies. :)

Mojo

Shortly after going to analog audio, to work around the digital audio dropouts... My HD Tivo failed completely, with an error message saying its temperature was too high. Letting it cool down and restart didn't help -- part way through the bootup it freezes with that same message.

Luckily, we had a spare unit from when we were debugging a different lockup problem. We slapped that in, and it is working now.

I am going to take the old unit apart, clean it out, and look for obvious issues. Maybe re-apply heat sink compound. And, give it another try.

The faulty temp gauge is on the power supply board. I had a similar issue and replaced the PS. That solved the issue.

Looks like my original HR10-250 is giving up the ghost. Last night it rebooted on me once, and did so again today. I've got two HR20s and I am happy with them, but the CC on when doing FF1 keeps me going back to them. Will a hard drive swap likely give me another year or two?

My HR10-250 is also giving up the ghost. The stuttering is so bad as to be unwatchable.

My problem is that we'll be moving in a few months and I cannot commit to a 2-year contract. We might end up living in NYC and I don't know if I'll be able to get DirecTv there. Any suggestions on what to do? Has anyone been able to get a new box without the commitment?

My HR10-250 is also giving up the ghost. The stuttering is so bad as to be unwatchable.

My problem is that we'll be moving in a few months and I cannot commit to a 2-year contract. We might end up living in NYC and I don't know if I'll be able to get DirecTv there. Any suggestions on what to do? Has anyone been able to get a new box without the commitment?
My 10-250 hard disk failed several years ago. I got a replacement from weaknees.com already loaded with the software and it has been working fine ever since, which is longer than the original drive lasted. I installed it myself, but you can also send your 10-250 to them and they will do it.

Tucker2, thank you very much! I checked out the reviews (http://www.resellerratings.com/store/Weaknees) for weaknees and they look positive.

eta: I just ordered the 400 gb replacement kit. Special Deal of the Day price $199 meant that I could have it shipped overnight and still have it cost less than the regular $239 price.

If you have the protection plan they should replace with no new commitment.

If you have the protection plan they should replace with no new commitment.

But not with a TiVo, it would be their current HR20 non-TiVo HD DVR.

Don't you want all the new HD channels? The new HR20 is a nice box. Anyway I just replaced my last HR10 so if you want it PM me.

I installed the hard drive from weaknees yesterday. Very easy. Directions were very clear.

Don't you want all the new HD channels? The new HR20 is a nice box. Anyway I just replaced my last HR10 so if you want it PM me.

I must have been living in a cave because I only recently found out that there were new HD channels. So I don't really know what I'm missing.

My problem is that I'll be moving to NYC early next year. (Don't people in NYC subscribe to cable and not DirecTv anyway?) There could be a month or two when I'll be in temporary housing and won't have DirecTv or cable. I don't want to be stuck in a 2 year commitment.

I have recycled my HR10-250 as a large SD TiVo. It's connected via RCA cables to an older SD TV, a Sony 32" XBR^2.

It was working fine, but then I accidentally hit some buttons on my remote and the screen went black, but I still have audio. I power cycled TiVo and I see the two gray screens, "Welcome..." and "Almost there...", then I get the black screen.

I think my TiVo is now outputing a video signal that is incompatible with my SD TV. Can you help me navigate the HR10-250 menu in the dark, to reset the video to 4:3, 480i?

Hit the ratio button on the remote until it gets back to 480i. There is also a light on the front that indicates what rez it is outputting.

Hit the ratio button on the remote until it gets back to 480i. There is also a light on the front that indicates what rez it is outputting.

There is also a format button on the front panel of the HR10-250, right next to the light.


Jerry

There is also a format button on the front panel of the HR10-250, right next to the light.


Jerry

Very true. It has been awhile since I have used this box. I have had HR 20s for some time now.

I fixed it by hitting the up arrow on the circle pad enough times to cycle all the way back to 480i.

The format button and led indicator on the front was the best answer. The ratio button on the remote was a good way to change between Full and Panel, but that turned out to not be the problem.

I appreciate the fast answers. This is a valuable forum.

I fixed it by hitting the up arrow on the circle pad enough times to cycle all the way back to 480i.

The format button and led indicator on the front was the best answer. The ratio button on the remote was a good way to change between Full and Panel, but that turned out to not be the problem.

I appreciate the fast answers. This is a valuable forum.

You can go into setup and video and select options that ONLY allow 480i, effectively disabling the up-arrow means of changing the resolution. That should avoid accidental changes in the future.

The HR10-250 will be getting a new National Software Release between Feb 5 & Feb 26!!! This will correct stability problems.

The HR10-250 will be getting a new National Software Release between Feb 5 & Feb 26!!! This will correct stability problems.

I didn't know we were having any problems.

I thought they had corrected those rebooting issues too but they are coming out with a release between those dates so it will be interesting to see what all it encompasses and what new features/functions we will get!!!

I thought they had corrected those rebooting issues too but they are coming out with a release between those dates so it will be interesting to see what all it encompasses and what new features/functions we will get!!!

Good. I've had one HR10 since August '05 that when I tried expanding the storage space would reboot often. Once put it back to its regular 250GB drive, reboots cut back, but not completely. And just last night, as my wife was going to bed, another HR10 rebooted.

So there ARE folks with reboot problems!

Don't know if this is the right place to put this, but here goes.

I love Tivo. But I am also, obviously, interested in getting all the HD channels as well, and I can only do that if I go non-Tivo with my next box.

The question is: What am I giving up by replacing my HR10-250 with an HR20? For those that have had both, how do you like the new box compared to the old one? Thanks.

I love my NEW HR21-700 with all the new HD channels but I kept my 2 HR10-250s to record non-MPEG-4 HD material. I use the 2 new HR21-700s to record HD channels I can't get on my HR10-250s such as The Food Channel, CNN, History Channel etc. However, I miss the functionality of TIVO but I love more HD so I recommend keeping your HR10-250.

Don't get rid of your HR10-250 but use it as storage space to store HD MPEG-2 channels as I do. You can never have enough storage space.

I love my NEW HR21-700 with all the new HD channels but I kept my 2 HR10-250s to record non-MPEG-4 HD material. I use the 2 new HR21-700s to record HD channels I can't get on my HR10-250s such as The Food Channel, CNN, History Channel etc. However, I miss the functionality of TIVO but I love more HD so I recommend keeping your HR10-250.

Don't get rid of your HR10-250 but use it as storage space to store HD MPEG-2 channels as I do. You can never have enough storage space.

There is a mirroring fee for multiple HD receivers, right? (NOt saying this would be enough to deter me from doing that, just looking at my options, and wondering whether the mirroring fee ($5-$10?) would be worth it.)

Another option is to use the HR10-250 to record local OTA exclusively without the mirroring fee?

Also, what "functionality" do you miss on your new boxes compared to Tivo?

Thanks!

Also, what "functionality" do you miss on your new boxes compared to Tivo?


Here's what I miss:

- more sound queues on TiVo
- Thumbs Up/Down leads to extra shows being record (VOD will eventually solve this, but still)
- When you return to the recorded List, Tivo goes to the program you last selected. HR2X goes to the top.
- Much more indepth infomation available on TiVo's TV show listing

and finally, #1 thing I miss...

Closed Captioning stays on at 1xFF on TiVo! Makes catching up on shows after a vacation or several days of work much easier.

...Another option is to use the HR10-250 to record local OTA exclusively without the mirroring fee?
Nope, you have to subscribe to get recordings to work, whether OTA digital or satellite.

Mirror/lease fee is only $5 per month.

I miss the "LIVE TV" button.
I miss the Dual Live Buffers.
I miss the Info button that lets you see what is on Tuner 1, Tuner 2and lets you toggle between the two.
I miss using the Down Arrow to change between tuners.

I miss the "LIVE TV" button.

Press "Exit" on the remote. It goes to live TV. Or where you looking to use it as a previous channel button?

Here's what I miss:

- more sound queues on TiVo
- Thumbs Up/Down leads to extra shows being record (VOD will eventually solve this, but still)
- When you return to the recorded List, Tivo goes to the program you last selected. HR2X goes to the top.
- Much more indepth infomation available on TiVo's TV show listing

and finally, #1 thing I miss...

Closed Captioning stays on at 1xFF on TiVo! Makes catching up on shows after a vacation or several days of work much easier.

Sometimes I delete the wrong program because it highlights a different program than the one I was watching.

Thanks for all the responses. Those are good lists.

I have a projector in my ht, and a sony RP in my living room. I have 4 DVR's, 2 HR20's and 2 HR10-250's. One of each connected in each room. My wife loves the tivo and couldn't care less about HD. Even though I prefer tivo, I have accepted the new interface, so I use the HR20's and my wife uses the tivo. I just use the tivo for overflow.

Has anybody noticed what I've noticed? My HDTivo is now a selectable option in the DirecTV online DVR scheduler. I can schedule it, but it won't record yet.

Maybe a sign of progress?

Peace,

DM

Just in case you didn't hear, 6.4a is now out for SD & HDTivos. Got mine last night & triggered the update with a forced call this morning. Tested the online scheduling with the HDTivo and it worked perfectly.

Peace,

DM

Got the update here, as well. It's TERRIBLE. 10 second delays from the time the button on the remote is pressed. It lost nearly all my OTA channels. Adding channels back took FOREVER. Manually adding and removing channels was a nightmare. I just restarted my system again, hoping and praying that something just got futzed in the previous restart. Good Lord, I hope they did more testing than what they usually do on these things. FWIW, I never have had a single issue when going to the new firmware in the past.

Regs,
Jeff

Whew. Second restart cleared things up significantly. There still seems to be a slightly more perceptible delay with the remote vs. what there used to be.... ditto with updating the guide as you page down. The "recently deleted" folder now appears in the "Now Playing" list. Good stuff. Hopefully it's a little more stable than my first restart seemed to indicate. :)

Regs,
Jeff

The downloads ALWAYS come via satellite. On TIVO DVR's it has to make a phone call to TIVO in order to COMPLETE the download but the download DOES NOT come from the phone line. That is one of the benefits of having one of Directv's new DVR's for the download completes without having to make a call to TIVO because it isn't a TIVO....

I noticed that you can now recover deleted shows from the recently added "deleted folder". Is this new or have I missed this function for the past 3 years.

I noticed that you can now recover deleted shows from the recently added "deleted folder". Is this new or have I missed this function for the past 3 years.

That is new.

I've lost my OTA reception! Got home from vacation and I have very little OTA signal. I noticed that the receiver recently upgraded to 6.4a and it made a successful call while we were away... could this be the problem? I thought my signal amplifier went out, but I replaced it with no improvement. Tuner 1 is peaking at only 19 signal strength. It's usually steady at 92. Tuner 2 has no signal. It's usually a little less than tuner 1. Has the internal tuner(s) gone bad?

Thanks,

SCG32

Directv called me a few days ago and told me they want to upgrade both of my HR10-250's with the HR-20 for free. Just 8 months ago I upgraded 1 and it cost me $$$. Is this happening with everyone? They said the HR10-250 will not work anymore.
I accepted but I want to relocate one of them to a guest bedroom. The tech is coming today to swap them out.

Free if you equate free with a 2 year commitment extension.

They said the HR10-250 will not work anymore.
I accepted but I want to relocate one of them to a guest bedroom. The tech is coming today to swap them out.

Your D* TiVo boxes are good for at least another year; some time in 2009 is when the current agreement runs out.

Free if you equate free with a 2 year commitment extension.

I got the call for the swapout and was told that I did not incur a commitment extension as long as I agreed to give them the equipment back if I dropped service. The rep volunteered this without my asking. Whether that is actually the case or not I don't know. I expect to continue Directv service more than two years anyway, so I don't much care.

I received 2 HR21's today. They dont have the OTA HD option. So now I dont have any local HD channels. But I do have the xtra 20 HD chanels I did not have before available with the directv HD package.

Your D* TiVo boxes are good for at least another year; some time in 2009 is when the current agreement runs out.

The contract runs through 2010, so I don't think that has any bearing on the MPEG-2 HD channels. DIRECTV has already moved the West Coast Distant HD feeds out of LA to MPEG 4. They're moving the HD Superfan channels to MPEG 4 before the start of the 2008 NFL Season and before that I'd have to believe the East Coast Distant HD feeds will be migrated MPEG 4. Since they're doing all that, I'd have to believe it would be no big deal to migrate the handful of HD channels in the 70s to MPEG 4. It's all probably linked to the deployment of D 11.

I received 2 HR21's today. They dont have the OTA HD option. So now I dont have any local HD channels. But I do have the xtra 20 HD chanels I did not have before available with the directv HD package.

Call DIRECTV and ask them for the AM 21 plug-in that allows for ATSC functionality on the H and HR21 units.

Call DIRECTV and ask them for the AM 21 plug-in that allows for ATSC functionality on the H and HR21 units.

What is a AM 21 plug-in?

I noticed that you can now recover deleted shows from the recently added "deleted folder". Is this new or have I missed this function for the past 3 years.

What delete folder?

What is a AM 21 plug-in?
Its an add on OTA tuner. Hooks up via the USB port.

What delete folder?

Hit the LIST button (where you can see the shows you recorded). I noticed a folder that's titled DELETED FOLDER. Inside there are all the shows that I deleted. There was approx 110 shows inside that folder. I have my shows kept in the folder view. Just hit the #2 button after you hit LIST. It will put the shows in folders if there are more than one of the same show.

Directv called me a few days ago and told me they want to upgrade both of my HR10-250's with the HR-20 for free. Just 8 months ago I upgraded 1 and it cost me $$$. Is this happening with everyone? They said the HR10-250 will not work anymore.
I accepted but I want to relocate one of them to a guest bedroom. The tech is coming today to swap them out.

They will work for many years to come on SD channels.

Sludge,

Are you a subscriber to the Sunday Ticket package? I am wondering if they are only calling the people that have the NFL stuff to offer them the "free upgrade". I've been with D* a helluva lot longer then my brother who also lives in the Houston area. He subs to the Superfan junk and I don't. I subscribe to Center Ice and the HD package and such, yet I've received no such call to upgrade. Is there any rhyme or reason to who gets called and who does not?

Regards,
Jeff

Sludge,

Are you a subscriber to the Sunday Ticket package? I am wondering if they are only calling the people that have the NFL stuff to offer them the "free upgrade". I've been with D* a helluva lot longer then my brother who also lives in the Houston area. He subs to the Superfan junk and I don't. I subscribe to Center Ice and the HD package and such, yet I've received no such call to upgrade. Is there any rhyme or reason to who gets called and who does not?

Regards,
Jeff



Jeff


Yes, I'm a subscriber to the NFL ticket for the past 8 years and I have the superfan package. Last Sept I pleaded for a HR20 which cost me about $200. Now in June they call me and upgrade my 2 hr10-250's for free. I asked why the change. They said it was not my fault that the hr10-250's will no longer be supported in the future. I asked if they would refund my $200 from last year and they said no. :mad:

Jeff, I would call them and speak to retention. I would even add that your thinking about the NFL ticket to motivate them to swap yours out.

with the new update........ are the USB ports finally active???

Thanks

with the new update........ are the USB ports finally active???

Thanks


I wouldn't hold my breath waiting for the USB ports to be active!!!

Nope, you have to subscribe to get recordings to work, whether OTA digital or satellite.

Mirror/lease fee is only $5 per month.


Nope you don't need to subscribe to record OTA with the 250.... alll you need to do is hookup a sat feed to get the menu. I did this for 1 year. Obviously the sat feed must be seeing a DTV sat but you don't need an account.

Nope you don't need to subscribe to record OTA with the 250.... alll you need to do is hookup a sat feed to get the menu. I did this for 1 year. Obviously the sat feed must be seeing a DTV sat but you don't need an account.

Thanks for correcting me. That is good news, since I have 2 HR10-250's that I only use for OTA HD recordings. It sounds like I could take those off of my DirecTV account and not lose any OTA functionality.

Hi All, I just had my HR10-250 replaced with a HR21-100. The TiVo was a leased box, so the installer told me that I would get a box from DirecTV in a few days to send it back.

Is there a quick and easy way to get the programs I have off of it? I don't have the ability to take out the drive and install it in a PC (I only have an iMac).

Thanks in advance.

Is there a quick and easy way to get the programs I have off of it? Record them in real time to a DVD recorder. Quick? Not really. But if you don't waste time between programs you should be able to easily estimate how long it will take. Easy? Not that difficult.

-Robert

Hi All, I just had my HR10-250 replaced with a HR21-100. The TiVo was a leased box, so the installer told me that I would get a box from DirecTV in a few days to send it back.


I don't believe that is correct. The lease program didn't go into effect until the H20 and HR20 were released - HD TiVos were purchases, not leases. Keep it activated if you want; $5 a month for the box. Still a good OTA receiver as well, if you pay for the service.

I don't believe that is correct. The lease program didn't go into effect until the H20 and HR20 were released - HD TiVos were purchases, not leases. Keep it activated if you want; $5 a month for the box. Still a good OTA receiver as well, if you pay for the service.

There are many leased HR10-250 units out there. These were still available after the leasing model started.

I had a leased one that I got for free on one of their deals. I had to send it back for a free upgrade. Also had an owned one that I kept.

I had a leased one that I got for free on one of their deals. I had to send it back for a free upgrade. Also had an owned one that I kept.

Hmm...i have a really old SD TiVo, I wonder if I send that back instead of the HD TiVo, would anyone notice. :-)

I tried to reconnect my old HR10-250 today after replacing the power supply.
It's giving me an orange message saying unuseable signal. Anyone have any ideas on this?

George

I tried to reconnect my old HR10-250 today after replacing the power supply.
It's giving me an orange message saying unuseable signal. Anyone have any ideas on this?

George
My 10-250 worked fine last night. Haven't checked yet today. If I don't follow up this message it means it still is working OK after I try it in an hour or two.

Figured it out. It turned out to be the format as I was using a older tv set. The message was from the tv and not the Tivo.... duh! Dingbat alert!

I added a HR21 to my set up today after activating a HR20 2 years ago because I wanted another DVR to record MPEG 4 HD. I've kept the HR10 active for SD and ATSC recording and will wait to see what the MPEG 4-capable D-TiVo is all about a year or so from now. If there's an attractive swap out, I might bite. My feeling is that TiVo is going to use it raise revenue. If it turns out TiVo wants $12.95/mo. for the integrated unit like the standalones, they can stuff it as far as I'm concerned. $13/mo. for DVR functionality is ludicrous.

Thank God I have an OTA antenna because I use my 2 HR10-250s with over 1TB of space on each to supplement my 2 HR21-700s. I record OTA stuff such as ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, etc. and what the HD stuff that is only available via MPEG-4 I record on my HR21-700s. I would never get rid of my HR10-250s because 80% of what I watch is on my local channels or the national affiliate such as ABC, NBC, etc.

today i reactivated my hd-tivo before i did that i was grandfathered with the lifetime dvr service but now i see on my directv page that therye charging me for this after i activated my tivo!this cant be right! i paid $199.00 for the lifetime tivo service when i got my series1 tivo back in 1999 or so and they had transffered it to my hd tivo3 years ago and then to my directv hr21-700 last year.

Within hte past few days, I can't do FF1 on my local CBS station. FF2 and FF3 work fine on CBS, and FF1 works fine on other stations. Anyone else notice this?

I got the call for the swapout and was told that I did not incur a commitment extension as long as I agreed to give them the equipment back if I dropped service. The rep volunteered this without my asking. Whether that is actually the case or not I don't know. I expect to continue Directv service more than two years anyway, so I don't much care.

FWIW, DTV told me that I would have to swap my HR10-250 to get the new one for free. I didn't want to loose the OTA on the new one (and I think they said about $60 for the AM-21). They said I could keep the HR10-250 and pay $199 to get the MP4 version (need it for NFL package).

When the rep came to install it, he never said a word about the old one. He left it right where it was, so I got the free upgrade and kept my DirecTv Tivo. ;-)

Now I have to be un-lazy enough to plug it into the Sat long enough to boot it before I switch the sat cables back over to the '20.

FWIW,
geis

"Now I have to be un-lazy enough to plug it into the Sat long enough to boot it before I switch the sat cables back over to the '20"
I don't understand your statement about switching cables. Can you explain further. I have my 2 HR10-250s still connected and working as I also connected my 2 HR21-700s & HR20-700.

I called yesterday and D* is shipping out two free HD DVRs to replace my HR10s. I asked about the AM21, and the CSR said she could not add it to the order until there was an HR21/HR22 connected before the option to add it would be made. I made the case that I used OTA on the HD TiVos, so she added a note that hopefully will get me the AM21 for free. I only wanted to replace one HR10, as I want to hold on to one for a possible free replacement when the new HD TiVos come out in late 2009/early 2010. So I'll have to refuse shipment on one of the new boxes and ship it back.

Since I am replacing this box and there are still a few recordings on it, will I be able to watch them without the satellite connected, or am I out of luck?

Since I am replacing this box and there are still a few recordings on it, will I be able to watch them without the satellite connected, or am I out of luck?

You should be able to watch recorded shows. Connect to TV, power up, and when the unit gets to the satellite setup screen, press the TiVo button to go to Now Playing.

Just gets worse and worse for the HR10. First, FF1 stops work on my CBS and ABC OTA recordings. Now, NBC FF1 still works, but it doesn't actually FF! At least it didn't while watching last weeks Life.

My FF1 stopped working on my upgraded HR10-250 a long...long time ago.

However everything else still works great and I have just used FF2.
Now that you mention it I cannot verify if it is OTA ONLY as OTA is about all I use that DVR for. I still like it 10X better than my D* DVR which I use for the MPEG 4 stuff.

BJBBJB

I'm only holding onto my HR10 with the hopes for a much reduced discount to update to the new HD Tivos coming "soon." I couldn't wait any longer on the one in the bedroom, since most of my bedtime viewing is non-network TV, and the HD pickings were slim. I suspect I'll end up replacing at least one of my HR20s as well, and probably only keeping on HR20 around, with 3 of the new HD TiVos.

"Now I have to be un-lazy enough to plug it into the Sat long enough to boot it before I switch the sat cables back over to the '20"
I don't understand your statement about switching cables. Can you explain further. I have my 2 HR10-250s still connected and working as I also connected my 2 HR21-700s & HR20-700.

Sorry, I'm a little late coming back to the party here...

Yeah, once the Tivo was unplugged it refused to get OTA channels after the next reboot (lost power or something). I had to plug it in to the satellite during its boot process before it would "agree" to let me watch local OTA.

I believe if I unplug it now and plug back into the HR21 that the Tivo will keep working until I loose power again (or until my robot comes by and unplugs it!).

My service gets suspended after football season, so there's no sense plugging in the HR21 now. Besides that, once I suspended my service, the HR21 stopped letting me play recorded shows!! That's going to suck when I eventually upgrade the HR21. :-(

-geis