If U-Verse offers the same service, where I can watch my DVR from a pc

Does this u-verse service give the ability to watch live tv?

If U-Verse offers the same service, where I can watch my DVR from a pc
It doesn't, and it probably won't anytime soon.

Does this u-verse service give the ability to watch live tv?
This U-verse service doesn't exist.

Will the Motorla SE-6600 correct the audio dropout problem?

Any response to a potential customers question would be nice.
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showpost.php?p=21122394&postcount=3734

Any response to a potential customers question would be nice.
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showpost.php?p=21122394&postcount=3734

I've been on the road for the past few weeks and didn't see this until now. The short answer is "yes", we are working every day to increase the quality of our service and to maximize what we are able to do with the current stream limitations. Is is going to be full bitrate H.264 in the near future? Not likely but there are other ways to increase the quality and that is what we are focused on until pair bonding becomes more prevalent in the near future.

My setup is LG 47 inch 3D tv and Onkyo receiver. I have a severe audio problem. On any channel that the Onkyo shows as using PLIIx sound I get lots of audio dropouts, and they are especially bad when there is voice and music together. Any channel that shows as Dolby D is perfectly fine. I have been working with Onkyo support and they have no answer. I have tried HDMI and digital optical inputs, several cables, many settings, etc and nothing I can do helps. Could it be that my Uverse box is the problem? I have had a few instances where the screen goes blue and a message pops up saying all connections have been lost and I should power the Uverse box off and on to reconnect. Is that a sign of the Uverse box going bad?

My setup is LG 47 inch 3D tv and Onkyo receiver. I have a severe audio problem. On any channel that the Onkyo shows as using PLIIx sound I get lots of audio dropouts, and they are especially bad when there is voice and music together. Any channel that shows as Dolby D is perfectly fine. I have been working with Onkyo support and they have no answer. I have tried HDMI and digital optical inputs, several cables, many settings, etc and nothing I can do helps. Could it be that my Uverse box is the problem? I have had a few instances where the screen goes blue and a message pops up saying all connections have been lost and I should power the Uverse box off and on to reconnect. Is that a sign of the Uverse box going bad?

Sounds like a bad DVR or STB, whichever it is that's connected to your LG and Onkyo. The audio dropouts that plagued U-verse were all reported with Dolby Digital. If you set your U-verse box to output Stereo instead of Surround Sound, does this help reduce the dropouts?

Sounds like a bad DVR or STB, whichever it is that's connected to your LG and Onkyo. The audio dropouts that plagued U-verse were all reported with Dolby Digital. If you set your U-verse box to output Stereo instead of Surround Sound, does this help reduce the dropouts?

Yes, I get no dropouts when I set the Uverse box to just stereo. Of course that defeats most of the purpose of having a receiver and many speakers.

Anyone get the software update last night? Its now up to version 2.1. I don't see any visual differences though.

Anyone get the software update last night? Its now up to version 2.1. I don't see any visual differences though.

Do you mean the TV2 client update? Yes - we got it last night. It's rumored to fix the problem where the STB becomes unresponsive to the remote, requiring "Exit to TV" to be pressed in order to get things working again. I did notice that it significantly improved the response time of our STBs to commands from the remote.

I can't believe with all of the crappy channels U-Verse has that we can't get the two Hallmark channels back. Every service (Dish, DirecTV, Comcast) in Indy carries them except U-Verse (yes, I know it's nationwide, not just Indy).

Do you mean the TV2 client update? Yes - we got it last night. It's rumored to fix the problem where the STB becomes unresponsive to the remote, requiring "Exit to TV" to be pressed in order to get things working again. I did notice that it significantly improved the response time of our STBs to commands from the remote.

I know that 2.1 had something do with Xbox Kinect support for customers that use their 360 console as a STB but it does seem that the remote response time is back to where it was before the update that added DVR functionality to the STB's. Microsoft might have pulled an Apple and fixed something they never acknowledged existed.

My setup is LG 47 inch 3D tv and Onkyo receiver. I have a severe audio problem. On any channel that the Onkyo shows as using PLIIx sound I get lots of audio dropouts, and they are especially bad when there is voice and music together. Any channel that shows as Dolby D is perfectly fine. I have been working with Onkyo support and they have no answer. I have tried HDMI and digital optical inputs, several cables, many settings, etc and nothing I can do helps. Could it be that my Uverse box is the problem? I have had a few instances where the screen goes blue and a message pops up saying all connections have been lost and I should power the Uverse box off and on to reconnect. Is that a sign of the Uverse box going bad?

I also have an Onkyo TX-SR707 receiver and experience the same audio dropout problems as kodaker described above with the VIP-1200 STB streaming via HDMI. I've only had the Uverse service for 1 week, but the audio dropouts are awful. Yes, turning off the Surround Sound signal on the STB stops the dropouts, but I don't feel that is acceptable solution.

The audio dropouts seem to only occur when an HD source program was not encoded in Dolby Digital (like TruTV HD or E HD channel), or during a commercial break of DD encoded programming (i.e. national telecast goes to a local commercial break).

I have read on att uverse forum that the new Cisco wireless stb does not exhibit the audio breakup issue with the Onkyo receivers. Here is the link http://forums.att.com/t5/Receivers/How-I-solved-my-5-1-audio-dropout-issue/td-p/2948959

I called my technician and he is bringing me one to swap out. Hopefully, this will work!

After the update i also noticed a significant amount of my dvr space is gone. Prior to the update i had 25% left. Now its down to 12%. Anyone else notice anything similar?

I can't believe with all of the crappy channels U-Verse has that we can't get the two Hallmark channels back. Every service (Dish, DirecTV, Comcast) in Indy carries them except U-Verse (yes, I know it's nationwide, not just Indy).

They also need to get NHL Network back. They are fighting them over money too.

After the update i also noticed a significant amount of my dvr space is gone. Prior to the update i had 25% left. Now its down to 12%. Anyone else notice anything similar?

Nope. Reporting same free space after update.

Nope. Reporting same free space after update.

I wonder what happened with mine then. I lost a good 13%.

Court Halts U-Verse In San Francisco

Judge Says Box Install Could Impact Environment

Mike Farrell -- Multichannel News

A San Francisco Superior Court Judge has ordered AT&T to stop installing 726 utility boxes in the city for its U-Verse service pending the outcome of an environmental impact study, according to published reports.
The San Francisco Business Times reported Tuesday that San Francisco Superior Court Judge Harold Kahn ruled that the boxes - which measure four feet high by two feet deep and sit on concrete pedestals - could have an adverse impact on the environment. Judge Kahn ordered a stay of the city's approval of the project. The stay was also reported by fiercecable.com on Wednesday.
While the stay will likely only delay the project for a brief period, it should come as relatively good news for Comcast, the incumbent cable provider in the San Francisco market.
A handful of community groups have objected to the service, with several filing a lawsuit in August to challenge a 6-5 vote by the city's Board of Supervisors, upholding a staff determination that AT&T did not have to conduct an environmental impact study for the project.
AT&T had planned to make San Francisco one of the first cities in California enabled with the U-Verse video, voice and data service in 2007. It is now the only major city in the state without U-Verse service, according to the Business Times.

As of the end of the third quarter, U-Verse had about 3.6 million customers nationwide.

Court Halts U-Verse In San Francisco
Of course it's San Francisco.

Of course it's San Francisco.

The people that live there need to be mad at their city for lack of cable alternatives and wireless coverage. Probably the most anti business city in the entire country.

The people that live there need to be mad at their city for lack of cable alternatives and wireless coverage. Probably the most anti business city in the entire country.
The people that live there like it this way. Otherwise they wouldn't keep voting these morons into office.

FYI --

Visiting my parents this weekend. They live in Tulsa, OK. They have U-Verse. HD quality looks great. Looks the same as what I get in California. I still don't understand what all the fuss is about.

Visiting my parents this weekend. They live in Tulsa, OK. They have U-Verse. HD quality looks great. Looks the same as what I get in California. I still don't understand what all the fuss is about.
Of course it looks the same. It looks the same everywhere. But if you think it looks great, you either have poor eyesight or have never seen great HD.

Of course it looks the same. It looks the same everywhere. But if you think it looks great, you either have poor eyesight or have never seen great HD.

Likely an HD peon, best to be scorned, pitied at the least from our high horses.

After all, HD TVs are created equally and display the same picture quality. And it makes no difference the size of screen, or how far you sit from it, etc. it looks the same everywhere.

<thump>

After all, HD TVs are created equally and display the same picture quality. And it makes no difference the size of screen, or how far you sit from it, etc. it looks the same everywhere.
I was saying AT&T's PQ is the same everywhere, smart guy. And no TV can make U-verse HD look great.

Sure, if you have a 24" TV and sit 10 feet away, the crappy PQ will be negated. But that doesn't make it great. It just means you can't see it.

Sure, if you have a 24" TV and sit 10 feet away, the crappy PQ will be negated. But that doesn't make it great. It just means you can't see it.
I have viewed AT&T U-Verse on the following displays, in decreasing screen size:

120" Optoma HD180 Projector
60" Sony 1080p Plasma
56" Samsung 720p DLP
55" Samsung 1080p LCD
27" Philips SDTV

The HD quality looked the worst on the NTSC television, obviously. The HD quality was fantastic on all the other displays. I have also watched Blu-Ray content on all the above screens. I am a healthy 28 year old male who has perfect vision and wears no corrective lenses. I am truly sorry that you continue to see poor HD quality from U-Verse, but I am quite pleased with what I see.

Something is wrong with your bias filter, I presume.

The HD quality was fantastic on all the other displays. I have also watched Blu-Ray content on all the above screens. I am a healthy 28 year old male who has perfect vision and wears no corrective lenses. I am truly sorry that you continue to see poor HD quality from U-Verse, but I am quite pleased with what I see.
All that tells me is that you don't know how to properly evaluate picture quality. That's fine, the vast majority of people don't. If you enjoy U-verse PQ, that's great. It's still objectively crappy, whether you enjoy it or not.
Something is wrong with your bias filter, I presume.
No, I just know how to evaluate picture quality. I'm not trying to say I'm better than you because of it, so don't get all defensive. It's just a skill you don't possess.

I have viewed AT&T U-Verse on the following displays, in decreasing screen size:

120" Optoma HD180 Projector
60" Sony 1080p Plasma
56" Samsung 720p DLP
55" Samsung 1080p LCD
27" Philips SDTV

The HD quality looked the worst on the NTSC television, obviously. The HD quality was fantastic on all the other displays. I have also watched Blu-Ray content on all the above screens. I am a healthy 28 year old male who has perfect vision and wears no corrective lenses. I am truly sorry that you continue to see poor HD quality from U-Verse, but I am quite pleased with what I see.

Something is wrong with your bias filter, I presume.

tighr, best to just ignore this guy. He seems to be a very disagreeable fellow and he knows pretty much everything, tho not much of value seems to shine thru. I've just added him to my filter as I tend to suffer fools badly.

tighr, best to just ignore this guy. He seems to be a very disagreeable fellow and he knows pretty much everything, tho not much of value seems to shine thru. I've just added him to my filter as I tend to suffer fools badly.
Yes, I'm agreeing with the experts, and yet I'm the fool. Oh well, I guess I'll just have to suffer through life on your ignore list.

Uverse picture quality is pretty impressive. I have had Comcast, Dish, DirecTv, and now Uverse, and Uverse looks just as good as DirecTv and Dish.

I have only had it since September, but all of these reports that picture quality is terrible is just not the case. Uverse can have really good quality.

I had DirecTV side-by-side U-Verse to evaluate them. Both vendor's boxes (2) feeding the same TVs (65" DLP and 42" Plasma). U-Verse HD was not as good as DirecTV ... not even close on some channels / types of shows. I cancelled U-verse and kept DirecTV. If they can do something in the future with the additional wire pair to improve HD quality, I'll reevaluate. I would consider switching -- there are other benefits with U-Verse, like a much broader HD lineup. But HD quality right now is apples to DirecTV's oranges. (I'm not saying U-Verse picture quality is "terrible". Just not "on par with".) YMMV.

Anyone having any very odd behavior from their dvr? I've been having some very annoying issues. First I'll be watching something i recorded and at some point during the show, the picture will freeze a few seconds, after that the option menu appears asking if i want to start over, erase, browse recordings or watch live tv. It will do this at the exact same point of that particular recording no matter how many times i start it over. The only way i can get past it is to FF at 4-5x and miss a minute or two of the show. Also, since the latest tv2 software upgrade i lost significant free space. It went from 25% down to 12%. Now it fluctuates between 13% and 10% without anything new being recorded.

First I'll be watching something i recorded and at some point during the show, the picture will freeze a few seconds, after that the option menu appears asking if i want to start over, erase, browse recordings or watch live tv. It will do this at the exact same point of that particular recording no matter how many times i start it over. The only way i can get past it is to FF at 4-5x and miss a minute or two of the show.
Yep. I simply assumed it was the hard drive going bad.

Yep. I simply assumed it was the hard drive going bad.


Was it the drive?

Was it the drive?
I don't know. After today I'll no longer be a U-verse customer, so I'm not sticking around to find out.

Anyone having any very odd behavior from their dvr? I've been having some very annoying issues. First I'll be watching something i recorded and at some point during the show, the picture will freeze a few seconds, after that the option menu appears asking if i want to start over, erase, browse recordings or watch live tv. It will do this at the exact same point of that particular recording no matter how many times i start it over. The only way i can get past it is to FF at 4-5x and miss a minute or two of the show. Also, since the latest tv2 software upgrade i lost significant free space. It went from 25% down to 12%. Now it fluctuates between 13% and 10% without anything new being recorded.

The issue with recordings prematurely ending when viewing has been reported a number of times over on the U-verse forums. The consensus theory is that it is a bug introduced with Phase 3 of THDVR (the upgrade which let us pause/ff/rew live TV on the STBs).

Not sure what is up with your free space, but it could be that the DVR is reserving space for the STBs buffers.

Yep. I simply assumed it was the hard drive going bad.
I started to have this problem about a week ago - also assumed the hard drive was going. Judging from the comments, that is probably not the case.

Now that i think about it. The issue did start around the time of the phase 3 update.

The issue with recordings prematurely ending when viewing has been reported a number of times over on the U-verse forums. The consensus theory is that it is a bug introduced with Phase 3 of THDVR (the upgrade which let us pause/ff/rew live TV on the STBs).

Not sure what is up with your free space, but it could be that the DVR is reserving space for the STBs buffers.

That could be but doesn't explain why it went from 25% to 12% right after the 2.1 update.

After having D* for many years I decided to try a U-verse bundle to save money. I was activated on November 11th. So far I'm very pleased. Although the PQ might not be quite as good as D* I haven't noticed any pixilization, blurring, etc. and I watch a lot of sports.

Question for Harley_Dude: The one thing I really miss is the ability to pause and do a frame by frame advance or replay something in slow motion (ex. was the runner REALLY safe at first base, or did the receiver REALLY get both feet in bounds). Any idea if or when this capability will be available in an upgrade?

After having D* for many years I decided to try a U-verse bundle to save money. I was activated on November 11th. So far I'm very pleased. Although the PQ might not be quite as good as D* I haven't noticed any pixilization, blurring, etc. and I watch a lot of sports.

Question for Harley_Dude: The one thing I really miss is the ability to pause and do a frame by frame advance or replay something in slow motion (ex. was the runner REALLY safe at first base, or did the receiver REALLY get both feet in bounds). Any idea if or when this capability will be available in an upgrade?

I switched to uverse nearly 3 years ago to save money. I saved money vs Time Warner cable but the hassle factor went through the roof. Freezing picture, slow Internet speed, hardware failure (3 modems and 2 dvr's), billing issues, no phone service for over a week....I'm ready to quit saving money!

What I'm experiencing with greater frequency is slow Internet speeds caused by multiple tv's viewed and 2 or more channels recording. I'm not sure if my habits have changed or there is a problem......doesn't matter as it doesn't work like it used to. 3 visits by technicians in the last month have not corrected the problem.

My plan is to use separate video provider from Internet to avoid the bandwidth issue. May keep uverse Internet/phone and go Direct TV. Uverse is the worst customer service experience I have EVER had. Saving money just isn't worth it!

surround sound issue with uverse is crap! been very very happy with the service up until now :(

surround sound issue with uverse is crap! been very very happy with the service up until now :(

What surround sound issue? I've got no issues with surround sound or audio at all outside of channels that don't support 5.1 or have crappy audio (like one of my locals). But neither of those is a Uverse issue.

Question for Harley_Dude: The one thing I really miss is the ability to pause and do a frame by frame advance or replay something in slow motion (ex. was the runner REALLY safe at first base, or did the receiver REALLY get both feet in bounds). Any idea if or when this capability will be available in an upgrade?

I know it is on the schedule with Microsoft but I don't have a date. AT&T is at the mercy of Microsoft and their MediaRoom platform for all features on the IPTV platform.

What surround sound issue? I've got no issues with surround sound or audio at all outside of channels that don't support 5.1 or have crappy audio (like one of my locals). But neither of those is a Uverse issue.

When hooked up to my onkyo receiver the sound keeps dropping out if I have the stb set to output surround sound. When set to stereo the sound is fine.

I had a tech come out yesterday and he told me that it's a known problem and there is no fix for it. This was after he tried to convince me that stereo and surround were the same. :rollseyes:

After a google search it looks like this problem has been around for years and has not been fixed :(

I also have this problem. It only occurs on channels that are using 2 channel stereo. I have worked with Onkyo 'support' and the problem seems to be that the Cisco Uverse box and the Onkyo aren't compatible.

When hooked up to my onkyo receiver the sound keeps dropping out if I have the stb set to output surround sound. When set to stereo the sound is fine.

I had a tech come out yesterday and he told me that it's a known problem and there is no fix for it. This was after he tried to convince me that stereo and surround were the same. :rollseyes:

After a google search it looks like this problem has been around for years and has not been fixed :(

I have had Uverse now for 6 weeks. I had Dish before this. My observation on picture quality is this. It's all over the place. I watch tennis and football. Sometime the pq is pixilated and not sharp. Today, I am watching the Uconn, Cincinnati football game on ESPN. The picture quality is excellent. As good as I ever got with Dish. Don't know why there is this inconsistency. So far, the service has been fine.

I also have this problem. It only occurs on channels that are using 2 channel stereo. I have worked with Onkyo 'support' and the problem seems to be that the Cisco Uverse box and the Onkyo aren't compatible.



Mine is a Motorola stb.

After suffering through uverse for 3 years I switched to Directv. My observations:
-Picture quality on uverse is sub par. directv sd is nearly as good as uverse hd.
-directv picture quality is much better on my 120" front proj set up as well as my hd lcd screens
-uverse consumed too much bandwidth and rendered my broadband connection useless
-uverse picture froze and pixelated on a regular basis
-uverse remote was intermittent....a known problem without a fix
-directv allows 5 channels recording on dvr
-uverse froze when watching 2-3 tv's and recording 2 channels
-uverse interface is on par with directv, maybe slightly less user friendly
-setup on my home network is simpler and more intuitive on directv
-uverse tech support was cumbersome and frustrating. Tech's were pretty good but didn't always show up
-replaced uverse gateway at least 3 times to no avail in solving problems
If you are happy with uverse I'm happy for you.....I didn't like it. Directv exceeded my expectations. I have the new HR34 box (if I remember the model correctly) and 4 hd receivers, 5 total hd's just like I had with uverse.
Hope this helps those considering a change.
mcspeed

Pixelating on all channels heavily in central California today.

MSG and MSG+ are now available in HD in Connecticut.

I posted back almost a year ago how going from D* to Uverse here in CT. was not that bad. After having it for the year, I still don't think it is very far from D*. You WILL loose picture quality with Uverse. The funny thing, like some others have said, some channels look much better than others in HD. When my year is up I'll be going back to take advantage of the deal. Another thing I find with Uverse is that it is a package deal. You drop one thing like phone and you will loose the discounts and just about breake even. You feel stuck. When my year ends I am dropping the landline and save $40. I may end up only have AT&T for internet when things are done. A few other things I want to through out here is the Uverse remote stinks in comparison to D*'s. I addition to it not being backlit It's got a smooth feel to it and it has popped out of my hand many times. Just my 2 cents.

And that's the real problem, it's not a whole lot cheaper than sat or cable (with promos) and has worse PQ and other issues such as stream limits. Plus they'll never be able to match HSI speeds as long as they're not willing to go FTTH. But the 'U-Verse' name will continue even if the TV part of it flops because it will replace DSL in the areas that it has been provisioned for.

Another thing to consider is a major power outage. We had no power for five days and no uverse. If we had satellite, we could at least been able to watch TV while using a generator.

When we had an extended power outage in CT, the neighborhood node continued working on battery backup for somewhere between 12-24 hours, then went dead. AT&T rolled out portable generators on wheels that they Drove in and restored service. I was the envy of my cable vision neighbors. They eventually switched to Uverse.

I was at 2 friend's homes today that have U-verse, & the both of them are now getting these channels (Smithsonian, MGM, etc.) - but neither one has that (add-on) pkg. Is it a freebie trial or something?

I got a postcard the other day that all HD channels will be free from now until the 1/7 (I think)

Any recent feedback from the Orlando area? I just moved and am considering switching from Bright House.

I switched from D* to U-Verse about 2.5 years ago to save money, as U-Verse had just launched in my market. As more subscribers have signed on, the PQ seems to continually get worse. The DVR has issues with freezing, which has been discussed, and it literally takes the guide 3-5 seconds from the time I hit the button on the remote.

I think the straw that broke the camel's back was my most recent bill:

"Effective February 1st, 2012...

U200 will go from $69 to $72

Internet Max will go from $45 to $48

Wireless Gateway will go from $4 to $6"

No thanks, I'm done. Maybe they didn't see the news about BofA decision to increase fees. I forget how that turned out? :rolleyes:

I agree. I have started watching football via an antenna just to avoid the pixelization. And now the cost is going up. And lastly, I can only get two HD feeds because of my distance from the box.

I agree. I have started watching football via an antenna just to avoid the pixelization. And now the cost is going up. And lastly, I can only get two HD feeds because of my distance from the box.
I haven't got my notice yet. But I agree! I switched from D* to save money. But with a price increase and poor quality!!! No way Jose.

I haven't got my notice yet. But I agree! I switched from D* to save money. But with a price increase and poor quality!!! No way Jose.

You know that D* is raising their rates even more? Check out that forum.

You know that D* is raising their rates even more? Check out that forum.Correct me I'm wrong, but would I not be signing a 2-year agreement that they would technically be breaching if they raised my rate?

Even if I am wrong, I highly doubt D* is raising their rates by the $466 I will save compared to U-Verse over the first two years.

EDIT:If you are currently receiving a promotional offer, you will continue to receive the promotional price for the remainder of the offer period.

the built in wi-fi is unbelievably slow. they say nothing is wrong with it but i notice a huge difference in speed when i disable the wireless g in the modem and use my own wireless n router. what settings can i use to get the best speed out of the wi-fi and the ethernet? are there any ethernet ports that are faster than others?

the installer connected my router into the red port and could not get it connected to the internet. he thought something was wrong with my router and disconnected it. after he left i reconnected it on another port and it worked just fine. does anyone know what the red port is for?

they claim i am getting my 12mbps download but i cannot get a consistant x-hd speed on streaming netflix like i did with charter. do i need to go to the 18 or 24 to get netflix to stream properly?

Correct me I'm wrong, but would I not be signing a 2-year agreement that they would technically be breaching if they raised my rate?

Even if I am wrong, I highly doubt D* is raising their rates by the $466 I will save compared to U-Verse over the first two year.

EDIT:

I was referencing the rate increases. Both are raising them. You can find the details in D* forums. What you do about it is your choice, of course. I believe you'll lose more than half of the savings you noted.

they claim i am getting my 12mbps download but i cannot get a consistant x-hd speed on streaming netflix like i did with charter. do i need to go to the 18 or 24 to get netflix to stream properly?
I'm on 6 mbps and have no issues streaming netflix.

I switched from D* to U-Verse about 2.5 years ago to save money, as U-Verse had just launched in my market. As more subscribers have signed on, the PQ seems to continually get worse. The DVR has issues with freezing, which has been discussed, and it literally takes the guide 3-5 seconds from the time I hit the button on the remote.

I think the straw that broke the camel's back was my most recent bill:

"Effective February 1st, 2012...

U200 will go from $69 to $72

Internet Max will go from $45 to $48

Wireless Gateway will go from $4 to $6"

No thanks, I'm done. Maybe they didn't see the news about BofA decision to increase fees. I forget how that turned out? :rolleyes:

LOL. Perhaps you forgot that *all* cable/telco/sat companies raise their rates every year in Feb/March. DirecTV rates are going up more then Uverse is. Of course if you switch and get a new customer rate more power to you. Perhaps every 2 years you'll switch to get the new customer/intro rate. That's too much a bother for me. Personally I just call up Uverse (or whatever my provider is), tell them I've got a deal with DirecTV/Dish/Whatever and they usually give you $20 off a month for a year or sometimes more.

Do what you gotta do though, there is no "correct" answer for everyone.

I was referencing the rate increases. Both are raising them. You can find the details in D* forums. What you do about it is your choice, of course. I believe you'll lose more than half of the savings you noted.Doubtful, considering I'll lock in an average $20/month in savings over a two year period.

Here's the problem. My U-Verse service hasn't improved at all over the past year, so my choice is to not allow them to raise my rate. This time last year, I was only able to convince them to reduce my bill by $10/month for 6 months.

I'll gladly switch back to U-Verse in 2 years if they've fixed the PQ and DVR issues, and it makes financial sense to do so. I'd have to hate money not to switch back to D* at this point.

DirecTV rates are going up more then Uverse is. Of course if you switch and get a new customer rate more power to you. $4+$1 is not greater than $8, and I will get the promo rate, so it's irrelevant.

Doubtful, considering I'll lock in an average $20/month in savings over a two year period.

Here's the problem. My U-Verse service hasn't improved at all over the past year, so my choice is to not allow them to raise my rate. This time last year, I was only able to convince them to reduce my bill by $10/month for 6 months.

I'll gladly switch back to U-Verse in 2 years if they've fixed the PQ and DVR issues, and it makes financial sense to do so. I'd have to hate money not to switch back to D* at this point.

$4+$1 is not greater than $8, and I will get the promo rate, so it's irrelevant.

I did the same math, and with the new customer deals/discounts I'll save an average of ~$25/mth over 2 years going to Directv, and my only upfront costs is $99 upgrade for their new premium 1Tb/5 Tuner Whole House DVR (moving from U200 + extra Receiver + HD, which is now $89/mth to an equivalent D* package).

The better HD quality will be a nice bonus (and less lagging/stuttering on the DVR hopefully)

After the price increase on U-Verse, I think I'm going to switch to Direct myself.

The one thing that really bothers me is the extra charge for every box on U-Verse, when I can get (I think) 5 boxes for my house for no extra per month charge. Plus I can actually get good HD quality unlike U-Verse.

Does Direct charge extra to install new coax lines to rooms as well?

The one thing that really bothers me is the extra charge for every box on U-Verse, when I can get (I think) 5 boxes for my house for no extra per month charge.

There is no upfront charge for those (first 3) extra boxes...but there IS certainly a $6 monthly charge for EACH one! (& D* does NOT waive those fees, either) Where did you hear otherwise???

Also, D* DOES charge $11 a month for whole-house DVR service, but does waive the $10 HD access fee for new subs.

Plus I can actually get good HD quality unlike U-Verse.

Yea, but you best look at all of the HD channels you're going to be loosing, since D* decided to throw in the towel on new HD adds.

Does Direct charge extra to install new coax lines to rooms as well?

Normally not, as long as it does not require any sort of "custom work" (ie: fishing wires thru walls, etc.) But if you already have coax from your U-verse setup, they'll just reuse those.

Yeah, I would have to "buy" the boxes and then not get charged for them correct? It's only a leasing fee if they are not "mine".

I would probably do the wire routing first before they came.

Thanks for the clarification.

Yeah, I would have to "buy" the boxes and then not get charged for them correct?

NO NO NO...you are STILL (then) charged a mirroring fee of $6 instead.
And you ARE aware that each of those HD boxes will cost you $200 each to buy to "own".
You also then are on the hook if they break, it's YOUR dime to replace.

Bottom line...it does NOT pay to own your own equipment, which is why (hardly) anyone does anymore.

It's only a leasing fee if they are not "mine".

Right, then it becomes a "mirroring fee" instead.

Bottom line...D* is NOT going to give you ANY free (monthly) service on additional TV's; they never have since day 1.

You probably better do more research, as it sounds like you have been given incorrect info. ;) ;)

I have Time Warner cable which is set to go up substantially soon. With TW cable I can hook up a few little used TV's right to my pre-wired coax and get most of the basic channels free on cable ready TV's without needing a converter box. Since U-verse wants $7 a box, do I need to pay extra for a box for each of my secondary TV's. Like in a seldom used guest room? Or does U-verse also just send basic channels via coax throughout the house so no box is needed on cable ready TV's. Also, will U-Verse waive that $10 a month HD program fee?

Uverse is IPTV, every TV requires a box to get anything.

Since U-verse wants $7 a box, do I need to pay extra for a box for each of my secondary TV's. Like in a seldom used guest room?
Yes. U-Verse is IPTV, so it can only be received by the boxes.

Also, will U-Verse waive that $10 a month HD program fee?
If you get DVR, the fee is waived (or vice-versa, can't really remember as both are $10). Either way, you only pay once, no matter how many boxes you get (@ $7 a pop). The HD/DVR fee doesn't compound for each additional TV.

EDIT: I might actually be confusing the $10 with the difference between U-100 and U-200. U-200 has DVR, included for free.

Is IPTV reliable?

Is IPTV reliable?

I have both Uverse and Directv. Uverse us considerably more reliable here. Zero downtime, no outages during heavy rain (or heavy clouds for some). I'll be ditching D* when my contract is up.

EDIT: I might actually be confusing the $10 with the difference between U-100 and U-200. U-200 has DVR, included for free.The difference between the two used to be $15, which was the rental price of the DVR (I don't know if that's still the price).

However, they don't even list the U100 package anymore, so it looks as if they've cut out that option entirely, for new subscribers and downgraders (they didn't offer the DVR with it, but it was the same price as U200 with it added). So it's right from the $57 price of (the woefully-insufficient for most) U-Family, to $72 for U200 now (both with DVR).

Which means, basically, that if anyone didn't want the DVR, and would've been perfectly fine with the U100 channel offerings (which I'm pretty sure, based on the selection, had to be their most popular package), and wanted to keep their bill down below a certain point, they're SOL now (although they may still have it grandfathered in).

I have both Uverse and Directv. Uverse us considerably more reliable here. Zero downtime, no outages during heavy rain (or heavy clouds for some). I'll be ditching D* when my contract is up.I have been with Directv for the last 11 years. I also had Uverse in December for about 3 weeks during which time my D* account was suspended. While there some things I liked better about Uverse I found it to be unreliable, especially when I tried to push the system to the limit. My account was setup to be able to record 4 streams at a time (3 hd 1 sd) and whenever I tried to record 3 or 4 streams at a time the picture would break up most of the time. Power cycling the DVR would sometimes fix the problem for awhile. I found that when I was only recording 1 or 2 steams the system was pretty reliable. For a lot of users that would be fine, but most users on this forum probably want to be able to use the full capability of the system reliably.

I was satisfied with Uverse customer support when I went to cancel service within 30 days. They credited my account for the full amount of TV service and they let me keep my discounted Uverse internet service. I would recommend that if Uverse is available in your area and you are curious go ahead a give it try.

Jay

I have both Uverse and Directv. Uverse us considerably more reliable here. Zero downtime, no outages during heavy rain (or heavy clouds for some). I'll be ditching D* when my contract is up.

Thanks. IPTV sounds so new in technology that I wasn't sure whether it could be counted on as much as the traditional lines of a wiring system implemented by a Comcast or a Time Warner or a Bright House, etc. Since there is apparently no problem with U-Verse, I'll trust that Internet from AT&T is also reliable. So, good for the company and good for the subscribers!:)

I have been with Directv for the last 11 years. I also had Uverse in December for about 3 weeks during which time my D* account was suspended. While there some things I liked better about Uverse I found it to be unreliable, especially when I tried to push the system to the limit. My account was setup to be able to record 4 streams at a time (3 hd 1 sd) and whenever I tried to record 3 or 4 streams at a time the picture would break up most of the time. Power cycling the DVR would sometimes fix the problem for awhile. I found that when I was only recording 1 or 2 steams the system was pretty reliable. For a lot of users that would be fine, but most users on this forum probably want to be able to use the full capability of the system reliably.

I was satisfied with Uverse customer support when I went to cancel service within 30 days. They credited my account for the full amount of TV service and they let me keep my discounted Uverse internet service. I would recommend that if Uverse is available in your area and you are curious go ahead a give it try.

Jay

I use the full capacity of the system reliably. 3HD and 1SD simultaneous. Internal wiring and switches can be the performance weak links. For a week I couldn't figure out why I couldn't record 3HD any longer, finally realized it was the way I had changed my network wiring at a switch. Swapped a couple of wires, back in business.

Is IPTV reliable?
I can only count of one downtime that I have had problems with it. That was only when the main office in Kansas, that U-Verse feeds out of, was having problems. We have gone as far as having two programs recording, the son had his on a SD channel, the Living room which is the DVR also on, and when the wife turned on the one in our bedroom, I lost the dvr, but fixed that, by time shifting the recorded program at that time, to a later time in the middle of the night, and went back to watching what I had on.

I have my Uverse wired with Cat-5e, the three boxes connected to the RG through a patch panel, the other three wired devices are through a Netgear GS-108 switch. I have never had so extreme of problems, that we had drop outs, or macro blocking while watching something. Now, confetti drops, and watching Sports on the CBS station in our market, is the only complaint that I have, but I deal with it, because it only lasts at the most 30 sec's for the confetti drops, about no more than 2 sec's during a instance for sports on the CBS station.

Right now we are watching Mi. State & U of Indiana on ESPN, and there have been no pixeling, etc that you normally see during sports. The picture is better than our Comcast system in our market.

The other thing I love about U-Verse, is one of the sub's has written a good utility called Uverse Realtime, which is really helpful in seeing what your stat's are, and if you have a problem, you can send that info to a tech on the direct forum on dslreports.com, and it helps them to see what you are seeing on your end, not on their end, through the tools they are using from afar.

I can only count of one downtime that I have had problems with it. That was only when the main office in Kansas, that U-Verse feeds out of, was having problems. We have gone as far as having two programs recording, the son had his on a SD channel, the Living room which is the DVR also on, and when the wife turned on the one in our bedroom, I lost the dvr, but fixed that, by time shifting the recorded program at that time, to a later time in the middle of the night, and went back to watching what I had on.

I have my Uverse wired with Cat-5e, the three boxes connected to the RG through a patch panel, the other three wired devices are through a Netgear GS-108 switch. I have never had so extreme of problems, that we had drop outs, or macro blocking while watching something. Now, confetti drops, and watching Sports on the CBS station in our market, is the only complaint that I have, but I deal with it, because it only lasts at the most 30 sec's for the confetti drops, about no more than 2 sec's during a instance for sports on the CBS station.

Right now we are watching Mi. State & U of Indiana on ESPN, and there have been no pixeling, etc that you normally see during sports. The picture is better than our Comcast system in our market.

The other thing I love about U-Verse, is one of the sub's has written a good utility called Uverse Realtime, which is really helpful in seeing what your stat's are, and if you have a problem, you can send that info to a tech on the direct forum on dslreports.com, and it helps them to see what you are seeing on your end, not on their end, through the tools they are using from afar.There is no "University of Indiana." It's "Indiana University" (look it up). :)

As for U-Verse, we have it and love it. The only thing that still pisses me off is that they dropped Hallmark Channel and Hallmark Movie Channel a year ago and still haven't given them back to us. All other cable & satellite carriers still offer them. Very frustrating.

I can call them what I want, because I do not like them as a team. So there.

I can call them what I want, because I do not like them as a team. So there.OK, doesn't matter to me. I graduated from Purdue. :rolleyes:

After two years of having U-Verse, I dropped the TV and Voice services and just kept the Internet (12 meg). U200+HD+4 extra boxes just got too expensive for me. The only shows I'm interested in I can watch OTA in HD for free. Saved $150 a month. :)

OK, doesn't matter to me. I graduated from Purdue. :rolleyes:
I graduated from Rose-Hulman. Thanks for flipping my burgers the last time I was in West Lafayette.

Do any of you UV get audio drop outs in 5.1 ? If you do, did it ever get fixed?

Do any of you UV get audio drop outs in 5.1 ? If you do, did it ever get fixed?

It is a known item that has been going on now for over two years.

It is a known item that has been going on now for over two years.

I have been dealing with this for more than a year.. The only known solution is to use one of the wireless boxes but that has problems of its own. This was the last straw for me and I just dropped u-verse and I am going back to Charter

OK, doesn't matter to me. I graduated from Purdue. :rolleyes:

We don't like them either (Purdue grad as well).

I live in fla. I'm thinking of switching from Comcast to unverse for my tv service. Is it worth it. Is the hd channels clearer? What are the pros and cons vs Comcast?

I live in fla. I'm thinking of switching from Comcast to unverse for my tv service. Is it worth it. Is the hd channels clearer? What are the pros and cons vs Comcast?

You are asking a loaded question. Billing for me has been easier than dealing with Comcast, along with being able to make changes on the fly. Programming because of the technology is used to stream the channels, it tops out at the peak on some streams around 7mb, but will usually run on average about 5.25-5.6mb.

Iwould say overall for Comcast is 2 out of 5 stars, ATT 4 out of 5. I look at it that it serves the purpose I got it for, and enjoy it over Comcast any day.

I live in fla. I'm thinking of switching from Comcast to unverse for my tv service. Is it worth it. Is the hd channels clearer? What are the pros and cons vs Comcast?

Really your only way is to try it. Especially given so many differences from cable company location to location. Your Comcast may be great while mine stinks for example. Uverse TV is free install and no commitment and they typically pay you $200+ in rebates to try it out so it's a no lose situation to give it a try. Just don't cancel Comcast until you know for sure you'll keep Uverse TV.

I'm a current UVerse customer of their internet service. I'm moving to a new house and was advised by the CSR that Fiber to the house is available upon request? Has anyone heard of this, is it true?

My new location is not a new subdivision but it is a new home build in a very old area, so new lines would have to be installed anyway.

I"m curious about the PQ of fiber to the home, as I previously had Uverse for TV but dumped it due to the poor PQ.

I'm a current UVerse customer of their internet service. I'm moving to a new house and was advised by the CSR that Fiber to the house is available upon request? Has anyone heard of this, is it true?
First thing, forget everything that the CSR told you. Only way that there would be Fiber to the premise, is if this was a new development in those areas that were built out. Bad thing is, it will be the complete opposite of Verizon did their Fios service. What that means, is that ATT has throttled down those with fiber to the premise.

Find out from your neighbors that have UVerse, how their's is wired, and if they are running the Uverse Realtime tool, it can give you an idea how far you are from the Vrad that serves that area.

I called back and asked for it to be escalated to a group that handles requests for Fiber to the premise (FTTP). Here's the deal I have lined up, we'll see what happens:

I have an install scheduled for April 14th, and I let them know that they'll need to run new lines to the house because the previous lines would have been removed in the demolition. The CSR initially said that FTTP is not available in my area but when I pushed the matter, she said that i could ask the installing technician to run fiber to the home and it would be up to them. I made it clear that I want FTTP and I would not be subscribing to Uverse 300 unless i get it. It's on the request, we'll see what happens. I'll go with Uverse lite internet no matter what.

When you say they throttle other FTTP customers, are you referring to just the internet speed? What about the PQ of their HD feed, how does that look for FTTP customers?

When you say they throttle other FTTP customers, are you referring to just the internet speed? What about the PQ of their HD feed, how does that look for FTTP customers?
It's my understanding that everyone gets the same PQ, no matter what.

Just the Internet speed, which at this point is only up to 18meg for FTTP. As for pushing it, it really does not matter, due to it will be up to the tech, and if there is copper at the end of the lot, they will pull copper. Only way that Fiber is going to be pulled, is if this whole development has fiber through out. Otherwise, it is not worth the cost to them to pull.

Really overall, the streams will still be the same between FTTP & Copper. It is still up to 7meg bursts, 6.25 throughput. Depending on distance from the Vrad, will determine if you can even get the 4 HD, otherwise, regardless if you want Fiber, it will not change the distance or requirements. I have Copper to my house, and sit aprx 1800 feet from the Vrad, and have not had any problems with signal, or PQ. Only time that I really see problems, is when watching our local CBS station, regardless if it is showing local or national programming, on Comcast, UVerse, DirecTV, OTA, their channel is crap.

Just the Internet speed, which at this point is only up to 18meg for FTTP.

Then to whom is the 24meg service available? On the face of it that makes no sense.

Then to whom is the 24meg service available? On the face of it that makes no sense.

It depends on the distance, those with copper to the home, and the catch-22, those areas that do not have UVerse tv, only phone and Internet, may only get up to 12 meg.

ATT is not always clear at the info, nor do all of the cSRs know everything, due to it will take getting a tech onsite to take measurements of the line, to see what speeds are capable to your location.

And even though line stats for some may show up to 65meg downstream, does not mean that you will get any higher than 18 in some cases. It is pretty much a live and learn.

It depends on the distance, those with copper to the home, and the catch-22, those areas that do not have UVerse tv, only phone and Internet, may only get up to 12 meg.

ATT is not always clear at the info, nor do all of the cSRs know everything, due to it will take getting a tech onsite to take measurements of the line, to see what speeds are capable to your location.

And even though line stats for some may show up to 65meg downstream, does not mean that you will get any higher than 18 in some cases. It is pretty much a live and learn.

The point was, if you can't get the 24meg service with fttp that suggests no one can, which of course isn't true. I'm copper with tv and a solid 18 meg Internet service. With pair bonding I will get full boat streams including 24 meg Internet. Surely fttp does.

The point was, if you can't get the 24meg service with fttp that suggests no one can, which of course isn't true. I'm copper with tv and a solid 18 meg Internet service. With pair bonding I will get full boat streams including 24 meg Internet. Surely fttp does.

Dabrooks, looks like you missed on the word may. That along with the fact that I stated that only the tech can tell you. Also it has been stated on the Uverse forums, that those with FTTP can not get any faster than 18meg, and that ATT has placed restrictions on those that are in areas that do not have UVerse TV.

Dabrooks, looks like you missed on the word may. That along with the fact that I stated that only the tech can tell you. Also it has been stated on the Uverse forums, that those with FTTP can not get any faster than 18meg, and that ATT has placed restrictions on those that are in areas that do not have UVerse TV.


Ok thanks for the feedback. I'm not too concerned about internet speed, as i'm only planning to go for the low 6Mbps service anyway (with a free upgrade to the next level for one year). Uverse TV is what i really care about, and it doesn't sound too promising. I'll give it a try and if the PQ is as crap as I had before, I'll ditch it in no time.

I would not say that it is crap or mediocre. It is more in the lines of watching a upscaled Dvd on. bd, or watching Netflix. Watching the NCAA championships, abc and cbs were bad due to problems on their end, the feeds on Espn were better.

Right now watching Wild Wild West on HDNet, and the picture is good, but do see some pixeling during fast motion in a couple spots. Otherwise if is pretty decent. I really do not see ATT going any faster with the IPTV streaming, due to they would fear that it would eat up too much bandwidth. Doubt that you would ever see ATT go as fast as the theoretical testing that shows that Copper can go faster than the 65meg at around 500 feet max. I get about User rate: 32.2meg down (max user rate 44.4meg)/4.7meg up. Even with the 24meg down/3meg up Internet package, I still do not see much degradation in Speed, even when we have both hd sets on a hd channel, and my son has his tube set on a SD or even on a HD channel. Now of course, if all three of us are watching tv and streaming something, or two of us are downloading, with one streaming, yes then you can choke the bandwidth to the point that it will fall below 15meg, which we have rarely seen. Maybe in one case that we saw it, otherwise rock solid.

If you really want to compare quality, I would say more in the lines of HD movies on Netflix. Billing is better than Comcast. At least with ATT, if you are 30 days past due, they do not just cut you off on the bill date, when the next bill comes due.

Seem some posts in here about the Onkyo audio drop out. Just wanted to let you know that switching from a motorola vip1225 box to a wireless receiver (cisco isb7005) fixed the issue for me.

PS. I have the Onkyo TX-NR509

Does UVerse TV offer extra channels for the major golf and tennis championships (Roland Garros, Wimbledon, The Masters, The US Open (golf & Tennis), The Australian Open, and the PGA Championship)? Directv offers this for these events and I typically make use of them - they usually have 4 extra channels on top of the major broadcast that is on one of the networks, ESPN, or the Tennis Channel.

Thanks!

Yes. Right now during Baseball season, there is a Cubs Baseball multi-view. The Masters, they have the same thing. I know for the Olympics, they do a multi channel along with the NBC affiliates Like MSNBC, CNBC, USA, NBC Universal, etc, but do not know how this year will work, since CC now owns NBC.

Yes. Right now during Baseball season, there is a Cubs Baseball multi-view. The Masters, they have the same thing. I know for the Olympics, they do a multi channel along with the NBC affiliates Like MSNBC, CNBC, USA, NBC Universal, etc, but do not know how this year will work, since CC now owns NBC.

Thanks. Just to be clear - you do mean that there are multiple channels with different channel numbers right? Im hoping for more than just a single screen with a "mix" on it - that's great for choosing what to watch but that's the extent of its usefulness IMO. Once youve seen what action is being covered its nice to be able to select which camera you want to watch (different court, different hole, etc, than what is being shown on the main broadcast).

Yes, multiple channels. For multi-views, there is a place holder channel, that allows you to page through the channels in that category. For example, for Cubs multi-view, channels 780(sd) & 1780(hd) is the multiview app channel, then channels 781 to 788 or 1781 to 1788 are the different camera views, with 781/1781 being WGN.

Yes, multiple channels. For multi-views, there is a place holder channel, that allows you to page through the channels in that category. For example, for Cubs multi-view, channels 780(sd) & 1780(hd) is the multiview app channel, then channels 781 to 788 or 1781 to 1788 are the different camera views, with 781/1781 being WGN.

Awesome! Exactly what I was hoping to hear (or read actually).

Last summer I tested U-Verse and ultimately cancelled, as I had a long list of "don't likes" (see my U-Verse Review (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=20697184#post20697184)). Now I'm again considering a switch from DirecTV to U-Verse. Before I take the plunge, does anyone have updates for any of the following "issues" I had last year:

- Simultaneous HD recordings. This was the biggest issue I had, as I could only record 3 HD shows at once. Have they done anything yet with the "extra pair of wires" (pair bonding) or are they planning any updates that would allow more data to get down the pipe - allowing more recordings or a second DVR?

- HD quality. Last year some channels and shows were very good, while some (a lot) were very bad, with lots of compression artifacts. I know this is discussed a lot here ;), but do you know if there have been any "technical" changes to improve quality?

- Sound. I had issues with sound "drop outs" when using digital audio, with an optical cable to an AV receiver. I also experienced several shows where the sound was off-sync from the video. Any improvements in these areas?

- On-Screen Guide. Last I saw the same channel was listed twice in the guide, once as SD and then again as HD, with no option to hide the SD channels. There was also no distinction of subscribed vs. non-subscribed channels in the Guide. Has either of these changed? Is there any option to jump to a date/time in the guide? Can you jump ahead/back 12 hours, or is it still only 24 hours?

- Search. Is there any ability to save searches now, or run searches using keywords or advanced options? Can you setup a recording based on the search?

- Scheduling Recordings. Supposedly there was a change on the way in a summer update last year to allow recordings to be setup from STB rooms (non-DVR). Is that now available? Last year there was no way to set recording defaults (first-run / repeats, keep until I delete / delete as needed, etc.) -- although you could set those defaults via the iPad app. There was also no option to pre-pad a recording (start early), nor a way to see the "upcoming" shows from the recording series list. Have any of these changed?

- Watching Shows. I thought the last speed on Fast Forward was too big of a jump from the previous speed (I believe this was from the 3rd setting to 4th setting). Also, I couldn’t "stack" the jump-forward button presses -- each button press "stopped" the current jump and started a new one. Any change in these areas? One other big annoyance was the number key presses it took to turn on/off closed captioning. Has that changed at all?

- Viewing Options. Last I saw there was no option to watch recorded shows on a PC, iPad, or other device. The tools for the devices let you watch AT&T’s "library of hit TV shows", but not what was on the DVR. Any changes in this area?

Never mind on the question about audio drop outs. I was rereading the thread and see it discussed at the top of this page. Apparently still an issue, unless you go with the wireless DVR?

- Simultaneous HD recordings. This was the biggest issue I had, as I could only record 3 HD shows at once. Have they done anything yet with the "extra pair of wires" (pair bonding) or are they planning any updates that would allow more data to get down the pipe - allowing more recordings or a second DVR?

All depends on your area. 4 total streams is still the max. How much HD you get all depends on your area and how far you are from the box and you're provisioned for. 3 HD is common, I think a few areas have 4 HD (check Broadbandreports Uverse forum).

- HD quality. Last year some channels and shows were very good, while some (a lot) were very bad, with lots of compression artifacts. I know this is discussed a lot here ;), but do you know if there have been any "technical" changes to improve quality?

No changes that I am aware of. But HD quality is plenty fine here and I had DirecTV for 14 years. Is DirecTV "better". If I put side by side I'd say yes on some channels. But it's plenty good enough for me and my wife and we watch a lot of football and hockey. So this will be totally up to you really.

- Sound. I had issues with sound "drop outs" when using digital audio, with an optical cable to an AV receiver. I also experienced several shows where the sound was off-sync from the video. Any improvements in these areas?

Not once in the time I've had Uverse TV (a year) have I had any audio issues and I use optical cable. I believe I've read that this issue may be with specific audio receivers (same as the DirecTV DVRs also have issues with certain AVRs) so it's kinda the luck of the draw based on what you have. I have a Yamaha AVR, no problems.

- On-Screen Guide. Last I saw the same channel was listed twice in the guide, once as SD and then again as HD, with no option to hide the SD channels.

Not quite sure I understand this one. SD is below 1000. HD above 1000. I don't think I've ever been in the SD area outside a pushing button mistake. When I tune to "live" TV it's always on the last channel I had on which would be an HD channel. I hit the guide button and it will be on that channel and thus all around it are just HD channels. So I don't see why this is an issue.

There was also no distinction of subscribed vs. non-subscribed channels in the Guide.

Not that I'm aware of. You can set up a favorite list though with just the channels you want. And unlike DirecTV it won't change it on you. LOL However you can't set a favorite channel list as the default view last I checked (which was months ago) and it would be nice if you could. It's just a couple button clicks to change to a favorites list but I don't even bother anymore. We don't watch much live TV anyway and we get the U300 which has about everything but HBO and Cinemax so we aren't effected as much by it.

Is there any option to jump to a date/time in the guide?

That's been there all the time I've had Uverse. Just push the enter button and you get a popout from the right side where you can jump to a specific date/time.

Can you jump ahead/back 12 hours, or is it still only 24 hours?

24 hours.

- Search. Is there any ability to save searches now, or run searches using keywords or advanced options? Can you setup a recording based on the search?

No, you can't save a search (wish you could). You can setup a recording from a search though as far as I know. Just push the record button on whatever result you want to record. I don't do much searching though as I do all that on the web. Seriously, use the Uverse web portal to search and perform all your recording setup, it's soooooo much easier. I'll access my DVR from work and setup movie recordings for the next 2 weeks, new shows, etc. There is an iPad app as well I believe. You can pretty much do everything on the web but change season pass priorities.

- Scheduling Recordings. Supposedly there was a change on the way in a summer update last year to allow recordings to be setup from STB rooms (non-DVR). Is that now available? Last year there was no way to set recording defaults (first-run / repeats, keep until I delete / delete as needed, etc.) -- although you could set those defaults via the iPad app.

No recording defaults unfortunately. I'm pretty sure the last update allowed recording setup to happen on the remote STBs but I don't have any so can't comment.

There was also no option to pre-pad a recording (start early), nor a way to see the "upcoming" shows from the recording series list. Have any of these changed?

Both have been available as long as I've had Uverse TV. Default if tuners are available is 1 minute pre-pad and 2 minute post pad but you can adjust on each recording or series as needed.

Good luck with your trial. Like anything every service is different. My wife and I have been very happy with Uverse TV as it's quality is plenty fine for us and the cost is much cheaper then DirecTV. Sure there are a couple of annoyances with the DVR but DirecTV's DVR has plenty of it's own like really slow (love the instant channel changes and pretty much everything speed wise with Uverse DVR) and the past couple months the DirecTV DVR has been missing recordings for a lot of people (a big no-no) and still not fixed.

But in the end a lot of it is personal preference.

I would like to chime in a little. I went to Uverse last year after having DirecTV for many years with the H20 DVR. I have now gone back to DirecTV and have the H24 DVR. This H24 is on par with the Uverse DVR when it comes to speed. Both services are great. DirecTV has a little better picture quality. It all boiled down to content and price for me. I have a co worker that has had many problems with Uverse. After many box changes he still had freez-ups and at times a big red X that comes across the screen. He now thinks this is a line issue, but is fed up and is changing over to Comcast. I have never had any problems with Uverse in the year I had it and would go back again. No issues with audio drop-out with my Onkyo surround through HDMI either.

- Simultaneous HD recordings. This was the biggest issue I had, as I could only record 3 HD shows at once. Have they done anything yet with the "extra pair of wires" (pair bonding) or are they planning any updates that would allow more data to get down the pipe - allowing more recordings or a second DVR?

Since that part of your question was NOT specifically answered - you can ONLY have 1 actual DVR receiver; they simply do NOT support multiple (actual) DVR boxes for a single sub. (unlike all other providers)

I can answer one of your questions, you can set a recording from any receiver in the house. You can now also pause, rewind and fast forward live tv from any receiver in the house. You can also record first run or first run and repeats. You can also keep until space needed or until you delete. Another option you have now is you can adjust the start time and end time of the recording. Say if you are recording something live like a sports game and you are unsure of its end time. You can set it to record up to an additional 5 hours.

It's been over a year since AT&T started their bandwidth cap & overage system. My parents have DSL from them, and everytime I check the usage meter and I get the message saying "you should not be concerned about your usage at this time" message. Obviously the meter hasn't been activated where they live (San Diego, CA area). I'm wondering if you guys who have u-verse or even DSL, have the usage meters been activated?

It's been over a year since AT&T started their bandwidth cap & overage system. My parents have DSL from them, and everytime I check the usage meter and I get the message saying "you should not be concerned about your usage at this time" message. Obviously the meter hasn't been activated where they live (San Diego, CA area). I'm wondering if you guys who have u-verse or even DSL, have the usage meters been activated?
Only if you are on DSL, not UVerse TV & Internet. Most people do not worry about the caps if they use it for normal use. Even when I ran UVerse Realtime, the most use we would see, while watching Netflix during the month, downloading large file updates, and my son playing games on his Xbox 360, was 55 gig.

I just got UVerse yesterday and I think i'm going to switch back to Direct TV. The PQ is as bad as it was when i left 2.5 yrs ago.

Pros: Fast receiver, price, no need for contract, Showtime and Starz included in U300.

Cons: HD pic quality (viewed on a 60" Kuro), lack of the major sports packages, no Pandora, inability to set Faves as a default guide view.

Internet is fine, i'll be keeping that.

Thank you bonscott87, High Gear, dishrich, and Timothy31 for the replies to my questions. Very helpful. I'm going to talk to "customer retention" at DirecTV before making any changes .. see what they want to do to keep me. The 3-HD recordings limit (if that still the same as what I had last year) is a real sticking point. Especially when sports are going, there are too many times when I need an extra recording spot. :-( If it weren't for the money, I'd like to have both DirecTV and U-Verse - pros and cons with each. :-)

Thank you bonscott87, High Gear, dishrich, and Timothy31 for the replies to my questions. Very helpful. I'm going to talk to "customer retention" at DirecTV before making any changes .. see what they want to do to keep me. The 3-HD recordings limit (if that still the same as what I had last year) is a real sticking point. Especially when sports are going, there are too many times when I need an extra recording spot. :-( If it weren't for the money, I'd like to have both DirecTV and U-Verse - pros and cons with each. :-)

I'd suggest you put DirecTV on "suspend" or vacation. You can do that for up to 6 months and you have no charges during that time but can keep all your equipment. Get Uverse and see if it's something you can handle. That way you don't have issues getting DirecTV back if you decide to keep it. And if you do decide to ditch Uverse and keep DirecTV you may be in a better negotiating position as they can see you suspended your account for a month or two and you tell them it was because you were trying Uverse out and now you'd like to see what DirecTV will do to keep you.

I'd suggest you put DirecTV on "suspend" or vacation. You can do that for up to 6 months and you have no charges during that time but can keep all your equipment. Get Uverse and see if it's something you can handle. That way you don't have issues getting DirecTV back if you decide to keep it. And if you do decide to ditch Uverse and keep DirecTV you may be in a better negotiating position as they can see you suspended your account for a month or two and you tell them it was because you were trying Uverse out and now you'd like to see what DirecTV will do to keep you.

That's a good idea. But is AT&T currently doing a "no risk" trial? That was the case last year when I gave it a go - made me much more willing to test. I didn't even get to the point of suspending DirecTV, as I was done testing in 2 weeks. (However, I had to argue with AT&T on quite a few calls to end the trial without any payments. It all worked out in the end, but took awhile.)

Thank you bonscott87, High Gear, dishrich, and Timothy31 for the replies to my questions. Very helpful. I'm going to talk to "customer retention" at DirecTV before making any changes .. see what they want to do to keep me. The 3-HD recordings limit (if that still the same as what I had last year) is a real sticking point. Especially when sports are going, there are too many times when I need an extra recording spot. :-( If it weren't for the money, I'd like to have both DirecTV and U-Verse - pros and cons with each. :-)

If you are close enough to get the 4 HD streams you can record 4 HD, of course that means you can't watch something else at the same time. You'll only be able to watch something you are recording or something you have recorded on the dvr.

If you are close enough to get the 4 HD streams you can record 4 HD, of course that means you can't watch something else at the same time. You'll only be able to watch something you are recording or something you have recorded on the dvr.

Good rule of thumb, if you qualify for 24M of Internet you can get 4HD streams. For 18M you can get 3 HD streams and for 12M you can get 2 HD streams. Most customers qualify for 4HD streams.

If you are close enough to get the 4 HD streams you can record 4 HD, of course that means you can't watch something else at the same time. You'll only be able to watch something you are recording or something you have recorded on the dvr.

I hardly ever, ever, ever watch live TV ... yuck! ;-) So the number of sumultaneous recordings is the concern. (BTW ... I currently have 2 DirecTV DVRs - 4 tuners. That's actually down from the 3 DVRs I had a couple of years ago.)

Good rule of thumb, if you qualify for 24M of Internet you can get 4HD streams. For 18M you can get 3 HD streams and for 12M you can get 2 HD streams. Most customers qualify for 4HD streams.

Hmmm ... I need to check my info. Last year I was *promised* 4 HD streams, but only setup for 3 (+ 1 SD). Of course that "promise" was from an independent sales rep (door-to-door) who I'm sure got his commission based on sign-ups. I tried to get tech help to see if that config could be "fixed", but the phone-CSRs didn't know how to answer any questions not in the "script".

I still have U-verse Voice (phone) and Internet - so I should be able to see how high I can go - if I wanted to upgrade my speed. I remember there were some config numbers that could be accessed to "read" the throughput of the line. Were those only on the DVR? Or can I get that info from my Internet modem?