So I got my FIOS triple play installed on wednesday. So far so good, definetly have NO complaints yet (I'm not a big basketball fan, so the blazers thing doesn't bother me). I can't wait for the new HD channels to get rolled out here that are being promised!

I can't wait for the new HD channels to get rolled out here that are being promised!

Wish I knew what they were promising and when they will be added so I could get more excited.

Happy New Year everyone!

I finally got TV installed yesterday. Only 23 days after they were supposed to do the install. :rolleyes:

On my HD DVR I'm only getting the locals and music channels. The installers said it could take a couple of hours for everything to come through but still hasn't. I guess I'll see if they have any support techs on staff today.

Anyone mind answering a couple of questions I have about the FiosTV?

I'm in the Beaverton / Hillsboro area.
I have the 15/2 FiOS Internet.
I have a Comcast Dual Tuner HD-DVR

The HD-DVR outputs via component to my receiver in the living room. A coax cable is then output from the HD-DVR to my upstairs bedroom TV in standard definition (though it's an HD-LCDTV.) I can either watch 2 separate channels on each TV or the same thing on each (how it's currently setup) and access the DVR from both.

My xbox & xbox360 are connected to the internet via a router (using as a bridge) with cable running under the house to my FiOS router.

So I've got 3 cables under the house, 1 coax going TO the HD-DVR, one going FROM the HD-DVR to the second TV, and a line of Cat-5 for internet to the entertainment area (I stream movies/tv shows from my pc to my xbox using XBMC.)

How is FiOS TV connected? Cat-5? Fiber? Cat-9? Coax?

Will I still be able to output to my second bedroom TV like I've currently got it set up?

What, if anything, am I going to have to change in this setup?

I just had my siding replaced and I'm reluctant to drill new holes for new cables, as all the existing stuff is under the siding so the outside looks very clean.

I'm also hesitant to give more money to Verizon since the two customer service calls I've had to make (relating to billing issues) were extremely poor, both times I was told they would look into it (after being transfered several times) and a supervisor would get back to me within 4 hours. Neither time did anyone return my call. Worst customer service I've ever experienced.

Thanks for the help! 17 pages / 500+ posts is a lot to go through.

Here is the wiring connections for the TV portion of the service:

Street to ONT (fiber)
ONT to Router (this is option 1, connection via CAT5 cable)
ONT to splitter (RG6 coax)
Splitter to Router (this is option 2 using RG6 coax - but may be CAT5 instead)
Each tap of the splitter goes to a SetTop using RG6 coax
SetTop to TV (connection type varies, see below)

If you get their HD-DVR SetTop, it outputs either:
1) Component (hd capable)
2) Composite Video
3) HDMI (hd capable)
4) S-Video
5) Firewire (hd capable but may not be enabled, don't know)

There is no RF output F-connector (for RG6 coax) on my HD-DVR. That said, there IS an RF-OUT connector on the non-DVR HD receiver (QIP6200-2). No idea what signal, if any is output here. The motorola manual says it outputs std definition NTSC analog channel 3 or 4 here.

Unless they are using different variations of the motorola HD-DVR boxes, you cannot do what you're doing today with the HD-DVR box.

But they do have a product called "Home Media DVR" which provides the capabilities you are looking for. This product costs a few more dollars; plus you need to pay for an additional set top box for every remote TV you connect. It uses MOCA technology which is essentially digital audio/video transmitted using internet protocol, but it does so over std CATV wiring. But currently this product does not transmit high definition content and it won't down-convert it either. So anything you record in HD on the DVR cannot be played back on a remote TV. However, it works for STD definition content. As long as your house is wired with RG6 and has good splitters, this product can transmit to other boxes in your house across your existing RG6 cabling - even "backwards" through splitters as long as you don't have "too many".

I have heard that Verizon is going to add remote HD capability to the Home Media DVR sometime in 2008.

Thanks for the info HTBruceM,

I was hoping I would be able to go without a set top box upstairs as right now it's just a TV on the wall. Not having HD to the second TV doesn't do me any good either.

Is the quality that good over Comcast? As it stands I would only be saving $20 a month by switching to FiOS, that is if I don't need another set top box, so I guess it wouldn't even be $20 difference.

You will need a box for every tv that you wish to hook up. It's not like basic Comcast where you don't need a box.

Installer arrived at 11:00a.m. on Sat. Dec. 29th, much earlier than the 3:00p.m. to 5:00p.m. that my install window was for (and no warning call that he was on his way, just a knock at the door). Needless to say, I was excited anyway (like Christmas morning all over again).

He had two brand new cablecards in hand for my Series3 TiVo...i had put a lot of information together (gathered from this forum and others) regarding cablecard installations and FiOS, so he was somewhat relieved as he'd done a TiVo HD a few days ago which took him more than three hours.

First he disconnected the Comcastic coming into the house and connected all of my incoming coax to the FiOS. This took about 10-12 minutes.

Put the first card in, waited for the information to come up (2-3 minutes), he entered it into the notebook computer and we waited for the authorization to come through from the headend (which took a good 3-5 minutes for each card). Once it came through, we tested various channels, all coming through nicely.

Put the second card in, same as above...

He was very appreciative of the information I had on hand and that I was so knowledgeable in how to get it working or to know what the proper screens should say in order to know that it was working properly.

He was there about 45 minutes tops and then out the door, leaving us to enjoy the wonderful world of FiOS...my wife...the true judge and jury...can't get enough of Food Network HD, the music channels and the variety of channels for the kids, and has commented to me several times that the network HD channels just look crisper and better than what we had with Comcastic...

I'm very happy with FiOS TV. I noticed some pixelation on the HD feed of the Sugar Bowl last night, so I popped a 12db attenuator on the back of the TiVo and it was gone. Not sure if it was just the HD feed, because I haven't noticed any pixelation on any of the other HD channels. I'll definitely keep any eye on it though. I'm glad I made the switch to FiOS TV.

You will need a box for every tv that you wish to hook up. It's not like basic Comcast where you don't need a box.

I don't have basic Comcast on the second TV, I have the full digital cable on the 2 TV's but only 1 box. The HD-DVR box converts the signal back onto the coax to be viewed on the secondary screen. I can view all my programs off the DVR, browse the guide, on-demand, you name it. Everything I can do on the HD TV with the set-top box in front of it I can do on the other TV. The only difference is I need an IR Signal Repeater (for the remote) and the HD programming isn't in HD.

You will need a box for every tv that you wish to hook up. It's not like basic Comcast where you don't need a box. To get all the programming on a non-cablecard TV, this is correct.

But if you have a digital tuner (qam) in your TV, you will pick up the locals and the music channels without a box or cablecard. I have a 20" vizio on the wall in one room and there is no convenient place for the set top box. Thankfully the vizio has a digital tuner and we can at least get the locals. Including HD locals. The downside is the channel numbers are pretty screwy, like 72.6, 73.97, that sort of thing. Too bad they don't remap these to the OTA broadcast channel numbers. I think they could do this if they wanted, but they don't really have much incentive to make this type of setup attractive; they want to encourage you to pay for their set top box.

If any of your TVs have cablecard, then you can get all the channels you have subscribed to, both HD and non-HD, including premium content. You will be using the TV's channel guide menu - no verizon channel guide, and no on-demand. The cablecard costs about $4 per month. I have a 26" Sony LCD that has cablecard and it works just fine. The channel numbers are all the same as on the set top box. One annoyance... the Sony channel guide only shows the first 8 or so characters of the channel name, so some channels whose name isn't unique until the 12th character or so all appear the same on my TV guide menu. For example, all the various Showtime channels all show up as "SHOWTIME". This might just be a thing with my particular TV though.

Is the quality that good over Comcast? I would say that RIGHT NOW there is no improvement in picture quality over Comcast in the regions where Comcast is all-digital. I think FIOS-TV has a better picture than Comcast in one scenario: where you have an analog TV connected directly to Comcast cable (i.e. no digital set top box). This is something you cannot even do with FIOS-TV.

In theory, Verizon has more headroom to expand their channel lineup in the future without resorting to compression, whereas Comcast may have to compress in the future.

I think both are better than satellite. Satellite providers do way more compression which becomes visible on fast moving content like sports events or action movies.

Honestly, I think we're all pretty "over the top" with the number of broadcast channels available. In my view, the future really lies with the ability of these guys to provide customized content (i.e. like the web) on demand according to individual user tastes. I think Verizon is much better positioned to provide this sort of thing than Comcast due to the increased bandwidth of their fiber network to the home.

I don't have basic Comcast on the second TV, I have the full digital cable on the 2 TV's but only 1 box. The HD-DVR box converts the signal back onto the coax to be viewed on the secondary screen. I can view all my programs off the DVR, browse the guide, on-demand, you name it. Everything I can do on the HD TV with the set-top box in front of it I can do on the other TV. The only difference is I need an IR Signal Repeater (for the remote) and the HD programming isn't in HD.


Can you watch separate live programs on each tv from that one box? I think if your answer is no, and the second tv can't receive any HD would be a deal-breaker for me. You have another HDTV, use it!


Just my opinion.

Can you watch separate live programs on each tv from that one box? I think if your answer is no, and the second tv can't receive any HD would be a deal-breaker for me. You have another HDTV, use it!


Just my opinion.

Yeah I can watch separate programs on each TV if I want to, but I don't. Typically the only time the bedroom TV is on is just before bed. I don't mind not having HDTV on the bedroom TV since it's not used as the primary display and we couldn't tell the difference between the HD picture and non-HD picture anyhow. HD would mean having a box with the TV, and that would ruin the low profile of the display. Also, we don't want to have duplicate DVR's, having everything off one DVR is great.

But I'm pretty sure you'd still need a non-DVR box in the bedroom and use the media center DVR.

Multiple DVR's are nice, but if you don't even run out of room or are able to add storage to an existing DVR, then your situation would fit you perfectly.

I got a call from FIOSTV yesterday. They said that one thing they have is thousands of on demand shows. She said 80% of them are free and many are HD movies. I know a lot of you came from Comcast and wonder how the On Demand compares both in content and free shows. We NEVER pay for On Demand!

I was looking through the on demand sections the other day and I was pretty dissapointed. Comcast had lots of free movies - most of I wasn't too interested in but hey, they were free. There is a free movie section which I found in FIOS but it only has movie extras, previews etc. There were a couple listed under Sundance and a number under Fearnet (I hate those kind of movies!) but nothing else! In the regurlar movie section were all the older movies that are all over TNT/TBS etc. They were all $2.99 each! I couldn't believe it! My beloved FIOS has a big ugly wart! Who in their right mind would pay $3 for "Earnest goes to school" anyway! I couldn't see where the movies that were available in HD were labeled as such but I didn't dig that far. Maybe someone else had better luck looking for this sort of thing.

I got a call from FIOSTV yesterday. They said that one thing they have is thousands of on demand shows. She said 80% of them are free and many are HD movies. I know a lot of you came from Comcast and wonder how the On Demand compares both in content and free shows. We NEVER pay for On Demand!

We've never been much of an On Demand household. Now I may be looking at it wrong but I just paged thru a lot of what Verizon has on demand. I really don't see anything very interesting or compelling. I see about 20 actual movies (at $3.99 ea.) and none in HD. There are a few free "campy" movies from old film festivals. The rest of the free offerings are kids shows or repeats of syndicated shows already aired, like your favorites from the Military Channel, HGTV, etc.

Anyone else see what I am not as far as movies go?

Last time I looked at the free Comcast HD movies (without premium channel content) there were a total of 10 I think. And none of them were newer than 5 years old.

But yeah, you're right... THERE THEY ARE. All 10 of 'em.

Thank you both. As I said, we do not pay for on demand either. She just made a point of saying there were THOUSANDS of on demand items and 80% were free.

Of course she said they had more HBO stations than Comcast as well. OK, I looked at the online guide and so far I have two comments...

1. Only one is HD
2. I speak English

Of course she said they had more HBO stations than Comcast as well. OK, I looked at the online guide and so far I have two comments...

1. Only one is HD
2. I speak English

That's hilarious!! I hear ya....

My biggest complaint with Verizon so far is that the channels seem all over the place - They seemed to be grouped by type, I just want easier access without flipping through a million channels.

Does anyone know why FIOS-TV repeats some channels? Some of them show up in the 100's and again in the 500's.

I would say that RIGHT NOW there is no improvement in picture quality over Comcast in the regions where Comcast is all-digital. I think FIOS-TV has a better picture than Comcast in one scenario: where you have an analog TV connected directly to Comcast cable (i.e. no digital set top box). This is something you cannot even do with FIOS-TV.

I'll give you another scenario: Fox Soccer Channel. Comcast's has constant blocking, as if it's been severely overcompressed. Verizon's has no blocking.

Does anyone know why FIOS-TV repeats some channels? Some of them show up in the 100's and again in the 500's.

I think they have different packages, like Spanish-oriented, but still including some standard English channels. If you have the channel in one package, it is enabled at the channel number of the other packages. I puzzled over this for a while before removing bunches of channels from the TiVos. That certainly improved the searching.

I think they have different packages, like Spanish-oriented, but still including some standard English channels. If you have the channel in one package, it is enabled at the channel number of the other packages. I puzzled over this for a while before removing bunches of channels from the TiVos. That certainly improved the searching.

Yeah, I absolutely can't stand that!!! Multiple channel listings need to be removed!!

I'll give you another scenario: Fox Soccer Channel. Comcast's has constant blocking, as if it's been severely overcompressed. Verizon's has no blocking.

That's interesting. I switched from Dish to Comcast for that reason! FSC had too much compression artifacts on Dish. On Comcast it is quite a bit better, but there are some artifacts (especially around the logo and the scores). Are you saying with FIOS there are no artifacts present? FSC is one of my faves and your assertion could really motivate me to seriously consider FIOS TV.

I finally got TV installed yesterday. Only 23 days after they were supposed to do the install. :rolleyes:

On my HD DVR I'm only getting the locals and music channels. The installers said it could take a couple of hours for everything to come through but still hasn't. I guess I'll see if they have any support techs on staff today.

Thought I'd post an update.

Tues: Didn't get through.

Wed: I got through to tech supt. and the guy put me on hold a few minutes and came back and said he fixed it. I got home from work, checked it...nope, just the locals still. Called back, this tech checks the DVR and notices that it was never activated. He tells me to call the order dept. in the morning and tell them to do a "CO connect".

Thurs: The order dept. lady was very nice. She says she'll get it fixed in 20 mins and throws in 3 mos of movie package for my trouble. 10 mins later she calls back and says the tech needs the receiver serial #, he gets on the call and says that he found it but my order is now showing as completed so he can't activate it. He has to submit a ticket to the order control group to get it activated and that'll take 24 hrs.

Fri: Get home and check...yep fixed! Plus I've got the movie channels!!! :D:D:D

It took almost a full month of wrestling with Verizon to get here but I'm very happy. The SD channels seem as good or possibly slightly better than Dish. The HD I've seen looks very nice. I'm telling every one I know to make the switch.

Personally I see fewer artifacts with FIOS than with Comcast, but it's the DVR interface / TV Guide / additional HD channels that pleases me the most.

Of course the Guide could be more straightforward and the DVR could have more space. What I'd really like to see is the ability to search movies for a widescreen / letterbox tag. I *hate* watching pan and scan, so the non-HD movie channels (excepting a few like IFC and TCM) are mostly a laborious hunt for properly formatted content.

A couple of announcements at CES regarding CableCARD 2.0. Maybe there is a future for it?

In the latest episode of as the cable industry turns, the rumors that CableLabs would rename OpenCable to tru2Way are indeed true. For those keeping track at home, once upon a time the world dreamed of ditching their cable box, but wanted to continue to take advantage of all the services their cable co' forced them to pay for. Then after an act of congress and ten years time; along came CableCARD, but left out VOD and PPV, so we all waited with baited breath for CableCARD 2.0 -- but it never came. But hope wasn't lost, as CableLabs released OCAP, which was marketed as OpenCable, but there was still no love from the industry. So what is CableLabs to do? It does the same thing anyone does when in this predicament; give it a new name. Whether a new name is what's needed to gets things moving remains to be seen, we're at the largest consumer electronics show in the US this week and although we've yet to see any tru2way enabled HDTVs or DVRs just yet, we'll keep you posted.
OpenCable officially becomes tru2way (http://www.engadget.com/2008/01/07/opencable-officially-becomes-true2way/)

While we're all a little new to tru2way, Panasonic isn't wasting anytime integrating the newly renamed CableCARD 2.0 standard into its TVs. We hope this will revitalize CableCARD, which had been dropped from just about every manufacture's lineup. The big difference this time around is that now your CableCARD enabled HDTV can take advantage of VOD and PPV. But before you get any bright ideas that your home media experience will drastically approve, keep in mind that these sets will run about the same software that your cable box does in what is know as the miracle of OCAP.
Panasonic first to announce HDTVs featuring tru2way (http://www.engadget.com/2008/01/07/panasonic-first-to-announce-hdtvs-featuring-tru2way/)

I just received my first bill for my new tv service. Verizon pre-bills for the next month, so I received a bill for Dec 17-27 (partial month) + next month (Dec 28-Jan 27). My last full month's bill for Phone, internet and cell was just over $130. The total bill was for my new service including tv was over $275 (a difference more than $145). You can see my original post on 11/14/07 regarding what I was promised at the time I signed up.

After multiple calls, here's what I found out. The "bundle discount" is not currently available, although it is being sold to new customers. They hope it will become available in February.

Second, the $12.99 I was quoted for the HD DVR boxes was incorrect. The price is $15.99 each.

Third, the "movie package bundle" was not entered correctly, so I was missing that discount of almost $9/month.

Fourth, the CSR that took my order upgraded me to 15/2 internet service, although that service was never installed (I already had 5/2 service and kept that in my new package). The bill just didn't reflect the service I actually had.

Needless to say, things are still not entirely right with those folks yet. Check you bill and ask for a superviser when you call. the ordinary CSRs are not authorized to give you the type of credits you're entitled to.

Good luck.

I just received my first bill for my new tv service. Verizon pre-bills for the next month, so I received a bill for Dec 17-27 (partial month) + next month (Dec 28-Jan 27). My last full month's bill for Phone, internet and cell was just over $130. The total bill was for my new service including tv was over $275 (a difference more than $145). You can see my original post on 11/14/07 regarding what I was promised at the time I signed up.

After multiple calls, here's what I found out. The "bundle discount" is not currently available, although it is being sold to new customers. They hope it will become available in February.

Second, the $12.99 I was quoted for the HD DVR boxes was incorrect. The price is $15.99 each.

Third, the "movie package bundle" was not entered correctly, so I was missing that discount of almost $9/month.

Fourth, the CSR that took my order upgraded me to 15/2 internet service, although that service was never installed (I already had 5/2 service and kept that in my new package). The bill just didn't reflect the service I actually had.

Needless to say, things are still not entirely right with those folks yet. Check you bill and ask for a superviser when you call. the ordinary CSRs are not authorized to give you the type of credits you're entitled to.

Good luck.

Yep, every order that originally went through as a phone upgrade and adding tv was cancelled due to the bundling issue. If you simply added tv to whatever services you already had from Verizon, the order went through. I'll just bundle it all together in Feb once the bundles become available.

So far so good with the tv, but their customer service clearly has issues to work out.

Personally I see fewer artifacts with FIOS than with Comcast, but it's the DVR interface / TV Guide / additional HD channels that pleases me the most.That sounds more like what I would expect based on nearly unanimous opinion from the fios thread in the HD Programming forum. Comcast does pass through full resolution but they are still subject to compression issues. If I understand correctly Verizon does not need to compress at all, so any artifacts you see would likely be in the content provider source feeds.


ron

I just received my first bill for my new tv service. Verizon pre-bills for the next month, so I received a bill for Dec 17-27 (partial month) + next month (Dec 28-Jan 27). My last full month's bill for Phone, internet and cell was just over $130. The total bill was for my new service including tv was over $275 (a difference more than $145). You can see my original post on 11/14/07 regarding what I was promised at the time I signed up.

After multiple calls, here's what I found out. The "bundle discount" is not currently available, although it is being sold to new customers. They hope it will become available in February.

Second, the $12.99 I was quoted for the HD DVR boxes was incorrect. The price is $15.99 each.

Third, the "movie package bundle" was not entered correctly, so I was missing that discount of almost $9/month.

Fourth, the CSR that took my order upgraded me to 15/2 internet service, although that service was never installed (I already had 5/2 service and kept that in my new package). The bill just didn't reflect the service I actually had.

Needless to say, things are still not entirely right with those folks yet. Check you bill and ask for a superviser when you call. the ordinary CSRs are not authorized to give you the type of credits you're entitled to.

Good luck.

I'm expecting that the bill will be screwed up. With the way they screwed up on everything else there's no way they could figure out how to do that correctly. :p

Did you get a credit equal to the bundle credit?

Yep, every order that originally went through as a phone upgrade and adding tv was cancelled due to the bundling issue. If you simply added tv to whatever services you already had from Verizon, the order went through. I'll just bundle it all together in Feb once the bundles become available.

So far so good with the tv, but their customer service clearly has issues to work out.

Ah that's what happened. The CSR told me I wasn't the only one having the order problem but never told me what the cause was.

My original order was supposed to be for a tv only upgrade, as I already had phone and internet. Clearly she couldn't process it in that fashion, so she ran it through as a new order, which explained why I had three different installers arrive at my house prior to the tv install to install phone and internet. Each was surprised to find a FIOS box on my house already.

As far as I can tell, the credits I received will make up for the bundle discount, plus some. They added an additional discretionary credit to my phone service to account for the inability to put it on the tv side of things. The credit will continue for 12 months, regardless of when the bundle pricing becomes available.

Hi all,

Got FIOS TV on Dec 13th. Been working well, I much perfer the interface and DVR function better than Comcast. But.......

During the football games on Sunday there were quite a few times where the picture froze for several seconds then caught back up.

Has anyone else had this issue?

Thanks

It's channel 12 (801)'s problem, although I didn't notice very many breakups last night compared to the previous games on Fox, including the NFL.

Last night was okay for the few minutes I watched, but in general, I've seen a bit of pixelation on Fox 12, that I'm none too happy with, especially over the weekend and during the Georgia/Hawaii game last week.

I've got a 12db attenuator on right now, I put it on during the G/H game, and noticed some difference, but nothing to write home about as significant improvement...

most of the pixelation I've seen is strictly on the local HD channels...mostly 801 and 806...and I haven't had any issues on the national HD channels...I tivo'd Desperate Housewives on 802 on Sunday night and there wasn't any noticeable pixelation/picture freezing.

I've got a 12db, a 10db, and a splitter which is basically a 2-3db. SNR is 31-32 which is the optimum level for the TiVo's. You might try another attenuator with your 12.

My channel signal level is low 70's with the 24/25db, anything above 45 should be just fine.

It's channel 12 (801)'s problem, although I didn't notice very many breakups last night compared to the previous games on Fox, including the NFL.

I'm getting the audio breakups on KGW tonight. First on the local news at 5:00 and again on the network news at 5:30.

rifleman: Just wondering how you concluded it was 801's problem? Did you catch it OTA or on their non-HD channel? I've been having the issue while watching the bowl games on 801 from my DVR. I was thinking maybe it was a problem with the DVR itself - maybe bad sectors on the drive. Then I saw it on live coverage on 806 football this weekend. That was just audio breaks and not the video freeze I saw from 801.

So now I am in a quandry as to whether it's the broadcast or maybe the buffer in the DVR. I watched the live BCS title game on 801 last night and there it was again.

Bottom line is I'm having problems getting clean reception for 801, 806, and 808 via FiOS. And I have to play detective to figure out if I have an issue with Verizon!!?? Makes me think of the troubleshooting days when we had OTA only. Only now there are so many more things between the source and my couch.

I'm getting the audio breakups on KGW tonight. First on the local news at 5:00 and again on the network news at 5:30.

rifleman: Just wondering how you concluded it was 801's problem? Did you catch it OTA or on their non-HD channel? I've been having the issue while watching the bowl games on 801 from my DVR. I was thinking maybe it was a problem with the DVR itself - maybe bad sectors on the drive. Then I saw it on live coverage on 806 football this weekend. That was just audio breaks and not the video freeze I saw from 801.

So now I am in a quandry as to whether it's the broadcast or maybe the buffer in the DVR. I watched the live BCS title game on 801 last night and there it was again.

Bottom line is I'm having problems getting clean reception for 801, 806, and 808 via FiOS. And I have to play detective to figure out if I have an issue with Verizon!!?? Makes me think of the troubleshooting days when we had OTA only. Only now there are so many more things between the source and my couch.


My antenna can't pick up KPTV that well so I couldn't tell at my house. At another house (and the gym) did I see some of the same stuttering on both the non-HD channel and HD...with the content being provided by Comcast.

I've got a 12db, a 10db, and a splitter which is basically a 2-3db. SNR is 31-32 which is the optimum level for the TiVo's. You might try another attenuator with your 12.

My channel signal level is low 70's with the 24/25db, anything above 45 should be just fine.

I took off the 12db and put on a 20db...this dropped my signal level into the mid-50's and my SNR to 28-29 range...wasn't too happy with that, so took the 20db off, put the 12db + 6db on and voila! signal level in the mid 70's and SNR at 31-32...

Thanks for the input and I can't say enough how much I'm enjoying my FiOS TV with my Series 3 TiVo...not to mention the wishlist feature of searching for HD + Movies and having it pull up every HD movie showing for the next two weeks and building a virtual movie library right on my TiVo...

add in CSN NW by the end of the month, and additional hd channels in the spring/summer and it's going to be that much more amazing...

buddy of mine is already counting the days until his DTV contract is up in May.

I am hearing the crackling sound on 808 (and I believe I heard it on just plain 8 before I went to bed too) during the news and other shows. The weird thing is that when you rewind the tivo and play it back, the crackling is not there. Have seen that others have experienced it on non-FiOS systems so I'm assuming that it's on KGW's end.

Watched a good TiVo'd portion of 808 (NBC) last night, and didn't notice any click in the audio...

Yeah I don't notice it on actual NBC content, just KGW content like the news and consequently Oprah (hear it from the wife and in-laws).

I posted in the OTA thread about the noise on KGW being back...at least on Comcast!

Ok this morning was changing around the channels and came up on Discovery HD Theater. TiVo was looking for any type of a signal on that channel. Checked out the diagnostics and I wasn't receiving anything on the channel at all. Removed the splitter and 808 was then coming in at 31-32 SNR but Discovery was still much lower at 29 and breaking up all over the place.

I hope Verizon starts regulating the signal they put out, having it bounce around all over the place is rather annoying.

Interesting. I haven't experienced any changes in quality of audio or video with FIOS, but then again I'm using the Verizon DVR. Could it be more than just the signal that is the problem here? Is there some kind of channel 'discriminator' in the Verizon box that isn't in the TIVO?

TiVo is definitely more sensitive than any of the Motorola boxes. I just have never seen SNR numbers that low on my setup for the last week no matter what time of day.

Ok this morning was changing around the channels and came up on Discovery HD Theater. TiVo was looking for any type of a signal on that channel. Checked out the diagnostics and I wasn't receiving anything on the channel at all. Removed the splitter and 808 was then coming in at 31-32 SNR but Discovery was still much lower at 29 and breaking up all over the place.

I hope Verizon starts regulating the signal they put out, having it bounce around all over the place is rather annoying.

Maybe since Discovery HD Theater isn't listed on the current channel lineup Verizon hands out with installs (Nov. 2007) they don't feel all that compelled to provide a steady signal. We've watched a number of programs on it and there have been no problems coming in via my 6416.

OK, how about Verizon keep rates steady and forego any rate increase soon by reducing their marketing expenses. The other day in the mail I got a priority mail, heavy cardboard, 9 X 12 mailer posted at full-rate first class that contained a single page letter and the aforementioned Channel Lineup sheet. It was inviting me to find out more about FiOS TV that was now available in my area. Yesterday, we got an automated telephone solicitation with the same message. (I pressed the appropriate numbers to talk with a sales rep but was then told all sales agents were busy and to call back later!! Amazing!)

Now how difficult could it be to weed out current subscribers before blanketing a marketing blitz? They know who we are. Jeez!

Maybe since Discovery HD Theater isn't listed on the current channel lineup Verizon hands out with installs (Nov. 2007) they don't feel all that compelled to provide a steady signal. We've watched a number of programs on it and there have been no problems coming in via my 6416.

OK, how about Verizon keep rates steady and forego any rate increase soon by reducing their marketing expenses. The other day in the mail I got a priority mail, heavy cardboard, 9 X 12 mailer posted at full-rate first class that contained a single page letter and the aforementioned Channel Lineup sheet. It was inviting me to find out more about FiOS TV that was now available in my area. Yesterday, we got an automated telephone solicitation with the same message. (I pressed the appropriate numbers to talk with a sales rep but was then told all sales agents were busy and to call back later!! Amazing!)

Now how difficult could it be to weed out current subscribers before blanketing a marketing blitz? They know who we are. Jeez!

Yep, we received all of those as well. The guy was shocked that we had the tv already.

I got that same mailing. Also, three of the last four days, I've gotten "ghost" calls from an area code 309 number, with a caller-id of "Verizon". I wonder if those are fios tv marketing calls, where the computer guessed wrong about the availability of a sales person.

How do I tell the strength of signal coming in? I've got pixelation on 801 that I can't stand as well as on some others.....Never have an issue on channels like NGHD and similar.

Ok this morning was changing around the channels and came up on Discovery HD Theater. TiVo was looking for any type of a signal on that channel. Checked out the diagnostics and I wasn't receiving anything on the channel at all. Removed the splitter and 808 was then coming in at 31-32 SNR but Discovery was still much lower at 29 and breaking up all over the place.

I hope Verizon starts regulating the signal they put out, having it bounce around all over the place is rather annoying. If I were having this problem, I would first suspect a problem in my coax wiring somewhere. I suggest you first try using different coax cables to see if you can isolate it to a particular cable segment.

Regarding splitters, I've switched all my splitters to the 0-2000MHZ variety.

Maybe since Discovery HD Theater isn't listed on the current channel lineup Verizon hands out with installs (Nov. 2007) they don't feel all that compelled to provide a steady signal. We've watched a number of programs on it and there have been no problems coming in via my 6416.


I don't like quoting myself but wanted to post a correction about my statement above. It was Discovery HD on 846 I was thinking about here, and not Discovery Theater HD on 836. Sorry for the error.

Has anyone gotten cablecards installed in the last week or two? I have a TiVO HD on the way, and I need to schedule the install for the cablecards.

I was wondering if the techs have gotten better at the card installs?

Thanks,
Rob

Has anyone gotten cablecards installed in the last week or two? I have a TiVO HD on the way, and I need to schedule the install for the cablecards.

I was wondering if the techs have gotten better at the card installs?

Thanks,
Rob

Had mine installed on Dec. 29th, and it was the installer's 2nd go at cablecards...if you're prepared (by knowing what the screens should say when the cablecards are activated) it will be your biggest benefit to help the installer. All in all he was there and gone in about 45 minutes.

Make sure the installer takes down the cablecard serial info before inserting each card.

Additionally, don't get impatient waiting for the cablecard screen to appear once the card is inserted (give it a good 2-3 minutes). Also, once the installer submits the appropriate info to the headend, it's going to take a few minutes (5-10) before you get to see a channel and subsequently test various channel ranges once you are able to do so...if you get a 161-4 error, it can be safely ignored.

(repeat for cablecard 2)...do not install both cards at the same time...

My installer was very appreciative of my upfront knowledge on cablecard installation.

Run guided setup after he leaves, not while he's there...no reason to do so...

I don't like quoting myself but wanted to post a correction about my statement above. It was Discovery HD on 846 I was thinking about here, and not Discovery Theater HD on 836. Sorry for the error.


Just checked the of the channel guide that the installer gave us and the one we got in the mail and both of them had Discovery HD 846. Didn't check the date of the mailed one, but the installer copy was dated Nov 2007.

It doesn't surprise me that much with Verizon.

If I were having this problem, I would first suspect a problem in my coax wiring somewhere. I suggest you first try using different coax cables to see if you can isolate it to a particular cable segment.

Regarding splitters, I've switched all my splitters to the 0-2000MHZ variety.


Will try another coaxial from the wall to the TiVo, not a fan of running new cable down the side of my house.

I did notice that the pixellating is also on UHD, I didn't check that channel originally.

An FYI in case anybody has the same problem:

I got home last night and didn't have a picture but had sound coming from the receiver. (I'm using HDMI to my TV and optical to the receiver.) I tried turning things off & on, and reseating the HDMI, but no picture. I then unplugged the DVR waited 1 minute then plugged it back in. That was it!

That's interesting. I switched from Dish to Comcast for that reason! FSC had too much compression artifacts on Dish. On Comcast it is quite a bit better, but there are some artifacts (especially around the logo and the scores). Are you saying with FIOS there are no artifacts present? FSC is one of my faves and your assertion could really motivate me to seriously consider FIOS TV.

There are still artifacts with Verizon. They're more noticeable on my LCD than the CRT RPTV (both HD). The major difference is that Comcast would have massive blocks in areas of solid color and more defined garbage around everything. With Verizon, everything looks smoother.

There is still another sign of over-compression though: stray pixels around any object. This is especially noticable when the camera is showing many players on the field and they are small. They look like they're surrounded by a swarm of something :-)

I'm not sure I'd switch for this level of improvement. I would (and did) switch because this and other sports channels I watch (Speed TV, NFL Network) are in the regular package (extra with Comcast) and the regular package is priced less than Comcast's.

I've attached two pictures, one Verizon through TiVo and Comcast through Moto 3416.

These are taken from my 57" 1080i CRT RPTV with my 8 MP camera at 3264x2448 JPG, then scaled down to 1024x768 JPG. There's obviously plenty of room for variation between the two different DVRs and me snapping pictures of a CRT. Video Smoothing was turned off on the TiVo. Verizon's Moto boxes might look different.

Hi all,

Got FIOS TV on Dec 13th. Been working well, I much perfer the interface and DVR function better than Comcast. But.......

During the football games on Sunday there were quite a few times where the picture froze for several seconds then caught back up.

Has anyone else had this issue?

Thanks

Yes (talking about last week) on Fox, the Giants/Bucs game, with TiVo HD. I was watching most of the game on one. I had recorded it on the other TiVo HD as well and after the game, let it play from the beginning and it also exhibited the problem, so I conclude that it's coming from the bitstream.

What I see is usually a glitch of some kind, picture and sound, then normally everything runs in a real time mode that looks like slo-mo, ie. it slows, then catches up in each second. Sometimes the audio would get completely out-of-sync. I usually fixed this by hitting the rewind button after about 10 seconds, less and the glitch would happen again.

I think I've only seen this on Fox HD. I remember it happened the weekend before as well.

Yes (talking about last week) on Fox, the Giants/Bucs game, with TiVo HD. I was watching most of the game on one. I had recorded it on the other TiVo HD as well and after the game, let it play from the beginning and it also exhibited the problem, so I conclude that it's coming from the bitstream.

What I see is usually a glitch of some kind, picture and sound, then normally everything runs in a real time mode that looks like slo-mo, ie. it slows, then catches up in each second. Sometimes the audio would get completely out-of-sync. I usually fixed this by hitting the rewind button after about 10 seconds, less and the glitch would happen again.

I think I've only seen this on Fox HD. I remember it happened the weekend before as well.


Noticed that during the BCS bowl games. Haven't noticed it during the NFL though.

during halftime of the pack/seachicks I noticed there was no signal coming in on National Geographic HD or Discovery HD...interesting, but two channels, I'm not desperate for programming on this afternoon anyway...

The installer was to come between 8AM and 10AM, and he called right (about) at 8:00AM. My roomie was called out of town that morning so I watched the guy do all of the work. Of course, living in an apartment, I had to clear out the bedroom closet so he could install the ONT. This is where the fiber lines were installed several months earlier.

The install went well, got the ONT mounted on the closet wall, ran copper phone cable to both the AC adapter unit and the bedroom phone jack along the top of the walls. He even replaced the jack too. Not too great looking (being gray colored wire) but could be touched up with a little white paint.

We have a trap door to access the crawl space under the building in the base of the closet. He ran coax down through the floor and tied into the existing Comcast wiring, connected the Router, and set up both set top boxes (Moto 6416 HD-DVR and a Moto 2500 SD box).

After that, everything was working pretty well, the internet came in on my computer. But then trouble started. He tried to run the install software on my PC from his flash drive and the Router kept giving us a log in error. Would log in the first time but then got an error that no more then five sessions can be logged at one time, when only one was actually going. He changed the Router twice, and the ONT once. He then got the headend to do a DHCP release and that worked at first. But the Router would not properly connect and give a green Internet light. After some trouble shooting, he got it to work. Once that problem was resolved, the STB's worked great.

We have had it for over a week and really like it. Internet has been good, the 2 Mbps really works great for peer to peer software among others. Phone is good. Our VoIP service works great too. FiOS TV comes in crystal clear on both Standard Def TVs (don't have HDTV yet). The DVR is pretty good. Its a bit sluggish compared to the DirecTV Tivo I used to use at my parents place, but it works quite good. I use the skip a head/back feature more then the scan forward/reverse, since its a little herky jerky and the faster speed (four arrows) is not easy to control. I sure enjoy the great selection of channels, been wanting the America Life TV (formerly Good Life TV) channel for a long time since I left C-Band TV (and it left analog C-Band). Of course, Boomerang is a welcome sight too, cheap ass Comcast.

Now I just hope they give us the 10 Mbps/2Mbps Internet soon (and if they upgrade the 15 Mbps/2 Mbps to 20 Mbps/5 Mbps, my peer2peer BitT would hit warp speed. Any news on when or if they will do that?

Glad to be part the FiOS community. Later All.

Today's NFL games were pretty much fine (the picture/audio that is). The second game had a few minor breakups, but nothing that affected the playback going forward like last weekend.

I've attached two pictures, one Verizon through TiVo and Comcast through Moto 3416.

These are taken from my 57" 1080i CRT RPTV with my 8 MP camera at 3264x2448 JPG, then scaled down to 1024x768 JPG. There's obviously plenty of room for variation between the two different DVRs and me snapping pictures of a CRT. Video Smoothing was turned off on the TiVo. Verizon's Moto boxes might look different.

Thanks for the pics. Given all the caveats, I can see that Verizon's FSC broadcast does look a bit more refined than Comcast's. I wonder about the actual SD resolution being sent out by the two!

OK, I called this morning to get two cablecards for my HD TiVO. The rep said that as of "last week" they can just send out the cards. Should I expect a call back from Verizon telling me that they actually need to roll a truck? I think I read that earlier in the thread...

I put in a similar request, and got a similar response, last week. I haven't received them yet. Looking at their online order status site, it shows 66% complete (whatever that means) with a due date of 1/23.

We'll see if the cards show up.

OK, I called this morning to get two cablecards for my HD TiVO. The rep said that as of "last week" they can just send out the cards. Should I expect a call back from Verizon telling me that they actually need to roll a truck? I think I read that earlier in the thread...

They didn't train their technicians at all for cable card installs. Most were trained down near Pasadena and I think only one of them asked should they know how to do cable card installs. Food for thought.


My guess is that they can let the customer activate the cable cards on the phone than waste a technicians time.

ready for CSN NW? January is half over and I'm wondering if FiOS TV is actually going to add the channel this month (or by the end of the month) as previously stated...I guess we'll know in the next 16 days.

Each night I get home from work and I don't have a message on my TiVo that says "your channel lineup has changed" is one more night I'm hunting online to find a video feed of the Blazers game (thank God for that 15/2 internet)...

Anyway, if anyone has any insider knowledge of when this channel's going to be added and is free to share anonymously, please do so...definitely interested in the HD feed of Blazer games by CSN NW too.

Yeah on a similar line, I wonder if Verizon will have a channel 95 on DirecTV that shows HD stuff, of which most you must subscribe to the corresponding subscription service (like NBA League Pass or NHL Center Ice) or even that Mojo channel on Comcast.

I couldn't find the answer searching this thread or on other threads, does FIOS TV roll out in Washington County have the new IMG? I'm reading on other posts that not all of Verizon FiosTV areas are running the new guide.

My install date is for tomorrow and I'm curious (eagerly waiting) to see what it looks like compared to Comcast.

Just announced:

http://blog.oregonlive.com/playbooksandprofits/2008/01/blazerscomcast_sportsnet_on_ve.html

Blazers/Comcast SportsNet on Verizon today
Posted by Playbooks and Profits blog January 16, 2008 13:25PM
Categories: Portland Trail Blazers, Television

Just in time for tonight's big Trail Blazers-Celtics game, Verizon Communications Inc. announced today that Comcast SportsNet Northwest is now up on its channel lineup. It's Channel 66, spokesman Kevin Laverty said. Recall, The Oregonian's Silicon Forest blog reported that a technical glitch delayed the network's appearance on Verizon's FiOS TV service. Read blog author Mike Rogoway's coverage about Verizon's service here and here.
Nothing new, however, on Comcast's inability to get the network carried by other cable providers in Oregon.

Just announced:

http://blog.oregonlive.com/playbooksandprofits/2008/01/blazerscomcast_sportsnet_on_ve.html





Sweet, hopefully the TiVo picks up this guide change when I get home tonight.

I've attached two pictures, one Verizon through TiVo and Comcast through Moto 3416.

These are taken from my 57" 1080i CRT RPTV with my 8 MP camera at 3264x2448 JPG, then scaled down to 1024x768 JPG. There's obviously plenty of room for variation between the two different DVRs and me snapping pictures of a CRT. Video Smoothing was turned off on the TiVo. Verizon's Moto boxes might look different.So what's your assessment of the HD channel comparison? Are you seeing any compression issues on the HD cable channels over fios (ie, ESPN-HD, HD-Theater etc)?


ron

Just announced:

http://blog.oregonlive.com/playbooksandprofits/2008/01/blazerscomcast_sportsnet_on_ve.htmlThat is good news! Missing all these Blazer games (or having to watch them on you computer :)) would definitely be a bummer. Will be interesting to see what they do about the HD CSN games now...


ron

The TiVo did not pick up channel 66 in the guide yet, but CSNW is live on FiOS!

The "normal" process for a new channel showing up in the TiVo guide has to wait for the provider (Verizon) to tell Tribune (Tivo's guide supplier), and then the Tribune to tell Tivo.

You can likely speed this up by submitting a channel lineup change notice from the TiVo web site.

So what's your assessment of the HD channel comparison? Are you seeing any compression issues on the HD cable channels over fios (ie, ESPN-HD, HD-Theater etc)?


ron

Only the occasional artifact, but as far as I can tell it's at least as good if not better than Comcast. However I'm using Verizon's DVR / STB, and some people with Tivo's seem to have a different experience.

The "normal" process for a new channel showing up in the TiVo guide has to wait for the provider (Verizon) to tell Tribune (Tivo's guide supplier), and then the Tribune to tell Tivo.

You can likely speed this up by submitting a channel lineup change notice from the TiVo web site.


Had to add the channel manually from the channels received list, guide info will probably show up in the next couple of days.

The TiVo did not pick up channel 66 in the guide yet, but CSNW is live on FiOS!

That was a nice surprise. Too bad the Blazers couldn't pull off a W. :(

I hope we get the HD channel soon also.

I couldn't find the answer searching this thread or on other threads, does FIOS TV roll out in Washington County have the new IMG? I'm reading on other posts that not all of Verizon FiosTV areas are running the new guide.

My install date is for tomorrow and I'm curious (eagerly waiting) to see what it looks like compared to Comcast.

Yes in Oregon everyone has the new IMG / guide. In fact at this point, all Verizon users should have the new guide (they rolled it out to the last of the IPG areas during the last two nights).

Cheers!
D

Had to add the channel manually from the channels received list, guide info will probably show up in the next couple of days.

I submitted a Lineup Change form to TiVo to let them know the channel's been added and to start providing Guide Info for CSN NW.

So excited, and now, can't wait for the HD Blazer home games to be added.

I submitted a Lineup Change form to TiVo to let them know the channel's been added and to start providing Guide Info for CSN NW.

So excited, and now, can't wait for the HD Blazer home games to be added.

Don't hold your breath for HD games, Verizon still doesn't have a channel dedicated for that yet. Really surprised they don't have a Mojo channel (Comcast) or a channel 94/95 (DirecTV) yet.

Don't hold your breath for HD games, Verizon still doesn't have a channel dedicated for that yet. Really surprised they don't have a Mojo channel (Comcast) or a channel 94/95 (DirecTV) yet.

I asked this question on the Verizon FiOS TV Master Programming Thread of East Coast users, and a couple of people responded and said it's a dedicated channel (unlike MOJO) and one responder said it lands on channel 829...and another said it is a dedicated channel at least in markets on the east coast (showing upconverted SD programming - w/ sidebars and HD programming/games when available).

Only the occasional artifact, but as far as I can tell it's at least as good if not better than Comcast. However I'm using Verizon's DVR / STB, and some people with Tivo's seem to have a different experience.Boy, I would hope so... Comcast HD is pretty good, but under high demand programming it still shows some pixelation which I really doubt is from the provider feeds (not including some of the local HD channel feeds where it most definitely is)


ron

Only the occasional artifact, but as far as I can tell it's at least as good if not better than Comcast. However I'm using Verizon's DVR / STB, and some people with Tivo's seem to have a different experience.

Most of the artifacts on the TiVo's are from the signal being too hot. Once you attenuate the signal down, the picture is great!

I attenuated down to 32/33 as 31 (what others have said nationally that work for them) dropped a few channels way too low for viewing (Discovery HD Theater and Universal HD).

How can you tell how strong of a signal is coming in?

I submitted a Lineup Change form to TiVo to let them know the channel's been added and to start providing Guide Info for CSN NW.

So excited, and now, can't wait for the HD Blazer home games to be added.

Too bad I missed being able to watch last night's game. I only now checked this thread and saw the good news. Why can't Verizon give us a message in the IMG message folder about this? Don't they know there's a light on the STB for this? You have to subscribe to all kinds of RSS feeds and stay alert to threads and services like AVS in order to find out news that Verizon has every ability to communicate to their subscriber base. That's just poor support. :mad:

Thanks for the heads up, jtrain.

Too bad I missed being able to watch last night's game. I only now checked this thread and saw the good news. Why can't Verizon give us a message in the IMG message folder about this? Don't they know there's a light on the STB for this? You have to subscribe to all kinds of RSS feeds and stay alert to threads and services like AVS in order to find out news that Verizon has every ability to communicate to their subscriber base. That's just poor support. :mad:

Thanks for the heads up, jtrain.

Well, what's funny is that I was in fact watching the first half of the game on my computer screen...then I had to run out for the evening...I didn't know until I logged on here this morning that it had in fact been added yesterday afternoon. I'm hoping the guide data shows up sooner than later through TiVo/Tribune and also that the HD channel arrives shortly (as in when the Blazers get off this road trip and get home to the Rose Garden for their next scheduled game on CSN NW).

Re self install of cable cards; I've had such an order pending since 1/9. Today when I got home there was a message on my answering machine saying they couldn't do it; a technician had to be sent out. They would do that at no charge though.

Unfortunately I forgot to write down the number to call (it wasn't the general fios number; it was a toll free number starting with 448 (I think); I'll try to find out tomorrow.)

Does anyone know if a residence in Washington county with a "technically" Portland address can get Fios TV?

On the Beaverton map we live in Beaverton, our schools are Beaverton, but our mailing address says Portland, OR.

Anyone??

Did you input your phone number and/or address into Verizon's webpage?


http://www.verizonfios.com/tv

Does anyone know if a residence in Washington county with a "technically" Portland address can get Fios TV?

On the Beaverton map we live in Beaverton, our schools are Beaverton, but our mailing address says Portland, OR.

Anyone??

Who do you get (landline) phone service from? If Verizon, then you may (and I stress *may*) be in luck.

Also, does the verizon.com/fiostv qualifier say yea or nay?

We don't have a landline at our house and I'm not sure who provides service - I'd guess Quest.

The "qualifier" doesn't work with my address - gives me the instructions to call. Calling has left me mostly confused because they just reply "if you're in Portland, then no" but then I say I'm in Washington county and they get confused, too...

I guess I pretty much feel the answer is no, but being in an "ambiguous" area of "Portland" and in Wa. Co., I'm hoping I might be an exception. Comcast's quality and pricing is getting harder to take! :rolleyes:

If it doesn't work with your address, I imagine you're out of luck. There's a decent amount of eastern Washington County that's not considered Portland that has Qwest as the phone company. My parents are in your situation, Portland address but are in the Beaverton School District and are west of 217. They're getting installed a week from tomorrow with tv as Verizon is the local phone carrier.


Are you north of Sunset Highway (more than likely a yes on tv) or are you like near Raleigh Hills (most likely a no on tv)?

Does anyone know if a residence in Washington county with a "technically" Portland address can get Fios TV?

On the Beaverton map we live in Beaverton, our schools are Beaverton, but our mailing address says Portland, OR.

I live in Tigard. My zip is 97224. When I provide the zip code to various entities they show me as being in Tigard, King City, or Portland, depending on the software they're using to translate the zip I imagine. So for some companies my mailing address shows up as Portland, but I just got FiOS installed this week.

Are you north of Sunset Highway (more than likely a yes on tv) or are you like near Raleigh Hills (most likely a no on tv)?

We are literally at 217 and 26, on the east side of 217 and the south side of 26. I think I'm out of luck as I've confirmed Qwest would be our phone co. My neighbor said we are "unincorporated Portland." If you go to Washington Co.'s website and download the map of Beaverton, we are IN Beaverton - yikes - my head hurts! :confused:

Beware! Read your bill in detail. I downloaded my 13 page OneBill which now included for the first time my FiOS TV charges. A couple of things were evident. First, there was an item called "FiOS TV Installment Billing" at $6.67, the detail for which said:

"Service Request Number XXXX, Installment Billing Arrangement #XXXX 03 Charges Applied to your Installment Plan, Your Charges Will Be Billed in 3 Installments - Balance Remaining is $13.32"

I called and spoke with a surprisingly competent agent who immediately acknowledged that this was for installation of the service and that I should not have been billed for it. She is giving me a credit for that - it should not have appeared.

I also questioned the length of my package contract since I didn't have any confirmation of what I was getting as a result of arranging for all this (FiOS TV added to my land line, wireless and internet services) and how it was going to be priced as a package. It doesn't really show on the statement as each element is reported and billed separately. And, my, what a statement! No wonder they want you to sign up for online billing. Anyway, she said she was reconstructing my Freedom Essentials package to show the discounts and I would be able to retrieve that by tomorrow at verizon.net/FiOSbundleterms. We'll see what I get. YMMV

BTW, the Blazers are looking great tonight in HD on ESPN.

Still trying to figure out how to tell how strong of a singal I've got coming in. I've got a problem with artifacts on various channels.....

Are you using a Tivo? If so, just goto the diagnostics screen.

Are you using a Tivo? If so, just goto the diagnostics screen.

naw, no tivo over here......

I had the HDMI connection on my DVR go out again last night. Had to unplug it to get it to work again. Anybody else having this problem? I hope it doesn't turn into a major problem.

I had the HDMI connection on my DVR go out again last night. Had to unplug it to get it to work again. Anybody else having this problem? I hope it doesn't turn into a major problem.

I think there are some known problems with HDMI connections generally and with certain TV makes particularly. I did a quick search in the Verizon FiOS general thread and came up with this page. http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=12459599&highlight=hdmi#post12459599

Search further and you may find your particular situation discussed. One other possible solution - keep your STB on all the time. Keep the HDMI handshakes between your TV and the STB to a minimum.

guide info on their TiVo for CSN NW yet? Even after submitting a lineup change form to TiVo last Thursday, I'm still not receiving guide data as of this morning. I'm not sure who's court this is in (Verizon or CSN NW)...I know it's not TiVo's because they're aware the channel's been added, so they're not receiving the guide data properly from either CSN or Verizon...

K. Laverty...if you're peeking around on this thread please look into this! If you're waiting for the HD version of CSN NW to come online before the guide data is submitted to Tribune/TiVo (I'll be patient then)...the more HD the better in my opinion...and I'm very happy with the service overall!

A buddy of mine contacted me last night out of the blue as he's thinking of taking the plunge to FiOS TV from Comcastic...and I think I had him convinced.

Does FiOS TV have a plan to get into the apartment housing market in Beaverton/WA County? My brother is a current renter but his only option is Comcastic...and needless to say, he'd love to have FiOS TV.

I think there are some known problems with HDMI connections generally and with certain TV makes particularly. I did a quick search in the Verizon FiOS general thread and came up with this page. http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=12459599&highlight=hdmi#post12459599

Search further and you may find your particular situation discussed. One other possible solution - keep your STB on all the time. Keep the HDMI handshakes between your TV and the STB to a minimum.

Thanks for the search - guess I should've thought about searching the other Verizon threads. :o

I do leave the DVR on all the time but not the TV - gotta conserve those LED hours. ;)

Does FiOS TV have a plan to get into the apartment housing market in Beaverton/WA County? My brother is a current renter but his only option is Comcastic...and needless to say, he'd love to have FiOS TV.

FiOS is available in quite a few apartment complexes, actually.

Nearly every complex up and down 185th is wired, for example.

If the complex your brother is in is of any note (more than 50 units) chances are that they've been contacted. Tell your brother to put the heat on his property manager.

Verizon has been pushing apartments lately since it's an easy way to get the "homes past" numbers up.

Noticed the channel lineup message this morning on the TiVo and subsequent guide info now showing for CSN NW. Thank you Verizon, CSN NW, and TiVo!!!

Now awaiting channel 829 (CSN NW HD)...albeit patiently...hehe...


A big thanks to everyone on this thread for their insight and helpfulness.

MGM Beefs Up US HD Channel With Verizon FiOS TV Distribution

LOS ANGELES, Jan. 23 /PRNewswire/ -- Continuing to capitalize on the opportunities created by the recent growth in high definition television, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (MGM) has secured carriage for its MGM HD Channel on Verizon's FiOS TV service, bringing feature film hits from the MGM library to Verizon FiOS TV subscriber households in full high definition splendor. The announcement was made today by Douglas A. Lee, Executive Vice President of Worldwide Digital Media for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios and Jim Packer, Co-President, MGM Worldwide Television.

"The response to the MGM HD Channel, even in today's crowded and challenging marketplace, has been very encouraging, especially as consumers validate our belief that HDTV owners value movies along with sports as HD's greatest viewing proposition," said Lee in announcing the Verizon FiOS TV
agreement. "We are one of the only services available 24/7 in full 1080i HD."

MGM HD will be rolled out in late 2008 across all of the Verizon FiOS TV systems including California, Delaware, Florida, Indiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Texas and Virginia.

Taking the lead among Hollywood studios to convert substantial theatrical library assets to the superior broadcasting format of high definition, MGM HD has already proven its popularity with consumers in the U.S., having previously launched on DirecTV in October of 2007. MGM
Chairman and CEO Harry Sloan's initiative is to launch MGM branded HD channels around the world.

Backed by the world's largest modern film library, consisting of more than 4,100 film titles and winner of 209 Academy Awards(R), MGM HD has a distinct advantage over the competition in the expanding HD marketplace. In addition to classic MGM theatrical hits, MGM HD will be the ultimate
resource for serious movie fans, offering viewers an array of original programming and new content.

Audiences can look forward to exclusive behind the scenes coverage of red carpet events, sneak peeks at new films in production, seasonal promotions and world premieres of newly re-mastered hits from the MGM library.

MGM Beefs Up US HD Channel With Verizon FiOS TV Distribution

LOS ANGELES, Jan. 23 /PRNewswire/ -- Continuing to capitalize on the opportunities created by the recent growth in high definition television, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (MGM) has secured carriage for its MGM HD Channel on Verizon's FiOS TV service, bringing feature film hits from the MGM library to Verizon FiOS TV subscriber households in full high definition splendor. The announcement was made today by Douglas A. Lee, Executive Vice President of Worldwide Digital Media for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios and Jim Packer, Co-President, MGM Worldwide Television.

"The response to the MGM HD Channel, even in today's crowded and challenging marketplace, has been very encouraging, especially as consumers validate our belief that HDTV owners value movies along with sports as HD's greatest viewing proposition," said Lee in announcing the Verizon FiOS TV
agreement. "We are one of the only services available 24/7 in full 1080i HD."

MGM HD will be rolled out in late 2008 across all of the Verizon FiOS TV systems including California, Delaware, Florida, Indiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Texas and Virginia.

Taking the lead among Hollywood studios to convert substantial theatrical library assets to the superior broadcasting format of high definition, MGM HD has already proven its popularity with consumers in the U.S., having previously launched on DirecTV in October of 2007. MGM
Chairman and CEO Harry Sloan's initiative is to launch MGM branded HD channels around the world.

Backed by the world's largest modern film library, consisting of more than 4,100 film titles and winner of 209 Academy Awards(R), MGM HD has a distinct advantage over the competition in the expanding HD marketplace. In addition to classic MGM theatrical hits, MGM HD will be the ultimate
resource for serious movie fans, offering viewers an array of original programming and new content.

Audiences can look forward to exclusive behind the scenes coverage of red carpet events, sneak peeks at new films in production, seasonal promotions and world premieres of newly re-mastered hits from the MGM library.

Sounds interesting, plus it's HD (well most of it should be).

MGM HD will be rolled out in late 2008 across all of the Verizon FiOS TV systems including California, Delaware, Florida, Indiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Texas and Virginia.

Hopefully it will be added earlier than late 2008. This has the potential to be a really good addition.

I did some channel surfing last night and found a number of channels not available. They are 102, 103, 105, 141, 143, 148, 177, 178, and 229. Looked for them again this evening and rather than just a black screen with "Currently Unavailable" they were mostly all extremely macro-blocked. So Verizon isn't able to consistently deliver all the channels we pay for - why?

I'll make a call in the morning (we'll be snowed in by then:)) and see what they say, that is, if I can find a person to talk to about what I am experiencing. Anyone else see this?

All the channels you list are coming in fine for me.

About a week ago I came home from work and found all the channels showing as Currently Unavailable. I called and they sent a crew out the next day. Turned out it was a "low light level" (that's the phrase they used) at the box on the street. They didn't have to enter the house to fix it. By lunch it was fixed.

All the channels you list are coming in fine for me.

Thanks, good to know. I was suspecting it was a more widespread problem since most of those channels I listed are Discovery-related. I'll have to check my connections, etc. There was a problem at install where I didn't get a couple of the HD channels and that was caused by a bad box, as determined by the tech they sent. I had never paged through all the SD channels before as I did the other night.

But I am seeing similar results on my other 2 boxes - a 6200-2 and a 2500-3. So at least I know it's not a box this time. Maybe. I'll call.

Took the plunge and ordered FiOS yesterday. The final two straws were an upload speed problem I've had with Comcast over the past 3 weeks (upload drops to dial-up speed) and the recent announcement of price increases. Install date for TV/Internet/Phone is 2/22.

Question - they set my install for 3-5pm. Now I'm reading items about leaving 4-6 hours for install...is that really how long it has been taking? If so, I may move my install up so as to not have them here at 10pm!

Called Comcast today to talk about how to cancel. They asked me why I was stopping service, but didn't try to do anything to keep me...I was surprised...maybe they'll give me the hard sell when I call back to do the actual disconnect.

Question - they set my install for 3-5pm. Now I'm reading items about leaving 4-6 hours for install...is that really how long it has been taking?

My install time was 1:00 - 3:00. They showed up between 2:00 and 2:30 and were there until about 7:30.

Called Comcast today to talk about how to cancel. They asked me why I was stopping service, but didn't try to do anything to keep me...I was surprised...maybe they'll give me the hard sell when I call back to do the actual disconnect.

When I called them to cancel they asked if I had given the opportunity to keep my business. I told them I had not, that I'd been a subscriber for 10+ years, had always paid my bill on time, and felt that it was Comcast's responsibility to reach out to long time subscribers, not the other way around. I was very polite in explaining this, and the woman on the phone agreed with me. I doubt they'd have locked my rate in at something competitive with FiOS for the next two years though. I suspect that had I asked I'd have gotten a $30 discount for six months.

I got more of a hard sell when I called to cancel my Discover card.

Took the plunge and ordered FiOS yesterday. The final two straws were an upload speed problem I've had with Comcast over the past 3 weeks (upload drops to dial-up speed) and the recent announcement of price increases. Install date for TV/Internet/Phone is 2/22.

Question - they set my install for 3-5pm. Now I'm reading items about leaving 4-6 hours for install...is that really how long it has been taking? If so, I may move my install up so as to not have them here at 10pm!

Called Comcast today to talk about how to cancel. They asked me why I was stopping service, but didn't try to do anything to keep me...I was surprised...maybe they'll give me the hard sell when I call back to do the actual disconnect.


If you don't have FiOS internet already, it'll take longer than two hours, but much of the pre-work will be done by other contractors before the install date.

Still trying to figure out how to tell how strong of a singal I've got coming in. I've got a problem with artifacts on various channels.....

This link from dslreports has some info and other links to track down SNR, etc.

http://www.dslreports.com/forum/r19899756-The-other-hidden-menu-in-your-STB-Diagnostic

Good luck!

with the Blazers/Nuggets game on CSN NW tonight (feb. 4th) and Comcast customers able to view it in HD on channel 788, I'm wondering when Verizon will add CSN NW HD to their channel lineup for FiOS TV customers. I'm hoping sooner than later as the Blazers embark on a playoff run for the 2nd half of the season.

with so many people investing in HDTV's in general, and the night/day quality of SD vs. HD programming...it seems that getting the Blazers in HD on FiOS TV as soon as possible would be a very positive move for Verizon in the long-run for its TV customers and would be a definite selling point in the Oregon market.

any updates appreciated! BTW...hosted a SB party and channel 801 (Fox) was rock solid for the game yesterday...thank you Verizon!

Hi, I signed up for FIos a week and a half ago. There is some possibility I won't be able to get it due to the configuration of my condo. Some of my neighbors have ONTs attached to their garages, but my unit, and half the other units are not laid out for easy installation and will require "engineering" assistance. We'll see how that goes.

Meanwhile, comcast has just sent me (on their own initiative) an incentive retention plan that on the surface appears very close to the cost of FIos "triple play" with a 2 year commitment same as FIos.

If my FIos install is not possible in the near future I guess I'll have to check out comcast's offer more thoroughly.

Meanwhile, comcast has just sent me (on their own initiative) an incentive retention plan that on the surface appears very close to the cost of FIos "triple play" with a 2 year commitment same as FIos.

I guess they're getting tired of people calling up and saying, "I'm switching to FiOS to save money." When I called Comcast to cancel my service they asked if I'd called them to ask for a discount. I told them no, that I felt that they (Comcast) needed to be proactive about retaining long-time customers and that I shouldn't have to call them to beg for a discount that new subscribers get just for signing up. Sounds like maybe they've heard that message enough they're actually doing something about it.

http://www.dslreports.com/r0/download/1274510~6ada352c3b25eeec9de647b01505d0f8/hdtvvodor.jpg

Golfweek ep, two CSI eps, one Dan Rather Reports, and a Gorillaz concert show :) Just go to Search in VOD and type "H" -- if it's available, it'll show up. It's showing up here in Forest Grove.

x

...I also lost HD sound on the 2500's and now I just get a picture saying "this box is not capable of HD contact your cable provider"...can folks tune to an HD channel on their 2500's and see if you get sound or the "not HD capable" display. Thanks,mv

I've got one each of the boxes - 2500, 6200, and 6416

The 2500 can do multi-room viewing, but no HD. Not only can it not tune in the HD channels, it also cannot view any programs on the 6416 DVR that were rcorded in D. It can only remotely view the SD programs on the 6416 DVR. Yes, I get the message that says you cannot tune this channel when I go to the 800 block of HD channels.

The 6200 tunes HD fine, but has no DVR capability (of course). The 6416 is fine for HD and DVR capability.

Since I only have one 641, can a 2nd 6416 access programs already recorded by another 6416 in the same house?

Mike

Golfweek ep, two CSI eps, one Dan Rather Reports, and a Gorillaz concert show :) Just go to Search in VOD and type "H" -- if it's available, it'll show up. It's showing up here in Forest Grove.
Let's hope that this list of programs expands quickly!

HD VOD works fine here in Beaverton, too.

Mike

can folks tune to an HD channel on their 2500's and see if you get sound or the "not HD capable" display. Thanks,mv
The 2500s are specificially NOT an HD box for Verizon FiOS. To get HD you must use a 6200 or a 6416. Tuning a 2500 to an HD station will get you a "must subscribe" message.

I hadn't heard before one way or the other that the 2500s could be modded but I wouldn't recommend it.

HD VOD is working in Tigard.

Read this earlier from DSLreports -- in VOD if you go right to Browse there's an unnamed folder at the bottom of the list. When you go into it, there are VOD folders, some with titles, from the Smithsonian channel -- I saw about four or so and I was able to start one up -- it'll probably only last until it's properly "filed" ;-)

My friend had his FiOS install today, and he is not very happy -- Verizon is out of HD boxes! No 6200s; no 6416 DVRs.

I happened to learn something about this "problem" on another forum today, so I explained the problem to him:

Verizon has had too much success signing up new subscribers. As reported elsewhere, they are not likely to have a new supply until March. There maybe a few spare boxes in the system, but Verizon is reserving them for repairs and troubleshooting problems. Many of the boxes are made in Asia for Motorola, and it being Chinese New Year, it will be quite tough to get any expeditied shipments until then. (My company also gets product from Asia, and the factories are essentially shut down for the holidays).

The most surprising thing my friend said was that the Verizon rep advised him that he might be able to purchase his own set top box from a computer store like CompUSA, or some other mail order places. Perhaps even eBay. Strange, but true. I don't think there is any legitimate way of getting a compatible box, except through Verizon, right? Anything on eBay may have been abandoned or acquired thru other means that aren't kosher. Aren't the boxes tracked by serial number?

Of course he is bummed, but on two counts:
- he didn't realize that a set top box was required; I let him know that only certain QAM channels are available in the clear, and that he had to have a compatible TV tuner for HD to get them. I also told him that only the locals would likley be available anyway -- HD or SD
- he also was surprised that each set top box had a monthly charge; when he signed up, he neglected to see what the other charges might be

For now, he is stuck with an SD box that he is still being charged for. He's not sure if his TV is QAM compatible, and the installation tech didn't stick around long enough to try.

While I've run a scan on my Comcast Basic to see the large number of available in-the-clear QAM channels available, I haven't done the same for Verizon yet. Has this info been posted yet?

See my QAM post over on the Comcast Portland thread for the channel summary of in-the-clear QAM channels.

On a remotely related note, DirecTV is having problems with the SD Portland locals - severe macroblocking on Transponder 28 which carries all the Portland locals. This started on Sunday. When I called to report the issue, they had me do all sorts of resets, etc. Turns out many others in the PDX area have a similar issue, and DirecTV has confirmed that it is a problem on the DirecTV side. No idea when this will be fixed, but it is affecting my 2DirecTiVO boxes, and surprisingly not my standalone RCA rcvr. Others in the area report similar problems. There is a thread over on the directv.com support forums. I hope this gets resolved quickly.

So...it's getting harder to watch TV in the Portland area...
- lack of all the HD locals on DirecTV
- SD locals on DirecTV are touch to watch due to the macroblocking
- Verizon is out of HD boxes for new subscribers, but they have plenty of SD boxes
- when I went into Comcast to turn in my 6416 DVR, there was a sign on the dorr that said there weren't any HD boxes available

Good thing that Spring is almost here - I guess I'll go outside! :)

Mike

While I've run a scan on my Comcast Basic to see the large number of available in-the-clear QAM channels available, I haven't done the same for Verizon yet. Has this info been posted yet?

Only local stations are available in the clear by Verizon I believe. It's further complicated by the fact that in the Portland market, all the channels are digital versus older installations elsewhere that have 2-49 available in analog (but not for long, I believe most if not all markets/regions are scheduled to be all digital by Sept 2008).

This http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=12520283#post12520283 was posted earlier in this thread (search is a wonderful thing :) )

Hope this helps!

Thanks. Yes, I should have searched...I was pretty sure it was posted earlier in this thread. thanks for the link.

Mike

The most surprising thing my friend said was that the Verizon rep advised him that he might be able to purchase his own set top box from a computer store like CompUSA, or some other mail order places. Perhaps even eBay. Strange, but true. I don't think there is any legitimate way of getting a compatible box, except through Verizon, right?

Here (http://tivo.com/whatistivo/tivohd/index.html) is a "compatible" set top box. There are many sources for these boxes, including eBay. Is CompUSA still open in this area? A check with circuitcity.com shows that these boxes are available in the Tigard, Clackamas, and Gateway stores.

Unfortunately, for some people the compatibility is not quite 100%. Here (http://tivocommunity.com/tivo-vb/showthread.php?t=375011) is a place where problems with these boxes are discussed.

For most people the biggest obstacle is price. The boxes are otherwise "compatible" in the majority of installations.

Strange but true. :)

RE: TiVo

Yes, I am aware that there is the TiVo HD and the TiVo series 3 (my friend was not aware).

That is not what Verizon was referring to. The rep was referring to the Motorola boxes, as was I when I wrote my previous reply.

There is/was also the QAM capable + cable-card Sony DHG-HDD250 and 500 that will also work. Ad of course, the few cable-card compatible TVs.

I had discussed the other QAM options for my friend, but did not want him to waste too much time looking for any Verizon 6200 or 6416 boxes.

Unless of course, they too are now readily available elsewhere ;)

Mike

Any update to this no-HD boxes situation? I have a FiOS install scheduled for this Friday and would be more than willing to delay it if this is the situation. I emailed Verizon on Thursday asking the question, but never heard anything. I'm going to give them a call tomorrow...

Anyone?

Thanks.

Any update to this no-HD boxes situation? I have a FiOS install scheduled for this Friday and would be more than willing to delay it if this is the situation. I emailed Verizon on Thursday asking the question, but never heard anything. I'm going to give them a call tomorrow...

Anyone?

Thanks.

OK, so I called Verizon and they told me that they are having shortages but..."we have one put aside for you when you ordered back in January." Part of me thinks I'm getting the re-assurance just so I don't postpone my install to March and they'll do the bait and switch on Friday. The other part of me thinks it's POSSIBLE that they do appropriate DVRs when the order is placed and since I placed my order way back in mid-January that I may be OK. Any thoughts?!?!?!

OK, so I called Verizon and they told me that they are having shortages but..."we have one put aside for you when you ordered back in January." Part of me thinks I'm getting the re-assurance just so I don't postpone my install to March and they'll do the bait and switch on Friday. The other part of me thinks it's POSSIBLE that they do appropriate DVRs when the order is placed and since I placed my order way back in mid-January that I may be OK. Any thoughts?!?!?!
Yes it's possible they have one for you as a new customer. However if this is a deal-breaker for you then here's what you can do: before the installer does anything, confirm (by asking nicely) if he has the HD box you expect. If the answer is "yes' then you're on your way. If the answer is "no", then kindly ask the installer to reschedule your installation for a later date.

Any thoughts?!?!?!
Why worry so much? Here are three scenarios to consider:

1) they show up with a DVR on Friday

or

2) they don't have a DVR. So you demand that they either leave without installing anything or they give you free TV service until such time as they can conjure up a DVR.

or

3) they don't have a DVR. You allow them to complete the install then buy a TiVo HD. It will cost you $300 while the telco box is free. But you have a DVR!

Why worry so much? Here are three scenarios to consider:

1) they show up with a DVR on Friday

or

2) they don't have a DVR. So you demand that they either leave without installing anything or they give you free TV service until such time as they can conjure up a DVR.

or

3) they don't have a DVR. You allow them to complete the install then buy a TiVo HD. It will cost you $300 while the telco box is free. But you have a DVR!

Well, two main reasons I worry so much.

1. - I'm taking off an afternoon of work for the install. Not the easiest thing to plan. So the option of waiting and turning them away just presents me with a wasted afternoon and the need to schedule another afternoon off in the future.

2. - I'm having my phone number ported as well that day. So I'm REALLY not interested in dealing with all the chaos of changing that around last minute (as is, Comcast mistakenly disconnected our phone number last week for no good reason).

So that's why I'm asking. Hoping someone out there had some experience in the past few days or knows whether or not Verizon REALLY sets aside boxes at the time of order (sounds unlikely, but possible).

And if I only had a nickel everytime someone responded to any DVR related issue with "Just get a TiVo..." :rolleyes: I had a TiVo back in my pre-HD days, I'd love to have a TiVo HD, there are reasons why I have not decided to go that route in this situation...

And if I only had a nickel everytime someone responded to any DVR related issue with "Just get a TiVo..." :rolleyes: I had a TiVo back in my pre-HD days, I'd love to have a TiVo HD, there are reasons why I have not decided to go that route in this situation...

Totally.....I'm not touching Tivo HD till I see a good replacement for Series 3, I know there is the 'buy and enjoy now' however with them just producing HD Boxes - I need to at least see the next offering....

I spoke with FiOS tech support over the weekend because a new HD box that I had ordered needed to be reset. The tech told me I was lucky to get the HD box because they were backordered until May, which is the latest date I have heard so far.

I just cancelled my install for Friday. I've called FiOS the past 3 days and gotten these 3 answers:

Monday: "Well, we set aside a DVR for you when you ordered so you'll be fine."
Tuesday: "I spoke to the "Portland Dispatcher" yesterday and they have plenty of HD boxes...it's actually the SD boxes that they are running out of."
Today: "Well, we're giving people 4 months free of a SD DVR." Me: "In that case I'd like to cancel." Her: "OK, I'll connect you to cancellations."

I'll wait a few months...then go through this chaos again!!!

I just cancelled my install for Friday. I've called FiOS the past 3 days and gotten these 3 answers:

Monday: "Well, we set aside a DVR for you when you ordered so you'll be fine."
Tuesday: "I spoke to the "Portland Dispatcher" yesterday and they have plenty of HD boxes...it's actually the SD boxes that they are running out of."
Today: "Well, we're giving people 4 months free of a SD DVR." Me: "In that case I'd like to cancel." Her: "OK, I'll connect you to cancellations."

I'll wait a few months...then go through this chaos again!!!



I would have taken the free non-HD DVR...and bought a TiVo.

I would have taken the free non-HD DVR...and bought a TiVo.

And to repeat myself from message 640 above...

"And if I only had a nickel everytime someone responded to any DVR related issue with "Just get a TiVo..." I had a TiVo back in my pre-HD days, I'd love to have a TiVo HD, there are reasons why I have not decided to go that route in this situation..."

:)

FYI... I had FiOS installed on Monday, (I'm in the Bull Mountain area, near Tigard and Beaverton,) and they did have an HD DVR for me. The installer told me that there was a shortage, but I was able to get mine. (I ordered the service in late-January.)

When I signed up for the triple package, I was told that I would get a free 19" flat HDTV if I upgraded my internet service from 5/2 to 15/2. The installer informed me that Oregon is not a part of the promotion.

My HDTV picture doesn't seem to be as clear as it was on Comcast. Is anyone else seeing this?

And to repeat myself from message 640 above...

"And if I only had a nickel everytime someone responded to any DVR related issue with "Just get a TiVo..." I had a TiVo back in my pre-HD days, I'd love to have a TiVo HD, there are reasons why I have not decided to go that route in this situation..."

:)

Who said anything about TiVo HD? What about the Series 3 (if you can find one)? But if you want that Motorola POS box, more power to you!

My HDTV picture doesn't seem to be as clear as it was on Comcast. Is anyone else seeing this?

I'm on Bull Mtn. too. I switched from Comcast last Dec. and the PQ from Verizon is at least every bit as good as from Comcast.

My HDTV picture doesn't seem to be as clear as it was on Comcast. Is anyone else seeing this?

I've got Comcast and Verizon FiOS connected to the same TV. HD quality is pretty much the same from both - ie excellent.

For SD viewing however, Verizon is better than Comcast on the same TV. I've tested both SD and HD with the corresponding cable boxes (Motorola) as well as in the clear QAM. The SD is sharper from Verizon.

Perhaps you don't have your Verizon bx set up properly. You can set the output of the Verizon box to 480i, 480p, 720p, or 1080i. You can connect via Component cables or HDMI. If you connect via the normal yellow video RCA jack, you will be quite disappointed.

My only lament with Verizon i a few missing HD channels and meager HD VOD; I hope that improves quickly.

Mike

I am considering making the switch from DirecTv to Verizon FIOS. One concern that I have is the HD DVR storage capcity. The FIOS website indictes 18 hours of HD - 80 hours of SD, which seems pretty weak.

Can someone advise what their experience is, or is everybody still waiting for them to arrive?

The FIOS website indictes 18 hours of HD - 80 hours of SD, which seems pretty weak.

I don't have a DVR from Verizon. However, I have a TiVo HD with "up to 20 hours of HD". That's not nearly enough for me, too easy to fill up. And that's just recording the OTA HD, not cable channels like ESPN HD.

But I've become spoiled. My recording and viewing habits have been largely defined by the SD TiVos I have. My TiVos store much more than 20 hours.

The HD TiVos can be expanded by plugging in an eSata drive. I think some cable company DVRs can be expanded the same way. You should do some research as to what DVRs Verizon supplies and if they can be expanded by the customer. To be specific, I'm talking about products like this (http://westerndigital.com/en/products/Products.asp?DriveID=334) one from Western Digital. I have no personal experience with it, but they claim it works with:

System Compatibility

* Scientific Atlanta
Tested for compatibility with Explorer 8300 Series DVRs 8300, 8300 HD, 8300 MR, and 8300 HD-MR Digital Video Recorders.

I don't have a DVR from Verizon. However, I have a TiVo HD with "up to 20 hours of HD". That's not nearly enough for me, too easy to fill up. And that's just recording the OTA HD, not cable channels like ESPN HD.

But I've become spoiled. My recording and viewing habits have been largely defined by the SD TiVos I have. My TiVos store much more than 20 hours.

The HD TiVos can be expanded by plugging in an eSata drive. I think some cable company DVRs can be expanded the same way. You should do some research as to what DVRs Verizon supplies and if they can be expanded by the customer. To be specific, I'm talking about products like this (http://westerndigital.com/en/products/Products.asp?DriveID=334) one from Western Digital. I have no personal experience with it, but they claim it works with:

System Compatibility

* Scientific Atlanta
Tested for compatibility with Explorer 8300 Series DVRs 8300, 8300 HD, 8300 MR, and 8300 HD-MR Digital Video Recorders.

In the Portland market, Verizon is using the Motorola set top boxes for FiOS. there is no simple way to expand storage by adding an external drive. the eSATA and USB ports are non-functional, and there have been no hacks to turn them on. As far as I know, you cannot open the box to expand the hard drive either, so it is what it is for Verizon supplied boxes.

For TiVo, there are two choices for HD: the original TiVo Series 3, which can be expanded both inside by adding or changing the internal drive, as well as outside with an eSATA hard drive. The www.tivocommunity.com website provides extensive info to help the techie user to do this. For external drives, most any eSATA drive will work.

Then there is also the TiVo HD, which can be expanded externally using only a special Western Digital eSATA drive. Evidently, TiVo and WD worked together to establish a signing protocol so that only certain, certified drives will work; they have a special signature and formatting to be compatible. TiVo may open this up to other manufacturers once the 6 month WD exclusive has expired.

Despite the name, both the TiVo HD and TiVo Series 3 support SD and HD programming; both require cable cards to receive programming over and above the local unencrypted local channels. Both require a monthly fee for the 2 cable cards, as well as TiVo guide info.

TiVo has announced that the Series 3 will eventually be phased out but supported long term. Occasionally, there have been refurb units available at the TiVo website, and some local retail stores still have them in stock. But when gone, they will be gone for good. TiVo said it will be focusing on just the TiVo HD model long term. Costco has had the TiVo HD model in most of its stores.

On a related note, I did get a chance to see and play with the Comcast implementation of TiVo at CES in Las Vegas last month. This was ported by TiVo to the Motorola 6416 set-top box. It actually looked quite good and usable. Better than the Comcast original user interface. When comparing to the Verizon FiOS, both TiVo and FiOS each have their merits. Though I prefer the TiVo interface, I am living with the Verizon box for my viewing so far. The TiVos remain for my DirecTV viewing. I'm still not ready to pull the trigger on getting a TiVo for Verizon and HD - though I am getting closer.

Why the hesitation?

I really, really, really want to see Verizon (and/or Comcast) truly embrace TiVo with knowledgeable installers, and committed long-term support. Just as it was for TiVo in the early days when it worked directly with DirecTV to deliver an outstanding product. It is not too encouraging when the subscriber knows more than the installer and support people when an installation is being done.

I'm not sure what TiVo did wrong, but they certainly did something several years ago to cause DirecTV, the cable companies, and set-top box manufacturers to look elsewhere for DVR solutions.

Mike

I'm not sure what TiVo did wrong, but they certainly did something several years ago to cause DirecTV, the cable companies, and set-top box manufacturers to look elsewhere for DVR solutions.

Mike


Because the cable company would rather have you paying the monthly TiVo/DVR fee to them and not TiVo?

Because the cable company would rather have you paying the monthly TiVo/DVR fee to them and not TiVo?
That makes sense when you consider the rapacious cable pigopolists. They charge something like $10/mo for an SD DVR and $16/mo for an HD DVR. Which is comparable to the monthly fees that TiVo charges for standalone DVRs. So there's potentially a big monthly stream of cash available.

But DirecTV only charges $5/mo for an additonal SD receiver (1st one is free) whether it is a DVR or not. Of which *no money* ever goes to (or ever went to) TiVo. Instead, DirecTV gives TiVo a cut of a $6/mo DVR fee which is per household, not per receiver.

So DirecTV dumped TiVo over something like $1 or $2 per month per household. That doesn't make sense. There must have been more to the story, such as TiVo trying to charge too much for software upgrades, etc.

I've read the entire thread with interest. I signed up for FIOS when they brought the cable to my street ~a year ago. When they were ready to install, I was out of town...now I have to wait till mid March (if I'm lucky) till HD boxes are available.
My question is this: I've had Dishnetwork for many years and generations of hardware. My present DVR and it's functionality is very fine in my view. It is the Dish 942. I could ask for nothing better. Can anyone out there tell me whether the 6416 will approximate the user friendliness(as I see it) of the 942. Of particular interest is the readily future programming of alternate episodes of a program already underway.

Yes, you can see when the episodes will be rerun after the original broadcast.

Grrr, my stupid non-HD non-DVR box is dropping out every now and then...at first I thought it was KGW but saw it on the CW as well as CNBC. The picture goes black and the sound drops until the picture comes back, lasts about a second or two. Fortunately I barely watch tv up there but it was annoying. Anyone else getting a similar problem?

Grrr, my stupid non-HD non-DVR box is dropping out every now and then...at first I thought it was KGW but saw it on the CW as well as CNBC. The picture goes black and the sound drops until the picture comes back, lasts about a second or two. Fortunately I barely watch tv up there but it was annoying. Anyone else getting a similar problem?

Yup, my HD DVR box does this with increasing frequency lately also.

I recently noticed my 6416 DVR had not recorded any shows while I was on a 3 day vacation. When I would click on a show to record, it would show up as "processing" on the show guide and the red light on the unit would never light up. So all I did was unplug the unit for a minute and plugged it back in. Then I deleted the shows that were listed as recorded but were not on the system. Now everything works fine. Hope this helps others who might have the same problem.

Yup, my HD DVR box does this with increasing frequency lately also.

I wonder if it has to do with Verizon's signal increasing and decreasing throughout the day. I don't get this on my Series3 TiVo though, good to hear that it wasn't just my box as I didn't want to pay money to have them roll out another box for me.

I recently noticed my 6416 DVR had not recorded any shows while I was on a 3 day vacation. When I would click on a show to record, it would show up as "processing" on the show guide and the red light on the unit would never light up. So all I did was unplug the unit for a minute and plugged it back in. Then I deleted the shows that were listed as recorded but were not on the system. Now everything works fine. Hope this helps others who might have the same problem.


I have been having the same problem with my DVR. I will unplug the unit for a couple minutes tonight and hopefully it will reset and start working again.

Grrr, my stupid non-HD non-DVR box is dropping out every now and then...at first I thought it was KGW but saw it on the CW as well as CNBC. The picture goes black and the sound drops until the picture comes back, lasts about a second or two. Fortunately I barely watch tv up there but it was annoying. Anyone else getting a similar problem?

Hmm, that's funny, I started having FIOS internet problems last Friday (29th). I set up a whitelist for the kids computer on the Actiontec router, and for another thing, enabled uPnP. I turned off uPnP a little later and then the router started having a problems where everything seemed dead, except internal switching was working (ie. could not browse to router interface or access internet, but one TiVo could still see the other TiVo over the network).

It seemed to work OK over the weekend, but on Monday I couldn't update my iTunes podcasts without it stalling and internet connectivity going away. I reset the router to factory defaults, and configured it with the whitelist. Now I'm still having trouble where sometimes the WAN (ie. internet) connection keeps dropping. It will come back on its own, so the router is locking up.

I noticed that the router had been updated at some point, apparently through Verizon's backdoor. I've seen some forum posts regarding numerous bugs in this newest firmware. I haven't had a chance to try another router or another cable out to the ONT.

I don't have a Verizon box, so I don't know if that would be affected by what I'm seeing. Anyone else having any internet issues to go along with cable box issues?

ZXTT: I had a very similar issue and it actually wasn't the Actiontec. I had to remove the battery from the battery backup unit and power-cycle the ONT. I left the ONT off for about 10 minutes and plugged it back in. Once I powered back on the Actiontec everything was working properly again.

Thanks, that's good info.

placed order for fios tv back in december, but a mix-up and subsequent rescheduling pushed the date ahead to today. i originally ordered the hd-dvr/movies promo, but the installer didn't have an hd-dvr for me when he first showed up. however, when i explained the situation, he said that he did have one in his truck, but it was for another customer that had placed an order even earlier than me. but he made a call, and was able to get authorization to give me the hd-dvr instead, since they *did* have another one waiting back at the office that he could use for the other customer. so i guess they are still out there. keep your fingers crossed, and try to negotiate with your installer if they say they don't have one for you!

It's been two days since I reset the ONT using the method Chris gave above. To disconnect the battery, I had to open the larger of the two boxes inside my garage and disconnect the power connector from the battery to the box. I gave it one minute, plugged into the AC, plugged in the battery, unplugged the AC to make sure the battery was working and then plugged in the AC again.

Internet has been normal since then.

Has anyone been having trouble with on demand? It has been unavailable for me the last couple days on all three of my boxes.

I haven't tried on demand, but I know that the Guide has been a bit sluggish, and whenever I try a keyword search it says that the set-top box cannot connect to the server. I had them reset the box remotely last night, but it still won't connect to the server.

Everything else seems to be working though.

I haven't tried on demand, but I know that the Guide has been a bit sluggish, and whenever I try a keyword search it says that the set-top box cannot connect to the server. I had them reset the box remotely last night, but it still won't connect to the server.

Everything else seems to be working though.

My guide quit working last night and it wouldn't show any information at all. I guess I'll have to call Verizon and have the server reset. Hopefully that will solve the problems.

My guide quit working last night and it wouldn't show any information at all. I guess I'll have to call Verizon and have the server reset. Hopefully that will solve the problems.

Hmm. We didn't lose the Guide (except noting lots of errors in the listing for FSN and CSN) last night but we did suffer some kind of signal loss. All 4 of my TV boxes powered off at one point or another (they're usually "on" all the time) and we had a loss of internet connection that required WEP password reentry on 2 laptops that use the wireless connection. My desktop computer which is hardwired to the Actiontec was not affected.

I just talked to Verizon, and they are aware of the problem. Seems a lot of people in the Tigard area are having troubles connected to Verizon's video server. The rep said widgets, video on demand, and the iguide are all affected to some extent.

He didn't say when it would be fixed, but that the techs are trying to figure out what the problem is.

I wonder if the IMG update Portland received is responsible in any way. This from the Message Center (via Menu):

Important FiOS TV Service Notice

03/11/2008 5:00p

FiOS TV subscribers in the Portland, OR viewing area. As of 3/12 there will be updates made to your Interactive Media Guide (IMG). These updates are designed to improve your service and create the bst viewing experience possible. During this update you may notice that your set top box resets automatically. This occurrence is normal with any IMG update. These changes will not affect the way you access or use your IMG.
Under Menu / System Info it says:
Release: 1.0.4
build Number: 05.72
Platform ID: QIP-6200 P2
[...]
EPG Region: 3424

I'm not sure what improvements I personally will experience. Our SD channels have always been fine (no analog here, I don't know if that matters or not), I don't have Verizon's DVR, and I'm not seeing thing obviously different in the Menu itself...

Since our IMG has been updated to improve our service, I wonder why they didn't activate the message light on the front of the STBs to let us know there are messages available? I had 3 recent messages to view (HBO preview, channel change, and IMG update) that I wouldn't have known about were it not for this thread. The "help" feature says the message light will be used. Maybe they forgot about that.

So. I have searched through this forum looking for the answer but I haven't found it.

Two weeks ago I was in washington square and asked the FIOS reps if they would be available in downtown portland, he replied "Never." Which I expected because I know that this is Qwest territory, yada yada.

However.... Yesterday I went by and asked again for and he said "Yes, within the year." He said there was a recent lawsuit settlement that now allows Verizon to gain access to the Downtown market. They will start sometime in 2008 or early 2009.

I haven't been able to find anything about this. I assume this is different than the news from November that Qwest would provide TV to some of their customers. Can anybody provide some insight?

Thanks.

So. I have searched through this forum looking for the answer but I haven't found it.

Two weeks ago I was in washington square and asked the FIOS reps if they would be available in downtown portland, he replied "Never." Which I expected because I know that this is Qwest territory, yada yada.

However.... Yesterday I went by and asked again for and he said "Yes, within the year." He said there was a recent lawsuit settlement that now allows Verizon to gain access to the Downtown market. They will start sometime in 2008 or early 2009.

I haven't been able to find anything about this. I assume this is different than the news from November that Qwest would provide TV to some of their customers. Can anybody provide some insight?

Thanks.

They think Qwest will be bought by Verizon.

Wow - I hadn't heard anything on this. The International Herald Tribune isn't so sure that will happen:

March 9th - Some investors have been betting that Verizon will buy the smallest of the Bell phone companies, Qwest. But the deal appears unlikely, since Qwest has a heavy debt load and no wireless spectrum, and it operates in 14 Western states where fewer big business customers have their operations.

But unlikely deals happen all the time.

As for the problems Tigard people were having, they seem to be gone.

Qwest looked like it was going to get bought by Sprint/Nextel but that doesn't look like it'll happen to Sprint's market position. So then it switched to ATT or Verizon, personally I think ATT will buy Qwest over Verizon but like you said, wacky deals can be done and have been done all the time.


I don't think Qwest is worth Verizon's time, those Fortune 500 ads that Qwest always runs are hilarious...that's not where the big bucks are made these days, it's Joe and Sally Q Public!

Is anyone in the Portland market able to view channel 852 (CinemaxHD) as part of the free preview for HBO/Cinemax? I can get 851 but not 852...

Just checked this morning and no, I do not get 852. I set to record 300 Friday night on 852 and looked at it yesterday and found 2 hrs. of notice I am not subscribed. Although their message says the previews will be on channels 400-426 why do they just unlock the 851 HBO HD channel? I also noted a couple of programs last night in the 400-426 range were still locked. Is this how Verizon hopes to temp us to buy additional programming?

Curious if anyone has heard any word on if we'll be offered MLB Extra Innings package on FiOS - this would be a huge loss to my TV viewing if it's not available.....NOT FUN!

Curious if anyone has heard any word on if we'll be offered MLB Extra Innings package on FiOS - this would be a huge loss to my TV viewing if it's not available.....NOT FUN!


It's supposed to be released to some but not all markets this year...this is a hangup for a co-worker of my wife as he loves MLBEI for the Yankees. I wouldn't count on it being available for the entire year in Portland...next year is a much different story.

It's supposed to be released to some but not all markets this year...this is a hangup for a co-worker of my wife as he loves MLBEI for the Yankees. I wouldn't count on it being available for the entire year in Portland...next year is a much different story.


That's ridiculous - that was one of my questions to them when signing up.

That's ridiculous - that was one of my questions to them when signing up.


One of the policyblogs on the Verizon website (don't ask me to find it again, it's a weird web address) talked about MLBEI and basically said that InDemand was playing hardball with Verizon about MLB, NBA, and NHL. He said that it looked like MLBEI would be ready soon, but not in all markets.


Found the link here: http://policyblog.verizon.com/PolicyBlog/Blogs/policyblog/EricRabe9/427/MLB-Coming-to-FiOS-Mom-and-Apple-Pie-Rejoice-.aspx

One of the policyblogs on the Verizon website (don't ask me to find it again, it's a weird web address) talked about MLBEI and basically said that InDemand was playing hardball with Verizon about MLB, NBA, and NHL. He said that it looked like MLBEI would be ready soon, but not in all markets.


Found the link here: http://policyblog.verizon.com/PolicyBlog/Blogs/policyblog/EricRabe9/427/MLB-Coming-to-FiOS-Mom-and-Apple-Pie-Rejoice-.aspx


I'm going to puke :mad:

Anyone's non-DVR box flipping out audio/video lately? I've noticed it very rarely on other channels but it seems to be pretty often with KGW and their local news (doesn't matter what time the news is at). Sometimes it's just the picture going black with audio or no audio, or sometimes it's even been macroblocking with the picture freezing up for a couple of seconds before returning to normal.

I don't notice it on the Series 3 TiVo on either channel 8 or 808.



*edit* Have noticed it as well on channel 3 (the WB or whatever it is now) and CNBC, but definitely not as much as KGW

I noticed that KOIN6 looked like SD expanded to wide format on Wed. My wife watches Young & the Restless and we record it in HD but Wed's show looked like complete crap. It was so drastically compressed that even minor camera or actor movement looked like those camera phone videos and made our eyes hurt on our LCD panel. If this is the sort of crap that satellite viewers have some to accept then I feel sorry for them. Sort of feeling sorry for myself right now...

I will have to see what the Thur and Fri shows look like. I suppose it could have been something weird going on with the DVR rather than the broadcast. Time will tell I suppose.

Finally gave in and went with FIOS. The final straw for me was the recent degradation of Comcast HD signal. Installation took a total of 2 hours for the triple package. Got the HD-DVR and the installer claimed they had plenty of them now! SD PQ is quit a bit better than C* and HD looks to be cleaner (compression artifact free), although does not seem as "sharp" and the colors are a little "off" or muted! Not sure if I need to readjust the TV picture settings or it has to do with the innards of QIP 6416-2 (which may not be as refined as the C*'s DCH-3416). Or it could be the HDMI connection. We'll see if any of you guys have any suggestions. Overall things seem to be working fine. Remote seems to be a bit more responsive (with less delay). Now have to get used to the guide!

BTW, when I returned the DCH box to C* office on Nimbus, the rep asked why I was dropping the service and I replied because of the recent degradation of HD signal. She seemed to have heard it before and proceeded to note that by the end of the year quite a few analog channels will move to digital to give them more bandwidth. I guess they must have gotten the message, we can always hope!

Hoping to stimulate interest in its nascent fiber optic FiOS TV service, Verizon Communications said it plans to offer 1,000 high-definition video-on-demand (VOD) movies and television content by the end of the year.

The telecommunications company bowed VOD for FiOS TV last year in Florida, Indiana, Pennsylvania, and Virginia. It is now also available in California, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Rhode Island and Texas.

More than 75% of the VOD content is free and includes, in addition to movies, fare from NFL Network, HDTV, TLC, USA Network, Showtime, Starz, The Movie Channel, Encore, Sundance Channel, Disney Channel and Nickelodeon.

"Our subscribers love VOD because it frees them to enjoy a wide variety of entertainment on their own schedules," said Shawn Strickland, VP of video solutions with Verizon.

Subscription- base FiOS TV is available from $37.99 per month.


http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/questex/hom041308/index.php#/16

We'll see what this means. Even though I'll never go back to Comcast, they did seem to have a broader selection of free HD/widescreen titles. Does FIOS have much at all? It's the devil to sort through their offerings.

Well, now that the basketball season has wound down for the Blazers...and still no Comcast Sports Net HD...anybody have any news as to why we never received this channel? The last I heard was that it was going to be added sometime around the end of January '08...but obviously to no avail.

Hopefully next basketball season, they'll get on it, or when there's an addition of new HD channels for the Oregon Market it will be dropped in with them. It's getting old telling my Comcast friends how great FiOS TV is only to be asked if I get Blazer home games in HD as they do.

Come on Verizon...the more HD the better! I hardly watch SD programming, even when the show I'm watching is not in HD on the local networks, I'll still watch it on 801, 802, etc. It just looks better.

K. Laverty, if you're reading, drop us a note in here with some sort of tidbits of new HD channels coming.

There is no such channel (CSN-HD). Comcast Sportsnet Northwest is only offered in SD. With Comcast, when the Blazers have their games available in HD, they stick them on the MOJO+ HD channel. I've been bugging everyone I can think of at Verizon to find out if they will start doing something similar this next season, and so far I have been unable to get any answers at all.... I've told them that I am ready to switch my triple play business over to them in a second if someone can assure me that they will carry the Blazer HD games next season. Nobody can tell me anything. I can't even get them to agree to allow me to get out of the one-year commitment without the $150 penalty if I switch over and then they don't. I want to switch right now, but unless someone can tell me definitively that they will indeed host the HD games somewhere, there's no way in hell I'm moving. In the meantime I'm getting screwed by Comcast because unless I agree to their TWO YEAR commitment they will not give me the same low rate I had up until a month or so ago... :( Now with the season being over I'm sure they won't receive any complaints until next fall so they will just figure out of sight, out of mind... If anybody knows of any Verizon contacts that might be influential at all, please post them up so I can pester them incessantly :D


ron

There is no such channel (CSN-HD). Comcast Sportsnet Northwest is only offered in SD. With Comcast, when the Blazers have their games available in HD, they stick them on the MOJO+ HD channel. I've been bugging everyone I can think of at Verizon to find out if they will start doing something similar this next season, and so far I have been unable to get any answers at all.... I've told them that I am ready to switch my triple play business over to them in a second if someone can assure me that they will carry the Blazer HD games next season. Nobody can tell me anything. I can't even get them to agree to allow me to get out of the one-year commitment without the $150 penalty if I switch over and then they don't. I want to switch right now, but unless someone can tell me definitively that they will indeed host the HD games somewhere, there's no way in hell I'm moving. In the meantime I'm getting screwed by Comcast because unless I agree to their TWO YEAR commitment they will not give me the same low rate I had up until a month or so ago... :( Now with the season being over I'm sure they won't receive any complaints until next fall so they will just figure out of sight, out of mind... If anybody knows of any Verizon contacts that might be influential at all, please post them up so I can pester them incessantly :D


ron

If this is truley a 'must have' for you I would NOT switch until you can see the games phyiscally on TV. I got screwed by Comcast as I was promised that the MLB Extra Innings would be available to me just as it was on Comcast. Well, we're 3 weeks into the season and guess what? Nothing, not even a timeline. It's garbage!

There is no such channel (CSN-HD). Comcast Sportsnet Northwest is only offered in SD. With Comcast, when the Blazers have their games available in HD, they stick them on the MOJO+ HD channel. I've been bugging everyone I can think of at Verizon to find out if they will start doing something similar this next season, and so far I have been unable to get any answers at all.... I've told them that I am ready to switch my triple play business over to them in a second if someone can assure me that they will carry the Blazer HD games next season. Nobody can tell me anything. I can't even get them to agree to allow me to get out of the one-year commitment without the $150 penalty if I switch over and then they don't. I want to switch right now, but unless someone can tell me definitively that they will indeed host the HD games somewhere, there's no way in hell I'm moving. In the meantime I'm getting screwed by Comcast because unless I agree to their TWO YEAR commitment they will not give me the same low rate I had up until a month or so ago... :( Now with the season being over I'm sure they won't receive any complaints until next fall so they will just figure out of sight, out of mind... If anybody knows of any Verizon contacts that might be influential at all, please post them up so I can pester them incessantly :D


ron

This channel CSNHD is available in several east coast Verizon markets as a regional sports network option. For whatever reason, Verizon just chose not to add it when they initially added CSN, but I'm guessin' that next year's basketball season would make more sense the way the Blazers finished this season and with the additions of Rudy Fernandez and Greg Oden, more people will be clamoring to see the Rose Garden rocking in glorious HD if they can't make it to the game.

So I had my FiosTV installed the other day, during which the tech mentioned that we would be seeing more HD channels sometime in August/September here in Portland. Not sure about the validity of that statement, as it's definitely farther off than VZ's previously mentioned date of "Spring"... but for anyone wondering, that's what I was told.

This channel CSNHD is available in several east coast Verizon markets as a regional sports network option. For whatever reason, Verizon just chose not to add it when they initially added CSN, but I'm guessin' that next year's basketball season would make more sense the way the Blazers finished this season and with the additions of Rudy Fernandez and Greg Oden, more people will be clamoring to see the Rose Garden rocking in glorious HD if they can't make it to the game.

Perhaps our pleas for acquiring CSN HD on Verizon would be better directed to the Blazers' front office to exert the pressure on what is becoming a major carrier in the Blazer market. Verizon locally seems to be governed by their corporate strategy in making more HD channels available here.

Toward the end of the game in Phoenix Mike and Mike alluded to viewers having more access to Blazer telecasts next year. While I don't read HD into that statement it might lead to that if non-KGW games are available OTA through some outlet.

At the least, I would expect to see more Blazer games in HD on TNT, ABC and ESPN next season given their team improvement this year and a healthy Greg Oden in the mix.

Perhaps our pleas for acquiring CSN HD on Verizon would be better directed to the Blazers' front office to exert the pressure on what is becoming a major carrier in the Blazer market. Verizon locally seems to be governed by their corporate strategy in making more HD channels available here.

Toward the end of the game in Phoenix Mike and Mike alluded to viewers having more access to Blazer telecasts next year. While I don't read HD into that statement it might lead to that if non-KGW games are available OTA through some outlet.

At the least, I would expect to see more Blazer games in HD on TNT, ABC and ESPN next season given their team improvement this year and a healthy Greg Oden in the mix.


They're saying national broadcasts as well as more customers able to get CSN, no matter who they have for cable/satellite.

This channel CSNHD is available in several east coast Verizon markets as a regional sports network option. For whatever reason, Verizon just chose not to add it when they initially added CSN, but I'm guessin' that next year's basketball season would make more sense the way the Blazers finished this season and with the additions of Rudy Fernandez and Greg Oden, more people will be clamoring to see the Rose Garden rocking in glorious HD if they can't make it to the game.Sorry, I thought you were asking when CSNNW HD was going to be added... I was listening to the Blazers Courtside radio program last week and they had Mike Golub on who he responded to a question saying that it looked like there has been some movement between Comcast and D*/E* regarding carriage of CSNNW. Didn't say anything about HD though...

ron

I had the triple play installed in January. The guy at the kiosk in Washington Square where I signed up said I was eligible for a program where I would get either a $200 Best Buy gift card or free 19" LCD TV and to expect a letter in three to four weeks. After six weeks I called and inquired. They told me to call the promotions center. She took my information. It's now eight weeks later and I still haven't received anything, so I called the promotions center and they told me to call the billing people (could this organization be any more disfunctional?) and the billing people said they transferred it to the escalations department.

This is making me remember why I dumped Verizon for Comcast, and why when my two year agreement is up I'll probably do so again.

Has anyone who signed up for the triple play received their promotional offer?

Sorry, I thought you were asking when CSNNW HD was going to be added... I was listening to the Blazers Courtside radio program last week and they had Mike Golub on who he responded to a question saying that it looked like there has been some movement between Comcast and D*/E* regarding carriage of CSNNW. Didn't say anything about HD though...

ron


I was referring to CSN NW and it being in HD according to the article at the link below (3rd paragraph down)...in the Oregonian last December.

http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/119752173392270.xml&coll=7

Thought I would write up what I have found out about how Comcast and Verizon broadcast their DIGITAL SD signals. It's not what you'd expect! (I'm posting this in both Comcast and Verizon-FIOS forums.)

I am presently a Comcast Cable subscriber, with Extended Basic analog service. But, as many have reported here, there are "hidden" digital channels on their cable that are free of encryption -- mostly local broadcast channels. Examples: In Tigard, PBS-HD is on 14.13, KGW-HD is on 8.1 and 91.7, and KOIN-HD is on 6.1 and 80.63. Obviously, since these are inherently digital-only broadcasts, the source must be digital; and so, if you compare the OTA signals with what is on cable, they are identical in every detail. (Yes, I also have a UHF antenna hooked up.) Of course additional HD compression could be applied by Comcast, but I haven't seen evidence of it yet.

But what about SD? Some shows are not available except in standard-def at 4:3, and in 2009 these, too, will likely migrate to digital. So what's available now?

Important examples are:

KOPB on 10 analog OTA and cable, 10.2 on OTA digital, and 109.12 on digital cable.

KOIN on 6 analog OTA and cable, 6.2 on OTA digital, and 106.4 on digital cable.

The OTA digital broadcasts are spectacular in quality, with few artifacts, great color, and excellent black level. One would expect the digital signal on cable to be the same, right? Just pass on an already-digital feed.

Well, it most certainly is NOT the same. I have a calibrated Sony 36" CRT set with full digital capability, and the quality of different broadcasts is readily apparent. I was watching 109.12 for KOPB-SD, thinking this was as good as digital-SD was going to be -- and then on a whim I checked the antenna feed of same (10.2). I was shocked: The OTA signal was far superior in color, detail, and freedom from video artifacts (e.g. ringing). What the hell was Comcast sending out?

I checked KOIN; same thing! 106.4 resembled the analog-cable 6, not the 6.2 OTA digital signal. 6.2 was gorgeous!

I am now suspecting that, unless pressured to do so, Comcast has found it more economical to just do a quickie A/D conversion on the signal they're already paying for (analog) and sending that out as digital. I haven't converted to their Digital package, but I can't help but believe that they are broadcasting their own converted signal, not the stations' original digital feed, and hoping no one notices. Now I wonder about the many other analog-cable channels I now take for granted. I doubt that I would get the best-quality digital signal available -- the stations' originals.

I am also a Verizon FIOS customer; I have the 15/2 Mbps Internet package, and am very pleased with it. I am considering Verizon's own "triple-play" package, adding a phone package and the TV service.

So I called Comcast (Beaverton; nice folks) and Verizon (Seattle; nice folks). It took a while to get the tech-person in Beaverton to understand what I was asking: What feed(s) do you use for your digital-SD broadcasts? (You might be surprised to know that this Comcast rep acknowledged the "secret" channels.) I also asked the same of a Verizon tech guy.

The Bottom Line: Looks like Comcast does NOT use a station's digital feed unless it is the ONLY feed. Took a lot of back-and-forth with the patient and friendly Comcast rep, but this is what I came away with. Of course, as the stations kill off their analog feeds in the future, this will doubtless change. But right now it looks like I would get second-rate quality for digital-SD broadcasts that also originate as analog.

In contrast, Verizon assured me that, since their whole system -- acquisition and distribution -- is digital-only, they use the digital feed wherever it is available. The rep on the phone even made a quickie call to one of the video engineers, confirming this. He specifically assured me that KOIN and KOPB digital feeds were their sole sources for those broadcasts. Good enough for me!

Would I now consider upgrading my Comcast Extended Basic service to one of the digital packages? Not on your life! Especially now that I hear read the increasing compression artifacts for their HD feeds and their well-publicized struggle to cram more HD stations into their existing limited bandwidth. Never mind the misleading claims about also having an "optical-fiber network," that doesn't solve the problem of the copper "last mile."

As soon as I get up the nerve, I will go for a Verizon FIOS-TV package. (There seems to be a new offer every three weeks or so.) No matter what glitches are being reported by the current FIOS-TV customers, I suspect Verizon will be a much better investment, especially given the huge bandwidth right to my home. I'll trust that the glitches reported here will be resolved.

Note: I have NO financial or other interest in these companies, except that they have served me well so far. I'm trying to make the best choice, here, and I've gotten this far with my inquiries. Maybe other folks have things to add?

Ken Peterson
Tigard

I was referring to CSN NW and it being in HD according to the article at the link below (3rd paragraph down)...in the Oregonian last December.

http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/119752173392270.xml&coll=7You said that for some reason Verizon decided not to add it when they initially added CSNNW. The reason they didn't add it is because as of now, there is no such channel :). Not even on Comcast who owns CSNNW... Hopefully one of these days they will add a HD version of the channel. Right now I'd just be happy to have some one at Verizon confirm to me that they will be finding a way to host the HD Blazer games on any HD channel for next season :D.


ron

Thought I would write up what I have found out about how Comcast and Verizon broadcast their DIGITAL SD signals. It's not what you'd expect! (I'm posting this in both Comcast and Verizon-FIOS forums.)

I am presently a Comcast Cable subscriber, with Extended Basic analog service. But, as many have reported here, there are "hidden" digital channels on their cable that are free of encryption -- mostly local broadcast channels. Examples: In Tigard, PBS-HD is on 14.13, KGW-HD is on 8.1 and 91.7, and KOIN-HD is on 6.1 and 80.63. Obviously, since these are inherently digital-only broadcasts, the source must be digital; and so, if you compare the OTA signals with what is on cable, they are identical in every detail. (Yes, I also have a UHF antenna hooked up.) Of course additional HD compression could be applied by Comcast, but I haven't seen evidence of it yet.

But what about SD? Some shows are not available except in standard-def at 4:3, and in 2009 these, too, will likely migrate to digital. So what's available now?

Important examples are:

KOPB on 10 analog OTA and cable, 10.2 on OTA digital, and 109.12 on digital cable.

KOIN on 6 analog OTA and cable, 6.2 on OTA digital, and 106.4 on digital cable.

The OTA digital broadcasts are spectacular in quality, with few artifacts, great color, and excellent black level. One would expect the digital signal on cable to be the same, right? Just pass on an already-digital feed.

Well, it most certainly is NOT the same. I have a calibrated Sony 36" CRT set with full digital capability, and the quality of different broadcasts is readily apparent. I was watching 109.12 for KOPB-SD, thinking this was as good as digital-SD was going to be -- and then on a whim I checked the antenna feed of same (10.2). I was shocked: The OTA signal was far superior in color, detail, and freedom from video artifacts (e.g. ringing). What the hell was Comcast sending out?

I checked KOIN; same thing! 106.4 resembled the analog-cable 6, not the 6.2 OTA digital signal. 6.2 was gorgeous!

I am now suspecting that, unless pressured to do so, Comcast has found it more economical to just do a quickie A/D conversion on the signal they're already paying for (analog) and sending that out as digital. I haven't converted to their Digital package, but I can't help but believe that they are broadcasting their own converted signal, not the stations' original digital feed, and hoping no one notices. Now I wonder about the many other analog-cable channels I now take for granted. I doubt that I would get the best-quality digital signal available -- the stations' originals.

I am also a Verizon FIOS customer; I have the 15/2 Mbps Internet package, and am very pleased with it. I am considering Verizon's own "triple-play" package, adding a phone package and the TV service.

So I called Comcast (Beaverton; nice folks) and Verizon (Seattle; nice folks). It took a while to get the tech-person in Beaverton to understand what I was asking: What feed(s) do you use for your digital-SD broadcasts? (You might be surprised to know that this Comcast rep acknowledged the "secret" channels.) I also asked the same of a Verizon tech guy.

The Bottom Line: Looks like Comcast does NOT use a station's digital feed unless it is the ONLY feed. Took a lot of back-and-forth with the patient and friendly Comcast rep, but this is what I came away with. Of course, as the stations kill off their analog feeds in the future, this will doubtless change. But right now it looks like I would get second-rate quality for digital-SD broadcasts that also originate as analog.

In contrast, Verizon assured me that, since their whole system -- acquisition and distribution -- is digital-only, they use the digital feed wherever it is available. The rep on the phone even made a quickie call to one of the video engineers, confirming this. He specifically assured me that KOIN and KOPB digital feeds were their sole sources for those broadcasts. Good enough for me!

Would I now consider upgrading my Comcast Extended Basic service to one of the digital packages? Not on your life! Especially now that I hear read the increasing compression artifacts for their HD feeds and their well-publicized struggle to cram more HD stations into their existing limited bandwidth. Never mind the misleading claims about also having an "optical-fiber network," that doesn't solve the problem of the copper "last mile."

As soon as I get up the nerve, I will go for a Verizon FIOS-TV package. (There seems to be a new offer every three weeks or so.) No matter what glitches are being reported by the current FIOS-TV customers, I suspect Verizon will be a much better investment, especially given the huge bandwidth right to my home. I'll trust that the glitches reported here will be resolved.

Note: I have NO financial or other interest in these companies, except that they have served me well so far. I'm trying to make the best choice, here, and I've gotten this far with my inquiries. Maybe other folks have things to add?

Ken Peterson
Tigard

Ken,

Great write up and way to do your homework. As an ex-Comcast customer and a current Verizon FiOS customer I can only say one thing - call NOW! I couldn't be happier with the switch. I get soooooo much more and the HD content appears better to my eyes. The current SD content - apples to oranges - Verizon is the way to roll.....

As an ex-Comcast customer and a current Verizon FiOS customer I can only say one thing - call NOW! I couldn't be happier with the switch.Thank you for the compliment! I sorta wish I had jumped at the first "deal" in what? January? Three-year lock-in of $105/month. Oh, well.

The present deals for $110 and one year look just fine, and I don't care about the upsell perks (HBO, Movies). I guess it will come to about $150/month when the deal expires, right? Waiting longer likely will not net a better deal, and I am getting hot to trot since I researched this and did those experiments.

Got a couple of analog sets in other rooms used for news while eating, etc. I guess one has to get a converter box to feed them, right? I presume there will be an RF output so I can use one box to convert for two sets (kitchen, dining room).

Or can one pick up SD channels from the Verizon house-coax with any fully-digital TV? (My Big Set has a CableCard slot, but small sets do not.) Don't need HD in the kitchen!

Just got the first FIOS "Triple freedom" bill and thought to share with the forum members a couple of strange charges that appeared and see if you have seen these as well.

1) Under "Voice additional services" is a $95 charge for "Install/Rewire one jack." The installer did not touch any of the phone jacks in the house, simply lifted the headset and informed me that there is dial tone!

2) under "TV additional Services" is a $54.99 charge for "Outlet Installation." All the installer did was hook up the FIOS DVR to the existing coax outlet (used to be for Comcast), no installing or rewiring of any jacks!

Look forward to hearing your stories before calling the infamous FIOS billing dept.

Just got the first FIOS "Triple freedom" bill and thought to share with the forum members a couple of strange charges that appeared and see if you have seen these as well.

The only thing odd about my billing was that my agreement said I'd be charged a $19.99 'activation' fee for the internet service, and when I got my bill it was $29.99. I called them and they took the extra $10 off without hassle.

I'm far more annoyed by what I consider the bait-and-switch that I'm getting over the $200 Best Buy gift card I was promised.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=13708946#post13708946

The only thing odd about my billing was that my agreement said I'd be charged a $19.99 'activation' fee for the internet service, and when I got my bill it was $29.99. I called them and they took the extra $10 off without hassle.

I'm far more annoyed by what I consider the bait-and-switch that I'm getting over the $200 Best Buy gift card I was promised.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=13708946#post13708946

I paid no installation or activation fees. Nor did I get any bonuses. I was already a 3-service user (land line, wireless and internet) and just added TV. The tech did need to bring in coax from the ONT and terminate the old Comcast line so there was a bit of work done (last Nov.) but my status as a FiOS internet user mainly, I think, caused me not to pay additional charges. I don't think I paid any installation for the original hookup for the internet connection a year and a half ago, either. That was a big promo in those days right after the fiber was laid.

Thanks for your comments regarding the billing charges. I called Verizon and they said they will issue credit for two of the charges, and will place the $95 charge "in dispute" pending a final resolution, whatever that means. I was warned to watch the subsequent bills for possible reappearance of charges!

I suppose this is part of the growing pains of phone company trying to become a cable TV company as well.

Thanks for your comments regarding the billing charges. I called Verizon and they said they will issue credit for two of the charges, and will place the $95 charge "in dispute" pending a final resolution, whatever that means. I was warned to watch the subsequent bills for possible reappearance of charges!

I suppose this is part of the growing pains of phone company trying to become a cable TV company as well.


Although it may be new to our area, Verizon FIOS and FIOS TV has been around (Texas?) for a while now.

This is what is holding us back. We have FIOS Phone/Internet and every month our bill is different! They fix it when we call and then have to call back the next Month.

I also wonder about the FIOSTV HD. Is there as much as on Comcast and is it a higher quality?

This guy says the FIOS HD quality is better and he's got captures to prove it...
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1008271
I guess it depends on when Comcast starts compressing in the PDX area. Maybe they already are.


A few posts back, someone said the SD programming is digital all the way on FIOS, but on Comcast they may be taking analog feeds and converting them to digital. So it depends on the quality of the Comcast analog feed - and their encoding quality.

Comcast has more On Demand and some of it in HD. FIOS has no HD On Demand yet in PDX. Assuming it's kept up to date, this posting has all the poop on who has what channels in HD: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1016467

Although it may be new to our area, Verizon FIOS and FIOS TV has been around (Texas?) for a while now.

This is what is holding us back. We have FIOS Phone/Internet and every month our bill is different! They fix it when we call and then have to call back the next Month.

I also wonder about the FIOSTV HD. Is there as much as on Comcast and is it a higher quality?

Quantity-wise, Comcast will have more HD channels (in a few days), until FIOS catches up sometime this summer. I am enjoying HDNet and HDNet Movies quite a bit (not available on Comcast). FIOS TV's guide is not, IMO, as good as Comcast when it comes to updated information about the shows. There have been many frustraing instances that the guide simply puts out "generic" info about upcoming programs rather than specifics of the episodes.

I have found the PQ quality of FIOS to be better than Comcast, notably on SD channels (such as Fox Soccer Channel, one of my faves).

Thanks, all:

I will look into this again as my free HBO ends May 1st on Comcast.

Thanks, all:

I will look into this again as my free HBO ends May 1st on Comcast.

An upcoming rate increase (by Verizon) may figure into your plan. :(

Check the link:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showpost.php?p=13763621&postcount=6317

An upcoming rate increase (by Verizon) may figure into your plan. :(

Check the link:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showpost.php?p=13763621&postcount=6317


Well, they may just price themselves out!
I need to call CCast today about my HBO.

Not sure when it showed up, but it was there this weekend. Most of it consists of pay-per-view HD movies and events, but there is some free stuff.

Not sure when it showed up, but it was there this weekend. Most of it consists of pay-per-view HD movies and events, but there is some free stuff.
Yes I believe it showed up last Tuesday. Oregon was the last Verizon market to get it :p but at least we have it now :)

You can see the free HD VOD by going to VOD/Browse/High Defintion/Free (if I recall correctly).

Got a couple of analog sets in other rooms used for news while eating, etc. I guess one has to get a converter box to feed them, right? I presume there will be an RF output so I can use one box to convert for two sets (kitchen, dining room).

Or can one pick up SD channels from the Verizon house-coax with any fully-digital TV? (My Big Set has a CableCard slot, but small sets do not.) Don't need HD in the kitchen!

The RF output only works (well) on the non-DVR STBs if i recall correctly. Alternatively, Verizon's cheapest STB is the "digital adapter" at about $3.99/mo) which will get you ALL of your subscribed channels but no VOD/IMG/Widgets or get an ATSC converter box (e.g. the ones you get with the gov't coupon) to get OTA digital broadcasts.

If your TV has a QAM tuner (different than an ATSC tuner so double-check your TV specs), then yes, you can get the unencrypted local SD channels, which are 2-49, 860, 865, the all-music channels, and the local high def channels (801-810 currently). You will not get anything else because they're all encrypted.

Cheers,
Darci

Two of my buddies are currently using TiVo HD's with FiOS and love it. I am using a Series3 TiVo with FiOS and loving it.

Saw the Fry's ad today has TiVo HD's for $199 ($100 instant rebate). If you're sitting on the fence about a TiVo HD and cablecards for FiOS, this may give you a little nudge...Mother's Day/Father's Day gifts as well...and no, I neither work for TiVo, nor Fry's, nor Verizon.

Patiently awaiting new/additional HD channels from Verizon,

jtrain

Two of my buddies are currently using TiVo HD's with FiOS and love it. I am using a Series3 TiVo with FiOS and loving it.

Saw the Fry's ad today has TiVo HD's for $199 ($100 instant rebate). If you're sitting on the fence about a TiVo HD and cablecards for FiOS, this may give you a little nudge...Mother's Day/Father's Day gifts as well...and no, I neither work for TiVo, nor Fry's, nor Verizon.

Patiently awaiting new/additional HD channels from Verizon,

jtrain



I think it's going to be a few more months before we get more HD channels. Still can't wait and am loving the better PQ over DirecTV and Comcast. Surprisingly enough, DirecTV wants me back, I get calls or letters at least twice a week from them. :)

If you're sitting on the fence about a TiVo HD and cablecards for FiOS, this may give you a little nudge.
I'm not sure it's enough of a nudge if all I want is basic service. Most of the HD programs I would watch are on local channels.

I have a TiVo HD which I use for basic service from Comcast, $10/mo. They give me one cablecard free, the second is $2/mo.

I think the cheapest FiOS is something like $13/mo or $16/mo for basic service. I don't know the exact price because it's too hard to navigate thru the Verizon pages to find the cheap price.

Plus Verizon charges something like $4/mo for each cablecard. Which means that that FiOS TV is roughly twice as expensive for basic service as Comcast.

But that's just me. Most people will spring for a more expensive package. I won't for now since my DirecTiVos are dirt cheap compared to replacement TiVo HD boxes with cablecards.

of a nudge for me to purchase one...between a BB price match and a 12% off coupon, I walked out of the store with it for $175...will be replacing an unused Series2 on month-to-month $6.95 contract.

I'm not sure it's enough of a nudge if all I want is basic service. Most of the HD programs I would watch are on local channels.

I have a TiVo HD which I use for basic service from Comcast, $10/mo. They give me one cablecard free, the second is $2/mo.

I think the cheapest FiOS is something like $13/mo or $16/mo for basic service. I don't know the exact price because it's too hard to navigate thru the Verizon pages to find the cheap price.

Plus Verizon charges something like $4/mo for each cablecard. Which means that that FiOS TV is roughly twice as expensive for basic service as Comcast.

But that's just me. Most people will spring for a more expensive package. I won't for now since my DirecTiVos are dirt cheap compared to replacement TiVo HD boxes with cablecards.

So it sounds to me that you have both Comcast and DirecTV? If not, what do the DirecTiVo's have to do with this discussion?

So it sounds to me that you have both Comcast and DirecTV? If not, what do the DirecTiVo's have to do with this discussion?
Sorry for my rambling post. Yes I have both Comcast and DirecTV. The reason I mentioned DirecTV is to explain why I was only paying for the cheapest cable service, instead of something like "Digital Cable'' which is what many people have. Not that most people care for additional details, but just in case someone is bored ...

I have 4 active SD DirecTiVos. The monthly cost is what makes this cheap compared to anything from Comcast or Verizon. DirecTV charges $6/mo per household for TiVo service plus $5/mo for each additional receiver. So in my case I have 4 active dual-tuner DirecTiVos for an additional cost of 6+3*5= $21/mo. And the boxes were cheap to buy, only $100 ea.

So, since most of the HD programming I want to watch is still coming from the networks, I just have the cheapest Comcast service ($12/mo including cablecards) with a TiVo HD. It's actually only costing me $2/mo because of the game that Comcast plays where they give you $10/mo discount on Internet if you get cable.

The original point I was trying to make in my previous message is that Verizon is not competitive with Comcast for this very cheap service. Unless we start talking about things like "triple play". But that's for another day!

Sorry for my rambling post. Yes I have both Comcast and DirecTV. The reason I mentioned DirecTV is to explain why I was only paying for the cheapest cable service, instead of something like "Digital Cable'' which is what many people have. Not that most people care for additional details, but just in case someone is bored ...

I have 4 active SD DirecTiVos. The monthly cost is what makes this cheap compared to anything from Comcast or Verizon. DirecTV charges $6/mo per household for TiVo service plus $5/mo for each additional receiver. So in my case I have 4 active dual-tuner DirecTiVos for an additional cost of 6+3*5= $21/mo. And the boxes were cheap to buy, only $100 ea.

So, since most of the HD programming I want to watch is still coming from the networks, I just have the cheapest Comcast service ($12/mo including cablecards) with a TiVo HD. It's actually only costing me $2/mo because of the game that Comcast plays where they give you $10/mo discount on Internet if you get cable.

The original point I was trying to make in my previous message is that Verizon is not competitive with Comcast for this very cheap service. Unless we start talking about things like "triple play". But that's for another day!

Seems awfully redundant to have both services, sure you might be saving a few bucks with the SD DirecTiVo's but you could put up an antenna and get the local channels in HD with your TiVo HD and save yourself the $12.00 a month for Comcast. Probably make back your money within a half a year if not earlier.

you could put up an antenna and get the local channels in HD with your TiVo HD and save yourself the $12.00 a month for Comcast.
I actually have a 2nd TiVo HD, getting OTA only, but it's upstairs in a bedroom that has near LOS to the towers. Great reception, even in rain, using a Silver Sensor sitting on a table.

I haven't wanted to deal with the hassles of getting an OTA signal to the TiVo HD in my family room. Because of multipath I've given up on using an indoor antenna in that room.

If TiVo networking were faster I could even just use the downstairs unit as a streamer to get files from upstairs. But when I try that I average only about 1/4 of real-time speed. Even under the best of conditions the TiVo HD boxes don't go much faster than 20 mbps, and they are much slower using wireless.

Anyone heard about any new channels coming soon? I find that the best source of information are the Verizon installers themselves, but I haven't talked to one in a while.

I've heard as early as late June, or as late as August/September. Not sure what to make of it, but I will be seeing an installer on Saturday, and I'll be sure to ask him/her. Having two cablecards installed in my new TiVoHD.

UPDATE:

Installer had no news on forthcoming HD channels at all...and I did not get the distinct impression he was holding out on me either, he honestly didn't know and didn't want to make an uneducated guess.

I've got the FIOS triple (land line, TV, Internet) deal. Every couple of months I get an automated email telling me to pay my Internet bill or the Internet will be turned off. I called Verizon back in October of ‘07 to tell them what's going on, because I pay a Verizon bill every month and my account it up to date. They agreed that my account was in good standing and said not to worry about it. I got the email again recently and called them today, 5/21/08, just to be sure all is well. Upon a closer look at the actual bill (downloaded from their site) and together with a Verizon customer service agent we only see phone and TV on the bill -- no Internet.

They research the issue and tell me that I'm all paid on all three services and to ignore the emails. I guess what happens is I pay the bill for phone and TV service to one office, and that office pays the Internet service office.

So, it appears I'm getting free Internet service for now. Of course, my concern is that they back bill me in the future. I expressed that concern to them. They told me that if they did back bill me they would work with me to reduce the back amount owed because they would argue that even though it was an issue on their end, at the end of the day I have been receiving the service, thus I should pay for it.

Can you believe this? Has anyone else had this issue? I asked them if any other customers are experiencing this and they said, "No" (with a, not rude, but “yeah right” laugh to go along with it).

Can you believe this? Has anyone else had this issue? I asked them if any other customers are experiencing this and they said, "No" (with a, not rude, but “yeah right” laugh to go along with it).

I've gotone of the "pay your bill or we'll shut you off" letters just 3 DAYS after my bill's due date for the current month. They must have mailed it before the bill was even due.

I have 3 years of excellent payment history with all payments posted within a few days of the printed due date. I also called, because I was PO'd about the notice and asked what was up, and they stated that I was current and shouldn't have received that notice. There was no explanation for it.

Given their previous problems with simply getting FIOS TV orders processed properly in their computer systems, I'm not too worried about it, but it indicates that there are problems in paradise still. It's damn annoying.

I hate to say it but Verizon found a way to make Comcast look good! We switched to FIOS but not TV yet. Their billing dept has no idea of what is going on and each month we get a different bill amount! We have Internet and phone.

Verizon billing has problems. I have tried to combine my TV and Internet bills into one for the past 6 months and they still can't get it right!

Is it my imagination, or is the same programming appearing on both channels 836 "HD Theater" and 846 "Discovery HD"?

Who does one call/email at Verizon to complain about something like this, ask questions, or request an additional channel? Anyone have a success story?

BTW, I'm a recent FIOS-TV new customer. So far, so good. Only complaint: The SD quality is significantly lower coming from the Motorola box than from the CableCard internal to my calibrated Sony TV. Wish I could choose higher quality and put in a larger hard drive than 160GB. Not many options available.

Neither the Digital Adapter (STB "lite") nor the HD recorder from Moto ever turn off. The off button simply changes the display. Moto box draws a fixed 31 watts, the smaller adapter 7. So much for Energy Star compliance!

You're new to this DVR craze aren't you?

You're new to this DVR craze aren't you?
How'd you guess? I've had Comcast analog cable for years and have been getting the free HD channels OTA and from the same cable as open-QAM channels. I'm very new to having a DVR, although I understand pretty much how they work. I'm not upset that the unit won't turn off; that's how it remains logged into the Verizon system. I just think it's stupid to put a button on it that says "off."

In order that you can pause and review "live" TV, the signal you watch from the box has to be the one already compressed for recording to the internal hard drive. I'm troubled that there is not choice to view really directly the tuned-in video (but not compressed). I guess that would show just how bad the picture is when compressed that far. Most folks, of course, think that the SD from the box is all there is. Tsk.

An SD program recorded to the box's hard drive is inferior to an SVHS tape of same. Too bad there doesn't seem to be a way to get the direct video to the VCR. (The S-video output from the box is the same compressed video. Believe it or not, HD programming is also output there -- down-converted to SD. Better quality than received SD, but way coarser than the HD equivalent. Lower quality than a DVD, too.)

As long as the distribution companies monopolize the translator boxes (except for $$ TiVo), there are no choices.

I am very pleased to have that CableCard and recommend it to anyone who has the slot in their TV. With it, the inherent quality of the SD video being carried by Verizon is generally exquisite. Comcast, on the other hand, is simply converting the analog signal of some SD channels to digital, even though those stations originate a high-quality digital signal. KOIN and KOPB are prime examples. Best SD i can imagine on Verizon; hideous on Comcast.

*******
My bad re: the "identical DSC-HD channels" comments I made just above. Serves me right for trusting TitanTV, who do now show the correct programming for HDT, Ch.836. They rarely get OPB-HD right, either.

Cable cards rock with the HD TiVo's. The regular DVR's from Motorola suck for both Comcast and Verizon.

Interesting news over in the Verizon Programming MASTER TOPIC Thread for the Oregon Market and addition of HD Channels...

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=14006350#post14006350

within that post is a link to a PDF of the new line-up for what looks like early July '08.
some very nice additions if accurate.

I was looking for info on new channel lineup for FiOS.

My office is next to the FiOS head-end in Hillsboro, and a dumpster has been filling with empty boxes from newly installed equipment. There was quite a bit. I figured an expansion of capability was underway, and the posting saved me from having to analyze the recovered residue of "dumpster diving" :)

Thanks!

If that list is true, I am definitely making the switch to FiOS TV this summer.

Better be sending out new channel lineups to every subscriber...500's now for local HD channels.

I did notice too that with the new HD locals being in the low 500's that FOX is moving from 801 to 512.

When looking at the guide on the TiVo, I never really saw KPTV on the screen above KATU and just below the PPV channel. Smart to at least change to a channel number that ended in 12.

There's a lot of HD coming our way!

Wonder if they'll send a separate mailing with the new channel lineup, or will it be in the next bill? I'm ready for more HD!

yeah, I'm not sure on the notification requirements (or if it's even the same for Verizon) as it would be for Comcast, etc.

I guess we'll know in the first half of July, one way or the other, if the channels actually start showing up.

One means we know for sure they won't use is the STB message system. :rolleyes: I don't think they've figured that out yet.

Just got FiOS TV a couple days ago. Superior picture quality vs. Comcast. Very noticeable on my smaller HD sets. Only complaint, where are my HD VOD for subscribed movie channels? For example Starz HD VOD or Encore HD VOD, etc. Comcast had these options and I did use them. Wish I had them back but I won't trade PQ and cost for it. Waiting for even more HD channels.

Just got FiOS TV a couple days ago. Superior picture quality vs. Comcast. Very noticeable on my smaller HD sets. Only complaint, where are my HD VOD for subscribed movie channels? For example Starz HD VOD or Encore HD VOD, etc. Comcast had these options and I did use them. Wish I had them back but I won't trade PQ and cost for it. Waiting for even more HD channels.


So, with all the billing issues and lack of some HD, is everyone glad they switched from Comcast to FIOSTV?

I have FIOS Internet but kept Comcast TV. I sure am sick of these Comcast HD DVR's but I am not sure that Verizon is any better in that regard. They keep saying that FIOS TV is less expensive than Comcast, but I just do not see it. Also, they have been saying for a long time now that HD streaming from HD DVR's from room to room is going to be available "real soon now". So far you still can not get that. I was also told that when I signed up I should get 5/2 as I would get a free upgrade to 15/2 when TV was added. That, too, is not true.

I did not think anyone could make Comcast look good, but at least Comcast never switched me all over the place with no one able to help much. Just try to get someone who even knows what you are talking about when you ask them about removing almost all of the Newsgroups! When my FIOS Internet stopped working they said they would be out within 48 hours! I called 2 or 3 times and got the same story. I called later at night and the guy looked and saw a switch was disabled and he called a friend while I was on the phone and told me to try again! It then worked.

So, I guess what I am asking is this...for those who did go to the triple package and got FIOSTV, would you still do it all over again and why. Also, how does the channel lineup compare.

P.S. Is there still a Kiosk at Tanasbourne? I just get a recording no matter when I call them.

[QUOTE=mpsan;14131466]So, with all the billing issues and lack of some HD, is everyone glad they switched from Comcast to FIOSTV?

Here's my quick take on the switch from C* to V* (regarding TV service only).

1) The HD-DVR is similar to C* Motorolla DCT series, and has its own set of problems. My major gripe is that some programming info. is either generic description of shows, or don't reveal much abut the current episode at all. Had to call tech support to remind them that the Euro 2008 soccer schedule was known months in advance, and their version of guide still shows "no info. available" for prelim. matches. After a day or two, the guide info got corrected. On a positive note, the DVR has active 30-second skip forward (and backward) buttons! Hard drive is the same 160-gig max. you'll find with C*'s.

2) Getting to tech support through their voice-prompted phone maze is not fun. C* was clearly superior, since you could talk to someone at the local office. V* sends you a generic e-mail which has absolutely nothing to do with the issue you had called them about!

3) On the positive side, the PQ of the SD channels are much better than C*, and HD signal is "slightly" better, although I have not seen the latest C*'s 3 ch/QAM HD offerings.

4) Billing is a well known issue. My first three bills had errors, and I'm hoping the 4th month will be error free, not fun.:(

5) Lack of some HD channels should be rectified fairly soon (July 21 is what we hear). However, availability of HD-Net and HDNet-Movies makes up for the loss, somewhat.:)

For me it is a close call between the two. I'll give V* the benefit of the doubt, given that it is a relatively new service and is offered by what used to be a regional phone company now trying to be a cable video service. I suspect the growing pains will continue for a while longer. At the end of my one year contract, I will definitely re-evaluate the situation, but haven't regretted the decision to switch...yet!

So, with all the billing issues and lack of some HD, is everyone glad they switched from Comcast to FIOSTV?

I have FIOS Internet but kept Comcast TV. I sure am sick of these Comcast HD DVR's but I am not sure that Verizon is any better in that regard. They keep saying that FIOS TV is less expensive than Comcast, but I just do not see it. Also, they have been saying for a long time now that HD streaming from HD DVR's from room to room is going to be available "real soon now". So far you still can not get that. I was also told that when I signed up I should get 5/2 as I would get a free upgrade to 15/2 when TV was added. That, too, is not true.

I did not think anyone could make Comcast look good, but at least Comcast never switched me all over the place with no one able to help much. Just try to get someone who even knows what you are talking about when you ask them about removing almost all of the Newsgroups! When my FIOS Internet stopped working they said they would be out within 48 hours! I called 2 or 3 times and got the same story. I called later at night and the guy looked and saw a switch was disabled and he called a friend while I was on the phone and told me to try again! It then worked.

So, I guess what I am asking is this...for those who did go to the triple package and got FIOSTV, would you still do it all over again and why. Also, how does the channel lineup compare.

P.S. Is there still a Kiosk at Tanasbourne? I just get a recording no matter when I call them.


5/2 will be upgraded to 10/2 within the next month as well.

Thank you both. Regarding the 10/2 is that something I will just see? I saw the announcement and one way to read it is that 10/2 will be the starting point for NEW Customers.

Also, I have the 30 second skip now on Comcast as I programmed it in.

Nope, anyone who has 5/2 will be updated or upgraded, whichever way you want to look at it.

Nope, anyone who has 5/2 will be updated or upgraded, whichever way you want to look at it.

Great, although some on dslreports say that you have to call them for the free upgrade.

Still not sure when. Someone said June 23rd, but that was not for our area.